Pergolas in West Hempstead, NY, NassauCounty

West Hempstead first appeared on maps as the name of a Long Island Railroad station in 1893. There are three railroad stations within its borders: West Hempstead, Hempstead Gardens, and Lakeview. The line continues to Valley Stream where it joins the Babylon Branch. Halls Pond Park, the main park within West Hempstead, was dedicated by Nassau County in 1961. The smaller Echo Park contains a public indoor pool. Its name is derived from the community’s first four little league teams: Eagles, Cardinals, Hawks, and Orioles. In 1956, the West Hempstead Public Library was founded and chartered by the State in 1967. Its present 28,000 square-foot facility was completed in 2007.

In 2001, residents of West Hempstead held a nonbinding referendum on renaming the community. The vote followed a two-year effort by the West Hempstead Civic Association and the West Hempstead Chamber of Commerce to give the community a unique name, distancing itself from the neighboring crime ridden Hempstead. By a 94-vote margin, West Hempstead retained its name over the proposed Mayfair Gardens.

West Hempstead is easily accessed from the Southern State Parkway at Exit 17N.