On 8/17/05 (7:18:53 AM MDT), as part of a posting to NY-LONGISLAND-L@rootsweb.com, Maggie (Maggie.Spetnagel@gwl.com) asked, "I have a William J. O'Connor born September 1875 who died between 1935-1945 while living at 152 Park Avenue in Rockville Centre. Are there any death indexes for Nassau County for that period? Where might I look for an obit index for that period? This man raised my grandfather after my great grandparents both died. I know he is a relative, but don't know how. Of course everyone who might know is now dead. Why do we come to genealogy so late in life?!? I would appreciate any help." For questions such as yours, you may want to contact the Rockville Centre Public Library (the library can suggest which local newspaper might have this information and other possible sources of information): Rockville Centre Public Library 221 North Village Avenue Rockville Centre, NY 11570 Tel: 516/766-6257 Fax: 516/???-???? eMail: rvc@nassaulibrary.org http://www.nassaulibrary.org/rvc/ Village Clerk Village of Rockville Centre 1 College Place Rockville Centre, NY 11570 Tel: 516/678-9300 Fax: 516/???-???? To eMail the Village Clerk: http://www.ci.rockville-centre.ny.us/emaildir.html http://www.ci.rockville-centre.ny.us/ The pertinent geography: Rockville Centre is a village (incorporated in 1893) in the center of the Town of Hempstead, in the southwest part of Nassau County. There are 22 villages (municipal corporations) and 36 hamlets (unincorporated areas) all or partly within the Town of Hempstead. There are 2 cities and 3 towns in Nassau County. (I'm including after my name a NYS Geographic Glossary with the NYS definitions of county, city, town, village, hamlet and postal zone.) Beginning on its northern border and proceeding clockwise, the Village of Rockville Centre in the Town of Hempstead is bordered on the north by the Hamlets of Lakeview and South Hempstead; on the east by the Hamlets of South Hempstead and Baldwin; on the south by the Hamlet of Oceanside; and, on the west by the Villages of East Rockaway and Lynbrook and the Hamlet of Lakeview. And, as occurs in all but one of Nassau County's 136 communities (2 cities, 64 villages and 70 hamlets), the Village of Rockville Centre has a different border than does the "Rockville Centre, NY 11570" postal zone (i.e., a place can have a Rockville Centre mailing address and not be in Rockville Centre). ................................................acres ...Village of Rockville Centre........2,196 ...Rockville Centre, NY 11570......2,529 Thus, about one of every 7 places that have a Rockville Centre mailing address are not in the Village of Rockville Centre. (Most of these places that have a Rockville Centre mailing address but are not in the Village of Rockville Centre are in the Village of Lynbrook.) For those who have their copy of the 2004 or earlier edition of the LI Population Survey or have already downloaded the report from the Long Island Power Authority web site (eMail me directly if you need instructions on how to access and download the report), you'll find the Village of Rockville Centre (incorporated in 1893) in the Town of Hempstead, Nassau County on pages 5 & 8 (map) and 9 (population estimate). I hope this information is useful or, at least, interesting. L'Shannah Tovah* & Happy 5766, Walter Greenspan * L'Shannah Tovah (li-SHAH-nuh TOH-vuh; li-shah-NAH toh-VAH) Hebrew. Lit. for a good year. The common greeting during Rosh ha Shannah and the Days of Awe. This is a shortening of "L'Shannah tovah tikatev v'taihatem" (or, to women, "L'Shannah tovah tikatevi v'taihatemi"), which means, "May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year." This year, Rosh ha Shannah begins at sunset on Monday, October 3 on the civil calendar. . Cities, Towns, Villages, Hamlets and Postal Zones in New York State New York State is divided into counties. County A county is a municipal corporation, a subdivision of the state, created to perform state functions; a "regional" government. All counties are divided into cities, towns and Indian reservations. City A city is a unique governmental entity with its own special charter. Cities are not sub-divided, except into neighborhoods, which are informal geographic areas. Town A town is a municipal corporation and encompasses all territory within the state except that within cities or Indian reservations. Towns can be sub-divided into villages and hamlets. Village A village is a general purpose municipal corporation formed voluntarily by the residents of an area in one or more towns to provide themselves with municipal services. The pattern of village organization is similar to those of a city. A village is divided into neighborhoods, which are informal geographic areas. Hamlet A hamlet is an unincorporated area in one or more towns that is governed at-large by the town(s) it is in. A hamlet is divided into neighborhoods, which are informal geographic areas. Postal Zone "City" and "Town" A postal zone "City" and "Town" is an administrative district established by the U.S. Postal Service to deliver the mail. Postal zone "City" and "Town" may not (but are encouraged to) conform to municipal or community borders. Thus, postal zone location does not always determine city, village or hamlet location. Please be aware: In many areas of New York State, the problem of non-conforming postal zones leads to a situation where the majority of places have a different community name in their mailing address than the community where that place is actually located.