During the areas heyday as a shipping neighborhood, Italian immigrants sought out the tree lined, quiet streets and their influence is still strong. The sound of conversations in Italian still ring out from the groups of residents who gather on their stoops most nights during warm weather.

     The area gained notoriety with the release of "Moonstruck," set in Cammareri Brothers Bakery on Henry Street. Starring Nicholas Cage as one of the brothers, and Cher, the movie captured the Italian feel of the neighborhood. Unfortunately, Cammareri's is gone and the area is becoming less Italian. But, the businesses are unique and wonderful.

     During Christmas, Easter and Halloween, First Place in Carroll Gardens has become one of the city's destinations, as residents decorate their yards with a myriad of elaborate displays. On Good Friday, St. Stephens Church (built in 1860) sponsors a processional through the streets that is not to be missed.

Carroll Gardens was once full of rooftop pigeon coops; Now, Noel is one of the last keepers of a rooftop pigeon coop in the neighborhood. At one time, there were so many coops in the area, the sky would fill with birds. Take a look at this unique story.

     Carroll Park features sports fields (albeit paved), a beautiful water spray area for kids with posts that mark a compass and the streets of the area, and the famous Carroll Gardens Rock, (a glacier boulder) uncovered on Clinton Street during the replacement of the sewer lines and transported to the park as a neighborhood landmark.

     Local legends abound on Mafia involvement in the neighborhood. In 1918, Al Capone's marriage ceremony took place at St. Mary's Star of the Sea Church on Court Street. And the Gowanus Canal, a waterway that separates Carroll Gardens from Park Slope, is thought to contain many hidden answers to Mob disappearances.