Lindenhurst - the Name, the Zip Code, Etc.

Up until the mid-1800s, there were several families who had permanent dwellings and farms in the area that is now Lindenhurst, but its identity as a distinct community goes back to 1870 and the “City of Breslau.” Although the developers called it a “City,” it did not have a city government and would best be described as the hamlet of Breslau, in the Town of Babylon. 

The primary north-south thoroughfare through Lindenhurst – Wellwood Avenue – was previously known as Neguntatogue Road, as listed on the map, below. The road was one of several paths established from the north side of the old Town of Huntington to the Great South Bay where people traveled to fish, clam and collect salt hay from the South Shore. 

Neguntatogue is a Native American word believed to mean “abandoned” or “forsaken land.” Geographically, the name Neguntatogue is associated with Neguntatogue Neck (a “neck” is another term for a peninsula), which is the body of land on the south side of Montauk Highway (Venetian Shores community), and Neguntatogue Creek, which lies on the west side of Shore Road. 

Please note: Spellings and pronunciations of Long Island Native American words and names are subjective and typically determined by community residents. The Native Americans had a spoken language, and records kept by Colonists, starting in in the 1600s, contained their interpretations of the Native American language. The European settlers (primarily Dutch and English) typically used phonetic spellings, which often differed among documents and writers. The meanings of Native American words can also differ among historians and researchers.

Around 1861, Brooklyn resident Abby Welwood started buying large parcels of real estate in Suffolk County, surrounding the area through which the South Side Railroad would build the Babylon Line in 1867. In the 1869 railroad timetable, the area was listed as “Wellwood Stop.” It is important to note that the Welwood family spelled their name with one “L.” Misspellings in railroad timetables and on maps let to the use of two “Ls” in Wellwood Avenue. 

 Abby and her husband Thomas Welwood partnered with Charles Schleier to start a new residential community. Named Breslau, after Mr. Schleier’s European hometown, the community had its official dedication on June 6, 1870. Primarily marketed to German immigrants, Breslau experienced slow growth but it was consistent. The developers of Breslau attracted new residents with not only homes, but also employment in factories and stores and helped religious organizations establish houses of worship by giving them land to build. 

While property sales were good, the business relationship between the Welwoods and Mr. Schleier quickly deteriorated, with both sides starting lawsuits against the other. The negative headlines in New York City newspapers are believed to be one of the factors that led residents to abandon the name “Breslau.” 

There is a local myth that the name Breslau was changed to Lindenhurst because of anti-German sentiment during World War I, but this was not the case. The name was changed in 1891, two decades before the war. Another factor that likely led to the name change was the murder of Philip and Christina Scheidweiler in 1887.  The Scheidweilers lived along Wellwood Avenue, north of the present Sunrise Highway, and they were killed in their home. Authorities investigated several suspects, but the case remains unsolved. Details of the gruesome murder were published in New York City and Suffolk County newspapers, and residents of Breslau did not want their community to be associated with such violence and tragedy. 

Alexina Cadwallader (nee Neville) is credited with suggesting the name Lindenhurst, recognizing the many local Linden trees. The community agreed with the name and it was adopted by the Post Office and the Long Island Rail Road, in 1891.

The area that was dubbed “Breslau” in the 1870s was much larger than the boundaries of the Village of Lindenhurst, adopted in 1923. Old Breslau did not include land on the south side of Montauk Highway, but did stretch north toward Wyandanch. In 1923, residents voted to create and establish the Village of Lindenhurst, governed by an elected Mayor (originally called Village President) and Board of Trustees. 

Lindenhurst Post Office 

The Breslau Post Office was established on December 22, 1870, with Gude Gustave serving as the first Postmaster. The post office officially changed its name to Lindenhurst on June 24, 1891. 

Up through the 1800s, the post office was located within existing stores. Merchants could apply to be the Postmaster and an area of their store was designated for postal business. In 1928, a new brick post office building was built on S. Wellwood Avenue. It was the first post office building specifically built for that purpose rather than being part of another business or office. 

Up through the mid-1900s, residents picked up their mail from the post office. A letter addressed to “Miss Mary Jackson, Lindenhurst, New York” was sufficient to have the letter delivered to the Lindenhurst Post Office, where it would wait for Miss Jackson to pick it up. (Residential mail delivery was established around 1950.) If letters were not picked up in a timely manner, a notice may have been printed in the local newspaper as a reminder.

In 1963, the U.S. Postal Service introduced the basic 5-digit zip code, across the country. The Lindenhurst Post Office was assigned 11757. Using the digits 11757, mail addressed to the Village of Lindenhurst, North Lindenhurst, the Venetian Shores (outside the Village of Lindenhurst) and the American Venice community (hamlet of Copiague), will reach its destination, although the Post Office name is just Lindenhurst. The zip code assigned to addresses is based on the post office assigned to deliver the mail, but can be confused with all of the other facilities associated with an address.  

Here are four examples of addresses under the jurisdiction of the Lindenhurst Post Office:

*Including the community of Venetian Shores in the hamlet of West Babylon is confusing to many people. As noted above, the neighborhood is under the jurisdiction of Lindenhurst post office, school/library district and fire department, but the area is not within the Village of Lindenhurst. Therefore, the community is part of the hamlet of West Babylon. For census purposes, the Venetian Shores area is part of the West Babylon Census Designated Place (CDP). Also, a street repair on Granada Parkway, for instance, is not handled by the Village of Lindenhurst but, rather, the Town of Babylon.