Glendale is a neighborhood in the west-central portion of the

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle A ...

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

. It is bounded by Forest Hills to the east, Ridgewood to the west, Woodhaven to the south, and Middle Village to the north. Glendale was built on a swampy area previously called Fresh Pond. The neighborhood was later developed into an industrial area, though it is now a more residential neighborhood. Glendale's land area is long on its east-west axis and narrow on its north-south axis. The area is surrounded mainly by cemeteries, although the neighborhood also contains several large parks, including part of Forest Park. Glendale is located in Queens Community District 5 and its ZIP Code is 11385. It is patrolled by the

New York City Police Department The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...

's 104th Precinct. Politically, Glendale is represented by the New York City Council's 30th District.

Boundaries

Glendale is bordered to the north by a section of the

Montauk Branch The Montauk Branch is a rail line owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. The branch runs the length of Long Island, 115 miles (185 km) from Long Island City on the west to Montauk on the east. Howe ...

of the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) in the western portion (Lower and Middle Glendale), and by Cooper and

Metropolitan Avenue Metropolitan Avenue is a major east-west street in Queens and northern Brooklyn, New York City. Its western end is at the East River in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and the eastern end at Jamaica Avenue in Jamaica, Queens. The avenue was constructe ...

s in the eastern portion (Upper Glendale). To the east, the border is the

Rockaway Beach Branch The Rockaway Beach Branch was a rail line owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in Queens, New York City, United States. The line left the Main Line at Whitepot Junction in Rego Park heading south via Ozone Park and across Jamaica ...

of the LIRR, as well as

Woodhaven Boulevard Woodhaven Boulevard and Cross Bay Boulevard (formerly Jamaica Bay Boulevard) are two parts of a major boulevard in the New York City borough of Queens. Woodhaven Boulevard runs roughly north–south in the central portion of Queens. South o ...

. Forest Park, along with the

Jackie Robinson Parkway The Jackie Robinson Parkway is a parkway in the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. The western terminus of the parkway is at Jamaica Avenue in the Brooklyn neighborhood of East New York. It runs through Highland Park, along the ...

and a number of contiguous cemeteries, creates the southern and western borders; the borough line with

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

runs through the cemeteries on the western part of the southern border. Glendale's borders are completed from the southwest (from Cooper and Wyckoff Avenues) by the

Bay Ridge Branch The Bay Ridge Branch is a rail line owned by the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and operated by the New York and Atlantic Railway in New York City. It is the longest freight-only line of the LIRR, connecting the Montauk Branch and CSX Transporta ...

of the LIRR and Fresh Pond Road from Myrtle Avenue to the

BMT Myrtle Avenue Line The Myrtle Avenue Line, also called the Myrtle Avenue Elevated, is a fully elevated line of the New York City Subway as part of the BMT division. The line is the last surviving remnant of one of the original Brooklyn elevated railroads. The rem ...

right-of-way.

History

The land comprising present-day Glendale was originally named Fresh Pond, a swampy area that was part of a area collectively called Newtown. The town of Newtown had been chartered by the Dutch West India Company in 1642. In turn, Fresh Pond was originally named for two freshwater ponds that, in the early 1900s, were filled in.

19th century

In 1847, New York State's

Rural Cemetery Act The Rural Cemetery Act was a law passed by the New York Legislature on April 27, 1847, that authorized commercial burial grounds in rural New York state. The law led to burial of human remains becoming a commercial business for the first time, re ...

ended the creation of any new cemeteries in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

. Cemetery owners were encouraged to build in Brooklyn and Queens. Glendale quickly became almost encircled by cemeteries being located in what is called the "

Cemetery Belt The Rural Cemetery Act was a law passed by the New York Legislature on April 27, 1847, that authorized commercial burial grounds in rural New York state. The law led to burial of human remains becoming a commercial business for the first time, re ...

". In 1860, developer George C. Schott was given a large amount of land in Fresh Pond as repayment for a debt. Schott renamed Fresh Pond after his native

Glendale, Ohio Glendale is a village in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,155 at the 2010 census. It is a northern suburb of Cincinnati, and is the site of the Glendale Historic District. Geography Glendale is located at (39.271258, ...

. Nine years later, John C. Schooley, a real estate agent, bought a substantial amount of property and also called it Glendale. Schooley laid out streets and divided his property into 469 lots, measuring , which he then sold off for $300 each. In 1869, a railroad stop at 73rd Street (then named Wyckoff Avenue) was opened by the South Side Railroad, which was sold in 1874 to the North Side Railroad, which then was merged into the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) in 1876, becoming part of the

. In 1927, the station burned down and was never replaced. The area became a thriving

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

farming community in the 19th century. Between the 1880s and

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Glendale also had many sources of entertainment. It had a

bowling alley A bowling alley (also known as a bowling center, bowling lounge, bowling arena, or historically bowling club) is a facility where the sport of bowling is played. It can be a dedicated facility or part of another, such as a clubhouse or dwelling ...

at Myrtle Avenue and 73rd Street; Cooney Herman’s Saloon; Liberty Park; Louis Hellen’s Saloon and picnic grove at Cooper Avenue and 73rd Street; and a trolley along Union Turnpike that ran to Schutzen Park. Development began along Myrtle Avenue, Glendale's main thoroughfare, as many family-run stores began opening and steam powered trolleys were introduced on "The Avenue" in 1891.

20th century

After World War I, Glendale's economic base shifted from farming to

textile Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...

s and breweries. The largest employer was the Atlas Terminal, a vast industrial park, consisting of 16 factories. Because of the skilled work force living in the area and the many small machine shops located here, Glendale played a big part in the war effort during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

and, especially in the

Manhattan Project The Manhattan Project was a research and development undertaking during World War II that produced the first nuclear weapons. It was led by the United States with the support of the United Kingdom and Canada. From 1942 to 1946, the project w ...

, which produced the first atomic bombs. During World War II, most of the aircraft and military equipment made on Long Island was shipped by rail through this area. Meanwhile, new housing was being developed in the area as well; by 1937, the neighborhood's sole extant farm was being developed as housing. Between 1933 and 1936, the Interborough (now Jackie Robinson) Parkway, designed by New York City parks commissioner Robert Moses, was built through Glendale, displacing hundreds of bodies buried in the Cypress Hills Cemetery. The parkway, strongly opposed by residents of neighborhoods surrounding Forest Park, displaced Riebling’s Greater New York Park and Casino, and necessitated the redesign of the Forest Park Golf Course. Originally, Ridgewood and Glendale shared ZIP Code 11227 with Bushwick. Following the 1977 blackout, the communities of Ridgewood and Glendale expressed a desire to disassociate themselves from Bushwick. Residents voted on a proposal to create a new ZIP Code, and a majority of votes were cast in favor of the proposal. The communities were given the ZIP Code 11385 in 1980. By the 1980s, Glendale was known as one of the quieter neighborhoods in New York City. Despite disrepair and crime being prevalent in other sections of the city, ''The New York Times'' reported in 1986 that "the graffiti, litter and potholes familiar to most New Yorkers are all but unknown in Glendale's three square miles." The area was mostly middle-class with well-maintained housing stock, and had one of the lowest crime rates in New York City, but lacked a major community hub. In 1998, service to the Glendale LIRR station was discontinued. The station suffered from low ridership and inability to operate with the C3 bi-level coaches, which can stop only at stations with high level platforms. This station had only two riders daily at the time of its closure.

21st century

At the beginning of the 21st century, some of Glendale's industrial buildings were redeveloped. Atlas Terminal was demolished in 2004 and replaced by a shopping center called The Shops at Atlas Park, which opened in April 2006. In other parts of Glendale, companies such as

Trader Joe's Trader Joe's is an American chain of grocery stores headquartered in Monrovia, California. The chain has over 569 stores across the United States. The first Trader Joe's store was opened in 1967 by founder Joe Coulombe in Pasadena, Californi ...

and

Chili's Chili's Grill & Bar is an American casual dining restaurant chain. The company was founded by Larry Lavine in Texas in 1975 and is currently owned and operated by Brinker International. History Chili's first location, a converted postal statio ...

took over former industrial buildings In 2012, all passenger service on the Lower Montauk Branch was discontinued. However, freight trains still operate, although in recent years, controversy over trains transporting

radioactive waste Radioactive waste is a type of hazardous waste that contains radioactive material. Radioactive waste is a result of many activities, including nuclear medicine, nuclear research, nuclear power generation, rare-earth mining, and nuclear weapons r ...

through the community has arisen. All goods shipped by rail with a destination on Long Island (Brooklyn, Queens and Nassau and Suffolk counties), must come through the Fresh Pond/Fremont Yards, located in Glendale, which is the crossroads of the LIRR Montauk Branch, the

(which serves the docks and float barges in

Sunset Park, Brooklyn Sunset Park is a neighborhood in the southwestern part of the borough of Brooklyn in New York City, bounded by Park Slope and Green-Wood Cemetery to the north, Borough Park to the east, Bay Ridge to the south, and Upper New York Bay to the ...

), the

Bushwick Branch The Bushwick Branch, also called the Bushwick Lead Track, is a freight railroad branch in New York City. It runs from Bushwick in Brooklyn to Fresh Pond Junction in Glendale, Queens, where it connects with the Montauk Branch of the Long Islan ...

and the

New York Connecting Railroad The New York Connecting Railroad or NYCR is a rail line in the borough of Queens in New York City. It links New York City and Long Island by rail directly to the North American mainland. Amtrak, CSX, Canadian Pacific Railway, Providence a ...

, which connects them all to the rest of the country by traveling north to Selkirk, New York, and across the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

and west. The biggest product currently shipped from here is municipal waste and construction and demolition debris.

Demographics

Based on data from the

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servi ...

, the population of Glendale was 32,496.Table PL-P5 NTA: Total Population and Persons Per Acre - New York City Neighborhood Tabulation Areas*, 2010
, Population Division -

Department of City Planning, February 2012. Accessed June 16, 2016. The racial makeup of the neighborhood was 61.4% (19,793)

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 1.2% (384)

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.2% (67) Native American, 3.1% (1,004) Asian, 1.0% (5)

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 0.2% (78) from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 0.9% (310) from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 33.4% (10,855) of the population.Table PL-P3A NTA: Total Population by Mutually Exclusive Race and Hispanic Origin - New York City Neighborhood Tabulation Areas*, 2010
, Population Division -

Department of City Planning, March 29, 2011. Accessed June 14, 2016. The entirety of Community Board 5, which comprises Maspeth, Ridgewood, Middle Village, and Glendale, had 166,924 inhabitants as of NYC Health's 2018 Community Health Profile, with an average life expectancy of 81.4 years. This is about equal to the median life expectancy of 81.2 for all New York City neighborhoods. Most inhabitants are youth and middle-aged adults: 22% are between the ages of 0–17, 31% between 25–44, and 26% between 45–64. The ratio of college-aged and elderly residents was lower, at 8% and 13% respectively. As of 2017, the median

household income Household income is a measure of the combined incomes of all people sharing a particular household or place of residence. It includes every form of income, e.g., salaries and wages, retirement income, near cash government transfers like food stamp ...

in Community Board 5 was $71,234. In 2018, an estimated 19% of Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth residents lived in poverty, compared to 19% in all of Queens and 20% in all of New York City. One in seventeen residents (6%) were unemployed, compared to 8% in Queens and 9% in New York City. Rent burden, or the percentage of residents who have difficulty paying their rent, is 46% in Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth, lower than the boroughwide and citywide rates of 53% and 51% respectively. Based on this calculation, , Maspeth, Ridgewood, Middle Village, and Glendale are considered to be high-income relative to the rest of the city and not

gentrifying Gentrification is the process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more affluent residents and businesses. It is a common and controversial topic in urban politics and planning. Gentrification often increases the ec ...

Neighborhood

Glendale, a part of

Queens Community Board 5 The Queens Community Board 5 is a local government in the New York City borough of Queens, encompassing the neighborhoods of Ridgewood, Glendale, Middle Village, Maspeth, Fresh Pond, and Liberty Park. surrounded by Forest Hills, Ridgewood, Woodhaven, Middle Village, and

Kew Gardens Kew Gardens is a botanic garden in southwest London that houses the "largest and most diverse botanical and mycological collections in the world". Founded in 1840, from the exotic garden at Kew Park, its living collections include some of the ...

. The neighborhood is somewhat suburban in feel although it still is served by the subway and buses. Its-tree lined streets contain many different architectural styles. Compared to most other Queens neighborhoods, Glendale is long and narrow since it is essentially sandwiched by cemeteries and Forest Park. As a result, it is considered to have three areas: from east to west, they are Upper Glendale, Middle Glendale, and Lower Glendale. Each area has its own unique attributes. The easternmost portion near the Shops at Atlas Park is known as Upper Glendale and in general has more expensive homes and slightly higher income levels than the rest of Glendale. Upper Glendale has detached and semi-attached single- and two-family houses of above-average size, semi-detached wood frame houses and a number of brick townhomes with often meticulously maintained grassy front yards. Many of these were built after the 1920s. The middle portion of Glendale that straddles Myrtle Avenue is the primary business district and has a mix of semi-detached, wood frame, single-family houses as well as a number of multi-family dwellings and townhomes. The housing stock here often dates back to the late 1800s/early 1900s and as a result, a significant number of them are made of yellow Kreischer brick much like similar, landmarked buildings in neighboring Ridgewood. The western or "lower" part of Glendale has three national

historic districts A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from cer ...

and includes the neighborhoods of Evergreen (near and around Evergreen Park) and Liberty Park, which is bordered by Cypress Hills Street, Cooper Avenue, 61st Street and cemeteries to the south. Like most of Glendale, Evergreen is relatively flat. It has mostly late 1800s/early 1900s semi-detached, multi-family, wood frame houses and a significant number of townhomes made of yellow Kreischer brick again similar to landmarked buildings in neighboring Ridgewood. In contrast, Liberty Park, developed in the 1920s, is built on the north slope of a hill and is dominated by detached single-family, wood-frame houses with private driveways and backyards.

Architecture

In the lower portion of Glendale, three national historic districts were listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1983. These are the 75th Avenue-61st Street Historic District, Central Avenue Historic District and Cooper Avenue Row Historic District. Each of these districts contains significant numbers of early 20th century buildings made with the distinctive yellow Kreischer brick.

Cemetery Belt

Within Glendale's

, there are numerous cemeteries that surround Glendale. ''The New York Times'' wrote in 1986 that "there are more tombstones in Glendale ..than living residents," with 40,000 graves at the time In 2011, the ''Times'' described the cemeteries as "a natural fence" that helped retain Glendale's middle-class reputation. The cemeteries include Cypress Hills, Lutheran All Faiths, Salem Fields, Mount Lebanon, Mount Carmel, New Mount Carmel, Beth El (New Union Field), Mount Neboh, and Union Field. Some of these cemeteries are the resting places of many famous people, including Jackie Robinson,

Mae West Mae West (born Mary Jane West; August 17, 1893 – November 22, 1980) was an American stage and film actress, playwright, screenwriter, singer, and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned over seven decades. She was known for her breezy ...

, and Harry Houdini, at whose tomb devotees gather each year on Halloween to see if he can pull off the ultimate escape trick and return from the grave. Cypress Hills Cemetery is the site of the New York City Police "Arlington" and also contains the graves of Confederate soldiers who died in local prisons and hospitals. It also was one of the earliest military cemeteries and its most unusual resident is a circus elephant.

Police and crime

Maspeth, Ridgewood, Middle Village, and Glendale are patrolled by the 104th Precinct of the

NYPD The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...

, located at 64-02 Catalpa Avenue. The 104th Precinct ranked 21st safest out of 69 patrol areas for per-capita crime in 2010. However, the precinct covers a large diamond-shaped area, and Maspeth and Middle Village are generally seen as safer than Ridgewood. , with a non-fatal assault rate of 19 per 100,000 people, Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth's rate of

violent crime A violent crime, violent felony, crime of violence or crime of a violent nature is a crime in which an offender or perpetrator uses or threatens to use harmful force upon a victim. This entails both crimes in which the violent act is the objecti ...

s per capita is less than that of the city as a whole. The incarceration rate of 235 per 100,000 people is lower than that of the city as a whole. The 104th Precinct has a lower crime rate than in the 1990s, with crimes across all categories having decreased by 87.4% between 1990 and 2018. The precinct reported 2 murders, 17 rapes, 140 robberies, 168 felony assaults, 214 burglaries, 531 grand larcenies, and 123 grand larcenies auto in 2018.

Fire safety

Glendale contains a

New York City Fire Department The New York City Fire Department, officially the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY), is an American department of the government of New York City that provides fire protection services, technical rescue/special operations services, ...

(FDNY) fire station, Engine Co. 286/Ladder Co. 135, at 66-44 Myrtle Avenue. In 1896, Glendale's first fire department, the Ivanhoe Park Hose Company, a volunteer fire company, was established. It was funded by Henry Meyer, a wealthy businessman, who owned a cigar factory, a lucrative holding of stocks, and a sizable amount of land, part of which would become the neighborhood of Liberty Park. The fire department's uniforms, a hose cart and the hose were subsidized by Meyer. He also undertook several construction projects, such as building pumping stations, to ensure water would be available anywhere along the major streets (i.e., Myrtle Avenue and Cypress Hills Street). Later that year, the first company was expanded with a hook and ladder and renamed Ivanhoe Fire Hook and Ladder Company and two months later became Company 10 in the Newtown Fire Department.

Health

preterm birth Preterm birth, also known as premature birth, is the birth of a baby at fewer than 37 weeks gestational age, as opposed to full-term delivery at approximately 40 weeks. Extreme preterm is less than 28 weeks, very early preterm birth is between 2 ...

s and births to teenage mothers are less common in Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth than in other places citywide. In Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth, there were 70 preterm births per 1,000 live births (compared to 87 per 1,000 citywide), and 17.6 births to teenage mothers per 1,000 live births (compared to 19.3 per 1,000 citywide). Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth have a low population of residents who are

uninsured Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to Hedge ( ...

. In 2018, this population of uninsured residents was estimated to be 13%, slightly higher than the citywide rate of 12%. The concentration of fine particulate matter, the deadliest type of

air pollutant Air pollution is the contamination of air due to the presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials. There are many different type ...

, in Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth is , more than the city average. Twenty percent of Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth residents are smokers, which is higher than the city average of 14% of residents being smokers. In Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth, 19% of residents are

obese Obesity is a medical condition, sometimes considered a disease, in which excess body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it may negatively affect health. People are classified as obese when their body mass index (BMI)—a person's we ...

, 7% are

diabetic Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...

, and 20% have high blood pressure—compared to the citywide averages of 22%, 8%, and 23% respectively. In addition, 19% of children are obese, compared to the citywide average of 20%. Ninety-two percent of residents eat some fruits and vegetables every day, which is higher than the city's average of 87%. In 2018, 78% of residents described their health as "good," "very good," or "excellent," equal to the city's average of 78%. For every supermarket in Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth, there are 5 bodegas. The nearest major hospital is

Elmhurst Hospital Center Elmhurst Hospital Center (EHC), also known as NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst, is a 545-bed public hospital in the Elmhurst neighborhood of Queens in New York City. It is one of the 11 acute care hospitals of NYC Health + Hospitals, a public ...

in Elmhurst.

Post office and ZIP Code

Glendale is covered by ZIP Code 11385. The

United States Post Office The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the ...

operates the Glendale Station at 69-36 Myrtle Avenue.

ZIP Code changes

Since at least 1898, when the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens were created as part of the

City of Greater New York The City of Greater New York was the term used by many politicians and scholars for the expanded City of New York created on January 1, 1898, by consolidating the existing City of New York with Brooklyn, western Queens County, and Staten Is ...

, Glendale and Ridgewood's postal mail had been routed through the main Brooklyn post office in Williamsburg, rather than the main post office in

Flushing Flushing may refer to: Places * Flushing, Cornwall, a village in the United Kingdom * Flushing, Queens, New York City ** Flushing Bay, a bay off the north shore of Queens ** Flushing Chinatown (法拉盛華埠), a community in Queens ** Flushin ...

, because they are located closer to Williamsburg. When ZIP Codes were assigned in 1963, the neighborhoods were assigned Brooklyn ZIP Codes with the 112 prefix, along with all areas whose mail was routed through a Brooklyn post office. This gave Glendale and Ridgewood a Brooklyn mailing address despite actually being located in Queens. The neighborhoods' ZIP Code of 11227 was shared with Bushwick, Brooklyn, as well as with Wyckoff Heights on the border of the two boroughs. After the 1977 New York City blackout, newspapers around the country published

UPI United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th c ...

and ''

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. ne ...

'' photos of Bushwick residents with stolen items and a police officer beating a suspected looter, and Bushwick became known for riots and looting. Afterward, the communities of Ridgewood and Glendale expressed a desire to disassociate themselves from Bushwick. Lee, Jennifer 8. (November 2, 2007).
Is Ridgewood the New East Bushwick?
". ''The New York Times''. Retrieved August 21, 2009. . Following complaints from residents,

Postmaster General A Postmaster General, in Anglosphere countries, is the chief executive officer of the postal service of that country, a ministerial office responsible for overseeing all other postmasters. The practice of having a government official responsib ...

William Bolger proposed that the ZIP Codes would be changed if

United States Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

Geraldine Ferraro Geraldine Anne Ferraro (August 26, 1935 March 26, 2011) was an American politician, diplomat, and attorney. She served in the United States House of Representatives from 1979 to 1985, and was the Democratic Party's vice presidential nominee ...

could produce evidence that 70% of residents supported it. After Ferraro's office distributed ballots to residents, 93 percent of the returned ballots voted for the change. The change to ZIP Code 11385 was made effective January 13, 1980. In 2007, there was a movement by Glendale residents to obtain their own ZIP Code since sharing a zip code with Ridgewood has caused many problems due to auto-fill features programmed into most computer databases. As a result, most Glendale residents receive mail addressed "Ridgewood" and have difficulties when arranging deliveries or hiring plumbers, electricians or contractors. The incorrect, misleading Ridgewood address causes many of them to go to the wrong location, since numbered roads in Queens are often broken into separate segments by barriers like railroad tracks, highways and cemeteries. In 2012, the quest to obtain a unique ZIP Code for Glendale was again brought to the forefront by Congressman Bob Turner and Assemblyman Mike Miller; the unused 11384 was suggested. This request was again denied by the Postal Service, although a compromise was offered under which the USPS modified its software to include "Glendale" as a preferred community name for the identified area. , this software modification by the USPS has not yet been updated in the City Map web site at NYC.gov, the city's official website, which still displays Queens community names based solely on names associated with ZIP Codes. As a result, addresses several miles away from Ridgewood, such as 80-00 Cooper Avenue ( The Shops at Atlas Park at 80th Street), 72-25 Woodhaven Boulevard (a

, Staples, and

Michael's Michaels Stores, Inc., more commonly known as Michaels, is a privately held chain of 1,252 American and Canadian arts and crafts stores, as of January 2021. It is one of North America's largest providers of arts, crafts, framing, floral and wall ...

location at

) and 75-11 Woodhaven Boulevard (a

Home Depot The Home Depot, Inc., is an American multinational home improvement retail corporation that sells tools, construction products, appliances, and services, including fuel and transportation rentals. Home Depot is the largest home improvement r ...

location behind 72-25 Woodhaven Boulevard) are listed by City Map as being in Ridgewood despite being located in Glendale, in Rego Park, or in Forest Hills.

Parks

Myrtle Avenue was greatly enjoyed for its parks, often frequented by picnickers. With the steam trolley running along the Avenue, several investors bought a total of of land in the eastern end of Glendale and opened a number of parks and beer gardens. In the 1890s, on the north side of Myrtle Avenue from what is now 83rd Street to Woodhaven Boulevard, Schmidt's Woods, Glendale Schuetzen Park, Greater New York Park and Casino, and Tivoli Park—all picnic parks—opened. On the south side of Myrtle Avenue from 88th Place to Woodhaven Boulevard were El Dorado Park, Emerald Park and Florida Park. These parks drew large crowds, not only from Glendale but from Eastern Brooklyn, where there were no proper parks at the time. One of the sections of Glendale, now known as "Liberty Park", is located on the site of a former beer garden of the same name. Another section of Glendale, adjacent to the LIRR Fresh Pond/Fremont Yards, was named after the Ivanhoe Park beer garden at that location. "Doddies", located at Cooper Avenue and 74th Street, was the last of the beer gardens, surviving into the late 1960s with an outdoor picnic area and the first neighborhood bar to have a television in the late 1940s or early 1950s. Redeemer Lutheran School occupies the site of "Hoffman Hall", a beer garden and dance hall. In the mid-1920s, the parks closed because they were unable to financially weather

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcohol ...

. From August 9, 1895 until 1898, one hundred and twenty-four parcels were bought for the new Forest Park, which is composed of many of these former picnic parks. Since Brooklyn and Queens were incorporated into New York City by the time all of the park's land was procured, the park's name was shortened from the original moniker of "Brooklyn Forest Park". A

bandstand A bandstand (sometimes music kiosk) is a circular, semicircular or polygonal structure set in a park, garden, pier, or indoor space, designed to accommodate musical bands performing concerts. A simple construction, it both creates an orname ...

built in Forest Park in 1898 preceded a

bandshell In theater, a shell (also known as an acoustical shell, choral shell or bandshell) is a curved, hard surface designed to reflect sound towards an audience. Often shells are designed to be removable, either rolling away on wheels or lifting into ...

built in 1920; for almost a century, George Seuffert Sr.—and later, his son, Dr. George F. Seuffert—played free concerts at the bandshell every weekend until the latter died in 1995. The bandshell is now for public use. Forest Park also has a public golf course, as well as horse riding trails (stables are located nearby, off the park grounds). Forest Park Drive, which runs throughout the park, is closed to vehicles from Woodhaven Boulevard to Metropolitan Avenue, making it a popular spot for skaters. Dry Harbor Playground, at Myrtle Avenue and 80th Street, opened in 1934. It has swings,

seesaw A seesaw (also known as a teeter-totter or teeterboard) is a long, narrow board supported by a single pivot point, most commonly located at the midpoint between both ends; as one end goes up, the other goes down. These are most commonly found a ...

s, a wavy

slide Slide or Slides may refer to: Places * Slide, California, former name of Fortuna, California Arts, entertainment, and media Music Albums * ''Slide'' (Lisa Germano album), 1998 * ''Slide'' (George Clanton album), 2018 *''Slide'', by Patrick Glees ...

, a

flagpole A flagpole, flagmast, flagstaff, or staff is a pole designed to support a flag. If it is taller than can be easily reached to raise the flag, a cord is used, looping around a pulley at the top of the pole with the ends tied at the bottom. The fla ...

, and a school

gym A gymnasium, also known as a gym, is an indoor location for athletics. The word is derived from the ancient Greek term " gymnasium". They are commonly found in athletic and fitness centres, and as activity and learning spaces in educational i ...

. It was created when Edward Bourcier gave away of his land as part of Forest Park. The playground also consists of an attached one-story house. In 1940–1, the property of PS 67, as well as an adjoining lot, became the location of the Glendale Playground at Central Avenue and 70th Street. The playground opened in 1942. In 1949, a former Minor League Baseball field at 65th Place named Farmers’ Oval after the Glendale Farmers Base Ball Club team, which had played at the field for half a century prior, was the site of a groundbreaking for a new park. In 1967, the park was officially renamed the Joseph F. Mafera Park, memorializing the late Queens Borough president. At Mafera Park, roller hockey can be played on the rink there. On the easternmost edge of Glendale, on the site between the train tracks of the Rockaway Beach and Montauk Branches of the LIRR where an old ice house once stood, is Seither Stadium, the home field of the Ridgewood, Glendale, Middle Village and Maspeth

Little League Little League Baseball and Softball (officially, Little League Baseball Inc) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization Jackie Robinson Parkway The Jackie Robinson Parkway is a parkway in the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. The western terminus of the parkway is at Jamaica Avenue in the Brooklyn neighborhood of East New York. It runs through Highland Park, along the ...

) is

Ridgewood Reservoir Ridgewood Reservoir is a decommissioned 19th century reservoir and freshwater wetland that sits on the Brooklyn–Queens border in New York City, within what is now Highland Park. Although the reservoir was originally built to secure a reliable ...

, a naturalistic part of Highland Park. The New York City government renovated it in 2013 by adding new period lighting and fences.

Education

Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth generally have a lower rate of college-educated residents than the rest of the city . While 33% of residents age 25 and older have a college education or higher, 16% have less than a high school education and 50% are high school graduates or have some college education. By contrast, 39% of Queens residents and 43% of city residents have a college education or higher. The percentage of Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth students excelling in math rose from 36% in 2000 to 67% in 2011, and reading achievement rose from 42% to 49% during the same time period. Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth's rate of elementary school student absenteeism is less than the rest of New York City. In Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth, 14% of elementary school students missed twenty or more days per

school year A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compul ...

, lower than the citywide average of 20%. Additionally, 82% of high school students in Glendale, Ridgewood, and Maspeth graduate on time, more than the citywide average of 75%.

Schools

Glendale is home to seven schools
P.S. 68 Elementary
Sacred Heart Elementary, Central Queens Academy Charter and Elm Community Charter.

Library

The

Queens Public Library The Queens Public Library (QPL), also known as the Queens Borough Public Library and Queens Library (QL), is the public library for the borough of Queens, and one of three public library systems serving New York City. It is one of the largest li ...

's Glendale branch is located at 78-60 73rd Place. It also has an annex at The Shops at Atlas Park.

Transportation

The following New York City Subway stations serve Glendale: * () * Forest Park, which is partly in Glendale, is served near its southern edge by 75th Street–Elderts Lane (), 85th Street–Forest Parkway (), and

() The following

MTA Regional Bus Operations MTA Regional Bus Operations (RBO) is the surface transit division of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). It was created in 2008 to consolidate all bus operations in New York City operated by the MTA. , MTA Regional Bus Operations ru ...

bus routes serve Glendale: * : to DeKalb Avenue () or Gateway Center via 61st and 62nd Streets, Cooper Avenue and Cypress Hills Street * : to Woodhaven Boulevard (Elmhurst) () or

Howard Beach Howard Beach is a neighborhood in the southwestern portion of the New York City borough of Queens. It is bordered to the north by the Belt Parkway and Conduit Avenue in Ozone Park, to the south by Jamaica Bay in Broad Channel, to the east by 1 ...

via Woodhaven Boulevard * : to 82nd Street–Jackson Heights () via 80th Street * : to Court Square () via Forest Avenue and Fresh Pond Road * : to LaGuardia Marine Air Terminal via 80th Street * : to Woodhaven Boulevard (Elmhurst) () or

Arverne Arverne is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens, on the Rockaway Peninsula. It was initially developed by Remington Vernam, whose signature "R. Vernam" inspired the name of the neighborhood. Arverne extends from Beach 54th Street ...

via Woodhaven Boulevard * : to ()/ Woodside LIRR or () via Woodhaven Boulevard * : to Williamsburg Bridge Plaza Bus Terminal or Jamaica Center–Parsons/Archer () via Metropolitan Avenue * : to Myrtle–Wyckoff Avenues () or 121st Street () via Myrtle Avenue The Long Island Rail Road had a station at Edsall Avenue and 73rd Street, which opened in 1868 and served the

. It closed on March 16, 1998, due to low usage, with only two passengers a day using the stop. The nearest operating LIRR stations are in

and Forest Hills.

Notable people

Notable current and former residents of Glendale include: * Richard Arkwright (1732-1792), a pioneer in the spinning industry, which revolutionized the knitwear industry. PS 91 in Glendale is named after him. *

Big Cass William Morrissey (born August 16, 1986) is an American professional wrestler. He currently performs in All Elite Wrestling, where he is a member of The Firm, under the ring name Big Bill. He is also known for his tenures with WWE (where he per ...

(born 1986), professional wrestler formerly with WWE. * Daniel Daly (1873-1937), the most decorated hero of the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

and

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valo ...

recipient, lived out his final years after World War I in Glendale. * Harry Houdini (1874-1926), magician, buried in Machpelah Cemetery * Rafael Ramos (1974-2014), slain NYPD officer, who lived in Glendale before moving to Cypress Hills *

Phil Rizzuto Philip Francis Rizzuto (September 25, 1917 – August 13, 2007), nicknamed "The Scooter", was an American Major League Baseball shortstop. He spent his entire 13-year baseball career with the New York Yankees (1941–1956), and was elected to th ...

(1917-2007), shortstop who spent his entire 13-year baseball career with the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

. Barry, Ellen
"The Streets of Queens Where Rizzuto Played"
, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', August 16, 2007. Accessed June 26, 2018. "When Phil Rizzuto was a boy in Glendale, Queens, it was rare to get your hands on an actual baseball." *

Dan Schneider Daniel James Schneider (born January 14, 1966) is an American television producer, screenwriter, and actor. After appearing in mostly supporting roles in a number of 1980s and 1990s films and TV shows, Schneider devoted himself to behind-the-s ...

(born 1965), writer

In popular culture

* In 1971, the sitcom ''

All in the Family ''All in the Family'' is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS for nine seasons, from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. Afterwards, it was continued with the spin-off series ''Archie Bunker's Place'', which picked up where ''All in ...

'' premiered. The house seen in the opening of the show is at 89-70 Cooper Avenue. * '' A Stranger Is Watching'' (1982) starring Rip Torn was filmed in a Glendale bar, the Woods Inn, and most of the crew ate lunch with the owner at that time, John Virga. * Part of an episode of '' NYPD Blue'' was also filmed at the Woods Inn in the late 1990s. * Another of Glendale's bars, The Assembly, figured prominently in the 1996 film ''

Trees Lounge ''Trees Lounge'' is a 1996 American dramedy film and the debut of Steve Buscemi as writer and director. It was produced by Brad Wyman and Chris Hanley and features a large ensemble cast of actors, including Buscemi, Anthony LaPaglia, Chloë Sevig ...

'', written, directed, and starring Steve Buscemi. It served as the set for the fictional bar for which the movie is named. * Cooper's Ale House (now "Yer Man's Irish Pub") is featured in the show ''

The King of Queens ''The King of Queens'' is an American television sitcom that ran on CBS from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007, a total of nine seasons and 207 episodes. The series was created by Michael J. Weithorn and David Litt, who also served as the show ...

'' as a local bar.

References

External links

Community Sketches for New York City

Answers.com: All in the Family

Times Newsweekly of Ridgewood

was {{Queens German-American history Neighborhoods in Queens, New York