Easy maritime access to the fine, sheltered New York Harbor has been instrumental in making Brooklyn one of the busiest ports in the United States, especially for international trade. Among the major imports are raw sugar, coffee, cacao, and spices, most of which are processed here before being transported elsewhere. Manufactures are diversified and include metal products, machinery, textiles, clothing, paper products, and electrical goods. Other important industrial activities include construction, transportation, and finance. Brooklyn is linked to Manhattan across the East River by the Brooklyn Bridge (1883), the Manhattan Bridge (1909), the Williamsburg Bridge (1903), and the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel (1950), as well as by several subway tunnels. It is linked to Staten Island across the Narrows of New York Bay by the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge (1964).

Brooklyn occupies a generally low and flat terrain. It has at least 28 geographical neighborhoods, many of which grew around early villages of the same name. Among the residential areas are the attractive Brooklyn Heights on a bluff overlooking the East River; Park Slope; Flatbush; Crown Heights; Bedford-Stuyvesant; and the seaside community of Coney Island. The principal business district is located in the western part of the borough between Brooklyn Heights and Flatbush Ave. Borough Hall (built 1846-1848) is the nucleus of this area, which is also the site of many of the borough’s other major public buildings.

The borough has an extensive system of parks and recreational areas totaling some 4,170 acres. Most notable is Prospect Park; a landscaped area of broad drives and wooded hills, it contains a restored (1912) carousel and the Lefferts Homestead (1783), a Dutch colonial farmhouse. Part of the Gateway National Recreation Area is located along the Atlantic coast here; it includes Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. Other major parks are Brooklyn Marine Park on Jamaica Bay and Dyker Beach Park, which adjoins Fort Hamilton, a United States Army reservation. The beaches and amusement area of Coney Island are also well known.

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