This enormous structure — presumably future retail space — is one of three buildings that have recently taken shape on the former site of the long-stalled Cobblestone Estates development at the edge of the desolate little neighborhood known as "the Hole". When we were last in the area in February 2013, there was nothing to be seen here but mounds of rubble.

The home of the Federation of Black Cowboys is located at the intersection of two high-traffic urban thoroughfares: Conduit Avenue and Linden Boulevard. But the place manages to maintain some rustic charm nonetheless. In keeping with the federation's goal of shining a light on the forgotten history of the black cowboy, this wooden pasture fence running along the edge of the property features the names of many notable black figures from the Old West (as well as a couple who weren't black and a few from more recent times).

The names found on the fence are: Mary (Ellen) Pleasant, Grant Johnson, Frank E. Webner, Marvel Rogers, Isaiah Mays, George Goldsby, Bud Ledbetter, Bass Reeves, Mary Fields, Nat Love, the Buffalo Soldiers, James Beckwourth, Fred Whitfield, and Ben "Tex" Miller.

This is the entrance to Cedar Lane Stables, the home of the Federation of Black Cowboys. As far as I can tell, the stables are currently unoccupied after being shut down by the city in 2013 pending renovations.

This is the home of the Sheepshead Bay United Methodist Church, originally known as the Sheepshead Bay Methodist Episcopal Church. It was built in 1884 by John Y. McKane (formerly John McCain), the tyrannical "autocrat of Gravesend"*. By 2011, the steeples had become structurally unsound, and it looked like tearing them down was going to be the only affordable solution for the dwindling congregation. The necessary permits for demolition were acquired from the city, but the company hired to do the work backed out. A second contractor then came in and convinced the church that it would actually be cheaper to fix the steeples than to remove them. The first step was to stabilize them with cables, which are visible in the photo above.

* Not to be confused with The Autocrat of Flapjack Junction.

UPDATE: This statue stands in the yard of an Uzbek immigrant who sculpted its pedestal by hand with the help of a Turkish neighbor.

This peculiar house has an almost identical neighbor.

in the driveway beside the aforementioned boat house