Ridgewood, Queens
Encyclopedia
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
borough
Borough (New York City)
New York City, one of the largest cities in the world, is composed of five boroughs. Each borough now has the same boundaries as the county it is in. County governments were dissolved when the city consolidated in 1898, along with all city, town, and village governments within each county...
of Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
. It borders the neighborhoods of Maspeth
Maspeth, Queens
Maspeth is a small community in the borough of Queens in New York City. Neighborhoods sharing borders with Maspeth are Woodside and Sunnyside to the north, Long Island City to the northwest, Greenpoint to the west, East Williamsburg to the southwest, Fresh Pond and Ridgewood to the south, and...
, Middle Village
Middle Village, Queens
Middle Village is a neighborhood in central Queens, a borough of New York City. The neighborhood is located in the western central section of Queens, bounded to the north by Eliot Avenue, to the east by Woodhaven Boulevard, to the south by Cooper Avenue, and to the west by Fresh Pond Road...
and Glendale
Glendale, Queens
Glendale is a neighborhood in the west-central portion of the borough of Queens in New York City. It is bounded by Cooper Avenue to the north, Woodhaven Boulevard to the east, Myrtle Avenue to the south and Fresh Pond Road to the West...
, as well as the Brooklyn neighborhood of Bushwick
Bushwick, Brooklyn
Bushwick is a neighborhood in the northern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood, formerly Brooklyn's 18th Ward, is now part of Brooklyn Community Board 4...
. Historically, the neighborhood straddled the Queens-Brooklyn boundary. The neighborhood is part of Queens Community Board 5
Queens Community Board 5
The Queens Community Board 5 is a local government in the New York City borough of Queens, encompassing the neighborhoods of Ridgewood, Glendale, Middle Village, Maspeth, Fresh Pond, and Liberty Park...
.
Over the years, Ridgewood has shifted in demographics from time to time. Historically a German and Italian neighborhood, it is now home to many families of varying backgrounds, mainly consisting of Latinos, Eastern Europeans, Middle Easterners, Asians, and Native-Born Americans.
History
Originally, Ridgewood was part of the Dutch settlementDutch colonization of the Americas
Dutch trading posts and plantations in the Americas precede the much wider known colonization activities of the Dutch in Asia. Whereas the first Dutch fort in Asia was built in 1600 , the first forts and settlements on the Essequibo river in Guyana and on the Amazon date from the 1590s...
Boswijk (Bushwick) and was later incorporated into the village of Breuckelen (Brooklyn). A legacy of this past stands today; Onderdonk House
Vander Ende-Onderdonk House Site
Vander Ende--Onderdonk House is a historic house at 1820 Flushing Avenue in Ridgewood, Queens. It is the oldest Dutch Colonial stone house in New York City....
, which was erected in 1709. The house is the oldest Dutch Colonial stone house in New York City. Also located at the Onderdonk House site is Arbitration Rock, which was a marker for the disputed boundary between Bushwick and Newtown and essentially Brooklyn and Queens.
Geography
The majority of the neighborhood covers a large hill, more than likely part of the glacial moraine that created Long IslandLong Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
, which starts at Metropolitan Avenue, rises steeply for about two blocks, then slopes down gently. A good example of just how steep the hill is can be found at Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Parish. The front entrance of the Church, which is at street level on 60th Place, is almost level with the second floor of the Parish school right next door.
Major streets in Ridgewood include Seneca Avenue, Forest Avenue, Fresh Pond Road, Myrtle Avenue
Myrtle Avenue (New York City)
Myrtle Avenue in New York City is a street that runs from Flatbush Avenue Extension in Downtown Brooklyn to Jamaica Avenue in Richmond Hill, Queens.-In Queens:...
, and Metropolitan ("Metro") Avenue. All of these streets are narrow two-lane roads (with parking lanes), and the high volume on these streets can cause traffic tie-ups during rush hour. The intersection of Fresh Pond and Metropolitan is especially notorious for being a bottleneck. The main shopping areas are on Myrtle Avenue and Fresh Pond Road. Other, smaller shopping strips are located on Metropolitan Avenue, Forest Avenue, and Seneca Avenue.
Building stock
Ridgewood is a densely settled neighborhood, with housing stock ranging from six-family buildings near the Brooklyn border to two-family and single-family row houses deeper into Queens. Ridgewood is visually distinguished from Bushwick by the large amount of exposed brick construction; in Brooklyn, vinyl siding is more common. Like neighboring Bushwick, nearly all of the buildings in Ridgewood are classified as combustible.Most of Ridgewood was developed block-by-block around the turn of the 20th century. The neighborhood has been largely untouched by construction since then, leaving many centrally planned blocks of houses and tenements still in the same state as their construction. These blocks include the Matthews Flats (six-family cold water tenements), Ring-Gibson Houses (two- and four-family houses with stores), and Stier Houses (curved two-family rowhouses). Many of these houses are well-kept and retain much of their early 20th century appeal.
Thirteen national historic district
Historic district (United States)
In the United States, a historic district is a group of buildings, properties, or sites that have been designated by one of several entities on different levels as historically or architecturally significant. Buildings, structures, objects and sites within a historic district are normally divided...
s were listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1983: 68th Avenue-64th Place Historic District
68th Avenue-64th Place Historic District
68th Avenue-64th Place Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes 46 contributing buildings built between 1909 and 1913. They consist mainly of two story brick row houses with one apartment per floor...
; 75th Avenue-61st Street Historic District
75th Avenue-61st Street Historic District
75th Avenue-61st Street Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes 183 contributing buildings built between 1910 and 1925. They consist mainly of two story brick row houses with one apartment per floor...
; Central Avenue Historic District
Central Avenue Historic District (Queens, New York)
Central Avenue Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes 104 contributing buildings built in 1916. They consist of three story brick tenements with two apartments per floor. Buildings feature front facades and amber iron-spot brick.It was...
; Central Ridgewood Historic District
Central Ridgewood Historic District
Central Ridgewood Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes 782 contributing buildings built between 1895 and 1927. They consist mainly of two story, brick rowhouse dwellings with one apartment per floor...
; Cooper Avenue Row Historic District
Cooper Avenue Row Historic District
Cooper Avenue Row Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes seven contributing buildings built in 1915. They consist of two story, flat front brick rowhouse dwellings with one apartment per floor. They are constructed of yellow brick with burnt...
; Cornelia-Putnam Historic District
Cornelia-Putnam Historic District
Cornelia-Putnam Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes 87 contributing buildings built between 1907 and 1922. They consist of two story, flat front brick rowhouse dwellings with one apartment per floor and three story tenements with two...
; Cypress Avenue East Historic District
Cypress Avenue East Historic District
Cypress Avenue East Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes 247 contributing buildings built between 1900 and 1914. They consist mainly of three story tenements with two apartments per floor...
; Cypress Avenue West Historic District
Cypress Avenue West Historic District
Cypress Avenue West Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes 440 contributing buildings built between 1888 and 1906. They consist mainly of brick two and three story row houses with one apartment per floor and three story tenements with two...
; Fresh Pond-Traffic Historic District
Fresh Pond-Traffic Historic District
Fresh Pond-Traffic Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes 197 contributing buildings built between 1914 and 1921. They consist mainly of brick two story row houses with one apartment per floor...
; Madison-Putnam-60th Place Historic District
Madison-Putnam-60th Place Historic District
Madison-Putnam-60th Place Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes 145 contributing buildings built between 1900 and 1920. They consist mainly of brick two story row houses with one apartment per floor and three story tenements with two...
; Seneca Avenue East Historic District
Seneca Avenue East Historic District
Seneca Avenue East Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes 120 contributing buildings built between 1900 and 1915. They consist mainly of brick two story row houses with one apartment per floor and three story tenements with two apartments per...
; Stockholm-DeKalb-Hart Historic District
Stockholm-DeKalb-Hart Historic District
Stockholm-DeKalb-Hart Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes 79 contributing buildings built between 1900 and 1915. They consist mainly of brick two story row houses with one apartment per floor...
; and Summerfield Street Row Historic District
Summerfield Street Row Historic District
Summerfield Street Row Historic District is a national historic district in Ridgewood, Queens, New York. It includes 19 contributing buildings built in 1912. They are brick two story row houses with one apartment per floor. They feature round bays and yellow iron-spot brick facades.It was listed...
.
Transportation
The runs through the heart of Ridgewood, and its connection to the at Myrtle-Wyckoff AvenuesMyrtle-Wyckoff Avenues (New York City Subway)
Myrtle–Wyckoff Avenues is a New York City Subway station complex formed by the intersecting stations of the BMT Canarsie Line and the BMT Myrtle Avenue Line...
at the south end of Ridgewood is a transportation hub, with a 60 million dollar renovation completed in 2007. At the end of the M train is the Fresh Pond Yard, a storage yard for the M train.
The Ridgewood Terminal at that station serves the B13, B26, B52, B54, Q55, and Q58 bus lines. The B20, B38, Q39 and Q54 bus lines also serve Ridgewood. In addition, the neighborhood is home to the large Fresh Pond Bus Depot, which services many of the buses that run throughout Brooklyn and Queens.
Media and popular culture
The Ridgewood Times, established in 1908, and now known as the Times Newsweekly, serves as the community newspaperNewspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
, and has the largest classifieds
Classified advertising
Classified advertising is a form of advertising which is particularly common in newspapers, online and other periodicals which may be sold or distributed free of charge...
section of Queens County community newspapers.
Ridgewood was formerly the site of one of the nation's oldest cinematic theaters, the Ridgewood Theatre. The 1,950 seat William Fox
William Fox (producer)
William Fox born Fried Vilmos was a pioneering Hungarian American motion picture executive who founded the Fox Film Corporation in 1915 and the Fox West Coast Theatres chain in the 1920s...
moviehouse was open from 1916 to 2008.Although landmarked, this site will now become an Associated supermarket.
Ridgewood has also served as location shoots for numerous major motion pictures, including The French Connection
The French Connection (film)
This article is about the 1971 film. For the British fashion label, see French Connection .The French Connection is a 1971 American crime film directed by William Friedkin. The film was adapted and fictionalized by Ernest Tidyman from the non-fiction book by Robin Moore...
, A Stranger Among Us
A Stranger Among Us
A Stranger Among Us is a film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Melanie Griffith, released in 1992. It tells the story of an undercover police officer's experiences in a Hasidic community. It was entered into the 1992 Cannes Film Festival....
, The Wanderers
The Wanderers (1979 film)
The Wanderers is a 1979 greaser film based on the novel by Richard Price .-Overview:...
, Brighton Beach Memoirs
Brighton Beach Memoirs
Brighton Beach Memoirs is a semi-autobiographical play by Neil Simon, the first chapter in what is known as his Eugene trilogy. It precedes Biloxi Blues and Broadway Bound.-Characters:*Eugene Morris Jerome, almost 15...
, Jerky Boys: The Movie
Jerky Boys: The Movie
The Jerky's Boys: The Movie, also known as The Jerky's Boys, is a 1995 comedy/crime film starring John G. Brennan and Kamal Ahmed, best known as the comedy duo The Jerky Boys.The film features two men, Johnny B...
, Beat Street
Beat Street
Beat Street is a 1984 drama film, following Wild Style in featuring New York City hip hop culture of the early 1980s; breakdancing, DJing, and graffiti.-Plot:...
and Cop Out
Cop out
Cop out is an idiom which means to avoid taking responsibility for an action, fulfilling a duty or meeting expectations; as a noun, it refers to someone who 'cops out'.Cop out or cop-out may also refer to:...
. In addition to these movies, scenes for The Sopranos
The Sopranos
The Sopranos is an American television drama series created by David Chase that revolves around the New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the often conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads...
were filmed on Fresh Pond Road in Ridgewood on March 9, 2006, when a hookah bar next to the neighborhood bar, Glenlo's Tavern was detonated.
Borough debate: A matter to be addressed
Today, Ridgewood’s land area lies within Queens County. However, its political boundary with Brooklyn causes confusion and debate about where the western boundary of Ridgewood truly lies and whether part of Ridgewood is considered to be actually part of Brooklyn. Ridgewood and its Brooklyn neighbor community, BushwickBushwick, Brooklyn
Bushwick is a neighborhood in the northern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood, formerly Brooklyn's 18th Ward, is now part of Brooklyn Community Board 4...
, have a grid plan
Grid plan
The grid plan, grid street plan or gridiron plan is a type of city plan in which streets run at right angles to each other, forming a grid...
street layout. Because the boundary between Brooklyn and Queens that was historically set in 1769 at the Arbitration Rock
Arbitration Rock
The Arbitration Rock was set in 1769 as the boundary marker between the two Long Island townships of Newtown and Bushwick. Since Newtown was in Queens County and Bushwick in Kings County, this rock the size of a Volkswagen Beetle also served to mark the dividing line between these two colonial New...
lay along a diagonal with this grid plan, the geographic boundary was adapted to the street layout, resulting in a zig-zag pattern. Buildings fronting on streets that “begin” in Brooklyn (i.e., located west of Forest Avenue and the Bay Ridge Branch
Bay Ridge Branch
The Bay Ridge Branch is a rail line owned by the Long Island Rail Road and operated by the New York and Atlantic Railway in the U.S. State of New York...
), and the cross-streets that bisect them, follow a house-numbering system commencing within Brooklyn (except for Myrtle and Metropolitan Avenues). Put more simply, as the numbering of residential addresses proceeds traveling from Kings County into Queens County, the political border is crossed without any change in the address-numbering system.
Until the late 1970s, Ridgewood and neighboring Glendale (Queens) were entirely served by the Brooklyn post office in Bushwick. Before ZIP CODES were introduced, letters would be addressed to "Ridgewood, 27 New York" or "Brooklyn, 27 New York" After ZIP CODES were instituted either "Ridgewood NY 11227" or "Brooklyn NY 11227." was used. Following events surrounding the New York City blackout of 1977
New York City blackout of 1977
The New York City blackout of 1977 was an electricity blackout affected most of New York City from July 13, 1977 to July 14, 1977. The only neighborhoods in New York City that were not affected were in southern Queens, and neighborhoods of the Rockaways, which are part of the Long Island Lighting...
which marred the public perception of the Bushwick community, the communities of Ridgewood and Glendale expressed a desire to disassociate themselves from Bushwick. In 1979, the two areas were granted a Queens zip code, 11385, while Bushwick was designated a separate Brooklyn zip code of 11237.
Education
P.S. 305 is a public school for Pre-KPre-Kindergarten
Pre-kindergarten refers to the first formal academic classroom-based learning environment that a child customarily attends in the United States. It begins between the ages of 3-5 depending on the length of the program...
to 3rd grade.
P.S. 68,
P.S. 71, P.S. 239, P.S. 81 and P.S. 88 are public schools that serve Pre-K
Pre-Kindergarten
Pre-kindergarten refers to the first formal academic classroom-based learning environment that a child customarily attends in the United States. It begins between the ages of 3-5 depending on the length of the program...
to 5th grade.
I.S. 77 and I.S. 93 are public middle schools in Ridgewood.
Grover Cleveland High School
Grover Cleveland High School (New York City)
Grover Cleveland High School is a large, comprehensive high school in Ridgewood, Queens. Grover Cleveland High School, Samuel J. Tilden High School, Abraham Lincoln High School, John Adams High School, and Bayside High School were all built during the Great Depression from one set of blueprints, in...
is the only high school in Ridgewood, and is the zoned public high school to most of Ridgewood. Over the last couple of years there has been serious debate as to whether this high school as well as a number of other schools should be closed down due to low scores and gang violence in and surrounding the school. To this day however, it still remains as the only public high school in the neighborhood.
Sports
From 1886 to 1889, Ridgewood Park was home to the Brooklyn Bridegrooms (later the Brooklyn Dodgers and now the Los Angeles DodgersLos Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
) for their Sunday games.
Notable residents
Notable current and former residents of Ridgewood include:- James CagneyJames CagneyJames Francis Cagney, Jr. was an American actor, first on stage, then in film, where he had his greatest impact. Although he won acclaim and major awards for a wide variety of performances, he is best remembered for playing "tough guys." In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked him eighth...
(1899-1986), actor. - DJ AphlatoonDJ AphlatoonDJ Aphlatoon is known as the first Pakistani remix producer. He was the first DJ to release two albums containing only Pakistani songs remixed with hip hop, reggae and techno beats....
, music composer, disc jockey - Jeannie OrtegaJeannie OrtegaJeannette "Jeannie" Ortega is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actress. She made her recording debut in 2006 with the album No Place Like Brooklyn at the age of 19. The album featured the hit single "Crowded," which topped the Billboard Hot 100.- Biography :Jeannie Ortega was born in...
(1986-), Recording Artist, Songwriter, Actress - Ron EldardRon EldardRonald Jason "Ron" Eldard is an American actor.-Early life:Eldard, the second youngest of seven children , was born on Long Island, New York. Eldard's mother died in a car accident when he was a child, and Eldard and his siblings were sent to live with various family members...
(1965-), actor. - Harry HoudiniHarry HoudiniHarry Houdini was a Hungarian-born American magician and escapologist, stunt performer, actor and film producer noted for his sensational escape acts...
(1874-1926), magician - Bob SheppardBob SheppardRobert Leo "Bob" Sheppard was the long-time public address announcer for numerous New York area college and professional sports teams, in particular the MLB New York Yankees , and the NFL New York Giants .Sheppard announced more than 4,500 Yankees baseball games over a period of 56 years,...
(1910-2010), public address announcer - Phil RizzutoPhil RizzutoPhilip Francis Rizzuto , nicknamed "The Scooter", was an American Major League Baseball shortstop. He spent his entire 13-year baseball career for the New York Yankees...
(1917-2007), baseball player and broadcaster - Dan SchneiderDan Schneider (writer)Dan Schneider is a United States poet, critic, film critic, essayist, and fiction writer best known for his criticism and literary website Cosmoetica. Schneider discovered poetry as a young adult, and has since published his poetry and essays in a number of magazines and newspapers...
, poet and critic - Gus Van (1886-1968), singer and vaudeville star, part of the team of Van & Schenck
- Reginald VelJohnsonReginald VelJohnsonReginald VelJohnson is an American actor of film, stage and television, well known for his role as Carl Winslow on the sitcom Family Matters, where he was the only cast member to appear in every single episode. He also portrayed LAPD Sgt...
(1952-), actor - John VentimigliaJohn VentimigliaJohn Ventimiglia is an American actor, known for his role as Artie Bucco on the HBO television series The Sopranos. He has had parts in feature films such as Cop Land, Jesus' Son, and Mickey Blue Eyes and has appeared in numerous television shows including Law & Order and NYPD Blue...
(1963-), actor - Rosie PerezRosie PerezRosa María "Rosie" Pérez is an American actress, dancer, choreographer, director and community activist.- Early life :...
(1964-), actress (attended school in Ridgewood)
Current Representatives
- City Council: Elizabeth CrowleyElizabeth CrowleyElizabeth Crowley is a member of the New York City Council and a Democratic Party politician in New York....
(30) & Diana ReynaDiana ReynaDiana Reyna is currently the New York City Council Member who represents the 34th Council District, which includes Williamsburg and Bushwick as well as Ridgewood in Queens, USA. Council Member Reyna was born and raised in New York City...
(34) - State Assembly: Catherine NolanCatherine NolanCatherine T. Nolan is a member of the New York State Assembly representing the 37th Assembly District, which includes the Queens neighborhoods of Sunnyside, Ridgewood, Astoria, Woodside, Long Island City, Maspeth, Queensbridge, Ravenswood, Dutch Kills and Blissville.Nolan has lived in her district...
(37) & Michael G. MillerMichael G. MillerMichael G. "Mike" Miller is an American politician and a Democratic member of the New York State Assembly, representing the 38th Assembly District, which includes the Queens neighborhoods of Woodhaven, Ridgewood, Richmond Hill, Ozone Park and Glendale.He has lived in Glendale for 40 years...
(38) - State Senate: Michael GianarisMichael N. GianarisSenator Michael Gianaris was elected to the State Senate in 2010 with over 81% of the vote after a decade of dedicated public service in the State Assembly...
(12) & Joseph P. Addabbo Jr.Joseph Addabbo, Jr.Joseph P. Addabbo Jr. is an American politician, a Democratic member of the New York State Senate from the 15th District representing Howard Beach, Ozone Park, Woodhaven, Glendale, Middle Village, Maspeth and parts of South Ozone Park, Ridgewood, Rego Park and Sunnyside...
(15) - U.S. Representative: Nydia Velasquez (12) & Robert TurnerBob Turner (politician)Robert L. "Bob" Turner is the United States Representative for New York's 9th congressional district which straddles parts of Brooklyn and Queens. He is a member of the Republican Party, holding his first public office. He was elected in September 2011 to complete the term of Democrat Anthony...
(9)
All of Ridgewood's representatives (except for Turner) are Democrats.
External links
- 30th City Council District boundary map
- 34th City Council District boundary map
- New York Times story on 5 Families Move From East Village to Ridgewood
- New York Times: A Neat Enclave Enriched by Waves of Immigrants
- New York Times April 2006 Real Estate Story
- Times Newsweekly
- Page about the Ridgewood Theatre, and the debate over borough identity