Old Town, Staten Island

Old Town is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Staten Island, located on its East Shore. Old Town was established in August 1661 as part of New Netherland, and was the first permanent European settlement on Staten Island. Originally described as "Oude Dorpe" (old village in Dutch), much of its original territory makes up what is present-day South Beach, with parts of Midland Beach and Dongan Hills. The area was settled by a group of Dutch, Walloon (from what is now southern Belgium and its borders with France) and French Protestants (Huguenots) led by Walloon Pierre Billiou.Present-day Old Town is typically described as the neighborhood bordered by Grasmere to the north, Dongan Hills to the south, South Beach to the east, and Concord to the west. The neighborhood is served by the Old Town station of the Staten Island Railway. The neighborhood is also served by the S78 and S79 buses on Hylan Boulevard and the S74 and S76 buses on Richmond Road, and the X1, X2, X3, and X9 express buses.