The Fosters intended to raise cattle and sheep on their newly settled land, the Hempstead Plains of Long Island.

This marked the first gradual cultural shift in Foster's Meadow with the establishment of a community of predominantly English Protestant farmers, and their families.

There was an influx of Roman Catholic and Ashkenazi Jewish farmers from Brooklyn and Middle Village to the west.

These ethnic groups were largely of German and Italian descent, practicing both Roman Catholicism and Judaism.

The Dominican Sisters were invited to teach in the Catholic School, and they built a convent on parish land donated to them.

The community underwent its next political reshuffling in 1882, being subdivided into districts with unique names and boundaries (including Alden Manor and Locustwood); it was at this time that Foster's Meadow was renamed Elmont.

In 1902, a syndicate headed by August Belmont Jr. and former Secretary of the Navy William C. Whitney sought land on Long Island to build the most elaborate racetrack in America, one modeled after the great race courses of Europe.

Originally known as Foster's Meadow, the 650 acres of land included Oaklands, a turreted Tudor-Gothic mansion owned by William de Forest Manice, which was to serve as the track's Turf and Field Club until 1956.

Housing developments, and businesses grew in the area surrounding the racetrack to meet the needs of these workers; this process of development to meet the workers' needs continued in successive waves, ultimately representing a shift in Elmont from rural farmland to suburbia.

Wilbur and Orville Wright staged an international aerial competition at Belmont Park that drew 150 000 spectators.

After the Second World War, Elmont hosted widespread development of attractive suburban tract homes.

Many of these homes were constructed with a brick-veneer ground story in variations of the Cape Cod style, particularly around Dutch Broadway.

[3] On December 19, 2017, various news reports surfaced, indicating that the state of New York had selected the Islanders' bid.

Closest airports include: The Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) provides race-day-only passenger service to Belmont Park from Jamaica and Penn Station.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 3.4 square miles (8.8 km2), all land.

[11] Elmont is on the Queens (NYC)/Nassau County border, earning it the name "The Gateway to Long Island.

The community has continued to see a rise in median income since the issuance of the 2010 census indicating a surge of affluence.

[17] Elmont has a humid subtropical climate (Cfa) and average monthly temperatures range from 32.3 °F in January to 75.3 °F in July.