What is "little neck"

Little \Lit"tle\ (l[i^]t"t'l), a. [The regular comparative and superlative of this word, littler and littlest, are often used as comparatives of the sense small; but in the sense few, less, or, rarely, lesser is the proper comparative and least is the superlative. See Lesser. The regular form, littlest, occurs also in some of the English provinces, and occasionally in colloquial language. `` Where love is great, the littlest doubts are fear.'' --Shak.] [OE. litel, lutel, AS. l[=y]tel, l[=i]tel, l[=y]t; akin to OS. littil, D. luttel, LG. l["u]tt, OHG. luzzil, MHG. l["u]tzel; and perh. to AS. lytig deceitful, lot deceit, Goth. liuts deceitful, lut[=o]n to deceive; cf. also Icel. l[=i]till little, Sw. liten, Dan. liden, lille, Goth. leitils, which appear to have a different root vowel.]

1. Small in size or extent; not big; diminutive; -- opposed to big or large; as, a little body; a little animal; a little piece of ground; a little hill; a little distance; a little child.

   He sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature.
   --Luke xix. 3.

2. Short in duration; brief; as, a little sleep.

   Best him enough: after a little time, I'll beat him too.
   --Shak.

3. Small in quantity or amount; not much; as, a little food; a little air or water.

   Conceited of their little wisdoms, and doting upon their own fancies.
   --Barrow.

4. Small in dignity, power, or importance; not great; insignificant; contemptible.

   When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes?
   --I Sam. xv. 17.

5. Small in force or efficiency; not strong; weak; slight; inconsiderable; as, little attention or exertion;little effort; little care or diligence.

   By sad experiment I know How little weight my words with thee can find.
   --Milton.

6. Small in extent of views or sympathies; narrow; shallow; contracted; mean; illiberal; ungenerous.

   The long-necked geese of the world that are ever hissing dispraise, Because their natures are little.
   --Tennyson.

   Little chief. (Zo["o]l.) See Chief hare.

   Little Englander, an Englishman opposed to territorial expansion of the British Empire. See Antiimperialism, above. Hence:

   Little Englandism.

   Little finger, the fourth and smallest finger of the hand.

   Little go (Eng. Universities), a public examination about the middle of the course, which is less strict and important than the final one; -- called also smalls. Cf. Great go, under Great.
   --Thackeray.

   Little hours (R. C. Ch.), the offices of prime, tierce, sext, and nones. Vespers and compline are sometimes included.

   Little-neck clam, or Little neck (Zo["o]l.), the quahog, or round clam.

   Little ones, young children.

   The men, and the women, and the little ones.
   --Deut. ii. 34.

   Little peach, a disease of peaches in which the fruit is much dwarfed, and the leaves grow small and thin. The cause is not known.

   Little Rhod"y, Rhode Island; -- a nickname alluding to its small size. It is the smallest State of the United States.

   Little Sisters of the Poor (R. C. Ch.), an order of women who care for old men and women and infirm poor, for whom special houses are built. It was established at St. Servan, Britany, France, in 1840, by the Abb['e] Le Pailleur.

   Little slam (Bridge Whist), the winning of 12 out of the 13 tricks. It counts 20 points on the honor score. Contrasted with grand slam.

Little Neck is a station in the Little Neck section of Queens, the last station on the branch in New York City on the Port Washington Branch of the Long Island Rail Road. The station is at Little Neck Parkway and 39th Road, about half a mile (800 m) north of Northern Boulevard, and is 14.5 miles (23.3 km) from Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan. The station house is unusual for this line in standing on the south (eastbound) side. The station is part of the CityTicket program and is in Zone 3. The Little Neck train station has been colloquially referred to as "Raccoon Junction" by locals and raccoon aficionados since the early 1930s.

Little Neck Parkway at the west end of the station crosses the line at the only at-grade railroad crossing on the Port Washington Branch, and one of the few remaining in New York City. It is also the only "quiet" grade crossing in the LIRR system. Trains do not need to blow their horns here, because trains are coming to a complete stop here, and Little Neck Parkway is not a high-traffic road. It is regarded as the most dangerous crossing in the city, as the other crossings carry few trains, usually only freight trains late in the night (such as on the Montauk Branch and Bushwick Branch west of Jamaica station, where the line is non-electrified).

A pedestrian overpass at mid-platform links the eastbound and westbound platforms. The original station house was built in February–May 1870 by the Flushing and North Side Railroad, and is one of only two built by the F&NS along the Port Washington Branch. The depot was built between February and May, 1870, on the south side of the tracks and east of Little Neck Parkway. The station building was erected by Benjamin Wooley, and was 16 by 26 feet, two stories high, with a high platform in front, and 75 feet long. The station cost $1,500. The station opened in July 1870 as Little Neck, superseding earlier Little Neck station, which reverted to the name of Douglaston. It was replaced by the Long Island City and Flushing Railroad in 1890 with a second station house. The former F&NS depot is now located on a local street off Northern Boulevard.