In 1908 when John Lewis Childs helped Floral Park become an incorporated Village he had big dreams for the Village and his business. In his lifetime the area became famous for its production of seeds and bulbs, which were distributed worldwide. The sheer volume of seed sales coming from this area caused the Floral Park post office to grow to a size commensurate with the post office locations in Baltimore and Boston.
With the death of Childs in 1921 family took over the business and then during the great depression it all fell apart and so to died the dream. You see without John Lewis Childs as its guiding force the company would not continue, eventually all his holdings and property (over 200 acres) were sold.
John Lewis Childs had failed to create the empire he had hoped for...but in its place was left land for a wonderful community to be born. In the place of flower beds came families, schools, and parks.
In 2013 DawnMarie and I purchased a wonderful old home (that needed lots of work) in the Village of Floral Park. The community is wonderful, the people are welcoming, and I finally felt at home in the North East. We like John Lewis Childs also had great dreams for what this place would be. With plans for an extension and lots of work to be done things were progressing well, then I got sick.
It would be sad if it weren't for the fact that here in Floral Park I have three neighbors who have survived personal illnesses, a family who has more experience with grief then I will ever hopefully know, and a group of friends who have been incredibly welcoming and supportive of my wife.
Have you ever noticed that our dreams are just a blueprint, a work in progress. The fact is that we can't always see what the finished product will be but that doesn't mean we should ever stop dreaming because our dreams unfulfilled are often the stepping stones to something much greater then we could have ever imagined.
Keep Dreaming.
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| The Cover to one of his Seed Magazines |
With the death of Childs in 1921 family took over the business and then during the great depression it all fell apart and so to died the dream. You see without John Lewis Childs as its guiding force the company would not continue, eventually all his holdings and property (over 200 acres) were sold.
John Lewis Childs had failed to create the empire he had hoped for...but in its place was left land for a wonderful community to be born. In the place of flower beds came families, schools, and parks.
In 2013 DawnMarie and I purchased a wonderful old home (that needed lots of work) in the Village of Floral Park. The community is wonderful, the people are welcoming, and I finally felt at home in the North East. We like John Lewis Childs also had great dreams for what this place would be. With plans for an extension and lots of work to be done things were progressing well, then I got sick.
It would be sad if it weren't for the fact that here in Floral Park I have three neighbors who have survived personal illnesses, a family who has more experience with grief then I will ever hopefully know, and a group of friends who have been incredibly welcoming and supportive of my wife.
Have you ever noticed that our dreams are just a blueprint, a work in progress. The fact is that we can't always see what the finished product will be but that doesn't mean we should ever stop dreaming because our dreams unfulfilled are often the stepping stones to something much greater then we could have ever imagined.
Keep Dreaming.
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