Gladys Sandman and Lucille daCosta

Sisters Gladys Sandman and Lucille daCosta, née Salvia, share girlhood memories of growing up on Coney Island's West 5th Street in the 1950s and the beginning of the '60s. Their grandparents were homeowners on West 5th and their mother and father grew up here and were childhood friends. The sisters describe the house they grew up in, at 2769 West 5th Street, which along with their neighbors' homes, was demolished to make way for Warbasse Houses. The Salvia family was forced to relocate and moved to Bensonhurst in 1961, cutting short their long history in Coney Island. The sisters' grandfather Mike Salvia was the longtime owner of Mique's Bar & Grill at 442 Neptune Avenue and "a big man on the block." Their great grandfather Joe Salvia operated a newsstand on Stillwell Avenue for nearly six decades starting in 1894.

Gladys Sandman wrote a song, "Coney Island by the Sea," which she sings with her sister Lucille daCosta in this video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcBhZQRippk