Jackie Robinson: My New York

Back in 1947, age 28, Jackie Robinson started at first base for the Brooklyn Dodgers and instantly entered the history books, breaking baseball’s color barrier by becoming the first African-American to play in the modern-day majors. A new movie, “42,” opening Friday, dramatizes his life and struggle. The Post consulted with Jonathan Eig, author of “Opening Day: The Story of Jackie Robinson’s First Season,” for some local Robinson landmarks. This is Jackie Robinson’s New York.


1. Robinson’s Brooklyn apartment, 526 MacDonough St., between Ralph and Patchen avenues, Bed-Stuy

“They [Robinson, his wife and their baby son] didn’t even have their own bathroom or kitchen [here in 1947]. They had a tiny bedroom for the three of them, and [the landlady] Mabel Brown was always entertaining men. They felt like they couldn’t even leave the room. They were reluctant to sign a year’s lease on their own apartment, because The Dodgers could say after a day or a week that it wasn’t working out, and they’d be out. And Jackie was paid at or near the minimum.”

2. Brooklyn Dodgers office, formerly at 215 Montague St., at Cadman Plaza, Brooklyn

Inside a now-demolished office building, in 1945, Dodgers president/GM Branch Rickey signed Robinson, breaking baseball’s color barrier. Robinson was chosen as much for his character as his talent. “Rickey famously asked him if he could handle the abuse and if he could agree not to fight back, and Robinson, who was very much pugnacious, promised that he would turn the other cheek and take whatever abuse came his way.”

3. Ebbets Field, formerly at 55 Sullivan Place, Flatbush, Brooklyn

“When he stepped onto that ball field on April 15, 1947, everything changed. The makeup of the crowd was different from any other opening day. There were way more black people in the stands, and whites noticed the balance had been tipped, and it made some of them uncomfortable. For Robinson, it was a make-or-break moment. If there was rioting in the stands or on the field, the experiment would have been over. But it was Brooklyn, and Brooklyn was open to different kinds of people. I’m not sure it would have worked as well in St. Louis or even in The Bronx. Fans were passionate about their team, and the color blue was perhaps more important than the color of a player’s skin. It was a place where baseball came first.”

4. Orange Blossom Inn, formerly on Ralph Avenue, Bed-Stuy

This soul-food restaurant was one of Robinson’s favorites. It was run by an ex-Army cook who served brisket, fried chicken and steaks. When the Robinsons came in, the restaurant would be overrun with gawkers. The owner used to offer to close the place, just for the Robinsons — an offer they sometimes accepted.


5. Hotel McAlpin, formerly at 50 W. 34th St., at Broadway

“Robinson stayed here when he first arrived [from AAA Montreal Royals] for the start of the 1947 season. He, his wife and their baby boy were all staying in one room: Room 1169, and didn’t go out much. They had a hot plate to cook their food and to warm the baby bottles. When reporters showed up [to interview him], the family would shove their stuff under their bed. While he was attracting all this attention, he was living in modest conditions.”

6. Chock Full o’ Nuts headquarters, 425 Lexington Ave., at 44th Street

In 1956, Robinson began mulling retirement. His hitting average was down, and he’d lost some of his passion for the game. So when coffee giant Chock Full o’ Nuts offered him a job as VP of personnel, he signed up. On the same day, he got a phone call from the Dodgers, notifying him that he’d been traded to the Giants. Chock Full o’ Nuts offered to let him continue playing baseball, but Robinson opted to retire from the game. “He wanted to prove he could do a job outside of baseball. He was excited to be attached to a big company, rising through the ranks. He was very proud of his time there.”

7. The previous Penn Station, Eighth Avenue and 31st Street

“When the Dodgers won the pennant in ‘47, there was a big celebration at Penn Station. They’d won on the road [in Pittsburgh], and so when they came back, there was a massive crowd of people to greet them. Robinson stopped to call his wife in a phone booth and couldn’t get out, he was so mobbed. He needed police protection to get from the phone booth to the subway, and all these fans just rode with him on the subway to keep him company. It was a beautiful scene.”

8. Freedom National Bank, formerly at 275 W. 125th St., between Seventh and Eighth avenues

In 1964, Robinson helped found this bank, and served as chairman until his death in 1972. It gave loans to minorities who often had trouble securing money from established names. It was the first black-owned bank in New York. However, it suffered from red ink, and by 1974, more than $2 million of the bank’s $19 million portfolio needed to be written off as losses. It finally closed in 1990.


9. Robinson’s house, 112-40 177th St., between Murdock and Sayres avenues, St. Albans, Queens

“After MacDonough St, Robinson and his family moved to this house. By then, he had a better contract and he had some confidence that he’d be around for a while. Players didn’t often change teams, so they felt comfortable buying their own home. Back then, players took the subway to work, and they weren’t such big stars. Robinson was making similar money [to his neighbors] on this block. A few years later, he moved to Stamford, Conn.”

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