General Hart Playground

NYC Parks acquired the site in 1954 as part of Brooklyn-Queens Expressway construction and opened it in 1956, adding new play equipment and benches in 1996. The City Council named the park in 1964 for Brigadier General Joseph T. Hart (1902-1962), whom NYC Parks describes as a resident of Elmhurst. Hart joined the National Guard in 1920 and enlisted in the 69th Regiment, which later became the 165th Infantry; he was named brigadier general in 1940, served in the South Pacific in the battles of Makin and Saipan, and commanded the unit at the Battle of Okinawa in April 1945. He was awarded the Silver Star with a Cluster, the Purple Heart, the American Defense Force Medal and the New York State Conspicuous Service Medal.