Long
Island City
Providing the spectacular
views of Manhattan's looming skyline, Long Island City
is known as a waterfront industrial complex that also
hosts a surprising variety of artistic communities and
educational institutions.
Astoria
Named after famed money
man John Jacob Astor, this area was once a retreat for wealthy
Manhattanites. Now known as a bastion for Greek culture,
Astoria is also home to the American Museum of the Moving
Image.
Sunnyside
An Irish community in the
19th Century, Sunnyside now is home to Koreans, Romanians,
Colombians and Chinese, and is also the site of the Thalia
Spanish Theatre.
Woodside
The
dense forests of Colonial times have been replaced by the dense
population of many of Queens' immigrants: Irish, Korean, Chinese,
Dominican and Indian.
Jackson
Heights
This
area is home to the largest Argentinean community in
New York City. Once subway service arrived in the Roaring
Twenties, the area quickly expanded around the commercial
street Northern Boulevard.
Corona
The "crown" of
Queens offers wonderful views of Flushing Meadows Corona Park,
and is the area where the Lemon Ice King ruled and jazz great
Louis Armstrong hung his hat.
Elmhurst
Settled by the British
in 1652, Elmhurst is one of Queens oldest towns. Its former
groves of elm trees have now given way to a rich and diverse
multiethnic population.
Rego
Park
This
area is home to LeFrak City, the huge apartment complex
alongside the Long Island Expressway. The area was formerly
cultivated by reclusive Chinese farmers who sold provisions
in Chinatown.
Ridgewood
The
Onderdonk House is the sole surviving farm house representative
of the area's agrarian roots. The Ridgewood Multiple Resources
Area, with its 2980 buildings, is designated the largest Historic
District in the nation.
Glendale
This
area was populated with single family houses and farms. Then
it transformed itself into a bustling economic hub, with studios
for silent movies, breweries and textile factories.
Middle
Village
This
area, in the middle of Metropolitan Avenue, is the final
resting home of many who built their lives and were laid
to rest in Queens.
Forest
Hills
This
well known area boasts a quaint English countryside ambiance
because of its beautiful tree-lined streets and distinctive
architecture.
Kew
Gardens
The
Queens Borough President has its office in Borough Hall,
conveniently located in Kew Gardens.
Woodhaven
- Richmond Hill
This former enclave
of Irish and Italian immigrants now is home to many from
Latin America and the Caribbean, and has retained many
elegant structures from the turn of the 20th century.
Flushing
The
current home of many Asian immigrants, Flushing's original
immigrants were settlers from England and northern Europe in
the 1600s. Flushing's Town Hall is an excellent example of
bygone architecture. The oldest house of worship in New York
City, the Quaker Friends Meeting House, was erected here in
1694.
College
Point
This area along the
northern edge of Queens holds the lovely MacNeill Park,
a tranquil waterfront area near the landmark Poppenhusen
Institute.
Whitestone
Settled
before the Revolutionary War, this area has parks and waterfront
views, as well as the Whitestone Bridge leading to the Bronx.
Bayside
A
haven for film stars of the 1920s and 1930s, the area holds
mansions and homes representative of that time. Bayside is
also home to Fort Totten, a former military fortification,
which is now houses the Bayside Historical Society.
Douglaston
A
lovely point surrounded by water, beaches and hills, this area
is home to the Alley Pond Park and the Alley Pond Environmental
Center. Down the road in Floral Park is the Queens County Farm
Museum, the oldest working farm in New York City.
Jamaica
This
is the geographic center of Queens and one of the oldest towns
in the borough. It has a rich cultural history and is also
a hub for the Long Island Railroad (LIRR).
St.
Albans
East
of Jamaica, this primarily African-American community
is the former home of jazz superstars Lena Horne, Count
Basie and Fats Waller.
Ozone
Park - Howard Beach
This
area is home to Aqueduct Racetrack, the last remaining
venue for horse racing in New York City, and stretches
to the old fishing villages down by Jamaica Bay.
The
Rockaways
The beach communities
of the Rockaways offer a surfside existence near the
concrete jungle. It is home to the Jamaica Bay Wildlife
Refuge, part of the Gateway National Recreation Area. |
