From Burgh to Borough

1940. Queens Midtown Tunnel opened.

1940. After six years of construction, the Belt Parkway was dedicated on June 29. The highway was 36 miles long and included the 11-mile Cross Island Parkway.

1941. United States entered World War II. The War ended in 1945 when Germany and Japan surrender.

1946. United Nations General Assembly temporarily met at Flushing Meadows Park in a converted skating rink inside the City Building, which had been built for 1939 World’s Fair.

1949. Fresh Meadows, a model community of row houses and high-rise apartments, opened to residents. The complex was created by New York Life Insurance Company, and included schools and a shopping center.

1948. Idlewild Airport (now John F. Kennedy International Airport) opened to traffic, on the landfill dumped into eastern Jamaica Bay.
 
Chronology reprinted, with some modifications, from A Research Guide to the History of the Borough of Queens, New York City, by Jon A. Peterson, Editor, and Vincent F. Seyfried, Consultant, 1987. Photographs courtesy of the Long Island Division, Queens Borough Public Library. For more information about their collections, visit the Long Island Division’s web site.
© 2002 Queens Borough Public Library
[Home]: http://www.queenslibrary.org
Last updated: Octoberr 30, 2002
Email any comments, questions, or suggestions to
webmaster@queenslibrary.org
Current Exhibition Programs and Events Education Queens Library About the Gallery Past Exhibits Queens Library Gallery Other Exhibits Exhibit Essay Suggested Readings 1890's 1900's 1910's Map of Queens Queens Demographics Exhibit Slide Show 1920's 1930's 1940's 1950's