History of Fresh Meadows Told Through Photographs

Sept. 14, 2011 - PRLog -- The newest addition to Arcadia Publishing’s popular Images of America series is Fresh Meadows from local authors Fred Cantor and Debra L. Davidson. The book boasts more than 200 vintage images and memories of days gone by.

Located in northeast Queens, Fresh Meadows grew up around a housing development of the same name, built for World War II veterans. The site plan for the development not only provided an array of green open space, but it also enabled residents to enjoy a variety of services within walking distance.

The development became the centerpiece of a brand-new neighborhood, which had been the site of a country club and farmland. In 1949, renowned urban and architecture critic Lewis Mumford hailed the Fresh Meadows housing development as “perhaps the most positive and exhilarating example of large-scale community planning in this country.”

Fresh Meadows captures the optimism of the postwar era by illustrating how middle-class families thrived in an environment that combined the best aspects of urban and suburban living. The authors hope the book will “increase public awareness of Fresh Meadows’ significance in the history of modern urban planning and that it successfully captures a time and place, the postwar era, in the history of American society.”

Highlights of Fresh Meadows:
•   All of the authors’ royalties are going to the Fresh Meadows library branch.
•   The majority of the images in the book have never before been published.
•   Many of the photographs are from the private collections of local residents, past and present.
•   The book offers a glimpse into one of the many American communities developed to meet the housing needs of returning WWII veterans and their families.

Available at area bookstores, independent retailers, and online retailers, or through Arcadia Publishing at www.arcadiapublishing.com or
(888)-313-2665.

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With more than 7,500 local history titles published to date, Arcadia Publishing is the leading publisher of local and regional history in the United States. Widely recognized sepia books feature hundreds of vintage historical images.