The New Utrecht Liberty Flagpole in Bensonhurst remains a raised symbol of freedom and self-determination. The current 106-foot structure is the sixth replacement of the original pole, erected in 1783 at the same historic location after the Revolutionary War. Townspeople used the pole as a visible act of independence and a taunt toward departing British troops. Historians connect liberty poles to efforts by the Sons of Liberty to assert American control, while British forces repeatedly cut down earlier poles. The New Utrecht pole is described as the last liberty pole still standing in its original spot in the city. An annual Liberty Day event includes programming at the nearby New Utrecht Dutch Reformed Church.
"In the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn, the New Utrecht Liberty Flagpole continues to be raised in ceremonies that echo the earliest days of the United States. The current structure is the sixth replacement of the original pole, standing 106 feet tall in the same historic location it was erected at the end of the Revolutionary War in 1783."
"Historians say the original Liberty Pole was erected as British forces withdrew from New York following their defeat in the Revolutionary War, a symbolic act meant to assert American independence and taunt departing troops. Forni described the history of these poles as the fight for American independence raged on."
"“During the war, the Sons of Liberty tried to put up poles and the British kept chopping them down,” Forni said. According to Keith Muchowski, a librarian and professor of history at CUNY NYC College of Technology, the pole in New Utrecht carried particular importance for local residents."
"“The townspeople were going to 'stick it' to the British and so they put up a large symbolic pole that you can see from far away,” Muchowski said. “This is the last liberty pole that stands in the original spot,” he said of its unique status among Revolutionary War landmarks in the city."
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