Home History

Book Review: ‘Captain Sedition — The Death of the Age of Reason’

by Jeffrey Sanzel - May 6, 2021

0 505

Reviewed by Jeffrey Sanzel

K.C. Fusaro offers a compelling work of historical fiction with Captain Sedition: The Death of the Age of Reason. It opens in England, 1774. Joethan Wolfe barely survives a duel due to the duplicity of the woman who caused it. While he recovers, the narrative reveals Wolfe as an American ex-pat, working as a courier throughout Europe. Fourteen years earlier, his father had exiled him to England, resulting in their complete estrangement. Wolfe is a for-hire, with no particular scruples, a lothario, a charmer, and a bit of a profligate. Now, he lives in a house with none other than Benjamin Franklin — referred to with sly affection as “The Doctor.”

Fusaro establishes his approach in the portrait of Franklin, one of the most famous and beloved Americans. He removes Franklin’s halo: “Benjamin Franklin was concurrently the most selfish and the most generous man Wolfe had ever known.” Franklin is miserly with lighting candles due to his difficult upbringing and a candlemaker father. Franklin is calculating, with a fondness for living that is contagious, but he is also Machiavellian. He is present only in the earliest chapters but the portrait establishes Fusaro’s adeptness with even minor characters’ backgrounds and motivations, heralding the rich, engaging tapestry that follows.

When Wolfe learns of his father’s arrest, he spends his last eight year’s earnings acquiring a royal pardon. He sets off on a harrowing trip from Portsmouth to Nova Scotia to the colonies. He intends to deliver various missives to the Tory government in the states. Included is an important document to be placed directly into Governor-General Thomas Gage’s hands, the highest-ranking British official in North America. But Wolfe’s real motive is to seek out and aid his parent.

Wolfe is an interesting case. As an American abroad, he has found his sympathies lie with the British. But he is truly a man without a country. His ambivalence is unusual in this genre, which usually leans towards the rebels. His objectivity makes him a reliable and intriguing narrator; each interaction embroils him in a country amid monumental and violent change.

The adventure takes Wolfe from Canada to Boston and then onto Connecticut and Long Island. As he searches for his father, he encounters the best and the worst of both sides. Wolfe’s goal is to stay neutral. However, by saving a man on the road, he lands in the two-sided conflict. While Wolfe makes choices based on his better instincts, the result is that every action becomes political.

One of the most powerful takeaways is the reminder that the Revolutionary War was the first Civil War. Though perceived as the British versus the Americans, the truth is that it encompassed neighbor against neighbor, citizen against citizen. Many had fought side-by-side with the Redcoats against the French. But in 1775, these allegiances are history. This constant state of unrest manifests in both ferocious loyalty and questionable actions.

The British Government doesn’t respect the Americans: “‘They conceive to govern these colonies from across the ocean with no say from we who actually live here. They could not show us more contempt did they spit on us.” Wolfe accepts the reality that “in his experience, all Englishmen viewed Americans as lesser creatures and the British aristocracy’s disdain for Americans was the worst. By their lights, disturbances in far-flung colonies were to be expected and dealt with, quickly and decisively. The better sort of Britons had no more tolerance for rebellious slaves in the Indies.”

Also revealed is the eagerness to fight. “‘You can’t wait for the fighting to start, can you?’ Wolfe said. Tim did him the honor of not pretending otherwise. He backed his ardor with a concise argument based on the English Constitution and especially the Massachusetts Colony Charter, but in the end, Tim wanted to fight.” The world of 1775 is dangerous and roiling, a powder keg in every sense.

The shadow of slavery pervades. Wolfe regards the ability to own slaves and yet fight for one’s own freedom as a gross stroke of hypocrisy. Says one militia commander, “‘… the people are entitled to life, liberty, and the means of sustenance by the Grace of God and without leave of the King.’ In Wolfe’s estimation, the appearance of a slave immediately after rendered the words hollow.”

The book is peopled with an extraordinary cast of characters, expertly blending the historical with the fictional: All seem real, fallible, and wholly dimensional, enforcing Fusaro’s premise that no side is completely right or wrong. Wolfe plays Devil’s Advocate with “‘… how long can Government suppress a population on the other side of the ocean against its will?’” followed by “‘We live in an age of reason. To not consider both sides would be unreasonable.’”

Fusaro’s research is extraordinary. His knowledge of everything from clothing to customs, from mercantile to mercenaries, is exceptional. Whether describing a ragamuffin tailing Wolfe, a difficult voyage, or a simple meal, he paints vivid and detailed pictures. He breathes life into the story with details that elevate the narrative. He has also found a syntax in language that honors the period but avoids sounding stilted or contrived. He also calls attention to the complicated religious landscape and the intolerance it bred within the communities.

The book’s climax is April 19, 1775: The Battle of Lexington and Concord. He unflinchingly describes the carnage —“the raw savagery.” It is in this clash that Wolfe must choose sides —“to declare.” It is a hard lesson for Wolfe, but he has reached the point of no return. He is torn but accepts the reality.

It is a powerful ending to the first volume of a proposed three-book series. One year from the beginning of Wolfe’s journey, he has returned to his place of birth, witnessed and experienced the change in his homeland, and accepted his fate. We, like Wolfe, will await what comes next.

————————————————-

Author K.C. Fusaro grew up in Setauket, and after many years away, recently returned to take up residence in Rocky Point. Best known for plying the rock and roll trade with the band Body Politics, along the way to writing fiction there were excursions into film, theater and television, both in front of the camera and behind the scenes.

Pick up a copy of Captain Sedition at Book Revue in Huntington, barnesandnoble.com or amazon.com.

History: A look at America’s favorite pastime throughout the years

by Rich Acritelli - May 3, 2021

0 2677

During this month, the sounds of “play ball” have been heard from every baseball stadium in the United States and Canada.

The smell of hot dogs, popcorn, peanuts and the sound of the bat hitting the ball has been for many American baseball fans. Although COVID-19 has been a complete disruption to the American way of life, there have been many troubling military, economic, social and political experiences throughout history.

The one constant for the source of morale and goodwill has always been the playing of our National Pastime to help Americans cope.

This occurred after the election of President Abraham Lincoln in 1860, as the United States embarked on the ferocity of the Civil War. As the northern and southern states fought against each other in a conflict that lost almost one million men from both sides, baseball was a pivotal role in establishing morale.

In some military camps, the baseball rules varied, as it was common for large groups of soldiers and local citizens to watch different military units play against each other, before they went into battle. There was the unique situation of Union prisoners of war that were permitted by the Confederate authorities to play baseball during their confinement.

Within Union bases, the doctors felt that this sport kept the men in good shape, spirits and out of trouble when they were not fighting. While both regions were engaged in one vicious battle after another, baseball was played by the two sides in the winter and spring months. It allowed the men to handle the issues of boredom, as it took their minds off battles like Shiloh, Antietam, Gettysburg, Vicksburg and Cold Harbor.

It was believed that baseball evolved into one of the most popular sports of this time, surpassing, boxing, wrestling, football, running races and cricket.

Before some of these men were in the military, they enjoyed watching the earliest aspects of this game in Brooklyn, Manhattan, Philadelphia and Boston. Military officers from this war did not have to look too far to see who helped create this game. It was believed that Major General Abner Doubleday, a graduate from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1842, was one of the earliest pioneers of this game.

He fought at Fort Sumter, Second Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville and Gettysburg. This resident from Cooperstown, NY is buried in Arlington, and he still is tied to baseball at West Point as their field is named after Double Day.

Another national event that tested the will of Americans was the Great Depression. With our citizens barely holding onto their homes and not having enough food to feed their families, baseball almost faltered during this economic crisis.

It was a miracle that baseball was not a financial casualty, as it was estimated that from 1930 to 1931, this sport lost 70% of ticket sales, where prices were not quickly reduced by owners. As President Franklin D. Roosevelt stated, “the only thing that we have to fear, is fear itself.”

Many Americans openly wondered if baseball teams would have enough money to operate at a moment when a quarter of the population was unemployed. Between the depression and World War II, it took almost two decades for admission into baseball games to recover. Only the Detroit Tigers reached more than a million fans in a single season during this era.

As the Dow Jones Industrial Average bottomed out and the depression became felt around the world, baseball barely survived this economic catastrophe. And through these desperate times, Jimmy Foxx, Dizzy Dean, Lefty Grove and Lou Gehrig, all performed at high levels, in front of fans that needed an emotional boost.

But players like a younger Yogi Berra, had to tell his manager to buy him lunch or dinner before the games. Most of the players money was spent on rent and there were times that his minor league manager bought Berra hamburgers, so he did not play on an empty stomach. Ever the favorite, local fans made Berra Italian Hero’s, that kept him strong enough to stay in the line-up.

On Sept. 1, 1939, World War II began, the depression came to an end and General George C. Marshall — the “Great Architect of Victory” — was promoted to be the Army Chief of Staff. And on this busy day, the Detroit Tigers defeated the Red Sox’s 14-10 within a high scoring game. This was the start of a volatile six years that saw Americans oppose the totalitarian powers of Nazi Germany and the Japanese Empire.

Directly after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was asked if the baseball season would be ended. Roosevelt stated that baseball should be played, as it would boost the spirit of our people to deal with the hardships of a major two front war in the Pacific and Europe.

Baseball icons like Detroit Tiger Hank Greenberg who struck fear into the eyes of opposing pitchers, was a pilot that flew over Himalaya Mountains that led from India into China. Ted Williams with his .406 batting average, had the finest hand-eye coordination in baseball, that also helped him become a fighter pilot that served during World War II and the Korean War.

New York Yankees Manager Ralph Houk was a two-time World Series champion that was almost killed by a German bullet when he reached Normandy three weeks after the June 6 D-Day landings. This manager that worked with Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Whitey Ford and Elston Howard survived the Battle of the Bulge and was awarded a Purple Heart for being wounded in combat.

It was possible that 1968 was one of the most difficult social and political time periods. This decade began under the younger generation of leadership under President John F. Kennedy and ended within several chaotic events. There were the assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, the refusal of President Lyndon B. Johnson to run for a second full-term, and the emergence of Richard M. Nixon.

Thousands of miles away, the American military was fighting a tenacious enemy in the North Vietnamese Army and the Vietcong. The Tet Offensive demonstrated that while the North Vietnamese could be defeated in battle, they took heavy losses, and there was no clear victory in sight against this Southeast Asian country.

For baseball, this was the year of the pitcher, as Denny McClain won 30 games, Don Drysdale tossed 58.2 scoreless innings, Luis Tiant held batters to a .168 batting average and Bob Gibson had a 1.12 Earned Run Average. And through these successful moments on the mound, there were serious anti-war and civil rights protests.

With mayhem engulfing the United States at every turn, near and far baseball fans had a treat during the 1968 World Series. This was a seven-game series, where fans watched the domination of St. Louis Cardinal Bob Gibson struck out thirteen Detroit Tigers within the first game. Through the efforts of Detroit players Al Kaline and Mickey Lolich, the Tigers won a World Series, at a serious crossroads for this nation. The “Boys of Summer” helped navigate the chaotic waters that our people were forced to navigate as it approached the end of the 1960s.

The Sept. 11, 2001 attacks were perpetrated on a beautiful day, that forever changed the security apparatus of the country. As our people were reeling from this horrific assault on our way of life, it essentially became some of the longest days ever in our history.

Members of the New York Yankees and Mets visited rescue workers and military personnel that searched through debris for survivors. When baseball came back to America, fans watched as rivals like the Braves and Mets and the Yankees and Red Sox’s hugged before the games. Football teams across America waved the flag to show comradery for the rescue workers that spent numerous days in lower Manhattan, and fans during the 2001 World Series were elated at the sight of President George W. Bush throwing a strike to home plate at Yankee Stadium.

Bush flashed a thumbs up to the crowd that had tears in their eyes, as they eerily recalled the almost three thousand Americans that were killed by these attacks.

Through all types of modern issues like that of COVID, war, social, economic and political upheaval, baseball has always been an important source of comfort for Americans.

Rocky Point students Chloe Fish, Sean Hamilton, Carolyn Settepani and Madelyn Zarzycki contributed to this article.

Hometown History: A home away from home — The boarding house in early Port Jefferson

by Kenneth Brady - May 2, 2021

0 2113

The Willows was run by Mrs. Hebee Fowler and located in Port Jefferson at Norton’s Corner, the intersection of East Main and Thompson streets. Photo by Robert S. Feather. Image from Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

Boarding houses were ubiquitous in Port Jefferson from the late 19th through the early 20th centuries.

In a typical Port Jefferson boarding house, guests rented one or more rooms, stayed for either a short-term or an extended period, and were provided with family-style meals and other amenities such as laundry services.

Some of the village’s boarding houses were small, private homes where the owners took in one or more lodgers as a way to supplement their income. Others were larger establishments, could accommodate a greater number of guests and operated strictly as a business.

In many cases, it was less expensive to live in a communal boarding house with its limited space and privacy than to stay in one of Port Jefferson’s hotels or to rent an apartment or a single-family home.

Mrs. S. J. Powell sits in front of her boarding house on East Broadway, Port Jefferson. Image from Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

It is difficult to determine the exact number of boarding houses in bygone Port Jefferson since many of their keepers craved anonymity and were known only by word of mouth, but evidence from multiple sources confirms that boarding houses were once everywhere in the village and had a diverse clientele.

Newspapers provide a rich variety of information about Port Jefferson’s boarding houses and their lodgers. In an 1879 “Board Wanted” advertisement in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, a family noted it was seeking “comfortable and airy” rooms in the village “for the summer” and expected a “first class” table.

The comings and goings of vacationers who boarded locally was regular fodder in the “Jottings” column of the Port Jefferson Echo which reported that 22 members of the Elks were staying at Mrs. Benjamin Odell’s on Beach Street.

Besides tourists, Port Jefferson’s boarding houses attracted unmarried workers. The diarist Azariah H. Davis recounted how telegraph operators on tight budgets boarded in rooms above Lee’s Drugstore on the village’s Main Street following the telegraph’s arrival in Port Jefferson in 1880. Census records from that year reveal that the village’s boarders also included newlyweds, transients, retirees and professionals.

Four of the village’s boarding house keepers advertised in Long Island, an 1882 travel guide published by the Long Island Rail Road. The proprietors listed, all women, were Mrs. C. L. Bayles, Mrs. E. B. Gildersleeve, Mrs. E. P. Tooker and Mrs. Hamilton Tooker.

Lain and Healy’s 1892 Brooklyn and Long Island Business Directory identified Port Jefferson’s 11 boarding house keepers, all women. The village’s female proprietors included Phoebe Beale, Ann Conk, Mary Tuthill and Mary Van Zandt.

Summer Homes on Long Island, the LIRR’s 1893 vacation guide, also listed Port Jefferson’s boarding house keepers, the majority women. They included Mrs. S. C. Abrew who charged from $5 to $8 per week for a room and Mrs. George E. Brown who could accommodate 21 guests at her Bay Side Cottage situated at Port Jefferson’s 303 West Broadway.

The Darlington House on Beach Street was listed in a 1908 LIRR travel guide, backed on the west shore of Port Jefferson Harbor, could accommodate 25 guests, and operated seasonally from June through September.

Renamed Shadow Lawn and kept by Mrs. Daniel Sprague, the boarding house was set ablaze on April 5, 1964 in a controlled burn by the Port Jefferson Fire Department.

The Linden House was located on Linden Place, offered residents “electric lights” and “reasonable rates,” and opened in 1915. In a glowing endorsement of the boarding house, one satisfied lodger said, “The meals are simply swell, and one gets more than it is possible to eat.”

The village’s other notable boarding houses were managed by keepers and located throughout Port Jefferson: Mrs. S. J. Powell (East Broadway); Mrs. Ellis Jones (Vineyard Place); Emma A. Rackett (Thompson Street); Mrs. Hebee Fowler (East Main Street); Louise Patterson (Belle Terre Road); Betty Greene (Bayview Terrace); and Mrs. John G. Clark (East Broadway).

While some boarding houses still survived on Thompson and other local streets as late as the 1960s, their numbers in the village had steadily declined because of several factors:

Automobiles and mass transportation made it possible to work in Port Jefferson and reside elsewhere. Boarding houses, which afforded food and shelter, were replaced by rooming and tourist houses, which furnished shelter alone, but gave their lodgers greater freedom and privacy.

From left to right: Volunteer firemen George Bone and John Hancock display a sign from Shadow Lawn, a boarding house that once stood on Beach Street. The derelict building was set ablaze on April 5, 1964 in a controlled burn by the Port Jefferson Fire Department allowing volunteers to practice fire-fighting techniques. Photo by Al Semm. Image from PJFD Collection

With rising incomes, middle-class workers left boarding houses for their own homes or apartments, often leaving behind the poor, elderly and unemployed. Boarding houses were seen as less respectable, some arguing that their presence among single-family homes destroyed a neighborhood’s integrity and depressed property values.

Despite these legitimate concerns, boarding houses contributed to Port Jefferson’s economic growth by providing lodging for the employees in the village’s many industries, boosting ancillary businesses particularly real estate and establishing Port Jefferson as a vacationland.

Boarding houses also improved the social status of the village’s women, enabling them either to generate additional household income or make an independent living.

Perhaps most important, Port Jefferson’s welcoming boarding houses introduced thousands to the village in the comfortable surroundings of a home away from home.

Kenneth Brady has served as the Port Jefferson Village Historian and president of the Port Jefferson Conservancy, as well as on the boards of the Suffolk County Historical Society, Greater Port Jefferson Arts Council and Port Jefferson Historical Society. He is a longtime resident of Port Jefferson.

Two historic properties in Huntington open for tours May 2

by Heidi Sutton - April 30, 2021

0 35

The weather looks lovely this weekend so the Huntington Historical Society will be offering tours of two of their historic properties!

The David Conklin Farmhouse, 2 High Street, Huntington will be open on Sunday, May 2 from 1 to 4 p.m.

This farmhouse was built c. 1750 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Originally the home of David and Sybel Conklin, the house was occupied by the Conklin family for over one-hundred and fifty years.

A volunteer docent will lead you through the original rooms of the house where Sybel Conklin and her children lived and worked while her husband, David, was held prisoner by the British in 1777. You will also see rooms decorated to reflect the Federal and Victorian periods. Stop by to get a spring dose of local history! Admission is a suggested donation of $4 per person. Parking is available on site. Masks are required.

————————————————————

Soldiers and Sailors BuildingThe Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building, 228 Main St., Huntington will be open on May 2 as well from 1 to 4 p.m. (free admission). The building was completed in 1892 as a memorial to the 40 townsmen who died in the Civil War.

The idea for a memorial was first proposed in 1865. Huntington’s leading citizens joined together to create The Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Association in 1886 and fundraising efforts finally bore fruit when the building was completed in 1892. It is the first of several monumental civic structures built in Huntington in the two decades surrounding the turn of the twentieth century.

This building, which you see before you as you leave downtown Huntington going east, was used as the town library. After the library moved to its current location at the other end of Main Street in 1958, the building was used by the Huntington school district. From 1969 on it became home to the Town Historian. In 2000, the Association donated the building to the Huntington Historical Society. The Society undertook an ambitious eight year restoration project and re-opened it as a museum in 2008.

Today, the building houses the Society’s History and Decorative Arts Museum and features changing exhibits from the Historical Society’s collection. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and as part of Old Town Hall National Register Historic District.

Parking is available on site and masks are required.

Tri-Spy Tours dedicates gravestone plaque in honor of judge and patriot Selah Strong

by Heidi Sutton - April 29, 2021

0 212

1 of 9

By Heidi Sutton

This past Saturday, members of the community gathered at St. George’s Manor Cemetery in Setauket to pay tribute to Judge Selah Strong with the unveiling of a commemorative graveside plaque. Margo Arceri, owner of Tri-Spy Tours, dedicated the bronze marker which honors the judge’s contributions to the local community, 205 years after his death.

“Strong was one of the first patriots in the community. He was best friends with Culper Spy Caleb Brewster … During the Battle of Long Island, he was arrested by the British for assisting the Continental Army. After the war, he had a long and illustrious career in public service. The Strong family wanted him to be recognized for his efforts during the Revolutionary War and after. It was a great honor to place the marker for them,” said Arceri after the ceremony. “This is an important moment in our community’s history and for the Strong family.”

The event was attended by representatives of the Three Village Historical Society including President Steve Healy, Director of Education Donna Smith and historian Beverly C. Tyler; members of the Anna Smith Strong chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution; and several descendants of Selah Strong. Brookhaven Town Supervisor Ed Romaine, New York State Assemblyman Steve Englebright, and Brookhaven Town Historian Barbara M. Russell were also in attendance.

Selah Strong is buried in a family plot next to his first wife, Anna Smith Strong, the only female member of George Washington’s Culper Spy Ring, known for her famed clothesline.

“It’s always been a bit of a shame that not too many people payed attention to Selah because they were so interested in Anna and her story, but actually he did an awful lot,” said John (Jack) Temple Strong Jr., Selah Strong’s great-great-great grandson, who had the honor of unveiling the plaque.

Supervisor Romaine agreed. “Born on Christmas Day, 1737, died on the Fourth of July, 1815, he packed into his life things … we see of a man who was dedicated to his community, someone that at the tender age of 26 was elected Town Trustee and would wind up spending 35 years in office, most of them, certainly from 1780 on, as President of the Trustees, which is the equivalent of Supervisor,” he said.

Selah Strong also served as Suffolk County Treasurer, judge for the Court of Common Pleas, and was a New York State Senator for four years. “This is a man who served his community … I am here to pay my respects to someone that paved the way because as we look around today, a lot of what we have over the last 200 years would not be here if not for men of this caliber,” added Supervisor Romaine.

“When we think about patriotism we think about Selah Strong, Anna Smith Strong and the personal sacrifice, the amount of risks that they took for their country — true patriots,” said Raymond Brewster Strong III, Selah Strong’s 6th generation grandson who made the trip from Houston, Texas, to attend the ceremony. “[George] Washington’s motto was ‘deeds, not words’ and when you think about Selah Strong’s [accomplishments], those are true deeds, not words.”

“The Strong family continues as tradition bearers, and Tri-Spy Tours and the Three Village Historical Society are also important parts of passing to the next generation a sense of place and a sense of continuum,” said Assemblyman Englebright. “I am just honored to be here to bear witness to this wonderful occasion. This is altogether a respectful moment that should be remembered, as Selah Strong should be remembered.”

*Editors note — St. George’s Manor Cemetery is a private cemetery still owned by the Strong family.

All photos by Heidi Sutton

A small taste of history: Selden School Cornerstone Ceremony, 1935

by TBR Staff - April 26, 2021

0 215

Selden.school.1935 — Photo from Middle Country Public Library

Amongst the Middle Country Public Library’s many historical artifacts are a few that explain just how far the area has come from its pastoral roots. The picture and story below comes courtesy of a collaborative effort among the librarian staff.

Selden schoolchildren sang “America” and “The Star-Spangled Banner” during the ceremony on Nov. 9, 1935, when the cornerstone was laid for the soon-to-be-built new Selden School.

Sealed within the cornerstone was a copper box containing three local newspapers of the day (the Patchogue Advance, the Argus and the Mid-Island Mail), the year’s school census, a copy of the day’s program, a 1935-minted dime and penny, and an 1885 almanac.

The new Selden Elementary school was completed in 1936 and replaced the one-room schoolhouse which had served the community from 1898 on. The updated structure contained three classrooms, a principal’s office, a well house, indoor washrooms and an oil-burning heating system.

Further renovations to the building were undertaken in 1948, which ultimately accommodated almost 50 years of students within its walls.

The U.S. Army surplus cannon depicted here was purchased after WWII with nickels and dimes saved by the schoolchildren of Selden.

You’ll see it in front of the building if you drive by 575 Middle Country Road, where Middle Country Public Library Selden stands today.

Hometown History: Dyett’s Brick Factory on Port Jefferson Harbor

by Kenneth Brady - April 26, 2021

0 1164

The Dyett Sand-Lime Brick Factory is shown along the west shore of Port Jefferson Harbor at the former site of California Grove and Pavilion. Above photo by Arthur S. Greene; Photo from Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

The Port Jefferson Post Office Building, now the Regency condominiums at 202 Main Street, was unlike any other structure in the village’s downtown.

The Dyett Sand-Lime Brick Factory is shown along the west shore of Port Jefferson Harbor at the former site of California Grove and Pavilion. Above photo by Arthur S. Greene; Photo from Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

Completed in 1911 and remodeled over the years, the former Post Office Building was constructed of sand-lime brick, rather than common clay brick.

Prized for its natural white color, strength and durability, the attractive sand-lime brick was manufactured nearby at the Dyett Sand-Lime Brick Company.

The corporation was named for its founder, James H. Dyett (1864-1944), who served as the firm’s general manager and had invented a machine for pressing bricks.

In 1908, the company purchased acreage in Bay View Park on the west side of Port Jefferson Harbor and started building its factory.

Located at the former site of California Grove and Pavilion at the foot of Washington Street in today’s Poquott, the property was considered ideal for Dyett’s operations.

To make a sand-lime brick, a mixture of silica sand and hydrated lime is moistened, molded into the desired shape and cured under high pressure steam.

The abundant deposits of the superior quality sand found in and about Port Jefferson provided Dyett with a near inexhaustible supply of the main raw material needed at its plant. In addition, the company’s factory was located directly on Port Jefferson Harbor, enabling Dyett to ship its heavy pallets of brick by barge to waiting markets, easily and cheaply.

Despite this rosy picture, the corporation became embroiled in a fight with Brookhaven Town, which sought to dispossess an intrusive Dyett from unlawfully operating on a portion of the beach fronting the company’s property.

In 1912, the Supreme Court, Suffolk County Special Term, affirmed Brookhaven Town’s title to the land in dispute. The corporation considered its options, but an appeal was never pursued so the decision of the court stood.

The Port Jefferson Post Office Building, now the Regency condominiums, is pictured at 202 Main Street. The building was constructed of attractive sand-lime brick, prized for its natural white color, strength and durability. Photo by Arthur S. Greene; Photo from Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

Dyett’s honeymoon on the harbor over, the brick company was sold in 1914 to John A. Gibson of Far Rockaway, New York. The following year, Dyett opened a sand-lime plant in New Orleans, Louisiana.

During World War I, the former Dyett complex was taken over by O’Connor-Bennett and the Union Ship and Dock Company, which built four wooden coal barges for the United States Navy before moving the yard’s operations to Flushing, New York.

Beginning in 1921, scows were moored and maintained at the old Dyett dock, which had been leased by the Great Eastern Gravel Corporation.

Alarmed by the growing industrialization of their community, the residents of Bay View Park formed an association in 1927 and voted to buy what was once the site of Dyett’s sand-lime brick factory, thus “forestalling the further encroachment of commercial interests.” The property was later purchased by the Incorporated Village of Poquott and is known today as “California Park.”

Hometown History: The campaign for a bone-dry Port Jefferson

by Kenneth Brady - April 14, 2021

0 1320

Water Wagon — A prohibitionist drives a water wagon down Port Jefferson’s Myrtle Avenue. Temperance crusaders urged villagers to forego demon rum and drink nature’s bountiful gift, cold water. Photo from Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

By Kenneth Brady

The campaign for a bone-dry Port Jefferson began during the 19th century. At the forefront of the movement, the Sons of Temperance was established in the village in 1848 and composed of members who pledged to abstain from drinking alcoholic beverages.

After the Sons disbanded in 1877, the Independent Order of Good Templars, Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), Young Men’s League and Prohibition Club were organized in Port Jefferson and continued the crusade against John Barleycorn.

The reformers sponsored debates, opened a mission on the village’s East Broadway and reported violations of the Sunday liquor laws. They also marched in parades, ran a temperance column in the Port Jefferson Echo, endorsed dry political candidates and organized rallies at Protestant churches.

The local activists joined lobbyists from the powerful Anti-Saloon League in supporting legislation that reduced the number of taverns in New York State. Retired sea captain Carman Howell of Port Jefferson served on Brookhaven Town’s 1917 Saloon Eliminating Committee that dramatically cut the number of taprooms in the area from 83 to 39.

In Port Jefferson, the committee members gave the prized liquor licenses to barkeeps William Thompson, Annie Russell, Arthur Decker, Catherine Barker, Thomas O’Rourke and Arthur Feltman, but not to Frederick Reep, Walter Davis and Martha Henschel.

Following the ratification of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution in 1919 and the passage of the Volstead Act later that year, Port Jefferson’s victorious drys turned their attention to enforcing the new laws against the manufacture, sale or transportation of intoxicating beverages.

Barker’s Hotel was located on the east side of Main Street in Port Jefferson. During Prohibition, its proprietor was arrested for violating the Volstead Act. Photo from Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

In 1920, villagers organized a local chapter of the Allied Citizens of America. Arthur Loper, president, and Julia Bonelli, vice president, both prominent residents of Port Jefferson, led the newly formed division that worked for a bone-dry Northern Brookhaven and cooperated with law enforcement agencies in achieving that goal.

Thirty citizens, including respected villagers Ralph Dayton, Thaddeus Oettinger, George Darling and Roscoe Craft organized a Public Safety Committee, charged with investigating and correcting any of Port Jefferson’s moral or social ills.

Rev. John J. Macdonald, pastor of the Port Jefferson Presbyterian Church, was elected president of the Citizens’ League of Suffolk County, a vigilance committee comprised of ministers and laymen. They promised a relentless war against the bootleggers and rumrunners operating along the north shore of Long Island from Orient Point to Port Jefferson.

William Anderson, former superintendent of the Anti-Saloon League, addressed the congregation of the Port Jefferson Methodist Church. Well known throughout New York as the “bartender’s nightmare,” Anderson discussed “A Patriotic Protestant Protective Alliance Necessary for the Preservation of Prohibition.”

Dr. Oscar Haywood, a lecturer for the Ku Klux Klan, spoke at the Port Jefferson Baptist Church in 1924 and Athena Hall (Theatre Three) in 1925. Among its goals, the Suffolk County Klan called for strict enforcement of the 18th Amendment.

Although facing considerable pressure to obey the dry laws, some villagers still flouted the Volstead Act. The proprietors of Barker’s Hotel (Main Street), the American House (East Broadway), and Bennett’s Restaurant (Main Street) were all arrested for serving hooch.

William Thompson, who ran the Ardencraig Bowling Alleys and Billiard Parlor (Arden Place), was twice convicted and fined for selling whiskey to shell-shocked veterans from the Vocational Training Institute at the Plant Hotel, now the site of Port Jefferson High School.

The authorities raided the Sundodgers, a private social club on upper Thompson Street, and dumped 16 cases of home-brew in the backyard. Federal agents also nabbed a man for distributing moonshine from his house on Liberty Avenue.

Customs inspectors boarded the Dragon when it docked in Port Jefferson, took the yacht’s cargo of gin and arrested the crew. Following a high-speed chase off Port Jefferson, a government patrol boat captured the Porpoise and seized its stash of contraband whiskey. The notorious Artemis was discovered in a Port Jefferson shipyard where she had been secretly towed for repairs. The rumrunner had been hit by gunfire in a furious battle with a Coast Guard cutter off Orient Point.

The majority of Port Jefferson’s residents soon tired of Prohibition and the problems that the dry crusade had engendered. Although the Prohibition Emergency Committee campaigned in the village to keep the Eighteenth Amendment intact, it was repealed by the states on Dec. 5, 1933. In each of the three election districts that then formed Port Jefferson, voters opposed to Prohibition prevailed.

As wets celebrated their victory, dry’s met in the Port Jefferson Baptist Church and bemoaned their defeat. Bars and package stores quickly reopened in the village. The “noble experiment” had ended.

Spring into history! Tour two historic properties in Huntington this weekend

by Heidi Sutton - April 7, 2021

0 60

The weather looks lovely this weekend so the Huntington Historical Society will be offering tours of two of their historic properties!

The David Conklin Farmhouse, 2 High Street, Huntington will be open on Sunday, April 11 from 1 to 4 p.m.

————————————————————

Soldiers and Sailors BuildingThe Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building, 228 Main St., Huntington will be open on April 11 as well from 1 to 4 p.m. (free admission). The building was completed in 1892 as a memorial to the 40 townsmen who died in the Civil War.

Parking is available on site and masks are required.

Hometown History: Project rejuvenation — A ‘new look’ for Port Jefferson

by Kenneth Brady - April 4, 2021

0 2704

Mayor Clifton — Clifton “Kip” Lee, who served as Port Jefferson’s mayor from 1965 to 1971, is shown on the village’s Main Street. During his administration, Project Rejuvenation brought a “new look” to Port Jefferson and helped revive the village’s ailing downtown commercial center. Photo from the Michael F. Lee Collection

By Kenneth Brady

Gene Marvey could not stop thinking about the magazine article that he had just read. The story described how communities across America were reviving their failing business districts by following a simple plan. The same approach, thought Marvey, might succeed in rejuvenating the commercial area of Port Jefferson where he had a store.

“Old Towns Come Alive,” the article that had caught Marvey’s imagination, appeared in the March 1965 issue of the Rotarian and featured the work of Dr. Milton S. Osborne who had revitalized 42 communities in the United States.

Known as the “village restorer,” Osborne showed shop owners easy ways to dress up the facades of their establishments. The face lifting did not involve any structural changes or major expenditures, guaranteed local control over the project and maintained the architectural integrity of the subject area.

Marvey shared Osborne’s ideas with Port Jefferson’s mayor, Clifton “Kip” Lee and the village trustees, who voted unanimously to invite Osborne to Port Jefferson for a consultation and to underwrite the attendant fees.

Osborne’s method was simple: each merchant submitted a photo of his storefront. Osborne then prepared a sketch of the shop’s remodeled façade which served as a guide for the suggested renovations.

For $500 to $1,000 per building, estimated Osborne, a typical Port Jefferson merchant could reface his store by merely replacing shutters, hanging flower boxes, adding wrought iron railings, installing mullions and painting the shop’s exterior in harmonious colors.

The button was used to publicize Project Rejuvenation. The numbers refer to the July 4, 1967 weekend when Port Jefferson staged a summer festival to showcase its “new look.”
Photo from the Michael F. Lee Collection

These actions, explained Osborne, would preserve and enhance what he deemed was the semi-colonial character of the village. Osborne cautioned, however, that the effort would only succeed if there was cooperation between government and the business community.

The Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce enthusiastically endorsed Osborne’s plan and formed a committee charged with implementing what became known as Project Rejuvenation.

With a target date of July 4, 1967 set for the plan’s completion, work on remodeling Port Jefferson’s storefronts began in earnest. Davis Comfort Corporation, fuel oil dealers on East Broadway, was the first firm to reface its building. Frank Hocker and Son, real estate and insurance agents on Main Street, was the second and Kella’s Steak House, located on Main Street a stone’s throw from the railroad station, was the third.

Opening in 1903, the Port Jefferson railroad station was in need of a face lift. The LIRR embraced the Osborne Plan and renovated the terminal’s stark interior and landscaped its dreary grounds. A sign at the depot celebrated the effort and proclaimed that the modernization of the station would create a “new look” at the “doorway” to the village.

As summer 1967 approached, merchants rushed to dress up their shops by Project Rejuvenation’s rollout on July 4. Along the village’s streets, residents joked they were unable to enter the very stores that were clamoring for customers because their paths were often blocked by the dozens of contractors laboring in Port Jefferson’s commercial center.

With the remodeling finally over, the Chamber reported that about 85% of the village’s shops had renewed their facades. The “unveiling” occurred during the July Fourth Rejuvenation Festival, which featured a parade, soap box derby, fireworks display, and other activities.

Measured by the Chamber’s goal of drawing crowds to Port Jefferson to show off the village’s spruced up shops, the event scored a hit. An estimated 25,000 people visited Port Jefferson during the festival weekend, but aside from its immediate effect, Project Rejuvenation had a lasting impact on the village.

Port Jefferson’s “new look” caught the public eye, put the historic seaport village on the map and sparked Port Jefferson’s commercial renewal by recapturing the tourist market that the village had once enjoyed but had lost to the ravages of time.

Despite this rosy picture, Project Rejuvenation had its detractors. According to critics, the Osborne Plan was to supplement Port Jefferson’s 1965 Master Plan, not became its substitute. Rather than tackling thorny problems that demanded long-range planning, some argued that Port Jefferson went with a short-term solution and kicked the can down the road.

Project Rejuvenation dealt with the village’s shops, not with its waterfront industries. While the Osborne Plan improved Port Jefferson’s storefronts, overburdened trucks still rumbled through the village’s downtown, driving potential customers away.

Although the architecture in Port Jefferson’s business district was eclectic, Project Rejuvenation prescribed an early American style. The results may have been pleasant, but they hardly reflected the village’s history.

Upper Port Jefferson took a back seat during Project Rejuvenation. While the railroad station and some nearby buildings were refaced, most of the work occurred in the village’s downtown. Even the July Fourth Rejuvenation Festival was geared to lower Port Jefferson.

As with any innovation, the Osborne Plan had its drawbacks, but in recognition of its overall success, in 1968 Project Rejuvenation received the Long Island Association’s coveted Community Betterment Award. In addition, Marvey and Lee were honored in 1967 and 1968, respectively, with the Chamber’s prestigious “Man of the Year Award,” given for their outstanding contributions to the community, particularly their roles in Project Rejuvenation.

Over 50 years since the launch of the Osborne Plan, Port Jefferson remains committed to village improvement, continuing the mission of Project Rejuvenation in the revitalization initiatives of today.

Prev 1...313233...73 Next

Page 32 of 73