HISTORY & MYSTERIES
Here is a post card showing the "Croton River, from Quaker Bridge, where Washington's Army Crossed." Below is a post card from the same period, showing what Quaker Bridge looked like at the time. Except for the unpaved road and the railing it looks the same as it does today, because our beloved Quaker Bridge is … Continue reading The View from Quaker Bridge
The amazing thing about searching with Google is that not only can you find a needle in the internet haystack—sometimes you find needles you weren't even looking for, like this story of Richard T. Underhill's involvement in the West Side and Yonkers Patent Railway Company, the company that began the New York City transportation system. First … Continue reading R. T. Underhill—Doctor, Winemaker, and Investor in the First New York City Elevated Railway
On June 17, 1922 the New York Times published an article on several raids conducted by Federal prohibition agents. The Central Brewing Company in New York City was indicted for selling beer with more than 4% alcohol content. The Feds also seized a Rabbi's wine, a widow's whiskey still and further upstate some multi-talented agents … Continue reading Our Multi-Talented Federal Prohibition Agents
"Nikko Inn, in Harmon-on-Hudson, Must Close for Two Months," read the headline of a short article in the New York Times, on May 20, 1925. "Ten restaurants, saloons and speakeasies were ordered closed yesterday by Judge John C. Knox in the Federal Padlock Court. The Nikko Inn, a Japanese roadhouse and tea room in Harmon-on-Hudson, … Continue reading Roy Kojima, Busted and Boastful
This vintage post card of the Nikko Inn is interesting for several reasons. Given the high cost of color printing at beginning of the 20th century, the fact that this is printed in black-and-white indicates that it was probably a local production—not a card issued by a major publisher. The back side confirms this because … Continue reading A Delightful Place to Dine
On July 16, 1928, when the New York Times published the obituary of William E. Harmon, the newspaper quoted from an interview he had given years earlier in which he described how he started his real estate empire. "The surest way is to hit upon something that everybody wants, make it possible for everyone to buy it … Continue reading What Does Everyone Want? Land
On July 16, 1928 the New York Times published the obituary of William E. Harmon. Three days later, the Times revealed his secret. "William E. Harmon . . . a retired real estate operator noted for his philanthropies . . . was Jedediah Tingle, the mysterious philanthropist who made generous financial gifts to great writers, … Continue reading William E. Harmon’s Death Reveals His Secret
Clifford B. Harmon is well-known to Crotonites as the famous aviator and real estate developer who created what he modestly advertised as “HARMON, the New City on the Hudson—the most important and extensive suburban development in the history of New York.” But how many of us have heard about his brother and partner, William E. … Continue reading The Other Harmon
In October 1867, Harper's Weekly published a full-page wood engraving of the Underhill vineyards. Entitled "Gathering Grapes—An October Scene on the Hudson," the image takes us back to the time when Richard T. Underhill was the "grape king" of Croton Point. How significant were the Underhill vineyards? In his multi-volume History of Wine in America, … Continue reading The Underhill Vineyards, 1867
In 1950 Theodore J. Cornu drew this map of the lower Hudson River as the Lenape saw it, circa 1600. It appeared as a small part of page 3, in issue #1, of his extraordinary hand-drawn, hand-lettered, self-published journal, Hudson Valley Echoes.
CROTON 