Queens County, New York Cities, Towns, and Villages

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List of towns, formation dates, and other details (pre-1898)

Flushing  
  1645    Land patent granted to English settlers by government of New Netherland
  1664    Part of English colonial jurisdiction of the North Riding of Yorkshire
  1683    Formed part of original Queens County; a few Dutch and French settlers began to arrive
  1788    Recognized as a town by State  of New York
  1898    Town dissolved; became ward 3, Borough of Queens, New York City
Hempstead  
  (See Nassau County from 1899)
  1639    Dutch claim area by deed from American Indians
  1643    Indians deed land to English settlers from Connecticut
  1644    New Netherland Governor Kieft grants patent to the settlement
  1664    Part of English colonial jurisdiction of the North Riding of  Yorkshire
  1666    Town patent confirmed by English Governor Nicolls
  1683    Formed part of original Queens County; about this time Dutch begin to settle in parts of town
  1784    Daughter town of North Hempstead formed
  1784    Name changed to South Hempstead
  1788    Recognized as a town by State  of New York
  1796    Name changed back to Hempstead
  1898    Rockaway peninsula becomes ward 5 of the Borough of Queens
  1899    Transferred to new county of Nassau with the exception of the Rockaway peninsula
Jamaica  
  1656    Land patent granted to English settlers by government of New Netherland
  1664    Part of English colonial jurisdiction of the North Riding of Yorkshire
  1683    Formed part of original Queens County; major migration of Dutch families from Kings County began at about this time
  1788    Recognized as a town by State  of New York
  1898    Town dissolved; became ward 4, Borough of Queens, New York City
Long Island City  
  1870    Formed as a city from Town of Newtown
  1898    City dissolved; became ward 1, Borough of Queens, New York City
Newtown  
  1642    New Netherland granted patent for English settlement at Mespat, joining Dutch and English farmers already in area
  1652    Patent rights extended to new English settlement at Middelburg
  1662    Middelburg renamed Hastings after changing allegiance from New Netherland to Connecticut
  1664    Hastings and adjacent settlements combined to form Town of Newtown, part of English colonial jurisdiction of the West Riding of Yorkshire
  1667    Received patent from Governor Nicolls
  1683    Formed part of original Queens County
  1788    Recognized as a town by State  of New York
  1870    Daughter city Long Island City created; included Village of Astoria and hamlets of Blissville, Bowery Bay, Dutch Kills, Hunters Point, Middleto(w)n,                Ravenswood, Steinway, and Sunnyside
  1898    Town dissolved; became ward 2, Borough of Queens, New York City
North Hempstead  
  (See Nassau County from 1899)
  1784    Formed in Queens County from Town of Hempstead
  1788    Recognized as a town by State  of New York
  1899    Transferred to new county of Nassau
Oyster Bay  
  (See Nassau County from 1899)
  1653    Purchased from American Indians by English settlers, not affiliated with  any colony
  1664    Part of English colonial jurisdiction of the North Riding of Yorkshire
  1667    Town patent granted by Governor Nicolls
  1683    Formed part of original Queens County
  1788    Recognized as a town by State  of New York
  1886    Lloyds Neck ceded to Town of Huntington, Suffolk County
  1899    Transferred to new county of Nassau
South Hempstead  
  Name for Town of Hempstead 
  1784–1796

1898-present

Many of the names of early cities, towns, villages, and settlements listed in the preceding gazetteer, have survived as neighborhood names—although their boundaries may have changed. Sources consulted to compile this list include the Community Portal of the New York City Department of City Planning, the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), and the New York State Department of Health Gazetteer, 2007.

Arverne Fresh Meadows New Hyde Park
Astoria Fresh Pond North Corona
Astoria Heights Glen Oaks North Springfield 
Auburndale Glendale      Gardens
Bay Terrace Hamilton Beach Oakland Gardens
Bayside Hammels Old Howard Beach
Bayswater Hillcrest Ozone Park
Beechhurst Hillside Pomonok
Bellaire Hollands Queens Village
Belle Harbor Hollis Queensboro Hill
Bellerose Hollis Hills Ravenswood
Bellerose Manor Holliswood Rego Park
Blissville Howard Beach Richmond Hill
Breezy Point Hunters Point Ridgewood
Briarwood Jackson Heights Rochdale
Broad Channel Jamaica Rockaway Park
Brooklyn Manor Jamaica Center Rockaway Point
Brookville Jamaica Estates Rosedale
Bushwick Junction Jamaica Hills Roxbury
Cambria Heights Kew Gardens Saint Albans
Clearview Kew Gardens Hills Seaside
College Point Kissena Park Somerville
Corona Laurel Hill South Corona
Corona Heights Laurelton South Jamaica
Douglaston Lefrak City South Ozone Park
Downtown Flushing Linden Hill Springfield Gardens
Dutch Kills Lindenwood Steinway
East Elmhurst Little Neck Sunnyside
Edgemere Locust Manor Sunnyside Gardens
Elmhurst Long Island City The Rockaways
Far Rockaway Malba Utopia
Floral Park Maspeth Waldheim
Flushing Middle Village Whitestone
Forest Hills Mott Creek Willets Point
Forest Hills Gardens Murray Hill Woodhaven
Forest Park Neponsit Woodside