Farmingdale's Village Historians offered a walking tour through the village for Farmingdale-Bethpage Historical Society members last Sunday. The tour, designed to give insight as to how the village has changed and evolved since its founding almost a century ago in 1904, included portions of the central areas of the village as well as some of the homes that were recently entered into the Town Historic Plaque Program. Despite the threatening weather, 18 local residents arrived prepared for the walk.

In a booklet put together by Village Historian William Johnston explaining the history of Farmingdale, it states that in three centuries the community of Farmingdale has changed from a self-sufficient agrarian area peopled by families closely inter-related by blood, to a major suburb in the nation's largest metropolitan area, with tens of thousands of residents, diverse in their economic, racial, religious and cultural backgrounds.

A major constant in Farmingdale, as has probably been in every town ever in existence, is change. Farmingdale has changed through the years due to immigration, industrialization and other such issues. While some residents found change in the town to be an unwelcome event, change is something that occurs in every area since people must adjust to the times in which they live.

One of the largest changes Farmingdale has experienced is that of its shopping district. When initially established in the early 1900s, Main Street was flooded with little variety shops and a quaint three story department store. Through the years, clothing stores came and went in the area, and became almost completely extinct with the opening of the nearby Sunrise Mall in Massapequa.

In 1932, the original Hook, Ladder and Hose Company, Farmingdale's first fire department, merged with the Water Witch Engine Company to form the Farmingdale Fire Department when the new fire house/village hall was built. The post office on Main Street was the first building that was actually built to be what it is today, as it's remained a post office since 1962. The "Farmingdale," the area's former movie theater located across the street from Village Hall, is currently an attorney's office for Grey and Grey.

One of the most historic buildings in Farmingdale is the Thomas Powell House, which is the oldest home, dating back to the 1690s. The house still stands on Merritt Road. Powell built this home shortly after he bought the 10,000 acre tract known as the Bethpage Purchase in 1695 from the Indians.

The Long Island Rail Road entered Farmingdale in October of 1841. The existence of a railroad in the area probably brought the town the biggest amount of change. There were three stations that served the community during that time. The existence of a railroad station in Farmingdale certainly brought change along with it, as more and more people began to move into the area and those who worked had adequate transportation to get to and from their jobs.

Village Historian Bill Johnston stated that the tour almost turned into a two-way dialogue since passing many places triggered various memories for longtime residents who took the tour. Johnston hopes that this event will result in another tour, visiting other areas of Farmingdale as well as some of the historical sites in Bethpage.