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Welcome to
Staten Island's Past
Best known for its vast
parks and beach areas, Staten Island is a place where
many generations of people
have come to make a good life for their families. This
borough has always been known for its family values
and
slower pace of living. Yet, we are just a boat ride
away from the most exciting place in the world...
"Manhattan" For residents of other boroughs, the
Island's beaches and parks are a retreat from the
crowded city streets. This is a borough, rich in
history and I hope to share some of that history with
fellow native Islanders and welcome all who
have made Staten Island their home. Enjoy your tour,
in text and photo and please visit often, as I try to
update on a
regular basis. Any photos or memories you can share
will just make this website better for all. Please
write to us
and let us know what you think of our website
Care to take a
step back in time to the Staten Island of years gone
by? To a time long before developers threatened our
rural, sea-kissed landscape with rows of cookie-cutter
townhouses, big-name retailers and over-sized "mini"
malls?
Would you like to sit back, re-live cherished memories
and recharge amid the down-home charm of close-knit
neighbor
hoods, mom-and-pop shops and bustling beach areas?
Would you like to see what's been lost over time and
what
things looked like here when grandma and grandpa were
kids?
Perusing the "Old Staten Island" Web site, posted
in June,2004 is like having a beautifully-illustrated
history book of the borough right at your fingertips.
Intrigued visitors can, of course, begin their
time-travel journey anywhere they'd like, but in order
to put the site in the appropriate perspective, it
might be best to start with the historical events
page. Far from being a tedious lesson in social
studies, this page features an engaging timeline of
key events in the history of Richmond County dating
from the early 1600s through to the present day. For
trivia of a different kind, there's the "Staten Island
in Film" page which references dozens of films
reported to contain scenes on Staten Island or from
the Staten Island Ferry. Another fun, lighthearted
page is "Famous Islanders," which lists the names,
along with brief biographies, of those who have, at
one time or another, called Staten Island home. (We
bet you'll come across a few surprises here!) Once
your mind is chock full of details like these, site
visitors can take a stroll through the virtual
galleries of sentimental postcards and photographs and
charming old store and movie ads. Where did Sublett
come upon such information in the first place? The
public library, of course. In fact, he spent weeks at
the St. George Library researching old records and
scanning early editions of the Advance to make sure
the historical details given were not only thorough,
but accurate as well. He also consulted several books
written about the borough over the years. "It's really
been a learning experience for me," Sublett shared.
"Staten Island has such an amazing history." As for
the featured photographs, he is grateful to have
received most of them as "donations."
~ written by Tamara Valles September
08, 2004 in The SI Advance
"God might have made a more beautiful spot than
Staten Island,
but He never did"
~ George William Curtis (from Staten Island)
Great for the Holidays for all your
family with Staten Island ties, be it past or present
these two books and Photo CD will bring back great
memories of Old Staten Island
Editorial Reviews
Product
Description
Were there really four airports here? Was the
Staten Island Airport shut down each night to
ensure no peril to the patrons of the drive-in
theater? Did rides and trolleys really exist on
the South Beach - Midland Beach Boardwalk? Were
there restaurants with a huge hot dog on its
roof or one built like a chuck wagon, a jolly
trolley or a windmill. Were farms prevalent on
the Island and did wildlife roam our backyards?
Can it be that there were two movie theaters on
New Dorp Lane? Were the beaches so clean that
you actually paid to use them? Was fresh milk
and bread actually delivered to our front door?
Did Santa really ride the Christmas Train and
stop at Jersey Street and Richmond Terrace and
give out presents to the kids? Was there really
a home for orphaned kids (Mount Loretto) (where
once a month my mother promised to check me
into)? In the 1930's, Which of Staten Island's
best known restaurateurs, bought a house across
the street from his famous restaurant and built
a 200-foot tunnel between the house and the
restaurant so that he could safely carry the
day's receipts from the restaurant to his home.
Did such rock legends, like the Allman Brothers,
Vanilla Fudge, Alice Cooper, Black Sabbath and
the Kinks really play the Island? Did John F
Kennedy, sip coffee at the St. George ferry
terminal? Can you believe that a famous Island
milk company resorted to rowboats to delivery
milk to areas from Oakwood to Midland Beach
during some of the worst storms to every hit
that area? These were some of the many questions
I had as my interest in Staten Islands past
grew. In recent years I have come across so much
information about our Island's rich and diverse
past, that I wanted to share with all Native
Islanders and people who have called the Island
home. But I did not want this to be another
history book on Staten Island, though; at times
it may look that way. I will not go into details
about the British occupation of Staten Island
for seven years, or the draft riots during the
civil war, or the burning down of the Quarantine
Station. I will try my best to make this a
lighthearted look at memories that we have of a
place that was and is still close to our hearts.
I will try my best to make you say, "Wow, I
remember that". . . .
From the
Publisher
Being a native Staten Islander, I thought I knew
all about this Island. In my later years I
became very interested in the Islands history. I
wondered about all the things I was told about
Staten Island but never had the opportunity to
personally see. This work is a collaboration of
many people and many sources of information.
$17.95 + $3.00
Shipping
Book can be
autographed
Editorial Reviews
Product
Description
To the shores of this Island have come many
generations of people who were determined to
make a good life for their families. They have
left behind them a record of significant
contributions in all fields of human endeavor.
Awareness and appreciation of this heritage can
come only through knowledge and understanding of
past struggles and achievements. ( as written in
Holden's Staten Island: The History of Richmond
County ) The Island has been a haven and a home
for many, ranging from: The family of a
President of the United States ( John Tyler -
Broadway and Clove Road ) Two of our country's
Vice Presidents of the early 19th century A
dethroned Emperor of Mexico ( Antonio Lopez de
Santa Anna - Known as "The butcher of the Alamo"
) A liberator of Italy ( Garibaldi ) The first
native born American ( Elizabeth Bayley Seton )
beatified by the Roman Catholic Church The
Governess to the children of the King of Siam (
Anna Leonownes ) As well as many inventors,
scientists, poets, editors, artists and scores
of naval and army heroes.
About the
Author
Author of many books about Staten Island, New
York. The author is a native Islanders and a
lifelong resident. His love of Staten Island can
be felt in his writing.
Product Details
 | Paperback: 166 pages |
| Publisher: CreateSpace (April 15,
2010) |
| Language: English |
| ISBN-10: 1452818193 |
| ISBN-13: 978-1452818191 |
| Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.4
inches |
| Shipping Weight: 10.9 ounces (View
shipping rates and policies) |
|
$15.95 + $3.00
Shipping
Book can be
autographed
Staten Island Winter
Scenes
Brooks Falls
Bulls Head Tavern
Lighthouse
Christmas 1914
St. Marks Place, New Brighton
Westervelt Avenue, New Brighton
Richmond Avenue Holidays 1930s
Port Richmond Avenue
Port Richmond Square
Port Richmond Avenue & Richmond Terrace
Staten Island
Quiz
Here is a nice Staten Island quiz made up by
one of my website visitors
WHO DID NOT LIVE ON
STATEN ISLAND ?
Choose the ONE
person in each group who did NOT live on
Staten Island
1. Paul Newman - Jerry
Orbach - Martin Sheen
2. Mabel Normand -
Annie Oakley - Lillian Gish
3. Alexander Hamilton -
Daniel D. Tompkins - Aaron Burr
4. Brooke Astor - Amy
Vanderbilt - Emily Post
5. Gene Simmons - Alice Cooper - Vito Picone
6. Christina Aguilera -
Madonna - Joan Baez
7. Willie Sutton - Paul
Castelanno - John Gotti
8. George Westinghouse
- Charles Goodyear - Giuseppe Garibaldi
9. Gerald Arpino -
Clive Thompson - Alvin Alley
10. Buffalo Bill Cody -
Peter Stuyvesant - Ichabod Crane,
11. Langston Hughes -
Henry David Thoreau - Walt Whitman
12. Ernest Flagg - John
A. Roebling - John Merven Carrere
13. Robert Merrill -
Eileen Farrell - George M. Cohan
14. Bobby Thomson -
Terry Crowley - Joe Torre
15. Franceso Scavullo -
Ansel Adams - Mario Buatta
16. Rocky Graziano -
Randy “Macho Man” Savage - Mike Siani
17. Steven Segal -
Robert Loggia - Sylvester Stallone
18. Isaac Asimov - Paul
Zindel - George William Curtis
19. Francis Cardinal
Spellman - Pat Robertson - Father Vincent
Capodanno
20. Elizabeth Ann Seton
- Alice Austin - Emma Lazarus
You can find the answers as
soon as you buy my book
"Famous People from Staten Island" :)
or
you can check back in a few weeks when I post
the 20 answers
If you like email me with the
answers, I will email back if you get all 20
correct
click here -
Famous Islanders Quiz Answers
Willie
Sutton on Staten Island
Famous bank robber Willie Sutton settled on
Staten Island after escaping from Holmesburg
prison, Philadelphia in 1947. He hid out on
Staten Island while the cops hunted him down (
from a story in The Saturday Evening Post –
June 9th 1951 )
Under the name of Eddie Lynch, he worked as
a porter in the Farm Colony Hospital (across
the road from Seaview Hospital) for $90.00 a
month. He spent a few years at the Farm
Colony.
After Willie crunched out of the
Pennsylvania prison in February 1947, he'd
come to Staten Island where he'd spent three
whole years scrubbing floors in his hospital
job, meanwhile living quietly with a landlady
( a nice Irish lady named Mary Corbett) on
Kimball Avenue in Castleton Corners and going
to church, on Sundays with her and helping her
tend her flowers. During a two week vacation
that he had, he waterproofed the cellar of
Marys house. He seeded the lawn and painted
the house. This small house on a quiet street
became his sanctuary. As long as he was in
this house he felt completely safe. He felt as
if the bank robber "Willie Sutton' was dead
and the fairly decent "Eddie Lynch" had taken
his place.
Throughout much of this period, he was very
patiently observing the daily routines at the
Manufacturers Trust Co., 47-11 Queens Blvd.,
Sunnyside, Queens, getting to know exactly
what the guards did when. Accordingly, things
went like perfect clockwork when Willie and
several pals hit the bank for $63,933 one
morning in March 1950. After which Willie
unobtrusively took the IRT and the ferry and
the No. 111 bus back to Kimball Ave. and
remained uncaught for two more years. In
Willie’s words - "These young kids, they don't
believe in hard work," he grumbled. "All these
kids want to do is run into a bank, grab the
money and run out.
A headline from The
Washington Post - Washington, D.C. Mar 26,
1950
" Fugitive's Landlady Held in $50,000 Bail"
A Staten Island woman who rented a
room to Willie Sutton, bank robber and jail
breaker, until four weeks ago was held in
$50,000 bail today as a material witness in
the $64,000 robbery of a bank in Sunnyside,
Long Island, on March 9.
The St. George Theatre
If anyone remembers the St.
George Theatre, you will be glad to hear it has
been revitalized and is open for business, it is
now a showplace for Broadway quality
entertainment, concerts, comedy and much more.
I have personally been to this theater many times
and I can say, it rivals many of the theater
houses in Manhattan.
To read about or to get
tickets please click the photo below
Graham Beach
1947
Dot's Spot on the Beach
The story
begins when Bud (Thomas) and Dot (Dorothy) Ferry
were told by their little girl’s doctor, that
she should be brought to the sea shore to help
restore her health after surviving a bout of
rheumatic fever. Bud had an idea to get to the
shore. He found and purchased a surplus storage
building that the Army had for sale. Bud and
his friend, Teddy, refurbished the building
making it the only hot dog stand on Graham
Beach. All went well. The concession was named
Dot’s Spot, as Dot would be the major
operator of the cute stand on the beach. Dot
kept a very large drawer filled with baking
potatoes on hand, and when weather would allow,
she would dole out the potatoes, to beach-goers
who had a driftwood fire going. They would throw
the potatoes into the glowing embers and then
enjoy the wonderful aroma and taste of the
charred “pommes de terre”. Their little girl,
Joyce, did indeed regain her health and she
along with her brother, Tommy, enjoyed several
carefree, adventure filled summers at the shore.
Then came a strong Nor’easter in the fall of
1948, and the hot dog stand was no more. The
storm swept the stand off its foundation, down
the road about five(5) blocks and three or four
blocks inland, where it was deposited right in
the middle of the street until bull dozers came
in to clear the streets and redeposit the tons
of sand to the beach.
There
has been much comment about how many Wetson's and
where they were on the Island
As far
as my research goes I have found four Wetsons
locations
The
two addresses in the above photo + two more
#1 -
1525 Hylan Blvd. was on the corner of "Burgher"
Avenue, Dongan Hills
( Now a Mr Bargain II Auto Parts )
Robert Hall Clothes was across the street
#2 -
1767 Forest Avenue near Morningstar Road,
Graniteville
( Now a Firestone Store )
#3 -
Forest Avenue between Broadway and North "Burgher"
Avenue West Brighton
( Now a Bagel/Deli Place)
#4 -
Richmond Avenue, New Springville
( Near Pathmark and Costco )
...... A
story from the book
Mosquitoes Scare off Ulysses S. Grant
At the close of his presidency he visited Staten
Island with the thought of accepting an offer
from the American people. That offer was the
famed Garner Mansion in West New Brighton.
Except for the swarms of mosquitoes that
inhabited Staten Island, the prominent American
would have become an Island resident. The
dwelling which Mr. and Mrs. Grant anticipated
occupying was the building which had been
erected by a prominent New York businessman,
Charles Taber, and sold to Mr. W.T. Garner,
Commodore of the New York Yacht Club. After the
catastrophe during July 1876, when Mr. Garner
and all on board his yacht had been drowned when
the vessel capsized during a storm, the house
was selected by a committee as the people’s gift
to General Grant.
This plan was, however nipped in the bud by the
hordes of mosquitoes which in 1876 were a
scourge on Staten Island. On a gloriously bright
day in June, General Grant was brought down to
inspect the place. The day was ideal and he
expressed himself as delighted with the
magnificent property and beautiful surroundings,
and all that was needed was the approval of Mrs.
Grant. But the time selected for her visit
proved to be just the reverse. The day was hot
and muggy and the mosquitoes swarmed in the
millions.
It was not possible to postpone the visit. So a
pair of fast horses whirled the lady across the
country, and she was actually in the house
before the pests made an impression. Mrs. Grant
was as pleased with the house as had been the
General, and in due time suggested an inspection
of the grounds. Then came all manner of excuses:
she ‘was too tired for further exercise on such
a warm day: inspection of the grounds and
neighboring estates would take an entire day and
had best be left to another visit,’ etc., etc.,
etc. But she was one who believed in doing it
now, and the resulting trip through the mosquito
infested shrubbery quenched all desire on her
part for a home on Staten Island.
The building later became a prominent part of
St. Vincent’s Hospital
New Dorp, Staten Island
St. George, Staten Island |
