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| Welcome to Chamber of Commerce
of the Massapequas |
ATTENTION
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Purchase a Brick for All to
Remember, See Upcoming Events
60th Anniversary Serving the Massapequa Community
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Speakers Request Form, Please Call the Office at 516-541-1443
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When the first Dutch settlers arrived on Long Island in 1636, there was approximately 13 Indian tribes, or chieftaincies, comprised of several thousand native Americans. They lived in well defined areas and were known for their location. Thus the Merricck derived their name from their word for "bare land" and the Copiague for "place of shelter".
These Indian tribes, judging from their language and customs, were related to the northern Algonquin rather than to the Iroquois of the Hudson Valley. The Marsapeague -which means "great water land" -took its name from the area of south central Nassau with its abundant fresh water springs. The Indians had friendly dealings with the settlers through the efforts of their chief, Sachem Tackapausha. In 1658, Tackapausha gave the settlers of Oyster Bay a deed to the Marsapeague meadowlands thereby establishing a European presence in what was to become Massapequa Park. the park and museum on Merrick Road in Seaford are named for the Indian chief.
The earliest known house built by a European was occupied by Thomas Freelove Jones at the head of Massapequa Creek near the profitable Indian trail that became Merrick Road. The Jones family prospered and grew, and in 1770 built a mansion-the first in the area- near today's site of Massapequa High School. By 1780, a number of estates, primarily owned by the descendants of Thomas Jones, stretched along Merrick Road from Amityville to Seaford.
In 1868, the first steam train came along and the Floyd-Jones families had a private station built on their side of the track, just west of Unqua road. The Southside Railroad also had a station wes... |
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Community Festival May 23, 24,25 2008.... Small Business Networking Night 6/9/08 at Commerce Bank.....Annual Picnic in the Park 6/29/08 ......Oldies Show Sept 20, 2008.......Klestinec Park Memorial Brick Purchase .......See Upcoming Events for ALL
