Rockaway Person of the Week

Ed Vlahov

Ed, a 1946 graduate of FRHS, is an American born Canadian, who now resides in Mexico with his wife Lois Anne Greene. He is a man of many talents and pursuits; a pharmacist by trade, a symphony violinist, and perhaps following his greatest passion of all that of a published author of four novels. In his latest releases, Ed draws heavily on both his Croatian-Catholic roots and his Rockaway upbringing to tell two great stories; "A Candle Before Midnight" and "The Splintered House"

Click here to read a more detailed description of both of these novels.

Stevie S. Stevens is quoted and rockawaymemories.com is linked in this New York Times article.

Click on the image above to read NYT Article and view video.

I Remember the Rockaways

Beach 62nd St., Arverne, July 21, 1911(click on image to enlarge)

Arverne at the Turn of the Century

by: Stevie S. Stevens

Arverne, Queens, in a revealing photograph taken on July 21st of 1911. Our picture of Alexander Avenue provides an excellent representation of just how rural the area really was during the first twenty years of the new century. This view (according to the photo itself) is facing directly north on what is now known as Beach 62nd Street. The rail road crossing shown belonged to the Long Island line which had "taken over" and combined ALL the railway systems which had managed to transverse the peninsula immediately prior to the early 1900s.

(Read more)

Rockaway Beach Police Dept., 1891

Patrolling the Rockaway Peninsula

by: Stevie S. Stevens

Getting off to a good start! The Rockaway Beach Police Department in a sepia-tone photograph reportedly dating to 1891. Back in the "good old days" it took only a force of eighteen men to maintain law and order on the Rockaway peninsula. Major crime back then was primarily prostitution, wanton gambling, pick-pocketing, and land-grabbing - a very common practice back before the turn of the century. Squatters would simply move onto the island, set up camp, construct some sort of rudimentary abode and then claim the land as their own. Of course this was not to be the case and as soon as the legal land owner discovered these make-shift camps, he would engage an official to assist him in vacating the intruders off his property. There were also isolated instances of petty thievery - vagrants ram sacking the remains of burned out homes and hotels - a practice common to frosty months when most of the inhabitants of the island were ensconced in their winter homes back in the city proper.

(Read more)

A letter to Stevie S. Stevens dated February 27, 2010:

Hi,

I was born in 1937 and I lived on Beach 72 street a few houses from the RR. I remember as a very young boy the Construction of the El. I remember a friend who lived upstairs from me getting burned by the 3rd rail while playing on the tracks. I remember talking to the Telephone operator to make a phone call. I think the exchange was Bell Harbor 5.

I moved to Beach 67th street in the early 1940. I remember the troops camped on the beach during the war. Arverne came to life during the summer, in the winter it was a very quiet place. I went to PS 42 on Beach 66 street. I lived in Arverne up until 1966. I have a lot of good memories growing up in Arverne.

Al Simons

Stevie S. Stevens reply to Al Simons dated February 28, 2010:

Hello Al,

You lived in Arverne during a very exciting time! I consider the period from about 1930 - 1945 to be the "period of true transition" -- the time in which the area saw the great shift from being a vacation resort to becoming primarily all-year-round residential.

Of course you were just a child, having been born in 1937, so you probably didn't realize those major changes in the nature of the population that were taking place during your early youth. By the end of the war -- the time you were eight -- Arverne was no longer a summer resort in any true sense of the meaning.

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The Rockaway Fire of 1892

THE ROCKAWAY FIRE: RUINS OF THE MUSEUM, WHERE THE FIRE STARTED

((Click on image to enlarge)

A couple of weeks ago, in response to our February newsletter, I received an email from Ed Gloeggler, who I had never met before. Ed grew up in Wavecrest and graduated FRHS (Class of 1975). He has been collecting Rockaway postcards, photos, maps and memorabilia since the age of 15. He has worked for the Wave and for the Rockaway Journal where he wrote a weekly history column. Ed's first love is with the Rockaway railroads and Ocean Electric trolleys - He spent thirty years as an LIRR trainmaster. Ed has offered to share his incredible collection with Rockaway Memories.

The illustrated article about "The Rockaway Fire" is the first of what I hope will be many more fascinating contributions from Ed's amazing collection. Welcome aboard Ed. We are thrilled to have you! MN

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Music of the Rockaways

Thanks to famed musicologist Ed Berlin (FRHS, 1954), we are delighted to bring to you his article about "Three Rockaway Songs", which include musical accompaniment, written especially for rockawaymemories.com.

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FRHS ALUMNI PHOTOS
Class of June, 1940, Senior Officers

Thanks to the contributions of Florence Mass Rand and Marcia Robinson we have just added the Dolphin Yearbook photos for the FRHS classes of June, 1940 and January, 1952. We have now posted photos of over 23,000 FRHS graduates, spanning 6 decades. Come search for your photo and those of your relatives and friends.

Go to FRHS Alumni Page