Posts Tagged ‘Marion Duckworth Smith’

Ascenzi Square: Sons of Williamsburgh: The Family History of a Neighborhood Landmark

Ascenzi-Sq-and-Metropolitan-Street-Sign-1
September 10, 2015 – January 10, 2016
Opening Reception: September 13, 2015, 3 – 6 PM (light refreshments)

Steps from The City Reliquary sits Ascenzi Square, an unassuming wedge of green space at the intersection of North 4th Street, Metropolitan Avenue, and Roebling Street. This site is often passed over in the daily chaos of the city. Few people use the sidewalk around the space, which is often blocked from view by a car service lineup and ambulances from EMS Station 35. Yet it is a living tribute to the patriotism and sacrifice of four sons of Williamsburgh: the Ascenzi brothers who fought in World War I. Of the four, only two came home.

The City Reliquary will chronicle the Ascenzi family and Ascenzi Square through photographs and artifacts loaned by Marion Ascenzi Duckworth Smith, daughter to one of the surviving Ascenzi brothers, Charles. In illustrating the history of the memorial and the family it honors, the exhibit aims to illuminate an obscure part of Williamsburgh history. Curated by Marion Ascenzi Duckworth Smith, a native of Williamsburgh. She now lives in the Lent-Riker-Smith Homestead, the oldest inhabited dwelling in New York City.

Exhibition Images:



The front room of the Reliquary will display “Tower Records” during this time. The closing reception for the current Community Collections display, “Joseph Kopitz’s Souvenir Buildings“, will also occur on Sept. 13.