The Richmond

116-23 Jamaica Avenue
1910

Jamaica Avenue is considered the oldest continually used road on Long Island, originally opened in 1703 as the King’s Highway and later privatized under the Jamaica & Brooklyn Plank Road Company. In the early 20th century, around the same time as the blocks north were filling with stately houses, the avenue began its transformation into an important local commercial corridor (eventually given a huge boost with the arrival of the elevated train in 1917). One of the largest and most ornate commercial structures in the neighborhood, the Richmond was also the first poured-concrete structure on Jamaica Avenue. Its solid Renaissance-inspired design includes a modillioned cornice broken by two arched parapets, one of which is inscribed with the building’s name and date of construction.

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