Hollis, Queens

Hollis
Neighborhoods of Queens

Intersection of Jamaica Avenue and Hollis Avenue
Country United States of America
State  New York
City New York City
County/Borough Queens
Population (2011)
 • Total 29,987
Ethnicity
 • Black 42%
 • Asian 19%
 • White 15%
 • Native American 1%
 • Others 23%
ZIP code 11412, 11423
Area code(s) 718, 347, 917
Residential area at 191st Street and Woodhull Avenue.

Hollis is a middle-class neighborhood within the southeastern section of the New York City borough of Queens. A predominantly African-American community, the boundaries are considered to be the Atlantic Branch of the Long Island Rail Road to the west, Hillside Avenue to the north, Francis Lewis Boulevard to the east (although parts of Queens Village are addressed as Hollis on water bills), and Murdock Avenue to the south. Much of this area is considered to be within the St. Albans postal district. Hollis is close to Jamaica and Queens Village, Queens. The neighborhood is part of Queens Community Board 12.[1] Hollis is patrolled by the NYPD's 113th Precinct.[2] Public schools in the area are operated by the New York City Department of Education.

History

The first European settlers were Dutch homesteaders in the 17th century. A century later, early in the American Revolutionary War, it was the site of part of the Battle of Long Island, a battle in which the rebel Brigadier General Nathaniel Woodhull was captured at a tavern on what is now Jamaica Avenue. Woodhull Avenue in Hollis is named after him. The area remained rural until 1885, when developers turned 136 acres (55 ha) into houses, and the area is still developed primarily with single-family houses. In 1898, it became a part of New York City with the rest of the borough of Queens.

Since the end of the Korean War, the neighborhood has been settled primarily by African-American families. In recent years, the area has seen a large influx of South Asians and West Indians. The area has a majority of working parents with many early childhood schools in Hollis. Hollis is mainly within zip codes 11423 and 11412.

Holliswood subsection

Holliswood, previously known as Terrace Heights, is an upper middle class subsection of Hollis bounded by the Hillside Avenue to the south, Francis Lewis Boulevard to the east, Grand Central Parkway to the north, and 188th Street to the west.[3] The neighborhood is part of Queens Community Board 8.[4] At 193rd Street is Foothill Malls, a green traffic median with a memorial marking the main entrance to the upscale subdivision.

A notable local facility was Holliswood Hospital.[5] The hospital provided psychiatric care with 127 beds. On August 16, 2013 the facility was closed.[6]

Transportation

Long Island Rail Road service is available at the Hollis station, located at 193rd Street and Woodhull Avenue. The station is served mostly by the Hempstead Branch. West of Hollis station is the LIRR's Holban Yard, a freight yard that has been shared with St. Albans for over a century, and has included the Hillside Maintenance Facility since 1991. The Q2, Q77, Q110 buses pass from Jamaica into Hollis and out to Queens Village. On Hillside Ave., we have many more NYC buses. Such as the Q1, Q36, Q43, Q76 and the Q77. ON Hillside, you may also pick up a Nassau bound bus.

The E J Z trains stop nearby at Jamaica Center – Parsons/Archer. The Archer Avenue Lines were supposed to be extended to Hollis as part of a never-completed New York City Subway expansion in 1988.

Notable residents

Since the beginning of hip-hop, the neighborhood has been a hotbed of talent, sparked primarily by the fact that hip-hop producer and icon Russell Simmons is from this community, as is his brother Joseph, who along with his friends Darryl McDaniels and Jason Mizell formed the rap group Run-D.M.C. (who had a hit with the seasonal song "Christmas in Hollis").

Other notable residents include:

References

  1. ↑ Queens Community Boards, New York City. Accessed September 3, 2007.
  2. ↑ 113th Precinct, NYPD.
  3. ↑ Jackson, Kenneth T., ed. (1995). The Encyclopedia of New York City. New Haven: Yale University Press. ISBN 0300055366., p. 551
  4. ↑ Who does CB8 Queens represent?, Queens Community Board 8. Accessed September 6, 2007.
  5. ↑ , Holliswood Hospital.
  6. ↑ "Holliswood Hospital To Let Go Nearly All Its Staff By Friday". NY1. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Tarek, Shams (January 31, 2003). "Celebrating Black History Month: History Makers That Have Made A Mark On Southeast Queens". Southeast Queens Press. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  8. ↑ Jacobs, Andrew (February 14, 1999) "Jazz Artist Jaki Byard Died of Bullet Wound". The New York Times.
  9. ↑ Jacobson, Mark. "WorldStar, Baby!" New York Magazine. February 5, 2012. 2. Retrieved on November 2, 2012. Also available at General OneFile.
  10. ↑ "Where Jazz Put Its Feet Up; Many Black Musicians Made Their Homes in Queens". The New York Times. 20 September 1998. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hollis, Queens.

Coordinates: 40°42′40.29″N 73°45′44.95″W / 40.7111917°N 73.7624861°W / 40.7111917; -73.7624861

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Wednesday, April 13, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.