Happy New Year! (December 31, 1920)

 

First In Greenwich History: 'Lady Justices of the Peace' (November, 1920 Elections)

 Source: The Greenwich Graphic. January 7, 1921. Page 1.

REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT: What Greenwich Offers to Investors in Land (1899)

 Source: Greenwich Graphic. July 22, 1899. Page 1. 

Never before has there been such activity in the development of real estate in Greenwich is now. Those who are skilled readers of the signs of the times say that a big boom in real estate is at hand. And, to judge from appearances, it would seem that they are pretty near the truth. 

Two weeks ago we described Rockridge Farm, showing how these seventy-five acres have been opened up. And no other part of the town has the development of real estate been carried so far as there. But there are several other neighborhoods where a commitment is being made or is contemplated..

North of the Post Road near Chickahominy is the section known as "Belle Aire. This is a large tract of land, and very considerable improvements have been made to render it available for residences. This land is now on the market. It is full of beautiful sites, and when the impending boom strikes us with its full force, they may be expected to sell with quick succession.

South of this district in Chickahominy there is some extremely available land. Nothing has been done so far toward putting it in condition to sell, but we understand the steps will be taken soon in that direction.

It has often been remarked that the property owned by Mr. Smith Mead, on Greenwich Avenue it is, from its location, among the most valuable spots in the town. This is now to be opened up to the public.

The work of development is, we understand, to be superintended by Mr. George Mead, Mr. Nelson B. Mead and Mr. Sheldon E. Minor, the civil engineer. A road will probably be cut through to Railroad avenue and another look connect that with Greenwich avenue at Arch street. The lots ______ into lots of suitable size_____ and will be offered for _____ this work can be accomplished. 

Several weeks ago the ______ the old Sniffen house, on ____ Road, were sold at auction. These lots had been on the market for some time, and, though extremely desireable, had not found purchasers. That they have been recently sold may be regarded as one bit of evidence of the increasing activity in real estate circles here.

During the past few years the property of Mr. W.J. Smith, at Indian Orchard, which is just south of the railroad track and north of Mr. Benedict's place, has been rapidly covered with residences. The lots there are within the reach of people of moderate means, and are still finding a ready market.

Another similar district is that known as meadow Brook Park, owned by H.B. Marshall. This has been cut up into lots for residences, many of which have been sold. A considerable number are now on the market. 

It will be seen that the development of Greenwich for the next few years will be to a great extent the settlement of these districts. The offer opportunities for men of different means. The man with a modest competence can among them find a place within his power to buy. The man of wealth may find spots also to suit his requirements. 

Greenwich real estate is not, however, being developed by districts only. Many men have selected land apart from other dwellings and have built there. These are among the most beautiful places in town. There are too many of them to permit of separate mention now. We have given here only a general outline of the possibilities of real estate development in Greenwich. We expect in the near future to describe at more length some of the localities and places which form a part of the modern growth of the town. 

ROCKRIDGE FARM (1899)

Source: Greenwich Graphic. July 8, 1899. Page 1.

In the earlier days of Greenwich it was said, and justly, too, that amid all the farms of the town, distinguished as they were for fertility and natural beauty, none was superior to, and but few could vie with that known as the Zachias [Zaccheus] Mead farm. Times change and likewise names. The charming strip of land is no longer known as the Zachias  [Zaccheus] Mead Farm. As Rock Ridge Farm it retains those beauties of nature for which it was celebrated, enhanced by the modifying touch of the artist. We have printed in the last year or two numerous pictures and descriptions of those ancient houses, which still stand to remind us of the Greenwich that once was. Not less worthy of description and photographic reproduction in the section now called Rockridge Farm, a section destined to be one of the most popular as it is one of the most beautiful parts of modern Greenwich. 

Rockridge Farm consists of that tongue of land enclosed between the Glenville road and Lake Avenue, at their southern extremities, about 175 acres. The southern and western boundary of the Farm is a road called Brookside Drive, which begins at the residence of Mr. Willis H. Wilcox, on the Post Road, and follows the course of Horseneck Brook north until it meets and unites with the Glenville road. Turning to the west it continues to follow the brook and again turning northward, after a course of perhaps three-quarters of a mile, it enters the Farm at its western gate, at the foot of the steep hill, familiar to all those who have passed over the Glenville road. Brookside Drive, throughout that part of it which passes the Farm and is at the same time a portion of the Glenville road, has been remade by the owner of the Farm, Mr. Nathaniel Witherell, at his own expense. On the right side of the road he has erected a stone wall on his own property, thus enabling the road to be greatly widened. In the broad, smooth highway now extending beside the historic brook it is difficult to recognize the former Glenville road, so frequently complained of for its inconvenient narrowness. The eastern boundary of the Farm, Lake Avenue, is familiar to all residents of Greenwich. 

Between the boundaries lies Rockridge Farm, destined, we believe, to be one of the most popular residence sections of the town. Tucked away as it is amid sloping hills, passing beyond its limits one would hardly suspect its existence. And yet from within there are long vistas of the Sound and typical New England hills to the north and west. The Farm is an ideal spot for a summer residence, being not more than ten minutes drive from the station, and yet possessing all the charms of a truly rural district. 

When Belle Haven was opened some fifteen years ago, it would have been a most sanguine  optimist who would have ventured to say that in so short a space of time another residence district would be a feasible, not to say necessary undertaking. The fact that such has proved the case is a most potent argument of the growth and prosperity of Greenwich, if, indeed, we needed any. It is to meet this requirement that Mr. Witherell has developed Rockridge Farm. The name Farm, rather than Park, was selected not from any idle affection, but because it more truly denotes the nature of the place. Its beauties are natural, not artificial. Whatever the artistic alteration has been made has served the purpose merely of increasing, and not creating, beauty. This quality of the place will doubtless be preserved by the fact that no less than two acres will be sold to anyone one purchaser. By this means an ample lawn is assured  about each residence, and the unpleasant overcrowding, too characteristic of residence parks, is avoided. 

There are three entrances to Rockridge Farm, one at east on Lake Avenue, a second at the south, at the junction of the Glenville Road and Brookside Drive, and the third at the west, where Brookside Drive enters the Farm. At each of these entrances there is a neat triangle of grass, which is to be covered with shrubs and flowering plants. The most beautiful of the entrances and certainly that in the west. There Mr. Witherell has erected an artistic gateway, consisting of two stone pillars. This entrance is shown on our photographic reproduction. It is here that Brookside Drive enters the Farm, and for nearly a quarter of a mile passes through a grove of lofty trees. At the right side of the drive, as you enter, flows Horseneck Brook, whose bed here is very rocky. There are numberless little pools and tiny gushing waterfalls. Between the drive and the brook are many huge stones, among them a large jagged boulder, famous in this neighborhood. 

On the left of the drive, as you go in, there is a sharp slope, also covered with rough rocks, amid which lofty trees rise. This bit of road has been pronounced by some the most beautiful in Greenwich. And whether this extraordinary praise be accorded or not, it must certainly be admitted among the most beautiful. We show in another picture that portion of the road near the large boulder. After emerging from the woods, the drive turns sharply to the east and crosses Horseneck Brook. The bridge is rustic, with railings composed of rough untrimmed pine trunks. A short distance further along the way a lane turns off to the north. This is the well-known Woodchuck Lane, whose beauties are said to have been highly appreciated by romantic couples for many years back. 

Through the southern entrance to the Farm the road passes through open country, running nearly do north, and winding in graceful curves about the foot of round hills. Throughout the length of this drive one has only to look to the south to see the village and Belle Haven, the waters of the Sound, and the blue coast of Long Island. The eastern entrance on Lake Avenue opens onto that part of the Zachias [Zaccheus] Mead property which was earliest developed. The road runs nearly eastward. Less wild in its natural surroundings and than the western drive, it more nearly resembles the New England country road as we know it in its best form. There are several old houses on this road. Among them is the old Zachias  [Zaccheus] Mead farmhouse. Immediately to the west of the farmhouse is a triangle where the three drives meet. This is practically the center of Rockridge Farm.

One only has to imagine three long winding arms extending from a center to comprehend the construction of the Farm. By the system of roads, the most attractive sites have been made available. It is estimated that the total length of the drives throughout the Farm is between two and three miles.

Some idea of the extent of the Farm, and its distance from the village, may be obtained from the fact that you can start at the Lenox House, driving at an easy pace, enter the Farm at the west gate make a tour of the Farm and arrive at the Lenox House in about an hour. Many of our townspeople have already taken advantage of this drive, which is of a convenient length for the late afternoon and early evening. Indeed, if a stranger has but an hour or two in which to drive about town, he cannot do better than to pass over this course. He will go through as much beautiful country as possible in an hour, and besides will get a view of the Sound, part of the village and Belle Haven.

There are at present six houses in the Farm, occupied respectively by Mrs. Cordes, Mr. Charles Lanier, Mr. E.L. Stabler, Mr. F.W. Ritter, Mr. Barrett, the superintendent of the Farm, and Miss Brown. Two houses are in the process of construction. These houses have the double advantage of being in a situation and surroundings, true country dwellings of an ideal sort and, at the same time, having the modern conveniences of less rural park dwellings. The pipes of the Greenwich Water Company pass through the Farm, and thus a supply of the best water is assured. Moreover, the Borough of Greenwich is constructing a sewer, with which the Farm, which is just beyond the borough limits, may connect. The Farm is lighted by the incandescent electric light, which Mr. Witherell has put in at his own expense. In this way those appliances of sanitation and convenience which are most essential are provided.

Rockridge Farm certainly fulfills what we understood it to have been Mr. Witherell's hope and expectation in regard to was not intended to be a place for display of magnificence. It was intended for a convenient and artistically developed location for country homes, a place where one could have at the same time the conveniences of more thickly  districts and the freedom and ____ of the country. Such is undeniably ___district devoted to country homes should be and it is an artistic development along these lines that is to be desired and expected. The signs at each of the entrances show with the place really is. They announce the name "Rockridge Farm" and beneath that the fact that "visitors are welcome." It is really a huge private country place, a place to be devoted to a number of families; a private place, but at the same time a place whose beauties the public is invited to enter and enjoy. As one passes through the grove and hears the gurgling and babbling of the brook, as one looks out over the field of rye and hears the song of the lark and the thrush, it is hard to realize that one is at the same time amid the comfort and convenience of a truly modern civilization. 

It is in such a way as this that we look for the for the further  development of Greenwich. No town along the Sound offers as admirable opportunities for such development. We are  confident that the time is not far distant when Greenwich will merit to the fullest degree the name which it has already earned, "The ideal suburban town." 

"YE HISTORIE OF GREENWICH" (Greenwich Graphic: February 2, 1912)

 

Valuable Work Compiled by Spencer P. Mead – the History of the Town to Date

"Ye Historie of Greenwich, which Mr. Spencer P. Mead has had in preparation some time, is certainly a find work, and is replete with every valuable and reliable information regarding the history of the town. It is a work of course that everyone interested in the town in town affairs should have in his library. It has much information outside of being directly a history of Greenwich. Mr. Mead is a very careful and painstaking historian, and the work is greatly to his credit, and certainly most valuable, as above noted. It is called "Ye History of Ye Town of Greenwich."

In his preface he gives credit to a number of books and societies and also to the Graphic, and publishes many of the historical articles which appeared in the Graphic and during the past twenty-five years. He lays particular stress on the description of General Putnam's ride down Putnam Hill, which was published in the Graphic some years ago, in which he says: "A very accurate and reliable account of General Putnam's ride appeared in the Greenwich Graphic of July 31, 1897, and by courtesy of the Graphic, it is reprinted here." 

This account which appeared in the Graphic was unlike that given in any history of this ride, which stated that General Putnam never rode down the stone steps, but went down a dangerous cow path, starting in where the Daughters of the American Revolution monument is located, the historian Mr. Mead, virtually giving credence to the Graphic's story over that of any account of the episode ever published. The Graphic is quoted quite frequently, showing that Mr. Mead considered it reliable and authentic.

In this connection it may not be out of place to say that we have in preparation a work, somewhat different from Mr. Mead's but in the line of historic episodes, with many pictures of old houses, bridges and mills, which we have been collecting for thirty years and around which cluster tales and legend of Revolutionary days. Mr. Mead in his history kindly alludes to this and says: "Mr. Edwards, who is also an antiquarian, recognizing that Greenwich is rich in Revolutionary lore, has been engaged for a number of years collecting material consisting of old houses, old mills and old bridges for a book to be published in the near future. His office is a regular curiosity shop of Indian and Revolutionary relics. Among his collection is one of the stirrups used by General Putnam when he rode down the hill, shingles from famous old houses, arrowheads, tomahawks and other rare Indian implements." 

From Page 5:

Ezekiel Mead (1924)

Greenwich News and Graphic: May 9, 1924.

Ezekiel C. Mead, a life-long resident of the town, died at his home, 75 Connecticut avenue, last night, aged 67 years.

The funeral will be held at his late home on Monday at 2 p.m. Rev. R. P. Sanford, pastor of the North Greenwich Congregational Church, will officiate. Interment will be in Putnam Cemetery.

Mr. Mead suffered a paralytic stroke two weeks ago and his condition grew worse over the last of the week, until the end came.

Mr. Mead was born in North Greenwich. He and his brother, the late Silas S. Mead, town office holder and Civil War veteran, owned the estate now the property of John W Sterling in North Greenwich, both following the occupation of farmers. Fourteen years ago, he sold his farm to Mr. Sterling and came to the Borough, where he has since made his home. For nearly half a century he had been a member of the North Greenwich Congregational Church, and for forty years had been clerk of the church. He is survived by his wife and one son, Douglas S. Mead.

Merry Christmas Year 2020

 

'It Was In The Way; It Must Go: Old House On Lafayette Place Torn Down (1899)

Source: Greenwich Graphic: October 28, 1899, Page 1.

Had Stood There for Two Centuries, When the Road was but a Cow Path and the Indians Passed the Door.

One of the old landmarks of Greenwich, that kept us in mind of the Revolutionary War, and the days when our town was the home of Cos Cob and Amogerone, are going, and soon they will have all disappeared. They are being pushed aside by what follows in the wake of wireless telegraph, electric cars, automobiles, and the rush of these closing days of eighteen hundred, which seem to sweep everything before them that interferes with money getting and money making.

It's the penalty of being near a metropolis, and the result of the development of Greenwich, that these old mills, old houses and old bridges, closing linked with the Revolutionary War are being obliterated.

Now and then you will hear some antiquarian breathe a sigh of relief at what seems to show wanting destruction of these things so bold, so picturesque, so historic, but as a rule the throng that passes by cares not for such relics and would rather see them go, and even the old names of our streets annoy many of them.

But there are some who drop, in thought, a tear as they realize what Greenwich is losing.

The old house in Lafayette Place has disappeared, its days of usefulness were over, and it was in the way, and so it had to go. Thus another of the old landmarks of Greenwich is destroyed by the development and growth of our town.

In the days of the Revolutionary War, Lafayette Place was but a cow path, as it were, but it was the road to White Plains and the Hudson. This old house stood there long before the war, and was no doubt one of the best in its day. Its timbers show that, and the foundation indicates that much care was taken in its construction.

All that is left now of the old building is the big chimney, which stands there, conspicuous on account of its size and peculiar shape. It looks as though as if in those early days that the chimney was first erected and the house built around it.

The old dwelling stood on the grounds of Mrs. F. A. Warburton and was torn down to make room for a residence to be erected for Mrs. Warburton's daughter.

Mrs. Warburton hesitated a long time before she decided to have it removed. At first it was her intention to keep it intact as far as possible and add to it, and fill it up with moderate improvements, but this was found to be impracticable. Another idea was to move it and preserve it, but the big chimney and its peculiar construction would not allow this to be done. So this week Mr. Oliver Knapp took it in hand and soon it was a thing of the past, and before another season goes by a handsome residence will occupy the site.

It was a very old landmark, some people say that it was the oldest house in Greenwich, perhaps it was, if not it was among the first built in our town.

Its timbers were very large and joined in places with wooden spikes, and some of these are well preserved. The wall lathes were all hand-made, their unevenness showing that they were hand-made with a hatchet. They are of oak with big, hand wrought iron nails clinging to them as firmly and tenaciously as though loathed to be separated, so long have they been together. The long cypress shingles are worn to paper thinness on the edges where they were exposed to the air, and there are grooves in them made by the rains of a century or more.

In the GRAPHIC of May 13, we gave a picture and a description of the old house which we reprint.

Everybody about the village will recognize this picture. It's the old house on Lafayette Place and it sits perched upon a bank as though it was not "part or parcel" of the houses surrounding it, and neither is it.

It has so much contrast with its neighbors, that it is the most conspicuous building on this short street.

"When was it built?" That is hard to say. Some who pretend to know will tell you that it was put up in 1650. Its appearance indicates that it is at least 200 years old. Look at the old shingles, the hand-wrought nails sticking out here and there, and the big stone chimney, and the general dilapidated appearance of it – although that is not always a sign of age, but in this case it is easy to see that it is very old.

This property was owned way back in 1725 by John Hobby, who sold it to Nathaniel Mead..

It was known at one time as the Dunton Homestead, we lived Royal Dunton and his family..

Its size and shape is different from the houses that were built during the Revolutionary War, it's a very old settler and it was famous years ago..

Mrs. Mary Thompson, whose maiden name was Banks, with whom we talked about the old house, so that her grandmother and her mother and herself were all born there, and the house was very old in those days. But she thinks it is about 250 years old. But it can't be quite an ancient is that, for Greenwich was settled in 1645, but that was probably one of the first houses erected.

Mr. Joseph E. Russell considers it one of the oldest houses in town. When he was a boy it looked as aged as it does now..

When Nathaniel Mead occupied it, which was during the Revolutionary War, Cowboys and the British made raids upon his herd of cattle, and he always kept his musket handy day and night. In the field and by his bedside, it was his constant companion. We can well imagine what a beautiful farm it must have been in those days, the lay of the land must have been ideal.

They tell funny stories of one Thomas Mead, who was known as the fat fiddler, who lived there. He weighed, it is said, 400 pounds. He disliked to walk any distance, and when they wanted him to play, they went back a cart with oxen up to the door and he would get in and off they will go, carrying him to the place where his fiddle and bow were wanted.

He was exceedingly popular with the young people, and his presence was always necessary for a merry evening. It is said, too, that notwithstanding his great weight, and his disinclination to walk he was a graceful dancer and it was light upon his feet when whirling a Colored girl over the floor. Mr. Mead lived in this house many years, and when he died the door sash had to be removed to allow the coffin to pass out.

Some years ago the house was purchased by Augustus Lyon. At one time Arza Banks resided there and worked in a little shop near the house as  shoemaker but this small building has disappeared.

It is said that an English officer who had been wounded was taken to the house and died in the south room.

But if you want to judge the house and its age, go in side and see that long, wide room on the first floor, which is almost the same as when around the big fireplace the family and neighbors gathered 150 or more years ago. The ceiling is so low that a man of six feet must stoop to walk about. The quaint doors hang on the same hinges, and the little iron latches appear to have been made at the time the house was erected. There is, perhaps, no house in Greenwich that would impress you with its age, than this one, after you have taken a look at the inside of it.

It is going to pieces rapidly, and can't last but a few years more as it now stands. 

It is owned by Mrs. Francis Warburton.

Worthy of Being Emulated: A New Road Presented to the Town (1888)

 Source: Greenwich Graphic. June 9, 1888. Page 3

A LARGE QUANTITY OF DESIRABLE BUILDING PROPERTY OPENED UP BY THE LIBERALITY OF MRS. TITUS MEAD.

North street and vicinity are to many people the most desirable section for suburban homes, of any of the fine building sites in Greenwich. Some buyers of property prefer Belle Haven, with its exquisite marine views and bracing sea air; others preferred to live away from the water's edge, and to these North street has a charm which no other portion of the town possesses. Then, too, besides the location there are no drawbacks of any kind. High, with magnificent scenery, splendidly drained yet near the village, but still away from it, the land has been quickly purchased, as soon as put on the market, upon which rural cottages of unique design, exceeding all in costliess and beauty those which have made Elberson so famous, have been built.

The section is now destined to be more popular than ever through the liberality of Mrs. Titus Mead, who has set an example worthy of ambulation. This lady has not waited for a town meeting to vote a road through her land, which will be of great benefit to the property, but instead he's open to road at her own expense through her land, connecting to large thorough fairs together, and opening up a splendid tract of land whichThe section is now destined to be more popular than ever through the liberality of Mrs. Titus Mead, who has set an example worthy of ambulation. This lady has not waited for a town meeting to vote a road through her land, which will be of great benefit to the property, but instead has opened a road at her own expense through her land, connecting two large thoroughfares together, and opening up a splendid tract of land which will eventually come on the market. Engineer Minor has surveyed this road, which starts from near the brook on North Street, running westerly to the new road, a distance of about one thousand feet. It will be 55 feet wide. Following is the diagram made by him:

Wreaths Across America Day 2020

 

Today, Saturday, December 19 is National Wreaths Across America Day.

Its mission to remember our fallen U.S. veterans; honor those who serve and teach children the value of freedom. 

Cemetery Association President Jeffrey Bingham Mead was invited by the Greenwich chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution to attend a ceremony at Tomac Cemetery in Old Greenwich. You'll see from the images that snow did not deter anyone from holding this event.

Tomac Cemetery is the oldest existing burying ground in town. It is where my original ancestors who settled in North America in the early seventeenth century are interred.

It is also the location of a memorial gravestone marker commemorating Greenwich, Connecticut 350th founding in 1990. The memorial stone was carved by Peacock Memorials in Valhalla, New York. 

Support for the creating and installation of the stone was made possible by Jeffrey Bingham Mead, Mead family descendant Ms. Helen Leale Harper, Jr., and other family descendants across the USA. 

Harper -now deceased- was the granddaughter of Dr. Charles Leale, the first doctor to attend to President Abraham Lincoln after being shot by John Wilkes Booth in Ford's Theater, Washington, D.C.

Today's ceremony was a coordinating wreath-laying effort that included others at more than 1,600 locations in all fifty states, at sea and abroad.

Mead was also invited to attend its ceremony by the Friends of The Old Burying Ground at Byram Shore Road -not far from my Greenwich residence. Unfortunately due to a scheduling conflict he was unable to attend.

Alexander Mead and Son Plants for Christmas Presents (January 2, 1904)

 

The Sanford Mead House (pictured above) was built in 1845, and still stands at 349 Lake Avenue, Greenwich, Connecticut. 

It is a designated historic landmark by the Greenwich Historical Society.