College Point is a working to middle class neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It is located north of Flushing on Flushing Bay and the East River and is part of the Queens Community Board 7.[1] Willets Point Boulevard and the Whitestone Expressway are often taken as the neighborhood's approximate boundaries with Flushing and Whitestone.
It was a largely German American community. Today, College Point is a mildly industrial but mostly residential community.
College Point was named for St. Paul's College, a seminary founded in 1835 by the Rev. Augustus Muhlenberg.[2] [3] The college closed circa 1850, but the name stuck. Former names include Lawrence's Neck, Tew's Neck, Flammersberg, and Strattonsport.
The original settler of this area was Captain William Lawrence.[4] He was also the largest land holder of the original incorporators of Flushing, L.I. He arrived in America on the ship "Planter" in the 1630s. He married the oldest daughter of Richard "Bull Rider" Smith who founded Smithtown L.I. His son from his first wife, William Jr. married the youngest daughter of "Bull Rider" Smith. Much later, the town was later expanded by a German-American industrialist, Conrad Poppenhusen, who made his fortune in manufacturing hard rubber combs. He founded the community primarily for his workers and became a philanthropist contributor to churches, libraries, and The Poppenhusen Institute, an educational beacon of College Point. He is responsible for the first free kindergarten in America. He connected College Point to Flushing by the Flushing and North Side Railroad, later called Whitestone Branch. A special monument on College Point Boulevard, one of the main streets in College Point, stands testament to Poppenhusen.[5]
College Point became a center for breweries and day trip resorts, but during Prohibition the community shifted towards airplane parts manufacturing.
In 1997, the Queens Historical Societyhttp://www.queenshistoricalsociety.org/ bestowed a "Queensmark" award on College Point, in hopes of encouraging historical preservation of local landmark architecture.[6]
New York City provides College Point on the Q20A/B, Q65, Q25, Q76.No subway service available.
The First Reformed Church — A church built in 1873 in the small town New England style. The church is on a large lot, has a bell tower, and is adorned with "gingerbread" trim. On June 6th, 2008 there was a large fire in the church and the church is put out of commission indefinitely. (up on 119th ST)
Flessel's Restaurant — Recently demolished in the construction boom, Flessel's stood as a testament to the summer resorts and beer gardens that once marked College Point.
Flushing Airport - Opened in 1927 along the shore of Flushing Bay, the airport had been a busy aviation hub before LaGuardia Airport was built in 1939 about one mile away. It carried the IATA code FLU. In 1977, a Piper Twin Comanche crashed shortly after taking off from the airport. The incident eventually led to the closing of this airport in 1984.[7] The site remains abandoned, although plans have been proposed over the years to convert it into a blimp-port or office park. Given natural deterioration of the hangars and concrete runways, however, it is likely that the site will simply return to being natural wetlands.http://www.airfields-freeman.com/NY/Airfields_NY_NY_Queens.htmhttp://www.queenstribune.com/archives/featurearchive/feature2000/0831/feature_story.htmlhttp://www.forgotten-ny.com/STREET%20SCENES/newflushingairport/yonder2.htmlhttp://www.forgotten-ny.com/STREET%20SCENES/FLUSHING%20AIRPORT/flush.htmlhttp://www.wirednewyork.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-2965.htmlhttp://www.blimpport.com/http://www.globalcoral.org/Study%20Blasts%20Flushing%20Airport%20Plan.htm
Poppenhusen Institute — Built in 1868 by Conrad Poppenhusen, the founder of College Point. The architecture features a French Second Empire Mansard roof topping off the three Italianate style stories. Originally a town hall, Poppenhusen now serves as a cultural and historical center and offers a variety of classes and activities.
Schleicher Court — A mansion built in 1853 that also operated as the Grand View Hotelhttp://www.forgotten-ny.com/NEIGHBORHOODS/collegepoint/collegepoint2.html; the house was divided into apartments and literally sits in the center of 123rd street. The house suffered an electrical fire on July 9, 2008 and was forcibly vacated by the Department of Buildingshttp://queenscrap.blogspot.com/2008/08/plenty-of-vacancies-at-old-grand-view.html.
The Spangelberg Mansion — A yellow and white mansion circa 1860 now also divided into apartments.
Poppenhusen Library — An Andrew Carnegie library, built in 1904 featuring a copper roof, is still active as a branch in the Queens Library system http://www.queenslibrary.org/index.aspx?page_id=44&section_id=12&branch_id=P.
Academy Mailbox & Intercom Company - a gray warehouse on 15th Ave. circa 1870. The building was originally used as an ice house to chill beer from a local brewery.
Public elementary schools, defined as kindergarten through 5th grades, include PS 29 and PS 129. College Point is home to St. Fidelis, a Catholic school for nursery through 6th grades. It is also home to St. Agnes High School and St. John's Lutheran School, another elementary program.
St. Fidelis Roman Catholic Churchhttp://www.stfidelis.org/, St. Paul's Episcopal, St. John's Lutheran, and The First Reformed Church of College Point host the community's four largest congregations.
McNeil Park http://www.nycgovparks.org/sub_your_park/historical_signs/hs_historical_sign.php?id=227, formerly known and still affectionately called Chisholm's by many locals (after the family that owned the mansion that once stood in the park), features a water front view, full playground, basketball and handball courts, and baseball fields.
Poppenhusen Playground http://nycgovparks.org/sub_your_park/historical_signs/hs_historical_sign.php?id=6423 is a park for primary school aged children.
College Point Park http://nycgovparks.org/sub_your_park/historical_signs/hs_historical_sign.php?id=12054, the former location of P.S. 27, is located across the street from Poppenhusen Library.It is called "27" by many locals. It has basketball and handball courts as well as an adjacent municipal parking lot. A hot-dog vendor is often in the park on days with good weather and has handballs available for sale.
Powell's Cove Park http://nycgovparks.org/sub_your_park/historical_signs/hs_historical_sign.php?id=12640, an environmental waterfront park, lies on the border of College Point and Malba and affords a great view of the Bronx Whitestone Bridge
Frank Golden Memorial Park http://nycgovparks.org/sub_your_park/historical_signs/hs_historical_sign.php?id=12151, located behind the strip mall on 14th Avenue, features 4 baseball diamonds and is used by local softball leagues.
Empire Market on College Point Boulevard has sold German meats and groceries since 1920 and is owned by a third generation German family. The store also offers a wide variety of candy in glass jars and is a favorite amongst children.
College Meat Center, family owned and operated since 1963, has been serving local residents for over 40 years, notably surviving a fire in the 1980s.
Shopping centers on 20th Avenue include Target, TJ Maxx, BJ's, Old Navy, Babies R' Us, Waldbaum's, and more.
The College Point Multiplex Cinemas offers 12 screens of movies, as well as a mini-arcade.
Notable current and former residents of College Point include:
http://www.forgotten-ny.com/NEIGHBORHOODS/collegepoint/collegepoint.html