History of Our Village
The area of the Village of Brookville was settled in the 17th and 18th centuries by English and Dutch farmers. In 1732, the Dutch bought the property at the intersection of what we know as Wheatley Road and Brookville Road to establish a church. There were many springs and a brook on the property, and it is said that the wolves gathered there to drink. Thus, the Dutch called Wolver Hollow. The church, which was built at that time, was known as the Reformed Dutch Church of Oyster Bay.
Four different structures have been built over the years and the present stately and beautiful building was dedicated in 1924. It was renamed the Brookville Reformed Church and still stands on the original site. Perhaps because the countryside boasted many brooks, the area became known as Brookville, and it was in the County of Queens until the County of Nassau was incorporated in 1899. Throughout the 18th and 19th Centuries, the area remained virtually unchanged, being farmland and woods with abundant wildlife. In the early 1900s, the beauty of the area as well as the accessibility to New York City attracted many wealthy city residents to the North Shore. These people bought the farmland from the descendants of the Dutch and English farmers. unlimited sums of money were spent on lavish mansions with beautiful landscaping. |
The North Shore of Nassau County, including Brookville, soon became known as the "Gold Coast." The neighboring hamlets of Westbury, Oyster Bay and Hicksville were a source of gardeners and Hicksville were a source of gardeners and household staff for the Brookville estates. In 1923 there were approximately 22 large estates in the area that was to become the Incorporated Village of Brookville.
In the early 1930s the owners of the estates throughout the North Shore started to incorporate into villages to protect the acreage zoning. The Village of Brookville was incorporated in 1931 and first election for Village officers was held at that time. Cereal Heiress. Socialite Marjorie Merriweather Post, the cereal heiress, who was one of the wealthiest women in the world, sold her grand Brookville estate in 1951 for $200,000 to Long Island University, which established the C.W. Post Campus on the property's 178 acres. From the day the campus was dedicated to the end of the 1960s, Mrs. Post would occasionally attend college functions, football games and student social. Here, Marjorie peers through the magnificent leaded windows of the Great Hall, here former living room (1968). Luxembourg visited Brookville. During the summer of 1940, the royal family of Luxembourg visited Brookville. Below, in this family picture, their father, Prince3 Felix, photographed the family. They sought refuge in Brookville after their country was invaded by Nazi forces. |