Malverne - The 'Mayberry' of Long Island

A few weeks ago there was a story in the news about a town called Mayberry.

When Howard and I were looking to move to the suburbs we were searching for a place that would still be close and commutable to the city. We scouted out towns along the Babylon line, but then one of Howard’s work-mates told him about a small village called Malverne that is only about 1 square mile and just north of Lynbrook. It had a small LIRR line (West Hempstead) that ran through the center of Malverne.

Howard’s internet searches pointed us to a nice house and even nicer real estate agent by the name of Patty Murphy. She was very diligent in finding out what our housing needs were and what type of home we were looking for. As you may know, the homes in Malverne vary, including practically every style on Long Island, and homes as old as 100 years. As we so proudly told my mom about our new venture, she informed us that my aunt Tillie Mayer lived on Bond Street.

As we house hunted, we started having lunch in and and checking out all of the other businesses on Hempstead Avenue. While Patty was telling us about the benefits of living in Malverne, like the easy commute to NYC and the short drive to the beaches, she also expressed that the village was a small haven unlike any other in Long Island. Well, let's just say she sold us.

I must say that the prior owner of our home must have thought that we were stalking her. As we would drive from our apartment in Brooklyn out to my mom’s house in Copiague, we would make a detour and pass by our soon to be home. Patty did everything she could to make the sale as easy as possible. She worked with the seller, got us a great lawyer (Tom Begino), who worked with his lovely wife to secure the paperwork.

At the closing Patty gave us two tickets for the Malverne Historical Society’s Holiday Gala. We told her that it was being held on a Friday night, we lived in Brooklyn and made all the excuses we could, but she made us promise that we would go.

So the night of the gala, we came out to Malverne and entered the historical society's decorated building and lit tent in the backyard. The place was packed, music was playing, food and drinks were being served and fun was being had by all. We looked at each other and felt it was a great start to what would turn out to be a very nice evening and a new beginning in Malverne.

One of the volunteers (Phil Ballin) who was selling tickets, came over and welcomed us. Once he heard we were the new couple who was moving into the village, he pulled over the president of the Historical Society (Michael Delahanty) and soon we were deep conversation about our past, etc. When he heard I worked in archives, Mike said that he would love to see me as part of the society and agreed we should meet and talk. (More on this later.)

The next night was the lighting of Malverne. We walked from our house to Hempstead Avenue ("Main Street") taking in the lights, music, merchants and residents out enjoying the festivities. I felt that I was in a Norman Rockwell Painting. Or better yet I was Jimmy Stewart in It’s a Wonderful Life. We walked down the main street that was blocked off to traffic and noticed it was  lined with fire barrels being overseen by the local firemen. I have to say that there and then, I confirmed our love for our new home. This was the true 'Mayberry' of Long Island.

Through Patty, the staff at village hall and more research we learned about Malverne's police department, fire and ambulance volunteers, merchants and other organizations. We met the  local mayor, deputy mayor and board of trustees, who govern the village. We got to know our neighbors and found out more information through them as well. Then, as we began taking the train, we met new commuting friends too.

I soon after joined the Historical Society, where I met more nice people who guided me to where I am today, serving as the president of the historical society, village historian, a civic association member and a very happy and engaged Malvernite. 

We have been in Malverne going on six years and we have found a great group of friends, wonderful places to eat and top-notch businesses to patronize. I continue to enjoy exploring the history of Malverne, which originated as a farming community, and bear witness to the stories that are shaping our future, especially the recent reopening of the farm first started by the Grossmann family in the 1920’s.

Now, I know that there are scars and skeletons also hidden within Malverne’s past, which we can explore in another blog post. Here, I just wanted to share how I came to know and love Malverne - my home and the real Mayberry of Long Island.