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History of Flushing
Long before the United States was founded, Flushing was inhabited by the Matinecock Indians, one of thirteen Native American tribes on Long Island. In 1628, the Dutch arrived to 'the new world', and settled in Queens, making it a part of the New Netherlands. In 1639 the Dutch governor, William Kieft, purchased all the land from the Native Americans that would later become Queens County. On October 10, 1645, the town of Flushing was founded, originally named Vlissingen, after the seaport in the Netherlands. Later, when the English took over the colony, the name was anglicized to Flushing. Throughout the revolution, Flushing remained under British control (queenslibrary.org).
In the early nineteenth century, a number of African Americans settled in Flushing, attracted by the tolerance of the Quakers. A few decades later, in 1843, immigrants from Europe, Central and South America settled to Flushing, largely due to their enrollment in the Flushing Institute, a secondary school for boys (queenslibrary.org).
 Friends Meeting House, one of the oldest establishments in Flushing |
 The advertisements on Union Street written in different languages |
 The local police precinct |
During the 1960’s, Flushing became the home to many Japanese, Chinese, and Korean immigrants (queenslibrary.org). From 1970-1980, the non-Hispanic, white population in Flushing drastically decreased from 76.2% to 46.9%. During those years, there was a major increase in the Asian, Hispanic and African American populations (Binder). In the 1980s, there was another significant wave of immigration to Flushing. "20% were Chinese, 20% were Korean, and the rest was comprised of other groups from India, Colombia, Afghanistan, Guyana, the Dominican Republic, Pakistan, the Philippines and El Salvador" (queenslibrary.org). According to the 2000 census, the number of Chinese and Asian Indians making Flushing their home has almost doubled from 1990 to 2000 (queenslibrary.org).
When we walked around the neighborhood of Flushing, it was clear to us that the area was densely populated by Chinese and Korean immigrants. Almost every business awning displayed Chinese or Korean lettering and many shops were decorated with Chinese lanterns. The Flushing Town Hall has been recently renovated and now serves as an entertainment space for the community. When we visited Town Hall, the art exhibit on display was about the importance of the tiger in Chinese culture. Even as we were waiting to cross the street at a busy intersection, we were handed fliers with an advertisement written in East Asian lettering. When we finished our walking tour of the neighborhood, we were very confident saying that present day Flushing is a hub of East Asian immigration.
 Roosevelt Avenue and Main Street |
 Flushing Town Hall |
 Freedom Mile, a historical place in Flushing |
Sources
Binder, Frederick M., and David M. Reimers. All the Nations Under Heaven. New York: Columbia University Press, 1995. 114-17. Print.
http://www.queenslibrary.org/index.aspx?page_nm=CL-Communityinfo&branch_id=F&#clhistory
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