On e

Fatt C

Being an Acco un t of tlze New Ro che lle Half- Dollar and qf the Ce leb ration ma rking t/ze 2 5 0th A n n ive rsary of flu: ’ F o un din g é) Se ttle me n t of the w ! City of Ne w Roche lle N Y

3} M KIP A Y C. S TON

Tub/ixbed by tbe NEW ROCHEL L E COMMEMORATIVE COIN COMMITTEE

This account has been written in the hope that it may serve as a signpost to future Celebration Committees in 3 planning an event such as was celebrated in 1 9 8 .

When the Committee appointed as a 25 0th An n ive r sary Committee met to formulate necessary plans and programme we were at a loss to know just how to pro c e e d as , there were no available accounts of the previous of -fi ve event twenty years ago to guide us .

To . . . be sure , Mr Henry M Lester Jr had a scrap book with newspaper clippings which described some e o f the 225 th t vents Anniversary Celebration , but here w as a vagueness which w as b afilin g to us who wanted

- something clear cut to follow . There were terse tran o f t scripts of some heir meetings, but these were not

much aid to gropers in the dark .

s e The e did show, however, that there had been som dissension in that Committee and that it had been n e ce s sary to do a great deal of solicitation for fun ds for their Mille ma . n of budget Mr . Jere had been Treasurer that ' Committee and his recollection o f that afi air w as that the greater bulk o f the fund had really been contributed

by the late Mr . Henry M . Lester and that it had devel sum o f oped into a with Mr . Lester shouldering of t most the burden it had eventually grown o be . Mr . Lester had been most in dustrious in the cause and had entertained the French visitors of that day in his own

home .

It is my hope that this account o f our method o f rais ing the necessary funds ( which was a budget o f the planning o f the programme of events by out of the Committee , and the carrying that programme in a manner that in brfllian cy o f performance far exceed h o f ed our fondest opes, will be aid to some future C om mitte e who will Wonder what did that 25 0th An n ive r ’ sary Committee do to celebrate Ne w Rochelle s Birth day .

Reading over the list of names of the members of the 225 th on e to fin d Anniversary Committee , it saddened how e r too many had since pass d away . Perhaps ou list, , “ a e n to may bring forth the s me remark , How few r mai n n h n day, whe a ot er a niversary rolls around .

As the Spirits of the Huguenots In the Pageant of Ne w Rochelle Returned to Earth a few short hours To visit scenes loved well Perhaps we ’ ll be permitted T o view these scenes again And feel our honest labors

' e fl orts And not in vain . A M Y C . SKIP TON

Ne w Roche lle N Y , . .

F e br uar 28 1 9 9 y , 3 THE L EGEND

Early on e m orning in the year 1 6 8 8 as the sun shot its first brilliant rays over the waters o f Long Island

S Siw an o ound a y Indian , from his vantage point on the

rocky shore , viewed with wonder and awe a strange and

on o f unusual craft, riding at anchor the tranquil waters E cho Bay, and from that strange craft there landed a

group of people such as he had never seen before .

THE FACT

In the year 1 6 8 8 or thereabouts a small group of

Huguenots who had fled from France to escape religio us

persecution and sought a haven in various parts o f the

New World came to New York and bought through

o f their agent, , a tract six thousand acres

l of o f h from John Pel , Lord the Manor Pelham , whic

o f they named New Rochelle after the city La Rochelle ,

o f France , from which most them had originally come . The amount paid was the sume of Sixteens hundred twenty 81 Five pounds sterling currant silver money o f this province and o n e fatt calfe on every fouer 8L tw e n tyth day o f June YEARLY 81 Every Years forever

(if demanded) . THE NEW ROCHELLE HALF D OLLAR

n so Beautiful coi , silvery white Little did Huguenots dream in their flight

’ That a city they d found like our own Ne w Rochelle

Where folks of all creeds in amity dwell .

On your reverse you bear the Lily-of- France

“ While on obverse once more th e fatt calfe doth prance

A n d Lord Pell in a costume befitting the day

a - sa Receives him s quit rent so our annals do y .

N ou orth , South , East and West, little coin , y have Sped

’ With New Rochelle s story o f heroes long dead Who feared not the hardships but stubbornly fought

For the Faith that they loved and the Freedom they

sought . h God grant, little coin , that the story t us told

May live on forever and character mold h ’ In a form w ere there s Beauty, Faith , Hope , Truth and Love

An d h the over us over sweet Peace like dove .

A M Y C . SKIP TON

HE NEW ROCHELLE HALF DOLLAR

O B VERSE m fi fi rm ! N h fi K k §§ x i

l Y e l “ ! fl fl aé 'h x if V fi N Y

aw . m fi x ! l x i ,gee

THE NEW ROCHELLE HALF DOLLAR REVERSE

On e Fatt Calfe

PART I

THE NEW ROCHELLE HALF DOLLAR

ID Y OU Ne w Rochelle an h , my dear , know that w en

D , coins particularly half dollars, are being talked — about you can provided you were wise and civic- mind — ed enough to have done your duty in this respect reach into your pocket with a n onchalant air and produce a “ c e e oin , saying, Did you ever s one of OUR half dol ” ’ lars ! And like a rabbit from the magician s hat there is a United States New Rochelle Half Dollar shining ’ brightly in your hand . But don t let anyone persuade you to exchange it fo r on e of the half dollars he may have in his ou or pocket, for yours cost y ( whoever bought it for f you) two dollars and if you preserve it care ully, keeping is ou it free from scratches, there no telling what price y ” o r 0 fo r your descendants may be ered it some day .

T o few cities indeed comes the honor o f a Specially designed coin and to Ne w Rochelle it came only through the persistent and untiring e orts over a period o f sixteen o f on e o f he r z h an ar n m onths citi ens, imself de t coin col lector, Pitt M . Skipton . ON E FATT CALFE

t so A Commemora ive Coin is not, as many people s think , a medal , but is a regular government coin , alway o f face value and can be used as any other coin o f the

same denomination . But it is of a special design and mint ed by the government under a special Act o f Congress at the request o f a Commission or Committee authorized to sell it at a premium to obtain funds to carry through the purpose for which that Commission or Committee w as o f created . These coins are therefore considerably greater value than the ordinary coin of that denomina o tion and seldom , if ever , come into general circulati n , being bought by collectors or held by o thers than collect o rs as of value for sentimental and other reasons . At meetings of the Westchester County Coin Club of Gutta a which Julius g, an authority on South Americ n c oins, is the founder , the Commemorative issues had been a lively topic and since New Rochelle would celebrate in 1 9 38 25 0th her Anniversary , it seemed to the members a Commemorative for the event would be a source of pride both to the Club and to the City . This particularly appealed to Mr . Skipton as a source of funds for a gala celebration from the profits to be derived from its sale . As a rule such funds are either taken from the City treas ury or obtained by solicitation from private subscribers . As John and Mary Citizen at this time of general de pression were scarcely able to pay their taxes and provide for their ow n family expenses it did not seem fair to ask them for the wherewithal to provide for such a festivity as this should properly be . The idea of the coin being enthusiastically received by the Club at the November 1 9 35 meeting they appointed

ar Mr . Skipton a Committee of One to make the necess y a contacts and try to obtain such a coin . It w s agreed that T PI T M . SKIPTON

Chair m a n

N e w Rochelle Commemorative Coin Committee

NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK

h if successful , a Committee to andle the sale and to pro te ct the interests o f the small collector first and foremost should be appointed . There had been in the past several issues of Commemoratives which had been managed in a manner most unsatisfactory to Coin Club members and to the small collector especially .

8 0 The Committee of One se t forth gaily on his task . easy it seemed in contemplation but how diflicult o f c on summation ! Gathering and submitting proper historical data o n which such a request could be based to our Congressman ’ Millard (since become Westchester County s most pop ular Surrogate ) and Senator Royal S . Copeland ( who d W i s ied , universally mourned , in Mr . Skipton assured by both that they would do all in their power to achieve the passage of a bill for a New Rochelle Com memorative coin , though Senator Copeland wrote hum “ o ro usl is - on ub y, The President pretty hard boiled this s ” j e ct . News having gon e out that New Rochelle w as seeking a Commemorative , collectors from all over the country ’ at once poured orders and remittances into Mr . Skipton s lap , begging that coins be reserved for them . All collect o rs o f as not being people means is generally thought , o f some these letters were pathetic in their appeal . Some said that coin collecting w as the on e luxury they allowed themselves ; others pleaded that the price be moderate and not prohibitive as some other issues had been ; o n e from a blind collector described the pleasure he got from his small collection as he w as able to trace the design with his finger , and how much he hoped to be able to afford on e of ours . It was a gigantic task to reply to all these let ters, returning all the cheques, money orders, cash or

3 ONE FATT CALFE

the h n ot stamps to senders, explaining that t ey could be a h ccepted now, no Committee aving been appointed , no se t N price and no coin yet authorized . evertheless, every letter w as answered and the sender assured when and if the w as h coin issued e would be promptly notified .

- Due to over zealous persons writing frequently, volu min ously and mistakenly to the Congressman and Sena tor before mentioned , serving to confuse and bewilder t o l w as these gen lemen , passage f our bi l considerably de

l . ayed Therefore , after much revision through letters , telegrams and personal interviews, it was not until May 5 1 9 36 , , that the bill was signed by President Roosevelt ( thus becoming a law) authorizing New Roch e o f on e lle Half Dollars a Special design , of date only 1 938 o e ( ) and from n Mint only . — P UB L Ic No 5 5 6— 4T H ( . 7 CON GRESS) 4 8 9 . 1 0 ( H R . ) AN ACT

To authoriz e the c oin ag e of 5 0- c e n t pie c e s in c omm e m or ation of the tw o hun dr e d an d fiftie th an n ive r sary of the foun din g an d se ttle m e n t of the city of N e w R o c he lle Ne w Yor , k .

Be it e n ac te d by the Se n ate an d House of Re pre se n tative s of the Un ite d State s of Ame ric a in C on gr e ss as

se mble d That in c omm e m or ation o the tw o-hu e , f n dr d an d-fiftie th an n ive rsary of the foun din g an d se ttle m e n t o the cit o Ne w Roc he lle N e w York the r e f y f , , shall he c oin e d at a min t of the Un ite d State s to be de sign ate d by the Dire c tor of the Min t n ot to e x c e e d tw e n ty- five thou san d silve r 5 0- c e n t ie c e s o stan dard siz e w e i p f , ht an d g , io a d o a s e cial a r o ria e c omposit n n f p pp p t sin gle de sign to

4

ONE FATT CALFE

Mil man 1 4 1 9 36 h le . Jere On May , , t ey met and organ iz e d as the New Rochelle Commemorative Coin C om

mitte e . , with Mr . Skipton Chairman , Mr Watson Treas Mille ma ure r n . and Mr . Secretary Mayor Scott was o f se t elected Honorary Chairman , the price the coin at

plus postage and registry fee , and Amy C . Skipton was appointed Executive Secretary .

From the day that passage of the bill seemed likely, the design for the coin had been a matter o f serious con n sideration , Mr . Skipton hoping to have a local desig er and particularly appropriate historical design . He there fore invited suggestions from local historical and artistic o f a groups, but this seemed to bring out suggestions wh t ’ “ ’ not to have . A loud chorus of dont s included , Don t ’ have a landing party ; don t have another Plymouth ’ ’ ’ Rock ; don t have ships ; don t have eagles ; don t have ” “ ” '

. n Indians There was never a do have , and the do ts i being rather discouraging he decided , hav ng failed to get

o f help here , to describe his own idea to a local resident i w a . s artistic ab lity, who submitted a sketch This present w as ed to the Coin Committee at their first meeting . It

heartily endorsed by them , who considered its theme as having a real relation to the founding of the city as give n ld o . in records The Committee authorized Mr . Skipton to have a properly executed drawing made and to employ

a local sculptor to model this design .

When the models were completed obverse and reverse were submitted to the Commission of Fine Arts of the United States government ; after suggested minor altera

tions , resubmitted ; again sent them after changes made

in conformity with suggestions of theirs , the last changes being made in accordance with instructions which gave the Committee the impression that they were all that w as

6 THE H ONORABLE HARRY SCOTT

e e Mayor of the City of New Roch ll , New York

Ho n or ar Chair m a n y ,

N e w Roch e ll e Commemora tive Coin Committee

Ho n or ar Chair m a n y , 25 0th Anniversary Committ ee

N E W’ ROCHELLE , NEW YORK necessary to make the design acceptable to the Govern ment . Then imagine our dismay when w e received a no w as t tice that it not, and that an entirely new design mus re fu be submitted . This w e also did but met with a curt sal to accept it and a suggestion that W e employ someone w ho had already designed a coin . Thereafter the fount o f frequent suggestions Seemed to dry up and silence met

o ur an d cries for help . Back came our beautiful (we some others thought) models of the proposed New Rochelle n Half Dollar . After viewing some o f the atrocities bei g passed and noting designs which ignored the rules w e so m eticulously observed w e realized we had been for some “ ” unknown reason selected for the sacrifice . Since time does not stand still even for such an impor tant event as the birth o f a new half dollar and as the law c alled for its issuance not later than May 1 9 37 ( we we re now nearing the end of consternation filled the d bosoms of the Coin Committee . The failure of the esign t o be accepted w as particularly embarrassing in View o f the fact that with the appointment of the Coin Commit tee this news had reached the collectors through coin j ournals and hobby magazines and again we were del u ge d with orders and remittances . Every mail brought a new flood and our mail box w as constantly jammed tight o f w e with letters . Having installed a system accounting were making deposits daily and already had on hand su f fi cie n t funds to pay for the coins -when and if w e got them !

w e In our files had orders from as far back as May , 1 9 36 o f , and the senders these orders were beginning to ’ inquire when they would get their coins . And didn t we wish we knew the answer ! So many o f these letters we re fil Th coming in that I began what I dubbed the When e . e ONE FATT CALFE

o f h maj ority t ese writers were courteous, merely inquir o ur o f ing as to progress, but a few unkind souls spoke “ rackets” and what they would do to us if they didn ’ t get that coin right away . However, viewing the corres p on de n ce with over collectors I am convinced “ ” that a finer group of people than the same nuts as I have heard them called cannot be found anywhere . Now day and night we were obsessed by the horrible fear that w e might not get a design passed in time to ge t ’ under the line of the law s time limit and it became al most the sole topic of conversation in o ur home . There on fore , when awakened from a sound sleep the night of November 1 8 th with the words design and coin assailing my ears I was not in the best of humors , as you may

. an . re fancy However , when excited Pitt M Skipton , turning from the meeting of the Coin Club ( which you “ might say had begun all our troubles) asked , Would you mind getting up and looking at this coin ! ” handing me the Albany half dollar, I forgot my annoyance in gazing on that beautiful coin with its beaver and map le leaf . I agreed with him that the designer of that coin w as — “ ” the man for us the joke of that being that he w as a lady . The next day a special delivery letter to the sculptor asked for an interview and a telegram from G . K . La th rop made an appointment . On the coldest day o f that winter the sculptor arrived— and proved to be a petite o f brown haired young lady , full enthusiasm and pleased with our admiration of her Albany design . We found later that she had done some remarkable work in monu ments and statuary , including a World War monument “ at Albany , N . Y . Perhaps you have seen her Sammy ” Houston -the donkey of the Al Smith family which

8 N E N E W W ROCHELLE , YORK w as very much in evidence when Governor Smith was the in Executive Mansion in Albany . Wishing her to get local atmosphere we had many o u meetings, taking her about r city to show her all pos sible views which might inspire an idea for a design . She w as surprised to find the city had a work o f her former

. Gutz on teacher, Solon H Borglum , brother of the famed — o f 1 9 1 3 Borglum the statue Jacob Leisler , erected in the by the Daughters of American Revolution . There seemed a dearth of material that could be util e d iz . From the start it was stipulated that any design must be entirely free from any feature that might cause resentment on the part of any religious body . After much thought on e day the idea struck both the designer and “ Chairman and they exclaimed simultaneously, Why not use the presentation of the fatt calfe ! ” Miss Lathrop thought the idea could be carried out, injecting a touch o f humor without sacrificing any o f the dignity and beauty essential to the coin . She prepared and submitted such a design for the ob “ ” verse and the fatt calfe w as introduced to the Coin for Committee . We had not prepared the other members the sudden shift in the design and never shall I forget the ’ a expression on Mr . Watson s face as he beheld the c

vortin w a . g calf . This design s so far removed from the o f theme the original design that the amazed look , (end ing in a reluctant smile , ) was well justified but needless “ ” sa o f o ur to y we all became very proud fatt calfe . The model for the design was a young bull calf o f thorough bred Guernsey stock loaned the sculptor by the Kenwood

. . sa w as Farm of Albany , N Y and Miss Lathrop id a bit unruly at first, afterward becoming so reconciled to her presence and even affectionately disposed toward he r that

9 ONE FATT CALFE

We were able to get an excellent picture which was pub

lishe d Ne w o f both in Albany and, Rochelle papers the t model kissing the artist on the nose . (This is according o ’ ! Hoyle , anyway , isn t it ) The model of Lord Pell was obtained by much study of Pell portraits— paintings which she w as able to view through the graciousness of

the descendants of the Lord John Pell family . She is such a stickler for authenticity that the curve of the feather in

his hat , the design of the many buttons on the front and

cuffs of his coat, his oddly shaped shoe buckles , his hose , the long ringlets which betokened the gentleman o f — fashion of that day every detail must be perfe ct to satis

fy her . The Commemorative Coin Committee approving this w as design , it agreed that the same be presented to the t Commission of Fine Arts . To our surprise they intima ed that they might now accept the reverse w e had present

o u ed before . Naturally r new designer felt she would like to have the whole represented by her own design and had prepared a reverse with its theme the fl e ur- de lis which I had mentioned some time before to her as a - o f possible subject, since it appeared both on the coat arms of old La Rochelle and of the modern city of New

Rochelle . She now showed us her idea of a convention aliz e d , modernized representation and was authorized to make necessary contacts and see if she could obtain the approval o f a design for an obverse and reverse for a

New Rochelle half dollar .

Being an acquaintance of the Roosevelts from the day o f his incumbency in Albany as Governor o f New Yo rk i State , and with her mother (also an artist of note ) hav ng been a guest at the White House , Washington held no fears for her and gaily she se t off with her precious

1 0

ONE FATT CALFE

With the request now for and the sending out o f a certified cheque of to the Mint for our half dollars it seemed Well to prepare our registration ffi sheets . Each coin shipment, due to the Post O ce regu lation s on , was entered three sheets, each envelope bear ing a number corresponding to its number on the registry s heet, regardless of its card index number . This served as - u a wonderful check p later , though at the time involved o f a great deal of clerical work . The proper amount post a e aflix e d g stamps was also . lV ff Ir . so Watson , always courteous and helpful , o ered us the use of his Bank’ s second floor for the shipping and i 1 6 1 9 3 fitted it up so that when , on Apr l , 7 , our eagerly awaited coins arrived by express and amid great excite ment were deposited in the vault engaged for that purpose w e were all ready to take care of those pestiferous “ ” When lads and lassies .

on Mr . Skipton had been disappointed to find inquiry the that Mint would ship the coins loose in canvas bags , like hardware , and had asked to have them sent in rolls o r any way that would serve to protect them from rub

bing and scratching, if possible , assuring them that the Committee would be glad to pay for any expense this w as would incur . The reply was that it impossible , so we

- found on emptying the coins on our long, cloth covered

. in table that many were slightly scratched However , I structed my staff of five women and one man in the proper way of handling coins and we proceeded to count

them carefully and thus check each bag as opened . The

- on e coin orders were first filled , one person putting the coin in container and passing it to the next who filled the

envelope and passed to the next , who sealed it and passed who it over to the shipping clerks , , two in number, check

1 2 ERNEST H . WATSON

Tr e asur e r New Rochelle Commemorative Coin Committee

N E N E W W ROCHELLE , YORK e d with each other as to the address on the envelope and registry sheet and put it in a container for the mail . When w e had a sufficient number of boxes ready w e called the Police Department who Sent over an armed escort and “ o ur on e male helper went off with the piled up boxes in ”

ffi . the pie wagon , as he called it, to the Post O ce The assignment of a Special guard and the consequent parade created quite some interest an d we soon had many visitors anxious to se e our coin .

So that we might not be interfered with and delayed at our work which we attacked vigorously and continued d at top Speed , Mr . Watson had a Win ow downstairs s Where the coin might be purchased in small quantitie . sa w e ff Needless to y, were now o ered much advice as to “ ” the proper procedure but having made o ur preparations far in advance and having skillful and willing workers, w e d found everything progresse like clockwork . Miss Lathrop came down at once from Albany when informed of her latest baby ’ s arrival and expressed herself well pleased with the result of her labour . Mr . Dayton , o f Stan dar d Star w the , calling on us and finding e expect ed the Mayor in to se e the coin at once arranged to have a picture with the Committee , the Mayor and Miss La th ro on it - p gazing down the table with s heaped up coi n s . My workers all fell in love with the sculptor and Since everyone in New Rochelle has always been in love wit h

Mayor Scott , one of them suggested how gorgeous it

our would be , since Mayor is a bachelor and Miss Lathrop

a . spinster, if a romance would develop While I would like to introduce a note of romance here and presage the

to usual happy ending, truth compels me admit that I know nothing to base such a hOp e on beyond the fact that I heard them both express the wish that they might end

1 3 ONE FATT CALFE

on their days a farm . Whether it would be the same farm or w a o f . not, though , I have no y knowing

as The Westchester County Coin Club , claiming this h ’ t eir baby also, were quite enthused over the coins arrival and more so when the Coin Committee announced their intention of inviting to the Annual Dinner as their guests m Congress an Millard , Senator Copeland , Miss Lathrop a n d Mayor Scott . This dinner w as a most delightfully informal and homelike affair with very interesting and

o n instructive talks coins of various lands and kinds , the most important probably being that of Howland Wood

who o f ( has since passed on) , an authority on and author works on coins . Mayor Scott pleased everyone with his ow n inimitable kind of Speech and created quite some ex c ite me n t by his mysterious production of several coins w hich he claimed he believed of quite some value and wished some of the experts at the dinner to inform him

. o n e o f about They however, proved to be another his j okes and the verdict of the experts was that he w as the o o f wner of a lot junk, its value being nil , but Since he was an honored guest they might consider giving him

- a- half cent for the lot, unless he might prefer to keep and use them as Sinkers on his next fishing trip . Miss Lathrop w as sh called on and being y tried to avoid a speech , but on the insistence of the crowd finally told something o f her pleasure in making the New Rochelle coin and o f the “ work She w as then engaged on with a rather ramb un c ” a tious ram as a model . She spoke of her love for anim ls she a n d said like the Mayor , too had begun and hoped to — end her days on a farm not just yet , though With her present model she sometimes feared her wish would be realized all too soon . This brought down the house . y Our work at the Bank proceeded swiftly and smoothl ,

1 4 JERE MIL L E MA N

Se c r e tar y New Rochelle Commemorative Coin Committee

ONE FATT CALFE

an d elle . In some cases he made a personal appearance in h others trusted to the good offices o f t eir Chairman , Sec r e tar y or most active member . It was rather hard to inter est them as the Celebration itself Still seemed in the far distance and the e ffort was very disappointing in results .

The Iris Club of America were evidently please d with o ur reverse design as they sent us quite an order for their members . The protesting calf undoubtedly made quite an impression since in the last couple of days o ur local papers have shown the designs for the Post Office murals and w e find the presentation of the calf to Lord Pell features one of these . However , their Lord Pell is a rather paunchy looking fellow to my mind , While Lord John was really a o f slender young man , the glass of fashion , at the time the delivery of the calf . That the handling of the coin was acceptable to the small collector is evident in the letters of appreciation Mr . Skipton has received and the fact that the Coin Cl ub adopted a resolution of approval and gratitude to him at 1 3 their August 9 8 meeting . This to a large extent atom s for the criticism and interference met with in the early stages and somewhat repays the Chairman and his Com mitte e for the anxieties endured and effort expended dur ’ “ ” ing the coin s incubation .

After the greater part of the shipments were out o f the w ay I had time to look back over the correspondence over ten thousand communications were received— and find some that were interesting from various points o f view . Mr . Skipton had composed a little history o f the city ’ s founding for a leaflet to be sent in reply to inquiries about the coin and its price . He called the celebration to ’ be held New Rochelle s birthday party and invited the had recipient to attend . We many responses to this from

1 6 NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK persons who had previously lived in or near Ne w Roch elle ; from others who had heard so much of and so long intended to visit our city and now intended to make it a part of a vacation trip ; from a young man who had once played against the Ne w Rochelle football eleven ; from another who had been on a destroyer in our harbor during the World War ; from recruits who had been at during the same w ar ; from people who were of

Huguenot ancestry ; from a man named S . E . Rochelle who felt that his name probably was derived from some o f the original settlers ; from a Chinese gentleman , couch ed in such perfect English and so courteous in tone that w e blushed for some of our When friends and wished they might read it ; and naivest of all , was the response “ from a young girl w ho certainly would attend o ur birthday party and what would be the proper kind of dress ” ! she to wear Bless her heart , we hope was able to come a n d she on e o f that attended the Block Parties, in best bib and tucker . The many coin magazines and hobby papers were most complimentary in their comments on the design and man age m e n t of the Coin and since they have such a large cir culation and had not been so flattering in their comments o n w e o f some other issues , the Committee who know how arduous was his work and how unstintingly he gave o f his time , hope that this may be some compensation to the Chairman of the Ne w Rochelle Commemorative Coin

Committee .

The Standard Oil Company o f Ne w Jersey having for representative in this locality on e of our Ne w Rochelle boys— Gordon Wright— promised us to publish an article a n d the Programme of our Celebration in their spring

E sso Ne ws Tours an d D e to booklet . Their and urs have

1 7 ONE FATT CALFE

long been known to motorists and are handed out at over gas stations in a territory from Maine to Louisiana with distribution through an even greater number o f th e ir

stations in the middle west . Mr . Skipton had also been in

contact with Mr . William A . Smith the local representa tive o f Swift and Company who said they would be pleas ed to give our Celebration publicity in their trade paper which reaches customers throughout a large area includ ing New England .

People w ho do not understand about and therefore express disapproval of Commemorative Coins would do well to realize that with the issue of these coins comes a great deal of work and wages that would not otherwise come into being . There is work for a sculptor in making the new design ; for printers in getting out advertising matter to sell the coin ; for makers o f containers for s hipping the coin ; for employees in issuing postal , bank and express money orders ; for clerical help in the offices o f Committees handling these Commemoratives and in the carrying out of the projects for which the coin w as intended to furnish funds —whether this be a celebration di such as ours or the buil ng of a memorial . There is work for Government employees making new dies for the c oin ; selling all the extra postage which the coin makes necessary . The Government itself makes a profit on each o f thes fifty cent pieces of approximately twenty cents since only about thirty cents worth of silver goes into the coin .

The smaller the issue o f a Commemorative o f course the less widespread the distribution becomes, even among collectors, and thus the demand and value are increased . o f We desired an issue pieces but unfortunately , becoming effective just prior to the authorization o f our

1 8 N E W N E ROCHELLE , W YORK

o f n o issue , the government established a rule minting so less than pieces of a Commemorative issue , we were compelled to accept and pay for half dol lars .

w e o ur To protect the collector , when found profits supplied an ample sum for o ur Celebration purposes with ’ e w w e N Rochelle s demands for the coins filled , returned to the Mint for melting a quantity of the coins ; as soon

th e C e le b ration w as as , was over the unsold balance at o nce returned for melting, thus upholding the price and keeping faith with the collector . Outstanding and over a large area are approximately o f our coins with no large amounts in the hands of any dealers . Since the Celebration we have been told of offers at quite an ad vance being made to purchasers but as the coin means m off ore to them than the extra money, these ers were declined .

Up to the time o ur bill w as introduced there had been no Commemorative Coin issued to any city except Hud

so n . . , N Y Subsequently several issues were approved for other cities . Many expressions of admiration for the beauty and the originality of the Ne w Rochelle half dol lar have been received and our designer , Miss Lathrop , has recently executed a medal for the Society o f Medal out lists which is also a thing of beauty, carrying her pet ideas with models of wild life .

We boosted the sale of stamps in o ur City to such an extent that they ran out o f the nine - cent Stamps which w e used for sending out the on e and fi ve - coin orders and were compelled to borrow from nearby post ofifice s to keep us supplied . Jim Farley owes us a debt of gratitude for w e used his n e w commemorative stamps whenever

1 9 ONE FATT CALFE

o of possible , kn wing that many our customers were stamp e as Well as coin coll ctors . When a celebration such as ours takes place with a sum such as ours, nearly being expended , nat urall b e n e fi tte d y a great many people are thereby , and while perhaps it was so widely spread that each received but a small part, nevertheless if was deeply appreciated . Some o f the recipients told us it was the first cash they had received for their services in nearly five years . Can yo u think of that unmoved in times like this !

Our receipted bills show large sums went for decorat ing the streets , for bands and orchestras, for refresh m ents and entertainment of visitors, for transportation of exhibits to the Hobby Show ; for bark for the Long House of the Boy Scouts ; for prizes for the various e : e vents why, one could fill a page t lling of the ways in which benefit is derived from the issue of a Commemora tive Coin . We believe it instills love for and pride in the home c ity and a desire to save for a certain purpose as witness o w h o e the lad , R bert Deierlein , sav d his gifts and earn “ ings to buy one , expressing it as his belief that every boy ” born in Ne w Rochelle should buy one o f these coins

e n when he parted with his quarter , dimes, nickels and p

me s.

Quite a number of letters were received from folks w ho suddenly became ancestor- conscious and believing e in fo r they had Huguenot for fathers wrote us , desiring

- mation . These we put in the hands of our well informed the historical representative on Anniversary Committee ,

Mr . William S . Hadaway , and no doubt as a result he has added some names to his roster of Huguenot Asso e ciation memb rs .

20 N N E W E W ROCHELLE , YORK

o A collector f Santa Monica, California, wrote when “ ” w e informed him he had overpaid us by to forget

- — he the over payment and use it towards our fund that w a to s glad to help a good cause along . He said he liked p resent commemoratives to his de scendants when they e n celebrated birthdays, believing it to inculcate thrift in

a n e c our gi g collecting . Whil he bought ten of our coins “ he said he only had six descendants at present with good ” prospects of more . This was a good bit of news to us in Ne w more ways than one . A young lady in Jersey said with her order that she was purchasing and laying away c ommemorative coins as she felt that to be a good form - - b e - e o f savings . An inclined to extravagant ni ce of mine has been so charmed with the beautif ul designs of the commemoratives that She h as also started collecting and i she thereby sav ng, something would not have thought o f if she had not b e en intrigued by the design of the O r w a egon Trail half dollar . Apparently no impetus s nec o essary to start Mr . Skipton c llecting since , according to the family annals, he acquired and promptly swallowed at the early age of two years a new and Shining Indian

Head Penny . Though boasting a fair knowledge of ge ography many “ ” surprises were in store and I must watch my step - in — this cas e my fi n ge rs when addressing orders to some o f the familiar names of our o wn towns and cities since e No o there are many duplications in oth r States . t nly is ff t , here a Jamestown Rochester and Bu alo in Minnesota, an Albany in Georgia, California and Oregon , but Port

e . i land se ms quite popular Of course , there s a Spring in o f t , . field all but a few States he Union too However , o f the and more letters sent out there were but tw o that were returned as improperly or insufficiently e addr ssed .

21 ONE FATT CALFE

Throughout my file o f orders the word lake ap pears very frequently in n ames o f towns and cities . There lVIo un tain is Lake City , Lake View, Lakeville , Lake ’ a Park , Lake Forest, Grays Lake , R ndom Lake , Devil s

Lake , Storm Lake , Howard Lake , Indian Lake , Brant

Lake , Spring Lake and White Lake ; and as for Forts

Ashby, Atkinson , Bennings, Gibson , Humphreys, Lau de rdale , Smith , Slocum , Sam Houston , Thomas, Ticon — deroga , Thomas, Wadsworth , Wayne and Worth all these assure us that our country is well protected by the

military as well as irrigated by our lakes .

Fascinating names to me were Sundown , Mount Airy , ’ Birdsboro , Moss Point, Thief River Falls, Holliday s e Cove , Bridesburg, Sewanee , Lone Tre , Indian Head ,

Maple Shade , Cottonwood , Big Stone Gap , Needles , ’ - Blackfoot , Nanty Glo , Penn s Grove , Friendship , Lib e rt N e w y, Independence , Freedom , Humansville and m e ille c o rsv . The most rabid feminist could not but be satisfied with o f se x : the representation her in names such as Mabel ,

Florence , Elizabeth , Louisa , Alma, Augusta, Alexan

dria , Beatrice , Charlotte , Camilla , Clarinda , Marian , s Regina , Santa Barbara , Susanville , Ro eburg , Marys

ville , Janesville , Ida Grove , Pocahontas , Juniata , St .

Anne and St . Helena . One of several orders from A r l w as anta, Georgia, an address of the Peach Tree Lane ’ ( now Street) of Scarlett O Hara and w e had several — “ ’ orders from the city of Florian Slappey his Bu min g ”

h am .

In September of last year our local paper showed o n its front page a photo o f an Eskimo lad perusing with o f our great interest an account Parade , While w e have been told o f the great enjoyment o f former New Roch

22

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Council members on the appointment of a Celebration

Committee .

24 On e Fatt Ca e

PART II

THE CELEBRATION COMMITTEE

N A N UA RY 1 1 1 938 re com j , , Mayor Harry Scott mended as members o f a New Rochelle Celebra

: . tion Committee the following Pitt M Skipton , Ernest

o Mille man . H . Wats n , Jere , George M . Davis, Ollie V

C re n n an . . , Henry M Lester , Robert J Cooper, William S . Hadaway, J . Kenneth Huntington , Walter G . C .

Otto , Leo Ferrara and Melville Kahn , this resolution o f designation being adopted by the C ouncil o f New Ro c helle that same date . The Mayor then suggested that

Mr . Skipton call a meeting to organize this Committee , known as the 25 0th Anniversary Committee o f Ne w

Rochelle , N . Y . 1 1 9 38 On Monday, January 7 , , a meeting called by w as h Mr . Skipton eld in the Board Room of the First

N . ational Bank with all members except Messrs Watson ,

Lester and Hadaway present . Mr . Skipton briefly outlined

” the o f purpose the meeting , explaining that the Ne w R0 chelle Commemorative Coin Committee appointed by the

25 ONE FATT CALFE

Mayor had been in existence since the passage o f the bill authorizing the issue of a New Rochelle half dollar h ad o f a been obtained by Mr . Skipton as a Committee One p pointed by the Westchester County Coin Club ; that a well known sculptor had been employed to design such a coin ; that Special hubs and dies had been made and

pieces received from the Mint, all these expenses having been paid from funds received from orders for the o f coin , the coin itself having required the payment that the Coin Committee had been actively e n gaged in its sale and distribution and that n ow on deposit in the First National Bank of this City there was a sum slightly in excess of This sum with a further estimated sum of was available for purposes o f a proper celebration . He added that more than indi vidual orders from every State in the Union , from the Z e a Philippines, Hawaii , Puerto Rico , Canada and New e land , ranging from one coin to an order of one hundr d an d fifty from the Coin Club of a well known bank had been received and distributed by the Coin Committee . In spite of the fact that our local paper had been giving the coin splendid publicity ever since the inception of the New Rochelle half dollar idea some members of the Cel ’ e b ration Committee professed to be ignorant of the coin s issuance , proving the truth of the proverb anent the prophet and his own country . The Celebration Committee after electing Mayor dis Scott as its Honorary Chairman decided , after much ice r n o . . s c ussio , to defer the election of other since there ad were three members absent at this first meeting , and journ e d to the following Saturday . Mr . Skipton had no tifi e d the press o f this meeting and left word with the “ ” t keeper of the gate to admit their represen ative , but

26 WALTER G . C . OTTO

Cha ir m a n

2 n e a 5 0th . A niv rs ry Committe e

N E W N E W ROCHELLE , YORK through some unfortunate chain of events beginning with

o f w as . the tardy arrival the reporter , he not invited inside The next day we were all amazed to read a scathing edi torial in the on e and only daily of the city (the Standard Star) denouncing the Committee for “star chamber pro ” c e e din gs and also further announcing that the Commit tee had elected Walter G . C . Otto , former County Judge - o f and ex Mayor, as Honorary Chairman the Celebra u tion Committee . This astounded s but there had evi de n tly been a misunderstanding all around with the pape r — “ right only in one particular that a wrong start w as ” being made but by whom I leave you , reader , to j udge . On the appointed Saturday morning the meeting w as

— - held with needless to say the representative of the press among those present . All members attending except e n n ffi C r an . Mr . and Mr Davis the election of o cers took place . Mr . Watson and Judge Otto being nominated for

Chairman , Mr . Watson withdrew in favor of Judge Otto d and unanimously elected , Ju ge Otto took the chair . Mr .

- Leo Ferrara was elected vice Chairman , Mr . Huntington

Mille man Treasurer and Secretary and Mr . Executive ’ Secretary . On Mr . Watson s suggestion that Mrs . Skipton having been Executive Secretary of the Coin Commit tee and having all the details at her fingertips it would be very helpful to have her as an Assistant Executive Secretary .

. o h O b se Mrs Skipton was unanimously s elected . I p e su quent events did not incline the members to think those ” same fingertips in the pie too frequently . Someone now feeling that the Councilmen might feel ’ “ ” an d f ignored o fended by the Mayor s sole elevation , it w as decided as a friendly gesture to make all four Cou n — c ilme n . . Messrs George I Roberts, Charles H . Noxon , ’ B e — ri . James J . O n and Herbert P Milligan Honorary - vice Chairmen .

27 ONE FATT CALFE

tan dard Star n ow in . S T he 0 . icial photographer o f the “ vitin h g us to come outside and be s ot, we all courage ously followed him and found our execution a feature o f the next issue of the newspaper . After the organization of the Coin Committee in a con ference with the Mayor he had asked me to make as com p le te a list as possible of the organizations o f the city

civic , fraternal , religious, patriotic , business and social

to guide him in his selection of Committees . This list I n ow offered the Celebration Committee as a basis for C om Committee heads, subcommittees and the General mitte e which we considered appointing to number tw o

hundred and fifty members . This list had taken consider — a able time to compile hot August, hotter September and o f u - - - part October, and was as p to the minute as possible w here organizations have such varied dates for chan ging the officers and where so many of them are fortunate enough to be able to leave town for the sum mer and

therefore could not be reached . Many times I had to listen to a long explanation why this person was no longer she h — ead President, Chairman , or whatever the title might

be . Sometimes the former heads would be so disgruntled

that they would give no information as to their successor, preferring to tell me of other organizations in which they held honored positions and airing their grievances in re d w as gard to personnel and officials of various bo ies . It u h n undoubtedly soothing to their r n ed feelings t ough c o sumin g a great deal of my valuable time and patience , but I realized most of them would be of great help to us in o ur General Committee later and w as quite willing to help

salve their wounded pride . If some o f the ladies and gen tle me n who so insouciantly requested and even b ellige r ently demanded of me that I let them have this list for their personal or club use and were so indignantly offend

28

MEMBERS OF T HE Z SOT H ANNIVERSARY COMMITTEE

. R HENRY M LESTER . , j MELVILLE KAH N I OLL E V . C R E N N A N ERNEST H . VVA T SO

OF THE RY COMMITTEE

I P TT M . SKIP TO N

VVIL L IA M H V S . A DA VA Y

NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK

— — c d and offensive on denial read this perhaps it will not “ ” so a seem outrageous that it w s refused . w e Reconvening after being photographed , discussed

u . the form such a celebration as ours sho ld take . Mr Had away was asked and told about the White Plains and Bed ford celebrations of a short time ago . Mr . Davis, President o f the Board of Education of the city , reported that all schools were prepared to take an active part and Mr . Watson announced the expressed wish of the Postmaster to have the dedication of his new building made a part of ’ w as the week s celebration . This considered quite fitting McL o u hlin and as Mr . g had also told Mr . Watson he had made inquiry of his superiors at Washington and been as sured o f their consent to a delay o f the laying of the cor n e rston e to fit in with our week, was made an event in o ur calendar .

our on 28 th At next meeting January , all members i . w e were present but Mr Dav s, and had hoped to have many ideas laid before us since on adjournment of the pre vious meeting it w as understood all members would Strive s to gather suggestions and present them , but Mr . Nichol o f re and Mr . Nye the school system having asked and c e ive d permission to attend and lay before us their prop

tio w as o si n of a School Pageant, much time taken up in discussion of this matter . They requested the Committee to finance such an affair to the extent o f and wished us to fix a date for our celebration week that would

fit in with their convenience . This aroused much argu ment since we had from the beginning se t the week b e — — ginning on June l9 th a Sunday and ending on June 25 th o f 24th th , thus including the date June , e feast of h . t e St John Baptist, specified in historical accounts . They objected on the groun ds o f examinations and graduatio n of and wished a date in the beginning June . The Com

29 ONE FATT CALFE mitte e felt that the matte r o f weather w as important to the success o f such an outdoor celebration as ours was to be ; that out of town vacationing folks would not be like ly to come on such an early date and after much pro and con the dates o f June 1 0 and 1 1 were Se t as Pageant dates .

As to the amount asked , that was deemed a matter to be discussed after the appointment of a Budget Committee and with them . The Chairman of the Coin Committee repeated that

/ the Treasurer was ready to turn over funds and l\ Ir . Huntington w as directed to open an account with the

First National Bank, cheques to be signed by any two of

: . the following Judge Otto , Mr . Ferrara , Mr Hunting Mr Mille a d . m n . ton , and Mrs Skipton . As we now nee ed ffi ff an o ce , the Mayor o ered us the use of a vacant store of City - owned property at 204 North Avenue which we gratefully accepted , furnishing it with discarded furniture

t o ur from some of the City Depar ments, and by next meeting we were located and doing business there . With the publicity attendant on the formation of the Celebration Committee many letters were received with

ho w e ad suggestions, chiefly as to to sp nd our funds . One vised the appropriation o i for additions to our

Library , both to the building and to its operation ; others called for monuments . of which our city has already a sur plus . Many and varied were the means suggested to get r id of our 5 0 carefully garnered funds from the two - dollar

- - a coin sales . Most of these advisers were folks w h o did

not and would not buy a coin , even at a bargain price o f

Having for months pored over the accounts o f note in worthy celebrations held the North , South , East and e o f . . T West, Mr Skipton hop d to outdo any these o that

30

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o f for our Mr . Emerson Burke , director Dramatics h in p e r Board of Education appeared at t is meeting, crav g h mission to read his script for the proposed Pageant . Muc o f w a i his matter s objected to by Mr . Hadaway as bistor cally incorrect and after discussion our Chairman asked that Mr . Hadaway, whom we considered the historical o t o ur an d auth ri y on Committee , and Mr . Burke confer ’ th e revise Mr . Burke s work in an endeavor to eliminate inaccuracies complained of and to produce a drama more a uthentic from the historical viewpoint . The Pageant “ ” Committee now raised their ante to As this ’ w t ould be but one feature o f an entire week s celebra ion , w as out this naturally rather a shock, especially as at the se t we had been informed our Board o f Education intend e d to present a Pageant even though they obtained no funds from our Committee . This matter of financing was again deferred until the Budget Committee should be ap pointed and become operative .

The Postmaster w as appointed Chairman o f a Post Office Dedication Committee with a request he select his personnel and make us acquainted with his decision at our next meeting .

A reception Committee appearing on our skeleton o ut line , the Chairman appointed such a Committee , headed by former Mayor George G . Raymond and including all

- living ex Mayors of our City . As I write , Mayor Ray

w e o f 0 m mond , as still called him though his term ice ex d p ire many years ago , has been dead but a couple o f

weeks . It is pleasant to recall how much happiness he ob tain e d from this appointment and how willing he was to do anything in his power to make the Celebration 3 suc f cess . His unaf ected joy in the announcement of his ’ daughter s engagement on the Sunday of our Celebra

32 N E W N E O ROCHELLE , W Y RK

’ tion s close and the picture taken of he r with he r fath e r

- o h and vice Mayor Morch f La Roc elle , France , under the tree which had been planted on the occasion of he r birth in 1 9 1 3 when New Rochelle w as celebrating its 225 th Anniversary , all will long remain a pleasant mem o r 25 0th y of this Anniversary . To the Invitation Committee we appointed Robert

. Mrs . L Forbes with . Carrie Chapman Catt and Mrs Ne w Barbara Reynolds, a newspaper woman and native Ro che lle an — . Mrs . Catt declined to serve the first of o ur t u women appoin ees to disappoint s . The Commandant at our Army Post at Fort Slocum having expressed a desire to cooperate in our celebration , Mille man vi Mr . had sited him at the Fort and found that w e his l might call upon adjutant , Major Stuart Cut er , — for aid in our parades o f which at that time we hop ed — to have tw o on e in the early part of the, celebration and the other at the end of our week . In spite o f much time being consumed at o ur meetings little progress apparently was being made and it w as urged

o f . by Mr . Skipton with the hearty endorsement Mr Had away that at o ur next session the first order o f business be a the appointment of a General Committee , from this p pointing the heads o f sub - Committees and their person n el t a s far as possible . I reported hat having contacted by letter all organization heads, including churches and schools, many responses showing cooperation had been received and already a long list o f names was ready to submit for approval and appointment to the General Committee . At o ur next meeting this list was submitted and action taken on the appointments aforesaid . As we subsequently were compelled to make alterations the list is not now presented but at the end of my account will be found Committees as the y actually functioned .

33 ONE FATT CALFE

The Postmaster requested that we postpone the date fo r his o f 1 8 th o f part the festivities to Saturday, June , instead as w as u intended at first the 1 3th . This agreed pon and on e on that date made a definite our programme , and we now asked that he endeavor to obtain for us a special can c e llation to make known o ur Celebration and date on all fi rst- fifice class mail passing through his post o . A suggestion of Mr . Julius Guttag that we issue scrip for the Celebra w as tion received and Mr . Skipton appointed a Committee Al of One to look into its feasibility and desirability . so at ho this meeting Mr . Kahn w is a local merchant and a great believer in the value of advertising expressed fe ar that we had not become publicized sufficiently . Mr . Mil leman reported that he was taking up the matter o f adve r tisin g in trains, busses and subways as had been done - fi ve twenty years before .

At this meeting I suggested that since a neighbor o f

m . re ine , Mrs Adam Schaub of Mountjoy Place , had c e n tly celebrated her one hundredth birthday and was as far as we knew our oldest resident, it might well be deemed suitable to accord her some recognition on the ’ City s birthday , such as presenting her flowers and a gift

. . Se a during some of our events, and that Mr Warren D w as sur cord , a well known citizen of ripe years , the sole vivin g member of the Grand Army of the Republic in o w as ac New Rochelle , and als entitled to some fitting w a kn owle dgme n t at this time . It s received cordially by the Committee and so agreed . I regret to say neither sur vive d to take part in our Celebration , but the families of both expressed their appreciation and told us the old folks h ad enjoyed reading in the papers of our intention to so honor them .

Mr . Skipton now presented Chairman Otto with a

34 N E N E W W ROCHELLE , YORK

cheque for which w as handed to the Treasurer . With the appearance of this sum our Committee seemed had suddenly galvanized into action . Perhaps before they thought it had all been a beautiful dream from which they would be rudely awakened and told to go o ut and get sub scri tion s d p from the public . Mr . Skipton also reporte the scrip scheme inadvisable since our funds were raised by o f b e the sale our coin , the issuance of scrip would only se t fuddle the public . He also requested the Committee to a side a sum for a medal to be presented to the members of

‘ the Westchester County Coin Club as the originators o f the idea of the commemorative coin . This was looked on with favor by most o f the Anniversary Committee mem bers and a silver medal being tentatively agreed upon , he w as appointed a Committee of One to arrange details and report to the Budget Committee the sum necessary for such a medal . Our next and sixth meeting found our Chairman abse n t a s he and Mrs . Otto ( or perhaps that should be reversed) e r had suddenly decided upon a trip to Florida so Mr . F Mille m an rara presided in his stead . Mr . was troubled as the Chairman appointed to the l\/Iarin e Committee w as re c om unable to serve owing to ill health , the substitute mended was also not available and he was still endeavor w e ur ing to fill the vacancy . This had thought on e o f o o M lle man . i settled matters but it had proved not s Mr . suggested that our Mayor make a request to the proper a uthorities to send a destroyer to lie in our harbor during the Celebration . He was ordered to ask Mayor Scott to do w as 5 0 . Our request for a cancellation reported denied by ffi u the U . S . government o cials . We had p rchased a large ou quantity of beautiful red and gold seals , bearing r fatt calfe and Lord Pell with the dates of our Celebration and they were being affixed to all letters sent out by the Coin

3S ONE FATT CALFE

the our Committee , Celebration Committee , by all Banks h and by many business ouses, as well as by many persons who ffi had seen and admired them , coming into our o ce

ff to h . and asking for them , some o ering pay for t em The High School students pasted them on the covers of their books ; they appeared on Windshields o f cars ; they were on on h used programmes and scores for bridge parties, t us securing us great publicity .

At our third meeting when a general discussion had taken place as to the advisability of something permanent as re in form part o f the Celebration Mr . Hadaway had vealed that there had long been a desire on the part o f the Huguenot and Historical Association of New Rochelle to remove the tablet on the monument at Hudson Park in order that corrections might be made . Research had prov en several names thereon were wrongfully inscribed as Huguenots while several names that should rightfully be thereon were omitted . This correction and replacement w as deemed most proper as being o f permanent value and w a Mr . Hadaway s appointed a Committee of One to con sult with the City C oun cfl and if found practicable to be done to obtain an estimate o f the cost of such a tablet and replacement charges .

When Mr . Hadaway made his request of the Council or s a little agitation followed , there being one two name which had proved to be those o f families o f the Roman

Catholic religion among those to be removed . However , when it was made evident that it was the desire o f these same familys’ descendants that these names be removed

and when Mr . Hadaway gave for publication the list o f

additions and deletions , this removed all resentment . The Council agreeing to the removal and replacement o f the w as our tablet, Mr . Hadaway instructed by Committee to

36 N E N E W W ROCHELLE , YORK

name his Committee personnel and submit a budget . This he now did and w e had another Committee functioning .

P ro Mr . Cooper having been made Chairman of the gramme Committee presented a letter from Robert L . Forbes who wished to be empowered by our Committee to get up a programme with paid advertisements from “ ” u local merchants . He submitted a dummy with f ll page illustrations of Supreme Court Judge Lee Parsons

Davis , former County Judge Otto and his law partner M o ve rn . c G J Raymond , the Davis Memorial and the As store of Mr . Kahn with descriptive reading matter . we had wished something in the way of a very hand — some booklet free from advertising and commercial — w e taint to be paid for with our funds , as a Committee ’ did not approve of Mr . Forbes idea . We hoped to excel any historical booklet published and distributed by the Celebration Committee o f any other place and were sure we could exceed theirs ( some of which were indeed t excellent) in beau y and historical interest .

Some members o f o ur Committee felt we should ’ carry out this idea o f Forbes and a lively little family feud threatened to develop . Much discussion took place w as sudde n lv but the matter decided for us . Forbes W rote cancelling his original proposition and announced w as he going to go ahead with his book . It seemed to be “ ! ” o n e of those 8 0 what matters and as Judge Otto w e — i recommended agreed to let him go ahead n fact, said w e could not stop him or anyone else who wished to get out such a book— advising us not to publish one o f in competition , the matter a Programme booklet w as dropped . Mr . Forbes did publish such a book which f during the Celebration he of ered o n the streets for on e dollar a copy . He also sent over a large number o f com

37 ONE FATT CALFE p lime n tary copies which w e distributed from our Office to any and all comers . It is rather amusing in retrospect “ ” to note that his dummy in the article about hfr . Mc Gove rn speaks of his wife and on e charming daugh M ov . c G ter Before the book went to press, did not the “ ” n so erns up and have a other charming daughter , the of book speaking two , there must have been some quick on o f work ( the part Mr . Forbes , I mean) . The Chairman of the Programme Committee being o ut o f an a job , as it were , we proceeded to hand him “ ” other hot potato .

At on e o f o ur meetings we were informed that the ” — ladies were raising Cain no surprise to me as w e usually do on the slightest provocation . It seemed they felt that o ur Mayor (always noted for his deferent ial attitude toward the “ femmes” ) had suddenly decided to ’ b ad ignore , insult and otherwise treat em rough for Off he not left them his Committee , gaily naming a round dozen of gentlemen with nary a gal among them !

Poor deluded Mayor, thinking his troubles were over

with naming of his Committee . Why , they were j ust beginning for everyone ! Several members reported the — awful things the ladies were saying and pr in tin g the

latter very likely being the thorn that stung . Our mem bers should all have been inured to criticism and accusa tions long ere this for we had been accused o f ignori n g — the schools although everyone knew they had all b e en asked to participate and to offer suggestions ; w e were O w e accused f ignoring the churches, although were b e ’ ginning our week s Celebration with religious services ; ’ w e were attacked by the Veterans group who in the press accounts o f their meeting were reported as deciding to decline to march in o ur parades since we had ignored

38

ONE FATT CALFE ticularly busy in his position as Director o f Purchase and he Supply for o ur City and having j ust been deprived of t services o f a valued employee of his department . h To make a long story as short as possible , t ey met, but their organization was not successful , and after some “ ” time they informed us of their decision not to play, easing their consciences by denouncing us and all our on works, berating our amiable Chairman whose broad fortu shoulders was now falling much censure which , m off . ately, he was able to shrug with a smile So , after getting us in the black books o f the other would - be Ex bibit Committees and eventually preventing us from using the Woman ’ s Club—which we were anxious to rent as a matter o f financial assistance to this worthwhile organization (and renting their building is on e o f their — very good business ide as of maintenance) they failed us lamentably . There was nothing left to do with this group but announce their Committee discharged . To be e perfectly fair to the ladies, let me add here there wer several men in this group , but they let the ladies take the doubtful honor of being held responsible for the voc if e rou s barrage .

o f Mr . Hadaway soon after the breakup this Exhibit Committe e undertook to arrange that the Committe e o f l Two before alluded to , be a lowed the use of a room at the Huguenot and Historical building, and promised that his Committe e would pay any expenses they incu rred ’ over the $ 1 00 budget we allowed them as a Children s 1 00 Museum Committee , up to $ . This settled the fate o f w as that group and most satisfactory to all . The Library group after much stress and storm o f various kinds now agreed to accept an allotment o f $ 200 fo r the fitting up o f a Hugue not home room in the Library with

40 NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK an exhibit of loans from old Huguenot family descen d a nts .

M e r . Cr n n an having been made Chairman o f the Fireworks Committee presented the names O f his Com mitte e te at an early meeting, also his plans and estima d budget . Though not to be expected from its name , nevertheless the Fireworks Committee w as the quietest in its workings and most modest in its request for appro riation p s.

icial C o f h O . . The ity New Rochelle aving no flag , it w as ; deemed a fitting time to propose one . Mr Lester w as designated a Committee of One to take up this mat ter . The Stan dar d Star gave this matter quite some pub licity and asked that designs be submitted to our Com mitte e . Several beautiful ones were handed in and refer ’ red to our City s Art Commission but were rejected as impractical by that body . After much effort on the part o o f our f Mr . Lester and discussion on the part Com r o f f w as ac mi tee , the design a well known lag maker ce p te d for the occasion of the Anniversary but not as a

City flag . This flag was carried in the parade and used in our decorations an d consisted of three broad bars — t red , white and blue with the Ci y Seal in blue on the - -lis middle bar of white , and three gold fleur de , two above the seal and one below .

an d Came another cold , snowy day on which we met envied our Chairman whom we pictured as revelling in sunny skies and the still sunnier smiles o f bathing beauties on that Florida beach . So we thought but on his return he informed us that he had had a cold in his n o saw head all the time , did bathing and no bathing — in the beauties fact, if you did not know gentleman you might have believed he had been regretting all the time

4 1 ONE FATT CALFE

h he w as h h us our t at not rig t ere with , attending meet

- — w t . ings . But you se e e know the gen leman At this meeting we added to our General Committee ho . w list A suggestion that George M . Cohan , some Ne w his thirty years ago , made Rochelle famous by “ ” 45 Minutes from Broadway and lately has convulsed “ ’ ” the country with his I d Rather Be Right, be made a member of this Committee and later receive on e of o ur special invitations to attend our Celebration was well so received and ordered .

The various Chairmen o f Committees were now b e in coming active , handing names of their personnel and

suggesting forms o f activities . They were requested to m eet as soon as possible and draw up tentative budge ts \/l for submission to the Budget Committee o f which l r. Com Watson had been made Chairman . The Parade mitte e was discussed but as Judge Otto before leaving for the South had said h e would appoint a Chairma n and his staff no action was taken although all were aux se e ious to this Committee function . The next meeting found our Chairman returned from those alleged sun baths and he proceeded to name di cul n i t o f o f Mr . Ferrara to the post Chairman the

Parade Committee . On his notification a look came Over ’ w as as Mr . Ferrara s face which to deepen time went — o n . ac dismay and puzzlement However , he gamely te d ce p and made a grand job of his assignment . Chairman Otto now appointed the Recreation C o m mitte e members with Mr . Peter Mayers Chairman .

This seemed a particularly apt appointment, as Mr . ’ o f Mr s. Mayers is the City s Supervisor Recreation . l Blanche S . Emerson , Director of Public We fare under ’ which Mr . Mayers Department functions wrote us

42 N E W N E ROCHELLE , W YORK offering all the aid in he r power so w e felt that this Committee should outdo all others in brilliancy of per forma n ce .

his Mr . Watson now called a meeting of Budget As Committee to survey the budgets handed to him . most of the Committees had very hazy ideas as to just what they would do and how much was needed to carry o ut these nebulous ideas it required considerable mind ’ o f reading on Mr . Watson s part but he made the best fi a dif cult job , presenting us a budget in due time and “ ” form . At once a loud cry rent the heavens o f More !

It seemed they had all miscalculated and Mr . Watson w as asked to revamp this budget . The Dinner Committee did not function as smoothly as o f we had hoped , Mr . Miller , President the C w e ountry Club at which proposed to hold it, inform o ur 1 8 th ing us that date of Saturday, June would be a on e p articularly busy for the Club and its members . We had many debates and discussions on the date with

Chairman Miller, but later we were compelled to change as entirely to date and place . The Hobby Show had been discussed o ff and o n through the meetings and some o f the members never having attended one and having some idea o f its being a childish pastime , were not at all favorably inclined w e toward its inclusion . However, who knew its great attractiveness wanted it to be assured and of great scope . As it had been on e of the Westchester County Coin ’ e utta Club s arly hopes and Mr . G g had urged that we stage on e w e at last included in our Committee list a

. Gutta Hobby Show Committee , appointing Mr g to act as Chairman . He promptly refused on the plea o f its too o f his so taking up much time , Mr . Skipton was

43 ONE FATT CALFE

to drafted . After unsuccessfully endeavoring interest

he o f who local women , obtained the services a woman had staged a wonderful Hobby Show in he r own town n dl . M a e s o Mrs Howard cC s f Bronxville . She readily agreed to manage this affair and made a wonderful suc c o f o f ess it, aided by some of her friends and several the women here who are always willing to help when I ap peal to them . ’ Early in the year the Business Men s Association had gotten themselves some grand publicity by announcing at on e of their mee tings that they were pledging themselves to buy on e thousand of our New Rochelle half dollars . After this good news appeared we eagerly awaited the p urchase . It did not materialize and after a time they “ ” we re called upon to come across but they then claime d to be at loggerheads within their ow n organization ; at this time particularly busy as they were warring on the transportation company in regard to the Main Stre et trolley ; and although both Mr . Skipton and Mr . Mille man tried by personal calls to get them to live Up to their the published intentions, thousand coin sale proved only C om . . on our a dream Their President Mr Kahn , being mitte e e e e hi , attempts were mad to induce him to s that s organization kept their promise , but this also failed and a fter several members severely censured the Business ’ the Men s Association and Coin Committee chided Mr .

o f . Kahn for his stand , the matter this sale was dropped Through strenuous efforts a sale of perhaps 35 coins to — m embers of this organization w as made merely a dif ference of 9 6 5 coins ! We later heard from this same or gan iz ation in full volume when they felt they were being slighted by the extent o f the decorations and the line o f march not including some o f the stores of these same in

different business men .

44 N E N E W W ROCHELLE , YORK

his Com . l Mille man h Mr Colwe l reported to Mr . t at mitte e promised full cooperation , this being the Religious Committee and his the duty o f contacting the clergy o f o f on all creeds the City, requesting them to have services 1 2th o f own Sunday , June , a nature befitting their form o f ritual but bringing before their people the important ’ religious event o f the Citty s founding and 25 0th An n ive rsar y Celebration . A Living Chess Game w as proposed to our Commit ' tee by a m e mb e r of the local Chess Club and seemin g from his description to offer great possibilities as a pag

t us. e an in itself was welcomed eagerly by However,

when we attempted to carry it out through a Committee , we setting aside a budget for this purpose , ran into the ffi usual di culties . Their Chairman said the members of

the Chess Club would not cooperate , refusing for many on on e or reasons to participate , and the burden thus left two o f the more willing members w as too heavy to be

borne . After futilely trying to get the sponsors o f the idea l to go through with it, I fina ly got the promised coop c ration o f a young lady w ho agreed to try it with the o f assumption the leadership by me . Though intending and hoping to have this novelty a part o f our programme

I found myself, due to the now limited time and the o f our h t press ot er matters, reluctan ly compelled to aban A h don the idea . s performed elsewhere those w o have sa h its h seen it y wit andsome costumes, martial music is and oldtime air, it quaintly beautiful , and since we now kn ow what competent actors we have in our schools it seems herein is a suggestion for some of our dramatic p erformers . A h the s the C airman of General Committee , Judge O tto on his return felt that a meeting should be held o f w as h that body . A meeting eld in the Huguenot School

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The Auditorium with about eighty members present . Programme and tentative Budget were read and sug gestions as to both were requested o f the audience . A barrage of criticism in regard to both followed . There were no real constructive ideas Obtained at this meeting — by our Chairman except one that but on e parade and that held on a Saturday would be all that could be suc c e ssfull a 225 th y carried out t this time . While the Anni ve rsar tw o at y Celebration held , it was brought to his ff tention that times were very di erent, men being now unable to take a day o ff for such an occasion without losing their pay and standing a big chance of losing their p ositions . Therefore it seemed that our parade planned

1 4 . for Tuesday, June th , Flag Day , must be abandoned This meeting gave at least an opportunity of expressing ideas and ended on a sweet note as the President of on e o f the Service clubs complimented both the Chairman o f the Coin Committee and the Chairman o f the 25 0th

Anniversary Committee on the good work done so far . The Parade Committee was now meeting frequently an d our offi ce became the scene o f many a bloodless a battle . At first the Post Office Committee w s a separate w a unit though meeting with them . Later when it s de

cided to have but one parade they were amalgamated , but a separate allotment was made to the Post Office

Committee . At these meetings everything under the sun was discussed from who would ride the white horse ( if

we could get a white horse) at the head of the parade , to a painless method o f disposing o f the small fry w ho our always run along beside a parade in City producing, - - f to speak mildly, a rag tag and bob tail ef ect .

T he military men were all for a strictly military p a rade with just the army and naval units ; the Postmaster

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but one exhibition and after much changing about o f a n the date it was se t and adhered to s Wednesday , Ju e h r sa 1 5 t . e n n a . C n y Mr , the Chairman , was we might our favorite child ; he never grumbled at the changes , never fussed about his appropriation , but when the time came he obtained the use of a spot that could not have been improved upon and put on a marvelous exhibition o f fireworks such as this City had never before seen . The Invitation Committee handed a tentative list o f us names to for consideration . This list was revised , with

a few subtractions and a great many additions . We had — many famous names on that list the President o f the o ur United States, the members of his Cabinet , Con re ssme n o f ad g , United States Senators, the Governors ffi j acent States, State and County O cials, Mayors or

o f Executive heads neighboring towns and villages , the r Postmaster of New York City, many important milita y Mr o — s . o f men , Benjamin Harris n widow the former President- the wives or widows of former mayors o f New o o R chelle , the Presidents of Huguen t Societies in various t o f re re States, the descendan s prominent Huguenots , p se n tative s vil of the press in all nearby cities, towns and lages , descendants of the Pell family w ho live in states

ranging from New York to California , our local o flicxals and , last but not least, George M . Cohan . All of these

folks received our beautiful engraved invitations, sent out

about a month in advance of our first event . Handsome engrossed in vitations in expensive leather bindings were prepared . One was sent by mail to the Mayor o f La Ro

chelle , France , and Judge Otto was sent by the Com

mittee . . to Washington , D C where he w as met by Con

gressman Ralph A . Gamble and together they presented

. o f one to Franklin D Roosevelt , President the United on e Do n el t t , y . S a es and to Count Rene de St Quentin ,

4 8 N E W N E W O ROCHELLE , Y RK

to th Ambassador e United States from France , early in

May . A Ne w Rochelle half dollar to accompany these in vi r wa s on e . ta ions purchased , by Mr Davis for the Presi on e C re n a o n e dent , by Mr . n n for the Ambassador and by Mr . Watson for the Mayor of La Rochelle . The c oins were delivered with the invitations to the P r esident and the Ambassador but in the rush of getting o ff the i to o f e inv tation the Mayor La Roch lle , Judge Otto for

/ got to e nclose the coin which was later given by l\ Ir . Watson to vice - Mayor Morch for presentation on his return to the Mayor of La Rochelle . A little later in the month a similar in vitation w as prepared and delivered to

H . erbert H Lehman , Governor of New York State , Mr . Melville Kahn buying a coin which was duly sent to the

Governor and received gracious acknowledgment . Mille man Judge Otto and Mr . were sent to Albany by ’ the Committee to de liver the Governor s invitation and a few days later presented o n e of these handsome invita o the - F on tn o u ti ns to Consul General , Count Charles de v Re elle , at the French Consulate in New York City . re ts or e g acceptances were agerly awaited , beginning to ’ ffi t C 0 . .i € pour into our o ce , the Ci y Hall , to Mayor Scott s ’ an d ff to Judge Otto s o ice early in June with , needless to

sa . y, regrets in the majority Nevertheless we had an array of name s of those promising to attend that was vastly gratifying . Whenever we felt the number justified it we gave a list to our newspaper for public c on sump ti on . t e his Mr . Hunting on inform d us and the other Ser vice Clubs of th e City were desirous of playing a part in o ur Celebration and wished to hold a dinner of the com e bin e d clubs . He was d signated to take charge of such an e vent and the clubs made arrangements for th e affair at

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the New h h n h e Roc elle Yac t Club on Tuesday ig t, Jun 1 4th .

A revised budget was n ow presented and met a favor s able reception , additions having been made to the budget o f w a h 2 o f the various Committees . It s agreed t at $ 00 Parade Committee ’ s should be earmarked to be used to obtain obsolete fire apparatus for use in the par a de . This left the sum of in the budget o f the Parade Committee with the Chairman empowered to make arrangements with the Chairman o f the Post Office Committee for the use of such a part o f the Par ’ ade Committee s funds as was de emed necessary for a

fitting P . O . dedication and luncheon to follow . The Coin Committee having been from an early date in communication with various branches o f the Pell fam ’ ily s descendants offered a suggestion made by them .

Mr . S . H . P . Pell said a member of their family would

the o f be glad to act part John Pell , Lord of Pelham re - Manor, if we cared to stage a enactment of the paying “ ” o f the fatt calfe as a pageant or in any other approp ri at a on e w y . The many lawyers our Committee immed iate ly became fearful o f thus re - opening the custom and m aking it legal , thus leading to some complications . It

seems, strangely enough , that lawyers shun instead o f

welcoming lawsuits . So what might have been a colorful our and unique part of Celebration had to be omitted .

After our invitation had b een extended to our French friends it was a question how many would come over and

how they should be entertained . A member o f the Com mitte e suggested that undoubtedly some o f our outstand ing citizens would like them to be guests in their homes but as no steps along that line were taken nor any invita tions received by our Committee to be exten ded to the

5 0 N E W N E W ROCHELLE , YORK

to visitors, We made arrangemen ts for the Committee be responsible for their housing and entertainment . After had w e two these arrangements been made , did receive letters expressing a desire to extend hospitality but it was h t en too late .

Feeling that our guests might prefer being at a hotel where they could make plans unhampered by a feeling o f the natural obligation o f a guest to his host we arranged fo r o ur visitors after this fashion . We later found we

' on e - o f would have but guest, the vice Mayor La Roch elle and early arrangements specified his arrival on the 1 th A a 5 . s w s Normandie on Wednesday, June it then expected he would leave o n Saturday night we planned a o n as o f dinner that night a form farewell , trusting to have also as guests the French Ambassador and the Con ul- - s General . We now found vice Mayor Erik Morch would be the sole representative coming from France and t t hat he would arrive on Monday, June 1 3 h to remain t with us all hat week .

e Our Executive Committee , Gen ral Committee and Guest badges arriving at this time were distributed and e w were pleased by the admiring comments they elicited .

27th On Friday, May , we held what we expected to be our last Executive Committee me eting before the Cel All e b ration . Committees were now functioning nicely ; — — the re vised and revised budget having been presented by Mr . Watson and meeting with approval (except from the Decorations Committee and the Parade Committee , who were practically insatiable ) it was adopted , reaching a total o f T he Coin Committee who were also members o f the Budget Committee suggested that when these complaining Committees made such big de mands it might be good business on their part to try to

5 1 ONE FATT CALFE stimulate the sale of coins and forget some o f the e riti As c ism they were retailing in regard to o ur Committee . usual the severest critics were those who never did any — thing to help perhaps hoping by their cri ticism to form a smoke screen . We were now informed that the destroye r Tatnall with a complement of four officers and fi fty men would be anchored in our harbor during the Celebration . h a At t is Committee meeting Mr . Charles Broder p re d p e a for Chairman Wentz of the Marine Committee , requesting that we approve their water sports taking place on 1 9 as Sunday, June th , instead of Saturday afternoon w a originally planned . The Post Office Dedication s to Satui da lu n 1 1 . . take place at a m on y , followed by the c heon of the Post O ice Committee and this in turn would be followed by the parade which , scheduled at first

2 . . . for p m had been later set for 3 p m . This would make it impossible for any water sports to take place until evening and at this time the tide would not be right . So a change would be necessary and after much discussion it was felt that Sunday afternoon would be b est for these events in order to acc ommodate the par ticip an ts and the many types of people w ho would Wish to attend . It being so ordered and published as o ur intent the ur - attack on o Committee before mentioned followed .

We were termed irreligious and disrespectful to the cloth . The other side of the argument being presented to the complainers, they admitted that good healthful sport such as was proposed could not be so classed and we went ahead with our preparations . This debate was perhaps a good thing as it undoubtedly had quite something to do with a new event later included in our Celebration called “ l ” The Pi grimage .

5 2 N E N E W W ROCHELLE , YORK

’ Mr . Kahn s immense lighted 25 0th Anniversary signs, on e near the Armory at the eastern entrance to our City, on e at the Library near our western entrance and the third in the p arkle t on North Avenue at the entrance to

Rochelle Park , were now blooming forth at night in all t heir glory , arousing much interest and favorable com ment . As June drew near up came the momentous question ” o f What will we wear ! It w as hard to preserve my so gravity in the meetings where this was discussed , seri o usly did these m e n consider a matter which they so often expressed themselves as so little concerned about and e n ’ tire l ff y a women s a air . Socks, ties , hats , trousers and shirts were all taken up in turn and materials discussed . A couple o f our members were sure the dignity of the City would suffer did not the Committee appear in top pers and all that went with it . They made many refer e n c e s to the garb o f the Mayor of New York City and even went back to the elegance of the now practically “ ” o f defunct Jimmy sartorial fame . After a long wrest ’ ling match it w as decide d that Mayor Harry Scott s sug o f gestion a comfortable summer attire of a blue coat, i white trousers , blue tie , white shoes and a plain sa lor hat w as the proper outfit, with Mr . Watson delegated to !select a tie of the proper shade of blue for all twelve m embers . I must add here that these ties were person al expenses o f the members with Mr . Watson appointed to select them not as the Budget Chairman but as a man “ ” who knows his onions as far as neckties are concerned .

Mr . Kahn humorously reminded the Committee that he was in the shoe business . The Police Benefit Association having expressed a de sire to have their annual benefit made a part o f our ’ was a h week s event a date accordingly llotted t em . How

5 3 ONE FATT CALFE ever they later withdrew deciding to stage their perform

T he . . . n ow us ance in the early autumn . D A R informed that their tablet dedication w as indefinitely postponed . o f our ffi w th One di culties in the office as at Mr . Mille man and I were being contacted by various organizations with proposals o f which for various reasons they after ward repented . Unfortunately they did not always take h o f h the trouble to inform us of their c ange eart, this resulting in a little confusion at times . o f the t Meanwhile the sale coin con inued , the Banks n ow being most cooperative and helpful . Several stores began to waken and where a merchant made a purchase o f coins w e gave him a specially designed and attracti ve b e card poster that stressed his cooperation . These now gan to appear in Main Street store windows . At this par ’ ticular time the Business Men s Association were engaged in a bitter fight with the Third Avenue Railway System for the discontinuing o f the Main Street trolley and this s truggle seemed to require all their attention , unless you m ight say it was partly concerned with a parking propo sition which if carried through might have saddled the City with a block o f expensive business property ( rather l s a big mouthfu to bite o ff in these hard times) . Of cour e it must be recognized that our present business man is seldom on e o f long residence in this City and we cannot expect the same intense interest o f the merchant o f - v twenty fi e years ago . They did come to life and vo cif e rously asserted themselves when they thought they were out being left of the decoration zone . That matter w as w as a baby that deposited in the lap of their president ,

Mr . Kahn , Chairman of the Decorations Committee and he handled it very well after the first shock o f findi n g ” himself its Papa had passe d . Chairman Ferrara named a sub - committe e for the

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h At on e of these meetings held as we were approac ing us the Celebration Mr . Williams appeared and informed that the Council o f Social Agencies wished to be included in the Celebration and asked for a budget appropriation . a Mr . Skipton as Chairm n of the Hobby Show feared that without a combination neither this new Exhibit nor the Hobby Show would be big enough separately so pro af posed a coalition . They eventually were two separate fairs with the Hobby Show earmarking and turning o ver to Mr . Williams $ 1 5 0 for the Council o f Social Agen cies .

w a h n Mr . J . Marshall Perley s now appointed C airma o f an Old Home Week Committee and given a budget o f $ 1 00 to formulate and carry out what he felt suita b le

for such a Committee . He appointed his Committee o f members with Mr . Rodney Gibson , an old resident

New Rochelle , as Secretary and this Committee at once

became active , and my list once more of value . I wrote all the churches and organizations asking that they give us a list of members who had removed from the city an d

their present addresses as far as known , that they might be invited to attend a luncheon and also be gue sts o f the

Committee for the week . This brought forth quite a

response, and Mr . Perley started also an Honor Roll a huge scroll one in his own New Rochelle Trust i Company and one in the First National Bank , to wh ch all persons who had been residents of New Rochelle for

a f x fifty years or more were invited to their signatures . This w as begun by Mayor Harry Scott as the first signer and proved very popular judging by the number of names

which appeared thereon . They also planned a luncheon

- o f moderate price for old timers o r Half Century Resi

dents as they preferred to call them . We provided a

badge with those three words, distributing them to all

5 6 N E W N E W ROCHELLE , YORK w ho Obtained and filled out a card giving data which proved them worthy of this title .

. Ro bischon Mr and Mr . Kahn felt that a contest for queen of the festivities would be a great publicity stunt and were authorized to proceed with this . However , somehow it did not seem to work and was dropped as far w as as our Committee concerned . These two young men took t h e matter up again as a ’ ’ sa Business Men s Association s venture . Sad to y, they

’ becam e somewhat embroiled as their beautiful Miss prov ed to be a Miss - us from Mount Vernon and all our New

Rochelle Misses were indignant , feeling that only a Miss and sh e of New Rochelle was entitled to the title and

. w as prize Fortunately this not one of our troubles, mere “ ly impressing on our Committee that the female of the ” Species is still living up to her reputation . The Religious Committee announced that all churches 2th 1 . had agreed on special services for Sunday , June In view of this fact you can imagine our surprise when later o n e o f o ur younger pastors accused our Committee o f W ignoring the Church in our arrangements . e therefore added to our programme a Union Service at Hudson 1 9 Park on Sunday , June th thus ending as well as begin ning our programme with religion . At this time our chief trouble w as the fault finders w ho sprung up calling up our o flic e ( usually refusing their names) telling us o ur sins of omission and commis sion and how much better they o r some of their friends would have arranged this Celebration . As is Often the case the folks wh o did the loudest complaining were the folks w ho did nothing to help provide the sinews of war .

We were daily visited by people with something to sell ; by those who evidently found time hanging heavy on

5 7 ONE FATT CALFE their hands and supposed we were in the same case ; by o authors, poets, artists, socialites, religious fanatics, p litic all who y radical reformers, vagrants begged for car fare to some destinations near or far ; by people who re Mille man fused to hold converse with Mr . and must talk — Mille man with me likewise those who must talk to Mr . and scorned my suggestion that they save time by telling m e icall . ract V their business In fact, I believe there was p n o type of person we did not at on e time or other enter as tain in that hot little musty office of ours . Harrassed we were by our o w n difficulties in the constant changes in o f programme and in personnel Committees, with a ter rifi c heat wave which coming early was most enervating, and which followed weather so unusually cold and damp — that w e had to get an electric heater the City of course having ceased heating the building after a reasonable date -it w as hard to keep on an even keel those hectic e days . If w offended anyone who reads this perhaps they will understand why and forgive . A special meeting was called by the Chairman o n May

3lst to arrange a dinner . He had received information that vice - Mayor Morch would arrive o n Monday morn ing and that the Ambassador from France and the C on sul General would be able to come to New Rochelle o n l6 th Thursday, June for the ceremony at Hudson Park dedicating the tablet replacing the former o n e to the

Huguenots . Former dinner plans were cancelled and a dinner se t for Thursday night at the New York Athletic i Club . POUF More changes and rush for us all , for the — — schools to be in the mode perhaps mow decided to have their pageant on Thursday the 9 th and Friday the 1 0th o f June and announced they were having their tick h t t . e s prin ed and wished us to distribute t em More tickets, more detail with this new dinner date . Though hastily

5 8 NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK conceived this dinner went o ff quite successfully mostly ’ due to the aid o f Judge Otto s charming and efficient

Be rdic . secretary , Florence k ( Mrs . Robert Roth ) When the Old Home Week Committee began to function our pace w as decidedly accelerated and when the Hobby Show Committee placed one of their exhibits o ur o f in window , this being a model team grey horses and a surrey with tw o carefully folded miniature lap robe s on the seats and a miniature horsewhip in the dri ’ ver s hand , this resting on a strip of sandy road with grass covered sides, we became known from New York co n City through the New England States . This display stan tly had in terested spectators ranging from two o r old three years to greybeards of eighty . We had also pictures of floats o f the 225 th Anniversary Parade Old o f photographs of New Rochelle scenes, a Reader

1 6 8 8 and many other interesting pieces . Each day brought Offers o f old family treasures from those who had earlier ignored our appeals for their interest . The o f descendants that famous Huguenot family, the Guions, were among the first to offer the loan o f valuable heir looms such as silver buckles from the knee bree ches o f an old o f ancestor , the family Bible and other mementos e Hugu not days, these being loaned by Mrs . Amanda Hill and her nephew and nieces of the Monroe and Post fam

ilie s. With the beginning of June decorations were appear ing in the stores and on the streets , with every electric light pole on North Avenue from Main Street to Fifth Avenue and on Main Street from the Library to North as Avenue boasting a red , white and blue streamer well our as a gold shield announcing Celebration dates, and everyone really believed now that there w as to be a party ! We purchased several large flags of the Anniversary de

5 9 ONE FATT CALFE sign presenting a large silk one to the City for display in o n e the City Hall . We obtained permission and displayed o f these flags on the tall flag pole at the County Ofifice

Building in our Coun ty Seat of nearby White Plains . The New Haven Railroad allowed us the use of their bill boards for our announcements in both the Ne w Rochell and Mount Vernon stations . In the Grand Central sta tion our publicity man was allowed a “ flash ” to invite t visitors to our Birthday Par y . Grandstand and Reviewing Stand seats were the e cause of many a bloodless but bitter fight in our offic . The City had arranged for two large stands alon g the line of march which they figured would accommod ate 5 about 7 0 people . We tried to take care of those who had filled out cards showing them to be residents of fi fty years or more in our City , elderly people from Homes for the Aged and others that we knew would be unable Ho w to see the parade unless taken care of in this way . “ ever , everyone wanted seats (perhaps these sit down strikes” we had been having all over the country had h ad some influence here ) and it was amusing to fi n d that some o f the hardest fighters in this cause were those w ho publicly announced that they would never be so as 2 fift - foolish to pay $ for a y cent piece . Perhaps this w as merely an extension of their economical idea when

they tried to get a seat in the grandstand for nothing . This Battle of Seats w as a hard and exhausting one for the Secretaries coming on top of the one for School Pag c ant seats which lasted for several days during which p eople came to us with the most outlandish reasons for

being given seats of honor . The Board of Education f representatives also suf ered severely at this time as a - - a- ring around rosy developed , the seekers of seats in forming us they had been sent to us by the Board of

6 0 N N E W E W ROCHELLE , YORK

Education and to the Board o f Education declaring we sent them over from o ur office to get their tickets . Thus some people acquired quite a collection while others got n one . We had asked all the Churches to send us a mem o ran dum of the number of seats they would like re se rv ed for the members of their congregations, but only four Churches— and the Salvation Army— responded and

Stan dar d Star w as called for their tickets . The given a certain number which they kindly distributed and in no e n o time the tickets were gone . The fact that ther were tickets left did not deter our callers from insisting that there were tickets to be had and w e were told more than once in no uncertain terms what “ dubs” we were and r how poorly we were functioning . To o u credit be it said that w e did not tell them what we thought o f a civic spirit which would let the people of Texas, Cali fo rn ia o f l , and even the Indians Oklahoma pay the bil Ne w for a Rochelle Celebration . One rather funny incident was the reported proffer to the Parade Committee of a butcher to furnish 5 00 e u frankfurt rs . As accepting this wo ld necessitate our fur mishing the rolls and preparing food and drinks for an indeterminate number of paraders we decided to decline this offer with thanks . Somehow it got abroad that we were to thus reward the marchers and a member of one of the women ’ s societies expressed forcibly and at length “ her opinion o f feeding those poor little kids with hot ” d o gs after marching in all the heat, insisting that ice cream was the proper refreshment under such circum b stances . She ecame , if possible , more indignant when I informed her we did not propose to give them any re

e hme n ts i fr s of any kind , not feel ng this a part of our sa h duties . Without being unkind I may y s e w as prob ably trying to help some of her friends who were in the

6 1 ONE FATT CALFE ice cream business and was by no means the first person to feel our funds were there for any and all comers . We o fl e rs of l h o f had several circuses, carniva s, ex ibitions

riz e fi htin o f ouve n boxing, wrestling and p g g ; all sorts s irs were suggested to us for purchase and sale by us (all w e our n were interested in selling was, naturally , coi ) ; v on e w as in fact e ery with anything to sell , even if it ’ on o r h only a nebulous idea, came in to call us p one us at u o r homes and thus eat up our precious time . Any thing that looked at all promising w e reported to the Ex e c utive Committee with occasionally some o f the more our too ludicrous also, that meetings might not be solemn or highbrow . In spite of his many annoyances and cultie s during all these trying months, Chairman Otto m smfle aintained his happy attitude , cheery and gracious manner to one and all— certainly quite an accomplish m ent . A few days before the Opening day o f the Celebra tion Judge Otto suggested the taking o f a moving pic ’ t ure o f o ur week s happenings that w e might have a 00 lasting record . He had a figure from a resident o f $ 2 which he said he could cut to $ 1 7 5 if w e employed this local man . The Chairman of the Coin Committee rather demurred at increasing the budget by this item as he felt there would undoubtedly be a great many additions by reason of unforeseen expenses . However , wishing to have e verything in reason that would spell success for su f cie n t the Celebration , he proposed that coins be p — chased by those present at this conference Messrs . — Mille m an Robischon Skipton , , Otto and to establish a wa budget for this purpose . This s agreed upon and

Judge Otto contracted for this film . Me eting after meeting o f the Executive Committee from January 1 7th through May had taken place and

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PART III

THE 25 0T H ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

osr OF U S feel we are lucky if we are able to enjoy c M one day of festivity on the o casion of a birthday , but perhaps if our life Span is ever (through scien tific research and methods) lengthened to reach the second century mark we , too , may feel entitled to a whole week o f celebration . In the case of our City w e had an even longer period of gaiety .

Though not officially starting our Programme u n til 1 2th o n Sunday , June , account of examinations and graduation exercises taxing teachers and pupils late r in the week of our Celebration , the schools were allowed to h old their Pageant on the nights of June 9 th and 1 0th e , Thursday and Friday nights, with a rep tition on 1 3th Monday night, June , if necessary . Taking place in the open in the Bowl of the Athletic Field of our Senior High School with wonde rful lighting ff on the e ects, to which first two nights was added the

6 4 NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK

o f beauty a full moon flooding the field with its light,

h on old wit a stage patterned the Greek Theatre o f , those witnessing this Pageant were so enthusiastic in its praise that in view of the demands for seats which could not be filled for these two productions it was at once seen that a third performance would be necessary .

Beginning with a scene in the home o f a Huguenot family o f 1 6 8 0 or thereabouts it showed the terror the caused by Revocation of the Edict of Nantes, news o f which is brought to this family by their pastor while gaiety is re igning among the children at a birthday party o f given the little daughter the house , Marie Guion , and a hurried conference is he ld by the older Huguenots e pres nt . Deciding o n flight to the New World after a visit to the home by a couple of the King’ s officers who insult and threaten the members of the family , they gather their beloved possessions together as far as possi ble and stealthily depart to board a ship which lea ves that night for America . This flight of the several fami e it li s, all friends and neighbors, with all s dangers por tra e d y , with the elders concealing their own and cal m in o f is g the fears the children , most thrilling and breath taking .

In the new land Siw an oy and other Indian tribes o f the region are shown at their daily occupations with the sachems discussing the ultimate effect o f the coming of so many white men to their shores . The sale of lands to hi Lord John Pell , whom they greatly resp ect for s hon is esty and fairness to them , shown and after this trans action on e wise old chief who looks far into the future and foresees the doom of the Indian tells his vision . This b is vividly depicted , making a eautiful but heartbreaking — s the t his cene depar ure of the Red Man from lands,

6 5 ONE FATT CALFE going ever further from the shores inland and to final extinction .

n ow o f the o f is John Pell , Lord Manor Pelham , for shown with Jacob Leisler, the agent the Huguenots , hi i completing the sale , receiving s compensat on and “ ” stressing the payment o f one fatt calfe on the feast o f

St . John the Baptist every year and forever (if demand ed) .

The pilgrimage o f the Hugue nots to the nearest

o o f church f their faith in New York City, a distance eighteen or more miles over rough roads, carrying their precious shoes in their hands to save them from wear , donning the m only after bathing their feet in a sm all stream near the church and then only that they may enter the church properly shod and in a reverent spirit, this is all graphically shown , with the Huguenots ex “ ” pressing their joy in having the church so near . The scene culminates in the arrival o f a courier wh o bri n gs them news that at last a church o f their ow n in New Rochelle is attainable and a most dramatic moment fol lows . The story runs through the ages with the Revolution and its woes and joys ; th e Civil War bringing freedom to the slave ; the early Huguenots in the form o f spirits are shown , viewing with wondering awe and delight , — these beloved spots though indeed changed they se e new methods o f transportation and living ; down through the years the story of Ne w Rochelle is unfolded before their almost unbelieving eyes— her many churches

- and schools are a joy to them and the story close s on a note o f patriotism when Young America is shown ’ pledging its devotion to its country s flag and institutions . That students from the lower to the Senior High

6 6 NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK

School grades could grasp the meaning and present the story as they did speaks volumes for their intelligence and the great capabilities o f their instructors . The music u N e nder the direction of Mr . Bernard B . y involving as it did the direction o f twelve hundred voices and the several bands w as another remarkable piece o f artistry . It is estimated that the Pageant w as witnessed by over people and was well worth the sum allotted them by the Anniversary Committee o f for its production .

Inspired by the story of these fervently religious Hu gue n ots and shepherded by the always cooperative young

o f . . on pastor Trinity P E Church , Saturday morning , — 1 1 th o f o ut June , a group lads and lassies started with — their shoes in their hands for the first few blocks to at tend services held especially for them in the old church in New York City, walking just as the Huguenots had

done . However , they were modern enough to have a bus and cars follow them in order to pick up any who might become too weary and threaten to fall by the a

- six — side . Of the nineteen girls and thirteen boys only four at any time availed themselves o f this transporta all tion , and arrived at their destination and entered the ’ c hurch which is the French Church du Saint L E sp rit at

East 6 1 st Street . At the very start a violent rainstorm

drenched them but, undeterred and with undiminished

a . rdor, they continued their j ourney

o f Among the group was a maiden seventeen , very ” se e who Hu ue fair to , was a direct descendant of the g n ot family B onnet and akin to the intermarried families o f De Ve aux and P arcot mentioned frequently in t he e arly history o f New Rochelle . This was Eleanor Don ovan , and when you viewed the blisters developed by ONE FATT CALFE

Eleanor in her duplication o f this trip made by he r an c e stors you knew the endurance and courage which up held those early Huguenots had been inherited in n o u small degree by her . They were all congrat lated by the rector of the French Church on their arrival and were rewarded by a scroll which their own minister ,

Rev . Wendell Phillips, had designed and had engraved to present to them and o f which they should all be very

- proud in the years to come signed by Mr . Phillips and the Chairman o f the 25 0th Anniversary Committee “ ” attesting that they had made The Pilgrimage . 1 2th Sunday, June came with sunshine , flowers , birds singing and all our church bells ringing out for the se r vices in c omm e mmo ration of the fact that two hundred and fifty years ago religious freedom had found a foot hold in New Rochelle . A joint service was held by the c ongregations of Trinity Episcopal and the First Pres b te rian y Churches, both claiming to have been established in 1 6 8 8 and therefore celebrating their birthdays also . In the morning this service was held at the First Pres b te rian Pin tard i re y now established on Avenue , hav ng m oved from Huguenot Street after a disastrous fire .

- — Taking part in the service were many o ut o f town per son a e s g whose names symbolize the French Huguenot , ’ E li . L se with the Rev . J . A . F Maynard , rector of g - ran c aise du . F Saint Esprit , as guest speaker In the after noon a service in French w as conducted by the same

minister , with the rector of Trinity translating, in

t . Trini y P . E Church which still retains the original site

o . . . n Huguenot Street The Rev William H . S Demar - H o f est, chaplain general of uguenot Societies America ,

w as here the guest Speaker . our Monday, the day of the arrival of guest from

France , began as a gloomy day , particularly so to the

6 8 C o ur te s R o be r t E y .

H ON . ERIK MORCH

e - e Vic Mayor of La Rochell , France

’ D e le g a te to N e w R o e /wife s

25 t 1 4n n io e r sar C e le b a 0h . y r tio n

ONE FATT CALFE formal call ; then with our Mayor and several guests to the Wykagyl Club for luncheon ; later they all drove to the h the Hudson Park where Destroyer Tattnall , throug o u o f good offices o f r Congressman Ralph A . Gamble N f our . . was o Larchmont, Y anchored for the duration her Celebration , being received and entertained by Com m ander . On Tuesday afternoon— most appropriately since this — date is our Flag Day the new flagpole which the Hu guenot and Historical Association Committee had decid e ed to use some of their budget to purchase , was s bed uled to be dedicated with suitable ceremony . The Amer ff a ican Legion Post No . 8 of our City o ered to present new flag at the same time so a very beautiful and color ful ceremony took place , the flagpole being presented by the Chairman of our 25 0th Anniversary Committee and Hu received by Mr . Henry Lester, President of the

guenot and Historical Association . Commander Dietrich on s then presented the large American flag . As the flag n eared the top of the pole a downpour of rain somewhat o f marred the ceremony, which taking place in front the

picturesque Tom Paine Cottage with color guard , drum

m e r and bugler from the Post made a martial sight . re However, the audience , like true American patriots, mained till the storm was over and the service concluded “ ” o f with the playing America by the bugler .

This same afternoon the ladies of Trinity P . E . Church gave a tea from four to eight in the Parish Hu House , and at the same time showed visitors many

guenot mementoes O f interest . It had been intended to repeat the Pageant on Mon day night to allow the many persons unable to obtain tickets for the first two performances an opportunity to

70 NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK

attend . But early in the evening clouds began to form an d before the time set for the opening scene a deluge o f a rain turned the grounds into a veritable swamp . As greed upon our fire siren by its prolonged blast notified a disappointed audience the Pageant would not take place .

On Tuesday night the Pageant was repeated and this “ ” rather crowded the mourners since the dinner o f the Service Clubs and our three Block Parties took place that n - same ight . Vice Mayor Morch sat beside me at the P ageant and seemed to greatly enjoy the whole play . The singing o f the little ones of the gay French songs and their dances at little Marie ’ s party seemed to appeal to him .

At the end o f the performance our guest was escorted to the Block Parties one o f which was held in the Italian district with folk dancing as well as the latest American brand ; the second took place in our Negro district where o ur colored folks gave a splendid exhibition and enjoyed themselves in their usual happy manner ; the third in the heart o f o ur City just Off Main Street o n North Avenue — probably had the largest crowd o f all and the other two parties were not to be laughed at . Our Police De ’ p artm en t told us the next day they hoped there d be no m - fi ve ore Block Parties for the next twenty years .

The original intent o f the Block Parties had been to have general dancing to good music in roped- o ff sections to encourage a feeling o f goodfellowship and neighbor was lin e ss. It a little disappointing to find them turned into mere expositions of the latest popular and somewhat “ ” the eccentric dances , dances such as big apple and “ ” shag, and that but a very few people were taking part to se e h was and also very few were able w at taking place .

7 1 ONE FATT CALFE

h h However, t ey brought the crowds, wit good humor prevalent and perhaps the young folks did n ot mean to s ff o f monopolize the e a airs . The aftermath was a couple complaints, one for damages to a hedge , the other stated a garbage can had been wrecked when some neck- craner dragged it forth from an adjoining yard to stand o n it . ' Apparently the can w as weak or the standee too strong These we considered very mild expenses of which our insurance took care . The Dinner of the united Service Clubs of the City w as ff Ne w a big and jolly a air , held at the Rochelle

Yacht Club . Our visitor was unable to get there in time t o t take any part herein , unfortunately .

1 5 th - w as On Wednesday, June , the vice Mayor taken to the Hobby Show in the auditorium o f the Huguenot

School . From a disappointing start this had blossomed out into a Splendid affair of over four hundred separate

entries, and Mr . Morch expressed great interest, saying this was the first time he had ever seen anything of the

. saw kind Here he a model of the Normandie , the ship o n which he had come over the seas to visit us , and here h e his inscribed name on the register , to the great pride Mc Can dle s o f Mrs. s and her aides . They afterward wondered in which he w as most interested : the large collection of coins and items from a numismatist display ed in several glass cases ; the collection of model trains ; model boats ; model airplanes ; hats collected from al most every country in the world ; models of various types o f transportation from the primitive ox - cart to the aero o plane , this group showing once more our team f grays and surrey and a miniature stage coach and passengers

- on e o f whom clutched a carpet bag and hatbox . Here o f h also appeared collections china, opal glass, ammered

ONE FATT CALFE

f airplane to Roumania and in respo nse to a remark o “ m n ow as ine told me , It is as safe to travel by plane it ” on o f his is to walk . Imagine the shock w e felt reading death in an aeroplane accident shortly after he had gon e abroad ! — The small fry loved the mechanical banks particular ly the on e where you put a penny on the hoof o f the mule and he at once kicked it down through the window o f the Bank building and thereby made you save whether on you wanted to or not . Every item was arranged a table and covered with cellophane which w as tacke d ’ under the table s edge , thereby preventing handling by u nauthorized persons . Everyone loved the Hobby Show ; “ so even one little girl who told me adding, But I think ’ ’ it s mean ; I want on e o f those dolls and they ain t got ” none to sell .

Vice - Mayor Morch w as next escorted to the Flower o f Show the Garden Club of New Rochelle , which was held in the North Avenue Presbyterian Church House

where Mrs . C . Eugene Kene and her Committee showed

him a beautiful floral display, and many striking arrange ments . I think he would have been surprised earlier in the season to have seen the many and beautiful varieties o f his Fleur- de - lis ( Iris to us) that New Rochelle home

gardens can show .

Wednesday w as indeed a full day for us all ; at noon the Old Home Week Committee gave a delightful lun c heon at the First Presbyterian Church House which they called the Golden Jubilee and which w as really in tended for residents o f the City who had lived here for

fi fty years o f more . Some present claiming to be in that class were surely young- looking oldsters but since every on e present was perfectly happy and happiness is supp osed

74 N E W N E W ROCHELLE , YORK

to us h h New h for . lend yout , t at may account it Roc elle o ld- timers as a rule are n ot good mixers but they were a at that luncheon . Mr . Perley w s toastmaster and at the once got crowd in a good humor . The tables were very pretty with their little French and American flags an d harmonizing flowers and the lunch itself most ap e tiz in p g .

a . After luncheon w s finished Mr . Perley had Mr — Raymond Otis Hunter who was Captain Bang of radio — H old ! fame ead in songs, and how everyone sang Then o f a big box red , white and blue blossoms having been sent by a local florist for presentation to Vice - Mayor

Morch and M . Morch having been unable to attend , it w as presented by his request to the lady present who had e lived longest in N w Rochelle continuously . As all were wearing the badges presented to them by the Committee in proof that they had lived fifty years or more in New — Rochelle it looked as if this might be a difficult task a r of epetition Paris and the apple . However , it soon sim m ered down to two ladies , Mrs . Lillian Banks and Miss ff n Josephine Kircho , vying for this honor . It was fou d o f that Miss Kirchoff exceeded Mrs . Banks in length N e w Rochelle residence by a month o r so and to Miss — Kircho went the bouquet with honorable mention to — the other contestant being presented by the Chairma n o f 25 0th the Anniversary Committee , Judge Otto , with

his . o f . usual sang froid This matter being disposed , Mr P erley requested that those present who could trace their a ncestry back to the early New Rochelle Huguenots rise , give the name of the family they were descended from o f h a and something their early istory . This w s a most welcome invitation , eagerly accepted , and many were the little stories and bits o f information thus brought ” The was forth . a air concluded in a burst of song and

75 ONE FATT CALFE chatter and many were the friends who were reunited ’ by this little party . Why wouldn t it be a happy thought for churches to unite and give such affairs at intervals !

o f The U . S . Destroyer Tattnall w as a source great interest as seldom do we get a chance to se e a destroyer her at close range , and when it was announced that Commander would allow visitors to board her after ’ noons from on e to four o clock and a launch was pro vide d by the Naval Militia Unit to furnish free transpor tation we had another great attraction for the week . Particularly interesting was the fact that o n e o f her ff is o icers was a local boy , for Ensign Stephenson a de sce n dan t of the builder and original Owner of Stephen son Castle (now the Salesian Institute) on the Boston

Post Road near Larchmont .

Wednesday afternoo n the Recreation Committee staged their Track and Field Meet on the Senior High School grounds and this event with many prizes in the ffi o ng was very popular with the athletically inclined , i bring ng out a big crowd of rooters and fans . Thus , Wednesday furnished entertainment and amusement for o f both youngsters and oldsters, one our desires when we a first began our coin s les .

as on On Tuesday and Wednesday well as Thursday , the Coun c1l of Social Agencies were having their show at

the Huguenot Y M C A on Burling Lane . This exhibit

combined the Community Chest , Visiting Nurse and Boys Clubs activities and w as open from on e to nine ’ o clock , with members of the Committee to explain and

- show visitors their exhibit . Thus were the serious minded

citizens provided for and instructed if they so wished . ’ The Children s Museum at the Thomas Paine Mem o rial House was open all the week to the public . Here

76

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throughout our week and this also had many visitors . Treasured furnishings o f almost every old Huguenot family associated with New Rochelle were loaned to the Library Committee and were placed by them in the p o sition deemed most fitting . Cradle , chairs, tables, spinning u wheel with flax, quilts, samplers, copper and pewter h ff te sils, portraits, candlesticks, candle snu er ; a powder horn and fl in tlock rifle that no doubt protected a home such as these things all represented ; all these and more were eloq uent expressions to the mind and heart o f o n e w ho could understand . What a rich heritage for those ! n . possessors, but alas ofte how little appreciated Wednesday night we were all breathlessly thrilled by the Fireworks . And such Fireworks ! A huge crowd hastened to our beautiful Hudson Park a rriving long before the appointed time o f p . m . in on order to gain seats on the lawns, beaches, rocks and w a e the bathhouse roof . It s a crowd such as is seldom se n

in our City, and the police said they had never seen such a big crowd behave in such an orderly fashion o r leave — the Park afterward a lengthy proceeding o n account of ffi — in - tra c such a good natured mood . Those fireworks beggared description for beauty and C re n n an quantity . How Mr . ever put on such a show for the amount he expended and how he ever w as able

to comport himself in such a cool , unassuming manner kn owing what he was about to spring o n us I cannot “ ” . sa imagine Not casting any aspersions , I must y that Committees which had demanded far greater funds and wearied us by grandiloquent accounts o f what wonders they would work therewith must have suffered quite a j olt when they beheld the results achieved by this Com te e h n ot mit . T ey could have secured a better Spot from h h e . whic to display them , eit r

7 8 O NEW ROCHELLE , NEW Y RK

R h h ockets, bombs, s ells burst fort in glory, followed ff by cascade , floral , star and rainbow e ects , meteors in o f varying hues , bouquets, single flowers, fields clover , flying fish and dragons o f golden color pursued each o ther rapidly across the sky ; serpents darted up and down and round about ; sailboats appeared and vanished ; a m otorcycle race came and went ; Niagara Falls so real you thought you heard the noise o f falling waters ; then w e saw what w e oldsters said was the Goose that laid th e Golden E gg but the youngsters said more sop histi c ate dl w as y Donald Duck . It seemed impossible that there was another Ah - h-h left in the crowd but there w as and forth it came when John Pell appeared re ce iv ing our fatt cal fe ; a portrait o f Lord Pell ; a cloaked fig ure appeared which is the popular conception o f the

French Huguenot ; our Anniversary flag appeared , and — — o f o ur last but course best own American flag . The Executive Committee had been invited to view the fireworks from the Tattnall by her C ommander and the most of us were aboard . The night was superb and if

Spirits of the Huguenots were present, how they must have marvelled at it all . Thursday was o n us before we had time to draw a long breath and the Recreation Committee staged a tournament for golfers at the Broadmoor Country Club , beginning in the morning, with luncheon at noon and A continuation o f the game throughout the afternoon . n umber o f handsome prizes made the contests exciting an d once more our Celebration gave entertainment to a type o f person who perhaps would be bored by some o f o ur other events . This day was an important on e indeed for in the afternoon the dedication of the tablet replacing the on e

79 ONE FATT CALFE o f an earlier celebration which had been found in accur h s on e ate , took place . A perfect June day made t is cene to be remembered , with the Park at its loveliest and the n waters o f Echo Bay dotted with pleasure craft . A sta d had been erected for the guests and speakers with Nb .

Lester opening the ceremonies . Mr . Hadaway and Mr Seacord had invited prominent members o f Huguenot

and Historical circles and Mr . Maynard again Spoke , pleasing his hearers by his remarks on the outstanding qualities of our ancestors which he pointed out to have : ih been intelligent courage , confidence in democracy, dustr w as b y, thrift and courtesy . The tablet presented y Chairman Otto on behalf o f the 25 0th Anniversary Committee and accepted by Mayor Se at representing the City of New Rochelle .

We were greatly honored at this time by the prese nce o f the Ambassador to this country from France , Count - w a Rene de Saint Quentin (who s accompanied by M .

Jacques Dumaine , First Secretary to the French Em bassy) and of the French Consul - General Count Charles on tn o uve lle i de F of New York City . They, with v ce

Mayor Morch , took part in the dedication of this large bronze tablet which was now inserted in its niche in the seven - foot granite monument on the knoll overlooking

the bay . With music the service opened and with music c oncluded , having brought to perfection the desire of ’ o f some our City s most valued citizens .

w as This afternoon event followed by two dinners, on e at the Presbyterian Church House given by the con gre gation s o f the First Presbyterian and Trinity again combining and celebrating their birthdays as well as the ’ ff City s . This was rather an informal a air and o ur three the u - guests, Ambassador, Cons l General an d vice

8 0

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on S o f S Long Island ound , the suggestion Mayor cott) — having been called o ff the on e for the reasons before detailed and the latter by reason o f an accident to the — large vessel which had been chartered looked like an easy day for our guest and for all the Committees . - had Though the Ambassador and Consul General fled ,

- w as n ow vice Mayor Morch w as still at our mercy . He taken to the Children ’ s Museum at the Paine Memorial House ; to the exhibit of the Council o f Social Agencies at the Huguenot Y M C A ; to se e the old Huguenot Home Room and its furnishings at the New Rochelle Public Library— and all this with Old Sol deciding to let our guest se e what he could do over on this side o f the

Atlantic in the way o f extending a warm welcome . It w as o n e of those days well described by the expression , “ ” never an idle moment . That night the Huguenot and Historical Association held an informal reception for the p ublic with a moving picture that w as brought over by o u aRoche lle r guest showing us scenes o f L . The Flower Show furnished the decorations and with music furnished by the Orchestra and the combined Huguenot Male Glee Club and University ’ Men s Glee Club and the stirring speech of Dr . Joseph

. Siz oo o f R , Minister the Collegiate Church o f Saint Ne w was Nicholas, York City, this a memorable part o f o ur week . Saturday June 1 8th dawned with a clear sky and the

1 . . 1 sun keeping to his idea of the preceding day By a m . ( the time set for the Post O nce dedication) the streets were swarming with chattering natives and visitors . The dedication itself w as rather an anticlimax as w e had all c fo been using that same Post O . .i e r the past two or so three weeks its glories were a trifle dimmed . But what a grand opportunity for those who had not yet had

8 2 NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK a chance to burst into eloquence ! Speeches were indulged ic in by almost all the members o f the Post O . . e Dedica tion Committee (and it w as by no means a small Com mitte e ) some o f them suspiciously political in character w e o n e of had and wonder if that Mr . James Mead anything to do with his being elected Congressman a few months later . Chairman Otto did some rather fan tastic mason work on that cornerstone but it must have been a better job than it appeared for the Post O nce is — in still standing fact, does not seem to lean noticeably a s yet .

After music , vocal and instrumental , had concluded the services o ff w e sped to the , “ ” a t so least about two hundred of the invited elite did . for luncheon . Here we listened to more oratory and hid our chuckles in the sleeves o f our summer garb as the toastmaster (who is also the local Democratic City Lea der) told o f the wondrous works o f the Federal Ad m in l inistration pul ing down and rebuilding, adding wings and otherwise boosting the building of Post Offices sa all over the U . S . Needless to y, he did not mention o out that this boosts the taxes f the people . Ending the burst o f oratorical fireworks o f praises chanted to the “ ’ n e w Great Father in Washington he said , Let s have a ’ ice h on e o f h Post O . . dedication every day ; let s ave t ese fine luncheons which bring us all together like this ” e ve ry day ! and he never heard the grunt from on e o f “ ur who ! o Committee members said , Oh , yeah Where will you get another New Rochelle half dollar to finance you to the tune o f It is doubtful if many the people realize that dedication , luncheon and enter taining o f all the visiting postal employees who took part in the parade were paid for out o f the funds o f the New

Rochelle Commemorative Coin Committee . Would you

83 ONE FATT CALFE believe that afterward we had to listen to complaints ’ from them that they didn t like the food furnished them on e o f o ur au by local restaurants, though if the postal tho ritie s had proceeded with their dedication when the building w as finished there would have been no such gal a e vent for them ! Our inner man fairly well satisfied we n ow all hur ried downtown to the real feast o f the day THE f P A R A D E . By this time o the day New Rochelle or — looked like London , Paris Pekin this being what I learned in my school days to recite as the most densely p opulated cities of the world . The main streets had been cleared o f all traflic ; the sidewalks from the curb right into the store buildings were crowded with people ; on the roofs of the buildings on Main Street and North Avenue people were standing or sitting o n improvised benches ; the overhead railroad bridge of the defunct Boston and Westchester Railroad was packed with spec tators ; the framework o f the Ne w Haven Railroad on North Avenue w as jammed with onlookers ( this being o f steel was pretty hot from the sun and its occupants were constantly shifting but never leaving) ; our tw o grandstands on lower Huguenot Street along the line of march were filled long before the hour se t for the start o f t the parade . The wea her could not have been more

— hot t who ideally chosen perhaps a trifle , but hen does not love it to be hot when a parade is under way ! Never have I seen Ne w Rochelle so pretty and gay nor its

people so amiable . The parade was ready on the minute se t for its start but a message w as received that a contin g ent o f sailors from a French warship which had j ust c ome into Ne w York harbor w as on the way and would we wait for them ! W ould w e ! They were the d h you a th h t earest t ings ever s w wi t eir white rousers,

8 4

NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK

short blue jackets and white tams with saucy red tassels, h their browned complexions and flashing white teet . Our N e w Rochelle girls would have been willing to wait a w se e eek to them . The Line of March and general plan o f asse mbly is reproduced in this account . The Marshal , Colonel Philip

our o f t Tilden , Director Public Safe y , had blue prints made and his programme took care of the least detail , thus making it the wonderful success it proved to be . He

w as A . as ably assisted by Major Stuart Cutler, U . S . , well as by other experienced Army and Navy officers an d the result showed what can be accomplished when undertaken in the right spirit, with proper cooperation and ample funds .

In the reviewing stand in front o f the City Hall se ats had been reserved for the wives or widows o f former o f our t fi Mayors City , for Ci y of cials, and for invited

o f . o guests the Committee Every ne got there early, fear ful lest there should be some error and no seat be avail able . Therefore we waited long, tense with excitement o n e t moment and the next relaxed , with repar ee ex on e o f to o changed from end the Stand the other . N doubt those standing on the sidewalks envied us our ap w as as a parent ease , but it not comfortable s it seemed . The afternoon sun shone pretty robustly on that partie ularly exposed Spot ; the seats were narrow and grew harder by the minute . We found ourselves shifting even on as our friends the railroad bridge . Miss Lathrop came down to se e her fatt calfe attain — — his or bi majority maturity and marvelled at the g, - good natured crowd , reluctantly admitting we were far ’ lin x c e l g her home city s celebration , though Albany was ‘‘ ” h e e h considered at the time to av don erself proud .

8 5 ONE FATT CALFE

h n The monotony o f our long wait w as broken w e

h who had to our Governor Le man , been invited review fific er who his for parade , followed by the o s were aides

his . the day , entered the stand and took allotted place

Just when we had begun to think we could not e n “ i w e h h dure wait ng a minute longer eard , Here t ey ” the - off come , and music in the distance . Along roped “ ” street came th e motorcycle cops who always precede a parade , gazing keenly to right and left to be sure the w a y is absolutely clear . The music came nearer and the “ ’ ” c - h rowd said Ah , here s the Grand Marsha , and

Colonel Tilden made his appearance . Then along came the car with vice - Mayor Morch in top - hat and i with br lliant decorations glowing on his ample chest, o ur own Mayor Harry Scott and Chairman Otto . Next c ame the Executive Committee members, walking staid ly along in the costumes concerning which there had been

. on e . such heated debate And fine they looked, every t icial The Ci y O . . s were just behind them and all now

T e P ar a e entered the Stand . h d is he r e ! The music of the 1 6th Infantry Band from Gover ’ nor s Island brings a storm o f applause . The regular Army troops follow their band and again a wave o f c o ut heers breaks . Then the Tattnall men in their spick a n d Span uniforms and they are greeted as Old friends

by the New Rochelle folks . And here are our French

sailors with their blue , white and red . “The Old Guard” passes and you hear speculation as how the to they stand their bearskin Shakoes, and

1 07th Regiment are received with admiring cheers . “ ” 1 5 6th . N . G . e . th Battery F Field Artillery N Y , Naval Militia Band and a detachment o f the Naval h Militia follow . T ese I feel well acquainted with since

8 6

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a ted under the head of Public Safety . With suitable music

o n o f and regal tread they go , with the Department o f Public Works close at their heels . A gale laughter sweeps over the crowd as they note how carefully on e o f the attendants dusts o ff the surface o f a truck . The old and new outfits receive our careful attention as se l dom does our average commuter have an opportunity to se e j ust what this home city of his gives him for his taxes . Like the fire department ’ s latest apparatus delivered j ust in time for our Celebration the street department too showed their lately acquired motor vehicles .

A moment of silence as the Veterans Division ap roache s p , but the lively airs of the fi fe and drum corps t soon restore the gaie y of the crowd . The American

Legion Post leads, with Spanish War Veterans and their auxiliaries following and making a martial appearance .

Then come our usually troublesome tads . Today they are strutting along in orderly fashion , scarcely to be outdone by the Veterans . Boy Scouts, bands, Nautical

Cadets, bands, Boys Club members, and music and flags everywhere . ’ — The Sc o tc hme n s Band in their gorgeous kilts what a roar of applause rings out for them . Clan Bruce and their auxiliary are full of pride as they step along to the

skirling of those pipers . Something new to most of us is — sighted now Irish pipers in their dark plaids with gre en

. t t t predominating Irish organiza ions follow hem , hen the Patriotic Daughters of America with most peculiar music made by “major operations” on all kinds of uten “ sils for this, we have been proudly informed , is a kitchen ” band . Among their members is the first woman dep uty sheriff o f Westchester County - a New Rochelle woman —who in her dark blue uniform with brass buttons and

8 8 NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK small blue cap looks very handsome and marches with a military stride , while from the grandstand the first

on sa Ne w woman County Supervisor looks . Who can y Rochelle ignores her ladies ! i Music , music in the air . Bands led by g rl drum ma — j ors and by boys and men twirling their batons how can anyone say who is best ! All our Italian - American organizations are in line for dearly they love a Parade ! The girl students from the College o f New Rochelle in C Re d their aps and gowns make a striking show , the Men create a lot o f amusement when they suddenly pause in front of the grand stand to circle about a soli tary Puritan figure who seems pretty well alarmed by their apparent intention to have his scalp , then relieved as they decide to establish friendly relations and the In d dians an settler march along amiably together again .

We have a Portuguese Society in line , the Maenner w h o o f chor o f course are German extraction , The o f Catholic Daughters America, the Salvation Army ’ o Band , the Beauticians and Sch ol of Dressmaking con tin e n ts e . g , all proud to take part in our gala performanc “ A moment of suspense and a shout Here come the ” ! SO fl oats ! and they came all right . Came and came lovely they were we were bewildered by their beauty and heaved a sigh of relief that w e were not on the com mitte e to judge and award the prizes .

a The Rotary Club had a very original idea, that of huge decorated wheel being propelled by four men , each Over six foot tall and of magnificent proportions dressed w h o in the Huguenot costume . The Lions Club o do S much for the undernourished child at a camp established by them had a float with their insignia and a group o f children symbolic o f their good work . The Kiwanis had

8 9 ONE FATT CALFE

a float with a throne featuring several beauteous maidens

thereon . The contented cows with their calves surrounded ’ with hay , straw and other provender advertising Borden s

pure milk and products were a source of joy to the crowd , particularly when on e baby cow decided to have a drink ’ o f mother s milk j ust as the float reached the grandstand . Children shrieked with glee and even oldsters were con out strained to burst laughing, while bovine mother and child nonchalantly attended to the details of the lun a cheon . This float w s awarded second prize while the — first went to a float which came later in the parade a landau decorated with the foliage of the grapevine and o f with immense bunches grapes, drawn by two horses , o n e of which was ridden postilion fashion by a footman in brilliant livery and with coachman in livery holding

the reins . In this carriage rode a young woman garbed ! V in the fashion of court ladies of Louis , benevolently and graciously dispensing coins as She rode home from v iewing the harvest and winemakers on her vast estates . This was something so novel but so appropriate to the firm it represented that we were all glad to find the judges had awarded the first prize to The French Wine

Shop , even though they are rather newcomers to our

City .

A June bride with her attendants on a float whose chief decoration w as a huge wedding ring was awarded T aln e r third prize and won by Leonard , a local jewel ler . The Girl Scouts with their campfire scene on a float horse drawn and with horse back riders preceding brought forth please d comments and later was adjudged

fourth prize winner .

9 0

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’ t l o f village ype . (Frank y, the music the ladies kitchen band intrigued the crowd much more than this which

- the Honey boys inflicted o n us . ) Although the Business Men would not buy our coins they did plagiarize our efforts to the extent of using our motif of Lord John and the fatt calfe on their float .

However , it was not as great a success as if they had left it at that but they had a great deal of other impedimenta representing their composite ideas o f business and the

w a result s rather bewildering . When there is so much to se e and such a brief Span for seeing too much detail on d a float is bad an fails of the intended effect . Floats which did not come in for any of the prizes or mention but were nevertheless well worth watching passed in review and evoked suitable response from the

enthralled spectators . Pleasing the children immensely was a group re p re t sen ing Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, entered by

the New Rochelle Coal and Lumber Company , Snow

White riding on an enormous piece of coal , while the dwarfs like pixies did the things required by their various

roles . The Catholic Cradle Guild had a very pretty float

with a new baby in its bassinet , with young mother and children symbolic of the maternal instinct which it fos

ters . The New Rochelle Agency had an exceedingly lovely tw o float , purple and white predominating and with

charming girls thereon . The Telephone Company with its symbolic bell o f ’ silver ; Jacob Rup p e rt s Brewing Company with a huge

- float representing a double masted schooner ( a ship , n ot goblet) with a figure at the helm in a military costume

92 N E W N E W ROCHELLE , YORK

o f 1 7 76 o f ; a miniature gasoline station ; these , course , were all classed as advertising but were interesting neve r the le ss as w as , that o f a Milk Wagon Drivers Association showing a cow with milkmaids and farmhands in a se t o f ting green .

Two Scandinavian floats were striking and handsome ; the on e a Viking vessel with the crew staring inscrutably ahead and a group in purple and blue tunics with glitter ing shields and swords and metal helmets recalled the old w a o f sagas and their heroes . This s an entry Viking

Lodge , Order of Vasa, and the second , the entry of Midn atsole n w as bV Lodge , Order of Vikings, manned s talwart Vikings in costume and helmets, the prow of

their ship being curved and carven most artistically . Both o f these Orders were most painstaking in carrying out historic details and I admit I was quite disappointed that w on neither a prize .

The Humane Society showed a collection of dogs, but — n o cat was to be se en . Two immense dogs Great Danes -were guarding a woman in the rear of the float while in front a typical barefoot boy of the Huckleberry Finn

- type fished industriously with a home made outfit, while a small black dog o f nondescript ancestry looked happily

o n .

The Chamber of Commerce carried o ut the legend

o f the coming of the Huguenots to New Rochelle , de pie ting them disembarking from the odd looking vessel w a anchored in the waters of Echo Bay . This s striking

and beautiful , with the Huguenots appropriately attired . A stagecoach and four with occupants in old fashioned t costume , wi h a placard inviting visitors to the Model Home Corporation ’ s latest venture — The Huguenot

Cottage aroused favorable comment, particularly as

93 ONE FATT CALFE some o f the occupants were well known and well liked o f our young people City . h h h A uge elep ant, wit a young woman in an exceed in gly up - to- date costume reclining at his feet and a young o f man at the rear end the float, represented the Young Republicans o f today and this w as greatly enjoyed bV

h w ho Democratic Governor Le man , laughed heartily as he returned their salutes . This elephant was purchased especially for the Celebration and its sale has ever since been earnestly sought by its sponsors , but so far all in to vain , as an elephant requires more space house than the average person has to spare . The Red Men who did not march took part in making a realistic scene of an Indian family gathered around a ’ fire outside their tepee . Floats were entered by Loew s

Theater and by the Westchester Lighting Company , the first a young girl on a white charger representing The Girl of the Golden West and the Lighting C o m pany showing the old fashioned home with antiquated lighting facilities and the new and modern home with its

- - - - old up to the minute methods of home making . A high bicycle o f about fifty years ago ridden by a man in ap ro riate o f in p p clothing ; bicycles the later period , “ o f cluding the one which inspired the song Daisy , ” “ Daisy, Give Me Your Answer , Do and ending, But you ’ d look sweet upon the seat of a bicycle built for two” and ridden by a sweet young thing in voluminous bloom

ers, behind her escort in long trousers and derby hat and o f - a- all types autos followed , from the first get horse type

to the most modern , all with occupants rigged up to suit

. the the period represented This ended Parade , with h the laughter pealing out as eac went by , till very last morsel of our most delectable meal had been swallowed

94

ONE FATT CALFE pated and all who were present voted this a splendid way ’ t o close our week o f celebrating Ne w Rochelle s 25 0th

Birthday .

The next day vice - Mayor Morch sailed for home on the h h Ne w Ile de France , expressing imself pleased wit Rochelle and her people and we on our part feel that n o representative could have been sent that would have pleased us more and made us feel closer to La Rochelle . So ended the 25 0th Anniversary of New Rochelle th a wi lasting memorials and everl sting memories .

96 AMY C . SKIPTON

E x e c utive Se c r e tary New Rochelle Commemorative Coin Committee

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In retrospect I can se e that we should have provided a scenario and followed it up with daily suggestions .

At the writing o f this account improvem ents have been just about concluded and a film readied for ship m ent to our M other City o f La Rochelle in a few days . The revision w as taken over by the Ne w Rochelle C o m memorative Coin Committee and has meant a further o f considerable expenditure . After enlisting the services “ ” a young movie Operator and fan who located film o f desired parts of the Celebration and showing him much has that required to be elided , he pruned and added — including a Splendid strip o f color film until now w e have a film that is the best that can be produced at this !

. o rt late day Patience , money and dogged e have nec “ e ssarily been called for but the old saw about experience being a dear school and the rest o f that quotation is ap are n tl il t o p y st l only o true . This last meeting o f the Committee w as a happy o c e casion , perhaps largely because the members felt reliev d o f a considerable amount o f responsibility and because all were filled with the sense o f satisfaction that comes from having properly discharged a duty . All reported favorable on ff comments having been made the a air . The Parade Committee were teased for having been so concern e d that they had even taken o ut rain insurance for the day — o f o f all days the day the PARADE . Our Chairman thanked us all and beamed on us most paternally, knowing that he would not have to gaze upon “ ’ ” ’ o f n that baker s dozen us sitting around Mr . Watso s long table arguing and demanding the moon from him -five every week for at least twenty years more . He looked ten years younger through the releasing o f his — burden or it might merely have been the effect o f those

9 8 N E W N E ROCHELLE , W YORK

— alleged sunbaths beginning to show and expresse d his on e gratitude to and all for the cooperation we had given . Everyone had some particular cause of gratitude and all felt that the success o f the whole undertaking had been due to many factors and that a general expression o f gratitude through the Press would be most satisfactory .

. o f This Mr Miller and Mr . Dayton took care through Robischon to the local paper, while Mr . undertook ex re ss it o p through his vari us agents . ' With a feeling o f better understanding o f and liking for each other the 25 0th Anniversary Committee then a became , like the Huguenots, a thing of the past and — m o f atter history with their acts and deeds, to some

i . extent, liv ng through this brief annal

THE E ND

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C O M M I T T E E S

E! ECUTIVE

o C i a . ha rm n Walter G C . Ott ,

Vic e - Chairman Leo Ferrara,

. K h Se cr e tar an d Tre asure r J ennet Huntington , y Mille man E x e c utive Se cre tar Jere , y ’ . d E x e c uti e Se c e ta u t. v r r Amy C Skipton , y K h Robert J . Cooper Melville a n

C re n n an . Ollie V . Henry M Lester

i . George M . Dav s Pitt M Skipton n William S . Hadaway Ernest H . Watso B UDGET

Chairm a . n Ernest H Watson ,

J . Kenneth Huntington Jere Mille m an

Melville Kahn Pitt M . Skipton PUBLICITY

l Chairm an Elmer H . Mi ler,

Robischon Eldorous Robert E . Dayton RECEPTION

Chair m an George G . Raymond ,

H . E . Colwell Harry Scott

ri . .in Edward Stetson G g Charles F . Simmons

Walter G . C . Otto INVITATIONS

C ai . h rm an Robert L Forbes,

Mrs . Barbara Reynolds Louis Meyer

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SAFETY

Chairman h . P ilip S Tilden ,

e n h . Fran k L . B rmi g am Oscar A Grab MARINE

Chair man James G . Wentz ,

Edson H . Denman Albert J . Mullen McCallum D . Earl Fleming Harry Robert Mc Ke e PROGRAMME

Chair m an Robert J . Cooper, l Robert L . Forbes Melvi le Kahn FLAG

Chairman Henry M . Lester, OLD H OME WEEK

C ai man . h r J Marshall Perley,

Rodney Gibson Mrs. William A . Moore M r . . s C C . Guion RECREATION

Chairman Peter J . Mayers,

. o Morris Block Mrs Blanche S . Emers n e v R . Thomas Dunn August Mascaro M rs. Gertrude Boddie Dr . Edmund Taylor Kenneth L ittle field Thomas Hoctor COUNCIL OF SOCIAL AGENCIES

t Chair man Pitt M . Skip on ,

. R. Ernest H . Watson A Williams N E N E W W ROCHELLE , YORK

SCH OOL PAGEANTS

N e Chairm an Bernard B . y ,

W . Emerson Burke Miss Maria D . Murray ha Miss Marguerite C n ut Miss Dorothy T . Parr M Miss Vera Coulter Mrs . Mabel D . Reischmann Ruscoe . De Catur . Miss Luanna B Mrs. Eleanor R M rs. Paula O . Diaz Miss Ruth M . Shafer

. rie l . D s e r . Mrs Quay C Mrs . Juliet M Tompkins

Miss Regina Fanelli Miss Mabel B . Walker

Edward J . Fitzgerald Miss Esther M . West M rs. Libby K . Isaacs Miss Josephine Willard

. Orlo K Jenney Mrs. Pearl B . Willard

Miss Florence H . Kusche Miss A . Edna Wine

l 8 . Miss Beatrice Lowentha Mrs. Elma Young

EDUCATIONAL

Chairman Herold C . Hunt, h n . Mic ael J . Larki Mrs . Julius C Gluck l A . L . Pakenham Miss Emi y S . Thornton

F . Loretta Coons Sim J . Smith Mr Schaufller Frances Dempsey s. Alan s W i htwick Mary L . Payson Mi s Irene g

PARADE

L e o Chairman Ferrara,

McC o rmi k Col. . c Major Stuart Cutler, John H d E w . . U . S . A . Major A Wilson ,

- l h . . . K N . L t Com . F . . Gund ac , Y N G

N . . . N . Y . M Charles F Porter

h S. n . Col. P ilip Tilde Francis W Taylor

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PARADE (POST OFFICE DIVISION)

h McL ou hlin C air man . h T omas P g ,

Stre e r Israel g Philip J . Havey

Frank H . Lasker Dewey Herlihy

William S . Shea John J . Murphy M rs. . B Harold Brod Andrew J . Rabbitt M rs. Charles P . Oliver William J . Rosa John J . Flynn

GENERAL COMMITTEE of the Z SOTH ANNIVERSARY COM M ITTEE

. u A Bankson , Mrs Pa l A .

Adie , Dr . George Badeau , Miss Susie

Albertson , J . Lester Beck, Mrs . August J . M . . rs . Anderson , Jas H Bennett, Florence S .

. Archibald , Harry A Benedict, Mrs . Chas . S .

i an i . vi Att s . , Vincent J Ba er, Robert N

Acocella, Gabriel Bellows, Chas . H .

Anthes, Henry Bermingham , Frank L .

Arnow, Matson Bonnett, William D . Mr s. Allen , Carleton B . Bill , E . Lyman M rs. Bishop , Ellen U .

B Bizel , John S .

Burke , W . Emerson Bloom , Harry

Block , Morris Bradley, C . Cole

. i Boddie , Mrs Gertrude Brower, Irv ng C . M rs. . . Banks, Chas G Brennan, Walter J .

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. . ue rst S . Desmond , Mrs Wm F , Morton

h . Della Badia , T omas Fanelli, George C De Catur s , Miss Luanna B . Flandreau , Mis Viola

Dunn , Rev . Thomas Fitzgerald , Edward J . Mr s . i Diaz , Paula O . Fanelli, Miss Reg na Dre isle r Mr s. , Quay C . Fleming, D . Earl

E G

Mr s. Ewing, Frank Gibson , Rodney L t- K Eastman , Lee J . Gundlach , Com F .

Elsea , Rev . Elmer Grady, James T . E ffe rn , Gustave Grant, Adolph

Mrs. . Emerson , Blanche S Gerard , Paul G

Geary, Donald D .

Grab, Oscar A .

L e Ro . . . Franz , y Guion , Dr C C

Farmer, Mrs . Margaret Graham , Fred G . Grifliths Fallon , Richard L . , Chas . H . Go dse n Fasso , Thos . N . , William C . Griflin Falk , Arthur , Chas . H . M rs. . Gregory, . . Fearing, Albert J Chas E ! n Fallon , Frank . Gri g, Ed . Stetson Gutta Farrell , Frank g, Julius Gove rs Forbes, Robert L . , Geo . B .

Finlay, Walter S . Jr . Galgano, Frank r Flandreau , Miss Lucille Graybill , Hen y

Fell , Henry Guest, E . H . M rs. Fosina , John Grab , Marian L . M rs. . . Fairchild , H B Gold , Rev . H . R . Mr o s. s. . M rs. F , . lynn ! A Gardner , Harold B

F e rn sc hild E dw . s , Go s , Louis

. h Frisk , Rev Donald Gardner, Hug B .

. M rs. Ford , Rev Fred Gluck , J ulius

1 06 N E W N E ROCHELLE , W YORK

h Girardi , Josep I . Johnson , Harrison

. . L e Ro Greeley , Wm B Jones, y F .

Jenney, Orlo K . H K Hubbell , Benjamin H . K Hunt , Herold C . usche , Miss Florence H .

Hume , Edmund Kent, Ralph S .

Humphreys, Walter B . Keogh , Mrs . M . J . Holler , Frank J . Kreuter, Thos . D . Kistin e r Mr s . Hill , Miss Aubry Lee g , Dorothy

. De L an ce Hughes, Michael Kane , Mrs y A .

. K , E Halligan , Rev James napp dwin Mr s. K , . E Hogue , Charles ene C ugene

He n n i ar . K , . g , Howard W ettner George L

. . . K , . V . Hartley , Rev Robt R iernan Thos ff . K , L . Harvey, Dr Ralph ircho Walter

. Koch , Frank C . Hart, George J Kistin e r Hayes, Eugene D . g , Adam C . l . Kahn , Melvil e Havey, Philip J

Herlihy, Dewey

Huntington , Miss Mary L

L e Coun t Hoctor, Thomas , Miss Phoebe L e C oun t , W . Howard L ambde n I , John F .

Iselin , Miss Georgine Lester, Miss Caroline ’ Mr O Don n e ll s. Iselin , Livingston , Mary P . Iarrocci , Anthony Lowell , Orson a Mr Is ccs s. K ie bfre d . L . , Libby , Albert F

Langford , Albert H . J Leyendecker , J . C . d’ . re k Jones, Rodney W . Lea , Mrs F . C .

Johnston , Halstead G . Lester, Joseph W .

Mrs. L , F . Jones, Mary asker rank H

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h h Lane , C as . H . Marcellino , Josep c Le ount, Fred D . Margotta, Dr . Henry

. Mc In n e ss Lyon , Leland H , Hamilton h M d Mr . . . . cCor s Loug man , Edward D , C I

L , . . . . loyd Cyrus T Martin , Rev Wm B M . c Gre or . . . Larson , Uran V g , Rev R G L ib re tt , Aaron Meyer, Louis o Lepore , Le nard D .

Lane , John L e Coun t , Josiah . Niehaus, Mrs . Regina A

Larkin, Rev . M . . J Noteman , Norman L .

Ne w . , Frank J M Nowak , Rabbi Abraham

Mc Don ald N , . . . , George W oxon Mrs Chas H

Ne w . Morgan , Hobart C . , George H Mc Gill , Walter K . M 0 aher, W . A .

Mrs. . Mackay, Stillman Oliver, Chas P

Maves, Albert E . . . Orlando , V J Manning, Thomas A . Jr . Ostrom , Selden W .

Margolis, Benj .

Myrick, E . C . P

. . Marino , F F . Patten , Harry R

Mancusi , Joseph . Perley , J Marshall

Mc Gari al . g , John A Palmer, Joel C . R . i Mc Corm ck . . , John H Jr Petry, Miss Louise

Mc Go ve rn . Mrs. , J Raymond Pell , Emily C .

Miller, Harvey Phillips, Rev . Wendell

Miller, Howard Patchell , Rev . Drury Mr s. . . Moore , Wm A Patterson , Miss Mary

Miller, Elmer Porter , Charles F . c h , . K Mc oy Josep Peterson , Mrs Howard . h Morrow , Ralp Perley, Henry C .

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Taylor, Francis W . Ware , Howard R . h h T ornton , Miss Emily Willard , Miss Josep ine

Westover, Russell ’

U . e . Wamsley, Rev Fred n h M S. h rs. . U der ill , Maltby Wiedenbac , A h Walter, Ralp Mr s. . . V Winans, W H

Van Auke n . . , Charles A West, Charles H

Van Z elm . . , Henri J West, James E W i htw ick . . Viles , Albert g , Miss M I

Mr . . . . Van E tte n s . , L E Wright, Dr Frank M

Wentz, James G . W

h . West, Miss Est er M Y Walker, Miss Mabel B . Young, . Addison E dw J Wilson , Maj . . A . Young, Walter H . Walsh , Mons . Frank Young, Miss Alice H .

Mr . s . Waldorf, Fred H Mrs Young, . Elma S . h Watson , Kennet l Mr s . Wil ard , Pearl B . Z Wheeler, Wm . B . s Z Wine , Mis Edna immerman , Miss Elsie h Mr Z s. E dw W itney, . T . auner, Joseph

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Z SOT H ANNIVERSARY OFFICIAL PROGRAMME

C air m an . . h WALTER G C OTTO ,

L E O Vic e - Chair m an FERRARA,

- . K G O Se c r e tar Tr e asure r J ENNETH H UNTIN T N , y MIL L E M A N E x e c utive Se cr e tar JERE , y ’ A P O x e Se c Ass t E c . MY . C SKI T N , . .

Hon orar Chairman MAYOR HARRY SCOTT, y

Hon or ary Vice - Chair m e n ’

B . GEORG E I . R O ERTS JAM ES J O BRIEN

B G . ! HER ERT P . MILLI AN CHARLES H NO ON

E x e cutive C ommitte e

CRE N N A N O P . ROB ERT J . C O ER OLLIE V V L E O GEORGE M . DA IS FERRARA

D . G WILLIAM S . HA AWAY J KENNETH HUNTIN TON

MELVILLE KAHN HENRY M . LESTER

JERE MIL L E MA N WALTER G . C . OTTO

P . PITT M . SKI TON ERNEST H WATSON

9T H TH URSDAY , JUNE

School Pageant at Senior High School at p . m .

N 1 OT H FRIDAY , JU E

School Pageant at Senior High School at p . m . l on Satur m e ithe r n i ht P a e an t will be he d ( If stor y g , g

a ! un e 1 1 th. d y, )

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N N 1 2T H SU DAY, J U E S h pecial Services in all Ne w Rochelle Churc es .

I3T H MONDAY, JUNE ’ Children s Museum with Indian Exhibits at T om Paine ” on Memorial House , Indian Long House grounds

All Day . Exhibit at Ne w Rochelle Library o f Old Huguenot h — i i . n s n 9 . Home Room and Fur gs 9 a . m . to p m on Block Party North Avenue , Main Street to Clinton

1 . . Place , p . m . to a m

Block Party on Remington Place , between Guion Place

. 1 . . and Prince Street, p m . to a m ’ Block Party on St . Joseph s Plaza, Washington Avenue

6 . . . 1 . . and th Street, p m to a m

I4T H TUESDAY, JUNE Dedication of Flag Pole on grounds of Huguenot and

Historical Association . ’ Children s Museum with Indian Exhibits at T om Paine ” Memorial House , Indian Long House on grounds

All Day . Exhibit at New Rochelle Library o f Old Huguenot rn i hi — u s n s 9 . 9 Home Room and F g a m . to p . m .

c 1 . . Exhibit of So ial Agencies at Huguenot YMCA , p m to 9 p . m . t Afternoon Tea at Trini y Episcopal Church House . o f Dinner Service Clubs at New Rochelle Yacht Club ,

7 p . m .

1 ST WEDNESDAY, JUNE H 1 0 . 1 Hobby Show at Huguenot School , a m . to 0 p . m . Flower Show o f New Rochelle Garden Club at North h s Avenue Churc Hou e , in the afternoon .

1 1 2

N E N E W ROCHELLE, W YORK

UN I7T H FRIDAY, J E

h to 1 0 . . 1 0 . . Hobby Show at Huguenot Sc ool , a m p m ’ Children s Museum with Indian Exhibits at T om Paine ” o on un Memorial House , Indian Long H use gro ds

All Day . Exhibit at Ne w Rochelle Library o f Old Huguenot rn i hi — u s n . 9 . Home Room and F gs 9 a m . to p . m Meeting o f Huguenot and Historical Association at Al bert Leonard Junior High School , with Speakers and

i m . Music , and Public Recept on , p . , with floral e decorations by N w Rochelle Garden Club .

Game of Living Chess . o M onlight Sail on Long Island Sound . IST H SATURDAY , JUNE

flic . O e 1 1 . Dedication of new Post , a m

Luncheon for guests at Wykagyl Country Club , p . m . ’ Children s Museum with Indian Exhibits at T om Paine ” on Memorial House , Indian Long House grounds

All Day . Exhibit at New Rochelle Library of Old Huguenot rn i hi — u s n s 9 . 9 . Home Room and F g a m . to p m . o f Parade Military , Civic, Fraternal and Postal Units,

. 3 . . with Floats, etc , p m I9T H SUNDAY, JUNE — Marine Sports Canoe Races, Swimming and Diving

2 . . Contests, etc . , at Hudson Park , p m Old Home Week activities with hostesses at various church houses all week . “ Register for Old Timers and a luncheon on e day of the week . ’ e Hostesses at Children s Mus um , Indian Long House ,

1 1 4 ONE FATT CALFE

T om and Paine Cottage , Headquarters of the Huguenot and Historical Association .

The Ce le br a tion has be e n w holl y fin an ce d by the sale of the Ne w Ro c he lle Hal - D olla f r w hic h may n ow be ob tain e d at d L L L O C/ fL B/ fNKS .

HEADQUARTERS 25 OT H ANNIVERSARY PARADE

OFFICE OF T H E GRAND MARSHAL

P olice Headquarters

N . Y New Rochelle , . l0th 1 938 June , GE NERAL ORDERS

1 . The following orders for the movement and dis missal o f the parade in honor of the 25 0th Anniversary o f on 1 8 th 1 938 the founding of New Rochelle June , , are published for the information and guidance o f all con cerned .

o f 2. The parade will consist the following divisions, arranged in order from front to rear ’ ! DiV1 31 o a Marshal s n v Federal Division o City Division - m Veterans Division e Youths Division h t Ladies Division n F t a ra ernal Division

h . School Division

i . Floats Division

1 1 5 ONE FATT CALFE

h o f 3. Eac Division will be in charge a Division Mar shal who will be responsible that as a . The division forms in its proper assembly area listed on the attached chart .

b . Units within the division are formed in their on e proper order, behind the other .

c . The leading unit in the division is formed with the head resting at the point indicated in the attached

chart . (1 l d . The leading unit moves out prompt y behin v the last unit in the preceding di ision .

. out e All other units move promptly in turn , with out loss of distance . 4 ’ . MARSHAL S DIVISION

a . Forms on Hamilton Avenue facing west, with the head resting at North Avenue .

b . Units in column as follows ( 1 ) Motorcycle Police ( 2) Grand Marshal and Staff 3 ( ) Mayor, Councilmen and City Manager ( 4 ) 25 0th Anniversary Executive Committee

5 . FEDERAL DIVISION

a . Forms on Hamilton Avenue and adjacent

streets as indicated on attached chart . out b . Moves promptly via Hamilton Avenue b e ’ hind the Marshal s Division ; units in the following order of march

1 6 . th U S . Infantry Band 1 Detachment 6th U . S . Infantry

. N Detachment U S . avy ( from U . S . S . Tattnall) lo th N N 7 . . Battalion Regiment Y . G . Detachment Old Guard “ ” 1 5 6th N . N Battery F, Field Artillery , Y . . G .

NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK

The h h c . Mars al in charge o f t e Veterans Division the will issue necessary orders to the various veteran units, assigning them proper places in column so as to Space them with an equal distribution o f bands as Shown in par a ra h g p b . above .

8 . YOUTHS DIVISION h h a . Forms in The Serpentine facing sout , ead rest he u ing at t Bo levard . out t b . Moves promp ly via Manor Place , behind the last unit o f the Veterans Division ; units in the follow ing order of march : West New Rochelle Band Boy Scouts Cub Scouts American Nautical Cadets Y M C A

9 . LADIES DIVISION

. of a Forms on Orchard Place , east the Park, fac ing north , head resting at Manor Place . a b . Moves out promptly via M nor Place , behind the last unit o f the Youths Division ; units in the follow ing order o f march Salvation Army Band College o f New Rochelle Catholic Daughters o f America Junior Reserve Y e oman e tte s Beauticians Social Club

Mrs . Bowes Trade School RATE RNAL 1 0. F DIVISION

on s h h a . Forms the Boulevard , facing out west, ead resting at North Avenue . out N h b . Moves promptly via ort Avenue , joining NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK th e parade behind the last unit o f the Ladies Division as h it marches down Nort Avenue . Units will be in the fol lowing order o f march Clan Bruce Kilty Band Clan Bruce Marj o rie Bruce Lodge Clan Eireann Band Irish American Independent Society Irish Benevolent Society Shamrock Club

B . P . O . Elks Band

B . P . O . Elks Junior Order American Mechanics Court Sons of Italy Calabria Society New Rochelle Musical Club Band A viglian e se Society C alitran a O fan tin a

New Rochelle Mae n n e rcho r

Portuguese Continental Union of U . S . A . Other Organizations

1 1 . SCH OOL DIVISION

. on a Forms Manhattan Avenue facing west, head o f column resting at th e junction of Boulevard and Beau fort Place . out l b . Moves prompt y via Boulevard , behind the last unit o f the Fraternal Division ; units in the follow ing order o f march : Albert Leonard Junior High School Band Albert Leonard Junior High School

Isaac E . Young Junior High School Band

Isaac E . Young Junior High School Senior High School Band ONE FATT CALFE

Senior High School Boys Club o f Ne w Rochelle

1 2. FLOATS DIVISION h . u a Forms on Bo levard facing southwest, ead resting at the Serpentine . via b . Moves out promptly Boulevard , Manhattan o f Avenue and Boulevard , behind the last unit the School

Division .

c . The Marshal in charge of the Floats Division will issue the necessary orders placing the various floats e in column in their ass mbly area .

1 3. MISCELLANEOUS

o f ll e s a . Headquarters the Grand Marshal wi be tablishe d at the junction of North Avenue and Hamilton

Avenue at p . m . o b . Division Marshals will rep rt to the Engineer ’ e r O . . ic at the Grand Marshal s Headquarters at r p . m . for fu ther instructions . o c . Commanders f units will arrange to have their re units in position not later than p . m . and will t t to i port heir arrival promp ly their Div sion Marshal . o f on d . The line march will be south North Ave to nue to Huguenot Street, west on Huguenot Street tard on N Pin Avenue , east Main Street to orth Avenue , n as south o North Avenue and dismiss per instructions .

e . The parade will be reviewed by Honorable

James A . Farley, Postmaster General of the United Hi s . States and Excellency Herbert H Lehman , Govern or o f the the State of New York, at City Hall . f f . The Grand Marshal and his staf will review the parade at Main Street and North Avenue . The h h g . guide will be right t roug out the en tire

1 20

ONE FATT CALFE

h h on N h . Ladies Division will proceed sout ort on Avenue to Union Street, east Union Street until rear of division has cleared North Avenue and dismiss . N h i . Fraternal Division will proceed south on ort

on Avenue to Union Street, west Union Street until rear has passed North Avenue and dismiss . on N h j . School Division will proceed south ort

o Avenue to Uni n Street, east on Union Street until rear o f division has passed North Avenue and dismiss . h k . Floats Division will proceed south on Nort Avenue to and remain parked in the cen ter of North Avenue head resting on Pelham Road and extending north on North Avenue but not further than

Main Street .

By orde r of GRAND MARSHAL TILDEN OFFICIAL

STUART CUTLER , STUART CUTLER ,

Ma or In an tr Ma or In an tr j , f y, j , f y, r Chie f of Stafi Chie f of Stafi

1 22 NEW ROCHELLE , NEW YORK

RECEIPTS and E! PENDITURES

RECEIP TS

N e w Rochelle Commemorative Coin Com . o f Sale Tickets ( Dinner ,

' c Salvage on O . c Furnishings

E ! P ENDITURES Council o f Social Agencies Children ’ s Museum Fireworks Coin Club Medals Library Badges Lighting and Decorations

Dinner N . Y . Athletic Club Huguenot Association Hobby Show Insurance Marine

Parade 81 P . O . Dedication School Pageants Recreation Publicity Advertising Invitations Reception ( and Entertainment) Old Home Week Administration Religious Programme Moving Picture Films Dinner— Combined Service Clubs Balance ( Appropriated but unexpended)

1 23 Of this book tw o hun dr e d c opie s have be e n prin te d the Ne w Ro c he lle C omme m or ative C oin C ommitte e

b Richar Ke rsha a d in e ld S W e se r d w n . y B. W fi at P e ll P r e ss Ne w Roc he lle Ne w Yo k , , r in the type s of W illiam Caslon on L in w e ave Rag Boob pape r