originally a rural community lying west of prospect street between the post road and the railroad, it is believed that chickahominy was given its name by civil war veterans who served near the chickahominy river in virginia. in the early twentieth century, chickahominy began to develop into a residential neighborhood, as italian immigrants settled in the area. the neighborhood became home to a blend of various immigrants and greenwich natives. the area has remained a closely-knit community enjoying their ethnic traditions, st. roch's church and hamilton avenue school.