The Queens 100 is made up of the people, places, things, events and history that are the very heart and soul of this borough. Each is a vital part to making us who we are, to charting our place in the world and to creating our future.

From the birthplace of religious freedom to the bands of steel that swirl over the park to the tower that looms high with backgrounds of city vistas, pieces of the Queens 100 surround us.

The 100 is the taste of curry in Jackson Heights, the feeling of awe at the Hall of Science, the smell of asphalt on the LIE, the awkward pride felt by Mets fans, the audacity of Donald Trump.

We may not all agree on what belongs in the 100 and what is merely a great thing about Queens – the two don’t always overlap. Read on and let us show you our selections. See if they match yours, if they remind you of something you forgot, if they expose you to something you never knew.

Every item that was in this book does one of three things. First, it may have a sentimental meaning to a person who grew up here or came to call Queens home later in life. For some items, they may be the first things that come to mind when somebody says the word “Queens.”

The third possibility is that when the item is mentioned, what comes to mind is the likeness of Queens – not the people, the places or the history in particular, but it is more of a general feeling of Queens, as if upon hearing the word an image of the borough as a whole pops into your head.

Whatever the reason, however deep the relationship runs, every item in this book helps define what Queens is – helps put this borough on the map, holding itself up to the public, exposing itself for all its glory, splendor and wonder.