Wyandanch, New York facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Wyandanch, New York
Hamlet and census-designated place
U.S. Census map
Wyandanch, New York Location in New York
Country	United States
State	New York
County	Suffolk
Named for	Chief Wyandanch of the Montaukett people.
Area
• Total	2.17 sq mi (5.63 km2)
• Land	2.17 sq mi (5.62 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.01 km2)
Elevation	56 ft (17 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	12,990
• Density	5,986.18/sq mi (2,311.16/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP Code	11798
Area code(s)	631
FIPS code	36-83294
GNIS feature ID	0971769

Wyandanch is a small community called a hamlet and a census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Babylon in Suffolk County, New York. In 2020, about 12,990 people lived there.

Wyandanch was once considered to become its own village, but these plans never happened. So, it remains an unincorporated community.

History of Wyandanch

How Wyandanch Got Its Name

This community is named after Chief Wyandanch. He was an important leader of the Montaukett Native American tribe in the 1600s. The area was known by other names like Half Way Hollow Hills and West Deer Park.

In 1903, the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) officially named it Wyandanch. This was done to honor Chief Wyandanch and to avoid confusion with other train stations.

Early Settlers and Growth

There is no proof that Native Americans lived permanently in Wyandanch. They used the land for hunting and gathering food.

The first European settlers arrived around 1706. They came from Huntington and bought land from the Conklin family. The community really started to grow when the West Deer Park LIRR station opened in 1875. This train station was built because General James J. Casey, who owned a large estate nearby, wanted easier access to the railroad.

The first plots of land were sold near the station in 1872. A realtor named Charles Schleier advertised the area as a great place to live. This led to the first German and German-American families moving to Wyandanch.

Different Cultures Come Together

From the late 1800s to the mid-1900s, many different groups of people moved to Wyandanch.

• German and Austrian Families: Many German and Austrian families settled here. They were skilled workers, gardeners, and carpenters. They worked on large estates nearby and in local businesses.
• Irish Families: In the 1920s and 1930s, working-class families from Ireland and Irish-American families built homes. They wanted to escape crowded cities and enjoy the fresh air and lower costs of rural Wyandanch.
• African-American Families: African-American families have lived in Wyandanch for nearly a century. In the 1920s, they bought land and built homes in areas like "Little Farms." A cement block company, C & D Cement Block Corp., was one of the largest businesses in Suffolk County owned by African-Americans.
• Italian Families: Italian-American families also moved to Wyandanch. They were active in local businesses and the Catholic Church. Many grocery stores, bakeries, and other shops were owned by Italian-American or German-American families.
• Hispanic Families: Hispanic-American families began settling in the late 1940s. They found affordable housing and jobs in nearby factories and hospitals.

Carver Park Development

In 1951, new homes were offered for sale in the Carver Park development. These homes were advertised as "interracial housing." Most of the first homes were bought by African-American families. The building of Carver Park and later Lincoln Park in 1956 changed Wyandanch. It went from being mostly a white working-class community to a majority African-American community by 1960. Many African-American families moved here because they faced unfair housing practices in other areas.

Community Efforts and Changes

In August 1967, some community unrest occurred in Wyandanch. Young African-American adults reportedly caused damage to stores and property. After this, local officials and community groups worked together to solve problems. They focused on job training, better bus routes, and more recreational activities for young people. New businesses like a supermarket and a drug store also opened in downtown Wyandanch.

Population Information

Wyandanch Population in 2020

In 2020, Wyandanch had a population of 12,990 people.

Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.

Wyandanch Population in 2010

In 2010, there were 11,647 people living in Wyandanch. About 52.7% of households had children under 18. The average household had 3.95 people. The median age was 30.4 years old.

Getting Around Wyandanch

Roads and Highways

Some of the first roads in Wyandanch were Colonial Springs Road and Straight Path. Long Island Avenue was built in 1895 to connect Wyandanch with Farmingdale.

A part of William K. Vanderbilt Jr.'s Long Island Motor Parkway used to run through the area. This toll road was built in 1908 but was later removed in the 1960s. The Southern State Parkway opened in 1941, giving Wyandanch residents easy access to a major highway.

Train Station

The Long Island Rail Road built a train station in Wyandanch in 1875. It has been rebuilt several times over the years. The station was completely updated in 2018 as part of a project to add a second track to the LIRR line.

The Wyandanch LIRR station, as seen following the 2018 rebuild.

Bus Services

Wyandanch has several bus routes run by Suffolk County Transit. These buses connect the community to other towns and shopping centers.

Education in Wyandanch

The Wyandanch Union Free School District runs the public schools in the community. These include LaFrancis Hardiman/Dr Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School, Milton L. Olive Middle School, and Wyandanch Memorial High School.

Wyandanch had its first permanent school building in 1913. A new grade school opened in 1937, partly funded by the New Deal Public Works Authority.

In 1967, some parents asked for the Wyandanch School District to be dissolved. They wanted students to be moved to wealthier, mostly white school districts nearby. However, this request was denied by state education officials. They believed that moving students would harm the children and the community.

A liberal arts college briefly offered evening classes in Wyandanch in 1969. The Wyandanch Day Care Center opened in 1973, providing care for young children. A new, larger Head Start facility was built in 2012 to serve more preschoolers.

Public Library

The Wyandanch Public Library

The Wyandanch Public Library was approved for construction in 1974. It first operated from temporary classrooms. The permanent library building officially opened its doors in 1989.

Geography of Wyandanch

	Melville	Wheatley Heights
	East Farmingdale		Deer Park
		Wyandanch
		West Babylon	North Babylon

Wyandanch is a suburb of New York City. It covers about 2.17 square miles (5.63 square kilometers) of land. The area's soil is sandy, formed by melting glaciers thousands of years ago.

Local Businesses and Industries

In the past, Wyandanch was mainly a farming area. There was a large peach industry, but it was destroyed by insects in 1854.

Water from the Colonial Spring was bottled and sold for its "medicinal properties." Brick factories also operated here, using local clay and sand to make millions of bricks. These bricks were shipped out by train.

Over the years, different industries came to Wyandanch:

• A propane bottling business, now called Amerigas Propane LP, started in 1929.
• A paper box factory opened in 1947.
• The C & D Cement Block factory expanded, becoming a large African-American-owned business.
• Fairchild Guided Missiles built a factory in the early 1950s. They made missiles for the U.S. Navy.
• Grumman Aircraft later took over the Fairchild factory. They made parts for U.S. Navy aircraft.
• The first supermarket and shopping center opened in Wyandanch in 1955.

Today, light industrial factories are located in the Pinelawn Industrial Park and along Straight Path.

Parks and Fun Activities

In 1945, William Geiger donated land to the Town of Babylon for a park. This became Geiger Lake Town Beach and picnic grove, which opened in 1946. The town spent money to improve the Geiger Lake Pool in 1989. The pool was later removed in 2011, and a new children's spray park opened in 2013.

After the 1967 community unrest, young people asked for more fun activities. A youth center opened in 1974. In 1984, Wyandanch Youth Services, Inc. (WYS) was formed. Since 1998, WYS has operated a modern youth center.

Places of Worship

Many different religious groups have places of worship in Wyandanch.

• Catholic Church: The first Catholic Mass in Wyandanch was held in 1932. The Little Mission Chapel of Our Lady of Miraculous Medal Roman Catholic parish was completed in 1936.
• Lutheran Church: Lutherans held their first services in 1934. The Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church opened in 1938.

Other religious places include:

• Community Nazarene Church (1950)
• First African Methodist Episcopal Church of Wyandanch (1995)
• House of Prayer Church of God in Christ (1988)
• Al-Jamiyat Islamic Center
• First Baptist Church

Famous People from Wyandanch

• Geoffrey Canada, an activist and educator
• Rakim, a famous rapper
• Daryl Mitchell, an actor
• Delores E. Jenkins, an educator
• Soul for Real, an R&B music group
• Alexis Skyy, a reality television personality
• Keith Murray, a rapper

See also

In Spanish: Wyandanch para niños