Quick Profile
For a small residential neighborhood, St. Albans sure does have a lot of iconic musicians that have called it home over the years. Count Basie, James Brown, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald and LL Cool J. are just a few of the many notables that have passed through this middle-class neighborhood of southeastern Queens. We can’t help but wonder if there’s something in the water.
St. Albans is bordered by Brinkerhoff Avenue to the west, Springfield Boulevard to the east, Murdock Avenue and Francis Lewis Boulevard to the north and Merrick Boulevard to the south.
St. Albans has a high African-American and African-Caribbean population who pride themselves on maintaining strong ties to their community through the church and civic, political and business groups.
The neighborhood is named after St Alban, who lived in the early third century in the Roman city of Verulamium. According to the history books, he was the first recorded Christian martyr.
Like many areas of New York City, St. Albans was settled by the Dutch with land grants from Governor Peter Stuyvesant and later inhabited by English Settlers. In its early days, St. Albans was mostly farmland, pastures and forests . Things changed in 1898 when Queens became part of New York City and the area began its development. The Long Island Railroad built tracks through the neighborhood in 1898 and furthered its growth.
Addisleigh Park is a small enclave within St. Albans. Designated an historic district, the enclave has a remarkable selection of English Tudor, Arts and Craft, Neo-Colonial Revival homes as well as other styles of architecture.
Housing stock in St. Albans consists of detached one- and two-family homes, a a mix of attached homes and small apartment buildings. The commercial district of St. Albans is Linden Boulevard and the northern end of Farmers Boulevard.
The Long Island Railroad serves as St. Albans train transportation because there are no subways in the immediate area. Residents can transfer at Jamaica Station to access the E and F trains or take the train directly to Penn Station in Manhattan.
