Jackson Heights Life

That shopping center is known, on google maps at least, as the Jackson Heights Shopping Center. There's also a store there called Jackson Heights Cards & Gifts. My friend who grew up right near there says they called it Jackson Heights.
I suppose my point is there are no official boundaries!

Just out of curiosity, I just contacted Google maps to ask why they are not going by the zip code designation of the areas when they put "Jackson Heights" in the entire area out to LGA.  11369 and 11370 are both East Elmhurst, and they start at Northern Blvd, but this is not reflected in Google maps.

Another weird thing is that according to Google maps (depending on how you search) you could be in both East Elmhurst and Jackson Heights at the same time.  For instance, if you're standing on the corner of 30th Ave and 77th St. or 25th Ave and 80th St., in one view you would be in Jackson Heights and in another, you'd find yourself in East Elmhurst.  I think that is really confusing, regardless of your opinion of where the neighborhood boundaries are.

The boundaries are clearly defined, but the name Jackson Heights sounds the best.

I'm not sure why naming matters. Jackson Heights would only benefit of getting rid of the physical and imaginary boundaries of Northern Blvd.

In the grand scheme of things, it probably doesn't matter that much.  I happen to like when things like maps are accurate, and it bugs me that the maps are inaccurate and also contradictory.

I think Jackson Heights has narrowed itself down to the historic district. That is what all the real estate is about, at least. Roosevelt and down to 73rd get added for flavor, but it's a very narrow border when it comes to class, status, opportunity and the like.

From a Department of City Planning report, circa 2006-
East Elmhurst in north-central Queens is bounded to the north by LaGuardia Airport, to the east by Flushing Bay, to the south by Northern Boulevard, and to the west by 85th Street. Prior to World War I, North Beach, as it was called then, was “Queens County’s Coney Island” on Long Island Sound, with picnic grounds, dance halls, and amusement park rides. The area was developed in 1905 as a neighborhood of frame houses on small lots; those on the bluff overlooking the Bowery Bay had private beaches. Prior to 1937 the area was wholly residential, but transportation and utility uses, including the Bowery Bay Water Pollution Control Plant, transformed the shoreline before and after WW II.

Strictly speaking Jackson Heights as developed by Edward A. MacDougall and the Queensboro Corporation ends at Northern Blvd. Even the topography is all down hill from there to La Guardia. Actually the highest elevation of JH is around 35th Avenue between 79th St. and 80th St.

The area north of Northern Blvd. for the most part was not developed until the 50's and 60's. When the JH Shopping Center was erected that area was already in an identity crisis. Perhaps some saw it as an extension of the original JH? We could call it Chicago if we wanted to but that doesn't make it so. Today that area is called East Elmhurst which doesn't seem to make much sense either. The Post Office in the shopping center calls itself Trainsmeadow. That's likely after the old road which once ran through the area and also related to the general area around it.  I never hear anyone over there calling the place Trainsmeadow. And I think they even know East Elmhurst is sort of odd.

Prior to the incorporation of Queens County into NYC this part of Queens was the City of Newtown. Newtown's borders were roughly Bowery Bay to the north, Brooklyn to the south, where the BQE now is to the west, and Flushing Meadow to the east. Within Newtown's borders was a section called Charlotteville which roughly corresponds to today's East Elmhurst.

Maybe those north of Northern Blvd. aught to look into their own history. Sorry, but they are not JH.

http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e2-49ff-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99