Selden, New York
Encyclopedia
Selden is a hamlet (and census-designated place
) in the town of Brookhaven
in Suffolk County
, New York
, United States
. The population was 21,861 at the 2000 census.
and served as a captain in the Revolutionary War
, and for whom Captain Daniel Roe Highway
is named. Roe built a house in Selden along Middle Country Road before the Revolutionary War. Roe is buried in a small family cemetery south of Middle Country road behind the Old Westfield shopping center.
Roe sided with the Patriots in the lead-up to the Revolutionary War. In the fall of 1776, Roe was assigned to lead a raid against the Tory and Hessian detachment near Selden led by his cousin Richard Miller. Miller was a wanted man, and Roe himself had pledged 10 pounds of the bounty offered for Miller's capture. When Miller rode right by Roe's house in uniform, he was confronted by Roe's men and ordered to dismount. Instead, Miller fired his pistol and turned to flee, whereupon he was shot by the militiamen. Miller was then carried into Roe's house, where he died.
) and Coram
. Originally named District 25, it was renumbered as District 12 in 1842, which it remained as until the formation of the Middle Country Central School District
in 1957.
When a post office was opened in 1852, Westfield
had already been taken as a name by a community upstate. Upstate attorney (and later judge) Henry Selden
promised to do "something handsome" if the town named itself after him. The name was adopted, though it is usually said to be unknown whether he ever followed through on his promise, and probably did not. While some sources report that the attorney had no known connection to the community, one newspaper reported in 1958 that Selden and attorney Edward Boyle (the namesake for Boyle Road) acquired a large tract of land in the hamlet shortly before the post office opened, and started to develop it.
As of 1885, Selden was home to 88 residents and a Presbyterian church (built in 1857), and noted for producing melons and early garden vegetables from its farms. Around 1897, the popular cross-island Bicycle Path
was completed and ran through Selden. A popular stop along the path, "Wheelmen's Rest", was in Selden and run by Albert Norton.
. The location, including some of its original buildings, became in 1961 the main (Ammerman) campus of Suffolk County Community College
, which today has an enrollment of over 11,000 students.
From 1919 to 1959, Telescope Hill
on the south side of Selden was the location of a fire lookout tower. During World War II, a Nazi "U-Boat
" spotted from Telescope Hill was later captured but not identified.
In 1935, a new public school building was built near the same location as the prior school building, near the intersection of Bicycle Path and Middle Country Road. That building was renovated in the 1980s and became a branch of the Middle Country Public Library.
The main thoroughfare in town, Middle Country Road, was paved from Smithtown and through Selden to Coram around 1927-8. The rural nature of Selden soon began to change, when in 1931 (when it had around 131 residents ), real estate agents began marketing small lots to New York City residents as retreats from urban living, in a development called "Nature's Gardens". This was located on the south side of Middle Country Road and Evergreen Drive. Suburban development increased in earnest in the early 1950s, and by the early 1970s Selden had become a primarily suburban community.
(Middle Country Road), which runs east to west. Similar to surrounding communities, Selden has a number of shopping centers along Middle Country Road, which developed as suburban growth spread eastward.
In 1972, the (Old) Westfield Shopping Center opened at the intersection of Middle Country and Blue Point roads, with a Hills Supermarkets
location.
In 1975, College Plaza at the northeast corner of the Middle Country Road and Boyle Road intersection opened. Its original anchor tenants included King Kullen
, Builder's Emporium, and Genovese
.
"Selden Plaza" at the intersection of Middle Country and County Route 83
(in the Coram
CDP but within the Selden ZIP code
) opened in 1978.
In 1992, a new major shopping center, "Independence Plaza" opened at the northwest corner of Middle Country and Boyle Roads, adjacent to College Plaza. As of 2009, plans have been made to develop a town center in and around Independence Plaza.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the CDP has a total area of 4.7 square miles (12.2 km²), all land.
Selden is bordered by Centereach
to the west, Terryville
to the north, Coram
to the east, and Farmingville
to the south.
of 2000, there were 21,861 people, 6,809 households, and 5,522 families residing in the CDP. The population density
was 4,695.5 per square mile (1,811.3/km²). There were 7,083 housing units at an average density of 1,521.3/sq mi (586.9/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 91.96% White, 1.88% African American, 0.19% Native American, 2.46% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.78% from other races
, and 1.72% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.23% of the population.
There were 6,809 households out of which 43.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.2% were married couples
living together, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.9% were non-families. 15.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.21 and the average family size was 3.54.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 28.4% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 33.7% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 8.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 97.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.1 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $58,103, and the median income for a family was $62,708. Males had a median income of $44,665 versus $29,973 for females. The per capita income
for the CDP was $20,577. About 3.1% of families and 5.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.0% of those under age 18 and 10.1% of those age 65 or over.
Census-designated place
A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...
) in the town of Brookhaven
Brookhaven, New York
The Town of Brookhaven is one of the ten towns into which Suffolk County, New York, United States, has been divided. Part of the New York metropolitan area, it is located in central Suffolk County and is the only town in the county that stretches from the North Shore to the South Shore of Long...
in Suffolk County
Suffolk County, New York
Suffolk County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York on the eastern portion of Long Island. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,493,350. It was named for the county of Suffolk in England, from which its earliest settlers came...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 21,861 at the 2000 census.
Early Settlement
The farmers who first moved to what is now Selden in the mid-18th century referred to the area as Westfield (or sometimes as Westfields). One of the better known early residents was Captain Daniel Roe (1740–1820), who fought in the French and Indian WarFrench and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
and served as a captain in the Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
, and for whom Captain Daniel Roe Highway
County Route 111 (Suffolk County, New York)
Suffolk County Road 111 is a county road in Suffolk County, New York. It runs northwest and southeast from Interstate 495 at exit 70 in Manorville to NY 27 at exit 62 near Eastport...
is named. Roe built a house in Selden along Middle Country Road before the Revolutionary War. Roe is buried in a small family cemetery south of Middle Country road behind the Old Westfield shopping center.
Roe sided with the Patriots in the lead-up to the Revolutionary War. In the fall of 1776, Roe was assigned to lead a raid against the Tory and Hessian detachment near Selden led by his cousin Richard Miller. Miller was a wanted man, and Roe himself had pledged 10 pounds of the bounty offered for Miller's capture. When Miller rode right by Roe's house in uniform, he was confronted by Roe's men and ordered to dismount. Instead, Miller fired his pistol and turned to flee, whereupon he was shot by the militiamen. Miller was then carried into Roe's house, where he died.
Nineteenth Century Farm Town
A school district for the Westfield area was first created in 1815, carved out of the districts for New Village (now CentereachCentereach, New York
As of the census of 2000, there were 27,285 people, 8,176 households, and 6,998 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 3,429.4 per square mile . There were 8,329 housing units at an average density of 1,046.8/sq mi...
) and Coram
Coram, New York
As of the 2000 census, 34,923 people, 12,530 households, and 9,121 families resided in the CDP. The population density was 2,532.1 per square mile . There were 12,880 housing units at an average density of 933.9/sq mi...
. Originally named District 25, it was renumbered as District 12 in 1842, which it remained as until the formation of the Middle Country Central School District
Middle Country Central School District
The Middle Country Central School District covers approximately in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States....
in 1957.
When a post office was opened in 1852, Westfield
Westfield (village), New York
Westfield is a village in Chautauqua County, New York, United States. USA. The population was 3,481 at the 2010 census.The Village of Westfield lies within the Town of Westfield in the northern part of the county...
had already been taken as a name by a community upstate. Upstate attorney (and later judge) Henry Selden
Henry R. Selden
Henry Rogers Selden was an American lawyer and politician. He was Lieutenant Governor of New York from 1857 to 1858. He defended Susan B. Anthony in her 1873 trial for unlawfully voting as a woman.-Life:He was the son of Calvin Selden and Phebe Selden...
promised to do "something handsome" if the town named itself after him. The name was adopted, though it is usually said to be unknown whether he ever followed through on his promise, and probably did not. While some sources report that the attorney had no known connection to the community, one newspaper reported in 1958 that Selden and attorney Edward Boyle (the namesake for Boyle Road) acquired a large tract of land in the hamlet shortly before the post office opened, and started to develop it.
As of 1885, Selden was home to 88 residents and a Presbyterian church (built in 1857), and noted for producing melons and early garden vegetables from its farms. Around 1897, the popular cross-island Bicycle Path
Bicycle Path
Bicycle Path is a historic road in Central Suffolk County on Long Island, New York, built in the late 19th Century in order to capitalize on the bicycle craze of that period...
was completed and ran through Selden. A popular stop along the path, "Wheelmen's Rest", was in Selden and run by Albert Norton.
Twentieth Century and Growth
In 1916, the Suffolk County Tuberculosis Sanitorium opened on land then-considered to be part of HoltsvilleHoltsville, New York
Holtsville is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 17,006 at the 2000 census....
. The location, including some of its original buildings, became in 1961 the main (Ammerman) campus of Suffolk County Community College
Suffolk County Community College
Suffolk County Community College is a two-year public college on Long Island, NY sponsored by SUNY and Suffolk County, New York in the USA....
, which today has an enrollment of over 11,000 students.
From 1919 to 1959, Telescope Hill
Telescope Hill
Telescope Hill, at , is the highest point of elevation in the Town of Brookhaven, on Long Island, New York, United States. The hill is located at the end of Tower Hill Ave., on the border of the ZIP codes of the hamlets of Selden and Farmingville, and west of Bald Hill.Notably, Telescope Hill was...
on the south side of Selden was the location of a fire lookout tower. During World War II, a Nazi "U-Boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
" spotted from Telescope Hill was later captured but not identified.
In 1935, a new public school building was built near the same location as the prior school building, near the intersection of Bicycle Path and Middle Country Road. That building was renovated in the 1980s and became a branch of the Middle Country Public Library.
The main thoroughfare in town, Middle Country Road, was paved from Smithtown and through Selden to Coram around 1927-8. The rural nature of Selden soon began to change, when in 1931 (when it had around 131 residents ), real estate agents began marketing small lots to New York City residents as retreats from urban living, in a development called "Nature's Gardens". This was located on the south side of Middle Country Road and Evergreen Drive. Suburban development increased in earnest in the early 1950s, and by the early 1970s Selden had become a primarily suburban community.
Commercial Development
The primary road in the hamlet, and the location of most of the commercial development, is New York State Route 25New York State Route 25
New York State Route 25 is an east–west state highway in downstate New York in the United States. The route extends for just over from east midtown Manhattan in New York City to the Cross Sound Ferry terminal at Orient Point on the end of Long Island's North Fork...
(Middle Country Road), which runs east to west. Similar to surrounding communities, Selden has a number of shopping centers along Middle Country Road, which developed as suburban growth spread eastward.
In 1972, the (Old) Westfield Shopping Center opened at the intersection of Middle Country and Blue Point roads, with a Hills Supermarkets
Hills Supermarkets
Hills Supermarkets was a New York based grocery store chain which was popular in the 1960s. In May 1977 it was sold as a subdivision of Pueblo International Inc., to Food Fair.-Growth:...
location.
In 1975, College Plaza at the northeast corner of the Middle Country Road and Boyle Road intersection opened. Its original anchor tenants included King Kullen
King Kullen
King Kullen Grocery Co. is an American supermarket chain with 45 stores, on Long Island and Staten Island. The company is headquartered in Bethpage, New York and was founded by Michael J. Cullen in 1930. It is notable for its title of "America's First Supermarket" as recognized by the Smithsonian...
, Builder's Emporium, and Genovese
Genovese Drug Stores
Genovese Drug Stores was a pharmacy chain located in the New York City-Long Island area of the United States, including northern New Jersey, along with Fairfield County, Connecticut. It was acquired by Eckerd in 1998....
.
"Selden Plaza" at the intersection of Middle Country and County Route 83
County Route 83 (Suffolk County, New York)
Suffolk County Road 83 is a major county road in Suffolk County, New York. It runs north and south from New York State Route 27 at exit 52A in North Patchogue to New York State Route 25A in Mount Sinai...
(in the Coram
Coram, New York
As of the 2000 census, 34,923 people, 12,530 households, and 9,121 families resided in the CDP. The population density was 2,532.1 per square mile . There were 12,880 housing units at an average density of 933.9/sq mi...
CDP but within the Selden ZIP code
ZIP Code
ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...
) opened in 1978.
In 1992, a new major shopping center, "Independence Plaza" opened at the northwest corner of Middle Country and Boyle Roads, adjacent to College Plaza. As of 2009, plans have been made to develop a town center in and around Independence Plaza.
Geography
Selden is located at 40°52′15"N 73°2′49"W (40.870914, −73.047020).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the CDP has a total area of 4.7 square miles (12.2 km²), all land.
Selden is bordered by Centereach
Centereach, New York
As of the census of 2000, there were 27,285 people, 8,176 households, and 6,998 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 3,429.4 per square mile . There were 8,329 housing units at an average density of 1,046.8/sq mi...
to the west, Terryville
Terryville, New York
Terryville is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 10,589 at the 2000 census.Terryville is in the Town of Brookhaven.-Geography:...
to the north, Coram
Coram, New York
As of the 2000 census, 34,923 people, 12,530 households, and 9,121 families resided in the CDP. The population density was 2,532.1 per square mile . There were 12,880 housing units at an average density of 933.9/sq mi...
to the east, and Farmingville
Farmingville, New York
Farmingville is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 16,458 at the 2000 census.Farmingville is in the Town of Brookhaven...
to the south.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 21,861 people, 6,809 households, and 5,522 families residing in the CDP. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 4,695.5 per square mile (1,811.3/km²). There were 7,083 housing units at an average density of 1,521.3/sq mi (586.9/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 91.96% White, 1.88% African American, 0.19% Native American, 2.46% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.78% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.72% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.23% of the population.
There were 6,809 households out of which 43.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.2% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.9% were non-families. 15.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.21 and the average family size was 3.54.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 28.4% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 33.7% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 8.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 97.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.1 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $58,103, and the median income for a family was $62,708. Males had a median income of $44,665 versus $29,973 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the CDP was $20,577. About 3.1% of families and 5.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.0% of those under age 18 and 10.1% of those age 65 or over.
Schools
- Suffolk County Community CollegeSuffolk County Community CollegeSuffolk County Community College is a two-year public college on Long Island, NY sponsored by SUNY and Suffolk County, New York in the USA....
- Ammerman Campus - Newfield High SchoolNewfield High SchoolNewfield High School is a public high school in Selden, New York, which is located in Suffolk County, Long Island in the United States. It is located 1 mile north of Middle Country Road on Marshall Drive.-History and Overview:...
- Middle Country Central School DistrictMiddle Country Central School DistrictThe Middle Country Central School District covers approximately in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States....
- Unity Drive Pre-K & Kindergarten
- Jericho Elementary
- Stagecoach Elementary
- Hawkins Path Elementary
- New Lane Elementary
- Selden Middle School
Churches and Houses of Worship
- St. Margaret of Scotland
- Hope Lutheran Church
- Grace Presbyterian Church
- St Michael's Charismatic Catholic
- St Cuthbert's Episcopal Church
- Praise Christian Tabernacle
- Middle Island Baptist Church
- Islamic Association of Long IslandIslamic Association of Long IslandThe Islamic Association of Long Island is a mosque at 10 Park Hill Drive in Selden, New York, eastern Long Island, 65 miles east of New York City. It was founded in 1974 and is oldest chartered mosque on Long Island....
, a mosque