It's Queens Week on NY1, and we are celebrating the borough with a special series called "What's in a Name?" It's a look at how many neighborhoods and streets came to be. Borough Reporter Ruschell Boone starts with the differing view on how Queens got its name.
There is no known paper trail or definitive answer as to how Queens got its name.
“Specifically how they did it I do not know,” says Richard Hourahan, curator at the Queens Historical Society.
The origin of the name has become a source of confusion—and sometimes contention—among local historians who have spent years researching it. Most say the borough is named for royalty—the Queen of England, Catherine of Braganza, to be exact.
Queens County was created by the British in 1683 during her reign with King Charles.
“So the Kings and Queens counties are named for them,” says Queens Borough historian Jack Eichenbaum.
That idea is strongly disputed, however, by those who say all signs point to Queens not being named for a specific person.
“When the colony was taken over by the British authorities they decided to create counties and name each county after royal offices—King, Queen, Duke and Duchess,” say Bob Singleton, executive director of the Greater Astoria Historical Society.
Still, there was a push to build a statue in the borough as a tribute to Queen Catherine. The plan was defeated when it was alleged she and her family profited from the slave trade.
The statue idea came to an end here at borough hall. But while we may never know if the English monarch put the Queen in Queens there is a lot more certainty about how many neighborhoods came to be named.
College Point got its name after a seminary built there in 1835.
Sunnyside was a local farm, but the name stuck when other businesses started using it. A giant stone is how Whitestone got its name. Some names like Forest Hills and Elmhurst were chosen by developers looking to evoke a sense of tranquility.
“The same story goes for Woodhaven, Ozone Park,” says Hourahan.
Some places are the initials or name of the development company. M-A-L-B-A is the first letters of the surnames of the founders of Malba Land Company.
“As is Rego Park—the Real Good Development Company,” says Singleton.
Today, there are new developments springing up all over the borough. So, as historians continue to research the past there are sure to be new names on the horizon.