The origins of the Brooklyn Navy Yard, officially known as the New York Naval Shipyard, date back to 1801, when the United States Navy acquired what had previously been a small, privately owned shipyard in order to construct naval vessels. During the Civil War, the Navy Yard employed about 6,000 people. By 1938, it provided jobs for over 10,000 people. The Navy Yard was decommissioned in 1966 and sold to the City of New York. The Naval Hospital Annex section remained under the juristiction of the U.S. Navy until 2003, which the Annex was transferred to the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation.
The Brooklyn Navy Yard was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2014. A redevelopoment and expansion of manufacturing in the Navy Yard began in 2001. A Letter of Agreement signed by the New York State Historic Preservation Office and the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation requires the creation of reports documenting structures before demolition.