A Detailed History of the Original Township of Huntington Past

Home , David Carll, David Carll (pilot boat), Jesse Carll, Sandy Hook pilot

A DETAILED HI STORY OF THE ORIGINAL TOWN SHIP OF HUNTI NGTON

T— T—F PA S PRESEN UTURE . — 1 65 3 1 8 60 — 1 9 2 5 I 9 3 O

Compiled by

GU Y . O H N STO N E J ,

Northport , N . Y .

1 2 6 9 .

Auspices O f

O RTH P O RT B RV R N O S E E . List o f Contributing Patrons whose contributions have

h e lpe d make po ssible the publication of this History and

Proposed Civic Improvements .

Bleul , Bruno

Bittner , Theo . O .

Burling , Chas . E .

lRe . M ac NichOl v. , W

O ik o fe r pp , Katherine

. t Burt , Henry W East Nor hport

Gildersleeve , L . B

Leighton , Roscoe S .

M e llstro m , Tage B rower , Ancel Fort Salonga

Geissler , Louis F

Jackson , Frank B .

Kellogg , R . W

Scullin , Vincent

Swayne , Francis B .

Deans , John

Baylis , Willard N .

Bixby , Henry D .

Brink , B . Deane

Brush , Geo . E .

Conklin , Douglas

r Co telyou , Geo . B .

Darling , C . P .

a Desp rd , Douglas C .

Matheson , W . J . ’ I e n dill , W . C Northport Noyes , Harriet P .

’ O B rie n , John

Overton , Dr . L . H .

Robbins , Mrs . Harry T .

M rs M ax Saltz , .

Schraeder , Albert H .

Scudder , Charles H .

Smith , Oliver K .

Steers , Henry . Inc .

Sullivan , Charles H .

811 Young , J . M . E . R .

Wheeler , F . W .

h le r \V ee . . , H R

M Kin n e c . . e y , Mrs Loretta F San Mat o , Cali fornia TOWNSH IP OF HU NTINGTON 5 .

o n This history , which a great deal of time has been

spent in collecting the necessary facts and data , is the direct

t o f b outgrow h o f the request a neigh oring paper , for an “ ” o n ORTH P ORT article the subj ect , N 75 YEARS AGO , “ an d and NORTH PORT TODAY , in the search for material for that article the great need w as recognized for a Of connected history of the entire Township Huntington , which included the present Town of Babylon up to March I I 8 2 ! 3 , 7 , and while it aims to cover the entire township it

e h deals more sp ciﬁcally wit Huntington , Babylon and

so e a Northport , and in far as practicabl they h ve been

o ever bear in treated separately , though the reader sh uld min d that the early history of Babylon and Northport is l inseparably inked to that o f Huntingt on . The great need was recognized not only for a connected history of the great events th at stand o ut a s land marks

I n s the lives o f tho e early pioneers , but for a narrative at

an d once readable and entertaining , at the same time inter t esting and instructive , from the very beginning of the whi e ’ t man s appearance in this locality up to the present momen , a history that every family in the entire To wnship including the present Town of Babylon should have one or more

a copies o f , in order th t they can thereby , not only trace back their ancestry I U [nose memorabl e days of 1 65 3 but also that they may become familiar with and able to com mun icate to others the true history of the town of which

be they have the exalted honor to citizens .

o There are of c urse , histories of Long Island , but they deal very largely with individual families and so far as known this is the only history of the Township of Hunting o f i ton , which is course the one in which we are d rectly interested . 6 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

The period from 1 8 6 1 to 1 9 2 5 has been purposely omit

ted , not because those noble heroes who participated in the

Civil War , The Spanish American War and the late World War are not worthy o f all the honor we can possibly bestow

fo r fo r upon them , they certainly are , but the reason that it would mak e this narrative to o long and too bulky to be

n o i corp rated in a volume convenient to handle , and because m every city , town and ha let has its roster of war heroes .

An effort h as been made to comply with the original

request as to conditions 75 years ago , by listing in all the l p aces in the township including Babylon , Cold Spring ,

o r Huntington , Melville , Centerp rt , G eenlawn , Northport ,

o rth o rt n w a d . East N p , Commack Ft Salonga , those who ere

and born 75 or more years ago , and who are still living , a second list o f those who have arrived at the go o d old Bible “ ” a e g of three score years and ten , and are now between . 0 a e 7 and 7 5 years , o f g, and it is very certain that those e lists will prov what has often been claimed heretofore , that

this is the healthiest section o f the United States . Those lists will be divided into three classes : First : Those born within the j urisdiction o f the original w l To nship of Huntington , and still iving therein . Second : Those born within the j urisdiction o f the original Township o f Huntington and now living outside of

that j urisdiction . Third : Those bo rn outside o f the original Township of

Huntington , but who are now residing in any of the places

heretofore mentioned . It is undoubtedly true that you have to actually live with

o pe ple to really ﬁnd them out , or to thoroughly understand we them , and since cannot live literally with those that

blazed the trail of civilization in the new world , the next best way is to consider and study the ordinances and laws

c be with which they ircumscri d themselves , for law in all TOWNSH IP OF HU NTI NGTON 7 ages has prescribed the mode of living that at least the maj ority are supposed to abide by in their d a ily walk through li fe . To start with then we must turn time backward in its f o f light to the days the primeval forest , that the Red Man disturbed not except fo r material for his can o es and branches

his w o o f for lodges , and through hich the m ccasins so many generations of savages had worn their narrow paths

- e or trails until they were often times more than a foot d ep , back to those days when every male w as an archer of almost unerring marksmanship a n d exceedingly dexterous and clever with his spe ar and when deer a n d other wild game were plenti ful on Long Island , when the wealth of our forefathers was measured by produce and the number o f live stock a man possessed , when modern conveniences were e not ven conceived or dreamed of , when it required almost superhuman bravery to push into hitherto unknown terri t lo tory , there to build by means of clumsy ools a gcabin they might call home .

In those days their automobile was an o x - cart and cart paths following the old Indian trails their c oncrete high

w o ways , while o den plough shares tipped with iron , served

t un as their Ford trac or and the old match lock g , the forerunner of the old ﬂint lock served as their magazine riﬂe . This history will tend to unfold to us a view of the

S o f ocial , political , religious and inner li fe our ancestors ,

n and to our present generation of you g people, many things they done as herein related will seem decidedly queer and out of place in this day and age, and yet it is not only probable but almost certain that our m anner of living and our methods of working and accomplishing things and which we now deem the most wonderful the world has ever known (and indeed they are ) will appear decidedly grotesque and HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

q ueer and out o f place to our prec o cious posterity of a

generation hence , in fact it would not surprise me any , i f

s i uch was the case within the next ten or f fteen years .

\Vh a t bravery and fortitude w ere displayed by th e

women o f that day will never be known , though tribute has be e n and will o f course be paid to them in a general

— to way , and while no doubt they o ften times had reason ques

tion why some things were done , or why such and such a O move was made , we have no record f any murmuring or

o n so complaint their part , it is certain they were then , as ’ so they are now , man s best friend , his guardian angel to

speak , and the means whereby the race has continued to

n o bilitv ascend to higher planes o f justice , of humanity , o f

and of righteousness . It was people of such sturdy traits of character and

u n bravery that le ft England for the new world , a world known to them and settling ﬁrst in New England , then

emigrated to Huntington either by boat from Connecticut , or arriving from the west by way of Hempstead or possibly following the Indian trails from the older settlements at

S outhold and Southampton .

We know not whence they came or how they came , but we do know it was unquestionably a long tedious j ourney , that would no doubt and did try the stoutest hearts and from which we , who have been reared in the lap o f

w . luxury , ould turn away in fear and trembling I I Tradition , and it is tradition only , says there were

families that ﬁrst settled in Huntington . The ﬁrst definite in formation that we possess is 1 65 3

in when the ﬁrst purchase was made from the Indians , but a smu ch as Southampton and Southold were ﬁrst settled in 1 640 and are the oldest English settlements in New York

State , it is quite possible and probable that some more ven ture so me souls had traveled through here and being fasci TOWN SH IP OF HU NTI NGTON 9 n a ted by the natural beauties of th e lo cality had made their peace with the natives and settled here .

When the ﬁrst deed w as made to the white settlers there

M a tin n eco ck s were three Indian tribes in this vicinity , the on the north side and as far south as the middle o f the

M a rse a ue s a Island , the p g to the southwest , and the Suc togues the southeastern part .

Ra seo k an M atin n e co ck s ack a o ush a was chief of the , T p chief o f the M a rsepa gues and Reso ssech o k chief of the

to S uca gues . All o f the Indian tribes o n Long Island had been deci mated by long wars with New England tribes to whom they

b e had paid annual tribute in years gone y , but at this tim

1 6 e 5 3 they recogniz d the sovereignty of the Montauks . located around Montauk Point and whose chief w a s Wyan f

w as dance , and it quite essential in making deeds to have

W an d an ce them conﬁrmed by y , the Grand Sachem , and several which were n o t so conﬁrmed became the subj ect o f quite some litigation . Wyan d an c e died in 1 659 and was succeed ed by his so n Ri m o n co .

The territory embraced under the sway of the M atinn e cocks was called K e tew o mo k e and Rase o k a n was known a s

o f K etew o mo k e the Sagamore . I f the ﬁrst settlers knew why the district was so named by the Indians they failed to make it a matter of record , and neither do we know Why the English called it Hunting

it o a ton , though is generally supp sed to h ve been because of

a the abundance of game , making it a f vorite hunting ground

for both the Indians and the English . There were three distinct purchases made from the M atin n eco ck Indians who at this time according to the best i o 0 n formation numbered only ab ut 3 families . The ﬁrst deed was made to three residents of Oyster I O H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGINAL

Bay and the same day assigned by them to several residents o f Huntington .

Un fortunately the assignment has been lost , but the original deed is still a matter of record and is here produced in full . It shows most conclusively that the white man never did treat his red brother , as he himsel f would like to be treated , for this deed is not unlike many executed through o ut in the country , fact many times we know the Indians possessions were taken from him by sheer force without any remuneration . “ Articles o f agreement betwixt Ras eo k an Sagamore of

M a tin n ico k e o n e H o uldbro k e , of the part , and Richard ,

Robert Williams , Daniel Whitehead , of the other party , witnesseth as followeth Know all men w h o me these present writings may any way concerne that I Raseo k an do sell and make over unto

H o uldbrock e a the aforesaid parties Richard , Rob rt Willi ms

D e and aniel Whitehead , their heirs , ex cutors or assigns , a

uan titie lo n certain q o f land , y g and being upon Long

a e Isl nd , bounded upon the West sid with a river commonly

ach a ueta ck called by the Indians N q , on the North side with

sea O ca th o ut ck e the and going eastward to a river called p y , o n the south side to the utmost part of my bounds promis

ing , and by virtue hereof I do promise to free the above saide lands from all title o ff and claim tha t shall be made unto it by reason o f any former act ; in consideration of

H o uldbro ck which land the a fore said Richard , Robert Williams and Daniel Whitehead doth promise unto the said

Ra seo k an : 6 6 6 6 as followeth coats , kettles , hatchets , 6 I O 6 howes (hose ) , shirts , knives , fathom of wampum , 0 0 3 muxes (awls ) , 3 needles , further the said sachem doth promise to go o r send some one in twenty days to show and

o ut b a mark the ounds , and in c se it prove not according to expectation then this writing to be vo yd e O f none TOWN SH I P OF HUNTINGTON 1 1

e fectt , but in case it be , then this writing to stand in full

force , power and virtue .

t 1 Witness our hands the 2 h of April 65 3 .

Th m a mo r e ark X of the S ga . The mark of The mark X o f H ew o ikes Richard X H o ulbro ck X Muhama Robert X Williams X Syhar Daniell X Whitehead X P o yn eypa X Nauamara w as X Nesceh e X M ah en as X Yapacaman X On amycas X Scan o my X M anyt o ny An ch Opin The mark X of P o an epo n X Wercocc u X P en etun X Winh amas X N asco re t X Asgeleues X Suan sp ac X Mamaram X Nemapapam X Wo mpo m X Campas

This is a true coppe of the o rign alldeed w itn es our

hands , Thomas Richards Mos es Jo hnson Recorded in the ofﬁce at New York 1 1 th

1 66 . day of November , 7

Matthias Nicolls , Sec .

The prope rty included in this deed extended from

atcha uetack o n O k at N g or Cold SpringHarbor the west , p k o wt ck e o n y , or Cow Harbor bro k on the east , the Sou d on the north and to what w a s then term ed Country Path on

a n d 6 the south , contained square miles more or less . It did ’ ’ not include Lloyd s Neck o r Eaton s Neck .

’ l 2 0 1 6 Horse or L oyd s Neck was deeded Sept . , 54 to

a W a ee Samuel M yo , Danil hitehe d and Peter Wright for thr 1 2 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

cutto s e coats , three shirts . two , three hatchets , three ho s , tw o fathom o f wampum , six knives , two pair o f stockings , two pair o f sh o es .

0 1 6 6 The eastern purchase made July 3 , 5 is treated o f

o r h rt r under N t po . It carried the bounda y east to Smithville o r Smithtown .

The Indian deed of Five Necks o n the South Side from the S uca to gues and included in the Town o f Babylon is treated of under the heading , Babylon . O It is to the everlasting credit f these fearless pioneers , that even in that day , the subj ect of education was a very

e fo r 1 6 o r p rtinent question . at a town meeting held in 5 7

2 68 w a s H o uld s years ago , an agreement made with Jonas

2 o f worth , an educated Englishman , then 4 years age , and this agreement is such a unique document it is here produced that young and o ld may fully appreciate the real status o f

Fir P u li h o o the s t b c S c lin the town of Huntington .

A covenant and agreement , made the eleventh day o f February 1 65 7 at a Corte or Town meeting

betwixt the Inhabitants of ye Towne of Huntington ,

o n e H o uld sw o rth o f the partie , and Jonas , of the

H o uld sw o rth other partie , whereby the said Jonas doth engage himsel f to the saide Inhabitants during

be 1 ye terme of foure years , to expired from the 3 day o f April next en sue ingthe day of the date

Fo r o o r hereof , to sch ole such persons children as shall be put to him fo r that end by ye saide Inhabit

ants . And likewise the saide Inhabitants doth also engage themselves to the said Jonas H o uld sw o rth for to build him a sufﬁcient house and to give him with ye said house a percell of gro un de adjoining to it for

accommodation thereunto . And furthermore the saide Inha bitants d o th likewise engage themselves to TOWN SH IP OF H U NTI NGTON 1 3

a H o uld sw o rth p y unto ye said Jonas , and in con sideration o f his said schooling twenty ﬁve pounds l (Eng ish accompt . ) and his diet the ﬁrst year and also to allow him what more may come in by ye

sch o oling of any that come from o ther parts . The said twenty ﬁve pounds is to be paid ye said Jon as as followeth Three pounds twelve shillings in butter

six at pence ye pound , and seven pounds , two shillings w in good ell sized merchantable wampum , that is

o r co mo dit e s well strung strand , or in such y as will

suite him fo r clothing . These to be paid him by ye b ﬁrst of Octo er , and three pounds twelve shillings “ ” c m o n e in o e , half in wheat and ye other in Indian , at three and ﬁve shillings ye bushel (provided it be

. good and merchantable ) to be paid by ye ﬁrst of

March . Also ten pounds fourteen shillings in well two thriving young cattle , that shall then be betwixt

o n e b and four years old , the hal f eing in the steare

e are kind , these to be delivered him when the y is

expired .

tw o 0 And also the next ensuing years , T pay the said Jonas H o uld sw o rth Thirty ﬁve pounds ye

eare fo re sai- d alo w an ce y , with ye o f what may come

a in by such s co me from other parts . The said thirty

: ﬁve pounds is to be paid as followeth , viz ﬁve pounds in butter at six pe nce ye pound and ten poun ds

o r in such wampum as is above mentioned , in such

c o mo dit e s y as will suit him , these all to be paid by ye ﬁrst o f October ; and ﬁve po unds in come by ye

o f first March , the half in wheat , the other in Indian at five and three shillings per bushel (so that it be goo d and merchantable ) and fi fteen pounds in well

w Old thriving cattle bet ixt two—and four years , the hal f being in ye steare kind these are to be delivere d 1 4 H I STOR Y OF TH E ORIGI NAL

when ye y ea re is expired (being valued by indi fferent

men ) . And the fourth o r last ye are to pay the said Jonas H o uld sw o rth forty po unds in such pay as is above mentioned accordingto the nature and time

ro o rtio n able l d p p y , and at the foresai times of pay

w o ment . Also it is agreed of , that ﬁre o d be gotten and brought fo r the schoo le when ye season shall

to require it , by such as send their children school ; and that the said Jonas H o uld sw o rth shall have liberty yearly for to choose foure men that shall be bound to him fo r the true performance o f the fore

said engagement .

It certainly is n o t a very difﬁcult conundrum to guess who drew up that very binding agreement . Produce was the medium O f exchange then and fo r many years thereafter , there being little real money in the

1 6 2 6 a o country , and in 79 which is 4 years g, the Court o f Sessions at Southampton established the following rates 6 (1 Winter wheat 4 shillings per bushel ; summer wheat 3 S . ;

2 2 6 (1 Indian corn S . 3 d ; rye S . ; pork 3 d . per pound ;

2 o il bee f d ; S . per barrel . In these good Old days we sometimes talk so glibly

- an about , they had no stoves , tin ware , plated ware o f y kind , ’ o r china , porcelain , queen s ware , no table cloths table forks ,

in stru no carpets and few had any pictures , watches , musical

o f ments or works art to adorn their homes , and tea and f w co fee ere not to be found on their tables .

o f o Imagine my lady today , being transp rted to that day ’ a n d o f age , when the width men s breeches and the length ’ o f women s dresses were all regulated by law . It would no doubt seem as i f we were living in another world i f we had to get along without forks and our silver

I HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

The practice being for the auctioneer to light a piece

' e o f candle an inch long , and the p rson who put in the last bid as the last ﬂicker of the candle expired took the prope rty . This was the custom that was followed for many gener

i e a t o n s at auction sales o f prop rty .

’ A couple desiring to elope could not on a moment s

! n o tic e ~be married at The little church around the corner , but they must have their names called three successive Lord ’ s days in the meeting house in the parish where they resided , or obtain a license from the governor ; they could “ ” “ o r then be married by a minister a Justice of the Peace , provided “they purge themselves by oath before the minister o r j ustice that they are unmarried , and any one taking a false oath o f this kind was liable to the punishment pre “ — be scribed by law , viz bored through the tongue with a ” h o t iron .

fo r o u r be is The reason some of roads ing so crooked , that the ﬁrst roads naturally followed the Indian paths or trails and it is stated that they were narrow and the feet o f

o f so many generations aborigines had trodden them , that the ground was w orn away to the depth o f a foot or more so they could be followed on the darkest night without ditﬁ culty . The laws were extremely rigid in those days and must have been obeyed by practically every one , as the records

a to f il disclose any persons that were put to death . \Vh ile they may appe ar to be very harsh and some might term them inhuman and cruel , they seem to have been very effective and nobly served the purpo se fo r which they were created .

T o f here were eleven crimes , the violation which was m punishable by death . A ong them were murder , bearing

false witness , maliciously to cause a conviction in a capital case , expressly denying the true God , denying the authority TOWN SH IP OF H UNTI NGTO N 1 7

o f o r the king raising armies to resist him , children over

1 6 . smiting their parents , forgery and arson Burglary and

: f highway robbery were punishable as follows First o fense , b - f randing on the fore head ; second o fense , branding as be fore f and whipping severely ; third o fense , death . Stealing clothes

o ut hanging to dry or robbing orchards or gardens , the

ff o r o . ender was publicly whipped Stealing boats , cows hogs

’ w as followed by cutting o ff o n e of the offender s ears .

2 0 Firing woods was punishable with stripes , lying or pub lishin gfalse news with seven hours in the stocks or not 0 exceeding 4 stripes . Gamblers , drunkards and disorderly persons were put in the stocks o r whipped . Every town was required to have stocks erected in the most public place . ’ The constable s fee fo r whipping was tw o shillings and six pe nce. I f the penalty prescribed for burglary and highway rob bery was put In effect in New Yo rk City their troubles would soon be over and it would also be a good plan fo r o u r villages to adopt , i f the burglars that annually plunder the homes of o u r summer residents during the winter time could be apprehended .

w 1 The ﬁrst church a s erected in Huntington in 665 .

As the church had no bell , the service was announced by beating a drum . The seats and even the pulpit were roughly

o n constructed , no carpet the ﬂoor , no provisions for heating

r e ho t o r o the church in winte , the p ople taking bricks fo t s to toves with them the service . Today we languish and almost perish i f the ministe r happens to preach more than twenty minutes , but in the old days the service be gan in the morning and continued until

fo r late in the afternoon , except a short recess for luncheon .

The cost of building the church and parsonage , the ’ minister s sa lary and all other church expenses were put into

w o f the to n rate taxation and levied and collected . I 8 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

o f u It is told one old Q aker , Thomas Powell by name , that he would constantly rebe l against paying taxes to sup port a religion in which he disclaimed all interest . He

to 1 6 6 - 1 68 1 re fused pay six years taxes , 7 amounting to £ 1 d . 8 I . 0 , 5 S , but such pressure was brought to bear upon him , that it seemed the only alternative left him was to pay u o r to p , leave town . He decided pay and remain in Hunt in gto n .

to When we stop consider the simple , rough , primitive ,

o f unattractive church that day, and the comfort and ele gance of cushioned pews and velvet carpe ts and pipe organs

o f of the church today , the contrast is very great indeed , but we must remember that many of them had left England , in order that here they might worship God according to their

so an d conscience , and they mani fested a zeal , energy and devotion that would. overcome any and all obstacles , and that neither length of sermon o r distance to be travelled could in nowise dim , and that gave to their religion a charm and attractiveness and be auty that the modern church it with all s facilities can hardly hope to supply . The ﬁrst will mentioned in the Town Records is a most interesting document . It was the w ill o f Jeffrey Este who resided at Salem in

1 6 o ld 3 7 , afterward at Southold and was an man when he

To n sﬁeld moved to Huntington . His children were , Isaac and Catherine . Just imagine yoursel f to be the daughter

and see h o w longit takes you to ﬁgure out your inheritance . It also appears that a good bed in those days was a priceless heritage and even now is not a thing to be despised a s those who have travelled will bear testimony . Here is

the will verbatim .

Je fe ry Este d eseased the 4th of Je n uary 5 7 h aveing mad his will and d espo sed o f his estat as fo llueth TOWN SH IP OF H U NTI NGTON 1 9 — I h e gave to h is so n Isak Easte sh o lld have A bedd and

g . all th—at thar unto belon ing 2 2 0 shillings in sh ew es or i f henry sk o dar so can to his dafter . — 3 h e bequeathed his house and lote to Jonathan Sk o dar the so n of h en ary sk o da r and his father to be his garden ar till his so n come the age of 2 1 yea res and the rest of his estat

H en r k o r h en ar k o d ar to a y s da of huntington . I y S being exetar in the p resun t o f thes w itn eses the 2 3 of Jen un ry 59 .

Jonas Wood .

B n dik en c . Thos . y There were some very interesting experiences and prob

o ne lems that the Court Records disclose, particularly of

r 66 o 1 8 . Sarah Sooper Soper . The ﬁrst o ne about Remem ber these are occurrences that did not tak e place a thousand

a o ur . miles aw y , but right in own town —“ Marke Megs plaintive Against Sarah Sooper wi fe of

00 M le o n henry S pe r Defendant in an aceon of o stac . the plaintive Declareth that shee Coming to my house in a violent mannar Contrary to order given her by ye augh

th o ritie Ra ile in to the contrary, betterly gand vehemently p revo k ingme by words saying shee w as come to dame mee and that I was a d amde ould d evilland A Rogue i f I did not throw her into the ﬁre and her husband stoo d by her an d

did not Rebuke her for it which I shall prove . The Court ﬁnds for the plaintive in every Branch of the Declaraco n that the Defendant hath Raishly and unreason ably an sured Marke Megs for which the defendant is to if i satt s act o n . give public secondly, in slanderous Lyes against Mark Megs as hee proved ffo r which offence the

sto k s Defendant is to sit in the . Lastly for Molesting the plaintive in Coming to his bous and Railein gAgainst him in A very unreasonable manno r when shee was Commanded 2 0 HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGINAL

a u h th o ritie ffo r By g to the Contrary , which Contempt the it de fendant to s in the stocks . The plainti ff to pay Cost of Court in Respect the D e fe n ’ l ’ i f . a so e s st dant su fers the Law and i f , i f the defendant p in such a Ra ile in gand Re vile in gman o n r that the Complaints coms in the like M a n n o r to Augh th o rytie that then the

Defend . to be Bound to her good Behaviour or els to give

se cu ritie risso n good or to Bee sent to p . the De fendant sarah S 00 per Charged Marke Megs the plaintive that hee would Murder her and that shee now ” gave notice o f it that after it w a s Don it might bee k n o w n e .

S Neither the threat o f itting in the stocks , being sent to p rison or being murdered by Marke Megs seemed to phase the indomitable Sarah as witnesseth the following March

1 6 2 7 , 4 years later .

At a Court held in huntington o n the 1 3 th Daie o ff

‘ march in the tw e n tie fo w e rth o f the Raine o f our so uvr.

d Ch a rls Lor the second King o f great Briton , france , and

. : 1 6 2 . Ireland etc Anno Dom . 7 . By Capt John Maning Justice of the pease and high Sh eirfe o ff York sh e are and

M e o f r. Jonas Wood Justice o f the peac and the Overseers h t e sd . towne . Whereas Marke Megs and Avis his wi fe ’ p sen ted A complaint against Sarah Sooper wi fe o f henry soope r for her veya rio us carradges towards th e complainants and fo r former miscarradge s and abuse o f Augh to ritie whereby the said Sarah s 00per Laye under the sentan ce Off a towne C o o rt for Co rpa rallpunishment and it was n o t

inflicted .

C o o r d This t have there fore ordered that i f the s . sarah s 00per wi fe or henry sooper pursist in turbelen ce of sp e rit without Re fo rma co n that fo r the ﬁrst offence whether con tempt o f Augh th o ritie o r abuse of her Na ighbo urs for the TOWN S - H I P OF HU NTI NGTON 2 1

sd Re ceve ﬁrst Offence committed by her the . Sarah to ﬁfte e n e stripes forthwith after Complaint Bee made to

Aughth o ritie at the Most public place in the towne . Also e Whereas henry sooper Comp lained against Marke

ro vo k e in Co o rt Meges for p ghim , the see cause to Lay a d ﬁne of six shillings and eight pence uppo n him the s . megs

e for his Br ach of the peace . Also e that henry s o o per for his abuesfullca rradge and p ro vo ca co n s against Mark megs in his h o us and against the said megs this Co o rt hath o rd red that him the Sooper shall paye all charges herein th at it may fo r th e future time ” take warning th at hee Commit no m o re such folly .

Evidently Sarah and Henry j ust doted on being in the limelight and where els e could they shine more than in the

f a court room , and what di ference would little matter o f

s so fifteen tripes make , particularly i f not inflicted , and they developed a real spirit of adventure and excitement and in their final act seemed to have passed o ff the stage

o for g od . What controversies or quarrels they may have had , what depredations they may have committed or what crimes may have been laid at their door since 1 672 it all 1 6 6 evidently culminated in one great court scene in Sept . 7 as follows .

t 1 1 th 1 6 6 Att a Court held in Huntingon the o f Sep t . 7 by the constable overseers of the same towne they being I ames Ch etch este r Const . Joseph Whitman Samuel] Tittus Jonas Wood

Tho . Powell

Simo n lane Plant. against

Henry Soper and his wi fe De fts . S H I 2 I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

d e fe n de n ts The plant . declares that the have confest that

o they did fetch away fruit from the orchard f Jacob . Walker and would fetch away more in spite o f his teeth an d when I demanded o f them why they stole my apples they replyed they had as much right to them as I and would fetch them w away in spit o f my teeth for they ere common . this being

1 0th o f the this Instant .

' de o ssissio n o f 6 The p John Rogers aged 3 years . this deponent testiﬁeth that hee was in the orchard and Hen Soapers boy was a to p o f the peach tree without the fence soe Mr . lane said to the boy Sarra will you never leave of

th ee ﬁn trick e s doe your g , then soaper hee replied , who you

th ee f th ee f h as call , lane replied , you I call that taken away

h o w erl my fruit daly y , soaper replied you roge I have as

as o much to doe here thou hast . up n that lane fetched a stick and bid soaper goe o ff his ground o r else he would

o e m n make him g of , soaper replied it was com o and hee would stay there in spit of his teeth , then soapers wi fe com

wee and said lane what hast thou to doe here more than ,

lo w se e yea y Roge pay mee what thou ow st mee . lane said to soape r sarra i f I catch thee here to marrow morning I

as will shout thee , soaper replied I have a goun well as thee and I ’ ll meet thee here to marrow and sarah soaper said to ” fo rsw o rn Ro a e lane hee was a falce e g.

The reader will please note that Sarah had the last word .

Let o ur go od house - keepers o f tod ay pause and reﬂect ’ si 1 6 as they p their four o clock tea , that their sisters of 5 3 6 5 had to pound their own corn in mortars , and you con tractors and carpe nters meditate on your brothers of that age making their log ca bins and clap boards With axes and cleavers . O f course that condition did not exist for any length of e time , and soon they were building dams and er cting mills

2 4 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

- H ihbe e a s Edward g apparently possessed , sum neck , w evidenced by the follo ing Court Record .

Thos . Scudder vs . Edward H igbee . Thomas Sk o d a r plaintive against E a d w ard bigbe de fendant in an ack cio n of d e fama sio n to the damag of a hundred pound the plaintive d ecla ime th that E adw ard higbe has charged hem that he and his wi fe are both in fere o f thei r

o f . li fes the plaintive . the de fendant ownes the charg k t 1 the 1 7 o f o c t o 660 . thomas sk o d ar plaintive against E adward h igbe defendant in an a ck cio n o f slan d a r to damag of tw e n tipo und th e plaintive d e clame th that the de fendant charged hem with

h o uld in o th ro th e the g f hem by the t hall f an oure .

o o f d e o seth h ibe dep sition good Laten . he p that good g sed that thomas sk o d ar tok hem by the th ro t and h elld hem hall f an o r th ro e ll ouar thar about and all most t e d hem .

fo r ack io n sk o dars a dw a rd the ﬁrst of the cort Thomas , E higbe is to give publick satis fackc io n or pay the Sk o dd ar

o un d e ﬁve p s with the cost and charg of the cort . for the second the cort ﬁnds for the plaintive that th e defendant sha llgive publick satis fa ck cio n o r pay 2 0 shilling and all so to pay 1 0 shilling for his ly with the cost and

o f charge the cort .

Here is an interesting account where all power was

’ vested in 3 men , but probably none of us would envy their j ob .

m 1 6 1 . At a towne meting the 2 o f d esa bar 6 . Mr

Sticklen , and William Smith , thomas benedick was chosen by the town es consent to end any difference between n ayba r TOWNSH IP OF H UNTI NGTO N 2 5

a n d n aybar in and by every waye untill the next court o f e lection (or session ) at harford and in case the delinquent

an sw ar re fuse to apare be fore them to , it is the townes mind that either o f them shall have power to gra n te a warrant o r w a ran ts to compell him o r thay to make thare aparan ce a n d stand to the award and all so it is agreed that the p laintive and defendant shall have liberty to chuse either of them a man to have th e hering and thar vote d e sidin gthe mater o f di fference betwixt them and in case thare bee any c rimmallcas committed by any person or persons o f the towne or any stranger that shallcom to toune and any way tran sgre se thay abo ve men c io n ed to have power to call in such as they th in k e mete to asist them in the matar depend

in a g. and also it was greed that inhabitants shall have against s tranga rs and stra ngars against inhabitants the beneﬁt of

t auth o r t a th o r re a ch e his y y so fere as they u yty will .

The following extracts from Town Meetings enable us

to to peer some extent into the daily lives o f our forefathers . ff Some are amusing , some display an e ort at public p rotection from those inclined to let their live stock roam

a t large , and in imagination one can picture some person p resent in those meetings continually introducing pro posed

o ordinances , the f rerunner so to speak of some of our mod ern legislators who seem to think that to intro duce a multiplicity of laws is a sure indication o f marvelous states m anship . — I At o 1 660 . w as a t wn meeting Feb 4 , it agreed that h t e widow portar should have one acare o f medow jo yn in g to k udar 2 Tho . S s akers o ccupying it so lo nge as she liveth in the towne .

e tricklo At the same me ting Mr . S n and Jonas Wood

' a n d Thomas B en idick e ware chosen magistrates and Jonas 2 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

Holdsworth , Clerk for Towne and Corte and Joseph Jenn

inges marshal] .

1 o f 1 The 0 Aprill 660 . in a town meeting it being put to vote co n sein ingjo yn in g to a jeurisd ictio n the Maj or vote was for to be under

o n itico t e risditio n C j u c .

—M r o f do same meeting . Nichlos wright oster bay

a ck n o w lle allto n gthat whar as I sed Mr . S of oster bay w a s a k n a fe and that I would prove hem so I do in for this p resen c a ck n o w legthat i did do hem rong in speaking so unadvisedly in speaking that which had no ground fo r and do forth with promis to pay in part of the charg and

tro ell t allt n 1 0 b I have put hem to that is o say Mr . S o

shilling toward the charges .

Richard Latting refused to acknowledge the authority of Connecticut over Huntington and the Court setting at Hart ford subsequently expelled him from the jurisdiction “ o n o f the alleged ground turbulent conduct , but not until some time a fter he was banished at Huntington as shown

by the following record .

2 1 6 the 8 th of June 6 0 . It wase voted and agreed at a town meeting that ould Laten sh alle take away his catello ut o f this town bounds within a fort night o r 1 4 days o r pay to the town 1 0

shilling ahead .

All so itt wase ordered at the sam meting that o ulld lating is to bring his catelland show them to 2 men home the town shall apin t be fore he drive them away or to pay

5 po un d e s . TOWN SH IP OF HU NTINGTON 2 7

It wa s v o ted and agreed at a town meting the 1 9 o f Ockto ber 1 660 that the in h abitan s shall have libartito fall whit oo k e s in any part of the towne bounds exsept in any

r r is es manes p o p iarty for the making of p p tav .

2 6 1 6 6 0 . October , A second a csio n co men st by William ludlam plain etif against henery whitn e defendant in an acsio n of trespas for brek ingthe mill and grinding severalltimes without his leve to his greate damage . the defendant deny the brek in gof the mill but confessed

: r he opened the dore and went and ground his co ne , his famel y being all sick none abell to beate , he went to inquire for the kei but could not h er of it for he was gone to the

a n d h imselve south his family with , being like to famish he

co n stra n e d was y to do it , yet notwithstanding he gave the miller his j ust towle : the va rdit of the courte in this a csio n is this they ﬁn de the defendant was necessitated to that he did f su fered and the plainti f no damage .

ffebue rar l th 1 62 y the o 6 . at a town meetting it was this day ordered that Thomas weekes and Thomas Joanes should doe their best to by a house and land in the To w n e to be and continue the Townes for the use and be n ifﬁt o f ye min istrey there in to enttertain

min is r a s te .

At a Towne meting the 1 9 of feberary 1 662 it was agreed by the magar vote that i f any of the inhabitants of hunting to n shall aftar the last of Ma rch next in sew in gshall ither by way o f gi fte or paye do give or selle e n tartan eme n t to 2 8 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGINAL

Richard Laten fo r more than the spase of o n weeke every person so o fe n d in gshall pay fo rty shillin ge s ﬁne for every time he shall o fe n d in brak e in gthis order made fo r the pe ase

of the Towne .

at a towne meting o f the in h abite nts of huntington abo ute the 7 th o f June 1 662 : it w as agreed and by vote

medd o w granted , that Mr . Leverich shall have all the that

y o cre ek e l es aboute cow harbor n both sides the , for his

ben iﬁt min este r o f yerly , so long as he continue the hunt

in o gt n . This was the salt meadows at the head of Northpo rt Harbor so they had the minister about as far away as they

o f could , the church then being to the west the present First

Presbyterian Church .

June the 7th 1 662 : it w a s this daye ordered that thar shall be no foote way through goodman chichesters lo t ; n o r shall any person or persons have liberty to pass that waye as formerly w ith o ute leave : upon the pe nalty of paying all damages that shall be done in the same house lott in come o r otherwise .

Applicants for settlement to be approved . July 6th 1 662 it is this day ordered by the to w n e smen o f Huntington that no man possing house o r lands in this town shall not at any time sell or lett or any way alin atte any part of such houses or lands to any man o r woman but such as shall be approved of by such men as the towne have chosen for that pu rpose provided they re ce it n o t such men as are honest as are well approved of by honest and xpd itio u s men only such men as have been freely entertained into the town as inhabit ants have thar libe rtie to by and whomsoever shall break e TOWN SH I P OF H U NTI NGTO N 2 9

this above mentioned order shall pay 1 0 po und to the towne . the men chosen by the towne to aprove of such as shall be presented to them are as followeth .

eve r e Mr . L g

Thos . Weekes Goodman Jones Will Smith John Lum James Chichester and Jonas Wo o d At a towne meting of the inhabitants of huntingt on July

1 6 1 66 2 e o f , it was order d that what man soever our inhabitants being legaly chosen to the o ﬁce o f a constable shall refuse to serve fo r the yer in su ingshall forthwith pay f r r f l o his e u sa lthre po unds as a ﬁne to the towne .

At a towne meting the 2 7 th o f Ap rell1 663 it was o rdered that all fen se s that are in generall either about . fe lld e s or hom lots are to be so fisently mended within 3 days a fter this me eting or else for every rode th att shall be found d e fetetive by the men that are chosen to vew th e fen se for every rode being not jo d ged sufisen t the o w enar o f the fen se sh all pay 5 shilling fine it w as further o rdare d the same meting that for time to co m all fen se s Shall be so fisen tly rep ared by the 1 0 of March o r fo r every rode that shall be found d e fetetive by the vew a re s thos that thar fence shall be un rep ay red the 1 1 of March shall pay 5

sam o dlo m shilling a rod , and at the meting william L and Jo n o th an Rogares ware chosen to vew the west end fen se s

‘ and Thomas sk udd ar and h en ary w hiso n to vew the este fe end n se s .

’ At a towne meting the 6th of Ju en e it was agreed at the sam meting that the towne plat shall be fenced in fo r 3 0 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL the generall good fo r k epin gc alfes and sh epe and horses and for the k epinghoges out of the towne and two men to be chosen to mesur the ground to give in what quantity o f fence it will amount to and C aptain sely and goo d Finch

mesaur ware chosen to the fence . At a towne meting the 6th of June 1 664 it was voted and agreed by the magar vot that Jerry Wood shall have liberty to purchas heare in this towne and to be reserved as an in h abitante . d These good old ays are apparently gone forever .

o rdared th 1 66 This by the Cort , held the 3 of July , 3 ,

w rihtin e for the g ga warrant 4 p nce , and it is further

' o rda rd sarvin 8 for the ga warrant pense , an attachment e ihten e sirvin an g p nce and gsix pence , writing execution tew shilling six pence . for entering an axion , for the clarke

2 e w itn ese s fo r shillings six p nce , for a man to shillings and

tw elfe for a woman pence . for the Jury for every Action six sh illinges an d for evry Ac tion hered by the mage strates or Co mmissio n ars ten shil hilli linges and to the Cort six s nge .

’ These sturdy pioneers did n o t h e sitate to express their

O pinions in a manner that could not be misunderstood . t 2 1 1 0 6 . Hun ington , february the , 7 To the H o narable Court of session h o ulden at south h ampten in the towne of Huntington humbly M an fe st thair Agrevence s touching the order Co n scern in gthe Rep a ireaco n o f the fort James at new yorke .

May it please the worshipful Bench . wee o f the towne of huntington Cannot see Cause to Con

Re aireaco n tribute any thing to wards the p , of the forte for

co n ceve these following Reasons , ﬁrst because wee wee are v Depri ed of the liberties o f english men , secondly wee con c eve wee have little o r n oe beneﬁts by the Law : thirdly wee

HI STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

t I t is ordered by h e maj or part o f the toune that M r .

his e n co rra me nt J ones shall have for himsel f and , for his g four ever twenty acers o f upland to bee his and rema in e his

n o t in fre n in for ever , where hee shall think best , g ghighways

w a te rrin la se s gp according to the toune true intent .

A good Liver in the good old days was pre ferable . Bee it known to all men by these presents that I Robert Johnson and mary his wi fe hath freely given a sonn called by the name o f Benj amin Johnson unto Thomas Whitson n d martha his wi fe till hee come o f age and that the said Thomas Whitson shall not dispose o f th e said child unto any person without it bee to a go o d traid e and a co n sien siu s man and a good Liver and that ye said thomas shall bring if i s e r n . him up to Readding , Righting g In witness hereo f

l r m s o a ed . have heer unto sett to my hand , the above said p

ld o e to hope per form as witness my hand . 6 6 1 8 . June Thomas Whitson .

e n euar 2 th 1 68 Huntingt on J y 3 .

A town Court being then held by his majst authority . Complaint being then made to ye constable overseers co n se rn in gJohn ﬁnch senior That he is deprived in some

o f I n tuele ctuls c measure his , and that he is very subje t to swounding fits : An d that he is very much given to extrave gent courses o f drinking strong drink where by he is like to come to want and the Town like to be burdened by him . The Constable Overseers h ave in gtak en the same into their serious consideration of the dangerous consequences th at may follow such impo te n tcy and e xtravegen cy do order that all ye known Estate that ye said John finch hath in his pres ent possession shall be attached by warrant and secured and TO\V NSH I P OF H UNTI NGTON 3 3 p re sa rve d and improved as the Constable Overseers shall think best for ye live lyh o o d and man tan en ce o f ye said John d finch whereby he may not suffer nor the Town be d amn e fie .

John Corey , Isaac Platt

e n etu s Clerk . Ep Platt

Thos . Whitson

James Smith .

J ohn mathews o f this tow n departed this Li fe the 7th d d e s r 1 ay o f e mbe 68 6 .

1 1 1 68 6 Dec . , An account taken of the estate o f John mathews de ceased .

i c idmo re Appr zed by phillip udall and John S . Seni or the

1 1 th De sembe r 1 68 6 o f .

lb . 5 d one I e rn kettle and tramell att 1 2 00 It a horse att 02 0 5 o o it an old cowe 02 00 o o

1 00 it an old chest and other small things . 0 o o owned by us Phillip Udall John S c idmo re

This account w a s exse pte d o f as ] legal .

2 th 1 68 2 huntington Jan ye 9 . Return Dav is aged about 4 5 yeres te stﬁe th that upon a

n ot n d Lords day long since , towards night In my ho s hear

e ro tin saw y sound of a hors t g. I looked out and Robart Kellam o n hors back coming from oyster bay h ave in ga bag under him which had ye like of 6 pecks in it as I thought 3 4 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

I supposed it was meal And I asked him why he set o ut from oyster bay on ye lords day to come home he said it was n o t lords day fo r it was night I said look yonder I think ye sun is hal f an hour hie and I belive you came out of oyster bay about ye beginning o f ye a fternoon meeting

o f a n d I told him I thought he wold be taken notis . I also asked him whether he had got his meal n o w he said yes he could not have it soon a n o u f to come hOm yesterday and

r fu ther saith not .

abse n se o f w o rn I k In ye ye justis s e be fore me p . sac

Platt . Thomas weeks being sworn saith that he was' at John Ke ch am h o us o n a lords day towards night and I saw Robart Kellam coming from oyster bay on hors back with a bag

under him and further saith not . The action is entered on ye back side o f ye 2 3 page o r 2 4 .

2 1 68 2 At a town court held in huntington Jan . 9 , by h is ma ist auth o r t . Th e g y y members where of are Mr . Jonas

Wood , Justis of ye peace I sack plat Constable Samuell ketcham Thomas whitson

E en etu s p platt , overseers . Iames Smith

The evidence are Thos . weeks Return Davis e n tred o n ye

e saba h y t by traveling and caring o f a burdin and the Le a e l Court ﬁnding it g y proved . The court sentence is that ye said Robart kellam shall pay twenty shilling or make such an ackn o wledgment as ye

Court shall except o f and pay what is dew to ye court . TOWN SH I P OF HUNTI N GTO N 3 5

The court Charges The Constables fees The Clerks fees

The fo llo wmgshows the Puritan inclinations of o ur

forefathers . “Where as we whos names are under written have ye last winter traveled from huntingt on to hempstead upo n ye Lords day for which we are sori yt we have sinned against god and ofended o ur n e ibo rs for which we desir go d to fo r give us and h Ope we shall never o fen d go d nor man in ye

Like maner .

Tho . Higby Edward Higbee Moses Scudder

sd . t n 1 68 . Hun i gton June 3 , 3 The above owned sub scribed In ye presents of ye Constable overseers p me

John Corey , Clerk .

2 1 6 April ye d 89 .

vo atte d The same day above sd . was and granted to Thomas Wickes libertie to sett his barne fo w r fo o tt into ye streett eastward an d to Run h is fence from ye south east corner

of his barne to ye place wheare his gatte post stands nowe .

D esember 1 8 1 6 1 the th 9 . The same daye It was voted and consented unto that All swine that shall bee found tresp asin gIn corn o r Pasture Land shall bee Drove to Pound and the owners thereof sh all

Damie paye all the g. 0 Th e same day it was vo ated consented unto that all those that have killed Wolves since thay were paide fo r in the Co untey Rate shall h ave ﬁftenn e shillings A woul fe and fo r all that shall be killed . TH 3 6 HI STO RY OF E ORIGI NA L

6 1 2 6 1 . Dec . , 9 It was voted and consented unto that Samuel ] Smith shall Bee Pound keeper .

1 6 2 Oct . 4 , 9 . The same day it was vo ate d 81 consented unto that I Ro ra s . II Jonathan gg , Jr shall have an Largement to his Lott att Cow Harbour p re vid e d that he makes A su ffican t highway higher up ye hill that ye Layers out fin d e It can bee as suffica n t a Highway as now th a re is .

April] ye 3 rd 1 69 3 .

The same Daye it was voted consented unto that Mr . Iones shall have all that graveley Knowle allowed him into his medow and not to bee accounted a s medow .

’ f Here s a problem o r the reader to solve . The same Daye it was voted and consented unto that all y e towne shall goe out to cut brush tw o Dayes In Aprel] th 1 e 7 .

I t is also voted consented unto that aney person o r persons that Doe not cut brush ye dayes a ppo yn te d I f th a v cutt not brush ye same weeke shall paye three shillings for e ach Dayes Defect .

From the granting o f a New Patent to Huntington by

Go v . 1 6 Benjamin Fletcher , Oct . 5 , 9 4 , town meetings where a llorders and regulations had been made by the people ceased and hence forth all business was conducted b y

Trustees .

An a c t was passed by the General Assembly o f th e

‘ ( o lo n lo th 1 6 y , A p ril . 93 changing the name o f Long Island TOWN SH I P OF HUNTI NGTON 3 7 to that of the Island of Nassau and the act provided that it was to be so written in all deeds and legal papers . An agreement made in Huntington in 1 765 or 7 2

v o f f years later speciﬁed the To un Huntington , Su folk

o f County , Island Nassau . The change of name was made at the insistence of Governor Fletcher in honor o f the new English King Wil

o f O liam Orange , and in spite of considerable pposition in the Assembly and o n the part of the people . There is no record apparently o f this law ever having

e be been sp ciﬁcally repealed , but it was never popular and ffi came obsolete by disuse , though the name appeared o cially

o f o f fo r w in some the earlier acts statehood , example la s of

1 8 1 8 0 1 1 8 1 0 1 8 1 1 8 2 2 . 7 9 , , , 3 and The ﬁrst use of the term Long Island in an act of the

a 1 2 60 state legislature is l ws o f 79 chapter , and the last use of the term Nassau Island ofﬁc ially seems to be l aws of

1 8 2 2 2 1 , chapter 4

' The laws o f 1 8 2 8 - chapter - 2 1 provided that no statute passed by the government o f the Old Colony o f New York

so shall be considered as a law of this state , that there can f i be no doubt that the present o ﬁcial name s Long Island .

The following appe ars to be the ﬁrst order issued by the newly created Board o f Trustees .

2 1 6 March 4 , 9 5 . It is ordered By the trustees o f the free holders and c ommonality o f the towne o f Huntington that no person

o f o ut shall take , ues , work up or Dispose to any of ye township any timber o r any other Right P rivilidgbel o nging to m the town Lying , In Common , without li fe fro the town : upon ye penalty o f the fo rfie t o f ye timbar or other things so taken wrought or Disposed of and treble the value of ye same to the town : And whosoever shall fall any timber 3 8 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGINAL upon any Land not laid out and Doth not make a Improve ment o f it within two months time It shall be Law ful] fo r any person so finding the same to work it up : And it is ordered That w h o me soever pe ele th any standing trees for bark for their use o f tanning : they shall fo rfit five shillings for every tree found so peeled .

1 6 May 7 , 95 Joseph Bailey , Justus Wickes , John m Wood , Capt . Wickes , John Ada s , Thomas Brush , Jonas

o d e eare Wo were chosen truste s for this present y .

Here is the ﬁrst formal laying out of a highway . 1 6 May the 8 th 9 5 . Laide o ut by the survaiers of the To w n e of Huntington a highway begining at the head of ye w igrn an swamp six Rods In width upland and so Running by the sw ampe An d

n e Ba ke sid all most to the path o f the beach . h m by mee John Kic a .

] 1 8 th 1 0 April ye 7 7 . The same Day It was voted a n d Granted by ye trustees o f ye free holders and ‘Co mmo n allity of ye Town o f Hunt in to n sd D g that the a fore . Trustees o Give free Leave and

S cuder Dan ill Liberty unto Jonathan , Jonas Platt , Kelley , E lih elett w p , o . ood Joseph wood John W od , Jr to build in d ye Meeting house A gallery Across ye s . House at ye east end and a Long ye north side ye Length o f ye new Room

Th ea re A so ceate s to them and .

1 1 1 1 May , 7 . Whereas at a town meeting the ﬁrst o f May in the year 1 7 1 1 it was vo ated in the town meting whether they were willing to build a new meeting house and it was a Clear voat that it should be d o n by the town and that the trustees

4 0 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL p ound one shilling and three pe nce is for a year and every year during the terme o f ten years and the mone y is to be paid in the month o f march in every y ear .

Let us hope that the Trustees took advantage o f th e i opportun ty presented in the following .

1 1 April 7 3 . \Vh e re a s Robert Macbeth offereth to teach school in this

‘ town of Huntington both Reading , Righting and Areth matick w e whose names are under written Considering that Ignorance and Illite ratn e ss is the broadway to p ro ph a in e sse and on the Contrary that Learning and virtue is the way to true pye ty there fore Considering the advantage o f Learning and the disadvantage on the fi Contrary we think tt for to Accept o f the above sd . o f to s fer and for pay unto the d . Robert Macbeth I f he shall proceed and do the office o f a school master to the best of his skill by teaching to Read , Right and a rethmatick the several] sums we do affix our names and to pay the same quarte re ly an d att four even payments with in the year from this present date as witness our hands this d av o f aprille in the tw e lft year o f the Reign o f Queen A nne of Great brittain .

Our present day Constables would be busy i f they had to en force the following ordinance .

1 1 Town Meeting , May 5 , 7 3 . The same day it was vo a te d and agreed that the Con stable shall take Care that the boys and young pe ople in this towne in time of servis on the Lords day d o keep with in the house and from playing .

1 8 1 1 March , 7 5 . These are to give notice unto all the In habitants o f the TOWN SH I P OF HU NTI NGTON 4 1

towne of Huntington that the maj er part of sd In habitants Doth agree to gitt timber for a new meting house ; to be

sett upon the East hill a Cording to Lott all - Redy Draw d :

sd Ye sd Inhabitants part of . Inhabitants that are willing to p remo t such a Desine may apere att the house o f Justice d wood of s . town and they may have there order what to Do upon the begi n ning o f next weak to say o n Monday morning at Eight o f the Clock Datte d at Huntington March 1 8 Day and in ﬁrst yere of the Rayn o f our so varan e Lord 1 1 george : King of Gratt Brittain Anno Dom 7 5 . There was quite some dissension as to whether the new Church should be down in the hollow or up on the hill

w a s where the First Presbyterian Church now stands . It

o f eme co submitted to 3 ministers Mr . Magnus , minister J ,

P o marar . o f n euto un Wo lc Mr y ministar and Mr . y of o star y bay and it was decided to build it Where it now stands .

1 1 1 6 May , 7 . It wa s vo ated that the Constable should take Care that there be no disorder o n the S abath in the time of Divine

fo r servis and to be paid the same by the towne yearly .

1 1 May 7 , 7 7 . The day abo v said it was vo ated and agreed to sell the ould meeting house to the highest bider by way of van d ue and it was sold to Jonas Platt Jun er for ﬁve pounds and two shillings to be paid in a year and to give security for the

n sd payme t as afor .

u 6th 1 1 Huntington Aug st the 7 7 . It is this day ordered and agreed by the Maj or part o f the Truste es of the town that Henry Lloyd of Queens Village shall have Liberty to build a pew in the Meeting house at his own Cost and Charge for the use o f his family H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

and his heirs provided that he shall not make use o f that fﬁ iate p rive ledge to the introduction of any minister to o c

s ff ursw asio n o r in d . meeting house o f any di erent p then is has been usual] in this place here to fore but in Case he

a c re w does the sd . pew shall to the use o f the town as much as I f this p riveledge had not been granted .

B v order o f the trustees .

John Wickes pd . Recorded by me

n E pe etus Platt town Clerk .

1 d . 1 60 . Huntingto n January the . y 7

At a Meeting o f the Trustees it wa s agreed upon By them to Provide a house in some remote p a rt of the town in order to be for the Beneﬁt for those that Might un fo r tun ately take the small - pox and further it was vo ated and agreed upon by ye trustees to for bid all Do cters and people

’ f rom e n no ck alatingor B e ingE n o ck aled in any Publick part o M ra f this town without ye consent of the aje st tes Jus . Wickes Just Williams which is appointed by the Trustees where what place they think propper and further it was voted agreed upon by the Trustees that Jus . Wickes

Jus . Williams should Prosecute and Commit any pe rson Wh atso e ve r that should Presume or cause the small po x to spread in a will ful] Manner or th retn ingin An y Manner o f spreading the Desease and whomsoever will not comply in this Reasonable and Prudential] Manner Must be De amed

81 prosecuted as A against the Civil Authority .

Shortly after the above meeting small - pox became very prevalent and there were a number of deaths resulting from va rio lus inoculation , a method used by Dr . Timon of Eng ’ 1 00 land about 7 . whereas Dr . Jenner s vaccine lymph was TOWNSH IP OF H IU NTI NGTON 43

1 - not discovered until 789 . There were two small pox t hospitals established , that o f Dr . Wiggins in eastern par of Huntingto n and on the road leadingto Dix Hills and ’ Dr . Gilbert Potter s hospital which was located at Cold

Spring .

Our forefathers seem to have had no use whatever for

the comma , and it appears very rarely in letters, deeds or as records , and oftentimes they neglected to use periods

Wo e well , and some rds that should be capitalized are not whil

no t be many that should are capitalized , but no uni formity or system apparently existed and sometimes the same word ff will be spelled di erently in the same quotation or paragraph . The following is given as a sample o f letter writing in 1 60 1 7 or 65 years ago . The reader will have to supply his own commas and som e additional periods to make th e letter

oo run sm thly .

s Isaiah Willits to Je se Willits . Kind Brother I received thine yesterday which reviveth the memory and respe ct which subsisteth I received thy account with satisfaction and can with some pleasure Inform the e that I with parents and Brother have settled again to business at our former homes where we have at present a p rospect of making a decent and com fortable Living Brother John is settled at home and I expect will con tinue Brother Isaa c is marryed four months ago to a Likely young woman o f go o d repute tho o f Lo w fortune and appears likely to be reason a a bly happy in the st te . I have two Little d aughters thri fty and well their mother at present very unwell tho I hope not likely to continue lo ng so : Father is not so well as common Mother in good health 44 HI STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

a n d our a cq ua in tan ts in general as far as I know . I con

e lude in hast the Bearer waiting .

I rem a in thy affectionate Brother .

Isaiah Willits .

At o u r former home the 1 3 th day of the 5 th Month 1 760 . P be S . Father says he remembereth a discourse and lie ve th it to be true that Lawyer Nichols wife purchased the Land whereon her grandson n o w liveth at the time her hus band was gone to england o n account o f the Controversy be tween the governors at York : by seeking into which dates a n d matter thee may perhaps discover something that is now unknown father says he does not remember huntington gut being a common name fo r any inlet but it seems likely that might have been so called by some as there abouts was

much frequented by Huntington whalemen . Remember my love to sister Clement her brother John and Isaac also desire sh e may know they remember her in

Love .

From the following marriage agreement it is quite evi dent they had no pawn shops o r second hand clothing stores

o l in the good d days . Marriage agreement between Reuben Arthur and Sarah

Jarvis .

1 60 Huntington June the 9 Day in the year 7 . The Conditions of this obligation Between me Reuben Arthur and Sarah Jarvis is such that i f we Marry I Reuben Arthur do Qu it her estate all but ﬁve and twenty po unds I Sarah Jarvis do Also o ut of the Rent o f the farme fo r the Childs Bringing up and i f I Sarah Jarvis dont have no other Darter Ruth Jarvis shall have my wearing clo ath s but i f I have other Darters then the clo ath s to be Divided Between them the wearing clo ath s I Reuben Arthur D O Hereby Bind my sel f in the sum of ﬁ fty pounds currant money to TOWN S-H I P OF HUNTI NGTON 45

stand to these Articles by my hand and seal Before these

witnesses as I have chosen .

John Bunce . Reuben Arthur (Seal )

May the 5 th 1 76 1 it was V o ate d and agreed by the Trustees o f huntington that Jacob Brush should have Lyberty to Build a samp M ill in the Meeting house Brook ’ southward o f the Blacksmith s shop 81 that he and his heirs should have the Lybe rty and p rivele dge to continue the same there as Long as he or they shall see ﬁt and i f any D ammage a crew by the water flowing any Persons Lands he or they shall make good such Dammage Neither shall he or his

w D amma Heirs stop ye ater to any Persons ge .

Jos . Lewis Pr . May the 5 th 1 76 1 it was V o ate d 81 Agreed By the trus tees o f Huntingt on that Reuben Johnson should have Lybe rty to make Tw o Gates o ne by his house and the other Down By the Cle ff a Little southward of Peter Scudders Land 81 that he the said Reuben Johnson o r his heirs should maintain 81 keep them in repai r So Long as he shall see ﬁt to continue the said Gates ther .

P D . Jos . Lewis .

The following no doubt was very interesting to Samuel

a p articularly as to the sp re suit . 1 8 1 . 6 Feb , 7 3 an Indenture from Jane Robbert ye wife o f Ge o rge to B ind her so n S amuel 1 6 years to serve from y e 3 rd Day of May next o n tillhe come to 2 1 years of age to be Bound to Jerome fleet 81 his wi fe they to ﬁnd him c lo ath s 81 V ituals to Learn him to read 81 to Give him two 46 HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

New suits of C lo a th s 1 to Labor in other for spare Days .

Solomon Ketcham .

Ap parently inoculation did not take well with the early

w . fathers , as itness the following

2 2 md 1 6 . Huntington , February the 7 3

Whereas that Contagious and Infectious Desease the small Pox hath for some Considerable time Past Been Spreading and still con tin ues to spread in Many parts o f this town Especially By means o f Innoculation whereupon Sundry and repeated Complaints have Been Made unto us the Trustees o f the town o f huntington that many Disorders 81 Irregularities have Been Commited By the Carelessness and untoward Conduct o f many Persons within the Limmets afore said w hereupo n we have thought ﬁt that such Disorders should be speedily redressed . There fore we the subscribers the Trustees o f the said town for the time Being do en n act that no Doctor shall Presume to Innoculate any person or persons within the immi L ts afore sd . and that n o t a ny person within the Lim mits a fore said shall take the In fection By Innoculation from any Doctor o r any other person whatever from the Date thereof and further that not any o n e person within the Lim mits afore said shall Presume to Let one Person Come into his o r her house In fected with the Des ease By Innoculation o r to su ffer one person to be Inno culated therein and further i f an y person Presume to o ffend or Go Contrary to this act they may expect 81 shall upo n the Complaint o f any person grieved to a n y majistra te within ye Limmits to Be Com miz e d or Bound over to the Court of session s to answer

TH I 48 HI STO RY OF E OR GI NAL

Sealed and delivered III the presence o f his Jeremiah Wood Free X Peg (Seal )

Solomon Ketcham . mark

s m Memorandum that the d . Peg above Named Did for

e u erly Live with Capt . Alexander Smith , written Be fore sealing .

Wh en this law was enacted it didn ’ t cost a small fortune to buy a pound o f pork o r bacon .

6 1 66 Town Meeting , May , 7 . The same Day it was V o a ted that there should be no hog or pig above two months o ld within ye township go without Being ringed or sufficiently cut in the nose 81 i f any person shall find any such without being ringed or sufficiently cut in the Nose it shall be Law ful] to Drive all

81 such to the pound receive one shilling pr . head and the m Da mage i f any be 81 all shall go to the poor o f the town .

6 1 6 6 . May , 7 The same Day it was V o a te d that sheep should B e k eep t and not to run out any where the ensuing year Without a sh e ea rd pp .

Be it Remembered that on the 1 8 of December 1 7 7 2

Departed this li fe Mrs . Mary Sammis and Willd and B e q u e ath the sum o f Ten Pounds Currant Money to be put out at Interest and Remain without Limitation of Time and th e Whole o f the Interest to be paid yearly and every year towards the support o f the Gospel in the P resbeterin e Co n io gre gat n o f this to w n d o f w h ich she w a s a Member? W . itness Gilbert Potter , Executor

Solomon Ketcham , Clerk . TOWN SH I P OF HUNTI NGTON 49

May the 4th 1 773 it was Voted at a General town meet in gthat the Trustees should sell and Dispose o f all that tract of Land in Huntington west neck called the Personage Land and all the Town Meadow Lying on the great east Neck and that the money arising from the sale thereof should be applyed towards P u rch a se in ga New Personage o r House and Lott in the Town spot of Huntington for the use o f ye ﬁrst Presbyterian Church and Congregation in said Town and that the said Parsonage when Bought should Ly forever for that Purpose and it was further Voted that

' w h at mo n ey should be wanting after the sale above men tio n ed should be made up By the Presbyterian society ac cording to the estimate o f their estates in the said Town and that i f no suitable Place Present when part o r all the money be collected for that purpose that all such sum o r sums Of money shall be Hired o u t until a suitable Place Present and it was further Voted that i f any Person or Persons after they have paid their part or share of said money o r are Interested in the said Personage should re move away from said Town o r turn to any other P e rsw a sio n o r society that all such Persons should Lose or be Divested o f their Interest in said Personage . The property purchased was to the west o f the o ld cemetary in Huntington Village .

M a 1 y 9 . 774 Know all Men by these Presents that we Col Platt Conkling John wood Jesse Brush Thomas Wickes and Stephen Kelcy all o f Huntington in Suffolk County have received o f Israel W o od P re sed ent Jonas Williams Esq Capt Timothy Carl] Henry Scudder and Solomon Ketcham the remaining ﬁve Trustees of the freeh o lders and Co m mo n ality of the sd Town the sum of three Hundred and ﬁve S t pounds , ix een Shillings and seven Pence hal f pe ny in 5 0 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

Cash 81 Bond being all the money that was raised for all the Town or Parsonage Land 81 meadow that was sold o n the > 4th day o f may 1 773 and whereas it was Voted o n the 4th day o f may 1 7 73 that all that sd money should be a pplyed to Buy a New Parsonage in or near the town Spot fo r the use o f the first P risbite ralChurch and Congregation in Huntingt on as may appe ar by the record thereof or Kept at Interest until] a good Oppe rtun ity did Present fo r that Purpose and whereas it was Voted again o n the 3 rd day o f may 1 774 that the five Persons first above Named Should take the Care and Charge o f the said money and Apply it to the Pu rpose mentioned in the said former Vote there fore we the said Persons first above Named do Bind our Selves 81 our heirs 81 assignes that we will apply the said money d according to the true Intent 81 meaning of the S . former vote Either by Applying the s ame towards purchasing a New Parsonage o r Keeping the Same at Interest until] a propper Oppe rtun ity Present fo r that Purpose as Witness o ur an d Hands seals this 9th day of May 1 774 . Sealed 81 Delivered Platt Conklin (Seal ) In the Presence o f John Wood (Seal ) Ananias Carl] Jesse Brush (Seal )

Joseph Lewis Thos . Wickes (Seal ) Stephen Kelcy (Seal )

The following very strong Declaration o f Rights was se t 2 1 1 forth at a meeting held June , 774 .

I st h is o wn That every freemans property is absolutely , and no man has a right to take it from him without his con sent , expressed either by himsel f or his representatives . 2 n d That therefore all taxes and duties imposed on His Majesties subjects in the America n colonies by the authority o f P a rlime n t are wholly unconstitutional and a plain viola tion of the most essential rights of B ritish subjects . TOWN SH I P OF HUNTI NGTON 5 1

3 rd That the act o f P arlimen t lately pass ed for shut

u ting p the port of Boston , or any other means or device

o r under color of law , to compel them any other of His Maj estys American subj ects to submit to Parliamentary taxation are subversive of their j ust a n d constitutional liberty . 4th That we are of Opinion that our brethren of Boston are now suffering in the common cause of British America . 5 th That therefore it is the indispensable duty of all colonies to unite in some effectual measures for the repeal of said act and every other act of P arlimen t whereby they

n are taxed for raising a reve ue . 6th That it is the Opinion o f this meeting that the most effectual means for o btaining a speedy rep eal of said acts will be to break o ff all commercial intercourse with Great

I n lish i Britain reland and the E g West India colon es . 7th An d we hereby declare ourselves ready to enter into these or such other measures as shall be agreed upo n by a generalcongress o f all th e colonies : and we recommend to the general congress to take such measures as shall be most effectual to prevent such goods as are at present in b t t America from eing raised o ex ravagant price .

o And lastly we app int Colonel Platt Conkling , John

lo r ma S s Hoba t Esq . and Tho s Wickes a committee for this town to act in conj unction with the committees o f the other

as towns in the county , a general committee for the County , to correspond with the committee of New York .

Israel Wood , President .

This famous declaration w as in reality a Declaration of Independence on a small scale and it is too bad that history seems to be silent as to the author but the writer inclines to the belief that while it is headed Huntington ’ s Declaration of Rights that it was in reality w ritten elsewhere and a copy

o e e an d pr bably forwarded to v ry , town for adoption the 5 2 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL — appointment o f a committee to c o operate w ith Ne w York

City , for there has been absolutely nothing thus far in the proc eedings either o f the Town Meetings or Trustees Meet ings that would give the slightest indication o f moving up

y o r suddenl to such high standards o f thought , expression

l anguage .

fo r 1 w as o The President o f the Board 7 74 Israel Wo d ,

\V o o d the Trustees John , Jonas Williams esq . Henry

] a n . d Scudder . Stephen Kell y . Capt Timothy Carl Solomon

Ketcham .

w as The committee appointed Col . Platt Conkling Super v \Vick e s isor , Thos . , was a Chosen Commissioner and John

Sloss Hobart , Esq . was a Justice of the Peace .

2 1 May the . 7 7 5 at a General Town Meeting it was Voted that there should be eighty men chosen to Exercise a n d be ready to March . The above was the ﬁrst real indication that appears in r the records o f any prepa ation for the great conflict , the

Revolutionary War , but it indicates they meant business a n d believed in preparedness . There were tw o companies formed in Huntington and

o r o all took part in the Battle of Brooklyn , L ng Island , after

Co n which some returned home , and others enlisted in the

tin en ta l Army .

o f They were a part of the Regiment Josiah Smith , and

2 1 1 6 served from July 9 to Aug 3 , 7 7 .

Captain John Wickes Company w as as follows :

John Wickes , Capt .

e . . I Thos Brush , st Li ut

' W 2 n Nathaniel hitman d Lieut . TOWN S -H I P OF H UNTI NGTON 5 3

Jesse Ketcham Sergt Ezra Conkling Timothy Sammis Stephen Kelley

Samuel Vail John Williams , Drummer

Nathaniel Rusco Corporal John Bennett , Fi fer

Privates

Wm . Sammis Isaiah Jarvis Samuel N o stran Peleg Smith Robert Brush Nathaniel Udale Jonas Sammis Jonas H igbee

Tho . Conkling Nathaniel Jarvis Joseph Wood Joseph Jarvis Benj Denton Caleb Rogers Phillip Sammis S amuel Wickes ' James Brush Stephen Stratton Ebenezer Sammis Obadiah Kellum ’ Gilbert Brush John M Gea r Joseph Conkling Platt Sammis Jesse Smith David Ruland Alexander Bryant N ath an ie] Sammis Josiah Smith Eliphelet Chichester Joseph Ireland Samuel Hart George E ve rit Enas Bishop

' Nathaniel Allen Jesse Willmo t

Captain Nathaniel Platt ’ s Company was as follows

Nathaniel Platt , Capt .

I . Samuel Smith , st Lieut

2 n d Henry Scudder , John Stratto n I st Sargent John Carll 2 n d Jesse Bunce 3 rd 5 4 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

J ames Hubbs I st Corporal Jedediah Mills 2 n d John Hart 3 rd

Wm . Newman , Drummer Privates

Thomas M oo re Seth Jarvis Nathaniel Taylor John Bayley Daniel Smith John Gildersleeve E pe n etu s Wood Isaac Haff Israel Mills Jesse Weeks Nathaniel Smith James Abbet Nathaniel Sammis Simon Oakes Nehemiah Brush James Haff

cudd ] Wm . Mills S Carl Matthew Smith Jo sah Wickes J o b Smith Lemuel Rose David Smith Alexander Fleet Henry Sh addain Lake Ruland

Tho . Wheeler Mathew Beale

Silas Biggs Wm . Taylor

Floyd Smith Wm . Smalling James Hubble Nehemiah Hart Moses Soper James Grifﬁs Jesse Bryan George Beale Hezekiah Smith John West Nathan Smith Joseph S c idmo re Phillip Bayley Eliphelet Hill

Wm . Gates Reuben Arthur Jonas Wo o d David Monroe James Smith

e d t I The ﬁrst British troops arriv in Hunting on , Sept . st

1 6 th e B o o 77 only six days after Battle of r klyn . They ’ were the Qu een s 1 7th Light Drago ons and are said to have

c 6 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

Here was another galling proclamation .

2 1 6 . Huntington , Sept . , 77 Sir : You are hereby directed to give orders to all the f Kings Capts . , or next commanding o ﬁcers o f Militia , in the

f C0 . to 3 d Bat . o f Su folk call their several companies to

s gether , at the usual places immediately , and to order tho e

that have taken up arms against the King , to lay them down and take the oath o f allegiance to the King , and sign a roll

O II o f submission , disclaiming and rej ecting the orders o f C gress or Committees ; and to obey the legal authority o f

f . o o . Government . This is by order Gen H we

O . Delancey . I have inclosed a true co py of the writing sent me by

O1 Gen . Howe to C . Phineas Fanning .

‘ C 0 1 . 6 . Jamaica , Queens . Sept 5 , 77

H o n . H is Ex . the . Wm . Howe . Gen and commander in chief o f all His Maj esty ’ s forces within the Colonies lying m on the Atlantic Ocean fro Nova Scotia to West Florida ,

o f inclusive , etc . having authorized me to raise a Brigade Provincials solely for the defence o f this Island to re

: establish order and govt . within the same to apprehend , to drive all concealed rebels from among His Maj esty ’ s well

f : a fected subj ects , and other essential purposes I do hereby for the encouragement o f enlisting men in the county o f

ff e re co m Su olk , give notice . that upon any p rsons o f good

a 0 mended characters , raising company o f 7 men . they shall

m o t o n e n e o n e . have com issions for Capt . L , and Ensign , and shall be paid and subsisted as the ofﬁcers and soldiers are in the British pay ; and it is hoped the inhabitants of the county

y will cheer full raise the men wanted for the service , as it will prevent the disagreeable business o f detaching them which I shall be under the necessity o f doing i f the com TOWN SH I P OF H UE NTI NGTON 5 7

an ies p cannot be raised without . Given under my hand the d ate above . ] Oliver Delancey , Brig . Gen .

Th e to d o farmers were compelled their bit too , and

i to o while the British prom sed pay th se that were loyal . they

forget to do it except in rare cases . Here was a proclama t ion issued for their special beneﬁt .

. 2 1 6 . New York , Sept 7 , 7 7 Sir : You are to desire the Justices of the Peace to s ummon the farmers of their Districts to attend at some

c o f entral place , to demand each , what grain and straw he

— to can spare as hay we must have the whole , for which ’ y ou ll give them proper Certiﬁcates to me to pay them by . The whole o f the grain and forage o f Rebels in arms is to

’ f o ff be seiz ed o r the King s use . All persons removed are to be deemed Rebels , and dealt with accordingly . John Morrison

T P r mi d o o r o f . o . un e s ssa Mr E . n C y Forage

6 Capt . Nathan Hale born in Coventry , Conn . , June .

I o 7 5 5 had j oined the Revolutionary Army as a v lunteer , and

by rose to the rank of Captain . Having been commissioned

Ge n . t Washingon to enter the British lines in New York , he c t rossed the Sound to Huntingon , success fully made his w a to m y Brooklyn , procured the desired in for ation and

I etu rn ed to o H untin to n g , remaining over night at East Neck

o f . t the home Wm Johnson . The following day he ven “ ” lured down to Th e Cedars a public inn at the head of

H t I unting on Bay ntending to return to Connecticut by bo at . and a boat that was approaching he mist o ok for the o n e he w as o fo r l oking , but it was from a British vessel and ﬁlled with British soldiers . Some Loyalist at the inn revealed his i dentity to the soldiers , he was taken to New York . con 5 8 HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

d e mn e d as a spy and sentenced to be hung and was executed O] in what was then an orchard belonging to C . Henry Rut

Was gers at East Broadway and Market Street . He only a

o 2 2 n d 2 1 n . little over years of age when executed Sept ,

1 6 w as 7 7 , but the true hero that he , is shown by his last “ words I only regret that I have but o n e li fe to lose for ” my country .

It should of course be borne in mind that the entire Island was at this time under British control and so the following proclamation is not surprising at all as they the people were literally forced to d o many disagreeable things ' so as not to endanger their families and their own lives as well .

2 1 1 6 . Huntington , Oct . , 77

The Committee of Huntington , being thoroughly con vin ced o f the injurious and inimical tendency of our former meetings and resolutions and willing to mani fest our hearty d o f d is isapprobation all such illegal measures , do hereby

as solve this committee , and far as in us lies revoke and disannul all former orders and resolutions of all committees and Congresses whatsoever , as being unduti ful to our law ful

Sovereign , repugnant to the principles of the British Con stitutio n 81 to ruinous in the extreme , the happiness and

o f prosperity this country . Proclamations very similar in character were adopted a n d signed early in November by the committees o f every town in Suffolk County as well as by the County Committee ff o f Su olk , not because the proclamation expressed the true feelings of the people but simply because they were entirely

o f under the domination the British soldiers . Those that desired to o r were forced to enter the B ritish Army made the following acknow ledgment and took the oath of Fidelity be fore a Justice of the Peace . TOWNSH IP OF HUNTI NGTON 59

I Zophar Platt one of his Maj esty ’ s Justice ’ s of the peace for the County of Suffolk d o certify that of the is duly I nlisted in the Company to be commanded by Thomas Conkling in his Maj estys Service under the Com m mand of Brig. General Delancey . that I ad inistered to him the oath of Fidelity ; and that he Acknowledged that the Clause against Mutiny and desertion had been read to

him . — 1 dated the day o f 776 . B ritish troo ps occupied barracks right in Huntingt on

village and used the Presbyterian Church for a store house ,

co m no public worship being allowed , and in addition two pa n ies o f Provincial troops mustered into the service of the

King were also quartered in Huntington , so that horses ,

all cattle , sheep and forage o f kinds were seized to supply t hese soldiers .

1 1 e On June 4th , 777 the beauti ful Stars and Strip s were o l ad pt ed by Congress as the national or patriot f ag .

Here was a drastic order issued that was bound to catch

you whether you did , or did not comply with its demands .

t rd 1 8 . Huntingon , Sept . 3 , 77 In P ersuan ce of his Excellency General Tryon order We Do Hereby Noti fy to the Inhabitants of the T ownship o f Huntington , that all the male Inhabitants From ﬁvete en years o ld to seventy that have o mited or Neglected waiting on his Excellency on the 2 n d Instant Aco rdin gto Orders : are Required to wait on his Excellency at New York on or before the I o th Day of This month on

faillure e i o f Which Th y w ll be fined five Pound , Each , and a fter the fines Are Leavid any refusing to wait o n his Ex 00 HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

c e lle ncy will be Olige d To Quit The Island with their

families . — John Ireland Isaa c Young

The Town Trustees took vigorous exception to a j oy ride o f some o f the British troo ps and asked fo r re stitutlo n and for future protection but there I s no record that their communication which reads as follows received any recog

notion whatever . To His Excellency Sir Hen ry Clinton Knight o f the most Honourable order o f the Bath Commander in Chief o f a llhis maj esties Troops in North America from Nove

s ﬁu rrid a . cotia to west , etc , etc . The Memorial and Humble Petiti o n of the Trustees o f t f the Town o f Huntingon in Su folk County ,

Humbly Sheweth .

That o n Tuesday last the 2 4th Day of November 1 7 78 A Party o f his maj esties Troops under the Command of

o n fro m Smith to w n t their Return , came to Hunting on a n d there Plundered several Houses carrying away Butter a n d the P rin cable Necessarys of Many Familys took away many fouls Destroyed wheat and carryed o ff Quantities o f c orn and Did other Great Damma ge s without Paying o r giving any Receipts for the things taken by the said Party . Your Excellencys Petitioners are Always Willing to supply his Maj esties Troops wi th any thing they want that we have to spare and there fore we Look upon it A Great Hardship to be treated in this manner since by our Oath we a re Entitled to his Maj esties Protection we Pray your Ex c ellen cy therefore to Interpose in our Behal f that we may not only have Restitution made , But for the future be Protected against Every Act o f Inj ustice and your peti tio n e rs Du tv as in Bound shall Ever Pray , etc . , etc . TOWN SH I P OF H fUNTI NGTON 6 1

There were 5 49 men from 1 5 years and upward in the Township o f Huntington that were compelled to take the Oath o f L o yalty and Peaceabl e Behaviour and their names

s are a matter of record , but have been omitted from thi

narrative . All towns o n Long Island had to go thru this same pro ce du re though o ut of the thousands that had to take the oath it is very doubt ful i f there was a single o n e of them that did so o n e o f o f his own accord , but and all in their heart hearts sympathized with and desired to help the patriot a rmies .

It has been stated that the winter o f 1 778 - 79 was very

long and intensely cold , Long Island Sound being completely frozen fo r a number o f weeks so that o n e could cross o n the

ice to and from Connecticut , and it is also stated that the I ce in New Yo rk Harbor was so thick that cannon were

to drawn across it from the city Staten Island . Our roads are well marked nowadays with Caution s igns . Here w a s o n e that every o n e n o doubt took the time to

. 1 0 1 . read in full It was put up by Loyalists March , 779 “ ” Caution to Travelers .

A party o f rebels have a place of resort at Bread and

o n b - o f Cheese Hollow , a y road from the houses two rebels ,

redw e l] to o f Nathaniel Platt and Thomas T , that the noted

T o Samuel Phillips near the B ranch . hey extend al ng the

’ ’ road from Philips to the well known Platt Carlls . They are said to be commanded by the rebel Maj or B rush o f

Huntington . The un fortunate Loyalists in this part o f the c ountry are greatly exposed to the savage cruelty of these assassins . They are few in number and unable to defend themselvesfrom the frequent incursion s o f the parties who land from Connecticut and who are supplied with provisions and intelligence by their con federates above mentioned . (3 2 H I STO R Y OF TH E ORIGI NAL

While there were undoubtedly many that gave up their w farms rather than take the Oath of Loyalty , the follo ing l ist is the only one appearing in the record . The ﬁrst name f given is that of the patriot who su fered banishment , the name at the right the Loyalist who took possession of the

farnr Cornelius Conkling by Joseph Hoit

beth a b . a C b s Thomas Brush , Jr J William Sammis Jeams Ketcham Gilbert Bryant Samuel Hitchcock Josiah Buffett Stanton 81 Birdseye Joshua Ro rge rs Nathaniel Jarvis Thomas Weeks Burr ’ Jesse Brush s John Ketcham 81 the Hobarts Isaiah Whitman Filer Dibble

Major Jesse Brush above is described as A small , well

built man with red hair , sandy complexion and a bright eye , ” strong as Hercules and bold as a lion . He is reputed to have sent the following warning to

Ketcham and his associates . “

2 th 1 8 0 . Aug . 5 , 7 I have repeatedly ordered you ,

e 1 th esp cially April 5 to leave my farm . This is the last invitation . I f you do not your next land fall will be in a 2 0 warmer climate than any you ever lived in yet , days you ” have to make your escape .

Th e year 1 78 0 i f you will recall the old days when you studied history was a rather dark period for the cause of freedom in this country and ' it is doubtful i f many could be found that really believed the colonies would achieve their independence , and to add to their discouragement the

British Parliament voted dollars , a vast sum fo r 8 000 000 those days , 5 seamen and 3 5 additional troops with which to prosecute the war more vigorously .

O4 HI STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

illik Hoba rt Conkling Abraham S c Nathaniel Williams John Sammis Ezekiel Brush \Villia m \Yard Jonas Williams Thacher Sears J oseph Hand ford Jacob Brush S o llo mo n Ketcham Mathew Bunce b Alexander Denton J .. Sammis

Jeremiah Wood , Sr . M ichal Beagle

\Vo o d . Jeremiah , Jr Nathaniel Harrison P h ﬂhp Co nk h n g Moses Jarvis Ezekiel Conkling Josiah Wheeler Thomas Conkling Sh ubalSmith J onas Platt Stephen Kelcy Timothy Conkling Jonathan Scudder S a lve n u s Chichester Thomas Scudder John Brush Henry Sammis William Place Lemuel Douglas Elizabeth Potter Joseph Weeks Joseph Sammis John Johnson Doc Platt Rh eu be n Johnson Jesse Flee tt

West Hills now a part o f South Huntington lists 2 8 families as follows :

An n a n ia s Brush \Vilmo tt Oakle y Ezekiel Brush Jesse Ketcham E liph ile t Brush Selah Platt Eliphelet Chichester John Oak e rly Malbat Burtis Samuel Oak e rle y Richard Smith Nathan Valentine Selah \Vo o d Nehemiah \Vhitman Joseph yVh ite Nathaniel Whitman

John Foster Mr . Dible TOWN SH IP OF H UNTI NGTON 65

Corras No stra n Stephen \Vh ite Widow Collier Samuel \V o o d Zophar Ketcham Joseph Ireland

Abraham Collier John Ketcham , Sr . Samuel No stran Nathaniel Brush

In The following are listed as living Long Swamp . David Smith Timothy Abbitt Samuel Lewis Jonathan Smith Robart Jarvis Phillip Smith Jeremiah Jarvis Phillip Jarvis Ichabod Smith Jesse Buffett Thomas Kellum An n an ia s Carll E lith an Smith Dicks H ills listed a few more than Cow Harbor

Northport .

Daniel Smith A mos 81 Silas Smith Cornelius Hart Isaac 81 Zebulon Smith Micah H art Nathan Platt Richard Valentine Tim o thy Car] John Hart J onah \V o o d Timothy Smith Jesse Carl Platt Carl] Jonathan Kelcy

ath an ie] f S . Baldwin N Bu fett Isaac Baldwin Daniel B lattsly Samuel Townsand Scudder Lewis E liphile t Stratton Uriah Hubbs Jesse Smith Michal Primp Selah Carll Silas \V e ek s Gilbert Carll Elisha Jillett Silas Carll Amos Soper Moses \V e e k s Ostra n Jervis \V k Ro r e r E . e e s Zophar g Simon Hu ff 66 HI STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

Old Fields n o w Greenlawn had 1 2 families as follows .

Hen ry Smith Josiah \V e e ck s Jacob Willis Ambrus \Vee ck s Z a ch e riah Smith Lemuel \Ve e ck s Jacob Ireland Platt Vail E ben e tus Conkling E liph ilet Jarvis William Lysaght Isaac Dennis

Abo ut the close o f the Revolutionary \Var there were

405 names on the Assessment Roll and the total tax - was

£ 1 2 0 1 08 t o 3 8 000 00 . 3 4 , the equivalent hen o f ab ut 3 7 The largest taxpayer was the Solomon Ketcham Estate

£ 4 1 2 and the smallest was \Vid o w Elizabeth Denton 7 .

The following proclamation by the Commander in Chie f o f the British forces no doubt raised high hopes o n the part o f those having claims against the British army . To the Inhabitants o f Huntington In C onsequence o f Proclamation from the Commander in Chie f bearing Date 4th May 1 78 3 Yo u are desired to bring in your Accounts thats unsettled from the month of August 1 7 76 to the present year 1 78 3 to

w h o Zophar Platt Esq . will give attendance every Tuesday ’ and Friday from 1 2 to 4 o clock in the A fternoon till 1 5th o f June next For all Properties supplied the British Army or ofﬁcers in the several Public Departments with their Proo f and Vouchers that the whole may be properly at tended to and sent to New York to certain ofﬁcers Ap pointed to receive them an d to register the same Prepara tory to a future settlement . By Advise o f the Trustees

John Ketcham , 2 8 th . Huntington , May Clerk . TOWN SH I P OF H UNTI N GTON 67

t While the statemen s were properly made out , and sworn w to and for arded to New York as speciﬁed , still not a dollar was ever paid . 0 There were about 8 0 claims turned in and sworn to , an d aggregating about 72 00 and ranging from a few shillings in amount to the largest o n e of 1 00 and which read as follows .

November 1 778 .

James Hubbs . Qu arter Master Nico lls of ye 1 7th Dragoons To a waggon and Horses he t o ok and never

1 00 returned valued at .

The following petition w as sent to Admiral Digby re questing the return o f the bell taken from the First Presby a teri n Church . Sir : Whereas the Church Bell of Huntington o n Long

o n e Island , was taken from this place in the year thousand ’ seven hundred seventy seven , by a Party from his maj esty s ship the swan (81 we suppose without o rd rs from any proper N authority ) and carried to New York . o t many Days since it was o n board his ma j estys brig Rhinoceros lying at the

D east ' Ri r ock near the ship yard in the ve . Where fore we

T sub the rustees of this Town , whose Names are hereunto l scribed , beg that your Excellency would be p eased to order

it , which is discriminated by the Name Huntington which

o was cast up n it , and you will very much oblige your ex cellen c s y most obedient humble servants . 2 2 1 8 Huntington , August , 7 3

His Excellency Admiral Digby .

Zebulon and the Church Bell be came almost inseparable f as witness his a ﬁdavit . O8 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

Personally appeared be fore me Zebulon Platt and made Oath that some time in the last o f November o r the ﬁrst o f

e 1 P risio n e r o f Decemb r 7 7 7 , he was taken by the Master the ship called the swan and wa s carried on bo ard o f the said ship where he sa w the Bell be longing to the Inhabitant s . o f Huntington and the Deponent further saith that he and the Bell was Shi fted on board o f a Brigg and from there he 81 the Bell was put OII board o f a Tender where the Bell was when he was sent to the Mane Guard in New York .

Zebulon Platt .

1 8 Sworn this 3 of Sept . 7 3 Before me

Zophar Platt , Justice .

A fter seven long years of military rule , great disorder prevailed and lawless bands of marauders occupying un frequented and lonesome places Would sally forth at night and plunder the inhabitants , until ﬁnally they were compelled to establish civil government and at a meeting called Aug .

2 8 1 8 me n to , 7 3 the following were chosen call the people

o f i together in case robber es , etc . m Moses Wickes , Co m.

Joshua Ketcham , South .

' Epenetus 8 mlth C rabmead o w Jesse Bryant

Zebulon Smith Dicks Hills Lemuel Carll

David Smith , Long Swamp

Jonathan Scudder , East Neck VVilmo tt Oakley West E liph ile t Chichester Hills

Israel Carll , Cold Spring TOWNSH I P OF H UNTI NGTON 69

Thomas Brush , West Neck

Capt . Wickes o To wn Sp t . Capt . Conkling

Platt Vail , Old Fields .

o v 1 8 The Continental Army was disbanded N . 3 , 7 3 by o rder of Congress and the British army evacuated New

o 2 h to York City n November 5 t . It is needless say there was great rejoicing everywhere that the colonies were now free and independent . A large number o f Tories residing in the Township o f Huntington found at the close of the war that they were very unwelcome and actually disliked and hated and so fled to Nova Scotia along with the Tories from other states .

It was a nice , easy j ob and light pay to be sexton of a church in the old days according to the following

a t a Mr . Is ac Losee agrees o take the Bill for 4 a ye r to Sweep the Meeting House once a month and cary the dirt out and Brush the Seats to ring the bell on Sundays and

81 Lectures Funerals .

This ordinance would furnish a good excuse for a little f l o n riend y call your neighbors . 1 8 6 Town Meeting , Apr . 4 , 7 . Further be it Enacted that no person shall let his Turkeys Ramble in his neighbours enclosure without one wing being cut . i f not the person has a right to kill said Turkeys and carry them to the owner .

There were some ordinances or laws promulgated long after the close of the Revolutionary War that seem very

r an d a peculia to us in this day ge . 7 0 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

rd 1 8 For example , at the town meeting April 3 , 7 7 a mong other measures enacted were the following :

C rabmead o w Voted , That the Gates at and Fresh Pond shall be kept in good repair as usual with the penalty o f ﬁve

shillings to be paid by the Person who leaves them Open .

o r Voted , That no Horses of any kind , Oxen Cows shall be allowed to run at large in the street o n the Sabbath within the Hours o f Ten OClo c k in the Morning and four Clock illthe a fternoon within one Quarter o f a mile of any House o f Publick Worship within the Town and that fo r every

o r so Horse , Ox Cow that shall be found running at large as a foresaid the owner or owners thereof shall forfeit and

o r o r fo r pay to any person persons who ask , demand sue

sum o n the same the of e shilling .

is Here a study in surveying .

t . 1 . 8 . Huntingon , N Y October 3 , 7 7 E s John Ketcham , q , Sir I take this Ope rtun ity to Give yo u the accounts of

2 o f A erel t the 7 Day Last p . We went o the head of the river to rim the Line o f the ould Patting when we came there I started at a Certain Chestnut tree in the Corner o f Joshua Smiths Lo t Near the head o f the river as we so passed the sd tree is 2 6 rods to the west o f a Certain Chest nut stump called Nico als Corner 81 2 4 ro ds to the East - ward

We n ec o ma ck o f the Pair tree called Corner . I run the Line Due South to the South Side o f the Island I Crost the South road about ﬁve or six rods to the west o f the house that m for erly be longed to Saxton but know belonging to Gilbe rt

. Carll This from your friend ,

Timothy Carll , Surveyor .

Here is a copy o f an original autograph letter o f Aaron Burr the great lawyer and statesman relative to trespassing

2 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

The early fathers did not have nervous prostration every

year as we do when a coal strike is announced , neither did they have any cause to worry OII account o f the price o f cord wood as shown by the following

8 1 8 0 Trustees Proceedings , Dec . , 7 . Resolved that any of the Inhabitants o f said Town o f Huntington may Cut Pine Timber on the Commonage be longing thereto by consent from either o f the Trustees pay

ing there fore at the rate o f Twenty ﬁve Cents pr . Waggon Load 81 i f any person shall Cut any such timber without the Consent as a foresaid they shall be deemed tre spa sso rs and

persecuted accordingly . By Order o f the Trustees

Moses Rolph , Clerk .

Only once in the Town Meeting records is there any re ference to the war o f 1 8 1 2 and that well along toward the

w a r : close of the , as shown by the following

1 8 1 . Special Town Meeting , Nov . 5 , 4 It was voted that the Sum o f two hundred and seven ’ dollars 81 8 6/ 1 00 be paid by the Town being the amount o f

fo r d - 6 00 . two bills paid Casks of pow er , 4 lb of Musket Balls and a Quantity of buck shot by the Trustees of Said Town for the Militia to Defend the Said Town with in Case o f Invasion . It was also voted to distribute the powder and balls as follows : 1 Cask of po wder and the sixth of the balls 81

shot to be Deposited with C apt . Samuel Muncy at South . A lso Voted that 1 Cask o f the powder and the sixth partt of the Balls and Shot be Deposited with Matthew

r 1 Gardiner C abmead o w or fresh pond . Also Voted that Cask o f the powder and the Sixth of the Ball Shot be

e n etus Co w . Deposited with E p Smith , Harbour Also Voted f that 1 V2 Casks of the powder and the Equal proportion o TOWN SH I P OF HU N TI NGTO N 73

the Ball and Shot be Deposited with Capt . Abel Conkling . Also Voted that 1 72 Casks o f the powder and the Equal propo rtion of the Ball and Shot be Deposited with Capt .

John Rogers .

‘

Recorded by me Moses Rolph , Town Clerk of the Said

Town of Huntington .

It will no doubt be a matter o f much surprise to pra e

th e tically every reader , to learn that such a measure as following was ever passed by the Town .

1 1 8 1 . Town Meeting , April , 7 It was Also Voted that application be made to the Legislature of this State at their next meeting to annex ” the Town of Huntington to the County o f Queens .

Recorded by Moses Rolph ,

Town Clerk . The adoption o f the above motion evidently stirred up a great deal of excitement and controversy that lasted for nearly two years and ﬁnally culminated in calling a Special

Town Meeting to consider the question .

e 8 1 8 1 . Sp cial Town Meeting , January , 9 At a Special Town Meeting held at the house o f Gilbert

o n 8 th Carll in the Town of Huntington the day of January , 1 8 1 9 by order o f the Trustees o f Said Town for the purpose of taking into consideration the propriety of petitioning the Legislature o f this State to annex the Said Town of Hunt in o h o unt gt n to t e C y of Queens . Voted and Resolved by the abo ve Said Meeting that n o pe tition be sent to the Legislature for the aforesaid purpose .

Recorded by Moses Rolph ,

Town Clerk .

Among the measures passed at the Town Meeting , Tues

1 : . 8 0 day , April 3 were the following 7 4 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

Resolved that the assessors and commissioners of High ways be entitled to one dollar pe r day fo r services as fence

e Viewers . Five hundred dollars voted to meet exp nses of maintaining the Poor of the Town . Two hundred and

o f eighty dollars voted for maintainance Common Schools . At a meeting o f the Trustees and Inhabitants of the Town o f Huntington convened by notice to take into co n sid e ratio n the alarming circumstances of Rabid Dogs running at large unquestionable o n e o r more having lately traversed nearly all the Township overspreading their baneful Poison to the great danger o f the Inhabitants in general and inj ury to property Have come to the conviction that any dogs running at large at this time are a dangerous nuisance and ought to be attended to o and that it is expe dient that every person owning a dog either kill or Secure him safely until the last Tuesday in March next , and that any person be at liberty to kill any dog found running at large out of the ” charge of the owner or some other person . Resolved unanimously by the Trustees that the above

. o n be made public Signed behalf of the Trustees .

Isaac Conklin , President .

Recorded by Moses Rolph ,

1 1 8 2 . Huntington , Feb . , 3 . Town Clerk

Extract from Town Meeting held First Tuesday in Ap ril 1 8 3 6 . Resolved that three cents pe r head be paid a s a premium for crows killed during the months of April , May and June o f 1 8 6 the current year 3 .

Our o ld friend the Long Island Railroad Company a p

in pears the Town Records .

1 At a meeting o f the Trustees o f the Town , May , TOWN SH I P OF HUNTI NGTON 75

Resolved that the President demand of the Long Island Railroad Company the sum of for damage in cutting

and destroying timber on the common lands .

Moses Rolph w as elected Town Clerk at the meeting

2 1 8 0 fo r t e - April , 5 to serve one year , and elected every o year up to and in cludingth e year 1 8 3 8 when this record

appears . 2 1 8 . 8 . Town of Huntington , Sept 9 , 3

r o 1 1 8 8 Whereas a vacancy occu red n the 8 th of Sept . 3 in the o fﬁce o f Town Clerk of said town by the death of Moses Rolph the late incumbent of said office—Now there fore we the undersigned being three of the Justices of the peace of said town do hereby in pursuance o f th e Statute

in such cases made and provided , appoint Jarvis R . Rolph to the office of Town Clerk of said town to hold the said office with the same power an d subj ect to the same duties and penalties as i f he had been duly Chosen to said office by the electors o f said town until ano ther Town Clerk shall

be appointed in his place . In Witness whereof we have afﬁxed our hands and seals to this Warrant at Huntingt on aforesaid this 2 9th day of A D 1 8 8 . September , . 3 m W . Wic kes

Joel Jarvis Justices of the Peace . Timothy Carll

The question of Licens e o r N 0 License seems to have b 1 8 6 s een one of great moment as . far back as 4 as witnes the following :

We , the Board of Justices of the Peace in and for the

ff d o Town o f Huntington , in the County of Su olk , certi fy . that the following is a correct statement of the result of a special Town Meeting held in said Town on the lgth d ay HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

d - six o f May o ne thousand eight hundre and forty . That the whole number o f votes given for License was

ﬁve hundred and ﬁve . That the whole number o f votes given for No License

e was four hundr d eighty three . l t 1 6 h 8 . Dated Huntington , g May , 4

' Rich ar B d . Post Jesse Jarvis Inspe ctors

t . Geo . Oaks of Elec ion Timothy Carll Josiah Smith served as Town Clerk from April 1 8 40 to

1 April 8 59 .

The ﬁrst re ference in the records regarding the Civil A 1 1 8 62 . u . War is in g President Lincoln had on July ,

1 8 62 o n issued a call for additional volunteers , and 1 2 2 i . 1 8 6 Aug , there appears th s record

\ o dh ull e . Vo To J Amherst , Cl rk o f the Town of Hunt in gt o n The undersigned respectfully request that a Special

wn To Meeting be immediately called , to take into consider ation the appropriation o f moneys to be used in securing

our Town quota o f recruits for the war , and providing for

o f r — t ff the families such rec uits Dated Hun ington , Su olk Y N . . 1 2 1 2 8 6 . County , Aug th , 0

Geo . Carll , William Jarvis , Aaron Jarvis , J . H . Culver ,

. . u M D , John H . D ryea , Andrew Ketcham , J . Seaman , David

Carll , William Muncey , Charles Wood , John R . Reid , Selah

C . Smith and Samuel Muncey . A call was at once issued for a special Town Meeting to A . 1 6 6 u . 1 8 2 th e be held Sat g , at house of Elias Smith at ’ a M P . Long Sw mp at one o clock , At that meeting a war fund of was author TOWN SH IP OF HU NTI NGTON 77 iz ed to be disbursed to those volunteering and not less than

be a bounty of given to each volunteer , per month to be paid to the wi fe of each volunteer and a month to be paid each child o f a volunteer betw een the ages of two and ten years . A complete list could be given of all those in the Civil

o f t War from the Township , Huntingon , including Amity

a rmin d ale Co m ville , Babylon , F g , Centerport , Huntington , mack , Cold Spring , Northport , Dix Hills and West Hills , but it would make the record to o bulky and each of these villages undoubtedly has its o w n roll o f their distinguish e d

o Civil War her es .

The following extract from the Trustees Meeting of

1 2 1 8 6 . Oct . , 7 is of great interest to us even today Resolved that the Trustees tender to the Long Island

Railroad Company a right o f way over the Town prope rty . The following was unanimously adopted : C Whereas , the Long Island Railroad ompany has caused

an to be explored d surveyed , divers lines with a view of extending the branch road from Hicksville into Huntington

village , two of which pass over a portion of the Town property , called the Poor House farm , indicating a terminus o r depot to be located either o n Main Street near the said

o n o r property , or directly it , at near the northwest side o r corner thereo f : and duly considering th e value o f suc h

a s accommodations to the inhabitants , well as the great bene ﬁt which would accrue to the freeholders and commonalty o f the Town by largely enhancing the value o f said property ,

to therefore , Resolved , That we hereby tender the said Rail road Company the right of way over the said Town prop e rt a y , on the line l st surveyed , passing through the woods ’ n f ear John Alsop s barn ; and also su ﬁcient ground , not to 78 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NA L

2 o r o exceed two ( ) acres thereabouts for a dep t , in case it is determined to locate on said land .

' f o f o r fo r And i f the o fer is accepted as to right way , both purposes named we do hereby authorize the President o f the Trustees of the Town o f Huntington for a nominal

e fo r consideration , to make and execute a de d the necessary

fo r o f o r fo r th e land , the right way , both said purposes , quantity not to ex ceed two acres o r thereabouts as above

to its named , and deliver the same the said company or agent or a committee acting therefor .

And whereas , the said line or survey indicates a gore or

’ triangle o f land to be le ft adj oining John Alsop s barn there fore .

Resolved , That the President of the said Trustees is hereby authorized , at his discretion to sell the said strip o f land to the said John Alsop o r others and execute a deed or

fo r deeds the same . The following interesting foot note is given in connec tion with the foregoing resolutions . “ It had been decided by the Long Island Railroad Co m pany to extend their road from Syosset , then the terminus

H un itn t o n of the branch road , to the village of g at a point o n o U the Po r House Farm , a little south of the nion School grounds , in case the grounds for a depot were donated to the company and certain contributions made fo r the right ” of way . The Trustees o f the Town promptly offered the company th e required land for a depot . Subsequently the President o f the road and certain land owners came into collision con

w a Ch a rlick y . cerning the right o f , and Mr , with character istic obstinacy , declining to yield anything , the arrangement for extending the road to the village fell through , and Northport havi n g offered liberal aid in procuring the right

8 0 H ISTO RY OF TH E OR IGI NAL

- o fﬁc io created ex , the Board o f Trustees o f the Town

o f Huntington , and legal successors o f the Trustees o f the freeholders and commonalty of the Town o f Hunt

in to n g , and vested with all the rights , privileges , powers , duties and j urisdiction heretofore enj oyed and exercised

e by such Trustees , over the real and personal prop rty f Th o f the Town o Huntington . e Supervisor o f the

- o fﬁc io Town shall be ex , President of the Board of

Trustees of the Town o f Huntington hereby created .

Section I I I . The President of the Trustees o f the free m t holders and com onalty o f the Town of Hunting on ,

shall upon demand , deliver to the President of the Board

o f o f Trustees o f the Town Huntington hereby created ,

‘ re co rd s bo o k s and after the date aforesaid , all , , papers ,

documents , moneys and property belonging to said Town

and then in his possession o r under his control . i Section IV . All Acts inconsistent w th this Act are hereby

repealed .

State of New York , Ofﬁce of the Secretary of State

SS . 2 I have compared the preceding with the original law o n ﬁle in this ofﬁce and do hereby certi fy that the same is a

r o f co rect transcript therefrom , and the whole of said original law . Given under my hand and seal of ofﬁce at the City

o n e a of Albany , the tenth day of May in the year thous nd , eight hundred and seventy two .

ANSO N S . WOOD ,

Secretary o f State .

Many no doubt will be interested to learn that the ﬁrst newspaper published in the Town o f Huntington was the

m 1 8 2 1 1 2 A erican Eagle in . In May 8 5 the name was TOWNSH I P OF HU NTI NGTO N 8 1

charged to the Long Island Journal o f Philosophy and 1 8 2 Cabinet of Variety . In 7 it was again changed to The

1 2 Portico and discontinued in 8 9 .

o so no o f The rec rd does not state , but doubt the burden fo r carrying the second name assigned to it , accounted its early demise .

The Long Islander w a s started in 1 8 3 8 by Walt Whit man and n o w after the lapse o f 8 7 years is one of the lead f f ing papers o Su folk County .

In view o f the appropriation voted at the last election fo r the erection o f an iron fence around the Old Cemetery at Nassau Avenue an d Main Street it will no doubt be of interest to every o n e to know what transpired relative \ to this Old Cemetery during the Revolutionary Var . Possibly there was no edict issued during the entire war that caused a greater feeling of anger and resentment to ward the British than the following : Order o f Colonel Thompson for the erection of Fort

Golgotha .

t 2 6th 1 8 2 . Hunting on , November , 7

o f . By Virtue an Order from Lieut Coll . Thomson you

Imediat l must e y warn all the Carpenters in Capt . Conkling District Especially those whose names are underwritten to appear by 8 O Clock every morning with their Tools to ’ work at said Fort in Town on Failure of which , I m under an Obligation to return their names Imediately they must also appear at the time every Morning and not go away till

o r . r Dismissed they will not be Credited fo a Days work .

o nkli Philip C n e } Capt . Benj amin Brush Hubbard Co nkline Isaac Selah Samuel Haveland John Wheler John Morgan Isaac Wood Richard Rogers Dan Higby 8 2 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NA L

To e t to o n S g Conklin Ketcham . Huntington labour fort

Golgotha .

This Old Cemet ery had at that time been the principal 1 burying ground of Huntington for probably 00 years .

o n . 2 The soldiers were working Fort Golgotha from Sept 7 , 1 8 2 1 1 8 7 to Feb . 3 , 7 3 and among other material used by 1 them was not less than 00 tombstones . An account was

fo r rendered these tombstones at each , also a bill for 2 1 0 boards , rails and trees in all a total of 5 5 S . but like other bills rendered to the British Government it apparently n ever received any attention . Naturally this cemetery was a very sacred spot and to desecrate it in such an uncalled for and shameful manner could not result otherwise than the inhabitants o f Hunting ton detesting the sight of the British soldiers in their midst . The following description was furnished by a resident 1 8 2 a Dec . 8 . of Stam ford and bears d te , , 7 “ e fo r On the ﬁrst o f D c . was at Huntington passing an inhabitant , and passed within four rods of the front of

o h i the F rt which faces t e north . It s about ﬁve rods in front with a gate in the middle , it extends a considerable distance north and south ; the works were altogether of

o r e earth , about six foot high , no pickets any other obstru

x d w as tion to the works , e cept a sort of itch , which very inconsiderable , some brush like small trees ﬁxed on the top

e en co m o f the works , in a perp ndicular form ; was told it

2 o f passed near acres ground . It is built on a rising

- Th e ground , and takes in the burying ground ; Meeting Tho m house they have pulled down . The troops consist of p ’ ’ son s regiment , the remains of the Queen s Rangers and the 0 f t Legion , being 5 5 e fective ; hey are quartered as compact

n s as possible in the inhabita t houses and barns , and some h the o utted along sides of the F rt , which makes one side of TOWNSH I P OF HU NTI NGTON 8 3

do f the fort . The Inhabitants of Huntington su fer exceed in l t gy from the treatment hey receive from the troops , who say the inhabitants of that County are all Rebels , and there ff ” fore they care not how they su er .

Time will eventually obliterate allbitterness and am mo sity that may have existed a few generations ago and so we have long ago forgotten and forgiven the rash and entirely uncalled for desecration o f the abode o f our lament

n o ed and honored dead , and are now o ly concerned in rest r

o ing as far as possible original outlines and b undaries , that future generations may preserve and reverence this hallowed ground .

The reader has no doubt already formed his own ideas

e and made a mental p ictur of the physical characteristics ,

fo r attributes , mental qualiﬁcations and virtues of his own bears and has a pretty fair idea of what entered into their d wa n recre aily lives in the y of respo sibilities and work , atio n s and social functions . It should of course be borne in mind that in the earlier days most o f these sturdy pioneers were farmers and in con sequence had to be at times as necessity might require their own mason , carpenter , shoemaker , wheelwright , tanner ,

and a t butcher , blacksmith in f c a j ack of all trades so to

to - speak , while his wi fe had be cook , seamstress , care taker , h - ome maker, mother and spinner , making all the clothes

ﬂa from x and wool , and frequently carrying her spinning wheel with her when maki n g an afternoon call on her neighbor .

She undoubtedly had ﬂoors sprinkled with sand , high w o backed , clumsy , uncomfortable wooden chairs , either o d en o r at best pewter dishes and labored from early morning e a until ev ning l te . 8 4 HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

1 - o fﬁce As late as 79 3 there was no post on Long Island , those living in the eastern part o f the island getting their

e w e stern a rt mail from New London . thos in the p from New York and even as late as 1 8 3 5 the mail stage le ft New y York for Easthampton onl once a week . President Dwight o f Yale College about 1 8 00 visited Long Island and summed up his visit and views about as “ : e follows That because o f its insular position , the p ople of Long Island must always necessarily be very contra cted f and limited in their views , pursuits and a fections , that they were practically destitute o f advantages that would awaken ff and instill and di use energy and in formation , and that i f a such a thing did happen , the people would emigr te , and that the Island would continue for a very indeﬁnite period to be w a place here advantages enj oyed elsewhere , would here be ” very impe rfectly realized .

F o r a many , m ny years Long Island has been the dwell

' re ﬁn emen t in tellien ce ing place o f wealth , , g . and culture

w e second to none throughout the country , so are free to a dmit that President Dwight w a s a very poor prophet in deed . At the outbreak o f the Revolutionary War it is said

f 2 8 1 6 60 there were in Su folk County 3 4 men , between and and that only 2 3 6 o f them were counted as being loyal to the King o f England .

The ﬁrst railroad o n Long Island was from South Ferry . O 1 8 Brooklyn to Jamaica , and was pen for travel , April th ,

1 8 3 6 .

1 to 2 In 8 3 7 the road was completed Hicksville and July 5 ,

1 8 44 the ﬁrst train o f cars arrived in Greenpo rt . The road from Hicksville to Syosset was completed in 1 8 5 4 and the extension to Northport in 1 8 68 and ﬁnally to Port Jefferson

2 m in 1 8 7 . The road from Ja aica to Babylon was opened up in the fall of 1 8 67 and extended to Patchogue in 1 8 68 . TOWN SH I P OF H U NTI NGTON 8 5

The M a tin n e co ck s who were the original own ers o f the Township o f Huntington have gone the way o f all the w earth , and as far as is kno n there is not a pure blooded

Indian in the township , and likewise all the early settlers

so o f Huntington have been gathered to their fathers , that

o Indians and settlers are now a mem ry , a matter of history , m st but a fond and cherished emory , and a history mo vivid

an d entertaining in its every detail , and most commendable

in its constant climb toward worthier motives and ideals ,

o f and we are the heirs o f that priceless heritage the past ,

O o o which is as an pen b k to us , and through the reading and s tudy o f which we can thereby escape those things that

o u r can would work to detriment , and at the same time we

proﬁt by all that w a s upli fting and ennobling in their lives . While that day had its great drawbacks an d limitations

un ue s as compared to the present day and generation , yet q

tio n abl t o y it were be ter to have lived then , than not t have

lived at all . Let us bridge the years from the time o f the Civil War

up to the present moment , even though those have been history making years o f wonderful progress along every conc eivable line and direct our attention and thoughts to

1 2 I n this great year o f 9 5 its relation to Huntington .

Th e 1 2 Huntington o f 9 5 is a beauti ful , busy mart of

e o n p ople , delightfully situated the North Shore of Long

Island , a large part of it nestling in a valley , so that it

constitutes a most beauti ful and charming picture , either by night o r by day as you approach it either from the East

o r West . l Its two principa business streets , Main Street and New

o ut York Avenue , are regularly laid , very wide and lined

th e with imposing buildings , and center o f Main Street is used for and makes an admirable and convenient parking

place for automobiles . 8 6 HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

Among the buildings worthy o f particular mention on

Main Street are the Catholic Church , the Protestant Epis copal Church , the Methodist Church , the Central Presby terian Church and at the to p o f the hill the historic Firs t

Presbyterian Church , while directly across the street is the imposing and commodious Huntington High School , the

Public Library and the Town Hall , both buildings unique

in design , attractive in appearance and beauti ful in every

o n way , stand opposite sides of the street . Then there are

o f the Bank Huntington , the First National Bank , the Huntington Fire Department and the Suffolk Hotel as well as many large and attractive store buildings , and beyond the stores both to the east and west palatial residences line both sides of Main Street . Near the First Presbyterian Church and with the main entrance on Main Street is the beauti ful H eck sch er Park . One is unquestionably sa fe in s aying that there is no Public Park in th e entire country encompassed within a like area

its b that can compare with this park in marvelous eauty ,

c ff a n d artistic design and superb lands ape e ects , there is

o H e ck sch er n thing that the great philanthropic M r . could possibly have done that would add so much to the prestige and attractiveness of Huntington as has this wonderful an d delightful little park . The closing o f the vear 1 9 2 5 ﬁnds Huntington a village of rare beauty , with concrete walks and roadways , lovely

o shade trees , substantial buildings , imp sing and comfortable

an d e are residences , with a charming hospitabl people that united in whatever will upli ft and up - build Huntingto n and make it o n e o f the two largest i f not the largest village in f Su folk County .

It is related as being a true incident that some years ago

o d t a Meth ist Minister was assigned to Hunting on , who had

8 8 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

1 0 HUNTINGTON I N 9 3 .

With a pe ople determined to do all they ca n fo r its wel

t fare , and who are actuated and controlled by a real admi

a fo r d tion and love the town in which they well , and who are willing to strive for and i f necessary make some sacri

ﬁce s b o n e in its ehal f , no can prophesy with any degree o f certainty whatever even for the short period of ﬁve years .

o f One thing we can be very certain , and that is that the Huntington o f 1 9 3 0 will be exactly what the people living there today make it . So the people must enlarge their vision as to what will constitute an ideal Huntington , remove the boundary

to o stakes take in the wo ded hills and dales , elevate the

o moral , s cial , business and religious ideals of the people to

so a higher standard than ever before , and pave the way for the peaceful but rapid passing from that of be ing a vil

o f so lage to becoming a city the ﬁrst class , and all building , all designing , all planning should have as a deﬁnite aim the

future and far greater Huntington to be . All Long Island is bound to grow in population by

to o u r o leaps and bounds , i f we are alive opp rtunities , for it is the natural dwelling place fo r the great hosts of the

greatest metropolis the world has ever known , and I can see no reason why the entire section from Cold Spring on the

o n west , to Smithtown the east and to Deer Park on the w south , should not be as thickly populated ithin ﬁve years

a s is Jamaica at the present time , i f we arise and demand that to which we are entitled and which we must insist upon

having and having it done at once . TOWN SH I P OF HUNTI NGTON 8 9

The o n e thing that h as retarded the natural and rapid growth of Long Island is the Long Island Railroad and its clinging to its old po licy o f ﬁ fty years ago o f charging all it possibly can o f those who have been compelled through

o the years t use its road as a means of conveyance .

h as a o r But that day now p st at least is passing . but the damage has already been done , and thousands . yes hun d reds of thousands of people who really would have pre

’ ferred to live o n Long Island have settled in Westchester

County or Jersey instead , for the Long Island Railroad has c onsistently studied and planned and dreamed o f ways and means o f extracting more money from the commuters and the traveling public in general . That road never has been and much less since the ih ve n tio n o f the motor truck a freight line railroad , but its o n e hope o f bringing millions o f tons of building materials here o n the Island lies in whether or not it ele ctriﬁe s its

r branches . and pa ticularly the North Shore branch at once . ’ and reducing its fare to and from the city so that it won t

to have compete with auto busses . There is practically no o n e but would go into the city a couple o f times a week i f we could travel each way for

0c say 5 or for the round trip , and the railroad com pany could mak e very substantial proﬁts at that rate i f the

a cars were electric , and in smuch as the company would probably have to borrow the money to equip electrically it might j ust as well do it at once rather than wait until bus lines have be en thoroughly established and the people co n tinne to patronize them because of the very dilatory tactics o f the railroad company .

The North Shore with its varying scenery o f hill and dale naturally makes the m o st charming and picturesque

o surroundings in which to build a beauti ful h me , and the only reason that thousands upon thous ands of homes are not 9 0 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

being erected in our midst is the utter lack o f adequate

transportation facilities , the cars being crowded and some times cold in winter and dust and cinders almost unbearable

in summer . I f the electri fying o f the North Shore Branch is the o n e thing apparently that stands between us and prosperity and o ur becoming a great community centre , let us make our opinions and o u r beliefs and o ur demands known in no

o n e uncertain way , and this is o f those occasions where l every man , woman and child can make his or her inf uence

o felt , in a most convincing way , and at a very opp rtune time . With that obj ect in view petitions have been prepared requesting the Long Island Railroad to begin making ar rangements at once to electri fy their road from Jamaica to o Northport , and these petiti ns when signed will be presented

o r by u good Supervisor Abraham L . Field to the railroad fﬁ o cials . These petitions can be found at in Huntington East Northport Cold Spring Northport Greenlawn Cen trepo rt

Huntington Station Ft . Salonga Melville Dix Hills Commack Certainly there can be no objection made to one member o f the household signing the petition for all the members of th e home , and the promptness with which these petitions are signed will evidence how much real desire we have to

fo r f procure this great boon a long su fering public . We are supposed to have people in the present Township o f Huntington and allowing fo r children under 2 years of age there should be not less than or signatures on these petitions and i f the railroad company TOWN SH I P OF HUNTI NGTON 9 1 can openly ignore such a plea as that then they will have no o n e but themselves to blame for what methods o f trans i p o rtat o n may be put in operation . Assuming that the road is electriﬁed during 1 9 2 7 we can naturally expect and should prepare for a vast increase in our population and some measures should be taken to restrict o ur marvelous growth to citizens of this great republic or

o f those that express their intention becoming citizens . In other words we n o t only wa nt a go o d substantial growth in population but we want good substantial pe ople to make up that population . In 1 93 0 then we can say that we reside in the most beauti ful township in this great state , that we have all the conveniences o f the great metropo lis and free access to her

disco m multitudinous attractions , but without any of the

an d n forts crowded conditio s of apartment li fe . Does the City of Huntington o f 1 9 3 0 appeal to you ? I f so rise up and do your part in making the visionary city a t reali y . It is a matter of common knowledge that the Long Island Railroad Company have included in their plans for 1 9 2 6 the electriﬁcation of the North Shore road from a i a J ma ca to Mineol . By putting on an additional force and borrowing the n ecessary money (which they have stated they will have to do anyw ay ) they could extend the line to Northport much more cheaply than to make terminal facilities at Mineola and then electri fy the line to Northport a year o r two from

o ﬁft - o f no w. t o e Then , in the last y eight years the p ople the Township of Huntington have paid millions of dollars into the coffers o f the Long Island and it certainly does seem as i f that road might mani fest its appreciation by

e complying with our request , particularly as it would m an greatly in crease d reven ue fo r the road as thousands o f 9 2 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGINAL pe ople would locate here and naturally have to patronize the

road . OF TH OF COME , RES I DENTS E TOWN SH IP I S A U FF HUNTI NGTO N , HERE GLORIO S O OR TU NITY FOR YOU TO S AY SOM ETH I NG I N A WAY A ND To A VERY DEFI NITE , PLAY VERY I MPORTANT PART I N BRI NGI NG To PA S S TH E GREATEST CIVIC I MPROVEMENT THAT COULD POS SI BLY B E B ROUGHT BEFORE YOU AT TH E

PRESENT TIME . LET U S D E M O N S T R A T E To TH E LONG I SLAND RAILROAD THAT WE ARE DEAD I N AND B Y ON TH EARNEST , EVERY E S IGN I NG E PETITION S THAT WE ARE A UNITED PEOPLE I N DEMANDI NG THAT To WH ICH WE ARE

JUSTLY ENTITLED . AS YOU MEET YOUR FRIENDS TH E M OR N I NG YOU AFTER H AVE READ TH I S STATEMENT . JUST ASK TH EM IF TH EY H AVE S IGNED U P AND ALSO I NCLUDED TH E MEMBERS OF TH EI R D HOUSEHOL . THEN AFTER PERFORMI NG THI S GREAT D IF YOU To TH E CIVI C UTY , WA NT MAKE U T WORDS , H N I NGTO N , CENTERPORT , NORTH PORT A TRIO OF NAMES KNOWN TH E WORLD D DO I N AROUN , YOUR PART CARRYI NG I NTO EFFECT TH E GREATEST CIVI C IMPROVEM ENT OF A AS I N TH E LL, OUTLI NED POEM FOLLOW I NG TH F E H I STORY O NORTH PORT .

’ Author s Note : Owing to an unavoidable delay in th e publication o f this H istory and Proposed Civic Improve

o f ments , the petitions for the electriﬁcation the North Shore Road were placed be fore the people fo r sign ature

Simultaneously with the publication itsel f . TOWN SH I P OF HU NTI NGTON 9 3

BABYLON

The history o f Huntington proper begins with the year 1 6 5 3 , when the ﬁrst deeds were made with the Indians , while the ﬁrst deeds concerning the present Town of Baby

1 lon were in 65 7 . The M arsap eague Indians sometimes referred to as the

Massapequas , occupied the territory included in the Town of Babylon and the ﬁrst trans fers of property were made to men residing in Huntington . Quite a conflict took place about the year 1 65 3 between

M rs a a ea ue s . the p g and one Capt John Underhill , who com man d ed o f quite a detachment troops , with the result that

w so the Indians ere badly defeated and their called fort , since called Fort Neck , was destroyed . The early purchases o f land on the south shore seems to have been for the purpose of securing! the salt grass or hay that grew in the marshes and was gathered in the fall

o f t o n . the. year and carried to Huntingon the north shore There were about 2 4 transfers of property made by the

to Indians the white men , but as many of them were necks of land only they are not here recorded . Th e ﬁrst Indian deed o f property in the present town of Babylon was as follows : This w ritinge testiﬁeth an Agreement and B argaln e

B e tw een e o o ff made j nas Wood Huntington , on Long

meanta uit Island , the one party and q Sachem the other

: e sd s party Witness th that the above . Jona Wood hath for himselfe o f n eihbo ures and the rest his g o f Huntington , a o f ad o n foresaid , Bought ﬁve Necks meadow Ling next j y 9 4 HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

massa e a s : b sd ing to p g Sachems land and the a ove . Jonas Wo od Doth hereby in gage himsel f fo r and on the be h alfe

o ff Ne ihbo u re s o r his g , to pay cause to be paid , unto ye

o f mean ta uit b sd . a ove sachem q , twelve coates , twenty howes , twenty hatchets , twenty knives , ten pounds of pow

o un des o f o n Ce ttell der , ten p lead and great and on hatt , present in hand , And doth further promise to give to the

eare six en above Sachem , every y , a Coat for years , next suing the Date hereof

An d sd Wa in dan . ce the above Sachem , for and in con

bo d a v s . sideration of the these goods , Doth give full Rite

rO rietie S d and p p to the a fore . Jonas and his Neighbours

th e e re h e rs s Neck es and y for ever to all the d . ﬁve of meadow , and will free them from all Claims and titles that any other may Lay thereto in witness whereof Booth parties I n te rch an gably put to their hands this ﬁst day of June 1 6 5 7 .

In the presenc e of X Lion Gardener Wa in dan ce Marke lm f M i Thomas Ta l age Sachem o e antaqu tt. Benj amin Price This may witness to allthat k e eo sse ch o k the sachem o f seco nto k have Resigned up all that Right or Interest hee might any w ayes lay unto the meckes of med o w e expressed above in this w righting and so conﬁrm the bargain and full of the man tak it sachem a s witness my mark

Keeo ssech o k

In presents o f John Stiklin gs Samuel F ferman

96 HI STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

twenty dutch hatchets , twenty dutch howes , twenty duch

o f o f knives , ten shirts , two hundred muxes , ﬁve paire

o n e handsom stockings good dutch hatt , and a great ﬁne

Lo kin fo r Ch o c o n o e w a e s gglos , and , for his y and going to

o ut fo r himselfe o n e marke the Lande , shall have coat .

o o ud a r six o n e fower p unds of p , pound o f led , dutch

a lso e t hatchet , as seventeen shilling in wampum , thay mus

Ch o ck a n o e sh all send by , which being punctually paid , then

de clar I this deed , which shall bee for the free and quiet possession of them and th e ire h ea ires forever and in the mene time it shall Re ma in e in the hands o f Lyon ga re den : In w itn es where o f wee have here to se t o ur hands the

day above written . Richard Brush Ambros Suten

Re ceved 2 o f 1 6 Huntington , this 3 May 5 9 , from the Inhabitants o f Huntington full satisfaction and payment for the medow I so uld Last to them which my man Ch o ck e noe marked out ffo r them which j oynes to that n e e ck e that

tiklan d so e Belongs to Mr . S and Jonas Wood and goes west ward soe ffa r as Ch ak en en e hath marked being purchased in august Last which was 1 65 8 w itn e s Ch ek en o w x his mark \Vyan d a n ce mark oxo S asak etaw ah x mark The mantak Sachem The mark o f Ambros x Sutten Ta cpo w sh a his x mark Richard x Brush

Division o f Babylon Lands 1 659

A fter wee ye Inhabitants o f huntingt on by means o f — ma in eta sachem had bought a se rta in e number o f necks o f med o w e at ye south side o f ye Island : o f seaque tauk e and massa a e p g Indians and have paid for them . The towne then disposed o f these necks to particular men o f the towne by ye TOWN SH I P OF HUNTI NGTON 9 7 hundreds as there Rule of disposing of Land was ; and that h au lf neck w hich was ma ssap age Indian land called by them tatamu n e h e se weare for thomas weeks , william Rogers ,

Richard Ogden . Jonas wood , bartholoma smith and Henry whisson amounting to sixteen hundreds this h an lf neck did belong to ye above named men to devide amongst them selves fo r their share which they did : sum amendment was a fterwards given upon san tip auge by the town to Jonas w o w a n d y w h aulf od , thomas eeks Henr hisson of the same n eck above said .

m S ump w a s Indian Deed . Know all persons by these presents that wee whose

o m o tt 81 mama sco k a n names are subscribed , namely p p , seca k atak e Indians being deputed and ap o in te d by the Rest of o u r a so siate to Receive the payment of huntington men fo r

’ s e rta in e o f a neck bought ye said Indians , commonly called a n d e sum w ams w e e sa known by ye nam of p , y wee have

E e n etu s t Received o f p Platt in behal f of hunting on , for our selves and all the Indians that have any right , their full satis faction according to our bill o f sall by us made as w in 2 n 1 t e s our hands and seals ye d December 67 0 . th e word right interlined was be fore signing and sc alling.

P w ama s ack n o w le d , sachems sun , gye sam as witness my

and ] hand seal . Signed and se alle d in presence of us John Brush the mark o f x Thomas E p en e tu s Platt x M amaso p the mark of x \V/ ill Indian x P o mp o tt Daniell x Marken his mark This deed made by the S u cato gu e Indians embraced only the meadows below the old Indian path and part o f B abylon is now located within the territory deeded . This 9 8 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGINAL was the furtherest east of all the necks purchased from the

Indians in behal f of Huntington .

No 2 8 1 6 Co ia v. , 93 the Indians deeded p gNeck , South

o ! t John Wood , the property being bounded as follows

o f w On the east by land Samuel Wood , estward by

Tatamuck atak is Creek , southward by meadows already pur

o r 0 chased , northward by the Commons 4 rods above the present Indian path .

M a rsa e a ues Ah un e m The p g deeding this neck were g ,

o n w a mes S and Will Choppy .

1 6 M a rse a ue S uructo n May 5 , 97 the p g Indians Mame , and Will Ch epe y deeded to John Ketcham and Jonas Platt

S cu ra w a a tract called by the Indians , y and by the English , Josiah ’ s Neck from the South Meadows and running north by the swamp called by the English Wed Neck Swamp to

o f o n the line the said swamp upon the brushey plains , then a straight line upon the brushey plains until it comes against

o f the head a short swamp joining the south meadows .

2 1 6 o Wam . S uca t ue eaus Dec , 9 7 the g Indians , , Narwa

P ame ua M umsw a ra sen P o m o t kam , Chipons , Charles q , , p ,

M amesco k e n D um sh ua and p deeded to Joseph Wood , Thomas Fleet and Nathaniel Foster the following described property . A certain neck o f land adj oining a river that parteth m this said neck and a neck called S a p aumes . This river

Amusk m k Co un ca . called by the Indians , The neck called by the English the easternmost neck o r commonly known as Captain Fleets Neck , and called by the Indians arase co sea e gg, bounded on the west by a swamp that parteth f the other east neck and this neck . All this said neck o up land from the edge o f the meadow to the head o f the swamp that parteth these two necks and to run one straight line

lo o H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI N AL

disclose that they performed their work with great accuracy ,

’ each person s property being minutely described .

t 1 6 . Town Mee ing , May 7 , 7 5 The same Day it was V o ate d that no fu rre n e rs shal l clam in o ur South Bay to make sale o ff on penalty o f ﬁve

o f o u r L be rt pounds , any people giving strangers y y shall

fo rﬁ for feit forty shilling . neither ﬁsh , gun nor hunt on

sd ture o f . ﬁve pounds By any stranger .

As near as can be ascertained there were no dwellings O f any kind in Babylon until after 1 7 00 or more than 43 y ears after the ﬁrst trans fer o f land to Jonas wood of

Huntington , in fact even at the time o f the Revolutionary War there were only a few settlers within the present Baby lon limits and no records are available o f any o n e serving in

un the Revolutionary War from Babylon proper . though h questionably t ere were some .

Col . Platt Conklin who owned a large farm at Hal f \Vay Hollow and another large farm at We st Neck now \ 6 Amityville , and at the time of the Revolutionary Var 7 y w a s ears of age , compelled with Thomas Fleet also a large farm owner near Babylon to take the Oath of Loyalty _to the King and Thomas Fleet at least was forced to provide large quantities o f grain and hay to the Queens Rangers at

Huntington , and for which he never received a cent . Many pillaging part ies o f soldiers from the British Headquarters at Huntington raided the south side farms to procure supplies .

t 1 8 6 . Town Meeting , Huntingon , May , 7 3 Vote was carried on th e above Day that no Person T within the ownship o f Huntington , nor any other person should go upon the Marshes on the Island on the South side TOWN SH I P OF HU NTINGTON 1 0 1

o f this Island to cut an y sedge grass before the ﬁrst day of September under the penalty o f paying the sum of Five f Pounds for the o fence , one half to go to the Complainer , the Other Hal f to the Overseers of the Poor for the use of the Poor

o n e It is stated that Arthur Dingee , owner o f a large tract of land n o w forming part of the Village of Babylon w as a noted Loyalist but the temperature became so warm he for him , that migrated with many other Tories to Nova Scotia in August 1 78 3 and w a s followed by his wi fe and 1 8 1 2 daughter in 7 7 . The whole family returned in 79 when the animosity and hatred engendered by the war had prae tically died o u t.

' 1 Town Meeting June 3 , 793 . Also Voted that no Beach Clams on the south side of the Islands In o ur South Bay be catched by any Person Whatsoever to sell to Boatmen under th e pe nalty of Ten Shillings pe r Thousand Clams fo r the Inhabitants of Hunt in to n g to pay and Twenty shillings for Foreigners .

. E s . And it is Ordained that Thos Wickes , q , shall be Inspector of the Clams in the South Bay of the Town of Huntington and recover the Toleration and Give Permits fo r the Boatmen to carry said Clams away or authorize any other person .

That the above order was exceedingly distasteful to the boatmen is shown by their posting the following notice shortly a fter the order was issued . Be it known To all it May Concern that the Boatmen will not pay ho mmigto Neither King nor Toleration M as ters under no less pe nalty than they shall ﬁght for their

Autho r aty . 1 02 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

o f 1 8 1 2 In the war , Babylon had its distinguished sons

and among them were Jesse Abbott , Richard Dingee , Silas

Cooper , Daniel Sammis , Israel Sammis , Jesse Sammis , John

Tooker , Silas Tooker and Jesse Whitman .

o ff The ship Savannah wrecked Babylon , Sunday night , 2 1 8 2 2 . w Oct 7 , was a vessel ith a remarkable record and

o f 1 1 1 8 1 the advertisement in the London Times May , 9 f certainly savors of the days o long ago . The announce “ — ment read as follows : Great Experiment A new steam “ ” 00 vessel o f 3 tons , The Savannah has been built at New York for the express purpose of carrying passengers across ” the Atlantic . She is to come to Liverpool direct . This

was the ﬁrst steam propelled ship to cross the ocean . She

could carry about 75 tons o f coal and 2 5 cords o f wood . Her builder was Francis Fick ett of New York and it was built for Daniel Dodd . The engines were made at Morris

town , N . J . , by Stephen Vail . The boat was launched 2 2 1 8 8 1 . August , The Captain was Moses Rogers , the navigator Stephen Rogers , both of whom were residents o f

New London .

. 2 1 8 1 The ship sailed from Savannah , Ga May 5 , 9 and 2 0th 2 6 arrived at Liverpool , June , the trip being made in

1 8 2 6 . days , and steam being used out o f the days Later her steam machinery w a s removed and sh e became an ordinary sailing vessel , and it was as such she went to

2 1 8 2 2 o n 1 1 o d pieces Oct . 7 , and all board were lost , b ies e as a b ing w hed shore .

Th e First Presbyterian Church of Babylon was erected about 1 73 0 and was entirely destroyed by the British in 1 8 77 , the material being taken to Hempstead to make bar

fo r racks the troops stationed there . At the close o f the Revolutionary War a new site was

1 9 4 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

’ 1 8 8 St . Joseph s Roman Catholic Church was erected in 7 , 1 8 8 R v . e . Jos Coughlin being the ﬁrst Parish Priest from 7

to 1 8 8 0 .

1 0 S a mpa w a ms Lodge No . 4 was instituted

u lv 2 1 8 i I 7 . 49 with the follow ng charter list , John Snod grass , Jesse Conklin . Chas . Pascoe , Stephen Leek , Ebenezer

\f ilso n V . Kellum , Stephen J . , E . V Brown , Henry Southard ,

Henry Bedell and Valentine Sprague .

A M 81 . Charter members o f Babylon Lodge No . 79 3 , F . .

X opposite of name , living .

2 2 1 8 8 . This Lodge was instituted June , 7 k Theodore C . Fletcher Henry E u c

Henry Livingston x George B . Burr

Richard Higbie , J r . Stephen de Forest

x Charles Searle T . Edward Seaman

Henry Seaman Henry H . Finlay T Phillip . Sammis Carl Schmidt

x ish e l Jo h n \V . Jarvis Leopold H . F

H e n d ric k s l Charles S . n Norman Smith

Dic io Falconer Smith A . Muncy

\Vhite George Din gith a l Charles E . Alonzo Matthias James M a c La chla n

The Post Ofﬁce was established about 1 8 03 and for a P D . number o f years was known as Huntington South .

The ﬁrst postmaster was Major Timothy Carll .

The ﬁrst issue of the ﬁrst newspaper was the Suffolk

8 1 8 o f . Democrat , April , 59 under the editorship John R

Reid . The paper had been published in Huntingt on for about 1 5 years and in 1 8 66 it was removed back to Hunt “ ” in to n f g and be came the Su folk Bulletin . TOWN SH IP OF HU NTI NGTON 1 6 5

Babylon furnished a large number of soldiers for the Y 2 . . m 1 th Civil War and among the in the 7 Regiment , N

2 n d A o Volunteers was Corporal lfred C . Till tson , who later conducted a grocery store for many years in N o rthp o rt;

Owing to the rapid growth o f the Township of Hunting to n and the distance separating the villages of Babylon ,

o f Amityville and Breslau from the Village Huntington ,

o n there ar se a stro g desire to have the Township divided , both from geographical considerations and a wide diversity o f interests between the towns o f the North and South Sh o re a n d this desire ﬁnally culminated in an appeal to the State Legislature as foll o ws

Petition to Divide the Town o f Huntington . To the Legislature of the State o f New York : We the undersigned voters and taxpayers of the Town f o f Huntington , Su folk County , New York respectfully pe tition your Honorable Body for the passage o f an act to divide the Town of Huntington into two towns .

2 1 8 2 Dated January 7 , 7 .

1 1 The above petition was signed by 3 taxpayers , and the Act of the Legislature erecting the Town of Babylon out ’ o f the s o uthern part o f the Town of Huntington was passed 1 1 8 2 March 3 , 7 . ’ The following is a summary o f the Commissioner s report :

We , the undersigned Commissioners duly named in and appo inted under Chapter 1 05 of the Session Laws o f the

o f 1 1 8 2 fo r a o r State New York passed March 3 , 7 the pp tio nment of the personal property belonging to the Old Town of Huntington (as it existed on the ﬁrst Tuesday o f April 1 8 7 2 ) n o t required to meet liabilities o f said Town o f

ab Huntington , then due , or out to become due , which had b been authorized or directed , y any existing act , as also all I 1 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

debts . bonds , obligations and liabilities o f the Town of

o f o f Huntington , existing at the time the passage the act , or which had bee n authorized or contracted , to apportion the same bet w een the Town o f Babylon and the Town o f

Huntington , as continued according to the amount o f tax able property in each to be ascertained by the assessment roll

f To w n f fo r 1 8 1 o the said o Huntington , the year 7 , do hereby report as follows : viz : Summary

\Ve ﬁnd the amount paid o ut for the old

011 Town bills , bonds , notes and contracts due , and contracted by said Town to be for the term e 2 n d 1 8 2 nding April , 7 \Ve ﬁnd there are bills outstanding and not yet paid , amounting to

\Ve n o t ﬁnd there are Bounty Bonds , yet d u e , amounting to the sum of There will be one year ’ s interest on the above

I 1 8 to April , 74

Making total amount o f obligations paid and to be herea fter paid as stated above

o ut Deduct there from accounts pd . Leaves a balance to be provided fo r between

: the towns as per their proportional part , namely Huntington Babylon

f 5 Su folk County 5 .

We the undersigned C o mmissioners appo inted by and

1 0 o f o f under Chapter 5 , the Session Laws the State of 1 8 2 New York , o f 7 , and also John E . Ireland , present

Supervisor o f the Town of Babylon , do hereby certi fy that the sum o f eight thousand o n e hundred and twenty six and dollars as shown by the annexed report

I 08 HI STORY OF TH E ORIGINAL

o f village in the Township Huntington , Babylon which now

o f 00 has a population 3 7 , is second to that of Amityville

o f 2 with a population 4 45 . During the last ﬁve years Amityville gained 98 0 in

1 1 so population while Babylon in the same time gained 7 5 , at the same ratio o f gain it should pass Amityville in about

1 940 . The casual visitor or the summer soj ourner is greatly w impressed ith the beauties of Babylon , and of course those that reside there are captivated by its many charms and seem to believe it bids fair to outshine its ancient namesake with its famous hanging gardens . The Long Island Railroad recently electriﬁed the branch from Jamaica to Babylon , which will unquestionably greatly enhance its desirabilityas a place o f residence and o f course thereby greatly increase real estate values and result in a very rapid growth in population . The present taxable value of prope rty of the Village of Babylon is

o f h a rd su r With its broad streets , several which are n faced , its co crete walks , beauti ful shade trees , famous shore front , delightful park , handsome residences and many imposing public buildings Babylon possesses all the n e ce s sary attributes that go to make up the attractive , thriving success ful village o f this present day and age .

The Town Hall , a fireproof building , was erected in 1 9 1 7 and here are housed the necessary political machinery f for conducting the business a fairs of the Town o f Babylon . i Near the Town Hall is the Babylon Public L brary , while a cross the street is the new Babylon Theatre erected in 1 9 2 3 and suppo sed to have cost over Oak Island and Fire Island inlets are famed as fishing resorts and for the vast number of fish that are caught there a n d for their large size . and particularly for the vast num TOWN SH IP OF HUNTI NGTON 1 6 9 ber and mammoth size o f the fish stories that emanate from and around Babylon . Th e writer recalls o n e of these fish stories which ran abo ut as follows : A party fishing in Oak Island inlet was trying to land a mammoth weak fish and in his excitement

’ dropped his lighted pipe , which fell into the ﬁsh s mouth

which just then managed to flop free , and lo and behold the following year the same party was fishing around in Hunt in gto n Bay and landed the same fish and incidentally reco v

e ered his pip , which was still smoking . Babylon claims to have more public water front than any town o n Long Island and that means eve ry thing to the general public in these days when the automobile makes distances a secondary consideration .

With its boating , ﬁshing , cruising , yachting , bathing

o ut fo r and hunting , it holds inducements practically every m o f to n ember the family locate withi its beauti ful borders , an d w S ith unsurpassed chools , and beauti ful Memorial Park

- it almost irresistibly captivates the average home seeker . According to the latest available ﬁgures the member ship o f Babylon Churches is as follows ! ’ 1 00 St . Joseph s Roman Catholic Church 4 Presbyterian Church 5 5 7 Meth o dist Church 400 Christ Protestant Episcopal 2 00 First Baptist 1 75 A frican Methodist Episcopal I 6 Babylon is proud o f the average longevity of its citizens and submits a list o f those living within her borders and who

0 set have passed the allotted span of li fe of 7 , as forth in the

o f o Book B oks .

n The list is part o f the closing sectio . 1 1 0 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

1 0 BABYLON I N 9 3 .

It seems quite reasonable to suppose that the Babylon ﬁve years hence will scarcely be recognizable by the village

fo r residents of today, it must inevitably extend its limits to accommodate the thousands that will want to locate with

in her boundaries , particularly since the electric car service h a s been installed . Mere growth in population is not desirable and so Baby

so lon must place proper restrictions , that along with quan

sh e fo r tity will likewise be assured of quality , quantity alone

is a great liability and scarcely i f ever becomes a real asset . In enlarging her boundaries ample provision should be

fo r an d made parks and schools ﬁre protection , for the ex

o f - tension concrete side walks and streets , for a sewerage

fo r o f system , in fact all the conveniences and requirements

a city o f the ﬁrst class today . In vision one can picture the greater Babylon o f 1 93 0 as a o f 1 0 1 2 e . city from to thousand p ople , with broad ave nues , all hard surfaced , with department stores and beautiful public buildings and handsome bungalows , residences and mansions and estates , with absolutely ﬁre proof school build

to ings , hal f hour service the city , beauti ful recreation parks , and a city government second to none , and with the single

o f idea in view making Babylon the cleanest , the prettiest , the healthiest , the most charming and the most desirable place in the world in which to live .

ll2 HI STO RY OF TH E O RIGI NA L

h O in I tod ay and I am p gthat somehow , sometime , and

- trust that sometime may be very soon , when the real pur pose for which the article was written will be accomplished , “ and that Th e Northport o f tomorrow will then stand

forth in regal splendor , as the most beauti ful village , not

o f only the great Empire State , but o f all the Eastern United i States as well , and it is solely w th that ultimate aim and obj ect in view that the article was written .

o r As citizens o f this great republic , we are all more less

o u r n o interested in ancestral or family tree , and so I have doubt the citizens o f this beauti ful village would like to

o f o know something the very earliest days o f Northp rt , but care ful search fails to give any very d eﬁnite in formation as

to j ust when or who were the ﬁrst settlers here . \Vh eth e r the ﬁrst ones to settle here came by boat up the

‘ o r harbor , whether they approached the harbor , through the

o r valley , that later became the Main Street , whether their eyes ﬁrst beheld the beauti ful handiwork o f nature from

a H ighl nd Park , or whether they ﬁrst came from Huntington

e as s ems quite likely . matters but little , for from any vantage

o p int , any desire or instinct they might possess for the beau d ti ful and the artistic , woul naturally be stirred to its deepest d m “ epths , and well might they have exclai ed , truly here the ” ﬁrmamen t sh o w eth the handiwork of the great Creator ,

and here in this enchanted spot we will build our homes , and

to those early pioneers have handed down their descendants , the same belie f and regard and love for the natural beauties

r o . o f No thp rt , as sti rred their hearts so many years ago

Wh ile I have every appearance o f being a venerable old

to gray headed man , and might possibly be taken be seventy

ﬁve or more , and that hence this article was written from

personal experience , beg leave to assure the reader that

such is not the case by any means , and that I am just as

- young in spirit as when twenty one and not only that , I am

1 1 4 HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

becomes a matter o f quite some historical importance . O f course it is needless to say that people were j ust the

a s o f o u r same then they are now , indeed they were bone

o f bone and ﬂesh our ﬂesh , our progenitors , and we esteem

re and cherish and revere their memory , and may we ever

o f member that we are , what we are , very largely because what they were then , and may all their good qualities as

to o ur well as ours be transmitted posterity .

o ld In those good days , there were the same likes and dis likes , the same loves and hates , and here the progressive

o f o wo n youth their day , wo ed and the blushing , bash ful

e o ld maidens in the sam way , and even long before their

e time , here also the native American , the red man woo d the dusky Indian damsel and perhaps fought mighty co n ﬂicts where N o rthpo rt now stands fo r the surrounding

region abounds in arrow heads , etc . , and so as I tread the

- see concrete side walks that now line the village streets , and

sun the same , the same moon and the same stars as beamed

w h o forth upon those once trod this historic ground , in vision and fancy I would fain call forth the mighty cloud o f o n witnesses that ever set foot this beauti ful island , and

o f o n e listen to the recital their li fe story , that might revel

o f b - o n e in the history y gone ages , and then that might by means o f some magic wand o r mystic power be made to feel

o u r o f that right here , in very midst , is that fountain per

e tu al DeLe o n n p youth for which Ponce sought in vai , and whereby o n e might continue to read the li fe recital o f suc ceed in gages until earth shall be no more . I f dreams and fancies and visions and ideals could only be made realities , then I am sure that every man , woman and child could and would hitch , not their wagon but their auto to a star , universal brotherhood would reign supreme

so and the human race be upli fted , that man would continue to grow more and more like the Great Master of Men . TOWN SH I P OF HU NTI NGTON 1 1 5

That seems to be the task mapped o ut for posterity and

not for our present day and generation , though fortunately

w e I believe are headed that way . The old origin a l settlement o f the Town of Huntington

was about ten miles in extent east and west , and twenty miles

o f north and south and included the present town Babylon , being bounded on the north by Long Island Sound; o n the

east by Smithville or Smithtown , on the south by the Atlan

I cean o tic and on the west by the t wn o f Oyster Bay . The ﬁrst historical fact concerning N o rthp o rt then known as Co w Harbor was the second purchase of property M i k 1 6 from the at n n eco c Indians in 56 . Co w Harbor was the name applied to this section for a

o f o rth o rt great many years , in fact the ﬁrst mention N p as far as the to wn records disclose was in 1 8 3 7 o r 1 8 1 years

after the land was purchased from the Indians . The second purchase or deed o f property which included Northport (then designated Cow Harbor ) is such a unique

and interesting document it is here produced in full . “ e are 1 6 6 This indenture made in the y 5 , in or abought the Laste day o f July bee twixt Asharoken Mo n tin no ck

Sachem and the reste o f the Indian owners with him , on the o ne parte , and Jonas Wood , William Rogers , Thomas

th e ire Wilkes , for themselves and the reste of associates ,

so lld on the other parte ; Witnesseth that I , Asharoken have unto Jonas Wood , William Rogers , Thomas Wilkes all the

fresh e lin e medoe , , and salte y g and beinge upon the north

I slan d e fo urmer side of Longe , from our bounds Cow Har

Nee sa uo ck bor brooke to q river , all the medoe within these

a r bounds weste and e ste , and to the no th sayd to as far as “ A'sh aro k en s bounds goeth Southwards , as the necke called

e C rabmedo s s Eatons Neck , , and all the reste of the medow within the a fore sayde bo un des with all the arbige that is o r hearea fter shall bee upon the woods , lands with in the a I I HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL fore sayd e bounds to bee the a fore sayd Jonas is Willan s so siats and Thomas is to them and thare a , heeres and e xe ca to rs ra sa rvin e to b for ever , g the Indians Li erty to d plante and hunte within thees a fore sayd boun s , and that fo r o f 2 sh e rte s and in consideration coates , fore , seven quarts o f licker and aleve n ounces o f p o wth er in with es ”

re e h eea o f wee have s t to our hands . A ch a ro k e n X his mark Jonas Wood M ak amah X his mark William Rogers Syh ar X his mark Thomas Wilkes Foger X his mark P o yn epya X his mark Name ro w s X his mark M o h emo s X his mark M amarad X his mark M an ate ro rye X his mark Entered in ye ofﬁce at New Yorke the 1 5th day of

1 666 . October ,

Matthias Nicolls , Seer . Included in the above deed was all the property between the broo k at the head of Northport Harbor and Smithtown

Harbor , South to Old Country Road and North to the

Sound .

It would also appear from this deed , that what is now the ultra fashionable and beauti ful Asharoken Beach derived

M atinn eco k its name from this c chie ftain . No d o ubt immediately after this purchase in 1 65 6 set tle rs to o began locate around Northp rt Bay , but again his tory is silent as to their names .

Remarkable as it may seem , there is no record whatever o f any trouble betwe en the ﬁrst white settlers o n Long Island an d the Indians then occupying the Island , and I am inclined to believe it was very largely due to the fact that here the settlers bargained with the natives ﬁrst and paid them fo r

1 1 s H I STO RY OF THE ORIGI NA L conﬁrm unto them the said trustees abo ve named their asso ciates their Heirs successors and assigns Forever all the S o y] Right Planting and Hunting right and all the remain der whatsoe ver that was Reserved to the Indians in a Cer tain Deed from under the hand 81 seal o f the said asharoken

81 his associates Bearing Date the Last Day of July 1 656 . that is from Cow Harbor Brook to Ne sequagRiver within those Bounds west and east and to the North sea and as far southwards as a sh a ro k e n s Bounds or Limmits Did evet ex tend and the Neck called eatons Neck and Crabmed o w all Being within the Limmits of the Former Pattent granted unto the said Town of Huntington with all the timbe rs Trees rights Lybe rtie s 81 appurtenances to the same Belong ing o r appe rtaining To Have 81 To Hold all the above Demised Premises with the appurtenances unto them ye said Trustees their heirs successors and assigns Forever and we the said Ned Lane Charity Lane and Bette Squa do h ereby declare that we had good 81 Law ful] right to sell 81 Dispose of ye same in manner as above said and that the said Trustees above named their heirs successors 81 assigns

' shall 81 may at all times forever hereafter By Virtue here o f P e acably 81 Quietly have hold Possess 81 Inj oy all ye

’ above Demised premises with the Appurtenances free 81 clear from all former Bargains 81 sales whatsoever In wit ness hereunto we have set to o u r hand 81 seals this second dav of February Anno Dominie o n e thousand and seven h undred and sixty Two . Sealed 81 delivered In the presence o f Jo sh ue Ketcham Solomon Ketcham Ned (his X mark ) Lane Charit y (her X mark ) Lane Ie tte (her X mark ) Squa TOWN SH IP OF H IUNTI NGTON 1 1 9

Evidently the inhabitants of Cow ! Harbor from the time this land w as purchased in 1 65 6 up to the close of the

Revolutionary War dwelt in harmony , and done nothing unseemly fo r there is no record whatever o f any of them having to appear before the town fathers fo r any offence whatever . It is a matter of record that at the close o f the Revo lutio n ary War there were 2 2 1 heads of families in the town o f : t Huntington , apportioned as follows Huntingon proper

1 02 s 2 8 1 , West Hill , Long Swamp 3 , Dix Hills 3 5 , Old Field 1 2 and Northport 3 1 and the estimated population

1 1 0 was 0 .

The 3 1 families residing in Cow Harbor o r N o rthpo rt were as follows Joseph Bunce Joseph Higby Joshua Bunce Stephen Higby Widow Bunce J eams Hill Zebulon Bunce Abraham Jarvis Benj amin Denice I cabo d Jarvis

Thos . Fleet Nathaniel Jarvis \Vido w Havens Nathaniel Kelcy

Dan Higby Wm . N ichols Abel Akerly Jesse Oaks Samuel Akerly Jacob Platt Jesse Baldwin Josiah Rogers Jeams Bishop Noah Rogers Epen etus Bryant Stephen Rogers Jesse Bryant Phineas Sills Widow Bryant Widow Udall Stephen Wickes The records disclose that Nathaniel Jarvis served in

2 th . 1 Captain J ohn Wickes Company from July 9 to Aug 3 , ’

1 6 . 77 and Jesse Bryant in Capt Nathaniel Platt s Company , 1 2 0 HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

’ re sum both a part o f Col . Josiah Smith s Regiment , and p a bly both took part in the battle o f Brooklyn a fter which the regiment was disbanded , many returning home and a

n few j oini g the Continental Army . Apparently these were the only two from Cow Harbor or Northport that had any part in the Revolutionary War for in the ﬁrst lot o f 43 0 that took the Oath o f Loyalty to ﬁnd ] the King at Huntington , we the names of Abe Akerly ,

e ams Jesse Baldwin , J Bishop , Jesse Bryant , Joseph Bunce ,

Joshua Bunce . Zebulon Bunce , Benj amin Denice , Dan

Higby , Joseph H igby , Stephen Higby , Abraham Jarvis ,

d . Ichabo Jarvis , Nathaniel Jarvis , Nathaniel Kelcy , Wm

Nichols , Jesse Oaks , Jacob Platt , Josiah Rogers , Stephen

n 2 2 Rogers , Phineas Sills and Stephe Wickes , a total o f a n d fe w 1 8 1 1 a days later in the same year , 77 . there were 9 a dditional men took the oath , among which were Samuel

E en etus eams Ackerly , p Bryant , Thos . Fleet , J Hill and

2 Noah Rogers , or a total of 7 , and the 4 widows mentioned

1 in the list o f inhabitants accounts for the entire 3 families .

It was absolutely necessary to take this Oath of

’ Loyalty or be accused o f treason , besides having one s prop e rt y conﬁscated , as this entire section was completely under

o f o r the domination the British , they having a regiment more of British soldiers stationed in the Village o f Hunt ~ in to n g . O f the 3 1 families living in Cow Harbor at the close

1 o f o of the Revolutionary War , 7 them appear n the Assess ment Roll , their property being assessed as follows :

Samuel 81 Abel] Akerly Epe n etu s Bryant Jessie Bryant Jea ms Bishop Joseph Bunce

H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

o f . 2 8 1 8 02 In the minutes the Trustees Meeting o f Jan . “ it is recorded that inquiry w a s to be made as to wh o has ” been cutting Cedars 81 Pines on Eatons Neck Beach . Phineas Carl] and Daniel Jarvis appointed to go to Eaton

Neck Beach . Also a Complaint respecting the Thatch being cut at ' m Cow Harbour by W . Sills . The following record has to do with what was undoubt

o e dly the ﬁrst dock constructed in Northp rt .

1 8 02 To the President and Trustees o f the Town of Hunting

We the Undersigned being Inhabitants o f said Town 81 persons who frequent the Landing Called Bryans Landing in said Town Humbly Request that A Grant or Permission may be yo u be given us for the purpose o f building a Public Dock at said Landing as aforesaid under such Rules and Regulations as a maj ority of the pe rsons concerned may adopt from time to time . As the public utility of a Dock as afore said must be fully mani fest to yo u we ﬂatter ourselves yo u will n o t hesi

o r tate to comply with u request .

81 0 Am Gentlemen yours , , 2 8 The above petition bears signatures .

1 8 1 8 02 . May ,

Whereas Jesse Bryan , Elles Carll , John Scudder and other Inhabitants of the Town o f Hunt in gto n and other persons frequenting the Landing called Bryans Landing in the Eastern part of the Town of Hunt in gto n did by their Petition to the President and Trustees o f the Commonality o f the Town o f Huntington request that a Grant o r permission be given them and such other TOWN SH IP OF HUNTI NGTON 1 2 3 persons a s might associate themselves with them fo r the purpose of building a Dock at said Landing under such rules and regulations as a Maj ority o f the pe rsons concerned might from time to time adopt of and concerning the same . The President and Trustees in pursuance of the request contained in said petition did on the last Tuesday o f April Grant the same w ith full power and authority to said persons to build said Dock and to make such necessary laws and regulations o f and concerning the same as may be deemed

o r by them a Maj ority of them right and proper .

t 1 8 . . 1 8 02 Hunting on , May , A D .

By Order o f the Trustees .

John Ketcham , Clerk .

A copy Granted .

— Lease Trustees of Town o f Huntington to

1 1 8 2 . Joseph C . Lewis March , 4 A certain piece of land covered with water situate in the said Town of Huntington at a place called an d known by the name of Co wh arbo ur and on the west side thereof for the express purpose of Building a Dock thereon bounded as followeth beginning feet northward of the o ld Dock by the Mill o f Henry S . Lewis and others running easterly into the Harbour to low water mark thence N o rth erly one

w e w hundred feet , thence est rly to high ater mark , thence southerly to the Place of beginning but not to obstruct the free passage o f carriages along the shore on the west side ’ ” of the S d dock or lo t of land abo ve Described .

Covenant of quiet enj oyment . m Ter ﬁfty years . 6 Rental cents yearly .

Right of re - entry reserved in event o f nonpayment of rent . 1 2 4 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

Dock to be built in three years .

e Rates o f wharfage s p ciﬁed . Option of renewing the lease given to Lessee for same

term at same rental .

Nathaniel Potter , P . D . Witness Moses Scudder

Roswell Drigg Recorded by Moses Rolph , Town Clerk . The reader will please observe that this in reality was a lease for 1 00 years at a total rental of

The next Ofﬁcial notice of Northport is a Special Meet

: ing of the Trustees , the record reading as follows

1 0 1 8 2 8 . Trustee Proceedings . Special Meeting , Nov . , At a meeting of the trustees of the Freeholders and commonality o f the Town o f Huntington convened in the

M o n da lo th ‘ village o f Cow harbour on l y , the day of

1 2 8 8 . November , present Isaac Conklin , Pres , Selah Carll ,

e . Richard Van Wyck , John Ketcham , John Oakl y , Junr

Trustees . Resolved that the Commissioners o f Highways in and

fo r Ow n said T do lay out a public highway round little neck .

Recorded by Moses Rolph , Town Clerk .

There w a s a lease granted for a dock at the head o f

1 8 2 great Cow Harbour , Sept . 5 , 3 and some time between

I O 1 8 Co w that date and June , 3 7 the name of harbour was changed to N o rthpo rt but the record is silent as to why or

o r when by whom .

o f The closing statement of the Meeting the Trustees .

I O 1 8 is ’ June , 3 7 as follows Resolved that the board d o now adj ourn to Friday in

o f stead Saturday at North Port the l6th day of June inst . ’ a t 2 O clock P . M .

H I STORY OF TH E ORIGINAL

The following is a fair sample o f the leases fo r shore property entered into between the Town Trustees and pri vate individuals . — 2 6 1 8 . Lease Trustees to Moses Hart , dated Sept . 4, 4 A certain piece o f land covered with water situate in the said Town o f Huntington at a place called and known by r w : the name of Northport Ha bour bounded as follo s , viz

o n lin e beginning a parallel line with Platt Lewis , north a dj oining the highway that runs east by Selah Bunce at . highwater mark and running westerly seventy feet from lo w water mark into the harbour , thence southerly four hundred and ninety ﬁve feet , thence easterly to high water mark ,

0 the thence northerly 49 feet to the place o f beginning , for express purpose of building a dock . No t to obstruct free passage of vehicles o n the east side o f the dock .

Term , twenty one years . 0

Rental , eight and dollars yearly .

r - - Trustees to e enter in event of non payment of rent .

Covenant of quiet enj oyment . Trustee to renew lease upon such terms a s may be agreed upon .

Gilbert Carll , Pres .

Recorded by Josiah Smith .

Town Clerk .

A paper called the Northport Advertiser was published

‘ in Northport for several years by Jos . S . Lewis and the ff Su olk County Journal by Benj amin T . Robbins . The First Presbyterian Church o f Northport w as

: 1 regularly organized in 794 , though a tentative organiza tion existed for some years prior thereto , the ﬁrst minister w being the Rev . Joshua Hartt , more familiarly kno n as

n d Priest Hartt . This church w as built in Fresh Pond a TOWNSH I P OF H UNTI NGTO N 1 2 7

. 1 Rev Hartt served the church from 78 3 to 1 8 09 . He is said to have married more couples than any minister in the town

o f o T h e Huntingt n either before or since his time . record discloses over 5 00 marriages and the ordinary fee was The last entry in his marriage record after stating the facts

relative to the marriage , concludes by saying , Promised

and paid nothing.

The ﬁrst church was a modest frame building , located

n on what is now known as the Ft . Salo ga road . 1 8 2 In 9 a new building was erected at Red Hook , now

Vernon Valley , in back o f what is commonly called the

David Bryant house , and when the present church was built in 1 8 73 the building in Vernon Valley was moved to the foot of Main Street and forms part o f the stores now o c

’ c ie up d by the A . P . store and Harry Kirby s and one of the original windows is still intact on the s o uth side of h is

- ice creamparlor . Temperance societies became very active and very ag

ressive 1 8 g about 43 and ﬁnally centered in a political issue , and the vote at a town meeting in 1 846 was : for license 505 against license 48 3 . Oyster beds were ﬁrst discovered in Northport Bay in 1 8 8 4 and later became the leading industry o f the village .

Northport has ever been a fraternity town , being far ahead o f her sister villages in Suffo lk County as far as fraternities are concerned . The ﬁrst lodge located in Northport was Northp o rt

No . 2 0 2 2 1 . . 8 . Lodge 7 I O . O F . instituted March , 47

1 1 8 The record discloses that on Jan . 9 , 47 Brothers

Joel Bryan , Thos . B . Smith , Selah Bunce , Wm . Spriggs ,

m . Abraha M . Ketcham , Arden M . Hallock and John F

a Udall petitioned the Grand Lodge for charter , and the appli cati o n stated amon g other things that some o f the petitioners had perilled their lives in rescuing the passengers 1 2 8 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL a n d crew o f the Steamer Rhode Island driven a shore

I 1 6 8 . . November , 4 That they had recognized the O F signal o f distress given from the steamer and had very promptly responded . The charter was granted with seven charter members as above named .

Capt . Selah Bunce was presented with a gold medal by “ ” o f in the passengers the ill fated Rhode Island , and the scription reveals that there were only three of these charter members directly concerned in the rescue , being Capt . Selah W' m. . Bunce and Spriggs and John F Udall . This medal was in scribed as follows :

o Presented t Capt . Selah Bunce by the passengers of the ” steamer Rhode Island for his intrepidity and courage .

Wh o with his brave associates , John F . Udall , Chas . Conk

Wm 81 lin , John B . Howard , Nathaniel H . Kelsey , . Spriggs

a co b to u J Jarvis , manned the ﬁrst boat and their resc e - came while lying in great peril among the breakers o ff the Long 1 1 8 6 Island shore , November , 4 . This medal which was a reward for distinguished bravery and at the same time as a heartfelt expression o f the deepest gratitude on the part of those rescued is now in

M r s . the possession o f Chas . T . Sammis who was a daughter o f John F . Udall .

2 0 o ld l Northport Lodge No . 7 held its sessions in the sai l o ft o n the d o ck and numbered as its membership about 1 8 5 4 . the following .

rm i I Joel Bryan Charter Member P a en us . Hawkins

Selah Bunce Jonas S . Higbee

Thos . B . Smith Shepard Higbee

Arden M . Hallock John W . Hulse

Abraham M . Ketcham Cornelius E . Ketcham

Wm . Spriggs Harvey Ketcham

1 3 0 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

1 8 th e June 7 , 5 5 declared all the members expelled from

order . The followi n g beauti ful poem was published in the

. 2 6 1 8 0 Su ffolk Democrat , Huntington , Friday , April , 5 .

o Address t the Members o f Northport .

2 0 . . . . . Lodge No . 7 I O O F by Bro

Edmund B . Gardiner . ! Brothers the time has come ,

o The d or is closed , the word is passed

The opening o de is sung .

All , all are here me thinks , and when Within this Lodge I last did meet with thee

u . For m tual council , and assistance

Since then , the widow lone o fttimes Upon her knees has thanked us in

’ God s name , for aid and sustenance .

The Orphan , too , has felt our timely care

And been preserved , from vice and in famy .

The Sailor , wrecked in distant climes Perhaps in great distress I f he a true Odd Fellow there h as . Has found , had relie f Thousands throughout the universal world Have been recipients of our kindly aid

When needed most .

o ur Humanity to man , has been aim ; Binding together all who joined with us In the marmo n io us and triple chain “ ” O f Friendship , Love and Truth . “ Reason is man ’ s chie f attribute Base must he be indeed whose soul Feels no vibrations to the gentle sounds

O f unity and peace . TOWN SH I P OF HU NTI NGTON 1 3 1

Fo r , should the Goddess , Harmony descend From her high throne where sh e attunes the spheres Would her celestial music aught avail

his To melt rugged and unfeeling heart . None such w e trust has ever yet

Ventured within these walls .

B ! o ur rothers let us remember well charge ,

Go d Our duty to our country , and our . And may we cherish with our hearts sincere

e That Fellowship , which lik a charm has spread

o f Its inﬂuence through the nations our earth .

’ Leases having to d o with Eaton s Neck Beach . 8 to . 1 Trustees Town o f Huntington Israel Carll , Feb 7 , 54 . “ ’ Lease All that part o f Eaton s Neck Beach belonging to the Town of Huntington for the purpose of selling sand

h is to for own beneﬁt . To have and hold the aforesaid ’ part of Eaton s Neck Beach belonging to th e Town o f Huntington for the a foresaid purpose and no o ther unto

a o f e a h is him the s id party the s cond p rt , heirs executors , administrators o r assigns fo r and during the full term of six o years from the date f these presents .

Rental , eighty dollars yearly .

Trustees reserve right o f re- entry in event of n o n - pay ment of rent .

Richard M . Conklin , Pres . VV' itn esse d acknowledged

Geo . H . Shepard , witness .

At a meeting of the Trustees held at the house o f Francis

o n 1 1 8 . Olmstead , Northport , November 9th , 59

a e Resolved , Th t the privileg of selling sand from

’ Eaton s Neck Beach be sold at auction fo r the term of ﬁve to years , and that payments be made half yearly the Pres 1 3 2 HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NA L

. ident , security given for the payment i f required The purchaser to take possession on the seventh o f February .

1 8 60 . The beach was sold to David Carll for three hu n dred

r dollars pe year .

Gilbert Carll , President .

Recorded by Israel Carll Clerk . Boats ran in and out of Northpo rt as follows ” “ “ ' 1 8 42 The Sun and The Flushing ” 1 8 5 2 The Croton 1 8 5 5 The George Law ” 1 8 5 6 The Island Belle ” 1 8 60 The Mayﬂower ” 1 8 65 - 1 8 66 The Pilot Boy “ ” 1 8 66 The M atamro

1 66 . 8 D . R Martin which lost money and discon i t n ue d for some years . ” 1 8 8 8 The Jessie B 1 8 8 9 The Portchester

‘ ” 1 8 90 The Aeronaut “ 1 89 0 The Northport

The following school repo rt was rendered by Joseph H .

o f 1 1 8 0 . Ray , Town Superintendent Schools , May 4 , 5 Number o f children over ﬁve and under sixteen years o f — 6 . age attending District School No . 4 Northport , 9 Amount of Teachers wages Account Library money

’ 2 In District No . 7 Eaton s Neck it was reported that a

n o t fo r t district school had been kept several years . To al wages paid fo r teachers in entire town

1 8 0 o r This brings us down to 5 75 years ago , those good old days when there were no drug stores , no shoe stores , no

1 3 4 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

M rs . grand father o f . Geo . S . Hendrickson It was in this ’ house that later Capt . H . F . Smith s father died .

o f The next residence to the south , was that Capt . Beebe .

ld an d an o Sandy Hook pilot , directly south o f that the

famous Octagon House built by Capt . James Beebe and

which is still there today .

Mr . Zenas Ivins , a ship carpenter , resided in the next

Tillo tt house to the south and next to him Mr . George , who was also a ship carpenter and Foreman Carll ’ s shipyard for many years .

Then came the residence of A . M . Brewster at the foot o f Stanton Street and j ust about where the Northport Yacht

to o f Club now stands . Directly the south was the house

E en etus e o f p Smith , later the prop rty the late Sidney F Smith and the next residence near the Shipyard was that o f ’ Bunce Smith who kept a store . Carll s shipyard must have been natural shore front in 1 8 5 0 as they did n o t start their 1 2 vard until 8 5 .

’ Standing near the side - walk in Carll s Shipyard is the

o ld o n Joseph C . Lewis house where J seph S . Lewis was bor

h is so n and presumably the late Herbe rt Lewis . This house

' 1 0 ‘ has been estimated as being 5 years old . Prior Hart s shipyard j oined Carll ’ s shipyard and extended as far south

o rth o r as the N p t House .

r o The No thport House originally an old store , sto d

o where it does today , with a mamm th weeping willow tree

in front o f it . To the west o f the Northport House and

’ w as south of Prior Hart s shipyard the old Steamboat Dock ,

1 8 0 . where it is today , though in 5 in much better condition ’ The small dwelling house now in the rear of Ro ulsto n s

o n the 1 8 0 store , stood steamboat dock in 5 and was a general

store conducted by C apt . Jonas Higby and Bunce Smith . d Main Street as it does to ay extended down to the water ,

and in later years a small barber shop stood o n that property . TOWN SH IP OF H U NTI NGTON 1 3 5

The reader will observe that in 1 8 5 0 there were the fo l

lowing houses that are still standing today .

The Selah Bunce or James house , the Octagon house ,

the Joseph C . Lewis house in the shipyard and the North

port house.

BAY VI EW EAST SI DE

There were no residences o n the east side of Bay View Avenue from the James property to the residence o f

Nathaniel H igby about opp osite the Octagon House . The

o f i next residence was that Henry Samm s , father o f Chas .

M rs T . Sammis and where . Hattie Kirby now lives .

2 n d rd th Jesse Carll , the , lived where Jesse 3 and 4 now

2 n d reside , and David Carll , brother of Jesse lived where

Mr . Benjamin Carll now resides .

- o f Erastus Hart a ship builder , nephew Moses Hart and so n M rs of Samuel Prior Hart lived where . Erastus Hart now resides . Then came the mould loft for Prior Hart ’ s shipyard and

va? then the residence of Prior Hart where Capt . James Ott no resides . So that on the eastside of Bay View the residences there in 1 8 5 0 and still occupied as residences today are the Sam

- D mis Kirby house , the Jesse Carll and avid Carll residences ,

- Erastus Hart and Prior Hart Ott dwellings . — WOODB II NE AVENUE WEST SIDE

The old Sail Loft of tender memories to th e early fathers was about opposite the N o rthpo rt House and where “ ” - f s the present Post O ﬁce stand . Alongside the Creek and about where the present bakery establishment of Fred Blox

so . m stands was the blacksmith shop of A . M . Brewster 1 3 H I STOR Y OF TH E ORIGINAL

M r . Brewster bought his iron and fashioned it into horse

shoes , horse shoe nails , braces , wagon tires , etc . The Creek was subject to the ebb and ﬂo w o f the tides

u p as far as where the Episcopal Church now stands , and when there was an extra full tide would overﬂow into Main

Street up as far as where Dr . Donahue now resides , while the district where the Rowley building now stands to Scud

r d e Avenue would be one big swamp . Between the sail lo ft

’ ’ a n d Brewster s blacksmith shop was Jesse Jarvis s shipyard .

This shipyard contained a Mechanics Bell , which kept

1 0 . mechanics time , which was then hours a day It rang at M ’ ’ ’ . . 1 :o o A , o clock , o clock and o clock

a n d could easily be heard as far as Centerpo rt .

o f It was all natural shore south the creek , quite ﬂat and

o n not a building it , and Capt . Smith has dug clams where

the present electric light plant stands . There were no houses o n the west side o f Wo od bine

’ Avenue until yo u came to Uncle Harvey s Beach where ’ Harvey B ishop , Sr . lived . South of Harvey Bishop s was

o f the house Frederick Bunce . Samuel Bishop resided

where the Israel Carll house now stands . There were no more houses from that of Samuel Bishop to Washington

Street . On the corner of Woodbine Avenue and Washingt on

Street there was a small Methodist Church , which was later moved to Centerport and can be seen any time near Wards

Hotel in that village . A Mr . Jas . Wood lived in what is

now the home o f Eugene Sammis .

The old Trough Mill at the turn of Washington St . was

o f a regular grist mill , grinding all kinds grain , and was n supplied with power from water from the po d , near the

present water works building , which ran over an overshot

wheel . The owner , La fayette Chichester, was also the

o f T builder the mill . hen came the Henry Scudder prop

1 3 8 H ISTO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

E e netus Co nklin ' w h o co n Then came the residence o f p . ducted a drayage business .

Then came the old Bonner residence . Mr . Bonner , father o f Clinton Bonner , was a harness maker . This house became the residence of the elder Lowndes who came from Staten Island and was the ﬁrst to introduce the planting and 1 8 0 cultivation o f oysters here about 5 . He hired a sloop called the Paragon and later built two or three vessels , one of them being the Cornelia A . Lowndes . m o f W . There were four the Lowndes brothers , , Charles , John and Theodore and it is reported that they were always full o f fun and unlike brothers usually are , never quarrelled a mong themselves .

John Lowndes was the father o f the late Stanley F .

Lowndes .

o f The next residence was that Washington S ills , a s h w o . hoemaker by trade , and had his shop in his house

T n hen came the Nicholas Dixon residence . Mr . Dixo was a sailor and later was steward fo r Andrew Ackerly .

. 1 Mr Philip Stark now resides 11 the Dixon house . Then came the general store and dwelling : of Harry d Ketcham , corner of Woo bine Avenue and Washington ’ Streeet . This store was later conducted by Capt . Smith s father and the Captain assisted as clerk in the store fo r a short time . Across the street from this store there was a gate and roadway leading up to the residence of Capt . Selah Bunce .

M AI N STREET—NORTH S I DE

Seventy - ﬁve years ago there was a frame building where

’ Ro ulsto n s the brick building , now occupied by , stands and in that building Jos . S . Lewis conducted a general store . TOWN SH I P OF H UNTI NGTON 1 3 9

- o fﬁce The Post was located in this store and Mr . Lewis was the Postmaster . The residence o f Hughes Conklin stood a short distance to the east of this store . f Then came the tailor shop o f Samuel Spa ford Brown. Directly to the east came the livery stable conducted by dw . n o w George Wheeler and later by E White , a garage and auto supply store . The next building was the residence of Franci s Olm s tead recently torn down to make way fo r the beauti ful

o rth o rt building of the N p Trust Company . Mr . Olmstead was Justice of the Peace . The next residence was that of Samuel Bryant which still stands in the rear o f the electrical shop of P . O . Carr .

Next came the Eliphalet Skidmore house where M rs .

Mary Crozier now resides . Capt . Skidmore ran Coasters as

. U well as Sea boats , sed to operate in the West Indies trade “ ” in a schooner called The Kate . The Samuel Bunce property where the library now stands was next . Mr . Bunce ran a lumber yard and handled

o f building material all kinds . He resided in a house in the

a o rear, p rt way up the hill and which has l ng since been

o torn d wn .

The next building to the east wa s the residence o f N . R .

White where Mr . David Bryant now resides . Samuel Spafford Brown resided there about 1 8 42 to 1 844 and it was n o w M rs . there his eldest daughter, . Helen A Robbins in

8 2 nd her year was born .

Mr . N . R . White was a ship carpenter and boss of the shipyard of Jesse Jarvis . The next house stood directly east of the building now occupied by Louis Kass as an auto supply store and was the

residence of Franklyn Brown . Within the past few years this house has been entirely remodeled . Mr . Brown was a 1 40 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

farmer and owned large tracts o f land in the Crab Meadow

section . The next house was that o f Richard Gildersleeve where 1 8 0 Capt . Henry Frank Smith built a new house in 9 , now

owned and occupied by Dr . Frank Quackenbush .

o f It is a matter interest that Capt . Smith made the ﬁrst application to the Northport Water‘ Works Company for

the installation o f the village water . The Samuel Spafford Brown residence was directly e east . Mr . Harris Henschel until recently occupi d this

house . Mr . Brown was a tailor by trade , having his shop ,

a s o f O . previously stated , west the ld livery stable Then came Fred Kellogg ’ s store and d welling about

where Mrs . H . G . Simpson now resides . Mr . Kellogg kept

’ e a general store and ran a p ddler s wagon , disposing o f his

goods in that manner . The Method ist Parsonage was next and j ust where it is

located today .

. h o u se be in Capt David Skidmore lived in the next , , gthat

now occupied by Vincent Hart .

was Next Capt . James Bishop , corner Main and Ocean

b . Avenue . This house has since een entirely remodeled Across Ocean Avenue was the old house o f Nathaniel Bunce long since torn down and nearby to the eastward Rutledge

Pidgeon has erected a beauti ful residence .

dw . A Mr . King occupied what was later known as the E

A . Matthias residence now occupied by Mr . Straub .

Then came the Bryant Skidmore residence . Bryant

Skidmore was father of Nathaniel Skidmore . This house is now occupied by Miss Clara Borland . There were no more houses until the large double house at the corner of Main Street and Vernon Valley Road known as the Jos . Scudder property .

HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGINAL

Then came the Jesse Carll property now owned by M r . I R . W . Hawkins . This was Jesse Carll the st , who owned

e o n all the prop rty up the level , had numerous barns and

outbuildings and kept a large herd of cows .

There were no more houses o n the south side of Main Street until you came to the foot o f Vernon Valley hill

where Dr . Brown resided . This house still stands there . Right across the street to the south was the site of the b n Presbyterian Church , the district at that time eing know

as Red Hook . To the eastward and directly across the street from the

o s . J Scudder double house was the Kelsey house , later the

David Bryant house . Across the Vernon Valley road was the residence o f

C . V . Scudder , who was a farmer . \Ve have thus listed 65 dwellings on these three principal street as being here in 1 8 5 0 and 3 5 o f those are still stand

o f o r ing , though part them rebuilt remodeled . h 1 8 T ere were in 5 3 ﬁve stores , two wheelwrights , two

churches , two blacksmith shops and one hotel , but no doctors

or drug stores . Doctors then carried their medicine with

them . There were about ﬁ fty men employed in th e four ship

yards and wages did not exceed to per day . There were two Packets running here and farmers sent

a ll their produce to New York by boat . In 1 8 5 0 there were probably from 1 5 to 2 0 vessels o f

all kinds running out o f Northport .

About the year 1 8 45 the wi fe of Lawyer Chas . A . Floyd ’ gave to Capt . Smith s grandmother, Mrs . Frances Cutting ,

- - some ice cream she had made . It was the ﬁrst ice cream t the Cap , then about ten years of age , had ever seen and TOWN SH I P OF HU NTI NGTON 1 43

to o o n his grandmother thinking it cold to eat , put it top

o f the stove to soften it . At the town meeting held in the Spring of the year the

voters of the Township o f Huntington , including Hunting ’ to n , Northport and Commack , had to go to Ezra Smith s

at Long Swamp about ﬁve miles west o f Commack . There was a race co urse on his prope rty and several of those in Commack interested in horse racing would gather there Saturdays during the summer to race their horses and on returning to Commack there was a to ll gate about where the new school house now stands and kept by Samuel Brown ,

f o f father o f Samuel Spa ford Brown . On a couple occasions after collecting from the ﬁrst o n e and Opening the gate fo r

u him to pass thro gh , the others would dash through without T payi ng any toll . hereafter , however , he collected all the

tolls be fore ope ning the gate .

1 6 m 8 t . Late in the month o f January , 9 Cap S ith shipped

o f o with Capt . Benjamin Tyler Smitht wn in the schooner ’ f 00 1 8 68 . o t. Anna E Carll 4 tons , buil in Carll s yard in

f r 1 o . and bound Lisbon , Portugal She carried bushels of wheat and 5 000 barrel staves and mad e the trip in 3 5

fo r a c days . The price realized the whe t was at 3 5 per bush e l in gold . While in Lisbon he attended a bull ﬁght which was a great society event at which the King and Queen were in a ttendance .

n O the return trip the Anna E . Carll was loaded with cork and salt . When about four days out from Montauk e n co utn e red a very severe storm which broke her main

sh e S boom so was only carrying reef sail , and prang a leak

o in the a fter hatch , lower h ld , necessitating working double break pump for ﬁve days . While laboring under such difﬁculties she me t the dis “ ” the a w a abled Liverpool Packet , H rps ell ; lo ded with mill 1 41 HI STORY OF TH E O RIGINAL

‘ stone and lead and in high seas and in grea t d a n ge r rescued 1 the remaining crew of 3 , several having been previously drowned . One li fe boat manned by the Harpswell swung around a n d the ship came down on her , smashing the li fe boat to

o n w a . e s pieces There were two carpenters aboard , saved , the other drowned . Two o f the crew managed to reach the Carll in a small boat that was also smashed and the other eleven were rescued by a boat from the Carll .

o f This return trip the Carll required 47 days , there being only 1 8 hours o f fair wind o n the entire trip and She only landed 1 5 0 bushels of salt o ut o f the 1 8 00 bushels taken aboard .

The following is as complete a list of vessels built in

Northport as is obtainable .

o f u Yard Sam el Prior Hart . — \Va ve 1 8 5 3 Schooner

1 62 . 8 John H Abeel Sloop , became the Huntington Packet — Eclipse 1 8 63 Schooner — F e n ella 1 8 7 2 Slo o —p Wm . H . Middleton Smack Nettie—Yacht Three Sisters—Sloop David Nelson—Schooner

n o t Built many others , but list available .

Erastus Hart , Samuel Prior Hart .

1 8 66 Helen A . Brown Schooner 6 . 1 S . S Brown 8 9 Schooner

1 8 Samuel R. Billar 73 Sloop I 1 8 r Cozy No . 97 Schoone

1 4 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

Charlotte J . Kingsland Ella

Lena Becar Sloop Smithtown P . Bride James Kirby Contest

Lizzie E . Woodend

Louisa H . Sneak

Henry J . Scudder Flying Fish Cornelia Lowndes Cupid

Edna C . Hellgate Pilot Boat

Jesse Carll and Carll Brothers .

George Hen ry Storm Bird Storm Claud

ik r Joseph E . N c e so n Helen B urten

Ora vetta

' m M z W . a eak Lancetta Moses Goddess Jesse Carll

Anna E . Carll Garland

Francis E . Halleck Florence Rogers Ben TOWN SH I P OF H UNTI NGTON 1 47

1 8 0 00 Osseo 7 Brig . 7 Farmer 1 8 70 Slo op 7 Florence 1 8 7 1 Schooner 1 60 Mary Martha 1 8 72 Sloop 1 00 Joseph Rudd 1 8 73 Schooner 45 0

1 8 o Slo op for S . R . Robbins 73 Slo p 7 5 1 8 0 Carrie L . Tyler 74 Bark 7 5

1 8 600 Herbert E . 74 Schooner

Addie Voorhes 1 8 7 5 Sloop - yacht Clyo 1 8 75 Schooner Ariel 1 8 75 1 8 6 2 00 Annie E . Webb 7

Fred e rick a Schepp 1 8 77 Brig . 4 00 formerly Emma Rich Francis 1 8 78 Schooner 600 1 8 8 0 1 2 00 Mary A . Greenwood Bark Fanny Brown 1 8 8 1 Schooner 8 00

1 8 2 - 00 Alley R . Chester 8 3 8 Lizzie Go d frey 1 890 1 5 0

Ivanhoe 1 894 - yacht 1 6 Supervisor 90 St . Jesse Carll Pilot Boat The Jesse Carll built in 1 8 67 had the reputation of being the fastest sailing boat for her size and class to cross the Atlantic Ocean , making the trip from Baltimore through

' to 1 the Straits of Gibraltar a French port in 4 days , the sailing record up to that time . On one occasion she landed a cargo o f lemons in New York two weeks ahead of sche dule .

6 . . Alcyone Lodge No . 9 5 F . A M was instituted in

1 86 . March , 9 None of the Charter Members are living , d but one member , Capt . David E . Scudder , joined the lo ge 1 86 April 9 , 9 . 1 48 HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

1 8 6 Wo r . . . Wm H Sammis was the ﬁrst Master for 9 ,

1 1 8 1 8 6 70 and 7 and served also as Master in 73 , 7 and from

1 8 8 1 to 1 8 86 and again in 1 8 9 7 .

As indisputable evidence that Northport is included in the healthiest zone in the United States in proportion to population a list is given o f persons no w over the good old Bible age o f three score years and ten and is included in

o f the closing section this history .

o A Note For Music L vers .

’ When Capt . Henry Frank Smith s grandmother , Mary 1 8 0 Collins Cutting was married in 4 , her mother shortly thereafter presented to her a piano given her when she was

a e girl , and it is related that peopl came to Commack from

miles around to hear her play . It may perhaps have been due to the puritanical teach

ings of the time , but at any rate she came to the conclusion she was making an idol o f this piano and with the d etermi nation characteristic o f that day and age she had the piano stored away in the attic and never played on it again so

far as known . When she died in 1 8 79 this piano came into the po s

o f n da h session Capt . Smith and is o w in the home o f his ug

. . e ter , Mrs Charles B Partridge . It is b lieved the piano is o n e o n . o f the very oldest , i f not the oldest , Long Island f It was made in London , England but bears no date . Ef orts have been made to trace it back to the makers but without success . It would look as i f it probably antedates 1 760 any way .

1 5 0 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL sprang up along the harbor shore those unsightly buildings that have steadily accumulated through the years , and that have converted a masterpiece o f the natural world into an unsightly picture that daily meets our vision and is an eye sore to the transient o r the soj ourner in o ur midst and a positive detriment to the prospe ctive home seeker that would otherwise gladly become one o f us . The harbor is still with us in all its pristine and prismatic beauty , in fact the west shore has been made more beauti ful

o ur than ever , and since forefathers have handed down to us as a priceless heritage all the latent instincts and desires for the artistic and the beauti ful and the noble that they

o r to had not the time the ﬁnances develop , it is up to us , and is o u r bounden duty to ourselves and o ur po sterity to n o t only restore the natural beauty , that in years gone by , even the native American Indian never defaced , but to go a great way beyond nature hersel f and make the east side o f the harbor harmonize with the present day conceptions of charm and allurement , and at the same time make it

b o f serve as a great enefactor the public weal , and constitute o ne o f the great attractions that should induce the motorist an d the tourist to visit the great Sunrise County of the

fo r W Empire State , ithout the least bit of exaggeration of an y kind , one could not ﬁnd a more delightful ride from the moment he enters Huntington and leaves by way of the historic old cemetery and the beauti ful Town Hall , past

o H eck sch e r that lovely and enchanting sp t , Park , that

o f historic ediﬁce Revolutionary days , the First Presby terian Church , the noble and imposing school house a o n cross the way , and then over a concrete roadway

w a pursues his y up hill and down dale , with its shady

n ooks , its irregular but attractive contour , its miniature

o mountains and deep ravines , its lag ons and picturesque a n d inviti n g looking homes and then Centerport Harbor ' ‘ TOWN SH I P OF H IU N I I NGTON 1 5 1

his so bursts upon enraptured view , a picture common to

h a s o f some of us it lost much its charm , but I doubt not that those that behold that vision o f loveliness fo r the ﬁrst

fo r time , carry the impression upon their memory years a fterward and i f our sister village of Centerport would only rise to the occasion and move the ﬁre hall and the hotel either o n the east o r west side o f the harbor and then do a little dredging so there would be water there even at low tide it would immeasurably enhance the beauty and attrac tiven ess of Centerport .

It is truly a beauti ful spot now , but those alterations

could be easily made and probably at a nominal cost .

o Continuing eastward as y u, round the turn near the

e o n e Scudder prop rty , the magniﬁcent view presented is never to be forgotten and for beauty and setting and o ut

line and charm is probably not excelled anywhere on earth . Truly here is one of nature ’ s masterpieces right at our very door and the view presented is one worth traveling many miles to behold . From that point into Northport Village the beauti ful scenery is obscure d except for a very short distance on Woodbine Avenue and that street is so narrow that motor ists cannot stop their cars an d be hold the natural beauty that can still be seen despite the barriers erected by the age of commercialism that has existed in former years and is still with us today . I know there are a lot of pe o ple that think because cer tain things were apparently good enough for our forefathers am that we should likewise therewith be content , and I free to admit that living in the past or living over the past may be pleasant contemplation , and will revive many cherished memo ries an d recollections , but we should not forget that we are living in the ever present , pulsating now and that we must face present day duties and responsibilities in such H 1 5 2 H I STO RY OF T E ORIGI NAL

a way as to build fo r the future from the standpoint of

morality , use fulness and helpfulness as well as from the standpoint o f beauty and spirituality and we must not there fore let the marvelous American spirit o f commercial ism stunt or destroy o u r ﬁner sensibilities and attributes and

love and regard for the things that are ennobling , upli fting and beauti ful and that tend to elevate the race in general

a n d o f o ur to raise the standard thoughts , motives and

ideals to higher planes than we have ever occupied be fore . I f we will each and every o n e sign the petitions for a new depot and for electri fying the North Shore Road to Northport and the same is granted there will be a bigger boom and a more substantial o n e than Florida has had in

’

o r so . . the last year , and i f the Long Island R R don t awaken to its Opportunity and responsibility let us arrange to install bus service to the city to compe te with the rail road and at less cost and the railroad will be compe lled to

o r o ut electri fy go of business . With a new depo t we would have an ideal approach to o u r village whether you come from Kings Park , Commack .

t o r Huntingon , Asharoken Beach by boat on Long Island

Sound .

\Ve have already expe nded thousands upon thousands on our roads and school house and I would vote to concrete every lane and street in the incorporated village and gladly pay the increase in taxes resulting therefrom without a murmur , and yet at the same time concrete roads , render it so easy for our people to go away from Northport and

see w ater . so go to places where they can and be near the , that it is up to us to build the park re ferred to in the po em that closes this history and by so doing make Northport such an attractive place and so accessible to all our pe ople . and at the same time more beautiful than any other village f on Long Island , that it will hold their a fection and admir

1 5 4 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

We must either advance or retrograde , beat against and overcome the tides of contrary public opinion o r be carried by those tides into the great beyond , realizing that as mem bers of this community we have failed to live up to the magniﬁcent heritage o f one of the most beauti ful spots o n

o u r earth , the great Creator has placed at disposal to enrich . o to enlarge , to beauti fy and to enj y , and in so doing to praise and honor H im through o u r descendants as long as the earth stands . Arise Northport and proceed to garb yourself in match less splendor that Shall crown you queen o f all the villages o n terrestial this sphere .

Let every citizen living in Northport , East Northport ,

. e Commack , Ft Salonga and Asharoken Beach sign the p ti tion for the new depot at East Northport and at the same time sign the petition for the electriﬁcation of the North

Shore Road . One person can sign the names o f his entire family provided o f course they are in favor of these great improvements . The petitions for electri fying the railroad will be presented to the executive ofﬁcers of the Long Island

fo r Railroad Company by Supervisor Field . The petitions a new depo t by the Northport Civic Association or o u r new

Board of Trade .

Here is an opportunity fo r yo u to exert your inﬂuence in

’ bringing to pass great civic improvements and it won t cost

o u y a cent . The only requirement is that you register your name o r names promptly so that the lists can be handed in without d elay .

I am aware of the fact that the Brooklyn Eagle in its TOWN SH I P OF HUNTI NGTON 1 5 5

1 1 2 6 o f issue of April 9th , 9 stated that the erection a new depot at N o rthp o rt is included in the 1 9 2 6 building program o f the Long Island Railroad Company , but at the same time I am also aware of the fact that a very prominent man in

n o w this community , deceased , but whose integrity and

truthfulness were universally recognized , told me that he had been assured by a high official (and mentioned the name and office held by that official ) of the Long Island that j ust as soon as the construction crew had finished the tw o new depo ts at Mineola they were going to begin the East North

t so port depo , no harm can be done by assuring the road that we must in the name of justice have the depot this year

e fo r without fail , as it seems plans have b en in readiness

more than two years , but no signs o f the depot at the present

writing .

’ Author s Note : It was stated in the beginning of this history that a list would be compiled o f all those in the

h 0 Township of Huntington w o were 7 years of age or over, in order to substantiate the claim that the territory from

’ ’ Horton s Point to Sands Point is the healthiest section in

the United States . Every opportunity was given and every effort made to

e obtain a complete list , but the response was so fe ble outside

r h o f N o t po rt that it seems wise to omit the list entirely . Evidently the shyness and natural antipathy of maidens

who are edging along toward thirty to reveal their age , seems to be inculcated in even more marked degree in both

0 o n e sexes after reaching 7 , though would naturally sup pose they would be proud and glad to make known the fact

they had exceeded the time honored age alloted to man . As this history comes o ff the press it seems pretty cer tain we will have the new depo t at East Northpo rt within 1 5 6 H ISTO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

the next few months and so petitions will not be circulated

fo r that purpose .

B EAUTIFUL NORTH PORT (O f the immediate future )

\ Vi th apologies to Nobody .

’ O ftentimes one s thoughts seem to mingle ,

M ine , now ﬁnd expression in this j ingle ,

And the statements , I trust , none will doubt ,

t . For this is the way , it seems , hey came about

o ut Just one evening only , I was very late ,

Returning , strolled through my gateless gate ,

Up the steps and then into the house ,

a s With nary a thought , being sly a mouse ,

And about A . M . sought my downy pillow ,

o But s o o n seemed aﬂoat n the bounding billow .

Yo u ma o r y say it was what I had eaten drank , And possibly it is both I shall have to thank ’ Fo r its the beauti ful dream , that o er me wove

And which to you now , I shall endeavor to tell .

o r I know not j ust how whence it began ,

But apparently this is the way it ran .

In this , my dream , I seemed to have a dear friend ,

Who , for things beauti ful , has a decided trend ,

And who always wears a most genial smile , As he continually searches fo r things worth while ;

1 5 s H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

\V e clambered out , the day was cloudless and bright ;

Our eyes at once beheld a most wondrous sight ,

For , be fore us and extending far in the distance lay

o f That vision extreme loveliness , Northport Bay ;

' we bo th sto o d And , for many moments , enraptured , r I realizing well his heart we had captu ed .

The tide was high , the bay looked like a mighty river

beautiﬁed Adorned and by its sheen of silver ,

\Vh ile , through the emerald green on every side

Th e sunset shades and shadows tried to hide ,

Making thereby every conceivable color mixture , '

. And , at the same time , a never to be forgotten picture “ As my friend exclaimed , I must indeed be fair ” And admit this is truly a scene most rare .

Th e Assuredly this was , end of a perfect day , ’ o rth o rt As we gazed in rapture , o er N p Bay , “ it When my friend remarked , You may think strange , But I must inspect this beauty at closer range

And see i f the residents are doing all th ey. ca n To make this lovely harbor a blessing to man ;

Fo r o rth o rt N p people should feel highly elated ,

Because of the wondrous beauty for them created ,

And their elation be mani fested in a permanent way , ” That will surely continue till the j udgment day . we had now arrived at a point in the conversation

Where I personally felt not a little consternation , And was thinking o f numerous schemes I might try To avoid that personal inspection , with his critical eye ; d So I ﬁnally suggeste , as it was getting quite late ,

w - w That we ait until to morro our inspection to make . TOWN SH IP OF HlU NTI NGTON 1 59

6 I knew on the morrow some things he would ﬁnd

Might have a direct inﬂuence in changing his mind .

th e So I wanted this view , like billows that roll , T0 be indelibly and forever impressed o n h is soul ;

And , no matter what the conditions to which he might refer ,

This vision of loveliness ever to his mind would recur ,

So that in his daily li fe , be it sleeping , riding or walking , Northport Bay to his artistic nature would forever be

talking . A fter one long farewell look , we did then mutually agree To continue our inspe ction j ourney at hal f past three

n O f the following day , and we the again entered the car R . . w w as To ride to the R station hich , of course , quite far ,

o n e And to take to such a shanty is indeed a great pity ,

Particularly as my friend was staying at Atlantic City ,

b o u Which oasts of doing almost anything while y wait ,

And in all things modern is right up to date .

7 I cannot forget his remark made while we had to wait

o ne . (For , like many railroad trains , this was late ) “

- During my li fe time I have traveled in many a nation , But I must confess that this is the poorest station

O f any that I have seen , either East or West ,

e Whereas , it would s em , you are entitled to the best ; And to an outsider like me it seems extremely funny That the Long Island Railroad would take all your money

These many, many years , without expending a cent

O f your thousands of dollars they have otherwise spent ,

s And , i f at la t , for their tardiness they do atone , it For beauty and completeness may stand forth alone ,

o n e And , instead of repelling, like this , of course ,

May it be , in reality , an irresistible force 1 60 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

Showing city p e ople that they need no farther roam

When they are looking fo r a place to build them a home .

b My repose that night seemed frequently distur ed ,

o u w For y can imagine my thoughts ere somewhat perturbed , a And , i f I sank into slumber and had any dre ms ,

be They seemed to inoculated with all kinds o f schemes ,

As , how best to avert those cunning , satirical glances And those biting witticisms that cut like lances ;

But , ﬁnally , wisely decided I would do my best

To shield o u r lovely harbor when it came to the test .

S o , after hours o f dozing and sleeping and tossing about , I awoke in the morning still confused and in doubt .

ff o u It makes no di erence whatever how much y contrive ,

The hour set for an engagement is bound to arrive .

to So , the station again in the taxi I hurried ,

t n Tho somehow felt tha I looked co siderably worried ,

But , my friend was so genial and smiling and kind ,

That my worries , like a mist , seemed to fade from my mind .

9 On the way down I thought it would be quite well

That a few casual statements to him I should tell ,

h as o f . So I said , Our harbor three direct ways approach

o n For private property , o f course . we dare not encroach .

o o u The ﬁrst is by b at , as y come in from the Sound .

And the sight is magniﬁcent as yo u gaze all around .

The second method is very trying , at ﬁrst , on the brain ,

- o u . For y descend , very rapidly , in a passenger hydro plane

o n e While the third is the that we have elected to take , And o ur way to the foot o f Main Street we n o w have to

make .

I 2 H I STO RY OF TH E OR IGI NA L

, Are the facts only , and to be implicitly believed

n o o n e . And , by the truth , can feel aggrieved ’ So let us walk down ﬁrst to Seymour s place , Then back this way our footsteps trace ; And each o f us will try to carry in mind ’ The assortment of things we ll surely ﬁnd ;

For I am convinced , while we are standing here ,

o u so That this harbor shore , which y hold dear ,

o f Has , in the course time , been clogged with junk

Until , at the present writing , it looks quite punk .

_ 1 2 _

It certainly seems like a downright shame Yet a condition fo r which no one person is to blame ; Each year has added constantly to the mixture

And , apparently , each contribution became a ﬁxture ;

Adding , day by day , seemed a part of the play

o And against the rules t carry anything away .

So , each one making his contribution , in imagination ,

to No doubt , thought he was adding the decoration ,

And that on the harbor shore he had made his mark ,

Though not especially suitable , for a public park . i So contribut ons became ﬁxtures and grew and grew , Soon completely shutting out the harbor view U ntil , without the least bit of exaggeration , It seems yo u have the greatest conglomeratio n

sun o r O f all things under the , great small ,

e rrestial That can be found anywhere on this t ball .

- I 3

\V e turned around and to the eastward faced ,

o ur And toward Bay View Avenue , footsteps traced .

h as The Avenue you know a nice concrete walk ,

o u So that as y travel thereon , you can freely talk . TOWN SH I P OF H U NTI NGTO N 1 63

Down that narrow but beauti ful street we strolled b ’ While num erless autos o er the concrete rolled .

is a The ship yard marked by six foot fence of wire ,

That be it intentional , or not , your eyes will tire ,

o u As y try to catch even a glimpse o f the bay ,

When with visiting friends you journey that way , ’ And o er part of this fence in very graceful lines ,

Are the Ivy green and other well known vines ,

n o t That seem to ever whisper to those dense ,

We are trying to hide this unsightly old fence . ’ as So here s to the vines , and gentle breezes blow ,

May they in their beauty , thicker and greener grow .

I 4

I said to my friend , in a casual sort of way , — In Eighteen Hundred Fifty three o r about that day

’ When real shipbuilding was indeed a master s art ,

And machines played a very unimportant part , ’ o Then from Maine s r ck bound coast to fair Key West ,

o ut The boats turned here were accounted the best ,

That could be found anywhere on the eastern coast ,

’ w as o rth o rt s And this yard . then N p pride and boast ;

For the high quality o f product that was turned out here ,

Brought prospective customers from far and near ,

a And old timers testi fy , it was real enj oyment ,

, ’ I f in Carll s shipyard you could ﬁnd emplo yment . ’

But the best equipped business can t always last ,

o f And now that sloops and schooners are things the past ,

o ld Let us cherish this yard with great veneration ,

Beauti fying it in a park for the present generation .

1 5 Across the North end of the yard the sheds still stand

In which there was moulded , many a vessel grand . 1 64 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NA L

T hese sheds were built not later than ﬁ fty ﬁve , And there ’ s only one man I believe still alive

That really remembers when they were erected .

’ o n visio n ‘ th e Tho the screen o f y are still proj ected ,

And while they still serve as an ancient land - mark

Let us make there an entrance to our public park .

A s one stands at the sheds and southward gazes , The scene presented is one o f varying phases :

For one sees at a glance , boards , planks , trucks and spars ,

- Row boats , dilapidated ways and twisted bars ;

\Vh ile in the center of the picture , and o f massive bulk

That looks like the Ark , is an old derelict hulk .

Which is not only unsightly , but lacks both beauty and grace ,

But it seems to have found here a ﬁnal resting place .

1 6

The soil here , it appears , all indigenous plants will nourish ,

th e ‘ be autiful So that weeds , orchard grass and ailanthus ﬂourish

In great pro fusion , till the axman makes his annual call ,

\ to e to Vhen they are allowed remain j ust as they happ n fall ,

to In order they may be added the yearly collection ,

\Vh ich f the high wire fence a fords a sure protection .

- is Next to the side walk a house that is exceedingly old ,

o n e Not less than hundred and ﬁ fty years , I am told ,

to o f And because it seems be a relic an ancient day , “ \Ve must await its ﬁnal dissolution like The One Hoss

’ Sh ayf

On your right is what may be termed an ancient dock ,

o f That , as you tread upon , some the planks will rock ;

\Vh ile sea to the piles , moss in beauti ful waving festoons

Millions o f tiny barnacles in its meshes maroons ,

o ut ~ And i f ever a hulk is once hauled on the ways , It is perfectly sa fe to assume , there forever it stays .

1 66 H I STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

There are rope s of wire and twisted iron bars

Scaled in by - gone days by j olly old tars ; While some old cherry trees and some S ickel pe ar

Add v be a ut in their season to this collection rare .

_ 1 9

I n taking this j ourney one should forget his pride ,

fo r And , sa fety ﬁrst , secure an experienced guide ; F o r since the day when some o n e ﬁrst had them carted These stone piles and iron mountains have never been charted ;

o w n o u So , for your sake , y should be very wary , And in this proposed public park not linger or tarry ;

to e o u For in continuing southward , your y might stub ,

o ld And plunge head long into an ice cream tub ,

i o f Or fall over a huge p le cement blocks ,

Thereby slightly disarranging your hoary locks ,

o ld o to Or some shed up n you might chance fall ,

o u Burying y completely under its unfriendly pall .

Stores , shanties , lobster traps and rotting boards ,

to f Add the collection this harbor sector a fords ,

While the entire lot , I am sure we will all agree ,

a o Should long g have been classed as merely debris .

’ I s it any wonder cold shivers o er me did roll As my friend so freely unburdened his soul ?

fo r But , as me , I was weary and faint at heart ,

For his stinging statements cut me right smart ,

u s And , I was glad when he said , let now take ship F “ o r . your proposed , middle of the harbor , trip

o ut o th e So into the harb r boat I rowed , \Vh il e in the rear seat my friend was stowed . TOWN SH I P OF H UNTI NGTON 1 67

There was one particular spot in the harbor I sought ,

o in tho u h t But I n ticed my friend seemed lost g , ’ Tho he gazed ﬁrst to the left and then to the right ,

sealed t But , for once in his li fe , had his lips tight ,

w e And , thus sat , as the moments quickly past ,

Until ﬁnally the silence was broken at last , And I wish I had both the ability and time

To properly put the things he said into rhyme .

_ 2 1 _

It certainly seems like a downright shame

For all you have here is a harbor in name ,

sea Accessible only to boats from the , As any sane person will surely agree ;

et And y , in gazing intently at the harbor shore , o n e Seeing circumstances and conditions must deplore ,

By eliminating everything from yard to lighting plant , And then view 1ngthe landscape from the proper slant

h as n Convinces me , that , while by man it been badly tai ted ,

o h as The Creator , in his wisd m , a masterpiece here painted ; ’ ” And it s up to you people to bring back its beauty again . “ \Vh ich statement I would heartily second by saying Amen . “ Don ’ t think what your fathers in their wisdom arranged Should in this day and generation never be changed ;

Fo r , by their mistakes , we should proﬁt as days come and go , ” And in the history of this old world it has ever been so .

An d these property owners , I really feel , Have enough regard fo r the public weal in To view such matters the proper light ,

A n d accept for their property what seems right ,

e o r f Turning no r asonable proposition o fer down , “ w For such a park system would help the whole to n , 1 68 H I STO RY OF TH E O RIGI NAL

And such willingness would be a sure mani festation

! co - O f a desire , on the part o f all , for full operation

e For . by such a spirit only , can we hop to stand

And accomplish things that are truly grand .

o n e So let us . each . respond to this call ,

As it is by our public spirit we rise or fall ,

And , in this age o f progress , let none be a knocker Or to proposed improvements be a constant blocker

And , with such a spirit mani fest , we are very conservative \ ” Vhen we prophesy rising to heights superlative .

He then stated , Please forget the hate ful things I ve said , And n o t place them in print W here they can be read ;

o n o u But from this point , y can print what you choose ,

Fo r n o w I am going to express fully my views , And not keep yo u a moment longer in the dark A t S o what should be done with this harbor park .

sa o You y , that Northp rt should at once start growing , f That with other Su folk towns , to make a proper showing ;

to o rth o rt But I say , i f you really desire have N p grow ,

To - prospective home seekers you will ﬁrst have to show ,

Besides ﬁrst class schools , other distinguishing marks , Among which are numbered o n e o r more public parks From which vantage point their sons and daughters Can have access to your invigorating saline waters ;

o u And , the increased population y may have contemplated

Will naturally follow , as improvements are consummated .

_2 4 _

o u The ﬁrst work to be done , as y look around , Is to appoint a commission to purchase the ground

From all those owning any property there ,

And , in dealing with them , be j ust and fair .

1 7 0 HI STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

2 6

“ o f l o f There should , course , be p ants every kind and hue S hedding forth beauty and fragrance like the morning dew ;

And , it certainly seems it would be well worth while

‘ ’ To depress this entire park Italian garden style .

So that , from Seaview and Woodbine , there can be procured A grand full length view o f harbor and bay unobscured ; ’ 1 00 0 While , about feet West of our noble c ps stand ,

o f On each side the street , build a large fountain grand ,

I n whose clear crystal waters , that continually ﬂow ,

The elusive but beauti ful gold ﬁsh can swim to and fro .

to sea Main Street the wall boulevard must be connected , f So that tra ﬁc , either right or le ft , may be deﬂected ;

While , at the extreme south end , there could be nicely arranged ’ Fo r every person s convenience , a sort of auto exchange

Where you could sa fely park your car by the hour or day ,

o f And thus , the problem a congested Main Street get out ” o f the way .

- 2 7

! I said to my friend , Hold up I am completely lost , And the people will ﬁrst want to know the cost

O f this proj ect o f yours , which sounds very ﬁne ,

o f And which will , no doubt , be done in course time ;

o n o u to n But . i f all stores Woodbine y are going tear dow , Pray what ’ s to become o f the merchants in that part o f town ?”

He looked at me in a sort of contemptible way , And this is exactly what he then had to say : “ ’

What s hal f a million in taxes , more or less , ? I f all future generations yo u can thereby bless TOWN SH I P OF H IU NTI NGTON 1 7 1

s th e And , in doing that , also bles world at large ,

’ ’

- So what e er the ultimate cost , it can t be an excessive

charge .

But , in addition , no one should be like an old drone ” And feel he can afford to live for himsel f alone . T ’ o which statements , a fter a moment s due reﬂection ,

0 o n e o n . N , I am sure , c uld seriously take exceptio

is Your point well taken , as to what Woodbine merchants

can do ,

But , I hasten to assure you , I have that ﬁgured out , too . i S i And old shack on East Woodbine , standing in pla n ght , ’ Fo r years now on Northport s beauty has been a great blight , From there to the corner drug store it is j ust a few doors But ample space to e re ct hal f a dozen nice stores ; And it certainly would enhance greatly the beauty of yo ur

town ,

’ ’ H en sch ells I f buildings from to Brush s were all torn down ,

o r And brick concrete buildings installed in their place , ‘Wherein the balance o f your merchants could ﬁnd ample

space .

o rth o rt so I ask , is there in N p a pe rson with sense of beauty blunted Or who se views o f right and duty to the future so com letel p y stunted , As to fail to realize these changes for which I have pleaded Are not only for present betterment but are absolutely needed ?

f o And I believe , their consummation a fords the only p po rtun ity Whereby yo u can expe ct any material growth o f your

community . 1 7 2 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

2 9

When this park is completed it will be the talk o f the state , And every autoist in the country to his friends will relate

fo r That , beauty o f location and for its artistic design ,

There is nothing can compare with it in any other clime . As tourists approach from the east and the scene bursts on

their sight , It will do your heart good to hear their expressions o f

delight , ’ Such as , isn t it beauti ful , lovely, wonderful , simply mag

n iﬁcen t ! And there are not in the dictionary descriptive adjectives sufﬁcient

To describe to the mind , or picture , paint or try to portray

The harmonious beauties reﬂected by park , harbor and bay ; And while we have travelled practically the whole world

round ,

There is no place in creation where its equal can be found .

And words simply fail us its virtues and beauties to recite ,

We can only say , our inmost being is stirred with rapture

and delight , That has so captivated mind a n d spirit that we cannot re frain

From purchasing a home in Northport and with you remain .

- 3 0

Some day one of these purchasers , you never can tell ,

- o Maybe a multi milli naire will come here to dwell .

A man of nobility , whose moral ﬁbre and texture ,

H eck sche r And public welfare spirit is like that of August , \Vho will purchase the prope rty from shipyard to James

Street , Making this beauti ful public park northward thereby com l p e te .

1 7 4 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

_ - 3 2

h That great sea wall o f w ich I previously made mention , Is the great undertaking to which I now direct your at

tention . And is that sea w all broadened into a great imperial way

That has no counterpart anywhere in the world today .

\Vh ile some might desire this long name to distort ,

‘ ‘ C De Luxe Let us hristen it , at present , Boulevard , North

’ port . w This great avenue shall be four and twenty feet ide ,

So that three automobiles can travel side by side , While o n the water side there shall be a four foot

promenade ,

e The p ople amply protected by a strong balustrade . Every ﬁ fty feet or so the speciﬁcations shall call

F o r o r observation niches stations along the harbor wall ,

Where the people at ease and with mind serene , Can in com fort enj oy the most magniﬁcent scene

That is on every side , north , east , south and west ,

f to Until it is di ﬁcult decide which view is the best .

3 3 T his imperial highway shall to the northward extend , Until into Asharoken Beach road it shall gently blend ;

\Vhile that road should be widened , and , by all that is right , ’ B e continued onward up to Eaton s Neck Light ,

Where another wonderful view at once greets the eye , k s . Either by land or water , or by the blue decked y

Retracing our route and back to Northport once more ,

\V e n \V o o dbin e ﬁnd ourselves traveli g along the shore ,

\Vhich should be ﬁlled in to the sea wall mark ,

And , i f properly graded , would make another ﬁne park .

The Lighting plant lease in about ten years will expire ,

They should then have made enough to want to retire , TOWN SH IP OF HUNTI NGTON 1 7 5

Or , at least , be willing to move across the street , That an unobstructed park and harbor view may then be

complete .

S o that from James Street northward , this great park would reach

’ . More than a mile to the southward to Harvey s Beach .

_ 3 4 _

’ From Harvey s Beach westward this avenue must swerve .

so And , in doing , it will be done in a very graceful curve

\Vh ich o ut o n , of course , will bring us the western shore

’ Where the problem o f construction won t bother any more .

to o u I have no doubt now , it is perfectly plain y ,

That this road continues around Little Neck , too ,

Following the water j ust as closely as it can ,

Until ﬁnally we arrive at the Centerport dam ,

From which point , in a couple of moments at least , Yo u reach the main road and can go west o r east

Over concrete roads absolutely free from j ar ,

o I f y u are riding in any decent sort of a car .

ﬁrma se e But , to return to terra , I by your smile

’ You probably think I m crazy most of the while ,

o u But to me . I assure y , it is as plain as day ,

We should plan to start at once this great highway .

3 5

’

What s the use of always ﬁrst counting the cost ,

Fo r , by delay , a vast proj ect like this may be lost ,

And , I perceive my thoughts have been so blended , That the purpose o f this avenue yo u h ave not comprehended ;

n o u But , when fully explai ed , y will have perceived , It is the greatest auto avenue ever conceived ;

For from Cold Spring hill , through that village pretty,

And on into Huntington , now a large , beauti ful city , 1 7 HI S TO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

W' ith mansions grand and artistic town hall ,

The historic First Church , with its steeple tall ,

O f Revolutionary days it is a well known mark ,

\ h ile H e ck sch r V e . , near by , is the beauti ful park

o u o Onward y g through wooded hill and dale , ’ As o e r concrete roads leads the Sunrise Trail

Into Centerport Village , whose harbor fair , S Set in ilver and emerald , makes a picture rare .

_ 3 6

Rounding Centerport Harbor , your speed you retard ‘ ’ o rth o rt De uxe At the entrance to N p L Boulevard ,

As o n e , for the present at least , it will cost each bone , ’ To Eaton s Neck Light and return back home ;

o n But you can then proceed merrily your way ,

From Centerport Harbor to Huntington Bay ,

o n e And , in rounding Little Neck , every thrills

o rth o rt At the sight o f N p nestling in the hills ,

o f Robed in her mantle silver and green , For beauty o f location sh e is easily queen ;

And no longer to Switzerland need any one roam ,

As we have prettier scenery right here at home .

Down the west side o f the harbor you ride ,

But your eyes are still gazing at the other side ,

And unconsciously , perhaps , that beauti ful picture

On your mind has become a permanent ﬁxture .

3 7

f c I have been told that government o ﬁ ials say ,

That the healthiest section in the good old U . S . A .

I s o f the North shore Long Island , as the ﬁgures attest ,

’ o n From Horton s Point the East , to Sands Point on the west ;

F TH 1 78 H I STO RY O E ORIGI NAL

And through auto busses to the city would indeed be ver y

ﬁne ,

Making the trip , undoubtedly , in about the usual time ;

o u S o i f it still re fuses what y ask for , with auto busses then contend ’ And o n the Long Island Railroad no longer you ll depe nd .

3 9 But i f the Railroad will electri fy the North Shore within a

year , And Northport will at once start these vast improvements

here ,

Then , I am sure , that fair Miami with its great boom in land \fV o uld be as nothing in comparison with the o n e right here

at hand , And the wonderful growth yo u longed fo r no one could Checkmate ’ F o r from Commack to Centerport there wouldn t be enough

real - estate

n e To meet the vast demands upo you , it is p rfectly clear , O f the thousands of commuters who would wish to locate

here .

In a year or two , no doubt , you would say Northport far outranks

f ari Every town in Su folk with its department stores d banks , And that unquestionably sh e alone occupies the b erth A s the most wonderful and beauti ful o f all the towns of

earth . ’ Isn t such a visionary town as that worth your striving for ?

And , as years come and go , you will realize more and more That striving and working has helped you attain such a

lo fty mark , Yet your success really dates from when you started No rth

port Park . TOWN SH I P OF H U NTI NGTON 1 79

_ 40

’ In our auto , as I recall , we were on the way to Eaton s Neck When w e sto pp ed tempo rarily two large hotels to erect ; ' So we will continue the journey now along the Northport

side ,

b l . And , I am free to confess , I never had such a eauti fu ride The park from Harvey ’ s Beach northward was truly in its

r glo y , ‘ to sa exa But i f I attempted describe it , you would y , g gerated story ! ’

o fo r do So I have ab ut concluded the best thing me to , ’ sa Is to y, take the ride , then you ll agree with me , too .

Along toward famous Asharoken Beach we rolled , b u Each moment the scenery new eauties did nfold , While the trip across the beach was indeed a great pleasure

And one , that as long as I live , I shall always treasure .

The view from the light house , too , I shall ever hold dear ,

For the weather this day was exceptionally clear ,

n o And , on the literal truth , I am casting reﬂection i When I say , you could see for miles in every direct on .

4 1 I f at Eaton ’ s Neck Light you build a dock substantial

I t o u n l w ld u questionably pay from a standpoint , ﬁnancia ,

To keep two large auto ferries , running throughout the day . ’ From Eaton s Neck to Connecticut via Rhoton Point w ay

And to me at least , it seems perfectly clear, e These ferries should run from May to Novemb r each year ,

So that many thousands of New England people , I ween

a On the Grand Concourse in se son , may daily be seen , While New York City hosts that are New England bound u Wo ld pay any old price, in order Little Neck to round ,

So when concourse and ferry are completed none need fear ,

The whole outﬁt would be paid for inside the third year . 1 80 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

fo r o u o I f then a paying investment y are lo king around .

You can rest assured , none better than this can be found .

so Let us not waver then , saying , it might have been ,

o But let us at once get together , and make it a g .

0 o n e S o f N hould deem it strange , and least all as funny ,

sa When I y this vast proj ect will cost huge sums of money ,

o But the boulevard will so n follow and everything be ﬁne ,

I f N o rthpo rt will contrive to build this park in record time . Everyone in the Town o f Huntington should be interested most vitally

co — And , by hearty operation , could assist you most mightily , While fo r the fame and glory that would come to Suffolk

County , She should be extremely liberal and bestow o n you her

bounty . While your good Supervisor should not only get pe rmission But the most hearty support of the Long Island Park Com

mission , a ’ And Worthy George L . the State H ighway Dep rtment s

aid could secure , While this backing by the state the success of the proj ect

would insure . And when the Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Bill is in ’ the makin ,

Your Congressman Robert L . should include this boulevard

in the Bacon ,

So that with this array of talent and ﬁnancial assistance ,

o n e f It would be foolhardy for any to o fer up resistance .

43 The cost of this wonderfulauto drive would not entail

A s u m ch as the Storm King Highway or the Mohawk Trail ,

1 8 2 HI STORY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

And who are willing to spend and be spe nt in fullest measure That all future generations may derive the greatest ” pleasure .

’ What s the use o f dreaming unless your dreams come true , And what particular Object is there in telling my dream to

y o u, Unless through our dreaming and our scheming we help

the world along , ? Lighten ing the burdens o f the weary with o ur cheerful song

\Vhile thus musing , I awoke from this beauti ful dream ,

o And a year and a hal f had elapsed , it w uld seem ,

e - lo th So that it was ninete n twenty seven , October the day ,

And my friend in our parlor wishes to see me they say . “ ” “ Good morning , he said , Today I gave business the slip , ” To o ld come out here and with you , take the same trip ;

w a s o But this time there n thing to be kept in the dark , i Se we went mmediately to the entrance to the park ,

A n d ‘ trul e y here was the b ginning of another perfect day ,

! e ! ! As , Marvelous b auti ful magniﬁcent was all he could say ,

he Until ﬁnally , emerging from his enchantment , then did ask H o w and when did the people pe rform this seemingly impossible task ?”

The credit is yours , for you recall , on another similar day

Yo u outlined to me in a very deﬁnite and beauti ful way , How N o rthp o rt should grow and become the most beauti ful town

That could be found anywhere , the entire world around .

w e I spread broadcast your vision and did then all consult ,

se e o And you here be fore y u this truly marvelous result . TOWN SH I P OF H UN TI NGTON 1 8 3

It was really in nineteen twenty six , month of May ;

e The p ople ﬁrst came together in. a constructive way

e And each p rson to his neighbor did then con fess , That o f natural beauties we do certainly possess

almo st in exh austible A bounti ful and store ,

’

As one s enraptured vision scans the harbor shore ,

. w So let us start this great work at once , for e know we can

Make these - G o d given beauties a blessing to man ; So for your vision please accept o u r profound esteem and

regard ,

n o w o n De u xe And let us take a spin this L Boulevard .

I knew , for the ﬁrst view he had received , his heart still

yearned , d So as we entered the Grand Concourse we southwar turned , And I directed the chauffeur to stop at the Hotel Harbor ” Grand ,

so Which , when it was constructed , was beauti fully planned ,

o n That every side and for every ﬂoor , there is an esplanade , Where the hotel patrons to their hearts content can

promenade , .

o r Either winter summer , north , east , south or west ,

\Vh ich - ever direction may suit their fancy best .

Taking the elevator to the roof garden , above the tenth ﬂoor ,

o n e . Brings you to a place of beauty , cannot help but adore

In extent ﬁve hundred feet long by two hundred wide,

’ lan d sc ra e th e e To harmonize with the p , owners have tri d

By installing palms , shrubs , plants , ferns and greenery ,

a o n e a s Th t any would designate beauti ful scenery , Being steam heated and glass enclosed in fall and winter

time ,

There is no longer necessity of seeking a southern clime . 1 8 4 H I STO RY OF TH E ORIGI NAL

I t be was in such beauti ful surroundings on this Octo r day , My friend again became enraptured with Northport Bay “ And exclaimed , There is no other place in this great land Where o n e can view such magniﬁcent scenery o n every

hand .

And nowhere , me thinks , can its counterpart be found , Though you carefully search the whole world around ;

sun This glorious autumn , with her warm caress , d Has arrayed all nature in a most gorgeous ress ,

That in conj unction with landscape , water and azure blue ,

f r Simply ba fles description , it is certainly t ue ,

be And everything appears to so beauti ful and grand ,

That it almost seems like living in a fairy land , And I have decided that I shall no longer roam

When I can enj oy such scenery right here at home . And I have therefore concluded in Northport to dwell

By permanently residing at this Harbor Grand H otel .

49 “

o rth o rt ? This beauti ful vision of N p , will it come true The question can only be answered by you and yo u At once getting together and making a united start “ o rth o rt For this glorious beauty o f beauties , N p Park .

F I N I S .