Take A Look Back At History And A Walk On Flushing Ave.

The Wyckoff farmhouse was one of the many of its kind that were typically found west of Metropolitan Avenue. This farmhouse was nearly a block long and stood at the northwest corner of Onderdonk and Flushing avenues. Visitors to Maspeth Federal Savings bank’s main branch on Grand Avenue can now catch a glimpse of Maspeth and Ridgewood during the Roaring Twenties through a photo exhibit created by the Newtown Historical Society (NHS) now on display.

Featuring streetscapes and buildings of Flushing Avenue during a bygone era, the gallery of old photos—put together by NHS President Christina Wilkinson and her fellow members— offer a sense of local history as well as a timeline for how the neighborhood developed to its present state.

Charles Schilcher's Cafe was one of the many structures along Flushing Avenue boasting outstanding detailing. This establishment was believed to have served American or German fare. The period in question was described by Wilkinson as a time in which most people were unaware of the fact that they were about to be plunged into the Great Depression in 1929.

The display includes historic photos of the Socony Gas Station at the eastern part of Flushing Avenue where it converges with Grand Avenue.

The site, which would later be known as the MiVic Station and now serves as a drive-thru bank, was surrounded by billboards advertising a vaudeville theater, as well as Bosch and Majestic radios.

Wilkinson noted the architecture that was prevalent during the early part of the 20th Century when she focused on two separate views of the H.C. Bohack Restaurant, located at the southeastern corner of Flushing and Metropolitan avenues in Ridgewood.

She pointed out that the ornamental and distinctive “Bs” decorating the side walls of the structure remain there today.

The local historian credited the Germans in the area for their skills and attention to detail in their construction of the many homes and businesses throughout western Queens. For most of the 19th Century and during the early part of the 1900s, Germans were the prevalent ethnic group not only in Ridgewood, Maspeth and the rest of the borough, but in the entire United States as well.

“They were fine craftsmen … you could see it the detailing on the buildings— you just don’t see this anymore. It’s a shame,” commented Wilkinson while identifying unique stained glass windows seen in one of the photos of the grand collection.

In the decade preceding the Great Depression, scores of Italian and Polish immigrants joined the Germans in occupying the neighborhoods bordering western Queens and northern Brooklyn.

Some of those who settled in the area in the 1700s built colonial farmhouses, which were still in existence during the twenties and thirties.

Along Flushing Avenue stood the Woodward, Onderdonk, Covert and Wyckoff houses—each of which had a street named for where they were situated along the main thoroughfare.

The years immediately leading up to the Stock Market Crash of 1929— which many historians point to as the start of the Great Depression—was a period of transition for the neighborhood, as the rural character of the area began to mesh with big industry.

By 1929, nearby Newtown Creek was surrounded by factories. Flushing Avenue soon turned into a mix of commercial and residential properties. Slowly but surely, all of the farms would give way to mass production plants and warehouses.

Posters tell story of corruption

Wilkinson further pointed out election posters in many of the storefront windows of the 1929 photos.

The election she spoke of was the race for borough president following the resignation of Maurice Connolly in April 1928 after Alderman George Upton Harvey called for an investigation into the corrupt politician’s role in a sewer graft scandal.

Harvey, also known for bringing the controversial Civic Virtue statue to Borough Hall, served as borough president until 1941.

Connolly, on the other hand, was later convicted of attempting to defraud the city and ended up in jail. Prior to that, the disgraced elected official
had been (and remains to this day as) the longest serving borough president of Queens.

Brick-lined streets, trollies

Wilkinson went on to highlight how the streets back were built of Belgian blocks instead of asphalt, many of which had trolley rails installed
over them.

The trolley system was subsequently replaced by all of the local bus lines that are in service today.

She estimated that Flushing Avenue finally assumed its modern day appearance sometime in the 1960s once property was demolished to create the space needed to add the underground crossing that thousands of people drive through daily.

“I think that further urbanized the area and [influenced] more manufacturing to come in,” said Wilkinson. “We were rezoned for heavy manufacturing in 1961. Since then, you’ve seen a lot of things that used to be okay under the old zoning that are no longer okay.”

The picture exhibition has been a big hit with the local crowd, according to Maspeth Federal Savings Bank Assistant Vice President David
Daraio, who sees the photos as an educational tool for people of all ages.

As noted, the exhibit will be on display through the end of February and is viewable from the street.

Maspeth Federal Savings Bank’s Grand Avenue branch is located at 56-18 69th St. For further details, visit www.newtownhistorical.org .