Melville, New York

History

The area was known to the Native Americans as Sunsquams. In the 17th century, it was named Samuel Ketcham's Valley, after one of the earliest natives living there. It was later known as Sweet Hollow, likely due to the large population of honey bees and the honey found in the trees.

19th century

In 1829, a Presbyterian church was built at the corner of Old Country and Sweet Hollow Roads.

The name Melville was first used in school records in 1854. The exact origin of the name is unknown. Some say it was in honor of American novelist Herman Melville, author of Moby-Dick, which was published three years earlier, in 1851. Melville's 1846 novel Typee also was very popular at that time. However, it is more likely derived from the word mel, which is Latin for honey.

20th century

The Presbyterian church was in continuous use until 1930. It reopened in 1944 for the funeral of Edward Baylis and has been in use since then. The church was moved 1 mi to the west in 1977.

In the 1950s, Melville and three of its neighbors, Dix Hills, Wyandanch, and the area known as Sweet Hollow, proposed incorporating as a single village. The village would have been known as the Incorporated Village of Half Hollow Hills, would have had an area of roughly 50 mi2, and would have embraced the Half Hollow Hills Central School District. The plans were unsuccessful.

Office development along Route 110 in Melville increased throughout the 1960s. However, by 1971, the economy had slowed and many of the buildings were left vacant and struggled to find tenants.

21st century

In 2001, Melville, Dix Hills, Wheatley Heights, and East Farmingdale, which are all within the same school district, proposed incorporating as a single village. These plans also failed, and each remain unincorporated hamlets to this day.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Melville has a total area of 31.3 sqkm.

Melville lies on the east side of Suffolk County's boundary with Nassau County.

Demographics

As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,284 with 6,883 households. The population density was 1,599.60 PD/sqmi. There were 5,141 housing units at an average density of 454.2 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the CDP was 84.6% White (82.6% White Non-Hispanic), 7.4% Asian, 3% Black, 0% Native American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.04% from other races, and 4.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.4.% of the population. The population was 18,985 at the 2010 census.

As of the 2000 census, there were 14,533 people, 4,930 households, and 3,993 families residing in Melville. The population density was 1,284.00 PD/sqmi.

In 2000, there were 4,930 households, out of which 38.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 72.2% were married couples living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.0% were non-families. 15.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.88 and the average family size was 3.23.

In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 25.5% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 29.1% from 25 to 44, 26.0% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.

In 2000, the median income for a household in the CDP was $132,527, and the median income for a family was $170,881. Males had a median income of $142,972 versus $115,495 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $125,053. About 3.0% of families and 4.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.2% of those under age 18 and 3.2% of those age 65 or over. The median house price in Melville is about $900,000.

Economy

Melville and Hauppauge are the two primary business centers of Suffolk County, which is home to almost approximately 1.5 million people. Melville is home to the U.S. headquarters for several national and international corporations, including Canon USA, Chyron Corporation, Leviton, MSC Industrial Direct, Nikon USA, Henry Schein, and Verint Systems. Significant operations of Manhattan-based The Estée Lauder Companies are also based in Melville. Newsday, Long Island's primary newspaper, is headquartered in Melville.

In early 2013, Canon Inc. moved into its new regional headquarters for North and South America to Melville, building a $500-million 668296 ft2 glass structure near Exit 49 of the Long Island Expressway on the 52 acre site of a former pumpkin farm. About 1,500 workers were expected to move from Canon's Lake Success offices. The company chose Melville over other tri-state area locations because the employees "didn't want to leave the area".

A number of companies were also once headquartered in Melville. In 1995, Swissair completed its headquarters in Melville. The building was designed by famed architect Richard Meier. However, when the company went out of business and reorganized as Swiss International Airlines in 2002, the new entity moved to Uniondale. Olympus America Inc., the U.S. subsidiary of Olympus Corporation, moved in 2006 to Center Valley, Pennsylvania. Gentiva Health Services, a Fortune 1000 provider of health services, relocated to Atlanta in 2009. Later that year, Allion Healthcare was acquired by H.I.G. Capital.

OSI Pharmaceuticals was bought by Astellas Pharma of Japan in 2010. Arrow Electronics relocated to Centennial, Colorado in 2011. Hain Celestial moved to Lake Success in 2012. The independent television station WLNY-TV operated a studio in Melville. When it was acquired by CBS in 2012, it moved to the network's Manhattan facility. Adecco Staffing, USA moved its U.S. headquarters to Jacksonville, Florida in 2014. When Sbarro re-emerged from bankruptcy in 2014, the chain relocated its headquarters to Columbus, Ohio. First Data announced in 2015 that it would be moving its operations to Georgia. The company left Melville in 2017. Shipping company Bouchard Transportation declared bankruptcy in 2020 and its assets were divided the following year.

Government

One of the nine state offices of U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer is located in Melville.

Education

Half Hollow Hills Central School District and South Huntington Union Free School District serve Melville. Katharine Gibbs School – Melville serves the post-school population with certificates and associate degrees.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Road

The Long Island Expressway and Northern State Parkway, two of Long Island's busiest highways and major points of entry in and out of New York City, pass through Melville. NY Route 110 also runs through Melville.

Rail

Until 1927, Melville was served by the Huntington Railroad's streetcar line, which ran along what today is NY Route 110 and has now been replaced by the S1 bus. The closest rail line is the LIRR's Main Line to Ronkonkoma and Greenport, but the closest station on that line is Pinelawn, which only provides weekend service. Huntington station in Huntington is the closest full service station.

Bus

Melville's primary mode of public transit is the 1 bus run by Suffolk County Transit. Route 1 runs up and down Route 110 seven days a week and connects to two Long Island Railroad branches north and south of Melville. The "Suffolk Clipper" express bus service also serves the numerous business parks in South Melville during weekdays.

A park and ride and carpool parking lot with a bus shelter exists adjacent to the north of the LIE, but long-distance bus service to and from there is either highly occasional or nonexistent. The parking lot is still used by carpool commuters, but also attracts some illicit activity.

Fire protection

Melville is protected by the Melville Volunteer Fire Department. Established in 1947, it handles all emergencies, including fires, heavy rescues and extrications, emergency ambulances, hazmat, and other related tasks. The fire department responds to more than 3,500 alarms annually and provides continuous service on an annual budget of $1.5 million.

References

References

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