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Items from the society's collections Flying in without the reindeer: What better way for Santa to arrive in Stony Brook in the modern age but by helicopter. In this 1948 photograph Santa arrives in a Bell 47 helicopter to the delight of all the children. The holiday with Miss Kate Strong Santa Claus and Miss Kate Strong (in rocking chair at right), known for her tales of long ago, host a Christmas Eve Party for children at the Setauket Neighborhood House in 1946. Each child was given a small bag of candy and an orange. A "True Tale" by Miss Kate A Letter to Santa A Brief History of Sending a Letter to Santa | Arts & Culture | Smithsonian Magazine Ward Melville's letters to Santa and Christmas lists: John Ward Melville, born January 5,1887, was the son of Frank and Jennie Melville. Among the many papers, photographs and ephemera from multiple generations of the Melville family are many Christmas lists kept by Ward from childhood to adulthood-items given and received-including this note to Santa in 1892. A few years later: A small notebook, late 1890s, kept by Ward contains lists of gifts to family and friends with a warning inside “Please do not open this book any further Xmas secrets” List of books wanted for Christmas Ward Melville married Dorothy Bigelow in 1918. Ward continued to keep Christmas lists and the collection contains lists of gifts he received and who gave them from 1923 into the 1950s. Some lists also include his birthday presents. Here are a few examples. From the Three Village Historical Society we wish you a happy and safe holiday season and look forward to seeing you in the new year. Additional resources: From St. Nicholas to the modern Santa Claus https://www.britannica.com/topic/Santa-Claus Santa Claus: Real Origins & Legend - HISTORY Old and new Christmas traditions: https://www.history.com/news/christmas-traditions-history The Most Popular Christmas Gifts in Every Decade | History By the Decade | History - YouTube A Brief History of Sending a Letter to Santa | Arts & Culture | Smithsonian Magazine

A Stony Brook story for the holidays On Dec. 12th, 2020 we lost a member of the Three Village community and a cornerstone of Stony Brook history with the passing of Beatrice Jayne at the age of 93. The Three Village Historical Society sends its condolences and thoughts to her children Susan, Patricia, Deborah, and Michael, her grandson Philip, and her brother Bruce and their families. Bea was a major contributor to the society's Arcadia publication Images of America: Stony Brook (2003) for which she shared a wealth of knowledge and stories about the history of Stony Brook and its residents past and present. She was a founding member of the Stony Brook Historical Society, in 1998 the SBHS consolidated with the Three Village Historical Society. One of the traditions of the Stony Brook Historical Society she told us was the reading of Edward A. Lapham’s short story A Forgotten Christmas, set in early 19th century Stony Brook. A Forgotten Christmas by Edward A. Lapham This story was privately printed (150 copies) by the author for Christmas 1935. An original of this booklet is in the papers of the SBHS at TVHS. We present below an abridged version of the story with illustrations and references added. Mr. Lapham is also the author of the book Stony Brook Secrets (Gotham Bookmart Press, 1942). Christmas 1814 promised to be a sorry day for the people living at Stony Brook, Long Island. Snow had fallen for several days, the roads leading into the village were completely blocked, the harbor was choked with ice...That in itself was nothing to be alarmed about, it had happened before. But things had been bad this Winter, men from the garrison at Sag Harbor had confiscated most of their fowl and cattle, leaving only the poorest which had died from cold and lack of food. The harvest had been poor, weeks of rainy weather during the Fall caused hay, corn, pumpkins, and other products to rot. This had followed an unusually dry Summer. In normal times, food would have come in on the boats; but this second war with England had lasted two years, and many of the trading ships were pirating on the high seas. The last boat from New York had arrived over two months before...Now, food was practically gone...True, old Captain Mark Waterbury had left for New York City fully a month ago in his sloop “Sea Gull” and had promised to be back before Christmas with a load of provisions. But Mark was not a very reliable person. Joshua Hawkins, who had financed the trip, was willing to admit that Captain Mark had probably gone on a drinking spree in New York and had forgotten the folks back home. Most of the villagers felt this was the case. The roads in the village had been kept open with much hard work. Early Christmas Eve the snow ceased to fall, and all the male population gathered in Joshua Hawkins’ store, at the crossroads, to distribute the little food that was left so no one would actually starve on Christmas Day...to face the women and children in every home and admit that there would be no real Christmas dinners, no goodies, no toys, would be torture. They would hold the Christmas exercises at the church later in the evening as usual but it would be a sorry affair. Could George Mount muster courage to play Santa Claus as planned?... the door burst open and in stumbled Sarah Young! “He has come!” she shouted and dropped exhausted to the floor... Captain Mark Waterbury...Old Sarah had maintained all along that he would return in time. Since he left, she had spent most of the days and part of the nights looking over the Sound, looking for that graceful white sloop, the “Sea Gull.”...She had stood by him when everyone else condemned him as a drunkard. Captain Mark had wanted to marry her years ago when they were young. She has refused because of his drinking and married Samuel Young. Folks knew she really loved Mark and that she had regretted she had not married him and tried to reform him. After Samuel died, she visited Mark’s house every time he went off in his sloop. She tidied house, mended his clothes, and baked him bread... Sure enough, there it was near enough so that there was no doubt, a sloop coming in with the ice and tide. Despite the ice incrusted masts, the ice and snow covered cabin and decks, all recognized the “Sea Gull.” The sails were ripped and torn-useless... These seafaring people realized that hours and days of hardship must have been endured by Captain Mark to reach the mouth of the harbor. His hat and coat were as white with snow as the deck around him, his beard a mass of icicles...he had made the trip alone...After much pulling and tugging, the “Sea Gull” was docked and Captain Mark helped ashore amid a barrage of questions... The captain’s eyes had a glassy stare, he moved with difficulty, there was a strong smell of rum. He answered in a slow jerky manner, “Plenty of food…plenty of drink, clothes and shoes…tobacco…toys…all on board…what’s the date? Am I too late?" “It is Christmas Eve,” shouted many, “You’re just in time, you’re a real Santa Claus.” “A real Santa Claus,” repeated Mark with a dry chuckle, “A real Santa Claus you say and not a damn one of you thought the drunken fool could make it. Well he did and…”? There he stopped, the glassy eyes brightened, a faint smile played across the weather beaten face, then he continued “Only Sarah knew I’d make it-only Sarah-dear good Sarah.” He staggered toward where she stood, apart from the rest, wrapped in her great shawl. As he reached her, she opened the shawl and threw part of it over him and with her arm around his waist helping, they moved slowly off toward the little cottage that was Mark’s home. The people watched in silence for a few moments and then their thoughts went back to the supplies...Meat, fowl, grain, dried fruit, tea, coffee, spices, clothes, toys, books and wine. Something for everyone, plenty for all... The grain was taken to the gristmill. The ice was chopped from the water wheel and fires built around the water gate so it could be lifted to permit the lower unfrozen water to flow. The water wheel turned and for the first time in many weeks the stone grinders chewed kernels of grain to flour... The exercises at the church were late in starting-there had been much to do, but what a grand time it was. The children spoke pieces with unbelievable enthusiasm, songs were sung so loudly that the rafters shook-and Santa Claus! George Mount was never better-a joke for everyone; a gift for all... But there were two people who hadn’t been at the church, two who hadn’t been missed, and they were the two who had made it all possible. Sarah had helped Mark home...she had helped him to bed, had heated the warming pans in the fireplace with a few logs that remained in the wood box. They had not talked, but there was a brightness in their eyes that showed there was communication of thought. Sarah knew she should go to her own home for wood, for the house was cold, but she couldn’t bring herself to leave him and she reasoned that men would soon call bringing wood and food; so she sat by the bedside. She felt that at last he was hers. Why was she so sure? Why did she know he was through drinking forever? Why was it she knew they would never part? She sought his hand and pressed it-he pressed hers in return as a smile of contentment spread over his face...she had never realized that his old face though wind beaten and scarred was still young and childlike. Wonderful how that smile held as if it would never change. She closed her eyes...It didn’t seem so cold now, even with the fire burned out. She hoped the men wouldn’t come too soon…was it a dream?...no, it was going to last forever. Late Christmas day the men did come...They had forgotten for a time their real Santa Claus...now they were here with everything to make amends. Their knock was unanswered, their calls unheard. Sarah and Mark had accomplished in death what they had not dared in life, they had eloped, eloped into the unknown. The clue to their accomplishment was the smile on their frozen faces. For more Three Village holiday traditions look for part II Additional resources and topics of interest: War of 1812 https://www.britannica.com/event/War-of-1812 https://www.history.com/topics/war-of-1812/war-of-1812 Fashion 1810-1819 https://fashionhistory.fitnyc.edu/1810-1819/ The Year without a Summer -1816 Year Without a Summer - Wikipedia https://connecticuthistory.org/eighteen-hundred-and-froze-to-death-1816-the-year-without-a-summer/ https://www.earthfacts.com/weather/1816-the-year-without-a-summer/ A little history on snow removal https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/32006/scenes-history-snow-removal https://untappedcities.com/2014/02/18/a-history-of-snow-removal-in-nyc-from-snow-shoes-to-the-first-motorized-snow-plow/

By Tara Mae On Christmas Day 1899, Humphrey DeForest Bogart was born into an old New York family of Dutch heritage. His mother, Maud, was a renowned illustrator, water colorist, and suffragette; at one point, she made more than $50,000 a year. She once employed baby Bogart as her model for her illustrations for a Mellins Baby Food advertising campaign. HIs father, Belmont DeForest Bogart, was a moderately successful surgeon. The family had ties upstate and family on Long Island. From Maud, Bogart inherited his creative spirit; from Belmont, he got his love of the sea. Throughout his life and his illustrious career, Bogart’s interests informed each other. As the eldest of three children, Bogart grew up in a well-off but somewhat emotionally distant household at 245 West 103rd Street on the Upper West Side. He later noted, “I was brought up very unsentimentally but very straightforwardly...” Bogart’s early appreciation of acting was mainly explored during his family’s summers at a cottage on Canandaigua Lake, when he and local friends put on plays. The Seneca Point property, Willow Brook, was on a 55-acre estate and had a dock with a sailboat. In 1916, the family gave up summers on the lake in favor of vacationing on Fire Island. Uninvested in school, he eventually attended Phillips Academy Andover based on family connections. During his senior year at Phillips, he was expelled. The reason remains unclear, but this effectively torpedoed his parents’ ambitions for his future. Bogart’s lack of scholarly drive also limited his job prospects. So, in deference to his lifelong love of the water, he joined the navy in the spring of 1918. Following the armistice, he ferried troops from Europe back to the United States. Bogart was honorably discharged with the rank of Seaman Second Class and above-average service reports in June 1919. Bogart returned to New York to find both his father and his practice in poor condition. Much of the family’s wealth had been lost to bad timber investments. Bogart began a series of jobs, including shipping and bonds selling. Maintaining a tie to the water, he also joined the Coast Guard Reserve. Through a friendship with Bill Brady Jr., Bogart got an office job working for William A. Brady, a sports promoter, theater actor, and producer, at World Films. There, Bogart explored screenwriting, producing, and directing. He failed at each pursuit. His first professional theater job was as the stage manager for A Ruined Lady, which featured Brady’s daughter Alice. Months later, he had his first role on stage; he delivered one line of dialogue. Bogart subsequently acted in many of Alice’s productions. He never took acting lessons, choosing to learn by experience. As his professional reputation grew, he signed a contract with Fox Film Corporation and befriended another up-and-coming stage actor, Spencer Tracy. They became drinking buddies. Tracy is credited with giving him the nickname “Bogie.” The stock market crash of 1929 caused theater opportunities to become more scarce. Still, Bogart continued to act. Between 1922 and 1935, he appeared in 17 Broadway plays. His work on the stage got him noticed in Hollywood, and he transitioned to film roles. Initially cast as criminals and deviants, he is best known for his parts as a flawed but principled romantic lead. His appreciation for sailing and the water was reflected in some of his most iconic performances. In To Have and Have Not and The African Queen, Bogart plays the captain of a fishing boat and steamboat, respectively. In Key Largo, his character is conscripted into helming a boat commandeered by a mobster and his gang. The boat in Key Largo is called the Santana, which was the name of Bogart’s 55-foot sailing yacht. He named his production company after the boat. In her memoir, his widow Lauren Bacall noted, “The only cause my husband Humphrey Bogart ever gave me to be jealous was not of a woman, but of a boat - a racing yacht called Santana.” Married four times, three of his four wives, including Bacall, were native New Yorkers. All were actresses. In Bacall, Bogie found a well-matched partner, who shared his appreciation of the water, if not his fervor for his sailing. As a native islander, Bogart found comfort and peace at sea. He spent approximately 30 weekends a year on the water. Still a member of the Coast Guard Reserve, he offered it the use of Santana. Bogart apparently attempted to enlist in the Coast Guard during World War II but was declined because of his age. Throughout his life, Bogart maintained a love of the water and recognized that being at sea was a way of staying grounded: “An actor needs something to stabilize his personality, something to nail down what he really is, not what he is pretending to be.” He died of esophageal cancer on January 14, 1957. He remains one of the most recognizable and respected actors, recognized for his craft and renowned for the pursuit of his passions

By Tara Mae Although James Thurber was not a native New Yorker, he left an indelible mark on his adopted state. Born in Ohio on December 8, 1894, Thurber became known for The New Yorker, contributing both writing and drawings that while arguably rooted in a metropolitan sensibility nonetheless fostered a universal appeal and connection. Thurber’s best overture to everyday people was made through his iconic dog cartoons. He and his wife Althea moved to Greenwich Village in 1925 and had a daughter Rosemary in 1931. Thurber found employment as a freelance writer. He had previously worked as a code clerk for the US Department of State in Washington, D.C. and at the embassy in Paris as well as a reporter for newspapers including The Columbus Dispatch and the Chicago Tribune. In Manhattan, Thurber got a job at the New York Evening Post. Friend and fellow writer E.B. White introduced him to Harold Ross, an editor at The New Yorker. Ross quickly hired Thurber, and thus began a fruitful tenure at the magazine. Initially, Thurber was an editor and writer there. In 1930, White, who shared an office with Thurber, discovered some of his drawings in a trash can. He rescued and submitted them to The New Yorker. Following the publication of their book Is Sex Necessary?, which featured Thurber’s art, it began regularly publishing Thurber’s cartoons. His distinct style was easily identifiable and canines were among his most frequently featured subjects. He drew the cover art six times. Through his creations, Thurber immortalized beloved pets, including ill-tempered Muggs and scrappy Rex. The former apparently bit so many people that every year Thurber’s mother baked cookies for everyone out of whom he had taken a nibble. The latter did not brawl or bite as a matter of principle but was not one to back down from a fight. All of Thurber’s dogs are imbued with characteristics that he admired. “Man’s best friend” is both a symbol and a cipher in Thurber’s work. A true dog lover, he dedicated Is Sex Necessary? to a revered terrier. To Thurber dogs possessed traits that people too often lacked, such as steadfastness, and had a sureness of being to which individuals should aspire. He noted that a dog is a “sound creature in a crazy world.” The men and women in Thurber’s pieces are commonly hemmed in by societal norms and burdened by conventions; the dogs are free from all such considerations. In this way, they are adored, even envied. The vast readership of The New Yorker could generally understand the comfort and familiarity of a good dog. In stories and cartoons, Thurber’s husbands and wives usually fall into two specific categories. The men are mild-mannered and put-upon by their spouses. The women are dominating, psychologically, and even physically. This is evident in Thurber’s most famous short story, “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.” While driving his wife to run different errands, Mitty imagines that he is five separate characters; all men of intent, if not necessarily action. The final vignette concludes with him placidly smoking a cigarette in front of a firing squad. Perhaps limited by the era and his own biases, Thurber does not address the clear subtext of such power dynamics; the wives are stymied by gender roles and exert control in the means most available to them, running their households. Thurber’s second wife did not fit the mold he made for his female characters. Helen Wismer Thurber was his caretaker, editor, and business partner from their marriage in 1935 until his death. He and Althea had divorced earlier that year, following periods of strife and separation. Even after he and Helen moved to Connecticut and he resigned from his official position at The New Yorker, Thurber kept freelancing for the magazine, sharing essays, short stories, and cartoons. He also wrote plays and novels. Dogs remained prominent figures in his creative output, uncomplicated and unwavering. “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” and his play “The Male Animal” were adapted into films. As of 1942, Thurber’s eyesight was failing and he began using a special magnifier called a Zeiss loupe to draw on big sheets of paper. The wobbly lines of his drawing style were probably due to falling eyesight more than aesthetic choice, yet they were his signature. He had lost his left eye due to a gruesome childhood accident (his brother shot it with an arrow during a game of William Tell), and his right eye was permanently damaged by the incident. Thurber eventually went legally blind, yet continued to write and sketch. Known to lash out, perhaps from frustration, he tended to direct his vitriol towards women. Thurber even alienated White after insulting his wife Katherine, an esteemed New Yorker editor. He further offended former coworkers with the publication of his memoir The Years with Ross; the Whites felt that it was inaccurate. Despite this, he was an established member of the New York cultural scene and a respected person in arts and academia. Thurber was an honorary member of the Algonquin Round Table for many years. A meeting place for some of the city’s most notable and notorious minds, his wit was well-matched with the group’s acerbic tongue. Thurber was offered multiple honorary doctorates; he rejected the one from his alma mater Ohio State in protest of its suppression of academic freedoms during the regime of the House of Un-American Activities Committee. In the last year of his life Thurber’s behavior grew increasingly erratic, in part from a thyroid ailment. In October of 1961, he suffered a blood clot. The surgery to correct it was a success, but Thurber succumbed to pneumonia on November 2nd. Not all of Thurber’s contributions have aged gracefully, but many of his words and pictures resonate still with audiences. Thurber’s dogs, routinely stand-ins for his ideal that men did not achieve, remain both curiously cute and thought-provoking.

By Tara Mae Chief Wyandanch, a sachem of the Montaukett Indians, was responsible for approving the treaty that ceded land to European settlers who established the original settlement of Brookhaven. Respected by his tribe and friendly with the foreigners, Wyandanch worked to bridge the two worlds. He left a legacy of cooperation, though his efforts may have cost him dearly. Born sometime in the early 1600s in Montauk village, Wyandanch was party to deadly conflicts between the settlers and Native Americans, including the Pequot War, which led to the decimation of the tribe. Wyandanch viewed the tragic saga of the Pequots as a cautionary tale. He determined that to engage the Europeans in battle would be a dangerous and deadly exercise in apparent futility. He believed that maintaining peaceful relationships with them was key to Montaukett survival. Between 1636 and 1638, the Pequots fought colonists from the Plymouth, Saybrook, and Massachusetts Bay colonies who allied with the Mohegan and Narragansett tribes. By the end of the war, the Pequots had been defeated, and approximately 700 people had been killed or captured. Hundreds of prisoners were enslaved and sold to colonists in Bermuda, the West Indies, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. Other captives were given to the victorious tribes. The Pequot tribe was effectively eliminated; colonial leaders declared it extinct. Survivors who stayed in the region were incorporated into other tribes. This event made a lasting impact on how Wyandanch chose to interact and negotiate with the European settlers. The alliances he formed mitigated their immediate threat to the Montaukett, and provided him with outside support in inter-tribal discord, such as ongoing altercations with Uncas, a Mohegan sachem, and Ninigret, a Niantic sachem. Wyandanch’s maneuverings and negotiations helped him advance from a minor sachem to a powerful chief. He navigated fraught relationships with the victors of the Pequot War. On decent terms with the English settlers, their support enabled Wyandanch to consolidate his power and elevate his standing. His esteem as a negotiator was renowned. Wyandanch was able to successfully disarm a strained standoff between the Shinnecock tribe and colonists, who were angry over the killing of an English woman, killed in retaliation for the death of a Shinnecock. Sought for his ability to reason with the English, Wyandanch garnered both economic and military support from the colonists. His goal to remain at peace with the English was at least in part strategic. Born of a desire to protect the Montaukett, he reached out to Lion Gardiner. The two men became allies of sorts, a relationship that would have a profound impact on the continued development of Long Island. Image courtesy of geni.com Gardiner was unnerved by the prospect of Pequots or another tribe consolidating power and attacking the settlers. Having been commissioned by the English government to establish a fort in Saybrook, Gardiner was once shot in the leg by a Pequot arrow during an attack. Wyandanch reportedly canoed over the Long Island Sound to meet Gardiner in Saybrook; they came to an arrangement, a type of truce between the Montaukett and the English. This agreement guarded eastern Long Island against the violence of English-Native American confrontations. Still Wyandanch faced threats from factions who were against his understanding with the English and his actions as a sachem. Wyandanch’s associates were also targeted. Mandush, the chief of the Shinnecock tribe, was the subject of an assassination attempt ordered by Ninigret. The attempt failed, and the perpetrator was executed. In response, fourteen people, including Wyandanch’s daughter, were kidnapped by the Niantic. Thirty men, including her groom-to-be, were killed the night before their wedding. After paying a ransom, which Gardiner is believed to have helped facilitate, the captives were freed; Ninigret and Wyandanch apparently reached an accord, though they disputed the exact details. As a thank you to Gardiner, Wyandanch granted him a tract of land. By this time, the Montauketts were the dominant tribe on Long Island and Wyandanch was the grand sachem. In 1655, the Setalcotts sold land to the settlers; this property was the original settlement of Brookhaven. Wyandanch approved the transaction, which was a common practice for any such interaction: deeds were typically signed by the chief of the tribe selling the land and Wyandanch. He continued to act as an intermediary between the Native Americans and Europeans, and pursued contested matters in colonial court. Wyandanch advocated on behalf of members of the Shinnecock tribe who were accused of arson, and got the outrageously high fine somewhat reduced. Circa 1658, he allowed an Englishman, Jeremy Daily, to borrow his canoe in exchange for repairs being made to it. Daily did not hold up his end of the bargain, and the canoe was actually damaged in bad weather. Wyandanch sued Daily and won. This was one of the earliest cases involving an English defendant and a Native American plaintiff. Daily apparently had to pay him ten shillings for damages and fines for court fees. In 1659, Wyandanch died. His wife and son seem to have died shortly after. During this time, the Montaukett tribe was ravaged by a deadly disease quite possibly brought to them by the settlers. Gardiner maintained that Wyandanch was poisoned, but never further elaborated on the point. Able to exist in two cultures, Wyandanch’s actions helped chart the course of modern Long Island history.

Over time Thanksgiving Day has evolved not only as a day to give thanks and a time for the family to get together, but a time to indulge in the foods of the season, to watch the Macy’s parade, watch sports, and get ready for the upcoming holiday season. This year, we look at many of those traditions and reasons to give thanks in a new way. The traditional celebration with the extended family will mean that many families will not get together in person, filling that one central home with the sounds and scents of the season. Many will be getting together virtually with a “Zoom Thanksgiving” so that next year we may all be together once again. Thanksgiving becomes a National Holiday Ever since we were small children we were told the traditional story of the first Thanksgiving but how did it become a national holiday? “During the American Revolution, the Continental Congress designated one or more days of thanksgiving a year, and in 1789 George Washington issued the first Thanksgiving proclamation...he called upon Americans to express their gratitude for the happy conclusion to the country’s war of independence and the successful ratification of the U.S. Constitution. In 1817, New York became the first of several states to officially adopt an annual Thanksgiving holiday...In 1827, the noted magazine editor and prolific writer Sarah Josepha Hale—author, among countless other things, of the nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb”—launched a campaign to establish Thanksgiving as a national holiday. For 36 years, she published numerous editorials and sent scores of letters to governors, senators, presidents and other politicians, earning her the nickname the “Mother of Thanksgiving.” Abraham Lincoln finally heeded her request in 1863, at the height of the Civil War, in a proclamation entreating all Americans to ask God to “commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife” and to “heal the wounds of the nation.” He scheduled Thanksgiving for the final Thursday in November, and it was celebrated on that day every year until 1939, when Franklin D. Roosevelt moved the holiday up a week in an attempt to spur retail sales during the Great Depression. Roosevelt’s plan, known derisively as Franksgiving, was met with passionate opposition, and in 1941 the president reluctantly signed a bill making Thanksgiving the fourth Thursday in November.” https://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving Check out the Library of Congress site Today in History and learn more facts about Nov. 26th https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/november-26/?&loclr=reclnk Ragamuffins: A Thanksgiving Tradition of the Past “Anything for Thanksgiving?” This phrase, uttered by a child generally dressed in a manner posing as a beggar, would greet a passerby or follow a knock on a door on Thanksgiving Day. The tradition evolved in the 1870s after Lincoln had declared the Thanksgiving holiday in 1863 and it may be considered the predecessor to today’s Halloween. It is primarily associated with New York City although the tradition could be found in other cities and communities. “Ragamuffins” who uttering the phrase would receive candies, fruit or even coins. Those who did not provide a “treat” would often be confronted with a “trick”. Eventually the costumes moved away from the beggar or hobo. Face painting and commercial costumes and masks began to be sold and soon became very popular. Children, also known as “maskers”, would “parade” through the neighborhoods collecting their treats as they went. The tradition continued into the 20th century, but popularity waned during the depression and with local opposition eventually the tradition all but disappeared. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade and Halloween became the new traditions. Bain News Service. Left: Thanksgiving Maskers, ca 1910. Right: Painting a Thanksgiving Masker, 1911. Library of Congress. A search of the website New York State Historic Newspapers for the term “Ragamuffin Parade” in Suffolk County finds that the term has continued to be used in some Long Island communities into the present day, but in the 1950s it had become the community Halloween parade and was no longer held on Thanksgiving Day. The Ragamuffin Guards were the boys of the St. John's Protectory, an orphanage and farm located in Hicksville where the Broadway Mall now stands. HixNews Memory Lane Additional sources: https://www.thevintagenews.com/2018/08/23/ragamuffin-day/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragamuffin_parade https://preservehalloween.com/2018/11/22/ragamuffin-day/

By Tara Mae Madeleine L’Engle is now remembered as a very successful author, whose most famous work, A Wrinkle in Time, is still read and beloved by people of all ages. Less recognized but as enduring is the legacy of her persistent pursuit of her dreams, despite repeated rejections. L’Engle endurance paid off, and today her writing is celebrated throughout the world. Born in New York City, on November 29, 1918, L’Engle had a somewhat isolated childhood. Named for great-grandmother, Madeleine Margaret L’Engle,she was the daughter of socialite artists. Her mother, Madeleine Hall Barnett, was a pianist, and her father Charles Wadsworth Camp was a critic, writer, and foreign correspondent. Depending on the source, he suffered either from the effects of mustard gas or alcoholism. L’Engle’s parents took a hands-off approach to her upbringing, frequently leaving her in the care of their Irish housekeeper, Mrs. O. Barnett. Camp tended her academic and cultural education; Mrs. O oversaw L’Engle’s emotional and spiritual instruction. She spent a lot of time alone in her bedroom, reading, writing, and exploring her imagination. L’Engle wrote her first story at age five and started keeping a journal at age eight. She struggled in school, and was educated by a series of private and boarding schools as well as governesses. Some teachers apparently considered her to be “stupid.” When L’Engle entered and won a school poetry contest, the teachers did not believe that she had actually composed the poem. The next day, her mother went to the school with a stack of her writing to prove L’Engle’s talent. Her most traumatic educational experience may have been when her parents, upon moving to Europe, sent L’Engle to a boarding school in Switzerland. At age twelve, L’Engle felt abandoned and alienated. She was devastated by the utter lack of privacy. So, L’Engle developed a new coping skill: the ability to occupy silence and block out the scrutiny of her peers and teachers. “Within that force field, I could go on writing my stories and my poems and dreaming my dreams.” It was a talent that would serve her well in her career. Three years later, the family returned to the United States because L’Engle’s grandmother had fallen ill. Attending yet another boarding school, she still struggled to make friends but discovered a love of performing and a passion for playwriting. Her father, who had given her his old typewriter to use and generally supported her writing, died of pneumonia shortly before L’Engle’s eighteenth birthday. She reached his bedside too late to say goodbye. A lost or absent father is a recurring theme in writing. After graduating cum laude from Smith College, L’Engle moved back to New York City, and published her first novel, The Small Rain, which The New York Times described as “evidence of a fresh new talent.” Eighteen months later, she released Ilsa. L’Engle met her future husband, actor Hugh Franklin, when she performed on Broadway in The Cherry Orchard by Anton Checkov. The couple married in 1946 and moved to a 200-year-old farmhouse that they named Crosswicks. They purchased a general store, which he operated and she helped run. Franklin and L’Engle raised three children, Josephine, Bion, and Maria. The daughter of family friends who had died, Maria was adopted around the age of seven. Involved in the community, L’Engle was the choir director of the Congregational Church to which they belonged. She continued to write but received more rejection notices than acceptances. Madeleine L’Engle (Photo: Sigrid Estrada) Weary from her inability to get published, on her fortieth birthday L’Engle vowed to stop writing. "With all the hours I spent writing, I was still not pulling my own weight financially." Seemingly unable to be published and unskilled in the role of traditional “homemaker,” L’Engle felt like a failure as both a writer and a wife. The family went on a 10 day camping trip before returning to New York City so Franklin could resume his acting career. It was on this trip, while withstanding a crisis of identity and faith, that L’Engle conceived of A Wrinkle in Time. Deeply spiritual, L’Engle was unsure whether she still believed in God. She redefined her concept of the divine by reading the works of Werner Heisenberg, Albert Einstein, and Max Planck. Their texts would directly influence the concepts, themes, and world-building of the book. Interwoven into the narrative are elements of L’Engle’s own youth: the main character, Meg, is underestimated by teachers, misunderstood by peers, and separated from her father. Still, she and her family are tied to an entire universe of otherworldly creatures, who are linked to a single powerful source of Light. In her journal, L’Engle noted, “If I’ve ever written a book that says what I believe about God and the universe, this is it.” Although L’Engle had persevered past her plan to stop writing, she faced a new obstacle: getting A Wrinkle in Time published. It was not easily categorized or classified, and editors did not think it would be profitable. L’Engle was again the recipient of a consistent influx of rejection letters. Rejected by between twenty-five and forty publishing houses, it took two years for it to find a home. At a Christmas tea party L’Engle hosted for her mother, she encountered a guest who knew John C. Farrar of Farrar, Straus and Giroux, a publishing firm. At the time it did not publish children’s books, but Farrar met with L’Engle and so enjoyed the novel that he agreed to release it under the Ariel imprint. A colossal success, A Wrinkle in Time won the Newbery Medal in 1963, and became the first installment of the Time Quintet: A Wrinkle in Time, A Wind at the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet, Many Waters, and An Acceptable Time. For all of the praise, there was also backlash as Christian conservatives and evangelicals criticized the books for their incorporation of religion. Numerous Christian bookstores refused to carry A Wrinkle in Time, and it is one of the most commonly banned books in America. These deterrents did not hinder the lasting popularity and impact of the book, nor did it thwart L’Engle’s writing and legacy. The family resettled in Manhattan, but maintained Crosswicks as a weekend and summer home. While Franklin returned to the stage, L’Engle kept writing. She volunteered as a librarian in the Diocesan House of the Episcopal Cathedral of St. John the Divine. During her tenure, L’Engle composed twenty-five more books, welcomed school children, fans, and other guests, and coordinated different outreach programs. She undertook different speaking engagements, going on the road to give talks and offer sermons. L’Engle died on September 6, 2007, at the age of eighty-eight. In spite of external skepticism and internal self-doubt, L’Engle did not relinquish her goals. The fortitude born of a sometimes lonely childhood enabled her to press forward. The praise of the public came only after L’Engle’s acceptance of herself.

By Tara Mae During the American Revolution, certain Native American tribes aligned with either the British or the rebelling colonists. The Oneida Indian Nation of New York proved a great friend to the Continental Army, and was one of the United States first allies. At the Battle of Oriskany, Hanyery (Han Yerry) Tyonajanegen, an Oneida warrior, rallied support and lent his skill to the confrontation. Tyonajanegen (Two Kettles Together), his wife and a fighter in her own right, fought in the battle and then spread the news to other tribes and colonists. Limited information is available about Tyonajanegen’s early life. She married Hanyery circa 1750, and had four children. Born in 1724, Hanyery was known for being calm and cool in battle. He became chief warrior of the Wolf clan. They were founding and prominent members of the Oneida village of Oriska. Tyonajanegen and Hanyery, who may have had a European father, were on good terms with the European settlers and sold produce to them and other travelers. They reportedly had a thriving farm that included a framed house and barn as well as an assortment of livestock and crops. The family was among the wealthiest of the tribe. In 1768, the British pressed the Oneida into ceding a portion of its territory, including Oniska, with the Treaty of Fort Stanwix. The villagers were understandably infuriated and did not forget this coercion. By 1777, many of the Oriska Oneida, including Hanyery and his brother Han Yost Thahoswagwat, had joined the efforts of the Continental Army. Tyonajanegen was not one to be left behind, and her skills would prove invaluable to her husband’s survival and an asset to the patriots, especially during the Battle of Oriskany. The Oneida were later formally recognized for this alliance. Considered to be a pivotal battle of the Saratoga campaign, as well as one of the bloodiest of the war, it was waged on August 6, 1777 and lasted six hours. General Herkimer, 800 soldiers, and 60 Oneidas were ambushed by the British Army, who were assisted by members of the Mohawk tribe. Hanyery, in his fifties, was renowned as a top warrior, and Tyonajanegen aided the patriots’ cause by carrying and delivering messages. The war marked a fracturing in the Iroquois Confederacy. It was the first break that existed since the treaty was signed circa 1200. The Five Nations of the Iroquois, comprised of the Mohawk, Seneca, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Oneida tribes, had pledged not to go to war with each other. In 1722, the Tuscarora tribe joined the confederacy. Each tribe was considered a guardian of a different part of what is now New York state. Conflicting arrangements with different groups of European settlers had already caused strife within the confederacy, which initially voted to be neutral during the war. This stance proved impossible as the tribes were pressured by the British and colonists to join the fight. Unable to agree on a course of action, the confederacy split. The Oneida, Tuscarora, and a faction of Mohawks were on the side of the patriots. They acted as scouts, guides, and even soldiers for the Continental Army. Those who favored the British largely did so with the belief that it was the best way for the tribes to keep their lands. At the Battle of Oriskany, Hanyery and TyonajanegenIfff were joined by one of their sons. Tyonajanegen rode into battle, armed with two pistols, and fought alongside the men. When Hanyery was shot in the wrist and unable to fire his gun, she began reloading the gun for him. After the battle ended, Tyonajanegen rode on horseback to relay the news of it to local colonists and Native Americans. Although the British technically won the battle, the victory was undermined by malcontentment of their Iroquois allies, who were infuriated by how involved they were forced to be in the fight. The Battle of Oriskany solidified a schism among the Six Nations that would prove hard to mend. In retaliation for the Oneida’s participation in the battle, a group of pro-British Iroquois burned Oriska to the ground, destroying the family’s home and belongings. In 1779, the newly formed American government gave Hanyery a commission as a captain to the Oneidas. He dined with George Washington at Valley Forge. He participated in different conferences held at at Fort Stanwix, Johnson Hall, and Fort Herkimer. Hanyery died in 1794. Tyonajanegen lived until 1822. Congress officially recognized the sovereignty of the Six Nations with the Treaty of Canadaigua. Signed by President Washington, it asserted the tribe’s authority to oversee its lands and affairs without interference from other governments. Although it has been challenged and tested, the agreement still exists today.

(The following history is from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs website https://www.va.gov/opa/vetsday/vetdayhistory.asp supplemented with local photographs from the collections of TVHS) World War I – known at the time as “The Great War” - officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.” In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: “To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…” The original concept for the celebration was for a day observed with parades and public meetings and a brief suspension of business beginning at 11:00 a.m. The United States Congress officially recognized the end of World War I when it passed a concurrent resolution on June 4, 1926, with these words: Whereas the 11th of November 1918, marked the cessation of the most destructive, sanguinary, and far reaching war in human annals and the resumption by the people of the United States of peaceful relations with other nations, which we hope may never again be severed, and Whereas it is fitting that the recurring anniversary of this date should be commemorated with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through good will and mutual understanding between nations; and Whereas the legislatures of twenty-seven of our States have already declared November 11 to be a legal holiday: Therefore be it Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), that the President of the United States is requested to issue a proclamation calling upon the officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on November 11 and inviting the people of the United States to observe the day in schools and churches, or other suitable places, with appropriate ceremonies of friendly relations with all other peoples. An Act (52 Stat. 351; 5 U. S. Code, Sec. 87a) approved May 13, 1938, made the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday—a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as "Armistice Day." Armistice Day was primarily a day set aside to honor veterans of World War I, but in 1954, after World War II had required the greatest mobilization of soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen in the Nation’s history; after American forces had fought aggression in Korea, the 83rd Congress, at the urging of the veterans service organizations, amended the Act of 1938 by striking out the word "Armistice" and inserting in its place the word "Veterans." With the approval of this legislation (Public Law 380) on June 1, 1954, November 11th became a day to honor American veterans of all wars. Later that same year, on October 8th, President Dwight D. Eisenhower issued the first "Veterans Day Proclamation" which stated: "In order to insure proper and widespread observance of this anniversary, all veterans, all veterans' organizations, and the entire citizenry will wish to join hands in the common purpose. Toward this end, I am designating the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs as Chairman of a Veterans Day National Committee, which shall include such other persons as the Chairman may select, and which will coordinate at the national level necessary planning for the observance. I am also requesting the heads of all departments and agencies of the Executive branch of the Government to assist the National Committee in every way possible." On that same day, President Eisenhower sent a letter to the Honorable Harvey V. Higley, Administrator of Veterans' Affairs (VA), designating him as Chairman of the Veterans Day National Committee. In 1958, the White House advised VA's General Counsel that the 1954 designation of the VA Administrator as Chairman of the Veterans Day National Committee applied to all subsequent VA Administrators. Since March 1989 when VA was elevated to a cabinet level department, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs has served as the committee's chairman. The Uniform Holiday Bill (Public Law 90-363 (82 Stat. 250)) was signed on June 28, 1968, and was intended to ensure three-day weekends for Federal employees by celebrating four national holidays on Mondays: Washington's Birthday, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and Columbus Day. It was thought that these extended weekends would encourage travel, recreational and cultural activities and stimulate greater industrial and commercial production. Many states did not agree with this decision and continued to celebrate the holidays on their original dates. The first Veterans Day under the new law was observed with much confusion on October 25, 1971. It was quite apparent that the commemoration of this day was a matter of historic and patriotic significance to a great number of our citizens, and so on September 20th, 1975, President Gerald R. Ford signed Public Law 94-97 (89 Stat. 479), which returned the annual observance of Veterans Day to its original date of November 11, beginning in 1978. This action supported the desires of the overwhelming majority of state legislatures, all major veterans service organizations and the American people. Veterans Day continues to be observed on November 11, regardless of what day of the week on which it falls. The restoration of the observance of Veterans Day to November 11 not only preserves the historical significance of the date, but helps focus attention on the important purpose of Veterans Day: A celebration to honor America's veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good.

By Tara Mae Alice Austen was a New York photographer who focused her work on documenting the people who mainstream society ostracized or ignored. Sometimes considered an amaetuer, Austen exhibited, copyrighted, and published her photos, and accepted different commissions, including recording the people and conditions of immigrant quarantine sites in the 1880s. The biggest influence on Austen’s artistry was her relationship with Gertrude Tate, which lasted 53 years. Born to a prominent, wealthy family, Elizabeth Alice Austen grew up in luxury. Her great grandfather, Peter Townsend, owned the Sterling Iron Works, known for forging the Hudson River Chain that was used to hamper British ships in the American Revolution. After her father abandoned them, Austen and her mother moved into the family home, Clear Comfort, on Staten Island. Austen reportedly discovered photography at the age of 10, with the support of her family. One uncle, a sea captain, allowed her to play with his camera. Another uncle, a chemist, taught her how to process the glass plates she exposed. A second floor closet of the house was converted into a dark room, where, over the course of 45 years, she developed more than 7.000 photos chronicling the shifts and changes of New York City. As Austen developed her craft, she catalogued her home life and the natural world. A strong athlete, Austen photographed two newly invented activities: tennis and cycling. She and her friend Violet Ward collaborated on a book, Bicycling for Ladies, that illustrated the proper and improper ways to coast, turn, and dismount from a bike. Austen’s model was another friend, Daisy Elliott, a gymnastics instructor who then asked Austen to photograph her students with the calisthenics equipment in her gym. Credited with being one of the first American female photographers to work outside the domestic realm. As her passion and skill progressed, Austen focused much of her efforts on documenting social issues and milieus that were otherwise somewhat hidden from public view. The subjects she chose to capture reflect her own repudiation of Victorian norms for “proper” women. Austen routinely loaded 50 pounds of photography equipment on her bicycle and went out to take pictures. Austen helped develop the genre of documentary photography. She chose to photograph street vendors and immigrants. Austen also chronicled the lives of her non-traditional friends and acquaintances, offering insights into intimate friendships between Victorian women. Among the first female photographers to work outside a studio, Austen produced what are thought to be some of the best images from the late 19th and early 20th century. Austen (r) gazes up at Tate (l) in front of display of her photos She was commissioned by a member of the U.S. Public Health Service to create a photo series of the New York City immigrant quarantine station that was located near Comfort Cottage. Austen was so intrigued by the experience that she returned to the site every year for the next decade. She photographed the buildings, laboratories, equipment, and people of the locations. This photo series was exhibited in Buffalo at the Pan American Exposition of 1901. Her photographs of women were largely meant to be private. The pictures showed her and her friends participating in scandalous behavior like smoking, for which they could have been arrested. Many of her photographs challenge traditional gender roles. Austen depicted women embracing and dressed in drag. While her public photography dealt with elements of social welfare, her private photography, meant for self-expression, was a quiet act of social revolution. These images ignored or subverted the idea of how women were supposed to look and behave. Unafraid to appear “unladylike,” Austen did not allow conventions to impede any aspect of her life. Independently wealthy, this status provided Austen freedom from certain societal pressures and insulated her from full impact of negative criticisms. During the 1890s, accompanied only by her photography supplies, Austen traveled around the East Coast and to Europe, where she spent her summers. In 1899, while visiting the Catskills, Austen met Tate, a professional dance instructor and kindergarten teacher from Brooklyn. They fell in love and would remain together until Austen’s death in 1952. Tate began visiting Austen at Clear Cottage, accompanied Austen on trips abroad, and in 1917, moved in with her. Tate was a partner, inspiration, and muse. Tate’s mother and sister disapproved of her “wrong devotion” to Austen, but they remained committed to each other. Although Austen lost most of her wealth in the stock market crash of 1929, she held onto Clear Comfort until 1945 when she and Tate were evicted. Having never approved of their relationship, their families used this opportunity to separate them. From 1945 to 1952, Tate visited Austen weekly at the Staten Island Farm Colony, where she then resided. Historian Oliver Jensen discovered Austen’s work in 1951 and money raised from the publication of her photos was used to fund private nursing care. Austen died on June 9, 1952. Her and Tate’s final wish to be buried together was rejected by their families.

By Tara Mae Washington Irving is best known for his short stories “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.” Considered a master of the American short story, Irving’s interest in history and European culture informed his work. By sampling the folklore of other countries, he helped create American legends and is recognized as the “first American man of letters.” Named by his mother for George Washington, Irving was born on April 3, 1783, in New York City. The week of his birth marked the official British ceasefire that concluded the American Revolution. He was the youngest of eleven children, eight of whom survived into adulthood. At six years old, he met his namesake while Washington was living in New York City. Irving later had the encounter commemorated with a small watercolor painting that he hung in his home. In 1798 a yellow fever outbreak in the city facilitated Irving’s introduction to Sleepy Hollow, when for his safety his parents sent him to the neighboring Tarrytown. Irving stayed with his friend James K. Paulding, and learned of the nearby village’s Dutch customs and heritage, including its ghost stories. As a teenager Irving made several trips upstate and visited the Catskill Mountains region, later the setting of “Rip Van Winkle.” Unlike his brothers, Irving did not get a college education nor did he enter into a specific trade. Interested in writing, many of his brothers sustained his aspirations by occasionally supporting him financially. Irving’s debut came in the New York Morning Chronicle, of which his brother Peter was an editor and Aaron Burr was a partial owner. Using the pen name Jonathon Oldstyle, Gent., he wrote fanciful, satirical essays. Burr was so impressed he apparently sent clippings of Irving’s work to his daughter Theodosia. Concerned about Irving’s health, his brothers financed a two year tour of Europe. Upon his return, he studied law and passed the bar exam. Irving was still most interested in writing, however. With his brother James and Paulding, Irving started Salmungdi, a literary magazine. Frequently taking pseudonyms like William Wizard and Launcelot Langstaff, Irving lampooned New York’s social constructs and politics. The periodical was a relative success, and Irving’s reputation grew. He is credited with giving New York City the nickname’ “Gotham,” which in Old English translates to a “homestead where goats are kept.” This was the start of Irving’s lasting legacy to New York. Soon, the cultural impact of his writing would extend to the rest of the country. A somewhat self-taught student of history, Irving’s next project was A History of New York from The Beginning of the World to the End of the Dutch Dynasty by Diedrich Knickerbocker. This satirical history was Irving’s first major published work. Its creation was stymied by the death of his love Matilda, daughter of Josiah Ogden Hoffman, in whose law firm he had been employed. To generate publicity for his book before it was released, Irving staged the disappearance of Dutch historian Diedrich Knickerbocker, placing adverts in New York papers looking for him. The ruse worked; when Irving released the book under that moniker, it garnered attention and was appreciated by both critics and the public. Irving later noted that it “...gave me celebrity, as an original work was something remarkable and uncommon in America.” Knickerbocker became a popular nickname for Manhattan residents. In 1946, the New York Knickerbockers (Knicks) also took its name from this association. Despite the book’s positive reception, Irving still needed a steady job. In 1811, he moved to Washington, DC to work as a lobbyist for his brothers’ hardware importing company. Irving organized the American edition of Thomas Campbell’s poems, and served as an editor of Analectic Magazine. He was one of the first editors to print Frances Scott Key’s poem “Defense of Fort Henry,” later immortalized as “The Star-Spangled Banner.” During the War of 1812, he was appointed a staff colonel, and in 1815, he went to Liverpool to oversee the interests of his brothers’ business. The war had been detrimental to the livelihoods of many merchants, and he was ultimately unsuccessful in his attempts to save the hardware importing company. Rather than going home to take up the naval post his brother William had secured for him, Irving chose to stay in England and pursue his writing career. He befriended Walter Scott and began The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent., a compilation of essays and short stories that featured his most famous pieces. Most of the entries in the anthology relate to England, but six are short stories that take place in America. Among them “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” Americanized versions of German folklore. Irving sent the stories to his brother Ebenezer in New York for publication. Printed in New York in seven installments and in London in two installments, the entire series was well-received. “Rip Van Winkle” was part of the first publication and an immediate triumph. “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” another favorite, was published in the sixth issue of New York edition and the second volume of the London edition. Believed to be the first American writer to set his tales in the United States, Irving “borrowed” from German fables. In Americanizing these fairytales, Irving helped establish American storytelling. His influence on New York and the nation as a whole went beyond the literary canon to effect the very nature of American writing. He utilized the modern vernacular, an unusual practice for the time; rather than crafting stories centered on moralistic themes, Irving constructed narratives that were designed for entertainment. He set the precedent for the possibilities of the American short story. The publication of The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. earned Irving further acclaim and solidified his position as one of the early American fiction writers. Rather than return to the United States to take advantage of heightened fame, Irving chose to explore Europe, collecting stories, and battling bouts of writer’s block interspersed with periods of writing and publishing. At the invitation of the American Minister to Spain, Alexander HIll Everett, Irving journeyed to Madrid to study manuscripts that addressed the country’s colonization of the Americas. From this he developed many projects, such as A History of the Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus, a biographical romantic history. It was the first book he published under his own name. Irving was then invited by the Duke of Gor to stay at his palace and examine the contents of his library, where he was exposed to many medieval manuscripts. The result of this investigation was the Chronicle of the Conquest of Grenada and in 1831, The Voyages and Discoveries of the Companions of Columbus. After a stint as a staff member of the American Minister to Britain Louis McLane, being awarded a medal by the Royal Society of Literature, and accepting an honorary doctorate of civil law from Oxford University, Irving returned to the United States. He toured the country, making acquaintances with notable figures such as John Jacob Astor, with whom he was a founding member of the Saint Nicholas Society of the City of New York. The charitable organization still exists today. At the recommendation of Secretary of State Daniel Webster, President John Tyler selected Irving as Minister to Spain in 1842. Four years later, Irving returned to Sunnyside, the cottage and land he had purchased in Tarrytown in 1841. He spent the remainder of his life there, revising earlier publications, writing biographies on Oliver Goldsmith and the Prophet Mohammed, and undertaking a passion project: an account of George Washington’s life. Five tomes were published between 1855 and 1859. Traveling between New York and Washington, DC to conduct his research, Irving fostered friendships with Presidents Millard Fillmore and Franklin Pierce. Made an executor of Astor’s estate in 1848, per his will Irving became the first chairperson of the Astor Library, a precursor to the New York Public Library. Adding to his status as literary living legend, He was chosen as an Associate Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Irving enjoyed the respect and recognition of fans, politicians, and fellow writers. Oliver Wendell Holmes remarked that Irving’s home was “next to Mount Vernon, the best known and most cherished of all the dwellings in our land.” He died there on November 28, 1859, at the age of seventy-eight. Irving left an indelible imprint on the artistic and historic evolution of America. His writing remains in the collective conscience, an integral element in the formation of the country’s popular culture. Irving’s influence extends beyond the written word; his language is part of the lexicon and his tales are part of American mythology.

The place was Setauket and the year was 1664, 28 years before the infamous Salem Witch Trials of 1692. https://www.history.com/topics/colonial-america/salem-witch-trials Trial was held in 1665, 355 years ago this month, in the case of Ralph and Mary Hall. Ralph Hall and his wife Mary “Long before the celebrated Salem trials, Setauket was the scene of an alleged “act of witchcraft” which resulted in one of the famous trials of the day. George Wood died in 1664 and the Town charged Ralph and Mary Hall with “witchcraft in that they practiced sorcery on George Wood and his infant child.” On October 2, 1665 the couple was tried in the Court of Assizes at New York. The verdict acquitted Hall as “nothing considerable” could be proved against him, but Mary was not to be let off so easily. There still remained some “suspicions” against her though “not enough of value to take away her life.” Hall was ordered to produce his wife at every future session of the court, but after some three years of this Governor Nicolls intervened and released them from the sentence. No other cases of witchcraft occurred in Brookhaven, and the hysteria that later gripped Massachusetts was avoided. (Setauket the First Three Hundred Years 1655-1955) In the publication Narratives of the Witchcraft Cases 1648-1706 the author places in context a June 1664 incident recorded in the Brookhaven Town Records. In this chapter on the Halls he suggests “Their troubles antedated the change in government, and it would seem that at first their neighbors were on their side...” Setake June 9th 1664 The maiestrates haueing Considderred the Complaint of Hall and his wife against mr Smith doe Judge the sayd mr Smith hath not suffitiently made good what he hath sd of her and therefore mr Smith is ordered to pay the woman fiue markes (copied as transcribed in Brookhaven Town Records Volume 1 – 1662-1679 p. 98) “...But they had made a dangerous foe, for at Setauket “Mr” Smith could then hardly have meant any other than...Richard Smith, the founder of Smithtown, who had himself at Boston and at Southampton experienced imprisonment and banishment for Quakerism or Quakerly behavior...” Court of Assizes The Court of Assizes was composed of the Governor, the Council and the Justices of the Peace in attendance. The Court convened annually in New York City to hear appeals from the inferior courts and to exercise original jurisdiction in serious criminal matters. In later years, it exercised some legislative functions. The tribunal was the court of last resort unless the case was appealable to the Crown in London. https://history.nycourts.gov/case/court-assizes/ The original documents of the Hall trial held before the Court of Assizes, along with many other historical records, perished in the 1911 fire at the State Capital in Albany. https://friendsofalbanyhistory.wordpress.com/2018/01/23/the-great-capitol-fire-of-1911/ http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/mssc/capitolfire/ The Trial of Ralph and Mary Hall The proceedings of the Hall case were recorded in volume IV of The Documentary History of the State of New-York published in 1851. These pages are provided below Sources and links Adkins, Edwin P., Setauket the First Three Hundred Years 1655-1955, Three Village Historical Society, Anniversary edition 1980. Brookhaven Town Records Volume 1 – 1662-1679, Tobias A. Wright printer and publishers, New York, 1924. p. 98 & 125 Burr, Lincoln (ed), Narratives of the Witchcraft Cases 1648-1706, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, 1914. p 44-48 https://archive.org/details/narrativesofwit00burr/page/n5/mode/2up O’Callaghan, E. B., The Documentary History of the State of New-York; arranged under the direction of the Hon. Christopher Morgan, Secretary of State, Vol. IV, Charles Van Benthuysen, printer, Albany, 1851. p 133-136 https://archive.org/details/documentaryhist01offigoog/page/n8/mode/2up