I don't claim to be an Ed Lowe or Clement Moore, but I do like to reminisce and enjoy writing stories about the Massapequa's beginning from the 1930s. My two sisters and I grew up in a fairly large house that my father built in 1927 just a few blocks north of the Pequa railroad station. The house is still there; the barn, greenhouse and chicken coops are gone now to make room for three houses. My dad call the place "The One Oak Farm" because of a super tall oak tree that's no longer standing. I built a house for my wife and me next door to the homestead in 1955. So, I have never moved off my block with the exception of my time in the service. When I tell that to people, they can't believe it.

I still remember my aunt and uncle taking me to my first day of school. The school opened for the 1925-26 school year and only had six rooms but a few years later while I was still attending classes there a major expansion project got under way and more classrooms and other improvements made the school a little larger. In the early 1960s other work and even more classrooms were added. That school was known as the Massapequa School because it faced on Massapequa Avenue and now it's the Fairfield Elementary School. Our only library was The DeLancey Floyd-Jones Library alongside Merrick Road in Massapequa's Historic Complex. Fitzmauris Airport in the Park opened in 1929. The first Massapequa Park railroad station was dedicated in 1933, and the golf course on Merrick Road between Ocean and Division Avenues survived through the 1940s. The famous Frank Bucks Zoo opened in 1930 and closed in the mid '40s.

The Pequas were a very sleepy community. About the most notice you would hear was when a neighbor was getting a delivery of coal, a train whistle, or when the fire siren went off at noon time or for an emergency. And, when we were in school and a big airplane rumbled over the school the teacher would let us go to the window and watch.

Before the building boom started, there were farms on both sides of Hicksville Road all the way to Hempstead Turnpike. My grandfather's farm was near to where Waldbaum's supermarket now stands. As a youngster I spent a lot of time on that farm. I loved to watch my uncle milk the cow. I would feed the chickens, pick up the eggs and play with Billy, our faithful farm dog. In those days just about everyone had a few chickens, pigeons, or rabbits in their backyard. It was nice to hear roosters crowing in the morning. And, it wouldn't be uncommon to see a farm tractor pulling a hay wagon on Hicksville Road during the summer months.

Around 1950, it was decided that the railroad tracks had to be elevated. The grade elimination project didn't sit well with local businessmen and the Chamber of Commerce. The project called for the tracks on landfill rather than columns like the other South Shore communities. The Chamber argued that the blocked view of the business district from Sunrise Highway would hurt their sales. It was called the Chinese wall. But to no avail, work went on and the Victorian-style station built in 1890 was raised. Work to elevate the tracks in the park started in the 1970s.

From the Victory in Europe and Victory in Japan celebrations to the early 1950s, Massapequa's landscape changed drastically. The farms, woodlands and the large estates that dotted Merrick Road were taken over by housing developments. People moved here by the droves from New York City and from out of state. The population was increasing fast. There was a need for retail stores, shopping centers. The mall was being planned as were medical and professional buildings, several schools, taxi stands and bus service. Service clubs were also beginning to form.

Here we are in 2006, the Pequa's are a thriving mini metropolis with five fire houses, banks galore, automobile dealerships, lighted parks for night sporting events, an Olympic size swimming pool, an ice rink, satellite and cable television service, DVDs, and cell phones. We have our share of cell towers. But on the other hand we lost two lumber yards, three theaters, a drive-in movie, and Musicaro's, a favorite restaurant and watering hole in the Park.

According to published reports, the planning of the Offshore Wind Park to produce enough energy for 44,000 Long Island homes is sure to benefit the Pequa's down the line. It is projected by New York State that by 2021, natural gas demand will grow nearly 37 percent. Hundreds of Pequa homes are using gas for cooking and heat. Many residents have converted from oil to gas in recent years. Our energy needs are becoming our biggest nightmare - because our power plants are becoming outdated.

The Massapequa's have had its share of growth and I'm sure there is more to come. We just have to keep pace with the times as we have during the past 75 years.