Middle Village, Queens

Middle Village is a neighborhood in central Queens, a borough of New York City. The neighborhood is located in the western central section of Queens, bounded to the north by Eliot Avenue, to the east by Woodhaven Boulevard, to the south by Cooper Avenue, and to the west by Lutheran Cemetery. Middle Village borders Elmhurst to the North, Maspeth and Ridgewood to the West, Glendale to the South, and Rego Park to the East. In 2003, "South Elmhurst", an area between Eliot Avenue and the LIE, was added to Middle Village's ZIP code (11379). The neighborhood is part of Queens Community District 5, served by Queens Community Board 5. Housing in the neighborhood is largely single-family homes with many attached homes, and small apartment buildings.

The neighborhood is served by the M train of the New York City Subway which terminates at Metropolitan Avenue. Five bus lines serve Middle Village including the Q29, the Q38, the Q54, the Q67, and the Q45

History
The area was settled around 1816 by people of English descent and was named in the early nineteenth-century for its location as the mid-point between the then towns of Williamsburg, Brooklyn and Jamaica, Queens on the Williamsburgh and Jamaica Turnpike (now Metropolitan Avenue), which opened in 1816. In 1852, a Manhattan Lutheran church purchased the farmland on the western end of the hamlet that would become the Lutheran Cemetery. The St. John's Roman Catholic Cemetery was laid out on the eastern side of the town in 1879. After the Civil War, the area became predominantly German. Hotels and other services appeared to meet the needs of cemetery visitors. A housing boom which began in the 1920s eventually consumed the surrounding farmland and became continuous with neighboring towns and neighborhoods.

Middle Village is served by Juniper Valley Park, a large public park built on what was once called Juniper Swamp (filled in 1915 ). Homes along the southern side of the park enjoy breathtaking views of the NYC skyline.

Famous dead
St. John's Cemetery, Queens, a cemetery located in Middle Village, holds many famed mobsters, including John Gotti, Lucky Luciano, Joe Gallo, Carlo Gambino, Joseph Profaci, Joe Colombo, Vito Genovese, Carmine Galante, the list goes on.

Also buried here are fitness guru Charles Atlas and photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. The General Slocum Steamboat Fire Mass Memorial, commemorating one of the worst disasters in NYC's history, is at Lutheran All Faiths Cemetery (67-29 Metropolitan Avenue).

Demographics
A large portion of the population in Middle Village is Italian American, although Middle Village has seen an influx of Irish, and Slavic residents over the recent years. Other ethnic groups have been making their home in Middle Village as well. Many of the older families have left Middle Village but have not sold their homes, the result is a neighborhood, especially the southern portion, with a growing population of renters.

Schools
PS 49 is an elementary school in Middle Village with grades K to 5. PS 128 and PS 87 are elementary and junior high schools with grades K to 8. Our Lady of Hope and St. Margaret are two Catholic K-8 schools in the area.

Christ The King Regional High School is a private school. It is also nationally-known as the home of the Royals Boy's and Girl's basketball teams, with a total of 13 Federation Championships spanning the last 16 years.

Notable residents
Notable current and former residents of Middle Village include:
 * Nicole Bass, professional female bodybuilder
 * Jason Burnetti, owner of Klarney's