History Close at Hand: The untold stories of Stony Brook’s young postmistresses
By Beverly C. Tyler
As detailed in my article on Nov. 7, 2024, the first Stony Brook Post Office built specifically for postal use was located on Main Street, a few hundred feet north of where the Reboli Center stands today.
As World War I approached, Stony Brook saw a new postmaster. Nellie E. Lempfert began serving the community on Jan. 24, 1913. According to Olga Reboli, she was a very nice person and a good postmaster.
Mrs. Reboli also recalled that Nellie Lempfert had an ice cream parlor before becoming postmaster. It was next to the big building on the corner near Mr. Rogers’ plumbing shop.
In 1913, Mrs. Reboli, then 12 years old, and her sisters would occasionally spend a nickel on ice cream at Mrs. Lempfert’s store. “We didn’t have a nickel to spend very often,” she said, “but it was always a special time to remember.”
The Stony Brook Post Office was also remembered by Orietta Peterman, who shared her vivid recollections of working there.
“Mrs. Lempfert was the postmaster, and I went to work there in October 1913,” Ms. Peterman explained. “I was married in 1917, and my husband went off to World War I. He left in 1919.” (Note: Charles C. Peterman was inducted into the U.S. Army in December 1917 and served in Europe from March 1918 until his discharge on Feb. 2, 1919.)
When Ms. Peterman started at the post office, there were only two workers, and only one person worked at a time. “On Mondays, I had to be in by 6 o’clock to get the morning mail off, all by myself,” she said. “If anyone came in to buy stamps, I did that. If someone wanted a money order, I did that too. We didn’t even have a safe until a year or two later. When the post office started growing, they finally bought a safe to keep the money in.”
She described her postmaster’s schedule, explaining that Mrs. Lempfert would probably arrive around 8 o’clock. She stayed to help with the morning mail before heading home. “I was there most of the time, earning $5 a week for a 14-hour day,” she said.
The space itself was challenging to work in. Ms. Peterman remembered that the post office wasn’t used very long and was already outgrowing its capacity. “Two people were always in the way. There were no facilities, no water. If we needed water, I had to fetch it from a spring near the Sherry house. For hot water, we used a kerosene space heater with a tea kettle on top,” she explained.
“In winter, there was a coal stove that needed tending daily,” she added. “I handled all the cleaning, and since there was no electricity, I cleaned lamp chimneys and filled the lamps.”
Reflecting on her experience, Ms. Peterman said she did everything under heaven. “I never had a coffee break in my life. I worked there for seven or eight years, with no vacation and no paid days off. Even on the day I got married, I was docked. That’s how liberal they were.”
On April 29, 1922, Louise E. Wells was appointed the next postmaster of Stony Brook, operating from the same building. Miss Wells married Charlie Williamson in 1926 and remained postmaster until mid-1932. Olga Reboli remembered her fondly and said Mrs. Williamson was also a very nice person. The couple had two daughters, Louise and Madeline.
In the early 1930s, a new post office was built next to the old firehouse on Christian Avenue. Though not much larger, it offered more modern facilities.
The old post office wasn’t forgotten. By 1922, it became a butcher shop for Percy W. Smith and later served as the office for L.C. Clarke Co. In 1925, Olga Reboli worked for L.C. Clarke Real Estate and was photographed in front of the building.
The venerable old structure was eventually moved in the 1940s and repurposed as a home. It now resides at 44 Cedar St. in Stony Brook, just north of Hollow Road.
Beverly C. Tyler is an author and historian with the Three Village Historical Society. For more information, visit www.tvhs.org.
