Lawrence is a
village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...
in
Nassau County,
New York, United States. As of the
2010 United States Census
The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators serving ...
, the village population was 6,483.
The Village of Lawrence is in the southwestern corner of the
Town of Hempstead, adjoining the border with the
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
borough of
Queens
Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...
to the west and near the
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...
to the south. Lawrence is one of the "
Five Towns", which consists of the villages of Lawrence and
Cedarhurst, the hamlets (unincorporated areas) of
Woodmere and
Inwood, and "The Hewletts", which is made up of the hamlet of
Hewlett together with the villages of
Hewlett Bay Park,
Hewlett Harbor
Hewlett Harbor is a village in Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 1,263 as of the 2010 census.
The Village of Hewlett Harbor is located within the Town of Hempstead. This area, like Back/Old Lawrence ...
and
Hewlett Neck, along with
Woodsburgh.
Old Lawrence
Old Lawrence, or Back Lawrence, is a part of the Village of Lawrence, comprising many large homes, mansions, beach side villas and former
plantation
A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Th ...
s with very large property, a few dating back to the time of the
American Revolution
The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...
. This area, like
Hewlett is unique because its rural affluence is similar in character to the more well known
Gold Coast of the
North Shore instead of being more urbanized like the rest of the
South Shore of
Nassau County. An interesting pre-Revolutionary home on Long Island,
Rock Hall, was home to two prominent families, the Martins and Hewletts, and is now an active museum.
Beginning in 1869, a railroad line was completed which originated in New York City and ran through the part of Long Island now called The Five Towns. Part of the land in that area was acquired by three brothers with the surname "Lawrence," which is who the Village was eventually named after. During the second half of the 19th century, it was a main
vacation spot for the wealthy families until the 1890s. A series of
hurricane
A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Dep ...
s and
nor'easter
A nor'easter (also northeaster; see below), or an East Coast low is a synoptic-scale extratropical cyclone in the western North Atlantic Ocean. The name derives from the direction of the winds that blow from the northeast. The original use o ...
s altered the coastline considerably and destroyed a large beachfront hotel. Lawrence could no longer boast direct access to the sands along the Atlantic Ocean. At the same time, Lawrence began to become more like a modern
suburb
A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separ ...
, a village with schools, public facilities, better roads and a large town area that expanded into what it is now today.
In 1897, Lawrence incorporated as a village.
This enabled it to gain local control of zoning.
Lawrence, or most notably Old Lawrence, was formerly home to a large upper class of
White Anglo-Saxon Protestant families who lived there since the time of the
American Revolution
The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...
. From the 1940s to 1980s, it became a center of
Reform and
Conservative Jewish life that included the largest Reform synagogue on Long Island (Temple Israel). Many noteworthy residents grew up in Lawrence during this period.
In the late 1980s, it saw a large migration of
Modern Orthodox Jews. The Orthodox Jewish communities are close to the more
Haredi nearby center of
Far Rockaway which has more
yeshiva
A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy a ...
s for the children and younger members as well as a variety of
kosher
(also or , ) is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed kosher ( in English, yi, כּשר), fro ...
restaurants and communal organizations. Central Avenue in Lawrence (and its continuation in Cedarhurst) has a large and growing number of kosher restaurants and other business catering to the Orthodox community.
Geography
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of th ...
, the village has a total area of 4.7 square miles (12.1 km
2), of which 3.8 square miles (10.0 km
2) is land and 0.8 square mile (2.2 km
2) (17.91%) is water.
Demographics
As of the
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...
of 2000, there were 6,522 people, 2,113 households, and 1,629 families residing in the village. The
population density
Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...
was 1,694.6 people per square mile (654.1/km
2). There were 2,287 housing units at an average density of 594.2 per square mile (229.4/km
2). The racial makeup of the village was 95.2%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...
, 1.1%
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, <0.1%
Native American, 1.7%
Asian, <0.1%
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 1.0% from
other races, and 0.9% from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...
or
Latino of any race were 3.4% of the population.
There were 2,113 households, out of which 37.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 69.7% were
married couples
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...
living together, 5.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.9% were non-families. 20.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.09 and the average family size was 3.62.
In the village, the population was spread out, with 32.6% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 20.3% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.7 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $104,845, and the median income for a family was $129,779. Males had a median income of $99,841 versus $41,094 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population.
Per capita i ...
for the village was $51,602. About 4.3% of families and 6.3% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 6.2% of those under age 18 and 5.8% of those age 65 or over.
Government
The Village of Lawrence is governed by an elected Mayor and Board of Trustees. The present Mayor is Alex H. Edelman, elected in 2014. The Board of Trustees consists of 5 members including the Mayor. Members of the Board of Trustees are as follows:
* Alex H. Edelman - Mayor
* Michael A. Fragin - Deputy Mayor
* Syma F. Diamond - Trustee
* Uri Kaufman - Trustee
* Daniel J. Goldstein - Trustee
Lawrence recently enacted term limits for the Village Board. The Mayor may only serve three two year terms and trustees are limited to four two year terms.
Representation in government
* Township -
Town of Hempstead, Councilman
Bruce Blakeman.
* County -
Nassau County,
Laura Curran
Laura Curran (born December 31, 1967) is a Canadian-born American politician who served as the county executive of Nassau County from 2018 to 2021. She was the ninth county executive in Nassau County history and the first woman to hold the offi ...
, County Executive
* New York State Legislature -
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
9th District Todd Kaminsky, Senator
* New York State Legislature -
Assembly20th District empty, Assemblywoman Melissa “Missy” Miller (R)
* United States Congress -
New York's 4th district,
Kathleen Rice, Representative
Education
The
Lawrence Public Schools
The Lawrence Public Schools Union Free School District 15 is a comprehensive community public school district, serving students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade, located in the southwest section of Nassau County, New York, and borders ...
, School District 15, serve the communities of
Atlantic Beach Atlantic Beach is the name of some places in the United States:
*Atlantic Beach, Florida, a city
*Atlantic Beach, New York, a village
*Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, a town
*Atlantic Beach, South Carolina
Atlantic Beach is a town in Horry County ...
,
Cedarhurst,
Inwood, Lawrence, and sections of
Woodmere and
North Woodmere
North Woodmere is an unincorporated hamlet in the Town of Hempstead, New York, located in far western Nassau County on the South Shore of Long Island in the Town of Hempstead.
History
Prior to its development in the late 1950s, the land stret ...
.
The
Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway, is a K-12
Modern Orthodox school where students study Jewish and secular subjects in a dual curriculum. The Pre-School, Kindergarten and Elementary schools are located on one campus on Frost Lane and Washington Avenue.
The Brandeis Schoolis a conservative Jewish Day School located in Lawrence.
Mesivta Ateres Yaakov is a yeshiva located in Lawrence.
Rambam Mesivtais also located in Lawrence on Frost ave. It is for grades 9-12 where students learn a dual curriculum of Jewish and Secular studies.
Lawrence is also home to th
Shor Yoshuv Institute a Rabbinical College with several hundred students.
Transportation
The
Lawrence station provides
Long Island Rail Road
The Long Island Rail Road , often abbreviated as the LIRR, is a commuter rail system in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County on Long Island. With an average week ...
service on the
Far Rockaway Branch
The Far Rockaway Branch is an electrified rail line and service owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. The branch begins at Valley Interlocking, just east of Valley Stream station. From Valley Stream, the ...
to
Penn Station Pennsylvania Station is a name applied by the Pennsylvania Railroad to several of its grand passenger terminals.
Pennsylvania Station or Penn Station may also refer to
Current train stations
* Baltimore Penn Station
* Pennsylvania Station (Cinc ...
in
Midtown Manhattan
Midtown Manhattan is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan and serves as the city's primary central business district. Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Buildi ...
and
Atlantic Terminal in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
with connections at
Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispa ...
to other parts of Long Island.
The buses of
Nassau Inter-County Express run down Central Avenue extending southwest into Far Rockaway (with a connection to the of the
New York City Subway
The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, an affiliate agency of the state-run Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). Opened on October ...
at
Far Rockaway – Mott Avenue) and northeast to the
Hempstead Transit Center in central Nassau County with connections to other parts of Long Island.
Lawrence is connected to
Atlantic Beach Atlantic Beach is the name of some places in the United States:
*Atlantic Beach, Florida, a city
*Atlantic Beach, New York, a village
*Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, a town
*Atlantic Beach, South Carolina
Atlantic Beach is a town in Horry County ...
to the south, across
Reynolds Channel
Reynolds Channel is a strait in Nassau County, New York that separates Long Beach Barrier Island, which contains the City of Long Beach and the villages of Atlantic Beach, Lido Beach, and Point Lookout, from Long Island, Barnum Island, Harbor ...
via the
Atlantic Beach Bridge.
Emergency services
The
Nassau County Police Department
The Nassau County Police Department is the law enforcement agency of Nassau County, New York.
History
In 1925, concerned about rising crime rates, the County Board of Supervisors voted to create the Nassau County Police Department, replaci ...
provides police services in Lawrence and most of Nassau County. Lawrence is part of the force's Fourth Precinct.
Lawrence is served by the EMS group named
Hatzalah of Rockaway Lawrence (RL)
Lawrence is served by the Lawrence-Cedarhurst Fire Department. The LCFD consists of 85 volunteer firefighters and emergency medical technicians and provides fire protection to the villages of Lawrence and Cedarhurst, as well as the North Lawrence Fire District and East Lawrence Fire District. The LCFD also responds to alarms such as car accidents and aided cases on the
Atlantic Beach Bridge.
Notable people
Notable current and former residents of Lawrence include:
*
Ben Ashkenazy (born 1968/69), American
billionaire
A billionaire is a person with a net worth of at least one billion (1,000,000,000, i.e., a thousand million) units of a given currency, usually of a major currency such as the United States dollar, euro, or pound sterling. The American busi ...
real estate developer
*
Stuart Beck
Stuart Jay Beck (December 23, 1946 – February 29, 2016) was an American law practitioner and a diplomat for Palau. As a lawyer he helped negotiate the Compact of Free Association, which established Palau as an independent nation in free asso ...
(1946-2016), lawyer and
diplomat
A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or interna ...
for
Palau
Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the ...
who helped negotiate the
Compact of Free Association, which established Palau as an independent nation in free association with the United States in 1994.
*
Bruce Blakeman, First Presiding Officer of the
Nassau County Legislature
*
Benjamin Brafman
Benjamin Brafman (born July 21, 1948) is a prominent American criminal defense attorney and founder of the Manhattan-based firm Brafman & Associates, P.C.Amanda MayoLocal High-Profile Defense Attorney Ben Brafman: "If you do Great Work, People w ...
(born 1948), criminal defense attorney
* Beatrice Burstein (1915-2001), first female New York State Supreme Court Justice on Long Island, prominent public servant
* John Burstein (born 1950), children's television personality who created the character
Slim Goodbody.
*
Karen Burstein (born 1942), politician and former judge who was the unsuccessful Democratic nominee for
New York State Attorney General in 1994.
*
Michael Cohen (born 1966), personal attorney for
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...
, was raised in Lawrence.
*
Marc Stuart Dreier (born 1950), lawyer convicted for his involvement in a Ponzi scheme.
*
Bill Etra (1947-2016), live video pioneer and the co-inventor (with
Steve Rutt
Steven Alexander Rutt (February 26, 1945 – May 20, 2011) was an American engineer who in 1972, along with Bill Etra, co-created an early video animation synthesizer, the Rutt/Etra Video Synthesizer. His equipment was used in the early pioneering ...
) of the
Rutt/Etra Video Synthesizer.
*
Rockie Gardiner (c. 1938-2008), psychic, was raised in Lawrence.
*
Henry Hill and his wife, Karen (the subjects of the film ''
Goodfellas'') moved in with Karen's parents when the Hills were newlyweds.
*
Jacob H. Horwitz, (1892-1992), businessman, philanthropist and a fashion innovator who was one of the first to specialize in junior miss and teenage clothing.
*
Donna Karan (born 1948), fashion designer
*
Arthur Kopit (1937–2021), playwright, best known for ''
Wings'', ''
Nine'' and ''
Oh Dad, Poor Dad''.
*
Arthur L. Liman
Arthur Lawrence LimanHaberman, Clyde '' The New York Times'', July 18, 1997. Accessed April 2, 2009. (November 5, 1932 – July 17, 1997) was a partner at the New York law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, and was well known for hi ...
(1932-1997), lawyer and Chief Counsel for the Senate Iran-Contra hearings.
*
Peggy Lipton (1946-2019), actress best known for her role in ''
The Mod Squad
''The Mod Squad'' is an American crime drama series, originally broadcast for five seasons on ABC from September 24, 1968, to March 1, 1973. It starred Michael Cole as Peter "Pete" Cochran, Peggy Lipton as Julie Barnes, Clarence Williams III ...
''
*
Steve Madden (born 1958), shoe designer
*
Nancy McCartney, third wife of
Beatle
The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the development ...
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...
lived in Lawrence with her first husband
Bruce Blakeman.
*
Alana Newhouse
Alana Newhouse (born 1976) is an American writer and editor. She is the founder of '' Tablet'' magazine.
Early life and education
Newhouse was born in 1976 and grew up in Lawrence, New York.Her father came from the Ashkenazic tradition and her ...
(born 1976), editor of ''
Tablet Magazine''
*
Aaron Russo
Aaron Russo (February 14, 1943 – August 24, 2007) was an American entertainment businessman, film producer and director, and political activist. He was best known for producing movies including ''Trading Places'', '' Wise Guys'', and '' The Ro ...
(1943-2007), movie producer,
libertarian
Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's en ...
*
Israel Singer (born 1942), rabbi and professor who has held leadership posts in several international Jewish organizations
*
Maxine Stuart (1918-2013), actress.
*
Spencer Suderman (born 1966), Airshow pilot and Guinness World Record holder
*
Bradley Tusk (born 1973), founder of Tusk Strategies, a political and strategic consulting firm based in New York City.
*
Rob Weiss
Rob Weiss is an American television and film producer, screenwriter, actor, and director. His break came in 1993 when he wrote and directed the 1993 film ''Amongst Friends''. The film was well received at film festivals and scored Weiss a nomina ...
, director/producer of ''
Amongst Friends'' and ''
Entourage''
*
Leslie West (1945-2020), of the hard rock group
Mountain
A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher ...
.
[Fischler, Marcelle]
"Nascent Hall of Fame to Welcome First Honorees"
''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', October 15, 2006. Accessed September 4, 2016.
*
Lil Tecca
Tyler-Justin Anthony Sharpe (born August 26, 2002), known professionally as Lil Tecca, is an American rapper and singer. He rose to mainstream fame with the release of his 2019 single "Ransom", which peaked at number 4 on the ''Billboard'' Hot ...
(born 2002), Hip hop and trap artist.
References
External links
Village of Lawrence websiteLawrence Public SchoolsLawrence: Always a Bastion of Quiet Elegance
{{authority control
Five Towns
Villages in New York (state)
Villages in Nassau County, New York
Populated coastal places in New York (state)