The area of Queens comprising East Elmhurst was called “Mespat” by the
Native Americans and “Middleburgh” by the English colonists. It became part of
the Town of Newtown, when it was incorporated in 1683 as one of the three original municipalities along with Jamaica and Flushing. It remained largely rural until transportation improvements led to suburban development. In 1854 the Flushing Railroad began service through what is now 44th and 45th Avenues (now part of the Port Washington Branch of the Long Island Rail Road). Anticipating commuter service, a group of real estate speculators formed the West Flushing Land Company and purchased an extensive tract that they subdivided into house lots, naming the new neighborhood West Flushing. In 1904 the Bankers’ Land and Mortgage Corporation launched a new residential development in north
Corona called East Elmhurst, comprising 2,000 building lots along the western edge of Flushing and Bowery Bays. Growth accelerated with the opening of the Queensborough Bridge in 1908 and the East River tunnels to Pennsylvania Station in 1911. Perhaps most significantly, the subway system arrived in 1917 with the opening of the Alburtis Avenue (now 103rd Street-Corona Plaza) station.
Lent-Riker-Smith Homestead
78-03 19th Road, Flushing, NY, USASTATUS: Designated Individual Landmark
Marine Air Terminal – Exterior and Interior
LaGuardia Airport (LGA), Queens, NY, USASTATUS: Designated Exterior and Interior Landmark