Preservation Head of the Habor

Preservation Head of the Habor The history of the Village Of The Head Of The Harbor NY from its earliest indigenous peoples to the present.

The Non For Profit Historical Society, comprised of volunteers, studies, archives, & tries to its best of abilities to preserve the unique history of the Village Of The Head Of The Harbor New York from its earliest indigenous peoples to the present.

Last Thursday, the newly formed Preservation Head of The Harbor had a most distinguished visitor Vivian Nicholson-Muell...
02/08/2026

Last Thursday, the newly formed Preservation Head of The Harbor had a most distinguished visitor Vivian Nicholson-Mueller the coauthor of The Art of William Sidney Mount: Long Island People of Color on Canvas”. Vivian an educator and world traveler, descends from the area’s earliest European colonial settlers, such as Richard Smith the Bull Rider, founder of Smithtown, as well as their enslaved peoples and also the Indigenous community comprising the Setalcotts and Unkechaug peoples. Vivian is generously advising us on our plans for Head of The Harbor’s 250 (semiquincentennial) exhibit. Her ancestors were famously painted by celebrated 19th century artist William Sydney Mount, whose paintings captured daily life in our village during the 1860s. Vivian along with Head of The Harbor born award winning author Katherine Kirkpatrick co-created this book in 2022 on the art by William Sydney Mount to specifically document and publicly honor, by name, the once-anonymous Black and mixed-race models whose images have achieved international recognition. Stay tuned for further developments. Pictured here along with Vivian are me, as Village historian, Alexandra (Co-chair,) Jan, (Membership), Linda (Secretary), Vivian (Guest Lecturer), Bob (Co-Chair) and Joan (Treasurer).

Currently on view at Long Island Museum are amazing 19th century aerial views rendered by Edward Lange (1846-1912). This...
10/03/2022

Currently on view at Long Island Museum are amazing 19th century aerial views rendered by Edward Lange (1846-1912). This 1880(?) scenic view of Stony Brook Harbor & Long Island Sound from Head of The Harbor's Carman farm, which in 1884 became the estate of Stanford White, called Box Hill, also captures Charles Follen McKim's (1847 – 1909) innovative summer house that he designed for his Harvard classmate, Prescott Hall Butler which is called Bytheharbor. Charles McKim was member of the partnership McKim, Mead & White. And Prescott Hall Butler was a cousin to Stanford White's wife, Bessie Smith.

This past weekend, I your HOH village historian, gave a guided tour of the ancient homes that once belonged to the famil...
04/18/2018

This past weekend, I your HOH village historian, gave a guided tour of the ancient homes that once belonged to the families of Chistopher Temple Emmet & Devereux Emmet and later the Francis McNeil Bacon family for our out of town visitors, which included a delightful couple who came all they way from Scotland! Our visitors had intriguing circuitous connections to these family houses stemming back from the 1960s. We were joined by St. George’s Golf Club's historian as Devereux Emmet was a very famous early 20th cent Golf Course designer as well as being a brother in-law of Stanford White thus, after a delightful luncheon at HOH Village Hall hosted by Mayor Doug Dahlgard, our tour continued on to the St. James Episcopal Cemetery and concluded at The St. George’s Golf Club were we studied Emmet's original design of the course and on its restoration as well as perused the vintage photos of the Emmets and other founding members of the club over ice tea. We at HOH can't thank enough the kind home owners for their extraordinary generosity in showing us their historic abodes and we express a special thanks to our Mayor and his wife for the lovely luncheon they provided us all at Village Hall and deep appreciation to St. George's Golf Club for hosting us as well. With Leighton Hammond Coleman III

Today as Village Historian, I got an fascinating tour of SUNY Stony Brook's Special Collections by Kristen J. Nyitray, T...
09/08/2017

Today as Village Historian, I got an fascinating tour of SUNY Stony Brook's Special Collections by Kristen J. Nyitray, The Director of Special Collections & University Archives, and she kindly showed me George Washington's September 24th, 1779 letter to Major Benjamin Tallmadge regarding Tallmadge's Patriot spy ring operating out of Setauket NY.

This letter once owned by Malcolm Forbes, has Washington curiously referring to Satuket (Setauket) by name and not by its code name 711, and apparently, according to conservationist, it had no invisable ink notations either.

This historic letter along with another one by Washington dated Septermber 1780 will be on display for the 2017 Culper Spy Day Tour this September 16th, for further info on the upcoming Spy Tour check out:

http://guides.library.stonybrook.edu/culper-spy-ring http://www.culper.com/culperspyday

There is no such thing as a dull day while being The Appointed Village Historian for Head of The Harbor NY. This mornin...
04/27/2017

There is no such thing as a dull day while being The Appointed Village Historian for Head of The Harbor NY. This morning, with the help of Dillon & Paco, we found ourselves at Historic Longwood Estate/Farm to retrieve an errant 1820s head-stone, that once used be in an 18th cent Smith family cemetery in our village. Head of The Harbor is so grateful to the amazing staff at Historic Longwood Estate/Farm and to The Brookhaven Town Historian, Barbara M. Russell for looking after this long lost grave-marker. Incidentally Longwood was once part of Tangier Smith's St. George's Manor, a huge 17th cent manorial land grant that stretched from LI's North Shore to South Shore. In order to have a manor and/or Patroonship (a colonial Dutch manor) back in the day, prior to 1776, one needed under feudal law to have a "Court Leete" or "Court Baron"............... Who knew???? http://www.visithistoriclongisland.com/historic_Suffolk_Brookhaven_Ridge.html

From a private collection, a rare photo of the original 1873 Edward Lange water colour rendering of St. James Driving Pa...
03/28/2017

From a private collection, a rare photo of the original 1873 Edward Lange water colour rendering of St. James Driving Park then owned and managed by Albert Newton. This is now site of several prestigious enclaves on either side of 50 Acre Road in Head of The Harbor including but not limited to "The Hunt".

Edward Lange (1846-1912) was famous for his unique perspectives of notable Long Island vistas and buildings. The Smithtown Historical Society has a engraving of this image in its collection.

James Clinch Smith (1856 -1912 on the Titanic) was the sixth child of John Lawrence Smith and Sarah Nicoll Clinch and a life long interest in equestrian sports.

In 1888 James Clinch Smith, a member of the Smithtown Hunt (founded in 1900), pursued his interest in horse racing by purchasing the St. James Driving Park, a fifty-acre parcel of land with a one mile race track on the northwest corner of Edgewood Avenue and Fifty Acre Road, then leased the property to Robert L. Davis, a professional driver and trainer who managed a track in Port Jefferson. More importantly James Clinch Smith is credited with bringing the sport of Polo to the area.

James Clinch Smith's Polo Fields were used by the Smithown Horse show and the North Shore Horse Show up to the 1950s and one of the most famous young riders who competed here in the 1930s was the Jackie Bouvier who became our nations First Lady; Mrs. John F. Kennedy in 1961

Starting around 1917 the horse grounds evolved in to the Smithtown Country Club that included tennis and swimming pools amongst its amenities in addition to equestrian sports. By 1924 the club was the home of the Smithtown Hunt and Polo Club. It was also the site of an annual horse show, Sadly with much reduced acreage, The Smithtown Riding and Tennis Country Club lumbered along and by the 1990s it became the “The Prince Farms before being sold to developers.

Thanks to the research of Barbara Van Liew, Brad Harris and of Maggie Blanck

Please read more at the following links

“St.James Driving Park” by Richard B. Hawkins and Barbara Van Liew

http://www.maggieblanck.com/StJames/StJames.html

http://smithtownhistorical.org/james-clinch-smith-inherits-the-homestead-of-judge-john-lawrence-smith/

http://www.ourtownstjames.com/wp-content/uploads/OurTown_jan2016.pdf

Yesterday was a busy day, as Village Historian for Head of The Harbor, I attended a get together for village historians,...
11/12/2016

Yesterday was a busy day, as Village Historian for Head of The Harbor, I attended a get together for village historians, the Fall Region 2 APHNYS meeting held at Southampton Historical Museum. This old mansion was the former home of the Rogers & Parrish families. We heard an interesting lecture on graveyard preservation & monument conservation. Also then toured the fascinating exhibit called "Southampton Under Siege" detailing every day life under British occupation during the Revolution.

Yesterday I did a guided tour, for members of The Smithtown Historical Society & the community, of the storied historic ...
10/30/2016

Yesterday I did a guided tour, for members of The Smithtown Historical Society & the community, of the storied historic St. James Episcopal Church Cemetery, St. James NY in my role as Village Historian for The Village of Head of The Harbor. We visited many historic personages including the grave of Titanic Survivor, Emma Schabert, who later became Baroness Von Faber Von Faur and the monument of James Clinch Smith whose family founded the church, the towns of St. James, Head of The Harbor as well as Smithtown NY

On the 29th of October, Leighton Coleman, Village Historian for Head of The Harbor, will be conducting a tour of the sto...
10/18/2016

On the 29th of October, Leighton Coleman, Village Historian for Head of The Harbor, will be conducting a tour of the storied St. James Episcopal Church Cemetery for The Smithtown Historical Society. For further info contact Smithtown Historical Society

Great NEWS!!!! An amazing & wonderful development occurred last evening regarding Head of The Harbor's historical 200 y...
08/05/2016

Great NEWS!!!! An amazing & wonderful development occurred last evening regarding Head of The Harbor's historical 200 year old Linden Tree; The JCC board's arborist made a report that the tree is in generally good health and all it needs is professional trimming. The new owner of the historic Emmet/Bauer/Damianos property & his arborist are agreeing to work with the board and village on keeping the tree!!!!!

All the more remarkable is that this tree was around to be painted by Shephard Alonzo Mount in the 1850s!!

Speaking of Shingle Style Houses, did you know that Stanford White's business partner Charles Follen McKim's designed th...
08/03/2016

Speaking of Shingle Style Houses, did you know that Stanford White's business partner Charles Follen McKim's designed the premier example of this innovative style called "Bytheharbor House" was was commisoned by McKim's former college roommate, Prescott Hall Butler. This architecturally significant home is right opposite to Stanford White's home called Box Hill. Pls see page 28 of February 2016's edition of "Ourtown St. James" for Brad Harris well researched article on the philanthropic Butler family and athttp://www.ourtownstjames.com/wp-content/uploads/OurTown_feb2016.pdf

In a sympathetic attempt to preserve Head of The Harbor's famed historic corridors, here is an interesting example of a ...
08/03/2016

In a sympathetic attempt to preserve Head of The Harbor's famed historic corridors, here is an interesting example of a brand new custom home reflecting the previous historic house that was on the site. The original abode was sadly found to be beyond salvage

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500 North Country Road
Saint James, NY
11780

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(631) 584-5550

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