The Long Island History Project

Much has been written about September 21, 1938, the day that a massive hurricane hit Long Island. For Jonathan C. Bergman, the more interesting story began the day after. His extensive research focused on the cleanup and disaster relief efforts orchestrated by a shifting network of Red Cross officials, New Deal workers, Suffolk County agencies, churchgoers, and volunteers. On today's episode, Bergman takes us through those efforts and the impact the hurricane had on South Shore communities like Southampton and the North Fork fishing industry at Montauk. We also discuss the scope of disaster relief in the United States, from the early days of the Republic up through the emergence of FEMA in the latter 20th century. Further Research Bergman, Jonathan C. 2008. “The Shape of Disaster and the Universe of Relief: A Social History of Disaster Relief and the ‘Hurricane of '38 " Suffolk County Long Island New York 1938-41.” Dissertation. State University of New York at Buffalo.  email: jcbesq@yahoo.com "The Hurricane of '38" (The American Experience) The Great New England Hurricane of 1938 (National Weather Service) "The '38 Hurricane" (American Heritage) Hurricanes and Society in the British Greater Caribbean, 1624-1783 by Matthew Mulcahy (find in a library via WorldCat) Audio Footnotes: Episode 54: first person accounts of the Hurricane of 38

Two Black men were shot and killed by a police officer in Freeport on a cold winter morning in 1946. Another was wounded. All three were brothers, two were World War II veterans dressed in their military uniforms. The ensuing outcry and investigations would spread far beyond the south shore of Long Island and bring the story of racial tensions on Long Island to the national level. Christopher Verga returns on this episode to discuss that night, the Ferguson brothers, and the conditions on Long Island that led up to the deadly confrontation. His latest book, The Ferguson Brothers Lynching on Long Island, details not only a particular family's tragedy but the deeper history of racism on Long Island including the prominence of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s. Further Research The Ferguson Brothers Lynchings on Long Island Orson Welles Commentaries (July 28, 1946) Long Island Divided (Newsday) Freedom's Ladder: WNYC and New York's Anti-Discrimination Law (WNYC) Cover of Woody Guthrie's The Ferguson Brothers' Killing (Raymond Crooke) Audio Footnotes: Christopher Verga episodes Cold War Long Island A Personal History of PTSD Agent Orange on Long Island Joe Giannini and the Vietnam War Jack Parente and the Vietnam War  

Robert Moses is the man most New Yorkers love to hate. This is in no small part due to his own hubris and the impact he had on the people living in the path of his massive construction projects. Add to that Robert Caro's hard hitting 1974 biography The Power Broker and you've got a reputation that is hard to live down. Kara Schlichting and Katie Uva, both teachers and urban historians, have been contending with Moses in their works and in their classrooms. On today's episode they discuss the challenges of teaching Moses and of broadening our understanding of the man and the times in which he operated. We also discuss the undeniable impact of The Power Broker and how historians work to bring context and understanding to this very important figure in New York history. We also discuss the crucial early years of Robert Moses relating to Long Island and the creation of wildly popular parks and beaches. Did he work to exclude minorities from Jones Beach? Was there anyone to stop him running roughshod across Nassau and Suffolk Counties? The answers in the historical record may not be as simple as you expect. Further Research Katie Uva Kara Schlichting "Teach NY: Three Case Studies for Reassessing New York’s Power Broker." New York History 103.1 Summer 2022. "Robert Moses and His Racist Parkway, Explained" Books mentioned on this episode (via WorldCat) Audio Footnotes Episode 26: The Barbash family leads the fight on Fire Island Episode 25: Journalist Karl Grossman covering Robert Moses

Today we dive back into a discussion of the Culper Spy Ring, turning our attention to the area of Port Jefferson or, more appropriately, it's original incarnation of Drowned Meadow. The village of Port Jefferson is opening the Drowned Meadow Cottage Museum inside the 18th century home of Culper ring member Phillips Roe. Mark Sternberg, the museum's Culper Spy Ring Historian, walks us through the focus of the museum, the background of Roe, and the deeper context of the Culper Spy ring in the Setauket area. For instance, Mark's recent article in New York State Archives magazine lays out documentary evidence on the activities of Selah Strong in regards to the Revolution and spying. You'll also hear about Mount Misery, Old Man's, petticoats, and the late, lamented AMC series Turn: Washington's Spies.  Further Research Drowned Meadow Cottage Museum on Instagram "Records Reveal an Overlooked Hero of the Culper Spy Ring" (NYS Archives magazine) Books mentioned on this episode (via WorldCat) Founders Online (National Archives) Spy Letters of the American Revolution (Clements Library) George Washington and the Culper Spy Ring (Stony Brook University Libraries) "Mary Silliman's War: A Convincing Social Portrait" Audio Footnotes Past podcast episodes on the Culper Spy Ring

Long Island's barrier beaches are fascinating places. Stretched along the south shore of the island, they persist through much of Long Island history as wild natural landscapes constantly shifting and remolded by the Atlantic Ocean. And despite the storms and shipwrecks and isolation, people have persisted in thinking "I want to live there." On today's episode we talk to Mike Cavanaugh, whose curiosity brought him to Gilgo Beach over twenty years ago. Through deeper research he has tracked the history of his cottage and the Gilgo Beach community back to the 19th century. You'll hear about eccentric hermits, the lost colony of Hemlock Beach, and the complicated legacy of Robert Moses. You'll also hear about Mike's other passion, collecting old bottles from the Great South Bay that tell stories about the people who lived here before. Further Research Bay Bottles Society for Historical Archaeology East Rockaway Public Library Brooklyn Newsstand NYS Historic Newspapers  

The Hempstead Plains were once a defining feature of Long Island. Covering some 40,000 acres, the Plains stretched from the Queens border in the west to the Suffolk border in the east, creating a sea of waist-high grass in the middle of what is now Nassau County. Remnants of the Plains still remain, most notably in a 17-acre segment on the campus of Nassau Community College preserved by the Friends of Hempstead Plains. Betsy Gulotta standing before the last remnants of the Hempstead Plains on the campus of Nassau Community College. On today’s episode, Betsy Gulotta, former conservation project manager of the Friends, takes us on a walking tour, pointing out the grasses, trees, and endangered species that have continued to thrive for centuries. She relates the history of the Friends and their conservation efforts, as well as some of the storied history of the Plains. That history includes the earliest horseracing in the state, numerous staging areas for soldiers like Camp Black during the Spanish American War, and sites like Mitchel Field that helped make the area the Cradle of Aviation. Further Research Friends of Hempstead Plains Facebook The History of Mitchel Field Sandplain Gerardia Neidich-Ryder, C., Kennelly, P. Mapping prairie remnants on the Hempstead Plains, Long Island, New York. Environ Monit Assess 186, 3011–3022 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-013-3597-1 Watson W. C. (1860). The plains of long island. Printed by C. Van Benthuysen. https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.title.31824.

We continue our exploration of Long Islands other than our own. This episode takes us inland from the East Coast to the banks of the Whitewater River in western Ohio. Sharon Pope Lutz tells us the story of Long Island Beach and how the Pope family turned their property from idyllic piece of farmland to a 1920s roadside attraction featuring swimming, bingo, a dance hall, and home-made amusement park rides. Today she and her family keep the flame alive, operating Green Acres Kayak from the same spot.  Further Research: Green Acres Kayak Whitewater River Foundation Little Egypt Fort Finney Principal Meridian Rosemary Clooney on Spotify Southwest Ohio Amusement Park Historical Society

Thomas M. Stark served as a judge in Suffolk County and New York State starting in the early 1960s. During his career he presided over a number of important cases but the one that loomed largest was the murder of the DeFeo family at their home in Amityville by their son Ronald in 1974. Stark’s daughter Ellen remembers hearing about the case over dinner while the rest of the world remembers it as the Amityville Horror case. On this episode, Ellen talks to us about her father’s book, Horrific Homicides, in which he describes the DeFeo case along with a number of other notable trials from his career. A noted jurist and student of the law, Stark kept careful notes on his trials and details not only the crimes themselves but the legal issues involved. The result is a glimpse at the darker side of Long Island history from behind the judge’s bench. Further Research Horrific Homicides by Thomas M. Stark Thomas M. Stark obituary (Suffolk Times) “The Wild Party that Scandalized the Hamptons.” (Daily Beast)

Glenn Durlacher looks back over his family’s legacy of square dance calling on Long Island with deserved pride. His grandfather Ed pioneered square dancing in the New York City area starting in the 1930s. At the urging of his friends in the Top Hands band, Ed made a name for himself calling dances and traveling to promote the use of his records and square dancing to phys ed teachers across the country. This led to an association with Robert Moses and gigs calling at the 1939 World's Fair as well as in Central Park. But it was at the Jones Beach Bandshell that he made his greatest impression. First Ed, then his son Don, and then family friend Primo Fiore hosted weekly square dances every summer at the beach for over sixty years. On today’s episode, Glenn relates the history of square dancing in his family and what he remembers of being at so many of those Jones Beach nights. We also discuss Glenn’s hopes for a more permanent commemoration of the importance of square dancing at Jones Beach. If you or your family remember dancing at Jones Beach and would like to support the creation of a plaque to its memory, you can write to: New York State Parks Regional Headquarters West Babylon, NY 11704 Further Research Square Dancing History Project Central Park Newsreel Honor Your Partner (YouTube) Dix-Hills Melville Historical Association Ben & Jerry’s – About Audio Footnotes: The Life Story of Primo Fiore