Long Island City Coat of Arms
32 MARCH 2020 I LIC COURIER I www.qns.com
Legends
The Birth of a City
The Town Hall for
Newtown Township
( B r o a d w a y a n d
Queens Boulevard,
Elmhurst) was quite
a distance from its western Queens
precincts on the East River. The
contrast between busy, up-to-date
Long Island City with its many buildings,
sizable population, crowded ferries,
extensive industry and street railways
and sleepy, backwater Newtown was
ludicrous. The commercial activity on
the East River waterfront was fully half
the tax base of Newtown.
Astoria had pointed the way to
self-government by becoming an
incorporated village in 1839 and
its obvious prosperity was visible
proof of how it had benefited from
the move. The push for incorporation
had several powerful advocates. A
strong promoter of self-government
was Father John Crimmins, pastor of
St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church,
who along with St Patrick’s (Dutch
Kills) and St Raphael (Blissville),
influenced large congregations
comprising overwhelming majorities
of the workers in the factories.
To sound out sentiment for self-government,
at a meeting on January
4, 1869 participants unanimously
voted to take steps towards
sponsoring an Act of Incorporation.
At this point, the movement had
grown to the point of urging the
State Legislature to form an entity
uniting Hunter's Point, Astoria, Dutch
Kills, Blissville, Ravenswood and
Bowery Bay into a separate city
to be known as "Long Island City."
This bold move caught the popular
imagination, and the communities
erupted in joy when Albany passed
a bill for incorporation.
Facing “monster” community
petition, and petitions both the Astoria
and the Hunter's Point Boards of
Education all in favor of consolidation
Governor John T. Hoffman brushed
aside concerns stating that he was
“satisfied that the city charter was
a public necessity.” He signed the
document creating Long Island City
on May 4, 1870.
One hundred guns were fired in
Astoria to celebrate the signing and
flags were displayed on many of
the houses throughout the new city.
Long Island City was no longer a
geographical expression; it was now
a political reality. (“300 Years of Long
Island City” by Vincent F. Seyfried.)
Starting this May the Greater Astoria Historical Society invites the community
to celebrate the year-long Sesquicentennial – the 150th Anniversary – of
Long Island City, a community that embraces the neighborhoods of Bowery
Bay, Ditmars, Old Astoria, Ravenswood, Dutch Kills, Astoria-Broadway,
Sunnyside, Hunters Point and Blissvile. Let’s examine our rich past, take stalk
of our present, and dream of our limitless potential – as the new “Heart of
New York.” Greater Astoria Historical Society
Greater Astoria Historical Society
LIC Arts Building # Suite 219
44-02 23rd Street
Long Island City, NY 11101
718-278-0700 / info@astorialic.org
Serving the communities of
Old Long Island City:
Blissville
Sunnyside
Sunnyside Gardens
Hunters Point
Dutch Kills
Ravenswood
Astoria Broadway
Norwood
Old Astoria Village
Ditmars
Steinway
Bowery Bay
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