New Hyde Park History and Heritage

11/07/2025

The J. Williams farmhouse was just east of what is now Ridder's Pond, and north of Marcus Avenue. The photo here is dated 1923. By 1961, this agricultural area gave way to residential development, which seemed likely to have led to the house's disappearance. See The New York Times article link in the comments section to learn more about the suburbanization of that area.

12/23/2022

My sister, Laura, celebrated her First Holy Communion at Notre Dame Church, in New Hyde Park, in 1956, probably May, as this seemed to be the traditional time for that sacrament then, and perhaps even now. Here's a brief clip of some of that august occasion, filmed that day by Jerry Regan, my Dad. Afterward, the celebration moved to my childhood home at 1007 Bryant Avenue, and this clip takes in a bit of that action. It's a remarkable piece of film, certainly not for the mediocre quality of the cinematography, but for the insights it offers into the rites of a time that seem ever more out of reach.

59 seconds · Clipped by Ger Regan · Original video "Some Glimpses of Landmark Family Events in the 1950s in Florida, Queens and Nassau County, N.Y." by Ger R...

11/16/2022

Wally Van (born Charles Wallace Van Nostrand) was born Charles Wallace Van Nostrand on September 27, 1880, in New Hyde Park. He was an actor and film director of the silent era. I had never heard of "Wally Van," but he came to my attention when I found a postcard bearing his image for sale on eBay. He must have moved as a child for he was educated in Brooklyn schools. For more info, visit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wally_Van.

09/23/2020

New Hyde Park Baptist Church started out in the village's first schoolhouse, which had been supplanted by today's Village Hall. But there's more to the story . . .

New Hyde Park's first school, pictured above, was built about 1895. As the village's population grew, this two-room schoolhouse gave way in 1905 to the village's next school, now New Hyde Park Village Hall.

03/28/2019

This picture, an interior shot from the 1818 Kelsey farmhouse, is drawn from the Historic American Buildings Survey, held by the Library of Congress. Photographer William H. Loson shot this view of an already decrepit mantel in the farmhouse's southwest corner bedroom as part of a national survey of historic homes. Photographers and writers were put to work on this project as part of the government-sponsored work program during The Great Depression. Loson took this shot on Nov. 21, 1934. The farmhouse was located just west of Lakeville Road, near Fairfield Lane. The farmhouse was then used to store farm implements and feed. The surrounding acreage was still under cultivation, primarily for potatos. See https://www.loc.gov/resource/hhh.ny0339.photos?st=list

08/27/2017

A light within the cupola atop the roof of Sewanhaka High School draws the eye. The building, located in adjacent Floral Park, was completed in 1929 and drew many students from New Hyde Park, which didn't complete its own high school until 1956.

10/24/2016

The American Guitar Museum, located at 1810 New Hyde Park Road, occupies the former farmhouse of the German-American Joerg family, a mainstay in New Hyde Park's early 20th century farming community. The farmhouse is the last of its kind within greater New Hyde Park, and deserves landmark status. It is currently unprotected, meaning, essentially, that the current or any future owner can raze or alter it at will. You can read about the museum in this article in Newsday: http://www.newsday.com/…/guitar-museum-owner-strums-through… or visit the museum's website: http://www.americanguitarmuseum.com/agmmain.htm

09/21/2016

Interesting reference to "highway" in New Hyde Park. Northern State?

in Collectibles, Photographic Images, Contemporary (1940-Now)

08/21/2016

Likely dedicated before Pearl Harbor, in the same year Notre Dame parish was created.

03/02/2016

Interesting that even six years after World War 2, this item mailed from New Hyde Park to Austria was scrutinized by a censor. Austria, of course, had joined with N**i Germany in conducting the war against the Allies, and so suffered grievously with Germany's defeat. New Hyde Park had a substantial population with German ancestry, as did the U.S., so to find this card in German is not surprising. In fact, the Inn at New Hyde Park in the years prior to World War 2 was called Brauhof, and served as the headquarters of the Nassau County chapter of the N**i-admiring German-American Bund, a chapter headed by its own fuehrer (leader). To see a reference to Brauhof's service as a Bund meeting place, see this document: http://www.archive.org/stream/investigationofu07unit/investigationofu07unit_djvu.txt

Post-World War II civil censor on this postcard sent to Vienna. Dated January 5, 1951. FOR MULTIPLE LOTS PURCHASES, PLEASE WAIT FOR OUR INVOICE SO THAT WE CAN GIVE YOU A POSTAGE DISCOUNT Where Possible.