East Rockaway, New York

East Rockaway is a village in Nassau County, New York, in the United States. The population was 9,818 at the 2010 census.

The Incorporated Village of East Rockaway is at the edge of Rockaway Peninsula Proper in the town of Hempstead, adjacent to Hewlett Harbor, Hewlett, Rockville Centre, Lynbrook, and Oceanside. It is the final neighborhood before the beginning of Five Towns, although some have come to include wealthier sections of East Rockaway as a part of Five Towns. It is an inner suburb, only 24km (15 mi) from downtown Manhattan. The primary ethnicities are mainly Italian and Irish. The Waverly Park neighborhood, near the Hewlett-East Rockaway Jewish Center and along the border with Hewlett, has a sizable Jewish community.

History
Originally named Near Rockaway, the village began as a shipping and trading center for the south shore of Long Island. The village's location was desirable for ships because of its deep channels inland. Eventually a grist mill was built on the Mill River by Joseph Haviland through a land grant in 1688. The Haviland-Davison Grist Mill, located in Memorial Park, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998. Later an oven was purchased to make bread for the surrounding population. The village prospered in shipping and milling over the years, even after several sales of the land.

The village's name was changed in 1869 to East Rockaway. The village was incorporated in 1900, and Floyd Johnson was president. At the time of incorporation the town had a population of 969. Back in the 1960s a student from East Rockaway High School, named Donald Scaglione, attempted to steal the school's bell from the bell tower. Unknowingly the bell weighed too much to carry, even for Don, who was one of the football team's star offensive linemen. The bell was dropped. The Scaglione family was responsible for fixing the bell. The bell tower remains empty as of October 18, 2009.

French gourmet chef Henri Charpentier's Restaurant was located on the corner of Waverly Ave and Scranton Ave in East Rockaway although Henri Charpentier had a house that he lived in on Hempstead Ave in Lynbrook. Fanny Brice's husband Nick Orenstein owned a house near the Restaurant but they never lived in it.

The Half Crown Pub was closed down many years ago. It was called the Half Crown because there was a Half of a wood boat as the bar. I suspect the boat was called the Crown and it was obtained from a local boat yard called Ackerly's several blocks away. In the Seventies the Bar was renamed the Asguard and the boat bar was removed (current location unknown). It was a local hangout on the Mill river right across from the location of an original Grist Mill in the area that was moved several times and now located as a museum in the East Rockaway Village Park. The antique pub structure was torn down in the early 21st Century. It may have been part of the Grist Mill complex. Condos are now located on that site and the former site of Davison's Shipyard both west of the Long Beach Train line on Atlantic Ave

Holiday Decorations was on Garfield Ave East Rockaway. It has since been replaced by several residential structures. It was a Mom and Pop operation. The owners lived on Windsor Pl Lynbrook. He collected paintings by the WPA Soyers. The factory in an old house made commercial holiday decorations with patented steel snowflake dies. Him and his wife would get orders at trade shows once a year. He used homemade equipment. Hand made glueing machines, his own design laminating fringe machine, a homemade press, homemade dies of plywood and tin. He had one commercial German made press in the shop. No pun intended but they were real Rube Goldberg style inventions that functioned well. They were old school types. Eventually dangerous conditions discovered by the newly formed OSHEA got them and fined them over $10,000 in 1974. Some of the equipment did not have safety covers over the gears and the small wood building had a number of fire hazards. Fire destroyed the company in 76. A new building was assembled on Lawson Blvd.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 10,414 people, 3,926 households, and 2,787 families residing in the village. The population density was 10,187.6 people per square mile (3,942.0/km2). There were 4,003 housing units at an average density of 3,916.0 per square mile (1,515.3/km2). The racial makeup of the village was 95.64% White, 0.61% African American, 0.03% Native American, 1.71% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.09% from other races, and 0.91% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.79% of the population.

East Rockaway is a haven for small boats, has excellent marinas and it also houses a number of fine dining establishments, some of which have been in operation for nearly 50 or more years. It even has its own US Post Office. There were 3,926 households, out of which 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.4% were married couples living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.0% were non-families. 25.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.20.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 23.7% under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 30.6% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.4 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $59,911, and the median income for a family was $78,363. Males had a median income of $50,365 versus $36,387 for females. The per capita income for the village was $30,601. About 2.4% of families and 3.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.6% of those under age 18 and 6.0% of those age 65 or older.

Education
Currently there are two primary school districts serving East Rockaway, East Rockaway School District and Lynbrook Union Free School District:

There are three schools within the East Rockaway School DIstrict:


 * Rhame Avenue Elementary School
 * Centre Avenue (Elementary) School
 * East Rockaway High School - Serves grades 7-12

Each grade of the high school consists of roughly 100 students. The nickname of the athletic teams is "The Rocks." All high school varsity, jr. varsity and freshman team colors are a distinctive Orange and Black. East Rockaway High School fields competitive teams in football, cross country, volleyball, basketball, softball, baseball, and track. Along with these teams East Rockaway also combines with schools in the Malverne school district to form teams. These include soccer, lacrosse and tennis. School musicals and the inter-class competition known as "Rock Rivalry" are widely popular throughout the community.

Located in East Rockaway on Atlantic Avenue is St. Raymonds Catholic school, consisting of Pre-k through 8th grade. See Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre

The Waverly Park and Northwestern neighbourhoods of East Rockaway (the border approximately running down Rocklyn, Carman, and Grant Avenues) are part of Lynbrook School District 20 in the Lynbrook Union Free School District, and are serviced by four main schools:


 * Waverly Park Elementary School (in East Rockaway)
 * Marion Street Elementary School (in East Rockaway)
 * South Middle School (in Hewlett)
 * Lynbrook High School (in Lynbrook)

Notable people

 * Gary Giddins (1948- ), writer, Bing Crosby: A Pocketful of Dreams
 * Reid Gorecki (1980-), Major League Baseball player
 * Brian Keith (1921–1997), actor Family Affair
 * Don Murray (1929- ), actor Bus Stop
 * Elizabeth Laskowski (1959-), Co Founder of The Box Music Television The Box (UK and Ireland TV channel)
 * Bruce Sussman (1949-), Songwriter

Village services
The village is primarily covered by the 4th Precinct of the Nassau County Police Department. Fire and ambulance services are provided by the all volunteer East Rockaway Fire Department.

Parks

 * John Street Complex — This recreational complex has one baseball diamond, two basketball courts, and a concession stand. Flag Football, Baseball, and Basketball are played at this complex.
 * Bay Park — A large park located in the Bay Park neighborhood in the village's southern half. Contains multiple baseball and softball fields, two playgrounds, a football/soccer field, a picnic area, and more. Hurricane Sandy devastated Bay Park, but renovations that had been underway since 2012 were completed in 2015 by the county.

Transportation
East Rockaway contains two Long Island Rail Road stations, both of which serve the Long Beach Branch. The main station between Ocean Avenue and Atlantic Avenue, and the Centre Avenue station northwest of there. Until 1951, there was also a third station at Atlantic Avenue.

East Rockaway also has two active gas stations. Monday evenings from Memorial Day to Labor Day local car collectors meet with their vehicles in the parking lot next to the Post Office near the Mill River.