Bf 127 i: .L8C3 ^fej;!-:-;::;:; MiillillllllliliilllliiBlii^ B|||||||^^^^^ 1 ii;. ^^m LIBRARY OF CONGRESS \l' DD0D51ili7331 ■4'J 'bv" ,^c •' h^'"-*. ...' ./ "- * v*::^'\*^' ^oV" ,*^C) > /•o HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE RAILROAD OF LONG ISLAND, FOR KTgw York Business Men. Published for gratuitous distribution by the South Side R. R. Company of Long Isla?id. ■«>^xt»- l&xoo\d^n, ®, :3). 1873- Entered accordiao' to Act of Congress, in th? year 1373, by Gkorgs L. Catlin, in th2 Oifi:e of ths Librarian of Congress, at Washington. Off leiiE Mi Biiiei ois — OF THE — SOUTH SIDE RAILROAD — OF — JOHN J. SHIPHERD, - - PRESIDENT. ELIHU HOSFORD, - VICE-PRESIDENT. CHARLES L. HOPKINS, Secretary. CHARLES H. DEWEY, Treasurer. H. G. SMITH, General Manager. L. S. CANFIELD, Superintendent C. H. DEWEY, A uditor. J. C. LANE, Chief Engineer GEO. H. GRIGGS, Master Mechanic. THEO. WELLS, Purchasing Agent. THEO. WELLS, ^ Land Agent. L. C. SLEIGHT, Supt. of Depots. JOHN J SHIPHERD, WILLIAM FLOYD JONES. CHARLE3 FOX. ELIHU HOSFORD, J. BOORMAN JOHNSTON, H. C. HEPBURN, JACOB R. SHIPHERD, WALTER S. CARTER, DANIEL T. UTLLETS, T. D. TAPPEN, JOHN D. JONES, GEO. WM. BaLlOU, CHARLES H. DEWEY. HOMES i .'^ SO UTH SIDE RAILROAD LONG ISLAND A Sketch of the Region traversed by the South Side Railroad of Long Island, between Brooklyn and Moriches, together with a State- ment OF THE Inducements offered by Property Owners along the Line, for the purchase of HOMES FOR NEW YORE BUSINESS MEN. yusi without the rush and bustle 0/ the City's throbbing hearth B^^ G-EIOI^OE: L. O-i^TLIIoT. PUBLISHED BY THE SOUTH SIDE RAILROAD COMPANY OF ^, . J ISLAND. ./ 873. tfrd^py^ sH'f INTRODUCTION. The annually increasing demand for complete, succinct and reliable information concerning the numerous attractive towns and villages on the Hne of the South Side Railroad of Long Island, as eligible places of residence for New York business men, has rendered desirable the publication, for gratuitous distribution by the Company, of a work of this character, setting forth the inducements offered to prospec- tive settlers, conjointly by the Company and real estate owners at each point, the natural advantages in point of health and surroundings, the religious, educational and so- cial facilities to be met with, and a general statement of the advantages to be derived by exchanging a home in the city for one in the healthful and salubrious region traversed by the road. Interwoven with the narrative will be found many facts of historical or cotemporaneous interest, pertain- ing to the various localities mentioned. The rapidly grow- ing popularity of Long Island, as a place of surburban resi- dence, gives assurance of future development far exceeding the expectations of the most sanguine. Already thriving towns and villages, cities in embryo, have sprung up in the fields and woods as if by magic ; older places, stationary for years, have awakened to new life and vigor ; streets, avenues, hotels, manufactories, churches and school houses spring suddenly into existence, and the region which a few short years ago was deemed remote and inaccessible, becomes, by the enterprise of men and the agency of steam, transformed into one continuous settlement, teeming with life and pros- perity, andojOeopled mainly by men whose avocations call them daily toT^nc^, great metropolis. G. L. C. "Why not move out into the country?" This was the inquiry addressed by a portly, good-natured elder- - ly gentleman one afternoon in a shipping office on South street, to his book-keeper, a young man of twenty-five, who, at the close of his day's duties, had stepped in to have a confidential talk with his em- ployer about the difficulties he encoun- 4 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. tered in supporting himself and his family upon a salary which, though fully as large as competent accountants usually receive, proved, he said, notwithstanding economy and system, quite inadequate to the aggregated demands of his city-landlord, grocer, butcher, and — doctor. '* The fact is, Mr. Gunnybags," said the young man, " I am almost discouraged. I have hesitated a long time to speak to you on this subject, for your kindness and liberality make me loth to say anything which could be construed into ingratitude. But really, I find myself, month by month, get- ting more and more behind hand, do what I will to econo mize. I live moderately, keep but one servant, don't even think of cigars, or wine, or horses, do without a great many things that may almost be considered the necessities of hfe — and notwithstanding all this, find my expenses, Httle by little, growing to be in excess of my income. So I have de- termined to tell you the whole story, and ask your advice." Now, Mr. Gunnybags was a kind hearted man, always ready to do what he could to lighten the burdens of his fel- low creatures. Moreover, he had noticed of late that there was something weighing on the young man's mind. So he said, "Take a seat, Mr. Manifest, and let us talk this mat- ter over. Now, in the first place, have you any income to depend upon beyond your salary ?" " No, sir." " Very well, then, take your two thousand dollars, and if you have no objection, let me know what becomes of it." ''Well, sir, in the first place the largest item is house-rent. I've got a little house, two stories and an attic, up in Six- tieth Street, west of the park, for which I have to pay a yearly rent of eleven hundred dollars." "■ There's more than half your income gone already." HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 5 " I know it, sir, but what alternative had I ? We boarded for a year down on Thirtieth Street. The board bills alone amounted to fifteen hundred dollars, leaving out our personal expenses, servant hire and doctor bills, and the discomforts and annoyances which we experienced made me resolve not to try it for another year. Then we tried the plan of rent- ing a floor, but that was really very little better, either in point of economy or privacy. So I took the house in Six- tieth Street two years ago, and have been occupying it ever since, although the landlord has been hinting pretty broadly his intention to raise the rent next year." " Well, that's eleven hundred dollars. Now, go on, and let us hear what becomes of the remainder." " Forty dollars a month, say, to the grocer and butcher, and ten dollars for servant hire." " That makes six hundred more, or seventeen hundred in all out of your two thousand dollars. Now, how do you spend the remaining three hundred ?" "Gas and fuel about t^n dollars per month, to average it the year round." " That's eighteen hundred and twenty." '•' Then my own daily expenses, car fare, etc., say thirty dollars a year." " That's eighteen hundred and fifty." " And that leaves one hundred and fifty dollars per annum, or just twelve dollars and a half per month, for clothing, doctors' bills, and all contingencies. Our shoemaker's bills alone amount to almost that." " How about the doctor's bills ?" " Well, sir, the city air don't seem to agree with the chil- dren ; one or the other of them is aiHng all the time. Last year our bill for medical attendance was about sixty dollars." HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. FROM WOODWARD'S SUBURBAN AND COUNTRY HOUSES. Published by Geo. E. Woodward, 191 Broadway, N. Y, " Then how much time does it take you to get down to the office from your house and back ?" " An hour each way — that is two hours daily, twelve hours a week, and two full days in a month passed on the horse cars, and standing up most of the way at that." " Clearly, then, something must be done," said Mr. Gun- nybags, kindly, " for at your time of life, a man should be saving money, instead of running into debt." And then, after a pause, came the question with which the story opens, "Why not move out into the country?" This was an idea which, strange to say, had never occurred to the young man, who, like thousands of others, was strug_ gling on with his burdens, taking it as a matter of course that as he never /z^^ lived anywhere save in the city, he HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 7 never could. The question opened to him a new vista in the future, and gave him new hope and courage the more he thought upon it. He was silent for a moment or two, and then answered, " I don't know why it wouldn't be a good plan, sir. What is your advice about it ?" " Move out of town by all means," replied Mr. Gunnybags. '' Leave your exacting landlords, your street cars, your doc- tors' bills. Find yourself a home on some one of the well- conducted railroads leading out of New York. Hire, if you please, at first, but on such terms that your rent-money can ultimately be applied in payment on the property, and by- and-by it will be your own, with no landlord to raise your rent. Then you will have health and happiness around you. It will take no longer to reach a home there than it does now to reach Sixtieth Street, and beside that you will travel comfortably to and fro. Your expenses will be thirty per cent, less than they are now, and at the end of the year, you will find that out of your income of tv^^o thousand dollars, you have been able to save at least five hundred." " It certainly strikes me favorably." " Perhaps you will miss some of your accustomed city con- veniences at first, but their lack will be more than counter- balanced by the consciousness that it is money in your pock- et, and peace in your mind. Try it, Mr. Manifest, and take my word for it, you'll be a rich and a happy man before many years have passed away." " I beUeve I will, sir. Now, the next question to determ- ine is, where to go." " I should say somewhere on Long Island. Take the South Side Railroad for instance. You could reach the Roosevelt Street ferry in five minutes from here, and thence 8 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. could reach any point on the Hne with comfort and speed The boats are commodious, and their cars are as comfort- able as any you ever traveled in. I went over the line when I took the folks out to Fire Island and Rockaway last summer, and it seemed to me I had never seen a road better man- aged or equipped. The commutation rates are very mod- erate, communication is frequent, and, take it all in all, I don't think you could find a more convenient or desirable line on which to look around for a suburban residence."* " Could I get to the city in good season in the morning, do you think ?" '•'Certainly; you could reach here by seven, eight or nine o'clock, and leave by three, four, five or six. By-the-by, to- morrow is a holiday, is it not? Why can't we take a trip together over the South Side Railroad, and then we can see and judge for ourselves ?" " Nothing would please me better." " Very well, then," said Mr. Gunnybags, rising and look- ing at his watch; "bring your wife along, cross over the Grand or Roosevelt Street Ferry, whichever is most conveni- ent (the horse cars connect with both), and meet me at the South Side depot, at the landing on the other side, in time to take the half-past eight train to-morrow morning." Mr. Manifest promised to be on hand at the time appoint- ed, and thanking his employer, withdrew. Hurrying home * It is the purpose of the Brooklj-n Steam Transit Company to construct an underground railroad. The route will be from Fulton Ferry uhder the new bridge to the corner of Washington and Sands streets, thence into Adams street, to Fulton, near the City Hall, thence into Schermerhorn street, and up to Flat- bush avenue, and along Flatbush avenue to Flatbush. At this point two sur- face roads will branch off— one to Bay Ridge and Coney Island, the other to East New York, to connect with all the railroads on Long Island. By this means Fulton Ferry will be made the terminus for all the Long Island railroads. — -V. V. Times. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 9 full of his new project, he drew, for the entertainment of Mrs. Manifest, a glowing picture of a rural kingdom, in which she should shortly be enthroned as queen; and, when he awoke early the next morning to make preparations for the trip, he remembered distinctly a dream in which a vision of rosy, smihng faces, green fields and a neat little homestead embowered in foliage, and overlooking the blue ocean, lin- gered gratefully in his memory. In after years that dream came true, and oft times recalling it, as he grew older and richer and happier, Mr, Manifest was invariably wont to bless the day when he set out to choose A Home on the South Side. So, reader, let us accompany them in imagination, and see with our own eyes all the varied objects of interest which, mile by mile, unfold themselves as we speed over the landscape. The sail of a few moments orf tlie East River gives us an opportunity to contemplate and admire the genius and enterprise evinced in the projected East River bridge, the immense stone piers of which rise like twin giants on either side of the stream. Here, too, we have a glorious view of the two great cities, and the forests of shipping lin- ing their shores, a glimpse of the bay and Staten Island in the distance, a glance at the Navy Yard, and before we have really had time to note them all, the boat is entering the slip on the other side. Now we land ; directly before us is the depot, a commodious building, occupied on the upper floor as offices by the President and other officers of the Company, and below as a station and telegraph office. Outside the cars are in waiting. Listen ! the bell is striking four times, which means that the train will start in just five HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. ihUy'l HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 11 minutes; now the bell strikes three times — that's for the dummy engine to back down and couple itself on; now again two taps — that's the signal to start — and sure enough, off we go through the shaded thoroughfares of the city — South 8th Street, Broadway and Boerum Street — a distance of a mile and three quarters, to the depot at Eyei\y '::^w, V 17 Cottages, Mansard-Roof Dwellings, AND E I. I C3- IB X. E AND V^illsL Sites! FOR SALE AT J^ MODERATS HATES AND EASY TERMS OF .m PAYMENT ! Specially adapted for a, 1 private residences, and re- stricted against all nui- sances. ^^^ For description of _ property see page 16. ^pply to R. R. HAZARD, Jr. IJO Broadway, N. Y. OR, O. B. FOWLER, Agent, Richmond Hill. i8 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 1 9 maica (one and three quarter miles distant) on the other, Richmond Hill justly claims the attentive admiration of all who contemplate exchanging a home in the dusty city for one in the suburbs. Fulton Street, Myrtle Avenue, and the Williamsburgh and Jamaica Turnpike also intersect it, and within its limits may be found, too, many charming drives, recently laid out by property owners. Mo e than this, its school faciHties, aside from those of- fered by its before-mentioned proximity to Jamaica, are un- usually good. A large and tasteful pubHc school-house has recently been completed, at a cost of nearly $5,000, and an excellent private school is also open, under the conduct of an estimable lady, the widow of the late Joseph B. Lyman, of the N. V. Tribune. There is also a public hall, in which religious services are held regularly, for those who prefer attending them to taking the horse cars on Fulton Street, or the steam cars from the adjacent station of the Brooklyn Central R.R. at L larenceville, for the Jamaica churches. The value of property at Richmond Hill depends, of course, to a great extent, upon its location. It may, how- ever, be said to average per acre at $1,750, while lots (25x100) vary in price from one to four hundred dollars. Tasteful and convenient dwelHngs, substantially constructed, can also be purchased on advantageous terms. (See advertisement.) A ride of another three-quarters of a mile brings us to BERLIN, {j% miles ; 55 rain. 7 trains each way daily.) A small village attractively located in the centre of a broad, open stretch of farming land, intersected not only by the road over which we are traveling, but by the Brooklyn Cen- tral & Jamaica R.R., and the Long Island R.R., whicli here 20 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. all converge toward a common centre in the now not distant village of Jamaica. Three years ago the depot was erected at this point, and since that time there has been consider- able activity in the sale of property, opening of streets and erection of buildings. Washington Avenue, a fine thorough- fare sixty feet wide, extends through the village from the South Side to the Long Island R.R. depot, opening many desiiable building sites within convenient access of either. Land sells at this point at from $150 to $250 per lot. And now, as we hurry onward again, we see every mo- ment indications of our approach to a more thickly settled region. Streets and buildings, and vehicles and people are to be seen on both sides ; chimneys, and turrets, and spires loom up from among the tree tops ; the whistle blows, the train slackens its speed, and the brakeman, opening the door, calls out, "JAMAICA." (8K miles ; 58 min. 7 trains each way daily.) And here we are at one of the quaintest and most inter- esting towns to be found the country over ; for Jamaica has an early history of its own, dating down from the Indian days, and interwoven with all the events of the Dutch occu- pation, the Colonial times, the war for independence, and the subsequent period of growth and progress. Naturally enough, one would suppose that its name came from its fellow Jamaica in the West Indies. Not* so, however, the most reliable authorities stating that it was called after the Jameco Indians, a tribe inhabiting this portion of the island. Jameco, in course of time, came to be perverted into "Ja- maica," which name has been retained in preference to the HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 2T old Dutch title of Rusdorp, (a country village,) given it by Governor Stuyvesant. — (See Appendix B.) Jamaica was incorporated as a village April 15th, 1814. In 18 1 9 t\iQ Long Island Farj?ier, and in 1835 the Zong Island Democrat were established, and both are still pub- lished here, as are also the Standard axidi the Catholic Church Journal (German), which commenced publication at a more recent date. With the advent of its first railroad, Jamaica commenced to take rapid steps forward ; then came a sec- ond, and a third, and a fourth means of communication with the Metropolis by rail ; and lo, many years will not probably elapse ere Fulton Street, which passes direct from the East River to the centre of Jamaica, will be continuously built up, a distance of twelve miles, from end to end, with the build- ings in good old Jama'ca numbered somewhere up in the ten thousands. A stroll through the town, with its shaded streets for dwellings, its busy^ thoroughfares of trade will bring to the visitor many objects worthy his attention. The new Town Hall, completed two years ago, is an elegant structure, as is also the pubUc-school building. The sidewalks are flagged, and the streets Ht with gas. There are an efficient fire de- partment. Masonic and Odd Fellows' lodges, churches of the Episcopalian, Dutch Reformed, Baptist, Methodist, Presby- terian and Roman Catholic denominations, several well conducted private schools, and stores and hotels which com- pare favorably with any to be found in places of similar size elsewhere. Jamaica has to-day about eight thousand inhabitants, and is steadily growing. Property is offered in moderate quanti- ties, and at points convenient to the depot, at reasonable rates. During the past three years, an unprecedented activ- 22 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. ity has developed itself in real estate, a large and fine estate, Talfourd Lawn, near to and south-west of the depot, having been almost entirely disposed of in lots to actual or intend- ing settlers. LOCUST AVENUE, (lo?^ miles ; I hour 2 min. 3 trains each way daily.) Is a small depot station, deriving its rather romantic name from the thoroughfare which at that point crosses the track, running from the Merrick Plank Road, on the north, to the Rockaway Turnpike, on the south. The road is lined with pleasant farm houses, and is the outlet to a quite thickly settled farming region, offering to the prospective purchaser quite a number of attractive sites for the erection of a home within business distance of the Metropolis. The next sta- tion, SPRINGFIELD, (12 miles ; 1 hour 5 min. 6 trains each way daily.) Is a village of some importance, lying principally to the northward of the station, and presenting, with its clusters of houses, its two neat church buildings, its numerous shade- trees, and its quiet, willow-fringed pond in the foreground, a charming appearance to the arriving passenger. There is considerable business done at this point, the village boasting several stores and public houses. Just beyond Springfield, we cross first the Rockaway Branch of the Long Island Railroad, and a little further on the great Aqueduct which supplies the city of Brooklyn with water, extending a distance of eighteen miles, from Hemp- stead Reservoir to East New York, at which point the water HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 23 is pumped into the immense Ridgewood Reservoir. This great subterranean conduit, which, from this point for some distance on, runs parallel to and within a few feet of our track, its arched surface forming a grass-grown ridge along the level landscape, was built in 1858, has a diameter of ten feet, (large enough to admit of the passage of a carriage and horses,) and has a maximum capacity of twenty-seven millions of gallons daily. Its average daily supply is, however, about twenty millions, the water being drawn from several reser- voirs established as feeders at convenient intervals between Hempstead and the city. Some distance beyond this, im- portant additions to the system of water-supply for Brooklyn are in progress, and we shall presently have an opportunity to inspect them. But here we are at BROOKFIELD, (13^!^ miles ; i hour lo min. 5 trains each way daily.) Another name for the good old village of Fosters Meadows, possessing a population of about 1.500, and extending in a scattered settlement over an area of about four square miles about the centre or village proper, which can be discerned among the trees about half a mile to the northward, on the Merrick Plank Road. There are three churches here, Meth- odist, Lutheran and Roman Catholic, to the latter of which is attached an excellent educational institute. The village, also, has a pubHc school of its own, and several stores. Pub- lic enterprise has, moreover, evinced itself in the construc- tion of a canal three miles long, connecting with Jamaica Bay, and affording facilties for the cheap transportation hither of coal, lumber and provisions. Fosters Meadows also possesses some histcrical interest, 24 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. from the fact that the British, in 1776, tore down a Presby- terian meeting-house which had been erected there, and with the materials constructed barracks at Hempstead. And now the shrill whistle of the locomotive, which has been hurrying us on through the smiling scenes of rural beauty, announces our approach to the important junction village of VALLEY STREAM, (15 miles ; i hour 13 min. 7 trains each way daily.) And looking from the car window, first on one side, then on the other, we see trains in waiting — this one on the right to carry us to Rockaway, or any of the delightful seaside resorts thereabouts ; that one on the left to whisk us over the New York & Hempstead Plains R.R. to Hempstead.* For the present, however, we must content ourselves with only a glance at these attractive diversions. Straight on to Pat- chogue our journey Hes to-day. To-morrow, or some other day, we will return to Valley Stream, and set out on a trip to the seashore, with its glorious breezes, its breakers, its bath houses, its scores of places of good cheer for the inner man. But what of Valley Stream ? Where it got its name must remain a mystery. Certainly there is no valley about the place ; and the only stream ever visible is the stream of passengers that pours out of one train into another on the * The Bay Ridge and Hempstead Railroad will be finished in time for next summer's (1873) travel The South Side Railroad Company will conduct its affairs. Commodious depots will be built at Bay Ridge and New Lots. From Bay Ridge fast steame s will carry passengers and freight to the foot of Wall Street, New York. This road will afford an outlet to a rich section of the island, and cannot fail to be of great benefit to the whole south side, now touched by the main line. By controlling this line of road, the South Side Company will have access to the Brooklyn Underground Railroad. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 25 long, hot summer days, when people must get to the sea- shore or die. But for all this, Valley Stream has a just right to great expectations. As the junction point of four roads, its future growth is assured. There are already two or three hotels, a flour and grist mill, a telegraph and post office, and several neat dwellings, including that of Mr. Olmsted, the New York architect. The Merrick Turnpike passes about a quarter of a mile to the north, affording easy connection with the church and school facilities at Foster's Meadows. There are many reasons which induce the belief that Valley Stream will shortly assume increased importance as a railroad centre. A new road, projected from Whitestone to Rockaway Beach, will pass directly through the village, and VALLEY STREAM LOTS. FOR SALE IN QUANTITIES TO SUIT. Special terms to manufacturers, and others who will build. There are three railroads now running to Valley Stream, and the Bay Ridge Road, landing passengers at Wall Street Ferry, will be in operation in 1873. All trains stop at Valley Stream. 167' Broadway, New York. enterprising capitalists also propose to construct at an early day a railroad from this point to Near Rockaway, thus af- fording the people of that ancient and quite important vil- lage more direct communication by steam with New York. Much, too, has been done by property owners to develop the natural advantages of the locahty, and render it a desir- able place of residence. Streets and avenues have been laid out, and a magnificent boulevard to Near Rockaway, a dis- tance of a mile and a half, is in process of construction. Lots and villa sites can be purchased at favorable rates. 26 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. ■ i'liifiiir HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 27 The simultaneous whistle of three locomotives — one head- ed for Rockaway, another for Hempstead, and our own, the third, for the towns ea-.t of us on the main Hne — renders the start from Valley Stream quite a busy and noisy episode in our journey. Presently, however, both the other trains have vanished, and we are whizzing along again through a finely settled country, well fenced, and apparently well drained, and displaying many substantial and commodious farm-houses, or an occasional villa. These gradually become more numer- ous as we approach PEARSALL'S CORNER, (16*4' miles ; I hour 17 min. 6 trains each way daily.) A village deriving its name from the family formerly owning a large tract of adjacent land. At this point passengers leave the cars for East (or Near) Rockaway, which is dis- tant about a mile and a quarter, and is, in fact, connected with Pearsall's Corner by a continuous settlement along the two principal streets. Union and Rockaway Avenues, run- ning between the two village centres. There is a large trade in oysters carried on from this point, an average of two hundred and sixty bushels of the delicious bivalves being shipped to Fulton Market daily. The attrac- tion of an oyster lunch in Fulton Market would, it may safely be said, lose half their power were it not for the famous Rockaway oysters, which, for the connoisseur, possess such a peculiar excellence. The oyster fishermen of East Rock- away are not behindhand in availing themselves of this de- mand for the product of their neighborhood, and among the population are hundreds who make the oyster trade their sole dependence. In preparing the oysters for the market, they are sorted -ZS HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. into three kinds, according to their size and quality. The largest are called " extras," the medium size " box ;" the third and smallest, called " cullins," are set aside for use in what are known as "plain stews." Reader, the next time you are in Fulton Market, remem- ber this, and if your appetite and purse will warrant, call by all means for a dozen of Rockaway " extras." In the matter of enterprise, Pearsall's Corner has much to boast of, and the arriving visitor is especially struck with the size and architectural beauty of the new Methodist church just completed near and north-east of the depot. There are also two schools, a public and a private one, a public hall, four stores, a druggists, a barber-shop, and, in fact, all the conveniences that one expects to find in a growing suburban village. The population of the village proper is estimated at about five hundred, though in the adjacent two square miles there are probably twice that number of people. In the immediate vicinity of the village, the residence of Dr. Auerbach, brother of the celebrated German novelist, the author of " On the Heights," and " Village Stories," is point- ed out to the traveler. Property sells at $i,ooo per acre for building sites, and from $200 to $500 for village lots. Following still the line of the aqueduct ridge on our left for a distance of a mile and a quarter further, we presently discry the white church-spire which marks the pretty and growing town of ROCKVILLE CENTRE. (18 miles ; i hour 20 min. 6 trains each way daily.) Which, with a population of about a thousand, three church- es, a district and a high school, a public hall and a weekly HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 29 newspaper, the South Side Observer^ presents its claims for notice as the most important place, excepting Jamaica, which we have yet reached since our departure from Brooklyn. The approach to the village is quite picturesque, and will attract the attention of any but the most stolid observer. Upon a knoll a short distance north of the track stands a quaint old church edifice, known as the " Old Methodist" church, surrounded by its moss-grown tomb-stones, from among which may be seen rearing itself conspicuously the marble monument erected twenty-five years ago, to mark the resting-place of nearly one hundred persons who per- ished three years previously in the wrecks of the packet ships Bristol and Mexico on the adjacent sea shore. It may be stated that the expense of the monument was defrayed by the aggregate of the sums of money found upon the bodies of the unfortunate voyagers. (See Appendix C.) Just be- yond the church, we come in view of a large mill-pond, a clear and beautiful body of water, and upon its shores the old mill where, in times gone by, the Rev. Mordecai Smith, the good pastor of the church just mentioned, devoted such leisure as he could spare from expounding the Scriptures to grinding corn and keeping an old-fashioned country store for the accommodation of the neighborhood. The educational facilities of Rockville Centre are unusual, the R. C. Institute, under the conduct of Mr, Cheney, ranking among the best classical schools on Long Island. It occupies the large and handsome edifice surmounted by a cupola, discernible a short distance north of the depot. As an evidence, in fact, of what enterprise and the railroad combined are doing for Rockville Centre, it may be men- tioned that during the past year no less than forty new buildings have been erected. Building lots 50 x 200, eligibly .3© HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. located, can be purchased at five or six hundred dollars, while some command even as high as one thousand. About a mile to the northward of the village an immense work is in progress, and the passenger, if he can spare the time, will find it well worth his while to alight and visit the spot referred to. For there, on the loth of January, 1872, Messrs. Kingsley & Keeney, of New York, who built the Brooklyn Reservoir at Prospect Hill, and are largely identi- fied with the Brooklyn Bridge and other prominent works, commenced the construction of a new reservoir for furnish- ing the great city nearly twenty miles away with a vastly in- creased supply of that valuable, though by some greatly de- spised, fluid, cold water. This great receptacle will require three years for its completion, covers an area of 231 acres, is two miles long, has an average width of from one to two thousand feet, and a depth of nineteen feet, has at its lower end a dam twenty-five feet high, and, what will perhaps afford the reader a better idea of its size, will have a minimum ca- pacity of one thousand million gallons — enough, one would say, to supply the city for a year or two ; yet the daily mini- mum consumption amounts to over twenty milHons of gallons. The visitor to this interesting spot will be kindly and courteously treated, and will find in the contemplation of the great work, the swarms of laborers, and the immense mechan- ical appliances employed upon it, renewed gratification at the indomitable genius and energy of our people. BALDWIN'S ^2o miles ; i hour 34 min 7 trains each way daily.) Is a small and attractive village, named in honor of Hon. Francis B. Baldwin, whose handsome residence, surrounded HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 3 1 by spacious barns and granaries, may be seen to the south- ward of the track, just before we reach the depot. Upon Mr. Baldwin's grounds is also one of the finest private trout ponds in this section of the State, the numerous streams that run down from the interior of the island abounding in that delicious and wary fish, the artificial breeding of which is also carried on to a considerable extent at this and other adjacent points. North of the railroad track a few hundred yards distant may also be seen the private driving park attached to Mr. Baldwin's estate. The village itself has a small scattered population, a pub- lic school-house which stands on a knoll on our left near the depot, a Methodist Church, and that other great public con- venience, a post-office. There are quite a number of pretty building sites within five or ten minutes of the depot, the price of land being about the same as that quoted at the previous station. The scenes of our journey now begin to derive variety from glimpses of an occasional creek or inlet, opening away to the sea-shore on our right. Other than this, however, there is little to vary the monotony of the view on either side until our arrival at FREEPORT, (21% mile -5 1 hour 28 min. 6 trains each way daily.) A village with a population of two thousand, healthfully located on a dry, fertile ridge, running north and south, and extending about two miles back from the shore. Along the summit of this elevation extends the main street of the village, intersecting the railroad at the point where the de- pot stands, and also crossing in the village centre the Mer- 32 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. rick & Jamaica turnpike. Westward from this thorouglifare there stretches away a broad expanse of meadow land, through which it is proposed to open a number of streets and avenues, thereby rendering available for building pur- poses many eligible sites. There is already a spirit of en- terprise evinced in Freeport, and with it an increased activity in real estate interests. Among the fine residences already erected may be mentioned those of Geo. W. Bergen, Esq.. a short distance west of the village, and that of Geo. W, Wallace, Esq., of the South Side Observer^ which fronts on Main Street, near the depot. In public edifices, too, the village makes a very respectable showing. There are two churches (Methodist and Presbyterian), both of them taste- fully constructed, a public school and a Freeport Academy, two hotels, and a public hall. In addition to these, a new church, school and parsonage are projected, and a hand- some French-roof building, for use as a public house and billiard saloon, is in process of construction, directly oppo- site the depot. Freeport is largely interested in the oyster trade, too, as many as eighteen tons of oysters being shipped thence to the Metropolis in a single day. The oyster docks extend for a quarter of a mile or so along the shore of the creek at the southerly end of the village, and at certain seasons of the year present an active and busy spectacle ; in fact, the trav- eler along " Long Island's sea-girt shore " will not have made his tour complete, unless he shall have devoted an hour or two to a stroll along the winding roadway which, lined with cottages, conducts him to the landing, where, looking over the acres of meadows which line the shore, and following with his eye the devious course of the creek which winds through them, he may discern the blue ocean in the distance. HuMKS ON THE SOL'I H SIDE. 33 and be reminded, perchance, of a similar scene so beautifully described by Longfellov/ in Evangeline. One of the hfe-saving stations established along the coast by the Government is located on the beach at Freeport, a crew of eight men being detailed with a life-boat for constant readiness to assist any vessel which may be cast ashore in their immediate vicinity during the winter season. In sum- mer the detail is reduced to the number of two men. Freeport possesses postal and telegraphic facilities, and a number of well-kept stores, affording those who may make it their home many conveniences not enjoyed in all villages of its size. Those who desire to purchase here can secure good lots (50 X 100) in the heart of the village for from $300 to $500, or can buy by the acre at prices varying from $1,000 to $1,500. Our next stopping-place is MERRICK, (23 miles; i hour 32 inin. 7 trains each way daily.) Deriving its name from the Meric tribe of Indians, who formerly inhabited the region extending from Near Rock- away to Oyster Bay, and beautifully situated near and in full view of Hempstead Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of about two hundred, the residents being princi- pally wealthy farmers, with lands pleasantly situated, and in a good state of cultivation. '1 he milk business is also car- ried on here to a considerable extent. There are two good stores, post and telegraph oflices, a paper mill, a saw mill, and good water-power for other manufacturing purposes. There is also a good district school in a flourishing condition. The stranger arriving at Merrick cannot fail to be struck 34 HOMES ON THE SOU IH SIDE. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 35 with the evidences of neatness, enterprise and growth which he sees about liim. A few steps from the cars bring him to the centre of Merrick Avenue, a stately thoroughfare, six- ty-six feet in width, and three and a half miles long, stretch- ing away to the ocean on the one hand, and to the distant blue hills which form the ridge or backbone of the Island, on the other. A convenient sign-post informs him that, going south, he will reach the Brooklyn and Babylon Turn- pike at a distance of half a mile, and the Merrick landing or public dock half a mile further ; and going north three miles, the residence of P. C. Barnum, Esq., the time-honored New York clothing merchant. (See advertisement pubHshed elsewhere.) Three years ago, Mr. Barnum, who, it may be mentioned en passant^ owns fifteen hundred acres of land in Queens County, and is a devoted patron of agricultural in- terests on Long Island, purchased at this point a tract of about two hundred acres, forming a beautiful natural park, offering a large number of convenient sites for villa res- idences, and possessing also a fine water-power, available for manufacturing purposes. This tract, which is now under careful cultivation, Mr. Barnum contemplates at no distant day preparing for the market, as a site for homes for New York business men. Merrick avenue, which passes through the handsomest part of A. T. Stewart's purchase, will, during the spring of the present year, be extended to Westbury, on the Long Island R.R., with Glen Cove on the north shore as its ultimate objective point, thus prospectively opening a majestic sweep of road across the entire Island, and one which, upon the contemplated extension of tlie Bay Ridge and Hempstead R.R. to Jerusalem, will be intersected, within a space of six miles and at equal distances, by no less than four railroads running direct to the Metropolis. 36 HOMI'.S ON THE SOUTH SIDE. The observant stranger, even unaware of these antici- pated advantages, can see at a glance that Merrick is pos- sessed of activity and enterprise far beyond its years and size. The sidewalks are planted with shade-trees, lined with hedges, and lit by street-lamps ; while here and there may be seen, rearing itself among the foliage, a dwelling of more than ordinary architectural pretensions. Midway between the depot and the landing, at the crossing of the Babylon pike, stands the spacious summer residence of Charles Fox, Esq., President of the South Side R.R. Company; and a short distance north of it, that of C. W. Douglas, Esq., the late efficient Superintendent of the Company, but now oc- cupying a similar position with the N.Y. & Oswego Midland R.R. Co. FOR SALE AT MEHRICK, LONG ISLAND. On the South Side Railroad, twenty miles from New York, a splendid residence, complete with all modern improvements, beautifully situated, on Broad Avenue, only three minutes' walk from the depot, and ten minutes walk to Great South Bay. II rooms. House 25 x 26. French Roof. Extension 15 x 18. Lot 150 x 300-^18 City Lots. House built of seasoned lumber and by days' work. Hot and cold water, stationary tubs in the basement. FIRST FLOOR. — Parlor, sitting or dining room, and kitchen, marble man- tels in parlor and sitting room, bay windows in parlor and dining room. SECOND FLOOR.— Sitting rooms and two large bed-rooms, marble mantels. SECOND FLOOR EXTENSION.— Servants' bed room and bath-room, hot and cold water. „ ^ , , , THIRD FLOOR.— Three large bed-rooms. Lot well fenced, good garden : front yard nicely laid out. All trains stop at Depot. Price low, terms easy. For further information apply to JERE. JOHNSON, Jr., 21 Park Row, N. Y. The grounds of the Long Island Camp-Meeting Associa- tion, which have been beautifully ornamented and improved, and which are annually visited by thousands of persons, are situated a mile north of the depot. The locality abounds, too, in natural water-courses, among which are the celebrated Cedar Swamp streams, and in the cedar grove, half a mile from the station, is the Dark Bridge, a cool and romantic HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 37 resort for a summer day. Upon the neighboring shore, which it is proposed to connect by a line of horse-cars with the railroad, there are capital facilities for boating, fishing and still-water bathing ; and a steamboat will also connect with the outer beach, where surf-bathing may be enjoyably indulged in. All trains stop at Merrick, which is also the terminus of the early and late trains from New York. With all these at- tractions and facilities for communication, it is not remark- able that it promises at no distant day to assume the ])ro- portions and importance of a closely built village of resi- dences occupied by New York business men. Property, in lots or villa sites, can be purchased at reasonable rates. Our journey eastward from Merrick affords us frequent ghmpses of the open sea in the distance, with an occasional speck of white sail visible on the horizon. We pass, too, through a heavy growth of cedars, a refreshing contrast in their rich dark green to the varied foliage which has pre- viously fringed our route. Now we near BELLMiDRE, (24>4 miles ; i hour 35 min. 4 trains each way daily.) A village presenting to the traveler an attractive appearance, as possessing an unusual number of large and elegant private residences, showing that not a few have hastened to avail themselves of the natural advantages of the locaUty, as re- gards beauty and healthfulness, now that the railroad has brought it within such easy distance of the MetropoHs. Prominent among those who have already purchased and settled here is Mr. Fry, whose elegant residence and grounds were formerly the property of Mr. Jackson, whose name ^8 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. Bellmore and Ridgewood. FOE SALE ! BniLDIIG SITES ! IN THESE BEAUTIFUL PLACES, IN ^\.o\.«» \o S vv'v\ '^ vv V e;\\ a % e/ V ?. \ LAND AT BOTH THESE POINTS IS LAID OUT IN SUCH A MANNER AS TO AFFORD PUR- CHASERS AN OPPORTUNITY TO SE- CURE SUCH QUALITIES AS THEY MAY DESIRE. PRICE OF LOTS from $75 to $500. SIZE OP LOTS from 25 x 150 to 100 x 200. For particulars, apply to T]:ioina.s Vv^ell^wood, J/> Uilloughbi/ St,^ BrooJdyn. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SlDE.j 39 has figured so conspicuously in connection with the extensive Jackson Hollow litigations in the Brooklyn^" courts. The principal property adjacent to the depot is in the hands of enterprising owners, who have recently purchased it wath the determination of developing its natural resources to their fullest capacity, and placing it in the market in lots and villa sites at most reasonable terms. (See advertisement on page 3S.) ' Bellmore has a population of about five hundred, enjoying the advantages of a church (Methodist), school and several stores. A ride of another mile, during which we cross three fine running streams, all abounding in sport for the angler, brings us to RIDGEWOOD, (25I4 miles ; I hour 37 min. 5 trains each way daily.) The approach to which is rendered somewhat interesting by a view of an old mill, picturesquely located in a grove just north of the track. Both here, and at Bellmore, the traveler will observe that the land has a grade of about thirty feet to the mile, affording purchasers of property for residences am- ple assurances of excellent facilities for drainage and health- fulness of surroundings, while manufacturers may at the same time advantageously avail themselves of the water-power thus offered by the adjacent streams. There are in this vi- cinity three large and well-stocked trout ponds, including Ridgewood Pond, a beautiful sheet of water ; and here, too, pic-nic and excursion parties can enjoy the shady beauties of one of the finest groves on the Island. An especially notice- able feature of Ridgewood is the fact that there appear to be no poor settlers, the residences being all of a superior qual- 40 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. ity, and conveying to the pros])ective purchaser a guarantee that there will be no nuisances to detract from its desirabil- ity as a spot for the selection of a home. 7^he village itself, though as yet sparsely built up, is regu- larly laid out on both sides of the track, and derives an Ad- ditional importance as being the connecting point for the Quaker village of Jerusalem, a mile and a quarter to the northward. It is also the point at which all milk trains are made up, and as many as three thousand quarts of the lacteal fluid are daily shipped hence over the road. The owners of property at both this point and Bellmore offer extraordinary inducements to purchasers (see advertise- ment on page s^), and those seeking convenient and select homes on the South Side will do well to give their offers a fair consideration. And now, looking out upon our right, as we again hurry eastward, we presently descry the village of Seaford in the distance, cross the stream which marks the eastern boundary line of Hempstead township, and come to a stanistill at the depot at SOUTH OYSTER BAY, (27!^ miles ; i hour 42 min. 6 trains each way daily.) A vicinage teeming with reminiscences of historic interest, and abounding in natural attractions which have been de- veloped and beautified by the hand of man. If on alight- ing, the visitor will follow the road running southward from the station a distance of half a mile to the main turnpike road, which here, as elsewhere on our route, may be found skirting the south shore of the Island, a (ew moments stroll will bring him to the contemplation of many points of beau- ty and interest. At the junction of the two roads mentioned he will see on the left hand the stately dwelling, the smooth, HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 41 shaven lawns, the well-kept shrubbery, and the extensive hot houses of the Bronson estate, now owned and occupied by the widow of a wealthy Louisiana sugar planter of that name ; while on the right hand, telling in its neat exterior, its great swinging sign, its broad shaded piazzas, and its numerous barns and outbuildings, a silent story of the good cheer to be found within its walls, stands the old Vandewater House, kept by the family of that name for four generations past, and famous as a resort of sportsmen from New York and the Island generally. If now, passing the hotel, we turn first to the right, we may, after crossing the brook forming the boundary line before mentioned, stroll for a moment or two through the quaint little sea-side village ot Seaford, which, with its post office, Methodist church, hotel, public school, four stores, and lumber and coal yard, is rapidly be- coming a place of considerable importance ; and then, re- tracing our steps to Oyster Bay township, which, by the way, extends entirely across the Island from the Atlantic to the Sound, again pass the old hostelry and the Bronson place, and come in view of Massapequa Lake, a magnificent body of water covering some seventy acres, and having its outlet over a dam which we pass by the roadside. Upon the east- ern shore of the lake, which is studded with wooded islands, and is also famous as one of the finest trout preserves in the State, stands, on a commanding site, the spacious residence of its owner, WiUiam Floyd Jones, Esq., the Vice President of the South Side Railroad Company, whose ancestors as far back as 1696 came into possession of a large and valuable tract hereabout, known as " Fort Neck ;"* and whose imme- * This name is derived from an old Indian earthwork still visible on the adja- cent sea shore, where in 1653 an engagement took place be ween the Massape quas, and the white settlers under Capt. John Underhill. 42 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. diate relatives are with him to this day the owners and oc- cupants of the estate, which has been adorned here and there with several elegant villas, and a tasteful little Episco- pal (Grace) church where services are held weekly the year round. The original homestead of the Jones family was built in 1695, at a point directly in front of where the present resi- dence of Wm. Floyd Jones, Esq., now stands, and after an existence of nearly half a century, during which it acquired the reputation of being " a haunted house," was pulled down in 1837. But in the meantime Judge Samuel Jones (the great grandfather of the gentleman just mentioned) had built, at a point about a quarter of a mile to the eastward on the turnpike road, a princely mansion, which was completed some time during the year 1774, and which stands to-day, after a lapse of a century, as substantial, handsome and com- fortable a dweUing as may be found on Long Island. Mr. Lossing, in his excellent " Field Book of the Revolution," gives his reader a view of this good old homestead, and nar- rates several facts of great interest connected with it, one of which the writer has appended as possessing an usual inter- est. (See Appendix D.) Out of compliment to Governor Tryon, the place was called Tryon Ha.U by Judge Jones, who built it. Over the main doorway of the spacious hall which the visitor first en- ters, are a pair of antlers from a buck killed in the Mohawk Valley, and presented to the proprietor by Sir William John- son. Though built a century ago, when building materials had to be drawn by expensive and tedious means from New York, this house is one of no ordinary compactness, beauty and durability. The ceilings are fully as high as our own of to-day, the floors are wonders of joiner work, the stairs, con- HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 43 FROM WOODWARD'S SUBURBAN AND COUNTRY HOUSES. Published by Geo. E. Woodward, 191 Broadway, N. Y. structed without any outer support, are a marvelous problem of engineering skill, and the oaken rafters in the roof are as solid to-day as when first put in their places by workmen whose grandchildren are now grey-haired men. In fact, one must indeed be stolid and commonplace who can visit the homestead of a family whose history is so closely and hon- orably interwoven with that of its native State, who can tread its echoing floors, or contemplate the faces in the fam- ily portraits looking down on him with their quiet stories of the dead past, and not see dim visions of those colonial days when proud gentlemen and stately dames made these walls resound with merriment and revelry. But time and the spirit of development have commenced 44 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. to show themselves even here, and- it is probable that ere long a portion of the estate which fronts direct'y upon tlie sea, and commands a charming view, will be found built uj) with handsome villas and cottages. Certainly one could not wish for a more beautiful, healthful or interesting spot, and those who avail themselves of the opportunity will find that they can purchase at extremely reasonable prices. Bidding finally a reluctant adieu to this interesting spot, we find the next train is in waiting, and after a short ride of two miles, during which we cross a streamlet marking the boundary line between Queens and Suffolk Counties, and pass also the handsome newly-erected depot and spacious public building which form a nucleus for the projected vil- lage of Wurtemburg, arrive at AMITYVILLE, (30>4 miles ; i hour 49 min. 6 trains eacii way daily.) A thriving village of between one and two thousand inhabit- ants, which is annually growing in favor as a summer re- sort, being situated on the shore of Great South Bay, oppo- site the Oak Island Beach, which extends a distance of eight or nine miles eastward from Gilgo Inlet to Oak Island Inlet. There are two excellent hotels here, and many elegant pri- vate residences, which give evidence of both liberality and t; rchitectural taste in their construction. Many of the v/ealthier residents are men who have accumulated fortunes •lis dealers in Fulton and Washington Markets. The older ];ortion of the town which, prior to the construction of the railroad was reached by a Hne of stages from Fulton Ferry, is situated some distance south of the track, is quite closely j)uilt up, and contains a number of fine buildings, including HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. <^ miles; i hour ssmin. s trains each way daily.) Where, in three years' time has sprung up, as it were in the solitudes a thriving, bustHng settlement, teeming with Hfe, and giving promise of a great and successful future. There are here two churches, excellent schools, several important manufactories, and a capital hotel, where accommodation 46 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. BRESLAU. J8^-THE ^^^ONDER OF THE AGE! ASTONISHING PROGRESS IN limit im|f©Y@miiiB, The Best Pom on Long Island FOU MAKING INVESTMENTS. Lots are selling at good prices in all parts of the new city. Prices range from $oO to $500, ALREADY ESTABLISHED. A sure prospect mnthin Jit e years of being the largest city on Long Island, outside of Brooklyn. For particulars apply to THOMAS WELLWOOD, 15 Willoughby Street, Brooklyn. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 47 may be had for fifty guests. The streets and avenues of Breslau are well laid out, wide and well graded, one of them, Hoffman Avenue, through which the railroad passes, being especially noticeable in this regard. Most of the pro- perty has been laid off into city lots, and is offered for sale at prices varying, of course, according to location, but in all cases reasonable. The first plan of the town was drawn in 1869, by Thomas Wellwood, Esq., who, in April of the fol- lowing year, erected the first house which formed the neu- cleus of this now wide-spread settlement. No less than twenty thousand lots have since that time been disposed of, the majority of them to a thrifty class of Germans, who evince, in the rapid growth and development of their attrac- tive town, the advantage which any community may secure by harmonious and united efforts. Leaving behind us these cheering evidences of the growth and prosperity that the railroad and private enterprise com- bined have wrought, we commence to discover on both sides of us pleasing indications of our arrival in a section of the Island principally inhabited by well-to-do country gentlemen, or by prominent business and professional men of the cities of New York and Brooklyn, who have here their rural resi- dences, to which at all seasons of the year they may at their leisure repair for that recreation and comfort so characteristic of life in this good old-fashioned locaHty. While progressive in all that renders civilization desirable, the people of these parts are yet conservative in their views of hospitality and good cheer ; and the stranger finds a welcome seldom met with in these days of the almighty dollar. For in the heart of their pleasant region is 4? HOMKS ON THE SOUTH SIDK. BABYLON, (S5)4 miles ; 2 hours 3 min. 6 trains each way daily.) And the arriving visitor, observing its neat resi iences, snowy church spires, fine stores and school houses, and spacious hotels, must at once see that it is the home of a well-to-do and public-spirited community. The approach to the depot is especially picturesque and attractive. On the right one beholds a wide space of fresh water, fed by a plentiful stream from the interior, and stretch- ing away toward the sea, discernible beyond it. Near this pond stands the elegant country residence of Hon. E. B, Litchfield, of Brooklyn, and just beyond it an unassuming farm-house over one hundred years old, a part of the old Bedell estate, but now occupied as a country residence by Judge McCue, of the same city. Upon the adjoining grounds, a few years ago, a four pound cannon ball was turned up by a workman's spade, the presence of the long- buried missile being accounted for by the historical fact* that during the revolution, residents of this part of the coast were constantly exposed to predatory attacks from British boats, which, entering Fire Island Inlet, were wont to find in the dwellings of the inhabitants attractive targets for their howitzer practice. Upon the left or north side of the railroad, and a compar- atively short distance from it, stands the charming villa of August Belmont, and upon one or another of the neighbor- ing roads are to be found the summer homes of many prom- inent New Yorkers or Brooklynites, among which may be named those of Dr. Wagstaff, Royal Phelps, and Messrs. Udell and Sutton. Upon reaching the depot, the visitor enjoys an agreeable surprise at discovering horse-cars in waiting to convey him past the handsome new school house, down the HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 49 111 ylllllil ^'fipp:.iiH:".'""^ 50 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. Freeport, L. I., (See pages 31-33,) VERYDESIEAELEHOTELPeOPEBTYF0I},mE One Acre, Bcauii/ul Grove, etc., T\sro Minutes froin Depot. Price Tioxirl Terms Easy Enquire at S. S. E. E. Depot, Freeport. wide, shaded main street, past the three principal hotels, to the landing, about a mile distant, where the steamer Surf is in waiting to carry him nine miles in less than an hour's trip, to the summer hotel on the Fire Island beach, famous among New Yorkers as an unrivaled sea-side resort. From ten to twelve thousand people pass over this ferry and horse-car line every summer, and among them some of the best people in the country. There is a life-saving station, with two boats and a crew of fourteen men, established on the adja- cent beach. The fish trade of Babylon forms a prominent feature of its industries, eight or ten tons of fish being frequently shipped to New York in a single day. Residents at Babylon are afforded excellent religious and educational facilities, there being four churches — Episcopal, Methodist, Presbyte- rian and Baptist — a fine academy, and two well-conducted private schools. The iSouf/i Side Signal, an admirably con- ducted weekly journal, is published here. There are two telegraph offices, a straw paper factory, a public hall, and some stores that would do credit to a full-grown city. The growth of the village toward the east has carried it over the town- ship line into Islip, and in this latter part are to be found many of the handsomest dwellings, as also the P^piscopal HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 5 1 church, a large and graceful structure, before mentioned. To obtain a complete idea of Babylon and its surroundings, let the visitor ascend some fine day to the cupola of the Watson House, kept by that prince of Bonifaces, Selah C. Smith, and there gain a view covering an area of fifteen or twenty square miles, including, on the one side, the Fire Island light, the distant Atlantic studded here and there v'ith a snowy sail, the Great South Bay, the creek where a score or two of yachts lie at anchor, and on the other, the closely built village, and about it a smiling landscape dotted with villas, and suggestive of rural comfort and peace. For the benefit of those who would buy property in the vicinity of Babylon, it may be stated that village lots (50 x 100) sell at from $400 to $800, and good farming land at $600 per acre. Still following the line of the thickly settled South Road, we reach BAYSHORE, (sgX miles ; 2 hours 13 inin. 4 trains each way daily.) A village which is considerably spread out on both sides of the railroad, and where may be found a number of elegant dwelHngs, occupied by men whose name 5 are familiar in New York financial and mercantile circles. There is a pop- ulation of about one thousand, and the village boasts four churches — Episcopalian, Methodist, Presbyterian and Con- gationalist — a good school, and a famous hotel — the Old Dominy House. Land sells here at from $300 to $500 per acre. 52 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. ISLIP, (42 miles; 2 hours 16 min. 4 trains each way daily.) Is our next stopping-place. The depot and its surroundings give the visitor but Httle idea of the snug and pretty village of 800 people which he may find a short distance to the southward —a village with three churches — Episcopalian, Methodist and Congregationalibt — as many hotels, a public hall, a Masonic lodge — Meridian — and stores representing all branches of general trade. Here are the attractive resi- dences of J. Boorman Johnston, Esq., and Dr. A. G. Thomp- son, both ex-Directors of the South Side R.R. Co.; in the immediate vicinity, too, on Jackson's Neck, a picturesque cedar-studded point projecting into the Bay, stands the club-house where the Olympic Yacht Club of New York have their annual rendezvous. Three miles further on we pass the station known as CLUB-HOUSE, (45 miles ; 2 hours 26 min. 4 trains each way daily.) Established for the accommodation of the members and vis- itors of the South Side Sportsman's Club, whose spacious and comfortable building and grounds may be seen just north of the track. In summer time, the Club-house, which accommodates about one hundred, is generally well filled with guests, among whom may be mentioned Recorder Hackett (the President of the Club), and numerous other prominent men, with their families. OAKDALE, (46,14 miles ; 2 hours 29 min. 4 trains each way daily.) Has a small, scattered population, and boasts a school, post- office and one of the oldest Episcopal churches (St. John's) H^^MES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 53 54 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. on Long Island. Just south of the track may be seen the handsome residence of VVm. H. Ludlow, Esq., ex-Assem- blyman from this district. Quite an important point is SAYVILLE, (48'^ miles ; 2 hours 36 min. 4 trains each way daily.) At which we next arrive. Its population numbers about one thousand, and the visitor will find a pleasure in the general air of neatness and comfort which prevails. There are two good hotels here (one of which, the Bay View House, our readers will find advertised herewith), four churches — Metho- dist, Baptist, Episcopal and Congregational — excellent school facilities, a post office, telegraph office, public hall, All Through Trains stop at Sayville- BAY VIEW HOUSE, SAYVILLE, L.I. By ISAAC BEDELI . Near the Great South Bay. and two minutes' walk from the South Side Railroad Depot. Hotel Stag;es running regularly to all up trains. Now open for the accommodation of guests. The Proprietor, having made extensive additions in building, &c., would mvite the attenticn of those wishing to spend a few weeks in one of the most pleasant villages on the South Side of Long Island. Two Trout Ponds in connection with the Hotel. I ine Gunning, Boating, Fishmg and Still- Water Bathing. Boats for Fishing and Sailing Parties in at- tendance £t all times. Be .utiful Walks and Drives. Terms Moderate. Odd Fellow's lodge, and stores of various kinds. Among the permanent residents of Sayville are Hons. John Wood, a Supervisor of the county, and Chas. Z. Gillette, who formerly filled the same office. Sayville also is justly en- deared to amateur sportsmen by its proximity to the famous Green's Brook, just west of it (the finest trout stream, it is said, for miles around), and by the facilities in the way of « HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE, 55 guides, equipments, etc., afforded visitors at the Bay View House for undertaking any fishing or hunting excursions in the proper season. At BAYPORT, (50,1^ miles ; 2 hours 41 min. 4 trains each way daily.) We reach a village that is justly proud of the fact that there is not a pauper or a destitute family within its borders. At this point there are several quite elegant dwellings, (among which may be mentioned that of Walter Homans, late Su- perintendent of the South Side R.R. Co.,) an Episcopal church, with a Union church about to be erected, a well- conducted District school, a post office, and several well- stocked stores. The oyster and fish business of Bayport is also considerable, the Bay at this point being navigable up to the village front, with no intermediate marsh or meadow land. The population of Bayport is about 500. Stages connect at this point with all trains. Three-quarters of a mile further we stop for a moment at the pleasant little village of BLUE POINT, (,5iX miles ; 2 hours 44 min. 4 trains each way daily.) With a population of two hundred, and a large oyster busi- ness, which has given the bivalves from this locality a dis- tinctive name in the market. "Blue Point" oysters are famous for their excellence the country over. There are two churches — Baptist and Methodist — a post office and school at Blue Point. The price of land here, and indeed at all points hence from Babylon, may be quoted the same as at Bayshcre. And now we approach the important town of 56 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 57 PATCHOGUE, (53?€ miles ; 2 hours 48 min. 4 trains each way daily.) And looking from the car- window, may note on both sides indications that we are nearing a place of no ordinary activ- ity and life. On the right we see, stretching away to the Bay, the waters of Patchogue Creek, crowded with boats at an- chor, and hned on either shore with dwellings, boat-houses, railroads and ship-yards ; on the left, buildings, mills, church- spires and hotels loom up, and, ere we know it, our train has entered the depot — not a station building only, but a spa- cious structure built on the style of our large city depots, and containing commodious offices and waiting-rooms for the convenience of the public. Patchogue has been the terminus of the South Side Rail- road until the construction of the extension during the pres- ent year to Moriches. Aside from its importance, however, as a railroad point, it posseses intrinsic claims on account of the public spirit and enterprise of its citizens, the neatness and beauty of its edifices, both pubHc and private, and its delightful and healthful location. Deriving its name from the Indian word " Po-chough " (many Httle waters), a title aptly bestowed, there being no less than seven fine ponds within an area of a mile and a half about the village, Pat- chogue dates its settlement far back into the old colonial days, it being related that when General Washington made a reconnoisance towards the eastern end of the Island, there existed at this point a mill and a few houses, under the roof of one of which he temporarily abode. The superior water- power afforded by Great Patchogue Pond, a handsome sheet of water with a fall of nine feet at the west end of the village, appears to have designated it originally as an avail- 58 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. able point for settlers, and to-day a cotton factory and a flour mill are both in active operation at that point. Patchogue has to-day a population of 3,000, and since the advent of the railroad in 1869, has been steadily growing. A glance at the spacious and handsome nev/ school house, recently erected near the depot, at an expense of $15,000, is alone sufficient to ensure the visitor that he is in a live, go-ahead community. There are four churches, too — Con- gregational, Methodist, Episcopalian and Roman Catholic — and three hotels, one of which. Roe's Hotel, under the management of Austin Roe, the veteran Boniface of Long Island, and his son Justus Roe, Esq., presents especial attrac- tions which will be found advertised herewith. I^OE'S HOTEL, F^TCHOC-TJK, L. I. AUSTIN BOB & SON, - Proprietors, {^"Carriages are in readiness on the arrival of every train to convey Passengers to the Hotel. .^^ The private dwellings of Patchogue include many elegant and tasteful edifices, prominent among which may be men- tioned that of Hon. Geo. F. Carman (ex-U. S. Collector, Assemblyman and Sheriff,) late the General Manager of the South Side Railroad. The business interests of Patchogue are varied and ex- tensive. A weekly paper, the Advance, is published here, and a well-conducted business-sheet, the Patchogue Business Advertiser, is also issued by Messrs. Broughlon & Preston. Well-stocked stores, representing nearly every branch of trade, may be found in the village ; and if the visitor will give himself the pleasure of a stroll down the shaded street HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 59 j which leads him to the shore about half a mile away, he will vgain a fair idea of the immense oyster trade done at this 'point, some three thousand bushels being sometimes shipped [away in a single day. The boating, fishing and bathing faciUties of this locality lare especially worthy of note, too, the Great South Bay, which is at this point about four miles wide, affording abund- ant opportunity for enjoyment in all three of the modes mentioned. Nor should the lover of rare and exciting sport omit to note that in the winter season, when the Bay is one wide-spread sheet of smooth, clear ice, he may, with a skill- jful pilot like Capt. Dan. Nev\ins* at the helm, shoot safely ijover it on an ice-boat at the lightning rate of a nlile a min- liute, and reach the outer beach in a space of time so short fas to make the journey seem more a dream than a reality. li" Captain Dan," who knows every foot of this coast and the , waters about it, has been fitly chosen by the Government to Ijtake charge of the Life-Boat Station on the outer beach, and jthe visitor who braves the cold and the ice will find in an l| inspection of the station, and its complete apparatus for the rescue of the shipwrecked, cause for pleasure and admira- (tion. ' Leaving Patchogue, with its pleasant scenes and memo- ries, behind us, we pass on over the newly completed exten- 'sion to the httle station at * On the 15th of August, 1870, Miss Mary Barlow, daughter of Charles Bar- low, Esq., of New York City, while sailing with a party cf ladies and gentle- men on the Great South Bay, opposite Patchogue, fell overboard in the middle of the Bay, and would have been most certainly drowned but for the bravery and presence of mind of Capt. Daniel A. Nev^^ins, who instantly plunged into the water, and, at imminent peril of his own life, succeeded in keeping the young lady afloat until the boat could be put about, and reached them. A handsome gold watch, presented by Mr. Barlow to Capt. Newins, bears an appropriate inscription descriptive of the exploit. 6o HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. UNIONVILLE, (55^ miles. 3 trains each way daily.) Or Union Street, as it is sometimes called, situated in a fine, open farming region, with a large, though scattered popula- tion about it. While there is no village centre at this point, it may be stated that adjacent residents have the advantage of a good public school, and are near enough to Patchogue to render its church and mercantile facilities easily available. Two miles further on we reach BELLPORT, (57,¥ miles. 3 trains each way daily.) A flourishing village of a thousand inhabitants, and possess- ing the finest water-views of the Bay that we have yet met with. C. Godfrey Gunther, Esq., ex-Mayor of New York, is a frequent summer resident of this village, which, in fact, has been for many years past, notwithstanding its previous accessibility only by stage or private vehicle, a favorite resort for a great many well-to-do people from the neighboring cities. There are two churches — Methodist and Congrega- tional — a hotel, several handsome residences, and an educa- tional institute — the Bellport Academy — the reputation of which, for liberality and thoroughness of training, has ex- tended even beyond Long Island. From Bellport our road trends off to the north-east, and two miles and a quarter further on brings us to FIRE-PLACE. (S5% miles. 3 trains each way daily.) In old times, long before the days of railroads, or even stages, the country folks who came down to this point on HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 6 1 the sea-shore from the interior to purchase hay, had erected here a large furnace or fire-place, around which they might gather for warmth on the cool, crisp autumn nights during their stay, and hence the village has retained its name of "the fire-place" to this day. Its post-office, however, bears the more modern and common-place title of Brookhaven, derived from that of the township in which its located. The village has a population of about eight hundred, with two churches, a school and several stores, and promises with the coming of the railroad to acquire a new interest and import- ance for those seeking summer homes on the South Side of Long Island. Two miles further on, our route crosses Carman's River, the largest stream, with one exception, on Long Island, and one possessing a splendid water-power for manufacturing purposes. \\' ithin half a mile of the point at which we cross is the pretty village of South Haven, where the Suffolk Club, of which August Belmont, John Van Buren, and other well- known men were, or have long been active members, has its head-quarters. The trout-fishing in this vicinity is said to be unusually fine. From Carman's River, our course lies due east a distance of about three miles through a comparatively thinly-settled region to Forge River, another important stream, the waters of which furnish motive-power for a paper-mill and saw-mill close at hand. Upon the west bank of this river, at its con- fluence with the Bay a short distance south of the track, dwell a small tribe of the Poospattuck Indians, who live in a state of partial civifization, and gain a liveHhood principally by the fish and oyster trades. Crossing the river, we reach the station at 63 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. WEST MORICHES, (6:iX miles. 3 trains each way daily.) The point at which the passenger connects with the popu- lous settlement lining the old South road where it enters Moriches township, a short distance to the no:thward. In fact, from this point to the end of our route, now seven or eight miles distant, the traveler will find the country thickly settled, and the main turnpike roads assume the appearance of a continuous village. CENTRE MORICHES, (62!^ miles, 3 trains each way daily.) Has been for many years past a favorite place of resort for summer pleasure seekers, having been, prior to the present season, reached by stages from Moriches station on the Long Island Railroad. Fronting delightfully on the East Bay, containg several fine hotels, and a number of well-kept boarding-houses, offering to residents excellent religious and educational facilities, and with unsurpassed faciHties for bathing, boating and aquatic sports, it may reasonably be expected that, v/ith its increased proximity by rail to tlie Metropolis, its celebrity and popularity as a watering-place will hereafter be vastly enhanced. EAST MORICHES, (67% miles. 3 trains each way daily.) Possesses many natural attractions and surroundings in com- mon with Centre Moriches, and is a summer resort of a sim- ilar character. And now, hurrying on through this pleasant region, abounding in evidences of rural wealth and prosperity, and fanned by the healthful salt-breezes of the Atlantic, we near HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 63 the termination of our journey, and in a few moments more come to a stand-still at the depot at Moriches, where our road forms a junction with the Sag Harbor Branch of the Long Island Railroad. And here for the present we rest. But beyond stretches a great, and populous, and thriving section of the Island, in- cluding the famous watering-places, Quogue, the Hamptons, and glorious Montauk ; and who knows but that at no dis- tant day our iron charger, not content with ending his jour- ney here, may still further speed us on over this smiling land- scape, and bear us to those now distant scenes of beauty and comfort. For less than ten years ago there was no railroad by which New Yorkers could find direct access to most of the attractive villages through which we have already passed. Rockville Centre, Freeport, Amityville, Babylon, Islip and Patchogue had all to be reached by stage by the traveler, Yet now, the South Side Railroad whistle has awakened them all to an unwonted life and vigor, and why may we not hope that ere another decade has elapsed, the same cheery whistle may re-echo from end to end of the good old Island of Nassau, along a pathway traversed daily by thousands of New York business men ? 64 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. THE ROCKAWAY BRANCH. Rockaway ! what memories of sweltering summer days in town, of hurried seizure of valise and duster, of a rapid ride over the ferry, and on the cars, of a crowd of perspiring pas- sengers, babies screaming, fat old women suffering agonies, young ladies looking deliciously fresh and cool, and elderly gentlemen, with palm leaf fans, and utterly regardless of ap- pearance, sitting in their shirt-sleeves — all this, and then, after it all, first a whiff or two, and then a steady breeze, then a gale of glorious cool wind right from the ocean, and freighted with odor of salt and sea-weed, and with sound of roaring surf. Ah, reader, you've been there, hav'n't you ? No ? What ? Never been to Rockaway ? Come, put a change of linen in that valise, and start with me this very afternoon. We go out by the South Side Railroad, of course, to Val- ley Stream (see pages 24 to 27), and there change cars. In August, last summer, there were some days when the im- mense trayel lengthened the Rockaway train out to the num- ber of twenty odd cars. Think of it ! So many cars crowd- ed full of people eager for the beach, the bath, the good cheer of the neighboring hotels. Well, Rockaway Neck is the place for them, and has been. As far back as 1843, a writer, speaking of it, says : " Far Rockaway, long celebrated as a fashionable water- ing-place, has been annually visited by thousands in pursuit of pure air, and the luxury of sea-bathing." This, you know, was written thirty years ago, and evea then it is mentioned as being "long celebrated." Our great- HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 65 grandfathers probably appreciated a good thing as well as we do, notwithstanding a generally prevalent tendency of ideas to the contrary. In fact, the poet's genius has been evoked to do justice to the beauties of the '' beach at Rock- away ;" but the lines have come to be so generally known and quoted, that we forbear to weary the reader by their re- production here. The region traversed by the Rockaway Branch Railroad for a distance of seven miles southward from Valley Stream to the beach, is a thickly settled one, forming, it may be real- ly said, one continuous settlement between the two points mentioned. At short intervals, depots are established for the convenience of residents or visitors at the neighboring hotels and boarding-houses, which in summer time bloom out like roses, but in winter are desolate and lone. Still, there is a large resident population which is all the year round tributary to the road, as many as four trains a day being run over the branch during the winter season. - Leaving Valley Stream, then, we pass first through a con- siderable stretch of woodland, and then emerge into the open country again, to find it liberally interspersed with farm-houses and villas. Our first stopping-place is HEWLETT'S, (16% miles ; i hour 16 min. 6 trains each way daily.) Deriving its name from Geo. T. Hewlett, Esq., a large land- owner residing in the vicinity. There are here two churches, a store, a good public school, and a population of two hun- dred and fifty. A few more minutes, and we reach 66 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. WOODSBURGH, (i8>^ miles ; i hour 23 min. 6 trains each way daily.) A village offering, on account of its proximity to the ocean on the one hand, and Jamaica Bay on the other, superior in- ducements to the public as a summer watering-place. Woodsburgh owes its existence to the liberal enterprise of Samuel Wood, Esq., of Brooklyn, a gentleman of the old school, who, possessing large means, conceived the idea of de- veloping the resources and attractions of this his native place, and of founding there a town which should be second to rone, save Brooklyn, on Long Island. With this object in view, Mr. Wood purchased, in 1869, successive parcels of land, aggregating between five and six hundred acres, and has since that time projected and carried to completion nu- merous and extensive improvements thereon, making it one of the most desirable summer resorts on the entire coast. The location, which is only seventeen miles distant from the Brooklyn city line, is one of great beauty, and affords a fine view of the ocean, of Great South and Jamaica Bays, and of a surrounding country studded with groves, cottages, farm- houses, churches and hamlets. In the spring of 1870, the mammoth hotel known as the Pavilion (see cut) was com- pleted, and has subsequently been enlarged to double its former size, until it now covers an area of 28,000 square feet. The building, which faces west, has three stories, with a mansard roof and cupola, contains two hundred and fifty elegantly furnished apartments, has water, gas and steam throughout, a superb parlor, and well-kept billiard-room for both ladies and gentlemen, and offers, from its sweep of broad verandahs on either side, glorious views of the Atlan- tic on the one hand, and the forest and prairie lands on the HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 67 jy^aBM^iaarvi ^SS^IM mmrnm W TREADWEUL ENE N.Y, PaTliloa Hotel, Wdodsiirgh^ CONTAINING ^-350 i:iegaixtly i^iirixislied. A.i>ai-tnxenLts ! WITH GAS, A.VD STEAM UE A TING APPARA TUS. Billiard Parlors for Ladies and Gentlemen Bowling ^kllf-ys, ISxtensjivw Stables, FINEST STILL AND SURP^ B4THING, PRIVATE BATH HOUSES. N. B.— This Hotel is frequented by the best class of summer visitors. l^OODSBURGH ! LOTS FROM $100 to $500. Terms ailasy to Actual Settlers. Cottages to Let, Furnished or Unfurnished, Address SAMUEL WOOD, 192 niONT STREET, K. Y. 68 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. otlier. At the foot of what is known as Boulevard Avenue, on the Bay, a spacious bathing-house has been erected ex- clusively for the use of guests. Boulevard Avenue is a de- cided feature of Woodsburgh, being fully one hundred feet in width, lined on each side with beautiful shade-trees, and extending a distance of one mile from the depot to the Bay. The hotel is kept by Mr. N. P. Sewall, formerly proprietor of the Madison Square Hotel New York. A handsome depot, with freight and baggage accommodations, has been erected, facing the Boulevard, on both sides of which thence to the hotel commodious and beautiful cottages, in various styles for the accommodation of both, permanent and tran- sient residents, have been erected. (See advertisement on page 67.) Visitors to Woodsburgh will find ample railroad and tele- graphic facilities in addition to the unusual accommodations previously mentioned. To those who would purchase property very reasonable inducements will be offered. A mile beyond Woodsburgh we reach the beautifully- located village of OCEAN POINT, (19 miles ; i hour 27 min. 6 trains each way daily.) Where the Rockaway Branch of the Long Island Railroad, coming in from the north-west, takes a course parallel with our own, hence to the beach, thus affording • residents at this point two lines of direct communication in both directions. The principal property owners at this point, the Messrs. Marsh, have spared^^no pains nor expense to render the sur- roundings of this naturally attractive locality as desirable as they can be made for the convenience and accommodation HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 69 00141 llllik ilflB OJ^ ROCK A IV A V NECK, NEAR WOODSBURGH PAVILION, Junction of South Side and Long Island Railroads. Fifty Minutes from New York. Full View of Jamaica Bay and Ocean. Surf and Still Bathing, Boating and Fishing in Perfection. Most Delightful Neighborhood and Beautiful Surroundings for COOL IN SUMMER. WARM IN WINTER. UNSURPASSED FOR Salubrity of Climate, Warm Fertile Soil, AND Abundance of Pure Water. NO MIASMA, NO MOSQUITOES. 500 Lots were sold last season at auction to an excellent class of persons. Broad, beautiful Avenues, Drives, and Boulevards bordered with Trees. Two Elegant Depots and a Splendid Pavilion are already completed, and improve- ments progressing. %M^ In Parcels to Suit Purchasers, at Private Sale, on Easy Terms. „^^ Altogether the most desirable, recherche, healthy and economical site for Homes in Winter and Summer, near New York. For Maps and further information, apply to JERE. JOHNSON, Jr., No. 21 Park Pvow, N. Y. 70 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE, of prospective visitors or settlers. Aside from the the equa- ble temperature, the natural drainage, the healthfulness of the place, and its accessibility by rail or boat from New York, there are many improvements which the hand of en- terprise has added to adorn and beautify. Ocean Point Ave- nue leading to the beach, and Central Avenue, a wide, hand- some drive, well graded, curbed and shaded, have, with many other streets, been opened through the property. The grounds have been liberally laid out in lots, and in plots containing from two to sixteen city lots, over ten thousand feet of fenc- ing have been put up, and two thousand shade-trees planted, thus adding to the attractions of nature all the artificial sur- roundings which give beauty and promise to a modern wr.- tering-place. Even a glance at Ocean Point from the car window suf- fices to assure the passing traveler that it presents no ordi- nary c'aims upon the attention of the prospective purchaser of " a home on the South Side." The general air of neat- ness which prevails, the many tasteful dwellings of prominent city people who have already availed themselves of its ad- vantages, and the well-substantiated fact of its perfect free- dom from miasmatic influences, and those little pests the mosquitoes, all tend to insure the resident that quiet and comfort so much valued by those who seek rest and rural recreation. (See advertisement on page 69.) LAWRENCE, (2o>^ miles ; i hour 32 min. 4 trains each way daily.) Deriving its name from Messrs. Newbold and Alfred Law- rence, of New York City, is a village of about five hundred people, situated at the intersection of the railroad with the HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 7 1 Jamaica turnpike. In its immediate vicinity are very many elegant and costly summer residences, some of them almost baronial in their size and style, and in the lordly hospitality of their occupants. Close at hand stand, too, many antique and interesting mansions, each with a family history of its own. Among these is Rock Hall, which has over one of its fire-places a painting of a child and dog, the work of the cel- ebrated American artist John Singleton Capley, the father of Lord Lyndhurst, Lord Chancellor of England. Residents of Lawrence enjoy good religious, school and postal facilities, and amid natural surroundings which are at once attractive and healthful. Says the writer previously quoted : " The atmosphere here, even in the hottest weather, is fresh, cool, and delightful. And now we near the Beach ; and the conductor, opening the door as the train slackens its speed, calls out : "FAR ROCKAWAY." (2t)i miles ; i hour 37 minutes ; 4 trains each way, dai y.) The depot is in a grove of oaks, beneath the shade of which the summer visitor finds a welcome shelter, before starting for the hotel which he may be presumed to have fixed upon as his destination. There are, of course, stages and carriages for those who need them ; but it is only a quarter of a mile or so to the village centre, so, let us walk. In winter time, all these mountains of plank and white paint and green Winds that we see before us are closed, and vacant. But now they teem with life and gayety. The clink of glasses and spoons in the saloons ; the clicking of billiard balls ; the rumbling of ten pins ; the rattle of wheels, and patter of pacers along the sandy streets ; the throngs of 72 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. pedestrians ; the stages and express wagons, and foot pas- sengers with valises, all convince one that Rockaway, what- ever it may be in winter time, is now in the height of its dog- day prosperity and bloom. Now let us go to the Beach, The cjuaint winding street leading through the village, and lined by a score of hotels and boarding-houses, will lead us to it. And what an inspiring sight ! Hundreds of people are scattered over the sands ; children gamboling ; young peo- ple flirting ; papas smoking their segars, and looking sage ; and anxious mammas looking on with watchful eyes. Boat- houses, awnings and sheds line the shore ; and there are boats in readiness to carry us over the narrow river to the strip of land beyond, on the outer edge of which are clus- ters of bathing-houses, where no end of people in ridiculous deshabille are plunging — some boldly, some timidly — into the foaming breakers. This is the real Rockaway, here, on this open beach, with this endless refreshing breeze, blowing in from the Atlantic. Try it, reader, on the first warm sum- mer day, and you'll return to the heat and dust of New York, vowing, that there's no pleasanter spot within an hun- dred miles than a summer '' home on the South Side," at Far Rockaway. SOUTH SIDE PAVnJON Is a building erected for a restaurant by the railroad com- pany, at the point where the track, after leaving Rockaway depot, first strikes the open beach. It is almost daily occu- pied during the summer months by excursion parties from the city. There are bath-houses here also, and the Pavilion is connected with the outer beach by a plank bridge, obviat- ing the use of boats in making the transit to the surf. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 73 From this point, the railroad trends away to the westward, traversing the sands of Rockaway Beach, aiiarrow peninsula, dividing Jamaica Bay from the ocean, and terminating at Rockaway Inlet, Along this beach are several noted and popular summer resorts, which are thus fortunately rendered easily accessible to visitors. The first of these is ELDERT'S GROVE, A hotel charmingly located close to the beach, to which, at this point, a grove of luxuriant cedars gives a picturesque and inviting appearance. HOLLANDS Is the next station, and derives it name from the proprietress of the public house, which forms the chief attraction of this immediate locality. SEA-SIDE HOUSE, The terminus of the Rockaway Branch, is a spacious and well-kept first-class hotel, built on the extreme point of Rock- away Beach, and commandng a view of Jamaica Bay on the one hand, and of the Atlantic Ocean on the other. The fa- cilities for surf-bathing at this point are unequaled ; and this fact, combined with the excellent accommodations offered by the Hotel, (see advertisement) and the frequent communica- tion with New York, both by rail and boat, (direct and via Canarsie), brings hither thousands of guests, and promises with each season an increased fame and popularity for this delightful summer resort. 74 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. APPENDIX A. HISTORY OF BU8HWI0K. On the 1st of August, 1638, Governor Wm. Van Kief t purchased for the West India Company a tract, extendinii; from Wallabout Bay to Newtown Creek, and from the East River to the swamp of Mespaetches (comprising the whole of the former town of Bush- wick, now the Eastern District of Brooklyn) for eight fathoms of cloth, eight fathoms of wampum, twelve kettles, eight adzes, eight axes, and some knives, corals, and awls. To this tract was added, May 10th, 1040, the hereditary right of the great chief Penhawitz, head of the Cannrsee tribe, who claimed the territory forming the present County of Kings, and a part of the town of Jamaica. Beyond the construction of a small log building, for purposes of trading and defence, near Wallabout, or Wall-bogt, there appears to have been no step tow^ard an occupation of this tract until February, 16C0, when a party of nineteen French emigrants arrived, with an interpreter, and by permission of Governor Stuy- vesant, were allowed to settle upon it at a point near the present corner of North Second street and Bushwick avenue. In the fol- lowing year, the settlement having increased in population to twenty-three families, was first recognized as a town, r. ceived the name of Boswijck (Town of Woods), and was allowed a govern- ment in the person of three magistrates chosen from its own people. Thenceforward, it grew slowMj'-, its people appearing to have taken quite an active part in all public measures pertaining to the interests of their own and the adjacent town. A town house was erected, and is still standing with its quaint memories. Bye- and-bye, more pretentious dwellings were erected, many of which remain to the present day, half hidden away among the modern structures, as mementoes of the hardy aiventurous race that first settled these now densely peopled localities. The Conselyea House, a well-preserved specimen of Dutch architecture, erected prior to the year 1700, may be seen on the block bounded by Jackson, Smith and Skillmau streets and Graham avenue ; between Parker and Bennett streets, near Debevoise avenue, are the two venerable De Voe houses ; on Debevoise avenue is the Debevoise House ; on Bushwick avenue, near the north-east corner of that avenue and North Second street, is the old Beadel house, now a grocery store, and at the junction of Parker street and Kingsland avenue is the ancient Dutch graveyard, where repose the remains of many who went to their rest little dreaming of the busy scenes one day to be enacted on the site of the quiet woods and meadows around them. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDK 75 76 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. Among the old records of the town of Bushwick, may be found several last wills and testaments, which indicate a curious mistrust of widcrvvs. As an instance we may quote, the will of Cornelius Van Cotts of Bushwick, dated in 1726, which, expressed in a curious sort of half Dutch dialect, devises to his wife Aunetje his whole estate while she remains a widow, both real and personal, " but if she happen to marry, then I geff her nothiug of my estate, neither real or personal. I geff to my well-beloved son Cornelius, the best horse that I have, or else £1. 10s. for his good as my eldest son. And then my two children, Cornelius Cotts and David Cotts all heef (half) of my whole effects, land and moveables, that is to say, Cornelius Cotts heef of all, and David Cotts heef of all. But my wife can be master of all for bringing up to good learning my two children (ofPetten) school to learn. But if she comes to marry, then her husband can take her away from the farm, and all will be left for the children, Cornelius Cotts and David Cotts, heeff and heeff . In the year 1738 a census showed the population of Bushwick to be 302. Nearly forty years later it had assumed a prominent part in the revolutionary struggle, and in the Battle of Brooklyn and the retreat which followed, was represented by a company of militia under Captain John Titus. Shortly afterward, a regiment of Hessians, under Col. Rahl, were quartered in the town, being billeted on the inhabitants ; and by these intruders much of the valuable timber upon the adjacent property was cut down. Tra- dition says that a Hessian Captain «me day wantonly hacked with his sword one of the door-posts of the 8uydam Mansion (which still stands on New Bushwick Lane, now Evergreen avenue, in the Eighteenth Ward,) leaving thereon marks which are visible to this day. After the Hessians left, a battalion of Tory guides and pioneers were quartered in Bushwick. These men were exces- sively odious to the patriotic Americans, and at the cessation of hostilities found it desirable to leave the country and settle in Nova Scotia, where they were provided for by the British Government. Bushwick enthusiastically celebrated (Dec. 2d, 1783.) the evacu- ation of New York by the British, and sent (Nov. 25, 1783,) a congratulatory address to General Washmgton, who returned a courteous and patriotic reply. Af-ter the Revolution the Bushwick farmers sowed, raised grain, and cultivated their "garden sass" in peace. In 1814 their popula- tion had increased to 75i), and property began to increase ia value, on account of its proximity to what was then, as now, the Metrop- olis of the Nation. An enteri^risiug New Yorker, Richard M. Woodhull, bought of Samuel Titus of Newtown, fifteen acres in the vicinity of North Second street, laid them out in city lots and named the tract Williamsburgh, in honor of Col. Williams, an United States engineer who had surveyed the property. He also HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 77 established a ferry to Corlears Hook (now Grand Street), New York. Shortly afterward, another operator, one Morrell, inaug- urated a similar enterprise, ferry and all, naming his tract York- ton ; but the country folks coming to town, first grew accustomed to the name of Williamsburgh, aud retained its use, notwithstand- ing the fad that both WoodhuU and Morrell became swamped in speculation, and their ferries were subsequently consolidated. But their enterprise survived the projectors, and thenceforward Williamsburgh grew rapidly. In 1827 (April 14th) it was incor- porated as a village ; in 1835 it had a population of 3311 ; in 1837 it sustained serious drawbacks on account of the great financial panic; notwithstanding this, it still grew, and in ISnl (April 7th) was created a city ; and finally, in 1854 was. with its parent town- ship Bushwick, consolidated with Brooklyn, as the Eastern Dis- trict of what is now the third city in the Union. APPENDIX B. HISTORY OF JAMAICA. The first record of the settlement of Jamaica is an application made in 1656, by Robert Jackson and others, for liberty to begin a plantation half-way between Hempstead and Carnarresse (the home of the Canarsies). In the confirmatory deed to this tract, given by the Rockaway tribe, occurs the phrase "One thing to be re- membered that noe person is to cut down any tall trees wherein Eagles doe build theire nests." Tne first regular town meeting was held February 18th, 1G57, and on that occasion measures were taken toward a division of properly, as will be seen from the following quaintly written cer- tificate of purchase. Nov. ye 25th, 1656, (stylo novo.) "These presents declareth yt wee whose names are under writ- ten being true owners by vertue off purchase ffrom ye Indians, and graunt ffrom ye Governor and Councell given and graunted ye 21st of March, 1656 ; I say wee are the true owners by vertue off purchase and our associates, our names being under written living at ye new plantacon neare unto ye Bever pond commonly called Jemaica, I say we in consideracon off our charge and trouble in getting and settling off the plase have reserved ffor our- selves ye ffull and just som of 10 akers off planting land a man, besides ye home Lottes in ye nearest and most convenient plase yt can bee found, and soe likewise 20 akers off meadowing a man in 78 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE, the coiivenientist plase they can finde, ami yt shall remaine as theires forever every mcin taking his Lott uccordiug to theire ifirst right to ye Land. Witness our hauds. Robert Coe, Benjamin Do3. John Townsend, Nicholas Tanner, Roger Lynes, Richard Townsend, Nathiiniel Denton, Sa-uuel Matthews, Geoige M lis, Andrew Messenger, John Laren, Robert Rhoades, D.uiiel D.Miton, Richard Everit, Henry Messenger, Abraham Smith, Henry Townsend, Thomas Wiggins." Richard Clasm're, Richard Sweet. In IfKJO Governor Stuyvesent granted a more ample patent to the above properly ; five years later Governor Nicoli issued a patent confirmatoiy of such lands as bad been purchased at different times, aad in 11185 Governor Dongan in turn issued a new patent therefor. Among the earlier records appears the following : ^' April 0, 1062. — It is ordered yt those which doe not appeare at ye bsati: g of ye drum, to goe to burn ye woods shall pay 2s. Cd. to thos3 who goe " About the same time the town voted "a trooper's coat and a kettle to the Indians in full of their claims for lands heretofore purchased,'' if they would give a discharge to the town. This was accented, and the following releas ' was executed : "We whose nr.mes are under written doe by these presents con- fess ourselves satisfyed ffor the 8 bottles of licker yt was promissd by the town, and ulsoe ffor all rights and claymes ffor any land yt wee have fformerly sould ye towne. Witness our hands this ffiveteenth of April, 1GG2. Rockause. Lumasowie. Wauraitampac." Some historical r-vents of interest are also connected with the Presbyterian church, wtiich, about the close of the seventeenth csntary, was creeled in Jamaica. Il was a stone edifice, built in quidranguiir form, about forty feet square, find occupied a point now about the centre of Fulton Mreet, opposite Union Hall St.* Ill 1702. an epidemic pre trailing in Ntw York, Lr.rd ("ornbury, the then Governor, with his Council, look refuge in Jamaic;), and were hospitably received, the Rtv. John Hublaid, who was pastor of the church, giving the Governor poFscssion of the prrsonage, which was at that time one of the best houses in the place. But his Excellency, not crnlentwilh this, quitlly proceeded to instal his own rector, the Ecv. Pr.tri(k Gordcn, rn Episcopal clergyman, in the church, rnd one Sunday mornirgMr. Hubbard, on appear- ing to conduct the sf iviccs as usual, fc.ur.d the building croAvded With friends of the Governor, and the Ecv. Mr. Gorden in the *See Illustration in Losing's Pictorial Field Book of the Revolution, Vol. 2, p. 811. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 79 pulpit. He accordingly was compsUed to adiourn to an adjicsnt orchard. When Lord Cornbury returned to New York he left Mr, Gorden in possession of the church, and it wis not until 172 5, and after much litigation, that the Prasbyterians were finally restored to their rights. About this Sims period (Sept. 22nd. 1701,) Thomas Willett, John Tallman and John Willett. members of the Assembly from Queens County, were expelled the House and declared guilty of contempt for coatumiciously refusing to take their seats in the Assembly, and for sending a paper to the House, written "in barbarous English, and showing their unacquaintedness with the English language." The paper in question will, in the mind of lovers of the Kings Eaglish, certainly justify the sentence passed upon these unhappy wights. Real it : " On trie 2{)th day of Ougust last the house consisting of 2 per- sons, wbeareof the Speeker was one, Tenn of the number did in the House chalings the Speeker to be unqualified for his being an all ine and afterwards did repetit the s ime to the G wner, wbich they have all so giv in under theare hands ; upon which heed the House, being equally divided, could give noe decision. Till you give us f ider satisfaction, and the Speeker clere himself from being an aliane, we cannot acte with you to sit and spend ower Tyme and the Country's money to mak actes that will be voyd in themselves." In tLe old Jamaica burying ground, the modern visitor will find upon the moss-grown tomb-stones many a quaint and curious in- scription. Among the many old residents whose remains sleep here was Samuel Clowes, Esq., the first lawyer settled on Long Island, who died August 27, 17(iO. The Reformed Dutch Church in Jamaica was the first of that de- nomination in the country, and was organized in 1702. Its church edifice, wiiich was, however, not completed till 171.5, and at a cost of £3'>(), stood on the south side of Fulton Street, just in front of where the present Dutch Church stands. In educational matters, ton, Jam \ica took an early and earnest interest, an excellent Academical Institute, Union Hall, the third school building on L^ng Island, having been opened May 1st, 1792. Among the voluntary contributors to this enterprise appear the names of Ex-Governors G3orge Clinton and John Jay, and among those who availed themselves at a liter day of its advan- tages was the f imous comediiUj Mr. Hackett, a grandson of the Rev. Mr. JCeteltas of Jamaica. In Revolutionary m liters J imaica figures but little. At the tim» of the B ittle of Brooklyn it was oecupied by a small force of Americans, under Gen. Nathaniel Woodhull, who, in consequenca of the tardiness of others, was prevented from participating in the engagement. On the previous day, however, becoming aware of Ho HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. Clinton's position, he had sent to the Provincial Congress an urgent request for reinforcements, but the regiments of Smith (Kings Co.) and of Remspn (Queens Co.) were too much needed on the lines at Brooklyn to be spared. "When Gen. Woodhull learned of the disaster which befel the arms of his countrymen on that fatal day^ he ordered his little command to fall back a distance of four miles to the eastward, and in the afternoon, with two companions set out from Jamaica to join them. While taking refuge from a thunder storm in the tavern of one Increase Carpenter, two miles east, he was captured by a party of British under Capt. Sir James Baird, who ordered him to shout "God save the King.'" He cried "God save us all," whereon Baird struck him with his broadsword, inflicting a terrible wound on his head and back, and would have killed him but for the interference of a iMajor Delancey. Gen. Woodhull was removed next day to a loathsome cattle transport in Gravesend Bay, and in consequence of an unskillful ampiitation of his wounded arm, died a few days afterward. After such outrages as this, it is not surprising that the inhabit- ants of Jamaica enthusiastically celebrated the advent of peace, as will be seen by the following extract from the Independent Ga- zette, N. r., Dec. 13, 1783 : " On Monday last the glorious event of peace was celebrated by the Whig inhabitants of Queens County at Jamaica. At sunrise a volley was fired by the Continental troops stationed in town, and the thirteen stripes were displayed on a liberty pole which had been erected for the purpose. At four o'clock a number of gen- tlemen of the county and oflScers of the army, who were in the neighborhood, sat down to an elegant dinner, attended by the music of a most excellent band, formerly belonging to the line of this State. After drinking thirteen toasts, the gentlemen marched in column, thirteen abreast, in procession through the village, pre- ceded by the music, and saluting the colors as they^passed. In the evening, every house in the village and several miles around was brilliantly illuminated, and a ball given to the ladies concluded the whole. It was pleasing to view the different expressions of joy and gratitude apparent in every countenance on the occasion. In short, the whole was conducted with the greatest harmony, and gave universal satisfaction. An address was likewise agreed upon to his Excellency George Clinton, Governor of the State, and signed by Francis Lewis, John Sands, Richard Thoms, Joseph Rob- inson, Prior Townsend, Abraham Skinner, Benjamin Coe, Robert Farnam and James Burling. " HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. APPENDIX C. A BEIEF ACCOUNT OF THE CmCTJMSTANOES ATTENDING THE DESTRUC- TION OF THE SHIPS BRISTOL AND MEXICO ON THE SOUTH SHORE OF LONG ISLAND IN THE TEARS 1836 AND '37. The awful catastrophe of these ill-fated vessels, and the conse. quent loss of life, are among the most melancholy events in the annals of Long Island. iSince the wreck of the British Sloop of War Sylph, off Southampton, no similar accident had occurred upon our shores, involving the sacrifice of human life to any con- siderable extent. The Bristol was an American ship, nearly new, this being her second voyage, and commanded by Capt. McKown, a gentleman long and favorably known as an able, prudent, and experienced ship-master. The cargo consisted of crockery, railroad iron and coal, besides an assortment of dry goods. She had on board a crew of 16, including officers, and about 100 passengers, chiefly emigrants from Ireland. The voyage was commenced at Liverpool Oct. 16, 1836, and after a pleasant passage across the Atlantic, made the highlands of New Jersey on the night of November 20th, and exhibited the usual signals for a pilot, but without success. At one o'clock on the morning of the 21st it began to blow severely, and the captain endeavored to stand out to sea, but the violence of the gale forced the ship more towards the shore, and about four o'clock she grounded upon the Rockaway Shoals, a few miles westward of the Marine Pavilion, it being on Sunday, Nov. 21. The following night was extremely dark, and the sea rose so high as to make a clean breach over the ship. The greatest danger was now apparent, and the passengers were advised to go below as the place of greater safety. The tempest increasing, a tremendous wave struck the vessel amidships, carrying away her bulwarks, boats, and every- thing movable upon the deck. The hatches were forced open by the concussion, and the hold was of course instantly filled with water, drowning most of the passengers below decks. From the dying, however, not a sound was heard, so instanta- neous and complete was the work of death. Parents and children, husbands and wives, relatives and friends met in the same moment a common fate ; thus perished in an instant of time between 60 and 70 souls of different ages, almost within sight of the port of their destination. Although the vessel lay within half a mile of the land, yet, owing to the heavy sea, no relief could be afforded by the people now assembled on the beach. At daylight, on the 22d, the scene which presented itself may be more easily imagined than described. The wretched and suffer- 82 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. ing passengers and crew that yet survived were clinging to the shrouds, and to every other part of the ship which promised the least hope of safety. In this dreadful state of almost hopeless despair they remained through the succeeding day, although the shore was thronged with anxious spectators, ready to afford any possible assistance to the exhausted and perishing sufferers. But the gale continuing with unabated fury, no aid could be given; the surf ran mountains high, so as sometimes to exclude the hull of the vessel from the view of those on land. In the meantime, the ship struck against the hard beach with such force as to break her in two, when the foremast, which had not been cut away, went by the board. The miserable passengers continued thus a part of the following night, exposed to the spray of the sea, to the most intense cold, and the absolute cer- tainty of perishing by starvation also. About midnight the wind somewhat abated, and by almost su- perhuman efforts, and at the imminent risk of life, a boat manned by resolute and experienced seamen from the shore, reached the vessel twice, landing the surviving females and a portion of the crew safely on the beach. The captain resolutely refused to go on shore until the survivors were safe, and was the last person who left the wreck. The ship went to pieces soon after, her stern post being the only part of her visible the next day. About half the bodies of those drowned were driven upon the shore, and were decently interred by the public authorities. Mrs. Hogan, her daughter. Miss Hogan, and Mrs. Donelly, with her two children and nurse, and a few other women and children, were among those saved, but Mr. Arthur Donelly, the husband, was lost. He had twice yielded his place to others, saying he would not leave the wreck while a female or child remained on board. In a third attempt made to reach the vessel the boat was swamped, which deterred the hands from any further trial. Mr. Donelly, with the two Messrs. Carlelon, the remainder of the pas- sengers and the crew, sought safety in the rigging of the foremast. This soon failed them, and out of 20 persons upon it, Mr. Briscoe only was saved, having accidentally caught hold of the rigging of the bow-sprit and thus drifted ashore. Scarcely had the public mind recovered from the painful excite- ment occasioned by the preceding event, when another disastrous shipwreck occurred, attended with still more awful and aggrav- ated circumstances. The American barque Mexico, of 300 tons, was also from the port of Liverpool, commanded by Captain Charles Winslow, her cargo consisting of crockery, railroad iron and coals, which had been taken in aloni-side the Bristol. She sailed, however, seven HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. S^ days Inter, leaving Liverpool Oct, 23, 1836, with a crew of 12 men. including the captain, and 1 12 steerage passengers, tbe greater portion of whom were Irish emigrants. After a most disagreeable and boisterous passage of 69 days at the most inclement season of the year, the vessel arrived off Sandy Hook on Saturday night. Dec. 31, about 11 o'clock, and lay to upon discovering the light upon the Highlands of New Jersey. On the morning of the fol- lowing day she bore up for the Hook, making the usual signals of distress, and also for a pilot. None, however, made their appear- ance, and the captain, being apprehensive of rough weather, stood out to sea under the most discouraging and distressing circum- stances. The voyage had thus far been unusually long and tedi- ous; the passengers had generally exhausted their stores of pro- visions, and had for some time been allowed one biscuit a day each from the ship, a quantity barely sufficient to eustiin life. To which were added oil the direful apprehensions of still more pro- tracted suffering from the want of a pilot, and the danger of at- tempting at that season of the year to enter the harbor without one. The weather was cold in the extreme, attended by a violent tem- pest of snow. On Monday the captain again approached the Hook and also signalized for a pilot, m which he was equally unsuccess- ful. With a-i anxiety not to be described he was compelled, amid the intense severity of the weather, and the almost unspeakable suffering of his crew, to keep away from the land during the re- mainder of the day and. ensuing night. On Tuesday morning at I oclock, after the most terrible buffeting with the waves, the crew and passengers being nearlj'- perished with the cold, the vessel hav- ing drifted towards shore, struck the beach at Hempstead South, within about ten miles of the wreck of the Bristol. The thermometer was now below zero, and there was a high surf breaking on the shore. The main and mizzen masts were imme- diately cut away ; the rudder was torn off by collision with the bottom ; the water was rising in the hold, and the spray, which dashed incessantly over the vessel, was instantly converted into ice. The wretched and despairing passengers, driven from below by the accumulation of water, and without any means whatever of shelter or protection from the cold, crowded together upon the forward deck, expoced every moment either to be washed over- board or frozen to death, as everything around them was incrusted in ice. Some secured their money and other valuables about their bodies, and each clung with death-like tenacity to those they held most dear. In this extremity of despair, when scarce a ray of hope re- mained, men, women and children, from the sire to the lisping infant, embraced each other, and with what feeble power remained tried in vain to encourage and support each other. In this horrible condition they remained until secured by death 84 HOMES ON THE SOU IH SIDE. from f urtlier agony ; and husbands, wives and children were after- wards found congealed together in one frozen mass. It was, in all respects, a scene of terror which language is incapable of de- picting, and which the most fertile imagination only can conceive. On the morning of the third of January, Raynor R. Smith and a few others, crossing the South Bay upon the ice, dragging their boat with them, arrived at the beach, a distance of several miles, determined, if possible, to afford some sort of relief to the suffering victims, but they soon found that any attempt to reach the vessel m the (then) state of the surf, would only be to sacrifice their own lives to no valuable purpose. The miserable strangers, still clinging to the mass of ice which the vessel presented, poured forth their supplications and cries for assistance in a manner which could hardly fail to move the stoutest heart. The heroic Smith and his valiant crew were wrought up to the highest pitch, and finally resolved that a trial at least should be made. The boat was accordingly launched from the shore, and in the utmost peril of being filled or upset, was able to reach the bowsprit of the vessel, when the captain, four passengers and three of the c ew who were upon the bowsprit, dropped into the boat and were conveyed with great diflBculty to the beach. But the danger which had been incurred, the state of the tide, the ex- treme cold and the approach of night, deterred the crew from attempting to again reach the vessel. Turning their backs upon the horrible scene, they made the best of their way home across the bay, aiding and supporting, as best they could, those they had rescued. But what must have been the feelings of persons on board, when they saw those from whom alone any relief was to be expected departing from their sight, can only be conceived ; their agonizing breasts must have been filled with a ten-fold horror. Thus, on that fated night, perished in the most awful manner 116 human beings, 3000 miles from their homes, and within a few miles of the port for which they set out. * * * * 4i * * Several citizens of New York, duly sensible of the meritorious services of Raynor R. Smith on the above occasion, caused a silver cup, with a suitable device and inscription, to be presented him, the ceremony of which was performed by the late Wm. P. Hawes, Esq., March 25, 1837. The Insoeiption. "Presented to Raynor R. Smith, of Hempstead South, L. I., by a number of his fellow citizens of the Fifth Ward of the city of New York, as a token of regard for his noble daring, performed at the peril of his life, in saving eight persons from the wreck of the fated Mexico, on the 2d of January, 1837." HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 85 APPENDIX D. "At Fort Neck (South Oyster Bay) on the South Side of Long Island, lived the Honorable Thomas Jones a Justice of the Supreme Court of New York, and a Loyalist of high repute. He v/as selected as the victim. On the evening of the 4th of Novem- ber, 1779, twenty-five volunteers, under Capts. Hawley, Lockwood and Jones, crossed the Sound from Newfield (now Bridgeport) to Stony Brook, near Smithtown, and marched directly toward the house of Judge Jones. They remained concealed m the woods one dav, and the following night at nine in the eyenmg were before the stately mansion. The Judge was entertainmg an even- ine party, and the young people were engaged m dancing, when the assailants knocked at the door. Their summons received no reply, and Captain Hawley broke open the door, seized Judge Jones and a young man named Hewlett, whom they found stand- ing in the passage, and hurried them off before an alarm could be given They lay concealed in the woods the next day, and the following evening prisoners and captors arrived safely at Fair- field except six of the patriots who, loitering behind, were cap- tured by pursuers. Judge Jones was kindly entertained at the house of Gen. Silliman by his lady, until removed to Middletown. The following May, 1780, he was exchanged f or Gen^ oilliman, and Mr. Hewlett for the General's son."— Lossmg s Pict. Field- Book WALTER T. KLOTS & BKO. DEALERS IN LIME, LATH, BRICK, AND Masons' Materials of Every Description. ALSO WELL BRICK CONSTANTLY ON HAND. Font South oth St Williamsburgh, one block south of South Side R R. Depot, Ld Foot RiSgton St., N. Y., tvvo blocKs north of Broome St. Hay Market. ^^' Good facilities for loading vessels at either place, WALTER T. KLOTS. J^=S «' ^^<>^»- S6 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE, This Favorite Resort offers to permanent or transient guests unequaled attractions in the way of Still and Surf Bathing, Boating, Sailing and FisMng. It is annually visited by hundreds of thousands of guests. FOUR TRAINS DAILY from foot of Roosevelt and foot of Grand Streeli Aiew York. T(me, One hour and a quarter. Frequent Communica- tion by Boat. The Hotel is only three hundred feet from the Depot, and tjve hundred leet from the Atlantic Ocean. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 87 P. C. BARNUM & CO.'S Wholesale and Retail CLOTHING WAREHOUSE, 196, 19S &; 200 Chatbain Square, ONE PRICE! ONE PRICE! ONE PRICE! An Extensive Assortment of the most Fashionable Style of Cloth- ing constantly on hand. Also, Garments of every description made to order in the best manner. ALIi GARMENTS MARKED IN PLAIN FIGURES. P. C. BARNUM. CHARLES HORTON, JOSHUA BARNUM. KINGS COUNTY Flour & Feed Mills, TONJES, HOEFT &: CO., PROPRIETORS, TVos. 3I9 33 & 3^ BroadAvay, One Block from N. Y. Ferries. WILLIAMSBURGH. L. r. MANUFAOTTJKEES OF All Grades of Family and Shipping Flour. Corn Meal and Mill Feed of all kindsIGround Daily. 8$ HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 89 CROSS, AUSTIN & CO. Lumber Dealers, . Cor. Kent Avenue & Cross Street, BROOKLTN, E. D. LUMBER DELIVERED ON BOAED THB SOUTH SIDE R. R. FREE OF CHARGE! MAEYffl CROSS. SHERLOCK AUSTIN. J. B. IRELAffl. 9© HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. WILSON BUILDING, 46 & 48 FOURTH STREET, (Adjoining SoniH Sifle R.R., only Fonr Spares Irom Sontt 7ili and Grand St. Femes,) Brooklyn, E. D. The undersigned, C. WILSON k SON, beg to return their sincere thanks to the pubUc in general for their patron- age and support, and would solicit those about furnishing *' Homes on the South Side," in full or in part, to ex- amine THEIR LARGE STOCK OF CARPETS, OIL CLOTHS, CaUnet Furniture and Bedding, Which are now offered at the lowest possible prices that can be obtained anywhere in this country. The stock is in every way complete, and it will be an ad- vantage to every one who may favor them with a call and view the same before purchasing, elsewhere. Having made very extensive purchases from IVIeSSPSt JOHN CROSSLEY & SONS, m England, of their well- known Carpets, of elaborate patterns, splendidly designed with colors blended in every shade, which are constantly ar- riving, enables them to fill any orders they may receive from friends and patrons. Yours respectfully, C. WILSON 56 SON. HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 9! BUSHWICK mm WORKS Cor. Boulevard and Scholes Street, BisooK;L~srN, e. r>. FRANCIS S. HAAS, i=»i^o:p:RiE!To:R. MA^OJFAOTUKER OP Ornamental Iron Work HOUSE ^wor-k:, STABLE FIXTURES, House and Cemetery Railing and Gates, HOUSE CRESTING-S, CLOCK FRONTS, -AND- MACHINERY CASTING OF ALL DESCBIPTIONS. 92 HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE. EDWARD C. MOFFAT, Iffo. 143 Fourth Street, BROOKLYN, E. D,, 18 PEEPAKED TO SUPPLY HOMES ON THE SOUTH SIDE —WITH— HOUSE FURNISHING GOODS! STOVES, f SILVER-PLATED WARE, HESTERS, SWISS CARVED GOODS, FURNACES FINE CUTLERY, Ki^LlSTGES, 1 Botli NlcM and Silyer-PlateJ. PlunilDing and Gas Pitting t^ jA. SI^EOI-A-LX^5r. Gas Fixtures, Shades, etc., and PUmilers' Materials fiir- nislied in all tlieir several kinds and at reasonable prices. 143 FOURTH ST., Brooklyn, £. D. SOUTH SIDE R. R. Of Long Island. Passenger and Commulalion Rates FROM BROOKL YN TO STATIONS. Bushwick Fresh Pond- Glendale Richmond Hill... . Berlin Jamaica Locust Avenue.. . Springfield Brookfield Valley Stream Pearsall's Corner. Rockville Center. Baldwin's Freeport Merrick Bellraore Ridgewood S. Oyster Bay Amilyville Breslau Babylon *Bay Shore *Islip *Oakdale *Sayville *Baypo:t *Blue Point ♦Patchogue . . ROCK AWAY BRANCH. Hewlett's... Woodsburg. Ocean Point. Lawrence . . . Rockaway. .. Local, .12 .12 •15 .20 .20 •30 30 .40 .40 • 45 • 50 •55 .60 .60 .70 .70 •75 .85 •95 $1.00 1. 10 1.2s 1-35 1.40 ^•45 1-45 150 •45 •45 .50 •50 •50 COMMUTATION. Months. 6 Months. 12 Months. 15-00 16.00 18.00 20.00 25.00 30.00 33-00 33-00 33^oo 35.00 37.00 37.00 42.00 42.00 45^oo 47.00 50.00 $28.00 30.00 34.00 40.00 40.00 40. CO 46.00 46.00 46.00 47.00 50.00 50.00 55-O0 55-00 60.00 62.00 62.00 I 70.00 % h. •■ 46.00^ 1 -r 47-00 I 2 ^. 48.00 I rt 52.00 \ ^^ I 55-00 j I 2 ^ 56^oo £ g g. 60.00 J 42.00 42.00 42.00 42.00 60.00 60.00 60.00 60.00 $50 00 50.00 50.00 60.00 60.00 60.00 75.00 75.00 75.CO 75.00 75.00 75.00 75.00 75.00 80.00 85.00 85.00 90.06 95.00 100.00 80.00 80.00 80.00 80.00 School Commutation. School Children, 16 years of age and under, may commute for three months, ten miles for $1.50 per mile, fractions of a mile of half and over to count a full mile ; over ten miles, $1.00 for each additional mile and fractions thereof of half a mile and over. Commutation Between Stations to Adults. Will be issued for three months at one-half the regukr fare, counting 78 round trips, which must in all cases be performed within the three months for which the ticket is issued. ^ FAMiXy^ SEWING MACHINE The sales of these Sewing Machines in 1871, as reported under, oath, in 1872, to the owners of the Sewing Machine patents, show, that the SINGER MANUFACTURING CO. SOLD DURING THAT YEAK 181,260 MACHINES! Ninety per cent, of them being for Family US3. -THIS IS OVER — 50,000 More sewing machines than were sold by any other Company during the same period. MACHINES SOLD ON EASY TERMS ! Principal Office, 34 Union Square, New York. JL' tl O 31 ^4. S C Agent in Buooklys Office, 326 Fulton Street. J. W« Pratt, Steam Book and Job Printer, T5 Falton St., N. Y. V '«• '.'^#%^,* «.* •^-v-^^^' •" ♦ .. ^ •"• ^ %. '"^' A- ° (.*'-•*• 'n.i