Grand Avenue got its name because the grand wizard of the Klu Klux Klan lived on that street.
FALSE
In 1992, Newsday published a quote from a Freeport clergyman who said "...the Klan was very active in Nassau and Suffolk, and Grand Avenue in Freeport got its name because the Klan's grand wizard for Long Island lived on that street..." This quote is incorrect. Though, the headquarters of the KKK was located on Grand Avenue, the name of the street can be found on maps that pre-date both the incorporation of Freeport and the birth of the Klan on Long Island. A 1928 map of Freeport shows clubhouse for the "Friendly Sons of America" (another name for KKK) located at 211 Grand Avenue.
Sources:
Tayler, Letta. "Freeport Mayor Faulted On KKK Clerics Urge Him to Take More Action" Newsday 8 Jun 1994: A25.
Zimmerman, Charles. "Part II from the Archives: KKK Had Fearful History" The Leader 16 June 1994: 1.
