Robert Tilitz (1909-1996) moved to Elmhurst in 1917. He served in World War II, and rose to the rank of Captain. After the war he attended the New School and went on to a career at the Veterans Administration - he taught social services at Columbia University after he retired. Tilitz was often referred to as the "Mayor of Elmhurst," where he was very active in the community. He volunteered at a mental health clinic, was president of the Newtown Civic Association and was the associate editor of The Newtown Crier. He also served on Community Board 4 and was a trustee of Queens Borough Public Library for 13 years. In addition, Olga Conway, Bob's sister, was a tireless advocate for gardens and green spaces. She and her crew could be found at the oasis which was the Elmhurst Library Garden, taking care of the wide, spacious, and diverse groups of flowers.

Patrick Deignan (1946-1983) was a civic and community leader in his neighborhood of Jackson Heights. He co-founded the Jackson Heights Civic Association and was founder and board chairman of the Catherine M. Sheridan Center for Senior Citizens (now the Catherine Sheridan Older Adult Center). He was also active in various charitable, fraternal, and church organizations. In 1971, he became a member of Community Board 3, serving as its chairman from 1973 to 1975. He was a Democratic District leader in Jackson Heights from 1974 to 1982, chairing the Borough President's Commission on Charter Revision and also serving on the executive committee of the Queens Democratic Party. Deignan was born on Staten Island on March 17, 1946, and raised in Jackson Heights, where he attended Blessed Sacrament School. He later continued his studies at Manhattan College (now Manhattan University) in Riverdale. He died on October 6, 1983, at Lenox Hill Hospital after a brief gastrointestinal illness. Survived at the time by his wife, the former Joy Laskowski, and a son, Patrick Jr., he is buried at St. Charles Cemetery in Farmingdale, New York. On November 5, 1997, a ceremony was held at 34th Avenue and 69th Street, at the western end of a 26-block-long mall in Jackson Heights (also known as Paseo Park), to co-name the stretch of traffic islands in Deignan’s honor as Patrick C. Deignan Mall.

Maureen Walthers (1934 – 2020) was the owner and publisher of the Ridgewood Times and Times Newsweekly. Walthers was a homemaker in the 1970s when she wrote a letter to the editor of the Ridgewood Times about drug use at a playground a block away. The letter impressed the paper’s then-publisher, and she was offered a job as a writer - it began a five-decade association with the weekly newspaper covering the Greater Ridgewood area (Ridgewood, Glendale, Maspeth, and Middle Village). She was on the front lines covering the civic scene in Ridgewood and neighboring Bushwick, Brooklyn, during the 1970s. She would ride along with police officers and firefighters as they responded to emergencies in both communities and chronicled the rampant urban decay in Bushwick an award-winning seven-part series, “The Agony of Bushwick,” published in the Ridgewood Times in the summer and fall of 1977. The series brought further public awareness of the community’s woes, and action from the city to reverse the decline. Walthers was one of the founding members of the Greater Ridgewood Historical Society and took an active role in helping to preserve and landmark the Onderdonk House, a colonial farmhouse on Flushing Avenue. She was also an active member of Queens Community Board 5 for many years and served for a time as the chair of its Public Safety Committee. She was also involved with the Greater Ridgewood Restoration Corporation, which promotes the preservation of the neighborhood’s housing stock. In 1981, she became the Ridgewood Times’ first female editor, as well as executive vice president and co-owner. She became owner of the paper and expanded it over the next three decades beyond the Greater Ridgewood area. She launched the Times Newsweekly in 1989, a version of the Ridgewood Times distributed in northwestern and southwestern Queens communities, extending out as far north as Astoria and as far south Howard Beach. The Times Newsweekly sponsored Cop of the Month awards at eight precincts covering western Queens and Bushwick.

Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson may be best known as a rap icon, but he's also helped spark a love of nature in kids growing up in his old neighborhood through this community garden. Born July 6, 1975, Jackson grew up in South Jamaica, Queens. After his mother passed away when he was eight, his father left him to his grandmother's care. Though boxing and school took up his time, he also began dealing drugs around the age of 12. While attending the now-defunct Andrew Jackson High School, he was arrested for drug and gun possession, but served time in a boot camp rather than prison. With a GED in hand, it was around this time he decided to pursue hip hop. Attempting to break through with his music—and suffering some near-death experiences that included being shot several times outside of his grandmother's old house - Jackson's career took off when Eminem and Dr. Dre signed him for a record deal that resulted in the release of his debut, Get Rich or Die Tryin', in 2003. The album's single "In da Club" hit number one on Billboard's Hot 100 chart. Jackson has since made several more albums, appeared in films and television, and developed business ventures from apparel to real estate. And in 2007, he worked to give back to the community where he grew up with an investment into the former Baisley Park Community Garden. Working with the New York Restoration Project and Bette Midler, the new Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson Community Garden is underwritten by 50 Cent’s G-Unity Foundation and reopened in 2008 following several renovations. The space now features a rainwater harvesting system for regular irrigation, a solar-powered water pump, and new garden beds. The garden has also provided new opportunities for youth encountering the criminal justice system. According to a 2016 article, teens in an alternative-to-detention program volunteered at the garden, where they built connections to both people and nature.

Russell Risley Sage (1816 – 1906) Was a financier & President of the Chicago, St. Paul & Milwaukee Railroad, he played a large part in organizing the railroad and telegraph systems in the United States. He also served as a delegate to the Whig Convention of 1848, where he supported Henry Clay. Sage served two consecutive terms in the U.S. Congress (1853–57). Sage was born in Oneida County New York, his first job was as an errand boy in his brother's Troy, NY grocery store, very motivated he soon opened his own wholesale grocery business. He was elected as an alderman in Troy, while also serving as a treasurer in Rensselaer County from 1844 to 1851, 1852 he was elected to Congress on the Whig ticket and served for five years until he took over as vice president of the La Crosse Railroad in Wisconsin, a company he had invested in. He also had money invested in Western Union Telegraph. He relocated to New York City in 1863 where he engaged in the business of selling puts and calls, as well as short-term options known as privileges. He has been credited with developing the market for stock options in the United States and inventing the "spread" and "straddle" option strategies, for which he was dubbed "Old Straddle" and the "Father of Puts and Calls."  In 1891, a man entered Sage’s office and demanded $1.2 million, threatening Sage with dynamite. When Sage refused, the man unleashed an explosion that left him dead, but Sage was mostly unharmed. The event was in all the newspapers. By the time of Sage’s death in 1906, he had amassed a large amount of money which he left to his wife Margaret Olivia Slocum Sage (1828 - 1918), and it is largely due to her efforts that so many institutions in New York benefitted from his fortune. Olivia donated large sums to the YMCA, the YWCA, the Women’s Hospital, the American Museum of Natural History, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. As a memorial to her husband, she had built the First Presbyterian Church of Far Rockaway, at 1324 Beach 12th Street, where they used to vacation. Olivia also founded the Russell Sage Foundation in 1907 for “the improvement of social and living conditions in the United States,” and helped to sponsor the Regional Plan Association’s (‘RPA’) project to develop a regional plan for New York City in 1929, which would provide Parks Commissioner Robert Moses (1888-1981) with many of the basic ideas that shaped his career.

Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) was born in the Italian seaport of Genoa in 1451, to a family of wool weavers. He went to sea from an early age, and was an experienced sailor by his twenties. In 1476 Columbus moved to Lisbon, Portugal, and for many years attempted to gain support for a journey he was planning to find new trade routes to the Far East. Eventually Ferdinand and Isabella, the King and Queen of Spain, agreed to finance him. He is known for his 1492 ‘discovery’ of the 'new world' of the Americas on board his ship Santa Maria. In actual fact, Columbus did not discover North America. He was the first European to sight the Bahamas archipelago and then the island later named Hispaniola, now split into Haiti and the Dominican Republic. On his subsequent voyages he went farther south, to Central and South America. He never got close to what is now called the United States. Columbus called all the people he met in the islands ‘Indians’, because he was sure that he had reached the Indies. This initial encounter opened up the 'New World' to European colonization, which would come to have a devastating impact on indigenous populations. Columbus died in 1506, still believing that he had found a new route to the East Indies. Today his historic legacy as a daring explorer who discovered the New World has been challenged. His voyages launched centuries of European exploration and colonization of the American continents. His encounters also triggered centuries of exploitation of Indigenous Peoples. The City acquired this land on July 19, 1910, and since the 1920s Italian-Americans of Queens have gathered here to celebrate Columbus. The Board of Aldermen, on April 1, 1930, named the site for the famed explorer. The Italian Chamber of Commerce installed a bronze tablet here on October 12, 1937, indicating its intention to build a full monument to Columbus. In 1938, with funds from the Works Progress Administration (WPA), Italian sculptor Angelo Racioppi was commissioned to create the seven foot tall bronze of a youthful Christopher Columbus standing in front of a ship’s tiller.

George Upton Harvey (1881-1946) was Queens Borough President from 1928 to 1941. Born in County Galway, Ireland, the Harveys moved to Chicago when George was five years old. His father founded The International Confectioner, a trade paper, and after working there Harvey served as a correspondent and photographer for the Army and Navy journal. A captain during World War I, he commanded Company A of the 308th Infantry Regiment, 77th Division. In 1920, Harvey was appointed Assistant Director of the State Income Tax Bureau in Jamaica, New York.  Harvey began his career in electoral politics when he successfully ran for election to the Board of Aldermen in 1921 as a Republican from Queens and was re-elected in 1923. Though Harvey lost the 1925 election for President of the Board of Aldermen, a sewer scandal resulting in the ouster of Borough President Maurice Connolly vaulted Harvey into the Borough Presidency in a special election to complete Connolly’s term. Harvey was Queens’ first Republican Borough President since the 1898 consolidation of New York City. He was re-elected to this office in 1929, 1933, and 1937, serving until 1941.  Harvey was a bitter foe of the Tammany political machine at home and Communism abroad. In 1928, he initiated a major expansion of arterial highway and parkway improvements in Queens. He also played an active role in the World’s Fair at Flushing Meadow in 1939-40. In 1932 and again in 1938, he considered running for Governor but ultimately declined to do so. On April 6, 1946, Harvey died of a heart attack while helping to battle a brush fire near his home in New Milford, Connecticut.

Adelaide Connaughton (1958-2018) was an intern for then Assistant Queens District Attorney, Geraldine Ferraro when she was just 15. She went on to work for several elected officials, including the first lesbian Latina member of the New York City Council, Margarita Lopez. Prior to joining the staff of Council Member Lopez, she was a Lieutenant in the Fire Department's Emergency Medical Service and retired after 20 years of service. She was a Senior Entitlement Specialist for the Fortune Society, a non-profit providing formerly incarcerated individuals with the supportive services needed to thrive as contributing members of society. She also worked at the non-profit Safe Space, helping homeless LGBT youth to obtain supportive care. She fought for progressive causes important to the LGBT community and all New Yorkers and served on the Board of Governors of the Stonewall Democratic Club of NYC and the Executive Board of AIDS Center of Queens County (ACQC). She was also a founding Vice-President of the Jim Owles Liberal Democratic Club. From 2012 to 2018, Adelaide and her West Highland Terrier, Elvis, participated in a therapy dog program at two hospitals in the North Bronx. Elvis and Adelaide were the first dog/human team to receive an Auxiliary Award from NYC Health and Hospitals.

Lorraine Hansberry (1930 – 1965) was a playwright, writer, and activist. Her play, “A Raisin in the Sun” (1959), was the first drama by an African American woman produced on Broadway. Hansberry was born in Chicago in 1930, the youngest of four children to a real estate entrepreneur and a schoolteacher. Her parents were members of the NAACP and the Urban League. She was the niece of Pan-Africanist scholar and college professor Leo Hansberry. In 1938 her family moved to a white neighborhood where they were attacked by neighbors. The Hansberry’s refused to move until a court ordered them to do so, and the case made it to the Supreme Court as Hansberry v. Lee, ruling restrictive covenants illegal. The case was the inspiration for her Broadway play, A Raisin in the Sun, which also became a movie starring Sidney Poitier. Hansberry attended the University of Wisconsin but left after two years and moved to New York to work as a writer and editor of Paul Robeson’s newspaper Freedom. She was a Communist and committed civil rights activist. She met her husband and closest friend, Robert Nemiroff, at a civil rights demonstration. Despite her marriage to a man, Hansberry identified as a lesbian, but she was not “out,” though it seems like she was on the path to a more open life before her death, having built a circle of gay and lesbian friends. In 1964, Hansberry and Nemiroff divorced but continued to work together, and he was the executor of her estate when she died of cancer in 1965. Nemiroff donated all of Hansberry's personal and professional effects to the New York Public Library but blocked access to all materials related to Hansberry's lesbianism for 50 years. Nemiroff passed away in 1991, and in 2013, Nemiroff's daughter released the restricted materials for research.

Rabbi Ben Zion Bokser (1907 - 1984) was a leading figure in Conservative Judaism, a scholar, and the spiritual leader of the Forest Hills Jewish Center in Queens for 50 years. Rabbi Bokser was born in Liuboml, which was then a part of Poland, and emigrated to the United States at the age of 13 in 1920. He attended City College of New York, the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, and received his PhD in 1935 from Columbia University. He taught for many years as an adjunct professor of political science at Queens College, City University of New York. Bokser served as the rabbi of Forest Hills Jewish Center starting in 1933 and remained in that position for more than fifty years. He served for a two-year period as a United States Army chaplain during World War II and organized aid for Jewish soldiers. Bokser was an advocate for social justice and took a position in favor of the construction of a housing project for the poor during the Forest Hills housing controversy of 1966-1972. He fought against the death penalty in New York state. He served as a program editor for the Eternal Light, the Jewish Theological Seminary's radio program, was a professor of homiletics at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, and  participated in the Conference on Science, Philosophy and Religion and the Institute for Religious and Social Studies, both seminary-run programs. He was chair of the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Rabbinical Assembly from 1959–1960, 1963–1965, and 1980-1984. Among the books he wrote were ''Judaism and the Christian Predicament,'' a study of Jewish-Christian relations; ''Judaism: Profile of a Faith'' and ''Jews, Judaism and the State of Israel.''

Ivan Mrakovcic (1963-2020) was an architect, historian, environmentalist and preservationist whose contributions enhanced the Richmond Hill neighborhood. His civic involvement earned him many leadership positions and stewardships and resulted in the establishment of the Historic District in North Richmond Hill on the New York State and National Historic registers in March 2019. He was the founder and president of the Richmond Hill Historical Society, served as treasurer of the Forest Park Trust and was a member of Queens Community Board 9 for 15 years, of which he served as chairperson from 2002 until 2007. He was a founding board member of the Friends of QueensWay park advocacy group and was also a Greenway Committee Member.

James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael (Mickey) Schwerner were three civil rights workers who were murdered in Mississippi in June 1964, where they were volunteering for the Freedom Summer Project. At the time of their deaths, Goodman was a student at Queens College and Schwerner’s brother, Steve Schwerner, was the director of the college’s counseling program. The three men were primarily involved in registering Black voters, but on the day of their disappearance were investigating the burning of a Black church that had been used for voter registration. They were abducted near the town of Philadelphia, Mississippi, and the case was initially treated as a missing persons investigation. After two months, their bodies were discovered; members of the KKK as well as local law enforcement were charged with the killings, but only seven of 18 defendants were convicted, on lesser charges of conspiracy. However, the case was reopened in 2004 after new evidence came to light and one defendant, Edgar Ray Killen, was convicted of three counts of manslaughter. He died in prison in 2018 at the age of 92. The Chaney-Goodman-Schwerner Clock Tower sits atop the Benjamin S. Rosenthal Library on the campus of Queens College. It was dedicated to the three men in 1989, shortly after the library's construction. A campaign to furnish the tower with a real bell carillon, rather than electronic chimes, was spearheaded by Queens College music professor David S. Walker, and a five-bell peal was commissioned and cast at the Royal Eijsbouts Bell Foundry in the Netherlands. The carillon was dedicated in November 1990.

Samantha Smith (1972-1985) was an American peace activist during some of the most tense moments in the Cold War. Samantha Smith was born in Maine in 1972. In 1982, at 10 years old, she decided to write a letter to the then current Soviet Union Leader Yuri Andropov. Smith had listened to newscasters and watched science videos on the imposing threat of nuclear war. Feeling anxious about the global situation, Smith followed her mother's advice to reach out directly to the new leader of Soviet Russia. In the letter, Smith expressed her concern over the threat of war. She asked Andropov if he was planning to vote for there to be a war and "why he wanted to conquer the world." The letter was published in the Soviet newspaper "Pravda." Although Smith was excited that her letter was published, she had not yet received a response from Andropov himself. Therefore, Smith wrote a second letter, this time to the Soviet Ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Dobrynin, to ask why Andropov hadn't responded. In the spring of 1983, Andropov responded to her letter, assuring that he did not want to conquer the world and inviting Smith and her family to visit the Soviet Union. This letter gained national attention and although some were skeptical on Andropov's reasons for inviting Smith to the USSR, she ultimately decided to go and visited in July, 1983. Samantha was met with a warm welcome from the Russian public and media. During her two week stay in Russia, Smith visited Lenin’s grave, the Bolshoi Ballet, the Artek summer camp in Crimea, and met Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman to go to space. She met many people, including fellow children, many of whom had never met an American before. Her visit was widely covered by both Soviet and Western press. She was dubbed "America’s Youngest Ambassador." Upon her return to the United States, Smith appeared on many media outlets such as "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson," Disney Channel (where she interviewed Democratic presidential candidates), had many interviews, and began writing her own book. Smith described that Americans had been given the wrong impression of Soviet people. She reported that unlike how the Soviets were often portrayed, they wanted peace just as much as any American did. Smith also stated that the other children she met in Russia were just like some of the kids she knew in the United States. Overall, the experience was very positive for Smith and highlighted the humanity that exists no matter which country you are from. However, with this coverage, some questioned whether Samantha Smith was being used as a pawn by both governments. Yet some argue that by presenting and representing herself as a regular American girl, Smith evaded this mistrust. Additionally, although the goal of the invitation might have been to show Soviets as peace-loving and kind, the trip also brought a favorable light to Americans. Smith made it hard for both sides to continue villainizing each other. Samantha Smith's journey was inspirational and showed the power of human connection during war. However, her work had little impact on the increasing strain between the two governments. The relationship continued to deteriorate and nuclear war was still a massive threat. Through this turmoil, Smith was prepared to stay in the spotlight and stand as an example of what can be achieved through openness and curiosity. Tragically, Samantha Smith and her father were killed in a plane crash in 1985 on their way back to Maine. She was 13 years old. Both the United States and the Soviet Union mourned her passing. President Reagan sent a condolence letter to her mom and both American and Soviet officials attended her funeral in Maine. In total, about 1,000 people attended. She was also eulogized in Moscow as a champion of peace. Since her death, many places and things have been named in her honor. Such as a bronze statue in Augusta, Maine made in 1986, depicting Smith releasing a dove with a bear cub clinging to her legs. The bear cub represents both Russia and Maine, bears are considered iconic symbols of both areas, and the dove is an international symbol of peace. Additionally, in 1985, Soviet Russia released a stamp with Smith's face and name (in Russian) and named a diamond found in Yakutsk, Siberia after her. Following her death in 1985, her mother Jane Smith, founded the Samantha Smith Foundation. Over the course of a decade, The foundation organized summer visits for children, to and from the Soviet Union and its successor states. In 1986, Jane Smith accompanied 20 of Samantha Smith's classmates on a trip to Moscow to visit some of the site Samantha had also visited 3 years earlier. In 1988, Soviet children came to summer camp in Maine, and Maine children went to summer camp in Russia through the Foundation. Then in 1990 the Foundation hosted children from the Chernobyl fallout zone, many of them suffering radiation-induced health problems. The next year, in 1991, they...

Firefighter Paul Gill (1967-2001) died during fire and rescue operations following the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.

Ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Wilson Rantus Rock, October 27, 2022.

Demetris Kastanas, known as “Mr. Greek TV,” was the owner of National Greek Television (NGTV), the first private Greek-owned and Greek-speaking TV channel in the U.S. Kastanas was born in Fthiotida in the village of Molos, and grew up in Greece, studying law while working at the Ioniki-Laiki Bank. He moved to the U.S. when he was 25 years old and first inaugurated a Greek weekly show on an American station on September 25, 1975. NGTV, now New Greek Television, was established in December 1987, when it began airing on the Time-Warner Cable system in Queens and Brooklyn. Kastanas ran the channel for 37 years, until he sold it to a group of Greek Americans in 2012. His channel and programs were a staple in many Greek American households in New York. Kastanas also founded Eseis, a bi-weekly magazine to address issues of concern to the Hellenic-American community. His work provided Greek Americans with a connection to their homeland through Hellenic news, folklore and music, and also helped new Greek immigrants assimilate into life in the United States.

William H. Pease, Jr. (1921-2004) was a professor, a former engineer, and an advocate of the study of African American history. He served in the United States Army Air Corps as a weather observer during WWII and was stationed for a period in Tuskegee, Alabama as part of the Tuskegee Airmen. He won accolades as the Tuskegee Airmen welterweight champion in 1945. Born in Harlem, Pease graduated from Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn and Fordham University, and he and his wife, Louise, raised their daughter, Denise, in Corona. He went on to work as a senior instructor at RCA Institute, a microwave engineer at Tung-Sol Electronics, and for more than two decades, as an educator at Suffolk County Community College, where he was a professor of electrical engineering and assistant dean of instruction. He was the first full-time African American administrator at the college, and the first African American president of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers. Pease gave back to his community in many ways, including sponsoring a scholarship awarded through the Central Brooklyn Martin Luther King Commission to student winners of essay and art contests. In the 1970s, Pease also served on the board of the Langston Hughes Branch of the Queens Public Library. Through his career, he received awards from the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, the New York University Weekend Tutorial Project, the Professional Achievement Award of the Brownsville Association for the Study of African American Life and History, the Teacher of the Year Award from the New York University Outreach Program for Mathematics and Science, the Mary McLeod Bethune Award for the motivation of black youth, and a proclamation from the Suffolk County Executive for outstanding service and leadership. His daughter, Denise Pease, a longtime government leader, went on to serve under President Obama as Regional Administrator for the U.S. General Services Administration Northeast and Caribbean Region, as well as on President Biden’s Advisory Commission on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity for Black Americans. In honor of his dedicated community service, the intersection of 104th Street and 35th Avenue in North Corona is co-named Professor William H. Pease, Jr. Way.

Firefighter Richie Allen (1970-2001) died during fire and rescue operations following the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.

Dr. Carter G. Woodson (1875-1950) was an educator and philosopher, mentor to African-American scholars, and the journalist and founder of the Association of African American Life and History. He believed that it is necessary for a race to have a history or it will be made insignificant, and that the study of African-American history would make for a better society. Initiated by Miss Gertrude McBrown and Mrs. Ruby A. Carter, officers of the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, the Carter G. Woodson Reference Collection of African-American Culture and Life was dedicated at the Central Library in May 1968.

William Spyropoulos was a Greek-American philanthropist who supported the opening of a Greek-American Day School for the children of St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Shrine Church in Flushing. The William Spyropoulos Greek-American Day School opened on September 12, 1977, initially serving 50 students from nursery school to second grade. The school now serves around 400 students from kindergarten through eighth grade. If you have information about William Spyropolous or any place currently missing from our map, please click on "Add/Edit" and fill out the form. This will help us fill in the blanks and complete the map.

George J. Ryan (1872 – 1949) was the President of the Board of Education in Queens in the 1930s. In the 1940s, after his time as president, he advocated for a school in Fresh Meadows, a newly built community after World War II. Plans for the construction of this school were announced in 1952. In honor of his contribution, the school was named after him. Ryan was born and raised in Queens and spent his entire life there. Aside from his role as Board President, Ryan was very active in Democratic politics, and was also president of Long Island City Savings Bank and the Queens Chamber of Commerce.

Albert Johnson (1974-2017), known by the stage name Prodigy, gained fame as a member of hip-hop duo Mobb Deep. Meeting Havoc while at the High School of Arts & Design, the two started recording together in Queensbridge. The duo's work reflected the climate of New York City in the late1980s and early 1990s, and they were among those responsible for the revival of the East Coast hip-hop scene.

John F. Kennedy Jr. (1960-1999) was an attorney, magazine publisher, and member of the prominent Kennedy political family. On July 16, 1999, while en route to a family wedding with his wife, Carolyn Bessette, and sister-in-law, Lauren Bessette, the small plane he was flying crashed in the Atlantic Ocean off of Martha’s Vineyard. All three perished in the accident. Kennedy was born on November 25, 1960, in Washington, D.C., just three weeks after his father, John F. Kennedy, was elected 35th president of the United States. John and his older sister, Caroline, spent their early years in the White House. President Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963, and the funeral took place three days later, on John’s third birthday. His mother, Jacqueline (née Bouvier) Kennedy, then moved the family to New York City’s Upper East Side, where John grew up. In 1968, Jacqueline married Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis, and the family spent summers in Greece on his private island, Skorpios. In 1983, Kennedy graduated from Brown University, going on to study law at New York University. After graduating in 1989, he worked for four years as an assistant district attorney in Manhattan. The same year, he helped found the nonprofit Reaching Up to support educational opportunities for workers who help people with disabilities. In 1995, along with his business partner, Michael J. Berman, Kennedy founded the political and popular culture magazine, George. On September 21, 1996, he married fashion publicist Carolyn Bessette in a private ceremony on a secluded island off the coast of Georgia. Named in his honor, the John F. Kennedy Jr. School is located at 57-12 94th Street in Elmhurst.

Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837-June 24, 1908) served as the 22nd and 24th President of the United States, the first to serve non-consecutive terms, and the first Democrat elected after the Civil War. Born in New Jersey and raised in upstate New York, Cleveland became a lawyer in Buffalo in 1859, and soon after pursued politics as a reformer. He served as the Assistant District Attorney and then Sheriff of Erie County, Mayor of Buffalo, and New York Governor. As governor, he took on Tammany Hall, the political machine based in New York City, even though it had supported him in the election. A sex scandal threatened to bring him down during the 1884 presidential election, but he admitted to the possibility that he had fathered a child with a woman out of wedlock, and with that bit of honesty he held onto his supporters. (Cleveland had the mother institutionalized against her will so he could take custody of the child, who he named Oscar Folsom Cleveland.) In the election of 1888, Cleveland won a larger share of the popular vote, but the business-backed Benjamin Harrison defeated him in the Electoral College. The Republican alienated many in his party, and, in 1892, Cleveland defeated Harrison. During his second term, Cleveland faced a nation suffering from its worst depression. During this period, he sent federal troops to break an enormous railroad strike and arrest its leaders. His other social attitudes were varied. He was opposed to temperance, spoke against injustices facing the Chinese in the West, sympathized with the South in its reluctance to accept African Americans as equals, thought Native Americans should assimilate, and never supported women's right to vote. He is remembered for his record-breaking use of the presidential veto, through which he attempted to balance the power of the executive and legislative branches. The city acquired this land in July 1924 and developed it from 1927 to 1929 into a park with two playgrounds, three tennis courts, two basketball courts, and a public restroom. It was originally known as Anawanda Park, a name taken from a small political organization of Tammany Hall-style politics proponents called the Anawanda Democratic Club. When its name was changed to Grover Cleveland Park, following the name of the new high school nearby, anti-reformists of the Anawanda Democratic Club protested the move.

Francis Lewis (1713-1802) was a merchant, a Founding Father of the United States, and a signatory of the Declaration of Independence. Born in Wales, he attended school in England before working in a mercantile house in London. In 1734, he came to New York to establish a business. While working as a mercantile agent in 1756, Lewis was taken prisoner and sent to prison in France. Upon his return to New York, he became active in politics and made his home in Whitestone, Queens. A member of the Continental Congress for several years before the Revolutionary War, Lewis played a significant role in the nation's founding.

Virgil I. Grissom (1926-1967), also known as Gus, had an experienced life as a combat flier, jet instructor, and NASA astronaut. Grissom knew his passion for aircraft from his young adult years and pursued it as an aviation cadet and through studying mechanical engineering at Purdue University. Shortly after graduating, he obtained his pilot wings and went straight to work with the United States Air Force. During his time in the Air Force, the US was involved in the Korean War; as a result, Grissom flew over 100 combat missions with the 334th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron. He left Korea in 1952 but was distinguished for his work with the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal Award. In 1959, Grissom was accepted to the original NASA Mercury Class of astronauts; only seven were let in. With his crew, Grissom worked tirelessly to make Mercury’s final test flights successful. He became the second American in outer space. From there, he served as Commander Pilot of the spacecraft Gemini III. After trials and tribulations, the Gemini crew was the first to accomplish orbital maneuvers around the world. Grissom was the backup pilot for Gemini 6 and commander for Apollo/Saturn 204, a three-man mission. During a launch pad test, Grissom and his team were killed in a flash fire. The mission was renamed Apollo 1 to honor those who were caught in the accident. His legacy lies with his family and the leadership he provided to everyone he worked with.

George Washington Carver (1864-1943) was well-known for being ahead of his time in the world of natural science. He sought to find cash crop alternatives to discourage straining labor of cotton picking. In addition, he invented tools and methods to make agriculture more efficient. As a Black man born in the early 1860s, Carver faced significant barriers to obtaining his education and pursuing his research interests. He developed his understanding of agricultural labor for three years on his own plot of land before becoming the first Black student at Iowa State University. After graduating Iowa State in 1896 with a Master of Science Degree, he went on to teach agriculture at Tuskegee Institute. Carver taught for 47 years passing down lessons such as crop rotation and other farmer techniques. Carver was a prodigy in learning, specifically curious as to the different uses of produce like peanuts, and the invention of new products. His many contributions include glue, the Jesup Wagon, a vehicle to carry agricultural exhibits to town, instant coffee, shaving cream, and 325 uses for peanuts. George Washington Carver High School for the Sciences in particular was established after the closing of Springfield High School by the NYC school board in 2007. Springfield High School became an educational campus housing George Washington Carver, as well as Excelsior Preparatory High School, and Queens Preparatory Academy. G.W.C. High School is most known for maintaining Springfield’s veterinary program.

The following text was contributed by Det. Abear's widow, Catherine Abear: Ray Abear \[1976-2020] was a Queens native and spent his entire life in this community – he was raised on this block and this is where he would start a family and raise his children as well. He attended St. Nicholas of Tolentine church, P.S. 131 and St. John’s University. His first job was at Mark’s Aquarium on Parsons Boulevard, which gave him his passion for sea life, something he shared with many communities he came into contact with. He even helped businesses, community members and members of the NYPD set up their own aquariums. There’s even a fish tank in his memory at the Queens Special Victims office.   Ray’s passion and commitment to the community was professional as well. His entire 20-year career in the NYPD was spent making the Queens community a better place – first in the 112th Precinct and then in the Queens Special Victims Squad. Local business owners, restaurants, community members – everyone knew Ray and his giant smile.   There are few more challenging tasks in law enforcement than Special Victims, and Ray was passionate about his work with the Queens Squad. Each of the letters from colleagues supporting this honor of a street co-naming highlighted the compassion, patience, sensitivity and skill Ray brought to this most difficult work and the commitment he brought to finding justice for these individuals. One letter even said, “No one performed this difficult work better than Detective Raymond Abear.”   This honor – having their dad’s name permanently affixed to this street corner – is a reminder to his children that their dad was a hero not only to his family but the entire community and he will never be forgotten. Ray’s legacy will live on forever thanks to everyone who helps keep his memory alive.

Saint Kevin of Glendalough (498-618) was a Celtic monastic and the founder and first abbot of the sixth-century monastery of Glendalough in modern-day County Wicklow, Ireland. Remembered for his ascetic, solitary life, he is traditionally revered for his love and kindness toward animals and nature. The story of his life is often described as one of a journey from solitude to community. He was canonized as a Roman Catholic saint by Pope Pius X on December 9, 1903. Saint Kevin’s life is not well documented by contemporaneous sources and is based largely on legend and tradition. He was born in the ancient kingdom of Leinster, near today’s Dublin, and given the name of “Coemgen” or “fair-begotten” in Gaelic, anglicized as “Kevin.” His parents, Coemlog and Coemell, were said to be of noble birth. From the age of 12, he studied under monks and was eventually ordained as a priest. As a young man, he chose to pursue a life of solitude and prayer, traveling to Glendalough, or “Valley of the Two Lakes,” located in a narrow valley in the Wicklow Mountains. He lived by the shore of the upper lake, reportedly led there by an angel to a man-made cave on the south side and still visible today from the lake’s north shore. Known as Saint Kevin’s Bed, it served as a space to sleep and meditate, and it was in this area that he lived a solitary life of contemplation for seven years. Known as a holy man, people increasingly sought him out for advice. By 540, a monastic community was formed that included a walled settlement known as Kevin’s Cell. After the community was firmly established, Kevin retired into solitude for another four years, eventually returning at the request of his monks and presiding as abbot until his death at Glendalough on June 3, 618. The community grew to become one of Ireland’s leading monastic centers and flourished for a thousand years after his death. Today, its ruins are among Ireland’s most famous and best preserved. The site is considered an important part of Irish history and heritage and is a popular tourist destination. Saint Kevin is known for his love, respect, and closeness with nature. Legends around his interaction with animals include stories of cows, sheep, otter, doe, wolves, geese, boars, hunting dogs, and various flocks of birds. One well-known legend illustrates Kevin’s harmony with nature. As he was praying with outstretched arms, a blackbird landed in Kevin’s hand, laying her eggs. Kevin remained still until the eggs were hatched, and the chicks were fledged. Nobel prizewinner Seamus Heaney popularized this story in his poem “St. Kevin and the Blackbird.” Saint Kevin continues to be revered as the patron saint of blackbirds, the archdiocese of Dublin, and Glendalough. Saint Kevin Catholic Academy is located at 45-50 195th Street in Flushing. The school was built in 1939, with two additions added in 1950 and 1965. The parish was originally established in 1926.

José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda, also known as Dr. José Rizal (1861-1896), is revered as a national hero of the Philippines. Born into a prosperous landowning family on June 19, 1861, in Calamba, Laguna, Rizal was a physician, writer, and fervent Filipino patriot. A highly educated and multi-talented individual, Rizal studied in Manila and at the University of Madrid. Trained as an ophthalmologist, he also excelled as a prolific writer, novelist, and polyglot fluent in numerous languages. His influential novels, "Noli Me Tangere" and "El Filibusterismo," ignited the Filipino people's demand for reforms against Spanish colonial rule. Much of his writing occurred during his European residence from 1882 to 1892. Deeply committed to his nation's welfare and independence, Rizal was a passionate patriot and nationalist. He aimed to highlight the rich history of the Philippines' indigenous people before Spanish colonization, notably by publishing an annotated edition of Antonio Morga’s “Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas.” Rizal mastered twenty-two languages and traveled extensively, building friendships across diverse races, creeds, social strata, and professions. As a leader in the reform movement of Filipino students in Spain, Rizal contributed essays and numerous reform-oriented articles to La Solidaridad, a newspaper published in Barcelona. He also gained membership in both the Anthropological Society and the Geographical Society of Berlin. In 1888, José Rizal visited New York City, staying at the Fifth Avenue Hotel overlooking Madison Square Park. During this brief period, he continued to advocate for his country's independence and worked on his writings. Rizal's short stay in New York marks a significant historical point, underscoring the interconnectedness of the Filipino struggle for independence with broader global movements for freedom and self-determination. Upon his return to the Philippines in 1892, Rizal established the Liga Filipina in Manila, a nonviolent reform society advocating for moderate social reforms through legal means. However, the governor disbanded it. By this time, Spanish authorities had already declared him an enemy of the state due to the publication of his novels. This led to his exile to Dapitan for four years. By 1896, the rebellion against Spanish rule in the Philippines, fomented by the militant secret society Katipunan, had become a full-blown nationwide revolution. Around this time, Rizal volunteered his services as a doctor in Cuba and was granted leave by Governor-General Ramón Blanco to minister to victims of yellow fever. However, Rizal was arrested en route to Cuba via Spain and imprisoned in Barcelona on October 6, 1896. He was sent back to Manila the same day to stand trial, implicated in the revolution through his association with members of the Katipunan. His unwavering pursuit of reform culminated in his martyrdom on December 30, 1896, when he was executed by firing squad in Manila. His enduring legacy resonates throughout the Philippines, within the Filipino diaspora, and among global advocates for social justice. He is honored with a street in Woodside, a neighborhood long known as “Little Manila” due to its numerous Filipino restaurants and stores and the presence of one of New York City's largest Filipino communities.

Aristotle (384 BCE-322 BCE) lived in ancient Greece, and is known as one of the most highly regarded philosophers and scientists in human history. Though he was prolific in many fields, some of his most famous contributions include creating a discipline of formal logic, zoology, and his ethical and political theories. He studied under and with Plato in Athens, which is reflected in many of his writings. In his later years, Aristotle founded his own school called the Lyceum where he taught students and lectured to the larger public for free.

Alice Cardona (1930-2011) was an eminent Puerto Rican activist and community organizer. She is widely recognized for her advocacy in bilingual education, women’s rights, and political representation. Born the first of nine children to Puerto Rican parents who relocated to New York in 1923, Cardona was raised in Spanish Harlem. After graduating high school in 1950, Cardona volunteered at the Legion de Maria, offering psychological support to Black and Hispanic communities. In 1961, she joined the Sisters of St. John, a religious order in Texas, but ultimately left the order, realizing that religious life was not her calling. Returning to New York, she worked at a financial institution and later joined the United Bronx Parents (UBP), eventually getting involved with the Head Start program in 1964. Between 1970 and 1978, Cardona’s career flourished, especially during her time at ASPIRA, a nonprofit organization that seeks to empower and educate the Latino youth community, where she worked as a youth counselor and later as the director of counseling for parents and students. Her work at ASPIRA motivated her to complete her degree, which she did through an independent study program at Goddard College in 1973. Cardona was also an active member of the National Conference of Puerto Rican Women (NACOPRW) and served on its national board starting in 1975. She founded HACER (Hispanic Advocacy and Community Empowerment through Research) / Hispanic Women’s Center to support Latinas in reaching their professional aspirations through education. From 1983 to 1986, Cardona served on the executive board of the New York State Association for Bilingual Education (NYSABE) and represented New York City at the organization. She then worked as assistant director of the New York State Division for Women from 1983 to 1995, under Gov. Mario Cuomo’s administration. There, she oversaw daily operations and continued her advocacy for bilingual education, women’s rights, and prisoners’ rights. She played a key role in addressing health issues like AIDS/HIV, breast cancer, and domestic violence, founding the Hispanic AIDS Forum in 1986 and the Women and AIDS Research Network. Additionally, she co-founded Atrévete, a political participation and voter registration program. After retiring in 1995, she remained active and served as director for the Puerto Rican Association for Community Affairs and on the boards of the National Women's Political Caucus, the National Association for Bilingual Education and the Puerto Rican Educators Association. In 1997, Cordona was one of 70 U.S. women invited to “Vital Voices of Women in Democracy” in Beijing. She also is the author of the book, “Puerto Rican Women Achievers in New York City,” and she was the first Hispanic woman to receive the Susan B. Anthony prize from the National Organization for Women (NOW). Cardona passed away from cancer at the age of 81.

More info coming soon. If you have information about a named place currently missing from our map, please click on "Add/Edit" and fill out the form. This will help us fill in the blanks and complete the map!

Frank D. O’Connor (1909-1992) was an American lawyer and politician who grew up in Elmhurst, Queens. O’Connor was born in Manhattan to Irish immigrant parents and raised in Elmhurst, he graduated from Newtown High School and worked his way through Niagara University as a lifeguard. He earned his L.L.B. from Brooklyn Law School in 1934. During WW II, he joined the Coast Guard and served as a legal officer in Alaska. O’Connor won a seat in the New York State Senate from Queens in 1949 to 1952, and was elected again in 1954 until 1955 when he was elected Queens DA. From 1955 to 1965, O’Connor presided as the Queens District Attorney, after which he served as President of the City Council for three years. As Council President, he promoted distributing public housing throughout the city and creating a civilian complaint review board for the Police Department. This last position hurt O’Connor during his unsuccessful run for Governor against Nelson Rockefeller in 1966. He was elected to the State Supreme Court in 1968 and served until 1976, when Governor Hugh L. Carey appointed him to the Appellate Division, where he served until 1985. O’Connor was active in numerous civic, professional, and cultural organizations, including the Queens County Bar Association, the Emerald Association of Long Island, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. As a defense lawyer, he gained national attention in 1953, when he defended Christopher Emanuel Balestrero, a musician who had been wrongfully accused of two holdups in Queens. Three years later, Alfred Hitchcock directed "The Wrong Man," a movie based on the case.

William Sidney Mount (1807-1868) was an American painter from Setauket, New York. Although not the first artist to use this style, Mount was the foremost "American genre painter" of the 19th century. American genre painting focused on scenes of everyday life. He produced naturalistic portraits and narrative scenes that documented the daily life of the common man. Mount began painting as an apprentice at his brother, Henry Mount's (1804-1841) sign shop in 1825, spending his free time drawing and painting primarily portraits. Wanting to learn more, Mount enrolled in drawing classes at the newly established National Academy of Design in New York. In 1830 Mount displayed his first successful genre painting entitled, "Rustic Dance After a Sleigh Ride" at the National Academy exhibition. Within two years of this piece, Mount secured full membership to the National Academy of Design and was quickly hailed a pioneer of American art. Mount lived and worked in Long Island, often depicting the yeomen of the area. Mount was one of the first artists to specialize in the American rural scene. Previously, there was a belief that the American daily life of rural areas was not worth depicting. Mount's refreshing and down-to-earth style contradicted this notion and became widely popular. Music also played a large role in Mount's life. Mount grew up surrounded by music. He maintained this passion not only through his depictions of music and dance in his paintings, but also as a fiddler, fife player, collector of folk songs, and a violin designer. He designed the "Hollow Back" violin and displayed this instrument in the 1853 New York World’s Fair, Crystal Palace, where the violin received praise by contemporary musicians. The violin was designed in a concave shape and a short sound-post to create a fuller, richer, more powerful tone. Some of Mount's most prominent works featured music and dance. Mount loved to capture his subjects in spontaneous moments of dancing, farming, fiddling, reading, conversing, or playing. When painting musicians, he would often ask them to play while he was sketching because it "enlivens the subject’s face." Two such examples of this liveliness is "The Banjo Player" (1856) and "The Bone Player" (1856), two of Mount's more famous works. "The Banjo Player" is a portrait of a young Black musician smiling while in the midst of playing a banjo. "The Bone Player" similarly depicts a Black musician playing two sets of bones, an instrument connected with African-American minstrels. Because Mount sought to portray real people from his area, his work is much more inclusive than other artists' of the time. Mount used his art to show Black men in a more sensitive and dignified light. He was the first painter to give Black Americans a prominent, non-stereotypical place in his paintings. This aligned with his egalitarian belief that individuals must be accepted for their own worth. Mount himself was an interesting figure. Along with his egalitarian beliefs, Mount had an interest in Spiritualism. Spiritualism follows the belief that spirits of the dead exist and can be communicated with. Mount became invested in this belief in the 1850s and even reported that he was able to contact the spirits of his deceased relatives. He wrote his experience in his journal, dubbed "The Spirit Journal." Mount fell sick after dealing with the affairs of his recently diseased brother Shepard Alonzo Mount (1804-1868). Shepard Alonzo Mount was also a well renowned artist who studied under the National Academy of Design. William Sidney Mount contracted pneumonia and died only a couple months after his brother. Mount never married or had any children. In 1965, his family home, surrounding property, and various outbuildings in Stony Brook, became a National Historic Landmark named the William Sidney Mount House. Mounts artwork can be found in various museums across the country, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Brooklyn Museum of Art, The New-York Historical Society, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. The Long Island Museum of American Art, History, and Carriages owns the largest repository of Mount artwork and archival material

My husband, Joseph Imparato, better known in Long Island City as Joe Imp, was a native of LIC, and he set an example for everyone to follow. He helped the elderly, whether it was bringing them shopping, taking them to the doctors or shoveling snow. He did this for them on his day off. His life was dedicated to helping his community. He opened his restaurant on Jackson Avenue, Joe Imp's, which introduced many people to the area. Saint Mary’s Church was an extremely important part of Joe’s life. His dedication to the people in his community was evident by his dedication to the church. If there were those who couldn’t afford a tree for Christmas and he found out about it, he would buy a tree for them and decorate it, put presents under the tree and would never take credit for doing it. Joe wasn’t only a gem to me, he was a LIC gem. That’s why my husband Joe deserved the honor of having a street named after him.

More info coming soon. If you have information about a named place currently missing from our map, please click on "Add/Edit" and fill out the form. This will help us fill in the blanks and complete the map!

William Prince Jr. (1766-1842) was a horticulturalist, entrepreneur, nursery owner, and author who was instrumental in the growth of his family’s nursery business in Flushing. The Princes were pioneers in American horticulture, and their family-run nursery thrived for 130 years over four generations, introducing plants from around the world to this country. Prince’s grandfather, Robert Prince, owned a fruit farm on eight acres near Flushing Creek. Around 1737, Robert’s son, William Prince Sr. helped expand it into the first commercial nursery in the United States. The Prince nursery was considered of such value that the operation was protected by the British during the Revolutionary War. It was visited by presidents, including George Washington in 1789 and Thomas Jefferson in 1791 (who placed a large order for his home in Monticello). William Jr. greatly expanded the business, running it from around 1793 to his death in 1842, when ownership passed to his son, William R. Prince. The nursery ultimately closed in 1869. William Prince Jr. was one of thirteen children born to William Sr. and Ann (Thorne) Prince. William Jr. married Mary Stratton, and the couple had four children. On William Sr.’s death in 1793, the business passed to William Jr. and his brother, Benjamin. William Jr. expanded his portion of the nursery when he purchased 80 adjacent acres in Flushing, calling it Linnaean Botanic Garden after Carolus Linnaeus, a biologist credited with formalizing the modern system of naming species. A member of prominent horticultural societies in London, Paris, and Florence, William Jr. authored A Treatise on Horticulture (1828), which is the first comprehensive American book on the subject. To further improve the business, William Jr. formed the Flushing Bridge and Road Company and built the first bridge over Flushing Creek, with a toll crossing completed around 1801. Completion of the project reduced the distance to Brooklyn by about four miles, making travel and operational expansion easier for the nursery. The bridge was later transformed into a drawbridge and was subsequently rebuilt several times over its history. The William Prince Bridge (often referred to as the Flushing Bridge or the Flushing Creek Bridge) spans Flushing Creek via Northern Boulevard/25A in northwestern Queens, and its current iteration was constructed in 1980.

Rev. Edward F. McGoldrick (1857-1930) was the founder and first pastor of St. Andrew Avellino Roman Catholic church in Flushing. The parish was established in 1914 in response to a growing Catholic population in Upper Flushing, and for its first two years, Mass was celebrated at the Ritz Theatre on Broadway and 14th Street (now Northern Boulevard and 154th Street). The first church -- a small wooden structure with a capacity of 567 -- was built several blocks down Broadway in 1916; the present cathedral-like building was dedicated in December 1940. The parish's school (now the St. Andrew Avellino Catholic Academy) was opened in 1925. Fr. McGoldrick also sought to bring a public library to the residents of Upper Flushing. In 1921 he joined the Queens Public Library's Board of Trustees to advocate for a new branch in that community, and in 1929 the Broadway- Flushing Community Library was opened. Just one year later Fr. McGoldrick passed away, and in 1933 the branch was renamed in his honor. A plaque displaying Fr. McGoldrick's photo and describing his role in establishing the library was installed at the branch in a public ceremony in November 2017.

Phil “Scooter” Rizzuto (1917-2007) was born in Brooklyn to Italian parents but moved with his family to Glendale, Queens, in his youth. He played baseball at P.S. 68 in Glendale and Richmond Hill High School, which he left before graduating to play in the major leagues. Although disregarded by some local teams because of his height (5’ 6”), he convinced the New York Yankees to sign him in 1937. After proving himself in the minor leagues, Rizzuto played shortstop for the Yankees starting in 1941 and, after serving in the Navy from 1943 to 1945, played the remainder of his career with the team from 1946 to 1956. His superb defense and offensive contributions helped the team win 10 American League pennants and eight World Series during his 13 years with the club. After finishing second in MVP voting in 1949, he followed with a career year in 1950 in which he achieved career highs in multiple categories, including hits (200), batting average (.324), on-base percentage (.418) and runs (125), while winning the AL MVP Award. As a shortstop, he led all AL shortstops in double plays three times, putouts twice and assists once. By the time he retired in 1956, he left the game with a batting average of .273, 1,588 hits, 149 stolen bases, 38 home runs, 563 RBI and five All-Star Game selections. Rizzuto was hired quickly afterward by the Yankees as a broadcaster in 1957 and would announce for the team for 40 years, retiring in 1996. He was beloved by new generations of fans who adored his style – his “Holy Cow!” signature line is recognizable to this day. The Yankees retired Rizzuto's uniform number 10 in 1985 and placed a plaque in his honor in their stadium's Monument Park. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1994, recognizing his career of more than 50 years in the game. Phil "Scooter" Rizzuto Park opened in 1938 as Smokey Oval Park, a reference to the Long Island Railroad terminus, which was a landing area of soot and ash from the railway smoke. The park was renamed in 2008 to honor Rizzuto.

Nathaniel Woodhull (1722-1776) was born on Long Island in 1722 and became a distinguished soldier after fighting in the French and Indian War. He served as a representative for Suffolk County in the Province of New Yok Assembly before becoming the president of the New York Provincial Congress in 1775. Woodhull was an American General during the Revolutionary War, and was captured along with 1,000 others during the Battle of Brooklyn which the British won summarily. He was injured sometime during this fraught time and succumbed to his wounds on September 20, 1776.

Anthony Suraci (d. 2006) lived with his wife in Sunnyside, Queens, for over 60 years. He served as President of the Thompson Hill Civic Association, district Leader. In addition, he served as a Republican district leader, a cub-master of Cub Scout Pack 221, and held a number of annual charity events for needy families through United Republicans of Western Queens (URWQ), where he was a driving force.

Gilbert Ray “Gil” Hodges (1924-1972) helped win championships for his teams both as a player and as a manager. He was born in Indiana and excelled at baseball at an early age. He was signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1943 but only managed to play one game that year, leaving to serve in the Marines for World War II. Hodges returned to the team in 1947 and played a number of positions before finding success at first base. During his peak offensive production from 1949 to 1957, Hodges averaged 32 home runs and 108 RBI per season. It was during these seasons that the Dodgers won five National League pennants and the 1955 World Series title. One notable achievement for Hodges occurred on August 31, 1950, when he became just the second modern-era National League player to hit four home runs in one game. Hodges moved with the team to Los Angeles in 1958 and helped it win its first National League pennant and World Series on the West Coast in 1959. His abilities and playing time diminished after that; he played two more years with the Dodgers and then with the new New York team, the Mets, in 1962 and 1963. He is credited with hitting the first home run for the Mets. Hodges retired early in the 1963 season with 370 homers (third most for a right-handed hitter at the time), 1,921 hits, 1,274 RBI and three Gold Glove Awards at first base – even though the award was not created until 1957. He was quickly chosen by the last-place Washington Senators to manage the team. He brought the Senators out of recent 100-loss seasons to a more respectable 76-85 record in 1967 with limited resources. This success was noted by the New York Mets, who hired him after the 1967 season to help their expansion team. It didn’t take long for Hodges to turn a team that hadn’t won more than 66 games in a season to “The Miracle Mets” of 1969 that won 100 games and the World Series title. The Mets had winning seasons in 1970 and 1971 but, tragically, Hodges had a heart attack and died just before his 48th birthday on April 2, 1972. Hodges’ uniform number 14 was retired on June 9, 1973, at Shea Stadium. He was inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame in 1982. After years of consideration, his number 14 was retired by the Los Angeles Dodgers and he was finally inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Golden Days Eras Committee in 2022. In 1978, The Marine Parkway Bridge was renamed the Marine Parkway - Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge, marking the first time a bridge was named for a major sports figure. Appropriately, it spans the Rockaway Inlet from Jacob Riis Park in Queens to Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn.

Denis J. Butler (1927-2010) was a lifelong resident of Astoria who represented his district in the New York State Assembly for 24 years. He served on the Rules, Aging, Economic Development, Labor and Oversight, Analysis and Investigations Committees and on the Joint Budget Conference Committee’s Subcommittee on Higher Education, which helped to maintain and increase funding for higher education. As Chair of the Assembly Subcommittee on the Special Problems of the Aging, he was responsible for the MTA putting the rough paint on the edge of the subway platform to alert the visually impaired that the platform was ending. Assemblyman Butler volunteered with the Lighthouse for the Blind for 20 years. He also served as president of the St. Joseph’s Home School Association, and was a member of the Holy Name Society Parish Council. In 1988, he received the Brooklyn Diocese’s Pro Vita Award, presented by Bishop Francis J. Mugavero in recognition of his efforts on behalf of the unborn and in support of life. In 1992, he received the New York State Catholic Conference Public Policy Award, presented by John Cardinal O’Connor and the Bishops of New York State for his work in support of the Maternity and Early Childhood Foundation. In 2009, he was made a knight of the Papal Order of Saint Gregory the Great in Brooklyn’s St. James Cathedral Basilica by Bishop Nicholas DiMarzo.

Police Officer Anthony F. Mosomillo (1962-1998) served the NYPD for more than 14 years, and was killed in the line of duty while attempting to serve a bench warrant on a parolee who had failed to appear in court. Born in Brooklyn on January 30, 1962, Mosomillo graduated from Lafayette High School in 1981, then joined the NYPD in 1984. He met his second wife, Margaret, on a blind date in 1988, and the couple married four years later. Their family moved to Glendale in 1996, though he continued to work for precincts in Brooklyn, and is said to have returned to Bensonhurst for haircuts and bagels. Mosomillo was a warrants officer at Brooklyn's 67th Precinct on May 26, 1998, when he and his partner, Officer Miriam Sanchez-Torres, went to arrest Jose Serrano at his East Flatbush apartment, because Serrano had missed a court date following an arrest on a minor drug charge, violating the terms of his parole. When the officers arrived and found Serrano, a gunfight ensued, Serrano having reportedly gotten a hold of Sanchez-Torres' gun, and Mosomillo and Serrano fatally shot one another. Officer Sanchez-Torres carried Officer Mosomillo out of the apartment and drove him to the hospital. More than 14,000 police officers and state troopers attended Mosomillo's funeral, which was held at Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Church in Ridgewood—the same church where he had married Margaret six years before. In addition to his wife, Mosomillo left behind two daughters, Marie and Francesca, and his brother, Salvatore. Francesca followed in her father's footsteps, joining the NYPD in 2019, gaining the rank of detective in 2024. She was issued her father’s old police officer’s shield number, 20316, on her badge. An area of basketball and handball courts in Dyker Beach Park in Brooklyn are also named for Mosomillo. Then-Mayor Rudolph Giuliani dedicated the Anthony Mosomillo Memorial Courts on Bay Eighth Street and Cropsey Avenue in 1999, not long after the Mayor and the Police Commissioner honored Mosomillo by presenting his family with the Medal of Honor, the highest honor bestowed by the Police Department. City Councilmember Joann Ariola proposed this street co-naming in 2024. It was dedicated on November 22, 2024.

Francis Lewis (1713-1802) was a merchant, a Founding Father of the United States, and a signatory of the Declaration of Independence. Born in Wales, he attended school in England before working in a mercantile house in London. In 1734, he came to New York to establish a business. While working as a mercantile agent in 1756, Lewis was taken prisoner and sent to prison in France. Upon his return to New York, he became active in politics and made his home in Whitestone, Queens. A member of the Continental Congress for several years before the Revolutionary War, Lewis played a significant role in the nation's founding.

Lieutenant Clinton L. Whiting (1894 – 1918) was a First Lieutenant in the 308th Infantry during World War I. He was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Medal for Heroism in Action on August 4, 1919, for his performance on the battlefields of France. While on an advance through the Argonne Forest, on September 28, 1918, Whiting led his men into a key position in a marsh covered by wire, grass, and stunted brush despite heavy enemy fire. During the battle, he was seriously wounded by a machine gun bullet and died of his wounds on October 23, 1918.

Text courtesy of Susan Latham. This is a photo of my sister Beth and me sitting with my grandparents, Noni and B-Daddy. The second photo is a formal shot of my grandparents, Bill and Cecelia Latham. Latham Park is named after my grandfather, William Harris Latham, in recognition of his long association with Robert Moses, New York City’s master builder who was responsible for creating much of our city’s parks and transportation infrastructure. My grandfather died when I was in my early 20s, well before I fully understood who Robert Moses was and the significant impact of my grandfather’s work in New York City and New York State. My grandfather grew up in Norwich, CT, and like his father, Alan Latham, he was an avid beekeeper – which led to the name “B-Daddy,” as he was known by all of his grandchildren. The B-Daddy that I grew up with lived in Lewiston, NY, near Niagara Falls, where he worked with the New York Power Authority as the chief engineer of the Niagara Project; at the time, this was the largest hydroelectric power plant in the world. I have a vague childhood memory of seeing B-Daddy on television when he gave Soviet premier Alexei Kosygin an impromptu tour of the power plant, and I remember that my grandmother was unhappy that he was in shirt sleeves instead of a suit. Most of my experience with B-Daddy was after he retired – although he still had a lot of clout and got us free tours of the power plant, as well as free rides on the Maid of the Mist and all the Niagara Falls attractions when we visited every summer. He was a tall, strong man who loved to fish and hunt, and he was very athletic – there was a photo of him with his rowing team at MIT at my grandparents’ home. He was also an avid gardener and beekeeper, which meant we enjoyed fresh-picked vegetables and all the honey, honeycomb and honey butter we could ever want when we visited. Peanut butter and honey sandwiches were common lunch fare. It was only after he died in 1987 that I learned more about his professional career, much of it from Robert Caro’s book "The Power Broker," and more recently, from Internet searches. B-Daddy graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1926 with a degree in civil engineering. In 1927 he began working with Robert Moses – or “RM,” as B-Daddy called him – at the Long Island State Park Commission. When Moses was named Commissioner of New York City Parks, B-Daddy followed him to New York City, where he became the Consulting Park Engineer. As the head of the Division of Design, he was responsible for the preparation of all plans and specifications within the Parks Department, and he played a major role in the design and installation of the 11 New York City public pools that opened in 1936, including Astoria, McCarren, Crotona and Jackie Robinson Pools. He also worked as general superintendent and director of maintenance and operations at the New York City Parks Department, and was heavily involved in the 1939 World’s Fair at Flushing Meadows Park (somewhere, there are home movies he filmed of King George and Queen Elizabeth visiting the Fair). In the 1950s, he moved upstate to engineer the St. Lawrence Power Project, the first active power plant of the New York Power Authority, which opened in 1958. He then moved to Lewiston to oversee the construction and opening of the Niagara Power Plant. In 1987, after his death, the New York Power Authority dedicated a new icebreaker (a ship designed to break through ice blocks and create a clear passage) on the Niagara River as the Latham in his honor, citing him as a “major figure in construction of the St. Lawrence and Niagara hydroelectric projects.” I got to see it in person in 2019. I should note that I grew up in New Jersey and moved to Queens in 1989. My apartment in Woodside on 51st Street, where I lived for 11 years, and my current home in Jackson Heights on 79th Street, where I’ve lived for 20+ years, are equidistant to the original site of Latham Park, which was on 69th Street and Broadway. In fact, I passed through it many times over the years without ever realizing that it was named after B-Daddy. And then one day, my brother – who is also named William Harris Latham – found it in a Google search of his name and sent me a link, asking if I had any idea where this park was. And of course I did! Honestly, what are the odds that a girl from New Jersey whose grandfather lived in upstate New York would end up living just blocks away from a park in New York City named after him!? Of course, Robert Moses is a controversial figure. His urban renewal and highway construction projects displaced thousands of people and destroyed neighborhoods, and my grandfather’s close association with him for so many years makes me more than slightly uncomfortable. But I can’t change who he was – and I do take some pride in the fact that my grandfather had a hand in so much of New York City’s infrastructure that we rely on today.

Spotlighting LGBTQ+ activists and organizers honored in the borough of Queens with place names. 🌈🏳️‍🌈