Astoria
Neighborhood Intelligence

Astoria is a neighborhood on the western edge of Queens, bounded by the East River on the west and north. Its name dates to the early nineteenth century, when the village was named for the fur-trade magnate John Jacob Astor in the hope of attracting his investment. The population was largely Irish, Italian, Bohemian, and Slovak when Bohemian Hall opened in 1910, and from the 1960s it became home to a large Greek and Cypriot community, whose restaurants, bakeries, cafes, and Greek Orthodox churches remain a defining feature. The official area covered here combines NYC Planning's Astoria (North)-Ditmars-Steinway, Old Astoria-Hallets Point, and Astoria (Central) neighborhood tabulation areas.

The Steinway & Sons piano factory is in the Steinway section, and the Steinway Mansion, an Italianate and Renaissance Revival villa, still stands on 41st Street. Film and television production has a long history here: the Museum of the Moving Image occupies a former building of the historic Astoria Studios, now Kaufman Astoria Studios. Bohemian Hall & Beer Garden is the oldest beer garden in the city, the Welling Court Mural Project turns a residential block into an outdoor gallery, and Athens Square honors the Greek community.