Rug Cleaning Old Westbury Long Island NY

It Was First Settled in the 1600s
Old Westbury traces its earliest settlement to 1658, when the area was known as Woodedge because it marked the transition from the flat Hempstead Plains to the rolling woodland farther north. A few years later, early Quaker settlers renamed the area Westbury after Westbury in Wiltshire, England. That deep colonial-era background gives Old Westbury one of the older local histories in Nassau County.

The Village Was Incorporated in 1924
Old Westbury became an incorporated village in 1924, giving it a more formal civic identity than many neighboring hamlets. That incorporation helped distinguish it from nearby Westbury and reflected the area’s growing identity as a separate residential community. The village still carries that distinct incorporated status today.

It Spans Two Nassau County Towns
One of the more unusual things about Old Westbury is that the village extends across both the Town of North Hempstead and the Town of Oyster Bay. That gives it a broader geographic footprint than many Long Island villages, which usually sit within a single town. The arrangement adds to Old Westbury’s distinctive municipal identity.

Old Westbury Gardens Is One of Its Best-Known Landmarks
Old Westbury is widely associated with Old Westbury Gardens, the former home of John S. Phipps and his family. The estate includes Westbury House and 200 acres of formal gardens, woodlands, ponds, and landscaped grounds. That landmark gives the village one of the most recognizable historic and horticultural destinations on Long Island.

Westbury House Dates Back to 1906
Westbury House, the centerpiece of Old Westbury Gardens, was completed in 1906 and designed by English designer George A. Crawley. Its Charles II-style architecture and estate setting reflect the grandeur of Long Island’s early twentieth-century country-house era. That architectural legacy is a major reason Old Westbury is so strongly tied to Gold Coast history.

The Village Has Strong Gold Coast Connections
Old Westbury is closely linked to Long Island’s Gold Coast legacy, when wealthy families established large country estates across northern Nassau County. The area became associated with prominent names such as the Phipps, Whitney, and Vanderbilt families. That history still shapes the village’s image as one of Long Island’s most storied residential communities.

SUNY Old Westbury Adds an Educational Dimension to the Area
Old Westbury is also known for SUNY Old Westbury, a university whose history began in 1965 and whose educational program launched in 1968. The institution grew from experimental beginnings into a regional university with a long-standing emphasis on access, diversity, and educational innovation. That gives Old Westbury a notable academic presence alongside its estate history.

The University’s Present Campus Opened in the Early 1970s
SUNY Old Westbury launched at Planting Fields in 1968 and later moved to its present Nassau County site in 1971. That move helped establish the campus as a lasting part of the Old Westbury area. The result is a village identity shaped not only by historic estates, but also by higher education and public institutional life.

It Is a Compact Village with a Recognizable Presence
Old Westbury has about 8.6 square miles of land, giving it a fairly compact footprint compared with many broader suburban areas. Even within that size, it has a strong and recognizable identity tied to its village government, estates, and institutions. That combination helps Old Westbury feel both contained and prominent.

Old Westbury Blends Estate History, Village Identity, and Cultural Presence
What makes Old Westbury stand out is the way it combines colonial roots, incorporated village status, Gold Coast history, Old Westbury Gardens, and a major SUNY campus in one place. It is not simply another Nassau residential community and not just a village known for wealth or scenery alone. That blend gives Old Westbury a character that feels historic, refined, and distinctly Long Island.