The Town of Lindenhurst was first named “Neguntatogue” by the Secatogue and Massapequa Indian tribes. The word Neguntatogue is an Indian word meaning “forsaken land.” The first home in what is now known as present day Lindenhurst was built in 1780 and the first one room school house was built by Huntington farmers in 1841. Despite the establishment of these early structures, the first pioneer settlers of Lindenhurst are considered to be Thomas and Abbey Wellwood, who settled here in 1869. Lindenhurst was known as Wellwood until the following year when the village was officially dedicated and renamed “ Breslau,” after the birthplace of German settler Charles S. Schleier. During that same year, German settlers established their own wooden school house on School Street, which would be replaced by a brick version in 1910. Lindenhurst’s first fire fighting group was formed in 1877, called “The Breslau Fever Wehe” or The Breslau Fire Brigade. The present day name of Lindenhurst was officially adopted on June 1, 1890 by popular vote. According to village historian Evelyn Ellis, the name Lindenhurst was derived from all the Linden trees that line Wellwood Avenue. In 1923, Lindenhurst officially became an incorporated village. The first official village newspaper, The Lindenhurst Star, was put into circulation on September 23, 1927.

Today Lindenhurst, with a population of over 28,000, is the largest incorporated village in Suffolk County and the fourth largest in New York State.

 

Sources: A Capsule History of Lindenhurst compiled by EME and LSR, Growth of Our Village from Wellwood to Lindenhurst, 1869 to 1944 compiled by Louis Hirsh and the website for The Incorporated Village of Lindenhurst. http://villageoflindenhurst.com.

 

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