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Upcoming Event
Partnering with HPL
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Kiss me, I'm Irish: Genealogy
March 11th - 7 PM (In-person at library)
Presented by Accredited Genealogy, Sarah Gutman.
Learn how to trace the paths of your Irish immigrant ancestors. Discover how to gather information about them through U.S records and then where and how to look for them in Irish records.
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250th Merchandise
Now available in office!
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Liberty 250
Sticker
or
Car Magnet
(3.5" x 5")
$5.00
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Liberty 250
Coin
$5.00
Liberty 250
Flag
(12" x 18")
$20.00
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Mary Emma Suydam Chalmers
November 20, 1853 - March 31, 1947
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Mary Emma Suydam Chalmers was born on November 20, 1853, in Centerport to parents Cornelius (34 years old) and Phoebe Suydam (24 years old).
On November 29, 1877, at the age of 24, Mary Emma married Maurice Burr Chalmers (1846-1898). Within 11 years, the couple had five children.
Local newspapers reported her visits to her children on several occasions, including visiting them for holidays, or even staying the winter.
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Mary E. Suydam
c. 1869
Donated by Ethel Witting
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In a 1940s memoir for her grandchildren on life living in the family homestead in the 1850s and 60s, Mary Emma wrote:
"Looking back over the years of my life and thinking of the many, many changes that have been made in my lifetime... nothing remains as it was, nothing. They have all disappeared and they are only a memory now to a few people."
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Mary Emma was a member of the Centerport Methodist Church and the first president of the Ladies Aid Society. According to local newspapers, it seems that Mary Emma enjoyed traveling, always visiting family or friends around Long Island.
On one particular occasion, according to the Brooklyn Eagle, Mary Emma and her daughter Ethel left for San Francisco in February of 1915 to attend the Panama Exposition to join her eldest daughter, Mrs. Malcolm P. Nash.
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Ethel Chalmers & Marry Emma
c. 1915
Donated by Ethel Witting
Mary Emma on right, pictured with her daughter Ethel in Suydam Homestead yard
| | The fair was put on as a way to highlight San Francisco's grandeur and celebrate a great American achievement - the successful completion of the Panama Canal. The fair spanned over 600 acres, stretching across two and a half miles of waterfront, and was held between February and December of 1915. | | |
Will Visit Exposition
Brooklyn Eagle
February 25, 1915
| | Over 18 million people visited the fair, which was laid out similarly to a World's Fair. There were scientific and educational presentations, international pavilions, thrilling displays, and the promotion of technological and motor advancements. For example, the Panama Exposition was the first world's fair to demonstrate a transcontinental telephone call, promote wireless telegraphy, and endorse the use of the automobile. | | | Click the image above to learn more about the exposition! | | Life at the Homestead was a bit of a contrast compared to the supposed vast travel. Niece Ethel Suydam Witting never remembered seeing a sewing machine at the Homestead. Instead, she recalled women tatting, knitting, and crocheting. | | |
Mary E. Chalmers & Nellie Kennedy
c. 1920s
Donated by Natalie Suydam
Mary Emma and Nellie at pump behind John Edgar's house on 25A (east of Suydam Homestead)
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For example, Mary Emma (or Aunt Mame) crocheted a skirt for Ethel when she was a little girl around 1907. It was made from worsted yarn. Since clothes were worn as long as they fit, each year Mary Emma would add the necessary inches according to how much Ethel had grown. However, the color of the yarn did not always match.
Mary Emma also did most of the quilt-making. The frames were set up in the front bedroom on the east end of the house.
| | When recalling memories growing up on the Homestead, Ethel said that when she was a young girl, Mary Emma had Ethel pick bayberries to make candles. It was supposed to be good luck to have bayberry candles in the house, and it took a lot of berries to make even one candle. When cooked, the ladle (later donated to GCHA) was used to skim the wax and put it into the molds. Mary Emma still picked blackberries on the property east of the Suydam Homestead when she was well into her eighties. | | |
Mary E. Chalmer's 90th Birthday
November 20, 1943
Donated by Ethel Witting
Mary Emma is middle row, 3rd from right, and Ethel is on the right end of middle row.
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Anne Suydam Schoonhoven (left)
& Marry Emma Suydam Chalmers (right)
Donated by Ethel Witting
Sitting on the steps of Ethel's home on Little Neck Road
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Suydam Family
Donated by Ethel Witting
Left to right: John Suydam, Frank & Hattie Suydam (Ethel's mother & father), Mary Emma Suydam Chalmers, Ivy Chalmers Nash (Mary Emma's daughter), and Anne Suydam Schoonhoven
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Mary Emma Suydam Chalmers passed on March 31, 1947, at the age of 93.
She is buried at Northport Rural Cemetery near the Chalmers family headstone.
In her honor, a new organ was dedicated to her at the Centerport Methodist Church on October 30, 1948.
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Mary E. Chalmers Grave
2012
Find a Grave, J McGirr
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Organ Dedication Service Oct. 30 at Centerport Church
The Long-Islander
October 21, 1948
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Estates & Wills Filed for Probate
The Long-Islander
May 29, 1947
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100 Years Ago
March 1926 News Articles
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Raid Huntington House
Brooklyn Daily Times
March 8, 1926
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Troopers Raid Greenlawn Home, And Seize Two Whisky Stills
Brooklyn Citizen
March 8, 1926
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Troopers Seize Stills in Huntington Raid
Brooklyn Eagle
March 9, 1926
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Still Owner Fined $25
Brooklyn Daily Times
March 14, 1926
*$25 would be about $460 today
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Suffolk Scouts Kill Caterpillars
Brooklyn Daily Times
March 18, 1926
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Boy Scouts Continue War on Caterpillars
Brooklyn Eagle
March 19, 1926
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Greenlawn News
The Long-Islander
March 26, 1926
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Petrone Fined $25
The Long-Islander
March 19, 1926
*$25 would be about $460 today
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Greenlawn Hotel
c. 1907
Considered the first hotel in the village, it was built in 1870 by Casper Henry Ritter. The hotel had several different owners and managers, resulting in various names: Ritter's, Merrill House, Ward's Country Inn, and Haber's Greenlawn Hotel.
By the late 1920s, there was little need for a hotel in town, so the space became a speakeasy and gambling hall. After it was finally left vacant, it was torn down. In 1956, the Old Field Inn was constructed on the site.
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Greenlawn School News
The Long-Islander
March 26, 1926
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Traffic Guard for School
Brooklyn Daily Times
March 26, 1926
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Greenlawn School
c. 1924
From Martha Philips Scrapbook
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$3,000 Greenlawn Fire
Brooklyn Daily Times
March 31, 1926
*$3,000 would be about $55,000 today
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Alonzo Sanders Homestead
c. 1910
Alonzo and his sons started the Greenlawn Water Company (the well was behind the house). Alonzo is the gentleman in the photo - other people are unknown.
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GCHA Membership
Looking to Become a Member or Renew?
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Consider renewing your membership or joining! Your annual dues allows us to continue maintaining our two historic properties, the John Gardiner Farmhouse, and the Suydam Homestead, alongside the preservation of paintings, photographs, documents, and ephemera at the Russell B. Brush Research Center.
An annual membership entitles you to a subscription to our quarterly newsletter and monthly e-newsletter, in addition to discounts on programs. You will also get early access to our digitized collection, and virtual exhibits/tours.
Senior/Student - $20
Individual - $25
Family - $40
Sponsor - $75
Patron - $125
Click a tier & pay online via Square
or
Mail a check to:
GCHA
31 Broadway, Greenlawn, NY 11740
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Gift Options
To Support Our Association
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Greenlawn-Centerport Historical Association Mug
$12.00
Click here!
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(Images of America)
Greenlawn: A Long Island Hamlet
From the archives of the Greenlawn-Centerport Historical Association comes this striking visual history of the north shore Long Island hamlet of Greenlawn.
Originally known as Oldfields, the area was settled in the early 1800s by farmers. The extension of the Long Island Railroad through the farmlands in 1867-1868 provided the impetus for the development of a profitable pickle and cabbage industry, the growth of the community, and the arrival of vacationers, many of whom soon became year-round residents. Greenlawn includes stories of the Halloween eve conflagration, the Adirondack-style vacation retreat, the opera house, the farmhouse murders, the vaudevillians, and the Pickle King, among others. Today, houses cover the old farmlands; yet Greenlawn with: one main street of small shops, a railroad crossing that halts traffic throughout the day, and many historical buildings-still retains its small-town charm.
$20.00
Click here!
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(Images of America)
Centerport
Discover the Deco estates, summer camp spots, and stunning landscapes that Long Island's North Shore coastal community of Centerport has to offer.
Once known as Little Cow Harbor, the coastal community of Centerport on Long Island's north shore is rich in natural resources, including a beautiful harbor with several freshwater streams surrounded by wooded hills. Centerport was originally the site of several important mills, but in the late 19th century, it became a summer retreat for both the rich and the not so rich. Youth camps, most notably the Franciscan Brothers' Camp Alvernia; guesthouses; and resorts as well as popular restaurants dotted the shoreline. In the early 20th century, large estates were established by the Vanderbilt, Van Iderstine, Burling, Morse, DeBrabant, Whitney, and Corbin families on the Little Neck peninsula. As the 20th century progressed, modest and generously sized houses replaced the small farms and many of the large estates. The unspoiled natural beauty and rich history has for centuries drawn residents whose love of Centerport continue to make our village a great place to live.
$20.00
Click here!
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Harvey A. Weber's Centerport
In 1990, Harvey Weber wrote, edited, designed and published Centerport, a written and photographic account of his adopted home. The book was well received and was reprinted in 1991. Upon his death in September 1991, the rights to his book about Centerport became the property of his widow, Madeline Weber. In 2001, as the book was about to go out of print, Mrs. Weber generously gave the rights to the Centerport book to the GCHA in loving memory of her husband. The Association has now re-issued Harvey Weber's book as a tribute to the great contribution he has made to preserve the history of Centerport through his own beautiful photographs and through the historic photographs that he assembled. The Association also acknowledges with heartfelt gratitude the generosity of Madeline Weber. Her gift has made it possible for our community to enjoy her husband's work for years to come.
Harvey Weber was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1917. He died in Centerport in 1991. During his lifetime he received many prestigious awards and honors, including the Joseph Costa Award from the National Press Photographers Association. He exhibited his work in six one-man shows. His photographs are included in museum, university, and private collections.
$5.00
Click here!
(Available only through the GCHA)
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