Jackson Heights and Astoria

From Decoding New York

Jackson Heights. An Indian man standing outside his store in Jackson Heights. Photo by "Brian" (blogger).

Jackson Heights and Astoria are two significant section of Queens. Jackson Heights, while much younger than Astoria, equals it in terms of development as a community. Being the first garden community in America, it boasts the highest tree per sidewalk ratio in New York. A large part of Jackson Heights is protected as a Historic District, both by New York City and the federal National Register. Founded in the 1920's, its target was the white middle class. It is now populated by a diverse contingent of Asians and Latin Americans, many coming from India and Colombia. It is also home to many Italians, Afghanis, Thai, Filipinos and many others. Astoria's history dates back to the 1650's when it was settled by the Dutch And Germans. In the 1890' they were followed the Czech, Italians and the Irish. Until the 1990's the last mass immigration had been by the Greek in the 1960's. Since then Jackson Heights has undergone a renaissance for a fourth time with a large contingent of Eastern Europeans moving here from Bosnia, Croatia, Poland and nearby countries. Each group adds to its community through its culture. This can be seen in the restaurants, shopping opportunities, languages spoken and religious organizations within Jackson Heights and Astoria. Each ethnic group is represented. If you were so inclined you would be able to purchase genuine Bollywood movies, Mexican boots or Italian cannolis in the two neighborhoods. The streets are alive with languages from Europe, Asia and South America. The Catholic churches built by the Italian immigrants to Astoria are now filled by Latin Americans and Eastern Europeans. The Indians of Jackson Heights have built their own temples which are easily noticed when walking around. These characteristics combine to make both neighborhoods very pleasant places to walk around and, I live. Each is thriving and bustling on Saturday afternoon. By traveling short distances one can move from one world to another, differnt world. One street will feel like being in India while one block over may be heavily Hispanic. It is no wonder that many younger people are moving to the area.

Astoria street corner in June 2006. Photo taken by Jeff D.

This section on Jackson Heights and Astoria developed by Daniel D, Jonathan Stieglitz, and Daniel Blondell.