Half of Gordon Heights’ homes were built after 1990
Most of Gordon Heights was built recently: 0.6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1990. Below: maps from 1904 on and the census since 2000.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Gordon Heights. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1904Moriches sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Gordon Heights.
Gordon Heights had its beginnings in the early 1920s, when developer Louis Fife went to Black neighborhoods in New York City (Harlem, Brooklyn, and The Bronx) with the offer of land and a better life on Long Island. Land was offered as low as $10 down and $10 monthly or $10 weekly.
Promoted as a place that would be a solid, close-knit community of small farms, the pilgrimage to Long Island began in 1927. Gordon Heights was named after "Pop" Gordon, a man who had previously owned most of the land that became part of the new community.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
