Historic Photos of Long Island" showcases East End history"

Photos of Long Island from years past are the subject of “Historic Photos of Long Island,” a recently-released book from Turner Publishing.

The book, published this year, includes nearly 200 images from the Library of Congress, New York State Archives, the Brooklyn Historical Society and Freeport Memorial Library. It spans a century of Long Island history, with photos from as early as 1865, and covers areas from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, out to Montauk Point.

“Historic Photos of Long Island” is organized chronologically, and broken down into three chapters: “Hard Work and Railroads (1865-1899),” “Autos and Airplanes (1900-1939)” and “World War II and Postwar Prosperity (1940s-1960s).” Each chapter includes a historical summary of the era, and each photograph is accompanied by a descriptive and detailed caption, often providing further historical context.

But in a telephone interview last week, author Joe Czachowski—who is also an historian, as well as a university professor—said “Historic Photos of Long Island” is less a historical account than it is an entertaining collection of images.

“Turner likes pictures that are going to catch people’s eyes,” he said. “One picture is really worth a thousand words.”

“Even when I teach,” he added, “I try and use film clips and photos.”

“I tell my students, ‘You’d rather look at a picture than listen to me talk all day,’” he said with a laugh.

The book is Mr. Czachowski’s third for Turner Publishing, and one of hundreds in the company’s “Historic Photos” series, which has featured towns, cities and states across the USA. Mr. Czachowski’s previous works focused on the Jersey Shore and Hoboken, New Jersey.

A lifelong New Jersey resident, Mr. Czachowski said he had little knowledge of Long Island before beginning the project. He went on to say that after months of sorting through hundreds of photographs and interviewing individuals in local government, churches and historical societies, he found a greater appreciation for the area.

“It was a good, tight knit community,” he said of Long Island. “People really cared about their communities, and they cared about going out and getting things done.”