On 6/1/05 (3:01:09 PM MDT), in a posting to NYBROOKLYN-L@rootsweb.com, Karen Pritchett (kpritchett@mkp-law.com) asked, "I have obtained several birth, marriage & death certs from the Municipal Archives (with fabulous service, I might add). Now I have a death date for Joseph Frederick Winkler who died June 13, 1931 in Farmingdale, Long Island, NY. My problem is, when I order the certificate, they want to know which borough to search. They offer Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens (also Staten Island, but not this particular year). Which borough should I specify for this place of death at this time?" Farmingdale is a village (municipal corporation) in the Town of Oyster Bay, Nassau County. BUT, as the "Farmingdale, NY 11735" postal zone serves an area larger than the Village of Farmingdale in both the Town of Oyster Bay, Nassau County and the Town of Babylon, Suffolk County, then depending on in which municipality the death took place, you would want to contact either the Village Clerk for the Village of Farmingdale, the Town Clerk for the Town of Oyster Bay or the Town Clerk for the Town of Babylon: Village Clerk Village of Farmingdale 361 Main Street Farmingdale, NY 11735 Tel: 516/249-0093 Fax: 616/????-???? eMail: ??????? http://www.farmingdalevillage.org/officials.html Office of the Town Clerk Town of Oyster Bay Oyster Bay Town Hall 54 Audrey Avenue Oyster Bay, NY 11771 Tel: 516/624-6332 Fax: 516/???-???? eMail: ????? http://www.oysterbaytown.com/ Office of the Town Clerk Town of Babylon Babylon Town Hall 200 East Sunrise Highway Lindenhurst, NY 11757 Tel: 631/957-3000 Fax: 631/957-7440 eMail: ????? http://www.townofbabylon.com/contact/index.cfm While the Village of Farmingdale is in the Town of Oyster Bay, Nassau County, the majority of places that have a "Farmingdale, NY" mailing address are in the Hamlet of East Farmingdale, Town of Babylon, Suffolk County because the "Farmingdale, NY" postal zone is a bi-county postal zone. The pertinent geography: Farmingdale is a village (incorporated in 1904) in the southeast part of the Town of Oyster Bay, in the east part of Nassau County (along the Oyster Bay/Babylon town line and the Nassau/Suffolk County line ). There are 18 hamlets (unincorporated areas) and 18 villages (municipal corporations) all or partly within the Town of Oyster Bay. 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 Farmingdale in the Town of Oyster Bay is bordered on the north by the Hamlet of Old Bethpage; on the east by the Hamlet of East Farmingdale, Town of Babylon, Suffolk County (the Oyster Bay/Babylon Town line and the Nassau/Suffolk County line); on the south by the Hamlet of South Farmingdale; and, on the west by the Hamlets of Plainedge and Bethpage. And, as occurs in all but one of Nassau County's 136 communities (2 cities, 64 villages and 70 hamlets), the Village of Farmingdale has a different border than does the "Farmingdale, NY 11735" postal zone (actually, the majority of places with a Farmingdale mailing address are NOT in Farmingdale). ................................................acres ......Village of Farmingdale...........696 ......Farmingdale, NY 11735......2,708* * This is the portion in Nassau County only; the majority of the area of the "Farmingdale, NY 11735" postal zone is in the Town of Babylon, Suffolk County. In addition to the Farmingdale addresses in the Town of Babylon, Suffolk County, about 3 of every 4 Farmingdale addresses in Nassau County are also not in the Village of Farmingdale (these paces with a Farmingdale address that are not in the Village of Farmingdale are in the Hamlet of South Farmingdale and the Hamlet of Plainedge). For those who have their copy of the 2004 or earlier editions 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 Farmingdale (incorporated in 1904) in the Town of Oyster Bay, Nassau County on pages 5 & 11 (map) and 12 (population estimate). I hope this information is useful or, at least, interesting. Regards, Walter Greenspan 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 place shave a different community name in their mailing address than the community where that place is actually located.