Introduction to East Meadow

Although East Meadow is now a booming suburb, it's name reflects its rural history as the  “Eastern Meadow” of the Hempstead Plains. The East Meadow was utilized as the ground for grazing cattle and significant to industry in the colonial period. During the 1700's, much of the country’s wool needs were supplied by East Meadow-grazed sheep.

Eisenhower Park was originally built to be the Salisbury Golf Club. During the Depression, the County acquired the property and turned it into Eisenhower Park, named after former President Dwight D. Eisenhower, in honor of those lost in war. East Meadow is also home to the Nassau University Medical Center, a major hospital serving the central region of Nassau County.

East Meadow’s population transitioned from a farming community to a booming suburban community after World War II. Within the context of a decade, the area’s population went from 2,000 to 25,000. Similarly to Levittown, the East Meadow land was being sold at cheap prices to land developers, and returning War veterans and their families sought to establish homes in this budding suburb.

Eleanor Roosevelt, who came to serve as first lady of the United States, was a childhood resident of East Meadow. Her home on Newbridge Avenue, unfortunately, no longer stands. Another famous person who spent his childhood in East Meadow is Julius Erving. He was born in East Meadow, New York as Julius Winfield Erving, Jr. and since has made a name for himself in the basketball hall of fame.

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