Flushing, New York in 1928?

[seosamh]

I am interested to find out what Flushing was like in the late 1920s.

Last week, I unearthed documents relating to my grandfather's brief flirtation with emigrating to America. He sailed on the RMS Cedric in 1928 from Queenstown and ended up living on Amity Street, Flushing (his job was 'compressed air worker', a far cry from the shepherd he'd been in Ireland).

The only Amity Street I could find in New York today is in Brooklyn Heights. It is lined with fine brownstones and looked far too fancy for a humble Irish immigrant.

Most of the street names in Flushing seem to have changed but I have managed to identify where my grandfather lived by comparing a modern map with one from 1873 (on geographicus.com). What was Amity Street in 1928 now appears to be Roosevelt Avenue, close to Flushing Main Street station on the LIRR.

Can anyone point me in the direction of a description of that area 80 years ago? Was it a terrible slum or did it have any redeeming features?

Thanks!