How a 5,000-ton hotel performed the 19th century's largest building relocation

Cultures · Published 1 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Long before it became the Russian-speaking enclave known as Little Odessa, Brighton Beach was the site of a staggering engineering feat. In 1888, facing coastal erosion, engineers moved a massive hotel across railroad tracks, using hydraulic jacks and steam locomotives to save a seaside landmark.

In the 1/2 of the 1870s, Brighton Beach was established as a summer resort, named in homage to the English seaside city. Built by William A. Engeman, the Brighton Beach Hotel was a massive undertaking, capable of hosting 5,000 guests nightly and serving 20,000 meals every day. However, the seaside stability of the area was threatened in December 1887, when an extremely high tide surged inland, temporarily connecting Sheepshead Bay to the ocean and leaving the shoreline vulnerable to erosion.

To prevent the hotel from being washed away, railway officials J.L. Morrow and E.L. Langford orchestrated a plan that became the largest building relocation of the 19th century. Starting on April 2, 1888, the estimated 5,000-ton structure was lifted using 13 hydraulic jacks. Engineers then laid 24 lines of railroad track, totaling a mile and a half, beneath the elevated building. Using 112 railroad platform cars and six steam locomotives, the entire hotel was moved 495 feet inland over a period of nine days.

While the era of grand hotels eventually faded—the Brighton Beach Hotel closed in 1924 after the expansion of the subway made overnight stays less necessary—the neighborhood underwent a profound cultural transformation. Following the mid-1970s, a wave of Soviet immigration turned the area into 'Little Odessa.' Today, the neighborhood is a dense, vibrant community of Russian, Ukrainian, and Central Asian immigrants, characterized by its unique linguistic landscape and a population where nearly 36% of residents do not speak English.

The area's history is a complex layering of migrations, from the 1645 purchase of the land from Native Americans to the influx of Holocaust survivors and post-Soviet citizens. While it has faced periods of economic hardship and crime, it remains a significant cultural hub, home to institutions like the Brighton Ballet Theater and a destination for New York City residents seeking the Atlantic coastline.

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