Revolutionary War Sites of Brooklyn
Battle Pass in Prospect Park
Now North Drive (and the site of multiple monuments) in Prospect Park, Battle Pass (also known as “Flatbush Pass”) was one of the more significant locations in the Battle of Brooklyn, the largest battle of the entire war, which is also sometimes dubbed “The Battle of Long Island” or “The Battle of Brooklyn Heights.” Here, a group of American soldiers (this was in August of 1776, not long after the Declaration of Independence had been signed) led by General John Sullivan were overrun and surrounded by Hessian troops, but not before cutting down an entire tree to block the roadway on Flatbush (the tree, or the “Dongan Oak,” has its own monument elsewhere in the park). The fight was far from a success—troops who didn’t manage to escape were mostly surrounded by German soldiers in the woods and bayoneted, and Sullivan himself was captured—but is considered important strategic groundwork for American tactics that eventually (spoiler) won the war.