The Long Island History Project

The latest edition of last century's Suffolk County News is here, for April 23rd, 1920. We continue easing our home isolation by reading what was going on in our region all those years ago. This week: a strange burglary, more coffee, and hints of an eighties superband.

Two museum directors, one public librarian, an artist, a researcher and a journalist. We're spending time today catching up with past guests to see how they're faring. The result is a small glimpse into the lives of six people from the region and how the coronavirus pandemic has impacted them and their jobs. Also - the return of Connie Currie! Thanks to all of our guests and we hope that everyone gets through this safely. Further Research Jeremy Dennis Episode 51 On This Site @Jeremynative Melanie Cardone-Leathers Episode 58 Longwood Public Library Bayles Local History Room Longwood Collective: Preserving Yesterday & Today for Tomorrow Chris Vacarro Episode 72 Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame @ChrisVaccaro Tom Edmonds Episode 86 Southampton History Museum Southampton and the Devastating Influenza Epidemic of 1918 (Mary Cummings) Alexandra Wolfe Episode 91 Preservation Long Island @PreservationLI Kate Robbins Episode 87 Kate Robbins Research Tod Robbins

We continue our trek through the local news of a century gone by. Today we read the Suffolk County News from Arpil 16, 1920. We find stories of bootleggers, war-torn France and two spinster sisters freed from an insane asylum after a decade of confinement. Further Research Hal B. Fullerton Photo Exhibit (Heckscher Museum of Art) Audio Footnotes On Mile a Minute Murphy Long Island and Prohibition

The Freemasons have been with us since the beginning of our country. And no, they do not have secret repositories of hidden gold. They do have a long history of service, community-building and camaraderie that persists to the present. Today we welcome Ron Seifried to the podcast to explore the history and development of Freemasonry in Nassau and Suffolk Counties. Further Research Long Island Freemasons by Ron Seifried (Arcadia Press) Masons of Jephtha No. 494 Suffolk Masonic District Freemasonry - George Washington (Mount Vernon) Audio Footnote: Being Teddy Roosevelt

We're continuing our look at the news from 1920. Today, the Suffolk County News from Friday, April 9th. Animosity between Sayville and Patchogue on a number of levels, a case of the mumps going around, and warrior musicians returning to life during peacetime. Further Research NYS Historic Newspapers Mumps (CDC) "From Horse Power to Horsepower" by Eric Morris. Access Magazine, 2007.

We're using our home isolation to look back - reading issues of the Suffolk County News of 1920 week by week. For April 2, 1920: Al Smith, Fatty Arbuckle, and a cow with no tail lights. Stay tuned for more news of 1920 next week! Further Research NYS Historic Newspapers Enrico Caruso Audio footnote: Episode 60: The Soldier City of Suffolk County

Today our guest, Erin Elizabeth Becker, recounts the story of her great grandmother, Marion Murdoch O'Hara, who worked for the US Radium Corporation in New York City. Through genealogical and historical research, Erin discovered a powerful and unforgettable member of her family who was tied to a dark chapter of American history. In the 1920s, many young women eagerly signed up to work as "radium girls" in well-paying positions appplying radium-tinged paint to comercial items. The radium made watch hands and clock faces glow in the dark but it was also a sinister threat, leading to sickness and death for many of those who worked with it unprotected. Further Research "Great Grandma Barrett was a Shining Woman" Radium Girls by Kate Moore (Find in a Library via WorldCat) Radium Girls (2018) IMDB "The Radium Girls" (Atomic Heritage Foundation)

We're using our home isolation to look back - reading issues of the Suffolk County News of 1920 week by week. They had quarantines back then too, it turns out, along with corsets and a lot of poultry. Stay tuned for more news of 1920 next week! Further Research NYS Historic Newspapers NYC Mayor LaGuardia's Legendary Radio Readings (NPR) Audio footnote: Episode 69: We Bought a Newspaper

The LaGrange Inn was a storied stopping point along Montauk Highway from the 1700s when it opened for business with a Higbie at the helm. It remained a local landmark, operating under many different proprietors, into the 21st century. Now, thanks to many dedicated people in the community (and to CVS), a part of the LaGrange survives as the West Islip Historical Society Museum. Today, Harry Higbie (a descendant of the original owners), takes us through the history of the property, his family research, and the present state of the LaGrange. Further Research: West Islip Historical Society West Islip Historical Society Celebrates its New Home in the Lagrange Inn (Greater Bay Shore) Higbie Family Reunion (NYT Oct 11, 1925)

History is not the full story if not everyone gets to tell it. And in places where the traditional records are scarce or silent, where do you look for answers? Today we speak with anthropologist Christopher Matthews about his work in Setauket helping the people of a traditionally Native American (the Setalcotts) and African American community uncover more of their past. Working with Robert Lewis of the Higher Ground Intercultural and Heritage Association, along with long-time residents of Christian Avenue in Setauket, Chris and his colleauges have dug stories from the earth. These range from the laundry run by Hannah Hart out of her house on Lake and Main to stone tools found on the Silas Tobias site along Conscience Bay. We also talk about the goals and values of community archaeology as well as the need to see these places as living communities to be supported now and not as something that has disappeared. Links Christopher Matthews (Montclair State University) Christopher Matthews on Academia.edu Setalcott Nation Facebook Group A Counter Map of Setauket, New York The Bethel-Christian Avenue-Laurel Hill Historic District (via Long Island History Journal) Setauket (Mapping the African American Past, Columbia University)