Farmingdale is a village in Nassau County, New York in the United States. The population was 8,399 at the 2000 census. The Village of Farmingdale is inside the Town of Oyster Bay. As of 2008 the mayor is George Starkie.

Farmingdale is also part of the name of nearby associated unincorporated areas outside the village limits - South Farmingdale (also in the Town of Oyster Bay within Nassau County), and East Farmingdale (in the Town of Babylon within Suffolk County). Many nearby places in Suffolk County have Farmingdale as their postal address. Farmingdale Union Free School District (UFSD 22) includes parts of both Nassau County and Suffolk County.

History

The first settler in the area was Thomas Powell, who arrived in 1687. On October 18, 1695, he purchased a 15 square mile tract of land from three Native American tribes. This is known as the Bethpage Purchase and includes what is now Farmingdale, as well as Bethpage, Melville, North Massapequa, Old Bethpage, Plainedge, and Plainview. One of two houses he built in the area (circa 1700) still stands on Merritts Road in Farmingdale.

In the 1830s, anticipating construction of the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), land developer Ambrose George purchased a large track of land between a community then known as Bethpage and an area in Suffolk County called Hardscrabble.^[1][2] He built a general store in the western part of this property which he named Farmingdale. When the LIRR started service to the area in October 1841,^[3][4] it used the name Farmingdale for its latest stop, here, on the line it was building to Greenport. Stagecoaches took people from the Farmingdale station to Islip, Babylon, Patchogue, Oyster Bay South, and West Neck (Huntington area). A post office opened July 31 1845 using the name Farmingdale.^[5] The name Hardscrabble continued to appear on maps for the area further east in Suffolk County.^[6]

In 1886 a fire department was organized. The Village of Farmingdale was incorporated in 1904. In 1912, the State Agricultural and Technical school was established. The Lenox Hills Country Club, an 18-hole private golf course designed by Devereaux Emmet, was developed north of the community in 1923. This golf course was purchased by the State of New York, expanded and opened as Bethpage State Park in 1932. Later, Farmingdale became a locus for the aircraft industry, notably Republic Aviation Company.

Geography

Farmingdale is located at (40.733471, -73.445083).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.9 kmē), all of it land.

Transportation

Farmingdale is served by the Republic Airport, a major general aviation reliever to the east of New York City, Long Island Bus routes N70 and N95, and the Long Island Rail Road. Major roads are NY 24, NY 109, and NY 110, which is also known as Route 110 or Broadhollow Road.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 8,399 people, 3,216 households, and 2,051 families residing in the village. The population density was 7,432.2 people per square mile (2,869.8/kmē). There were 3,289 housing units at an average density of 2,910.4/sq mi (1,123.8/kmē). The racial makeup of the village was 87.03% White, 1.61% African American, 0.12% Native American, 3.70% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 5.06% from other races, and 2.43% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 12.57% of the population.

There were 3,216 households out of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.2% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.2% were non-families. 29.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.19.

In the village the population was spread out with 21.2% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 35.2% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 95.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.5 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $58,411, and the median income for a family was $68,235. Males had a median income of $46,104 versus $36,021 for females. The per capita income for the village was $27,492. About 3.0% of families and 5.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.5% of those under age 18 and 13.0% of those age 65 or over.

Prominent citizens

• Gregory W. Carman, US Congressman
• Ryan Cruthers, Professional hockey player
• William Gaddis, U.S. novelist
• Peter J. Ganci, Jr. (1946-2001) Chief of Department of the FDNY who died during the September 11 terrorist attacks.
• George Hincapie, Professional bicycle racer
• Howard T. Hogan, New York State Supreme Court Justice
• Joe Pepitone, former New York Yankees baseball player
• Ron Swoboda, former New York Mets baseball player

The Long Island Mystery

Susannah Lattin (1848-1868) of Farmingdale, died post-partum at an illegal adoption clinic at 6 Amity Place in New York City, operated by Henry Dyer Grindle. Her death lead to an investigation which resulted in regulation of abortion clinics and adoptions in New York City in 1868. ^[7][8]

Colleges

• State University of New York at Farmingdale, 2350 Broadhollow Rd, Farmingdale, NY 11735-1021 http://www.farmingdale.edu

Footnotes

See also

• Stern's Pickle Works

External links

• Farmingdale official website
• Village history
• Farmingdale-Bethpage Historical Society website
• Farmingdale Public School District website

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