Building Queens: The urbanization of New York's largest borough.
Item
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Title
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Building Queens: The urbanization of New York's largest borough.
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Identifier
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AAI9130338
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identifier
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9130338
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Creator
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Kroessler, Jeffrey Andrew.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Richard C. Wade
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Date
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1991
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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History, United States | Urban and Regional Planning
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Abstract
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One of the original counties in the English province of New York, Queens stretched from the East River and Kings County to Suffolk. Well into the 19th century, the county's economy was based on agriculture, providing fresh produce for the cities of New York and Brooklyn. In 1836, the Long Island Railroad made its initial run between Brooklyn and Jamaica, and in 1844 reached the eastern tip of Suffolk. The road did not serve the needs of Long Islanders, and by 1870 two rival roads were in operation. For much of the century competition proved disastrous, and the profitability of the railroad was never assured. Even so, it fostered the growth of railroad suburbs, including Garden City and Richmond Hill, just as the steam ferry encouraged suburbanization along the East River.;In the last quarter of the 1800s industries relocated to Queens, which attracted heavily polluting industries to Hunter's Point. Working class New Yorkers flocked to Queens every Sunday to patronize the ball fields, picnic grounds, and amusement parks. This caused conflict between the weekend visitors and the residents. In 1898, Queens became part of Greater New York; a year later, the three eastern townships formed a new county, Nassau. The metropolis took over construction of the Blackwell's Island Bridge, soon renamed the Queensboro, connecting Queens and Manhattan. In the late 1800s private investors had tried to build such a bridge, but they could never raise sufficient capital. Between 1909, when the bridge opened, and 1929, the population of Queens grew by 750%. During this boom, several model housing developments were built in the borough, the most important being Forest Hills Gardens, Jackson Heights, and Sunnyside Gardens.;The Great Depression ended the boom, but during the New Deal Queens benefited from many public works projects: parks, bridges and highways, public housing, and the infrastructure for the 1939 World's Fair. The "World of Tomorrow" marks the end of a dynamic period of urbanization, but it also presented a vision of a suburban future. After 1945, the last empty spaces disappeared, and the highways carried people through Queens to new suburbs on Long Island.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
