Manhasset, New York


Manhasset is a hamlet and census-designated place in Nassau County, New York, on the North Shore of Long Island. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 8,080. As with other unincorporated communities in New York, its local affairs are administered by the town in which it is located, the Town of North Hempstead, New York, whose town hall is in Manhasset, making the hamlet the town seat.
Manhasset is a Native American term that translates to "the island neighborhood". In 2005, a Wall Street Journal article ranked Manhasset as the best town for raising a family in the New York metropolitan area. The Manhasset area, settled by 1680, grew quickly after it began being served by the Long Island Rail Road in 1898. The LIRR provides access to New York City via the Manhasset station with an approximately 40 minute commute to Penn Station. Express trains, which run during rush hour, make the trip in less than 30 minutes. The hamlet of Manhasset is located 19.5 miles away from midtown Manhattan.

History

The Matinecock had a village on Manhasset Bay. These Native Americans called the area Sint Sink, meaning "place of small stones." They made wampum from oyster shells. In 1623, the area was claimed by the Dutch West India Company and they began forcing English settlers to leave in 1640. A 1643 land purchase made it possible for English settlers to return to Cow Neck.
Manhasset Bay was previously known as Schout's Bay, Martin Garretson's Bay, and later Cow Bay or Cow Harbor. Cow Neck was so called because it offered good grazing land. By 1659, there were over 300 cows and 5 mi fence separating Cow Neck from the areas south of it. The settlers came to an agreement that each of them could have one cow on the neck for each section of fence the individual had constructed. The area was more formally divided among the settlers when the fence was removed in 1677. Manhasset took on the name Little Cow Neck, Port Washington was known as Upper Cow Neck.
During the American Revolution, Little Cow Neck suffered at the hands of the British. Many structures and properties, such as the 1719 Quaker Meeting House were burned, seized or damaged. The Town of North Hempstead separated from the Town of Hempstead in 1784 because the South, inhabited mainly by Church of England people, was loyal to the king. The Northern communities and villages, dominated by Yankee Congregationalists supported independence.
In 1801 it cost 2 cents to travel between Roslyn and Spinney Hill on North Hempstead Turnpike, the newly opened toll road.
The Manhasset name was adopted in 1840 and comes from the native word "Manhansett", meaning "island neighborhood." Dairy farming was still a major endeavor but the oyster industry was also on the rise. In 1898, the Long Island Railroad arrived, bringing with it wealthy New Yorkers looking for country homes with easy transportation to more urban areas of New York City. Manhasset Valley and Spinney Hill attracted a number of skilled workers and immigrant families.
The North Hempstead Town Hall opened in Manhasset on Plandome Road in 1907. Town councilmen had previously been meeting in Roslyn taverns after North Hempstead split away from Hempstead in 1775.
The Manhasset Valley School, originally built to serve the children of the help on the local Gold Coast Estates, eventually came to serve Manhasset's African American community, and was closed in the 1960s by a desegregation lawsuit. It is still standing and is currently used as a community center. The centrally located but antiquated Plandome Road School was demolished in the early 1970s, having been replaced by the new Shelter Rock School by 1969. Currently, Mary Jane Davies Park sits on the site of the old school.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of, of which, of it is land and of it is water.
In addition to the unincorporated areas of Manhasset proper - Bayview, North and South Strathmore, Strathmore Village, Strathmore Vanderbilt, Shorehaven, Terrace Manor, and Norgate—
those with a Manhasset address also include three incorporated villages: Munsey Park, Plandome, and Plandome Heights; and parts of three others: Flower Hill, Plandome Manor, and North Hills.

The Plandomes

The three Plandomes—Plandome, Plandome Manor and Plandome Heights—are in the north. Incorporated in 1911, the Village of Plandome has frontage on Manhasset Bay, a village center with a village green, and the wooded hills area. Its c.1912 Village Hall, a local landmark at the Green, once served as an elementary school. Its own LIRR Station is no more than a mile away from each home in the village. Plandome Manor, incorporated in 1931, is a section of Manhasset with waterfront properties and parking at the railroad station. Plandome Heights, incorporated in 1929, has a history of Spanish architectural styles of white stucco exteriors and red-tile roofs, bordering downtown Manhasset.

Munsey Park

In 1922, Louis Sherry, the wealthy confectioner, sold his estate and mansion to newspaper publisher Frank A. Munsey. Over time, Munsey amassed which included all of the present day Munsey Park. Munsey had no heirs, no family and his entire estate and assets were left to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. One portion of the Munsey lands—the Strathmore area and the chateau—was sold to Mrs. Graham Fair Vanderbilt. The north were shaped into a model restricted community to reflect the generosity of Frank Munsey. The Metropolitan Museum developed a model community with all the homes built as authentic American colonial reproductions and the streets named for American artists.

The Strathmores and Vanderbilts

After a decade of providing a gracious setting for lawn parties and social festivities, the Vanderbilt family sold the 100 acre property to architect William Levitt who developed the Strathmore Vanderbilt community centered around the presence of the French Chateau at the end of the long and winding tree-lined drive. Strathmore Vanderbilt is located south of Quaker Ridge Rd. and to the west of Chapel Rd. Those living in Strathmore Vanderbilt receive deeded membership shares to the Strathmore Vanderbilt Country Club. East of Mill Spring Rd, the residents of Strathmore Village do not receive deeded shares. South Strathmore is the area in front of Strathmore Vanderbilt and Strathmore Village. It runs from Northern Blvd. back to Quaker Ridge Rd. and Hilltop Dr. North Strathmore is between Northern Blvd. and Munsey Park, north of the early 21st century library, and runs east.

North Hills

Once owned by John Hay Whitney, publisher of the New York Herald Tribune and Ambassador to England, the Whitney estate, known as Greentree, encompasses almost a quarter of the lands in Manhasset.
Shelter Rock is an 1800-ton granite boulder, the largest known on Long Island, deposited by a glacier more than 11,000 years ago near what is now Shelter Rock Road, in the Village of North Hills. The Matinecock Indians used its 30-foot overhang for shelter in their village on the site. Many legends woven by both Indians and colonists who arrived in the 1600s are still told. By the 1900s a dozen families owned huge estates, including business magnate Nicholas Frederic Brady, who built Inisfada, once one of the largest houses in the country. In the past few decades, the area developed into several private gated communities surrounding Deepdale Golf Club, founded by William K. Vanderbilt II in 1924, using part of his Deepdale summer estate at Lake Success.

Flower Hill

The name of Flower Hill can be traced to the early 18th century when the village consisted of several residences and other buildings located where today Port Washington Boulevard, Bonnie Heights Road and Country Club Drive intersect. This was a village that served farmers whose land was located along Port Washington Boulevard and extended down to Hempstead Harbor. Three of the original farmhouses in Flower Hill are still in existence: The Willets House, on the west side of Port Washington Boulevard, home of the Cow Neck Historical Society, The Williams House, also on the west side of Port Washington Boulevard and the Hewlett Homestead on the east side. Proximity to the water was important because those farms shipped vegetables, grain and fruits to New York City from docks in Roslyn or Manhasset Bay. In the spring many flowering cherry trees line the road to the farms with fields and meadows always filled with wild violets and other wildflowers. There are even some apple trees still standing that date to the days when Flower Hill farms sold the produce from their apple, pear and peach orchards. Sunset Hill, the historic estate of Albert and Alice Grace D'Oench and the Mason estate, both demolished, were also in Flower Hill, closer to the railroad line.

Greentree

Approximately a quarter of Manhasset lands still belong to the private Greentree Whitney estate. The family mansion and surrounding lands are among the few remaining largely intact Long Island "Gold Coast" estates. The Greentree Foundation occupies the property as a conference center dedicated to international justice and human rights issues.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 8,080 people and 2,744 households residing in the census-designated place which covers 2.38 square miles. The population density was 3,392.1 per square mile. According to the 2018 American Community Survey, the racial makeup of the CDP is estimated to be 72.5% white, 13.8% Asian, 8.6% African American, 0.1% Native American, 0.0% Pacific Islander, and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.9% of the population.
There were 2,744 households out of which 38.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.6% were married couples living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.2% were non-families. 20.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.28. The population was spread out with 23.9% under the age of 18 and 19.2% 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.0 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $133,456, and the median income for a family was $180,086. The per capita income in the CDP was $72,973. 5.5% of the population and 4.0% of families were below the poverty line. 6.3% of people under 18 years of age and 4.6% of people 65 and older had incomes below the poverty line.

Economy

Manhasset is well known for its high-end premium open-air shopping center, the Americana Manhasset. The center is situated along Northern Boulevard's "Miracle Mile" which is referred to in Billy Joel's 1980 hit "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me". The Americana first opened in 1956 as a simple community-style shopping mall; however, in the early 2000s gradually it catered to luxury goods boutiques such as Ralph Lauren, Brooks Brothers, Prada, Giorgio Armani, Chanel, Theory, Louis Vuitton, Hermès, and Burberry, among others. In addition, a short distance away from the Miracle Mile is Lord & Taylor, which was that brand's first branch store in America. In addition to Lord & Taylor, Manhasset has supported branches of some of the most well known stores in New York over the years—B. Altman and Company, Bonwit Teller, Abraham & Straus, Best & Co., Arnold Constable, Franklin Simon & Co., Peck & Peck, W. & J. Sloane, J.J. Newberry and Waldbaum's.
The old commercial center of Manhasset is situated around the railroad station on Plandome Road, where the LIRR connects directly into Manhattan for a 37-minute commute. The area has bakeries, pizzerias, delis, bars, coffee shops, and a movie theater. Centralized in town is a small park and a gazebo. The public library is located 1 block east of Plandome
Road on the corner of Onderdonk Ave. and Northern Boulevard, next door to the historic Quaker Meeting House.
The North American headquarters of Sabena were located in a office building in Manhasset. In April 2002 Knightsbridge Properties Corp. bought the building for $4.9 million. Due to the bankruptcies of Sabena and Swissair, the real estate deal took over a year to finish. During that month the building was 30% occupied. Sabena was scheduled to move out of the building on May 10, 2002. The buyer planned to spend an additional $2 million to convert the building into a multi-tenant, Class A office and medical facility.

Sports

Manhasset High School
St. Mary's

Education

The Manhasset School District covers not only the unincorporated areas discussed in the census reports, but several incorporated villages including Plandome, Plandome Manor, Munsey Park and part of Flower Hill. Manhasset High School is rated among the top in the country. In the 2010 Newsweek magazine's annual list of the top American high schools, Manhasset is ranked 87th nationally out of the 1,700 schools evaluated.
Manhasset has a locally operated School Community Association instead of electing to be a local chapter of the Parent Teacher Association. The SCA, which boasts great support within the community, annually hosts the SCA fair at Munsey Park School to raise money. Membership dues and profits from fund-raising efforts benefit the schools in Manhasset; no percentage of funds goes to a state or national offices of a larger organization, thus all monies raised benefit the Manhasset schools directly.

Notable people

Chris Mullin, Retired professional American basketball player

In popular culture

Movies
Television
Literature
  • The Great Gatsby : The eastern shore of Manhasset Bay was F. Scott Fitzgerald's inspiration for "East Egg".
  • The Tender Bar : Coming of age memoir by J.R. Moehringer that takes place in Manhasset. The bar featured in classic novel, The Tender Bar called Publicans, reopened in Manhasset on Plandome Road in 2017
Music
International relations'