Saturday, February 12, 2011

A grievous loss

The loss of a great person, Bill Powell, 64:  link to Newsday here.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Snow in February, 1978

In these scenes from February, 1978, I obviously have not reproduced the brilliance of the original Kodachrome slides.  I'll keep trying!  Some of the photos look better when enlarged.  Click on the photo; then click again for more detail.


In this view south from Sunrise Highway, youngsters cross NY 135. 

At Merrick Road and Jackson Avenue, in 1978 the Long Island Savings Bank has replaced Powell's Hotel, but the name "Astoria" is in the future.  I believe the LISB was originally the Long Island City Savings Bank, main office at Queensborough Plaza.

The Seaford Post Office was on the south side of Merrick Road, east of South Seaman's Neck Road.  Previously, it was on the north side of the road.  The star on the letter box indicates late collections.  In 2011, the nearest letter box has its last pick-up at 1 p.m.  Beach Bum tanning occupies the former post office.  If I am correct, the covered loading dock in back dates from the time of Bohack's grocery store. 


In 2011, this building on the south side of Merrick Road east of Jackson Avenue is occupied by East Coast Karate.


Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Washington Avenue, Seaford, in 1910

In the U.S. census of 1910, Jackson Avenue counted about 176 residents, more than any other street in Seaford.  These are family names on Jackson Avenue: Covert, Whitier, Walters, Payne, Purvis, Ketcham, El, Raynor, Dee(?), Klopthor, Baylis, Ruck, Liddel, Cola, Adsit, Mansfied, Bedell, Matengus, Angell, Shuals, Seelig, Livingston, VonGallet, Killian, Miller, Tolhey, Burch, Darius,  Powell, Vooris, Dean, Zacahanas, Baldwin, Collis, Danver, Weeks, Smith, Beaumont, Haff, HJones, Vasance(?), Fortestcue, Mortimer, Hendrickson, Van Nostran, Verity, Southard.
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To sample the ancestry of the residents of Washington Avenue, I noted the birthplace given for each resident's mother.  Admittedly, large families tilt this count.  Of the 176 residents, about 135 had mothers born in New York State.  Also: 12 whose mother was born in England, 6 in South Carolina, 4 in English Canada, 4 in Germany, 3 in Ireland, 2 in Massachusetts, 2 in Scotland, one in the West Indies, and one in Illinois.
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As for occupations of the residents of Washington Avenue: 3 retail dealers of groceries, 3 retail dealers of fish, one of ice, a laundress, 4 laborers at odd jobs, a nurse, an Episcopal priest, 2 painters, a house builder, 3 servants, 2 adjusters for the railroad, a cashier for a steamship, a Methodist minister, 2 farmers, a patrolman for the railroad, a driver of coal and wood, 2 authors, a repairer of bicycles, 2 baymen, a life saver for the U.S.S.S., a worker in a railroad roundhouse, 2 gardeners, 4 carpenters, a coppersmith, an electrician for the railroad, a concert singer, a broker at a custom house, a restaurant worker, a teacher in the district school, the manager of a bakery office, a bookkeeper, an insurance agent, a produce salesman, and a dentist.
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I have probably made errors of transcription.  The enumerator's penmanship on this census was quite clear. Many of these family names show up on other streets in Seaford.  Please also see my previous posts linked by the label below, "Census of 1910." 
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The census is available on libraryancestry.com at the Central Avenue Library.  For 1910, Seaford is included in Town of Hempstead District 1. enumeration district 1103.
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In August, 2014, I went looking at the 1910 1900 census and discovered that the people are grouped by enumeration district, without street names.  Several family names and occupations were tip-offs that I was looking at the part of the Town of Hempstead that we call Seaford.  The 1900 occupation of Ansel Raynor was Postmaster.
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In September, 2017, I tried to compare the 1930 census on Washington Avenue with the above notes, and there were enough mismatches to worry me.  I question the "Jackson Avenue" name in the first paragraph above.  Also, I could not find in 1930 as many residents on Washington Ave., leading me to wonder about changing areas of Enumeration Districts.