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Port Jeff

Photo by Kimberly Brown

Celebrating its 50th anniversary, Ecolin Jewelers of Port Jefferson has maintained a loyal customer base while offering a wide variety of jewelry and services.

The owners, Linda and Russell Baker, began their business in 1971. The couple rented a small storefront in Stony Brook to get their footing as the new jewelers in town.

A few years later, the Bakers’ business became successful enough to enable them to purchase their current property, located across from the harbor in the heart of the village. In 1979, the store had finally finished being built.

The well-known Ecolin Jewelers is a unique name choice for a jewelry store. However, Ecolin was not the Bakers’ first choice when they first set up shop.

“When we were sending name ideas off to Albany to be approved, we had picked three pretty plain names like The Gem Shop, The Gem & Mineral Store and Stony Brook Gems,” Linda said. “But we were rejected on all of them because someone else was using a similar name.”

Thus, Ecolin was born. Linda’s father suggested she take the “Eco” from her passion for ecology and use the first three letters from her name. The title was immediately approved, and Ecolin Jewelers was open for business. 

Along with running the business, Linda also worked nights pursuing her other passion, music. As a musician, she played piano and sang at clubs, on cruise ships and the Three Village Inn. 

“When I was doing music I worked Friday, Saturday and Sunday,” she said. “The idea was to get the business on its feet, and it worked.” 

Growing up on Long Island, Linda and Russell have always found themselves staying close to Stony Brook and Port Jefferson. The couple pride themselves on using American products.

“I think what’s unique about our store is that we make and design a lot of the jewelry here. We don’t just buy from factories in China,” she said.

Linda truly believes in supporting local and national American businesses, so all of the brands she buys from reflect the integrity of her own shop. A few of the brands she displays are LAGOS of Philadelphia and William Henry of Oregon. 

During the pandemic, Ecolin shut down for a few months but reopened when curbside trade was permitted. Although operating business by curbside, which included repairs and cleanings, may have been completely out of the ordinary for a jewelry shop, Linda made do with the obstacles thrown her way.

“We had one or two customers during the pandemic who really wanted to get engaged, and we successfully pulled that off,” she said. “It was strange going outside and showing the jewelry in the parking lot, but you do what you have to do and adapt to whatever comes your way, just like the generations before us did.”

The growth of Port Jefferson over the years has benefited Ecolin in many ways, especially with the increase in tourists. When Linda and Russell first bought the property, few people resided in the community.

“It was sort of a ghost town,” she said. “We were part of that first wave of town improvement. There were only a few businesses surrounding us in the beginning.” 

With the major growth of the village came the major growth of Ecolin, keeping it successfully running for 50 years from its modest Stony Brook beginning. 

For more information about Ecolin Jewelers, visit ecolin.com or call 631-473-1117.

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The photo shown here of the 1910 hill climb are from the Lazarnick collection, Detroit Public Library, credited to Spooner & Wells, a New York City photography company

By Robert Laravie 

A 1907 two-day endurance tour by the Long Island Auto Club may have planted the seed of a hill climb event in Port Jefferson. The 1907 tour had a stop in Port Jefferson for lunch at Mrs. Smith’s house, then went on to Greenport and back to Brooklyn. 

A June 30, 1910, article in The Automobile indicated that a well-known promoter and local “live wire,” W.J. Fallon, organized a hill climb which was held June 25. Sixty-seven cars were entered.

The hill climb was sponsored by the Port Jefferson Auto Club and run on West Broadway, a course of about 2,000-feet in length, with an average grade of 10% and a peak of about 15%, ending at the Belle Terre Gatehouse. The local club contact was listed as G.E. Darling.

The hill climb was divided into 16 events by cost of auto, cubic inches of engine displacement as well as a “free for all” and a few events for cars owned by local club members and residents of Port Jefferson. 

The fastest time was 20.48 seconds (about 68 mph) in a Fiat owned by E.W.C. Arnold and driven by Ralph DePalma. The slowest car, 1 minute, 36.58 seconds (about 14 mph), in a Knox driven by E.B. Hawkins.

Two other clubs participated in the events, the Crescent Athletic Club and the Long Island Auto Club. Knox cars won the most events totaling five wins and the results were widely used in advertising for the cars. 

Various manufacturers entered their cars in the event including  Oakland, Buick, the Only Motor Car Co. (a Port Jefferson-built car), Houpt-Rockwell, Pope-Hartford, Zust and Berkshire Automobiles.

Two cars entered were owned by women, Mrs. J.N. Cuneo entered her Knox and Mrs. J.A. Ferguson entered her Lancia.

The photoshown here of the 1910 hill climb are from the Lazarnick collection, Detroit Public Library, credited to Spooner & Wells, a New York City photography company

Hawkins, the postmaster of Huntington, protested one event, claiming that the car driven by Fallon was not in fact owned for the required 30 days prior to the event.

A second protest was entered by J. Bell claiming the Knox entered by Fred Belcher in the stock events was in fact not in “stock” condition. 

The hill climb was rerun on Sept. 9, 1911, and a commemorative event was staged in 1925. That event was won by a locally built car, the F.R.P. — Finley Robertson Porter. 

A F.R.P. now resides in the Seal Cove Auto Museum in Mount Desert Island, Maine.

Reenactments of the hill climb took place in 2010 and 2015. There will be another event Saturday, Aug. 14, starting 10 a.m. at the Village Center. A rain date is set for the following day. For more info visit the website: portjeff.com/events/hillclimb.

Robert Laravie grew up in East Greenbush. He is a retired landscape architect, and worked for the New York State Department of Transportation on Long Island, New York City and on the Tappan Zee Bridge project in Tarrytown. He is currently a resident of Port Jefferson and has been a local conservancy member for the past six years. 

File photo by Christina Whitehurst

TPG Hotels, Resorts & Marinas — a Rhode Island-based hospitality group with hotels and resorts across the country — announced last week that it acquired Port Jefferson’s Danfords Hotel, Marina & Spa, located on the harbor in the village. 

Originally established in 1986 as Danfords Inn, it boasts 92 guest rooms and suites. Its marina features more than 100 slips and over 1,000 feet of side to tie with the capacity to accommodate vessels up to 250 feet in length. Hotel stayers and locals visit its onsite restaurant and lounge, WAVE. 

Some of the buildings on the property date back to the 1800s, when Port Jefferson was a bustling shipbuilding community.

“Danfords Hotel, Marina & Spa in Port Jefferson is a remarkable destination located in one of the highest barriers-to-entry markets in all of North America,” said Robert Leven, chief investment officer of Procaccianti Companies, in a statement. “Danfords is a perfect fit as we accelerate the growth of our recently launched marina platform. We have several more acquisitions in the pipeline and intend to have a significant concentration of East Coast marina properties by the end of 2021.”

The transaction is one of three acquisitions in the last seven months in TPG’s newly launched marina platform. In Rhode Island, TPG acquired both Dutch Harbor Boat Yard in Jamestown this June, and Champlin’s Hotel, Resort and Marina on Block Island in December 2020. The latter property is currently undergoing extensive renovations as part of a comprehensive improvement plan.

“It is not common to find the perfect buyer, but in this case we have achieved success,” Enrico Scarda, managing partner of The Crest Group, said in a statement. 

Additionally, as part of the transaction, TPG will also manage catering operations at The Waterview restaurant located at the Port Jefferson Country Club.

TPG will embark on a property improvement plan at Danfords, including resortwide modernization, which includes the lodging and slip reservation systems and a full renovation of the resort’s guest rooms. 

Additional renovations and improvements are also planned for the marina facilities.

The Crest Group was unable to further comment by press time. 

Sandra Swenk today at her home in Port Jefferson. Photo by Julianne Mosher

This month marks 50 years since Sandra Swenk was sworn in as the Village of Port Jefferson’s first woman mayor. 

In July of 1971, the 34-year-old mother of two took office as the village’s third mayor. Now, five decades later, she has paved the way for other lady leaders — not only here where she calls home, but throughout Long Island. 

A lifelong resident, she was born at Mather Hospital in 1937 and grew up inside The Mather House Museum during the ’40s, as her family were caretakers. 

Photo from the Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

“I had some good years there,” she said. “There were some things that are not there anymore, like a summer house, a beautiful old summer house that just kind of deteriorated years ago, but most of the property is fairly original today.”

After living there as a child, her family moved to various different homes surrounding Main Street — eventually settling with her husband John in a stunning historical home on Prospect Street in 1960.

“Port Jefferson is a great place to raise a child,” she said. “Because they can walk to school, and then we had downtown, and it wasn’t as busy as it is now.”

Swenk decided to become involved with Port Jeff’s politics early on, sitting on the board with her late husband to incorporate the village in 1963.

“We wanted to see the village incorporate and control its own destiny, so to speak,” she said. 

Always interested in keeping the quaint village beautiful, Swenk wanted to see street trees, plants planted and window boxes in the local storefronts. She and a group of volunteers helped make that possible. 

In 1971, Swenk decided to take the leap and run against the men of the village. In what she said was a low-key campaign, she said that she had a lot of support back then. Along with her son and daughter, she hand-delivered pamphlets around the village. 

“I was proud of her,” said her daughter Brenda. “She did a lot. There was a lot of family involvement. There were a lot of things that we all did together.”

Swenk ended up winning, serving three terms until she was beaten by Harold Sheprow in 1977.

“I was always interested in revitalization,” she said. 

According to Swenk, she wanted to keep the small-town atmosphere and have a recreational harbor. With the village known to be more industrial back then, she hoped to get rid of the gravel trucks and oil tanks that stayed near the water and the ferry. 

“I also wanted to have what’s called adaptive use, using the older buildings for present uses,” she said. “I was big on historic preservation, and still am a historical society member.”

Swenk said she used Cold Spring Harbor’s streets as a model. 

Above: Sandra Swenk on July 5, 1971 on the steps of Village Hall. Her daughter, Brenda, cheers her mother on in the lower right.
Photo from the Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

Another accomplishment she had during her tenure was working hand in hand with former state Sen. Leon Giuffreda (R) on a big safety issue that was happening around the village with its gravel trucks. 

She said trucks didn’t have covers and often times gravel would spill into the busy streets.  

“It was always a battle to get it cleaned up,” she said. “But today, if you see any kind of a truck, could be just a little truck or big truck or a gravel truck, they have to have covers — and now they do.”

Swenk said that from day one since she was elected, village board meetings were always busy. 

“There were more people who went to the public meetings, probably because I was a woman and they wanted to see how I was going to run them,” she said. “People just didn’t know whether a woman could handle a job like that.”

But she got the support she needed to win. 

“I think people realized I was genuinely concerned about the village. And its growth, and its business and its appearance,” she said. “That was very important to me and it still is.”

At first, she was the only woman in Village Hall, but during her second term, a woman trustee came in and gradually it grew from there. Since her run, Jeanne Garant served as mayor from 1999 to 2005, and her daughter Margot has just been elected to her seventh term.

Now, a half-century later, she still lives right off East Main Street and is still heavily involved with what’s going on around town. A member of the historical society, the First United Methodist Church and volunteer at The Mather House Museum, she keeps busy, but still reminisces about what life was like Down Port so many years ago.

“There’s no question that it’s changed,” she said. “When I was growing up here, we had all the necessary services in the village — we had a laundromat which we don’t have anymore, but for years had a hardware store, a dress shop, a drugstore. So, some of those needs have been lost along the way.”

Swenk wishes there was a grocery store for village residents to shop at. “I would love to have a grocery back here,” she said. “We’re really lacking that.”

She said she has been unhappy to see the development over the last decade, building upward with the continuous lack of parking — something that was an issue even during her tenure. 

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Photo by Julianne Mosher

Shortly after the festivities of the Port Jefferson Fire Department Independence Day Parade, residents and visitors gathered near the front steps of Village Hall to watch the swearing in of Team Unity on July 5.

Village clerk Barbara Sakovich kicked off the oath of office by thanking the fire department for hosting the event. 

“Thank you to the Port Jefferson Fire Department for always putting on a fabulous parade and incredible display of patriotism,” she said. “And of course, we thank them for their service to the Village of Port Jefferson by keeping all of us safe.”

Sakovich welcomed the three incumbents and their families to the podium, thanking them for their work “for a common good.”

Photo by Julianne Mosher

Trustee Stanley Loucks was the first up. 

“Stan works tirelessly every day and is the perfectly liaison to the recreation department, as he has a passion for all things recreation, as well as to the Port Jefferson Country Club, which is our treasure here in the village,” Sakovich said. “He works around the clock for us, and he is always the first to volunteer to get the job done.”

Loucks thanked his wife, Peggy, for all of her support, and the community for allowing him to do this all again.

“It’s great to be back up here,” he said. “I want to thank everyone for the opportunity to continue to make this village better than it is now — that’s our goal. We have a lot of unfinished business to do, and I thank you again for allowing me to come back and stand here … and then after I stand here, go back to work.”

Trustee Kathianne Snaden won her second term last month due to her close work with the school district, parking committee, BID and as the commissioner of public safety. 

“She listens closely to our residents and works to bridge communication and cooperation within our community,” Sakovich said. 

With her husband and three daughters by her side, she was filled with gratitude to be standing at the podium.

“Thank you for the opportunity to be up here again and to serve all of you,” she said. “I often get asked, why do you do this thankless job? And to me it’s not thankless. This is the thanks. And this is why I do it — because of all of you. So, thank you for having me here yet again to serve you for two more years. It’s my honor and my pleasure.”

Photo by Julianne Mosher

Sakovich concluded the ceremony with Mayor Margot Garant, who now begins her seventh term. 

“I tell her all the time that she runs a small country,” she said. 

Emotionally taking the oath alongside her father and mother, former Mayor Jeanne Garant, she addressed the crowd with a smile.

Garant said she is now the longest running village mayor, officially surpassing former Mayor Harold Sheprow — who served 12 terms and sat in the crowd — while thanking her supporters for allowing her to do this once again.

“We’re family. We stick together. We work hard, and we support one another,” she said. “I want to thank my core supporters, many of who are lifelong friends, who’ve worked hard to support this administration, and who value, respect, and appreciate the work we do.”

Garant added she couldn’t do this without her team. 

“We are here to work for you to protect and preserve our quality of life,” she said. “And when making a decision, we will always do our best to make sure that decisions bring us closer together in unity, and make us a stronger community.”

Photo from PJSD

The Port Jefferson School District announced that Peggy Yin and Massimo Cipriano as the class of 2021 valedictorian and salutatorian, respectively. 

Valedictorian Peggy Yin has had numerous academic accomplishments throughout her high school career. She was captain of the Science Olympiad team and has been a top medalist in both state and regional competitions. As a junior, she helped initiate a partnership to mentor elementary students in science fair projects. 

Photo from PJSD

Peggy served as the editor-in-chief of the Mast literary magazine, president of the Tri-M Music Honor Society, president of the Latin Club, captain of the Academic Team, an officer of the National Honor Society and an officer and treasurer of the Drama Club. This year, she helped to spearhead a food drive that raised more than $3,000 and food donations for those in need. Peggy is a founder and editor-in-chief of the news media platform, The Current, and is collaborating with Legislator Kara Hahn (D-Setauket) on several initiatives. 

She has served as a summer intern at both Stony Brook University and Brookhaven National Laboratory, where she worked on cutting-edge projects.

Peggy is a National Merit Scholarship finalist, Battelle Scholarship recipient and a Coca-Cola Scholar semifinalist. Music plays an important role in her life and her musical achievements are plenty with All-County, All-State and All-Eastern honors as a vocalist and flutist among them. She has performed twice onstage as a soloist at Carnegie Hall, has been on the Manhattan School of Music Dean’s List for three years and has been a recipient of five international vocal competitions.

She is active in community and volunteer initiatives, including serving as a youth ambassador for Concerts in Motion and a live radio show host and broadcast engineer for China Blue on WUSB 90.1 FM. 

Salutatorian Massimo Cipriano has excelled in many of his classes in Port Jefferson. 

He was a member of the Student Organization as a freshman and sophomore and served as secretary for the class of 2021. He served as a student representative for the district’s PTSA and three years as president of the Varsity Club. This year, he was co-president.

Photo from PJSD

Massimo has also been a Royal, a three- sport athlete in his high school career, as a member of the soccer, basketball, and baseball teams. He was also part of the founding team members of The Current, the independent online newspaper, where he is the head of the sports column. 

He participates in numerous volunteer and community service actions and recently helped spearhead a pen pal program with veterans at the Long Island State Veterans Home in Stony Brook. 

Citing English as a favorite subject, Massimo would like to study journalism when he begins college in the fall.

Massimo used his four years in high school to tap into many of the school’s offerings, helping him to become a well-rounded scholar. He commends several high school teachers with encouraging him to continue to embrace the world with kindness, empathy and a positive mindset, and values the mentors and role models they are to him. He is also pleased to have been a student in the district since childhood, citing his gratefulness to a school community that has encouraged lifelong relationships and inspired him to keep his best foot forward.

Both students were honored at a virtual celebration hosted by New York State Sen. Anthony Palumbo (R-New Suffolk), recognizing the accomplishments of Long Island’s most accomplished students. 

“It was a great pleasure speaking with these remarkable students and hearing about their future plans, accomplishments and favorite memories from high school,” Palumbo said. “We wish them all the best in their future endeavors and congratulate them and their parents on their significant accomplishments.”

Photo from Hometown Hope

On Tuesday, May 25, local nonprofit Hometown Hope gathered with members of the Port Jef-ferson Fire Department, as well as representatives from village and local government to honor three fallen heroes in honor of Memorial Day.

American flags were installed in front of Village Hall in memory of local residents David George Timothy Still, U.S. Navy; Honorary Chief Frederick J. Gumbus, U.S. Army Air; James Von Oiste, U.S. Marine and Belle Terre resident; and Victor Gronenthal, U.S. Army and the husband of a current resident.

Hometown Hope plans to add more flags each year to honor those local heroes who sacrificed their lives to protect our freedom.

 

Photo by Julianne Mosher

After more than a year of Zoom performances, practices and canceled events, the Port Jefferson School District decided to utilize a stage in their own backyard and hold their first in-person recital since the start of the pandemic. 

“It was very nice to see everyone in front of us after such a long period of time,” said eighth-grader Christopher Lotten. “It made me feel more comfortable to play in front of a live audience. It was a great experience to play in front of everyone — instead of listening to our music through a computer screen, we got to listen to it on a stage.”

The Chamber Festival 2021 took place at Harborfront Park in Port Jefferson village on May 27 where students showcased compositions by Bach, Haydn, Pleyel, Hudson, Sherwin and Müller-Rusch.

The Port Jefferson Middle School grades 7 and 8 string orchestra used the opportunity to adapt to the uniqueness of this past school year, and during the second semester, students were given the opportunity to form their own ensembles and select their chamber piece to work on and perform.

“Chamber music promotes creativity and allows students to work collaboratively with their peers,” said orchestra teacher Vanessa Salzman. “It is a wonderful way to improve musician-ship while building valuable social and musical connections.”

At just after 11 a.m., family and friends set up their lawn chairs and blankets in front of the stage built back in 2019 to honor Port Jefferson resident Jill Nees-Russell. 

“It was interesting to play in front of a live audience again,” said eighth-grader Ash Patterson. “I have always enjoyed playing in front of people, even if I do get nervous that I’ll mess up be-fore I have to perform. I felt that when I had to record our orchestral pieces, it was less real. There was no audience to motivate me to play well. It was a lot less exciting than playing live, and just turned into a tedious task for me.” 

Family and friends listened to the PJMS chamber students perform at Harborfront Park last week. Photo by Julianne Mosher

Eight groups of performers grabbed their strings and took to the small wooden performance area that Salzman described as “a picture-perfect venue.”

Mari Fukuto, a seventh-grader, said Thursday’s performance was a nice change of scenery.

“It felt strange,” she said. “But it was nice not having to record it, the scene also made the experience better.” 

Seventh-grader Lia Donohue said performing outside for her family and friends was a special moment. 

“It made the experience special knowing that everyone was there live, and taking photos like last year,” she said. “Not only for us was the experience special, but for all of the spectators watching, because they didn’t need to try to figure out how to put our performance on their screen at home.” 

Mehana Levy, a seventh-grader, agreed. 

“Playing in front of people again was a little nerve racking at first but, once I got on the stage, it felt a little more like before COVID, and reminded me why I chose to play in the first place.” 

Overall, with sunny skies and warm weather, Salzman said it was a great day.

“After a long hiatus from live performance, the support of the village hosting us and the parents and community who showed up to cheer us on made for a special and memorable day for our students,” she said.

Rocky Point junior Trevor Lamoureux drives on a defender in a D-II road game May 20. Bill Landon photo

Down four goals at the half, Rocky Point scored two unanswered goals in the 3rd quarter to close the gap before the Port Jefferson Royals slowed the pace, took control of the game and closed out the D-II matchup with a 9-6 victory at home May 20.

Port Jeff senior Daniel Koban netted a pair of goals as did juniors Kyle Scandale and John Sheils. Stephen Bayer and Michael Scannell both juniors had one goal apiece as did sophomore Brady DeWitt.

Rocky Point senior Charles Gerace netted two goals for the Eagles.

The win lifts the Royals to 4-3 at the half way point of this Covid shortened season as Rocky Point drops to 2-5. 

Photos by Bill Landon 

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Two Porter-Knight racers are parked on Port Jefferson’s Main Street in front of the Ardencraig Inn. The establishment courted car aficionados. Photo by Arthur S. Greene. Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

Smith’s Hotel was established in 1870 and located in Port Jefferson on the east side of Main Street, a short distance from the waterfront.

William R. Thompson began leasing the venerable hotel in 1908 from its longtime proprietor Lizzie Smith before actually buying the establishment in 1910.

Besides renaming the hotel the Ardencraig Inn, Thompson made other changes at the premises, adding guest rooms, enlarging the dining room, installing Blau-Gas lighting and introducing sanitary plumbing.

More important, Thompson recognized how automobiles were revolutionizing travel, giving people the freedom to explore the open road, and creating a new class of tourists no longer dependent on ships and trains.

To tap into this burgeoning market and popularize the Ardencraig, Thompson geared his publicity toward motorists.

The inn was featured in travel guides favored by car aficionados such as The American Motorist and The Automobile Blue Book.

With the ferry Park City running between Bridgeport and Port Jefferson, the Ardencraig was described in the Connecticut press as being ideally located to host “automobile parties” from New England.

A car enthusiast himself, Thompson was a member of the Automobile Club of Port Jefferson, which sponsored both the 1910 and 1911 Hill Climbs on the village’s East Broadway.

As a service for the motorists who were registered at the Ardencraig, Thompson had a garage constructed behind the inn. Besides providing accommodations for chauffeurs, the garage was manned day and night.

Lizzie Smith’s Hotel, later the Ardencraig Inn, was located on the east side of Port Jefferson’s Main Street, a short distance from the waterfront. Photo by George Brainerd. Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

While welcoming motorists to his hotel, Thompson did not neglect tourists who had arrived in Port Jefferson by rail or yacht. Events such as Old Home Week in 1911 brought thousands to the village, numbers of whom stayed at the Ardencraig.

Advertised in Port Jefferson’s newspapers as a “popular place for particular people,” the inn was also known among villagers for family gatherings, wedding receptions, card parties and balls.

After years of success, the Ardencraig’s run of good luck ended on March 2, 1920, when the inn was destroyed by a fire that purportedly originated with a defective flue. The hotel’s staff and guests, as well as Thompson and his wife, all escaped the burning building.

Following the blaze, Thompson presented plans to replace the Ardencraig with a 75-room hotel and an adjoining 1,300-seat theater, but without a sufficient number of investors, the project died.

Undaunted, Thompson built a new business on the site of his former hotel. Opening in 1920, the Ardencraig Bowling Alleys and Billiard Parlor was located on the north side of Arden Place. Known as the “Annex,” the structure featured three Brunswick alleys and four billiard tables on the first floor and a rooming house on the second.

The Ardencraig Alleys flouted the prohibition laws, leading to Thompson’s arrest in both 1922 and 1923 for illegally selling alcoholic beverages. After more violations of the Volstead Act, a judge granted a padlock injunction closing the business for one year.

The Ardencraig Alleys reopened in 1924, but without Thompson as the proprietor. He had leased the establishment to managers who had pledged to respect the dry laws.

Thompson left Port Jefferson in 1926 and became the treasurer of the Long Island Association. His move triggered more talks about building a hotel on the Ardencraig site, but again nothing materialized. 

Meanwhile, the renamed Ardencraig Bowling and Billiard Academy operated under a succession of managers but closed because of lagging business. There was a call to purchase the property and use the building as a community center, but the proposal fell on deaf ears.

Although there was little interest in developing a hotel or community center on the Ardencraig site, the land was valued for other purposes.

The Port Jefferson Fire Department often used the empty Ardencraig property to hold its annual summer carnivals.

Because of its prized location in downtown Port Jefferson, the vacant Ardencraig space was also seen as an ideal location for a public parking lot.

Wells Oldsmobile is pictured on the northeast corner of Port Jefferson’s Main Street and Arden Place, the site once occupied by the Ardencraig Inn. Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

In 1937, the Port Jefferson Merchants Association leased the Ardencraig site from its owner, Mary Thompson, the widow of William R. Thompson.

A portion of the Ardencraig property was quickly transformed into a parking lot, which opened in 1937 to applause from shoppers and shopkeepers alike. 

Following Mary Thompson’s death in 1942, the Ardencraig property was sold at auction with the winning bid going to Port Jefferson’s First National Bank.

Under the Bank’s direction, the dilapidated “Annex” was demolished. The east end of the Ardencraig property was then graded and opened for free parking in 1943.

In 1948, Robert F. Wells purchased the Ardencraig property, where he built an Oldsmobile showroom and service center. Opening in 1949, the dealership itself was located on the corner of Main Street and Arden Place. A parking area for customers and a used car lot was to its rear.

With the closing of the Oldsmobile agency, the space was home to a Gristede’s supermarket and later The GAP. As of this writing, the building is unoccupied. The balance of the former Ardencraig property is now the site of a Port Jefferson Village parking lot.

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.