‘Astoria Institute’ (1825 – 1860?) funded by John Jacob Astor, was a young woman’s private school, part of a revolutionary development at that time in women’s educational opportunities giving rise to the Seneca Falls Convention. ‘Hallets Cove’ changed its name to ‘Astoria’ because of this building. It was later a parish house for St. George Church. Soon after its Request for Evaluation rejected by the Landmarks Commission, demolished for the Gloria D’Amico Senior Residence, named for a late Queens County Clerk.

St. George's Church dates to 1825 when a wood-frame edifice was erected on land donated by landowner Robert Blackwell. The church, which sat on a site near Astoria Boulevard, was destroyed in a fire in 1894. (Today the Astoria Branch of the Queens Library, a Carnegie library sits on the site of the original church.) A new brick church was erected up the block in 1903-1904. The St. George churchyard which is the final resting place of many early settlers currently sits between the library and the contemporary apartment house that backs up onto the church.

The First Reformed Church of Astoria (1835) the oldest religious congregation in Astoria. The first building is the Fellowship Hall moved back into the former cemetery (tombstones remain on the property). Lighting struck the replacement (late 1880s) – tower now half-original size.

Masonic Temple of Astoria (Advance Masonic Temple), June 2, 1927. The lodge was named for the USS Advance, a 19th century US Navy brigantine used in two Arctic rescue missions in search of the lost Franklin polar expedition. The Advance was abandoned in 1855, icebound, having discovered the Polar Sea.

Wood-frame farmhouse on Welling Court, near Hallett’s Cove. April, 1925. Photographer Eugene L. Armbruster notes “Furman occupied the house many years.” The house appears on the Beers map of 1873, with no owner listed. The house has been significantly altered, with shingled siding replaced by vinyl, but its frame appears intact.

The current edifice was built and dedicated in February 1904, but the congregation dates back to 1825 when Samuel Blackwell donated a portion of his land to the new Episcopal congregation. An earlier wooden frame church existed on location between 1828 until 1894 when it was burned down. Next door to the church was the Astoria Institute for the Education of Young Ladies (built 1824), an academy that was built to educate the daughters of Astoria’s wealthy. The academy was not successful and soon after it became the parish house for St George’s, until it was sadly torn down in 2005 despite pleas from the Greater Astoria Historical Society. Just behind the church, there is a graveyard that holds the remains of many of Astoria’s early settlers such as the Blackwells and the Trowbridges, and a few Halletts. From Alan Arichavala

Astoria Greek Archdiocese of North and South America. St. Athanasios chapel in the same building, 1927. This quaint, and now long-gone Astoria building was once home to the Astoria Greek Archdiocese of North and South America. The Holy Synod of Greece founded the Diocese in Astoria in 1918. By 1927 some of the Greeks worshipping here at the chapel of St. Athanasios were planning a new church. St. Demetrios, at 30-11 30th Drive, had its groundbreaking ceremony in late 1927.

Astoria Square, March 13, 1931. Newtown Avenue, Astoria Boulevard (formerly Flushing Avenue and Fulton Street), 21st Street (Van Alst Street), and 27th Avenue (Franklin Street) converge at Astoria Square, which sat at the northeast corner of Astoria Park, a 19th century green space that has since been build over. At left is the “Astoria flatiron building” at 18-23 Astoria Boulevard, built in 1889 for the L. Gally furniture showroom.

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Still standing (2020) it may be an 18th century survivor perhaps built when the area was a large British camp during the American Revolution. A number of adjacent buildings are gone (as of 2018) despite pleas for saving or at least conducting an archaeological assessment. A former tenant in one of the removed buildings, as a child, found a number of early 19th century coins in his yard.

The First Reformed Church of Astoria was organized in 1839 by a group of Christians who had previously been meeting in the local schoolhouse since 1835. The original church, a white wood-frame structure, like many wooden churches in New York, was lost to a fire. Following the fire in 1888, a new brick house of worship was completed on the same site. The Victorian Gothic building has terra cotta and copper details, and a soaring (and ornate) octagonal tower and steeple.

St. George's Episcopal Church, Parish House, May 25, 1937. This clapboard building began its life in 1828 as the Astoria Institute for the Education of Young Ladies, a finishing school for the young daughters of the wealthy families residing in the mansions of nearby Hallet's Cove. Sometime after St. George's built their brick church next door (circa 1903-1903), this building became its parish house. In the early 2000s, as the church suffered from lack of funds, a decision was made to raze the building for the construction of senior housing.

Astoria branch of the Queens Public Library, June 2, 1927. One of seven Carnegie Libraries built in Queens, the Astoria branch was designed by Tuthill & Higgins firm and completed in 1904. The library’s original Flemish Revival design featured angled corner entrance, framed by twin chimneys and a curved stepped gable. The distinctive entrance was removed during 1930s-era renovations.

And just like that, another year here at Urban Archive is coming to a close in just a few short days! We've asked our partners to pick some of their favorite stories, images, and facts they encountered this year to share with you. Check them out below!