Clinton Academy - East Hampton

Clinton Academy in East Hampton was one of the first academies in New York State chartered by the Board of Regents. The academy was constructed in 1784 with funds contributed by local citizens at the request of the Rev. Samuel Buell, the pastor of the East Hampton Presbyterian Church.

It was named for Governor George Clinton, who contributed the original bell that hung in the cupola. The Academy was a co-educational institution preparing young men for college or for careers in seafaring or surveying. Young women were schooled in etiquette, social graces, and household management. A college education was not available to a woman at that time, so Clinton Academy would have been the highest academic level available to a girl living in New York in the 1780’s.

The Academy opened its doors for classes on January 1, 1785. The founders of Clinton Academy were influenced by the intellectual enlightenment in France and designed a curriculum with three basic departments: The Common School Department, the English Academical Department, and the Classical Department.

After the state dissolved the chartered academy system, the building was expanded in 1886 and became known as Clinton Hall. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it served at times as a community center, playhouse, town offices, polling station, the original location of Guild Hall and the East Hampton Library, and as offices for the East Hampton Star.

With funding from Mary and Lorenzo E. Woodhouse, Clinton Hall was restored to its late-Georgian style appearance in 1921. The work was performed under the supervision of Architect J. Greenleaf Thorp. The building eventually became the home of the East Hampton Historical Society.

 

Sources:

“Clinton Academy.” East Hampton, easthampton.com/history/clinton-academy/. Accessed 6 Aug. 2026

 

“Clinton Academy, 1784.” Historic East Hampton, easthamptonhistory.org/visit-us/clinton-academy/. Accessed 6 Aug. 2026

Long Island Sphinx - Blue Point/Bayport

Captain Will Graham, an Irish sculptor and marble worker arrived in America in 1888. Graham built Ye Anchorage Inn in 1897 on the northwest corner of Montauk Highway and Kennedy Avenue in Blue Point. Graham even chronicled his adventures in a personal magazine called The Log, filled with stories, poems, and artwork he created himself.

In the early 1900s, Graham built the Great Sphinx, a 45-ton, one-seventh-scale concrete replica of its Egyptian namesake, as a grand roadside attraction to lure travelers to his retreat. He placed a plaque on the feet of the Sphinx. “She who climbs to the Sphinx’s head a millionaire will surely wed.” Legend has it that Graham and his friends would spend lazy afternoons on a bench nearby, hoping to catch a glimpse of any adventurous young lady who took the challenge.

The inn played host to a who’s who of the era: President Theodore Roosevelt, silent film stars Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks. Graham was a master promoter. He staged a faux bullfight that drew two thousand spectators and even built an early aeroplane on the grounds.

Will Graham died of pneumonia inside his inn on February 20, 1920, at the age of 57. After his wife passed away, the inn burned down in 1927. The Sphinx, however, survived. It was moved to the side of the property, where the Ferri family operated a gas station from the early 1930s to 1973.

In 1974, the land was sold to a gas station chain called Power Test. During the construction of a new facility, a bulldozer demolished the original buildings and the body of the Sphinx. The massive 10,000-pound head was severed at the brow and neck.

Lou Fontana, who owned a concrete business in Bayport with his brother John happened to be driving by as the destruction occurred. He intervened and asked the bulldozer operator to save the remains of the head. Remarkably, the man agreed. Lou loaded the colossal concrete noggin onto a truck and transported it to his yard on Montauk Highway, where it sat, deteriorating and hidden from public view for seven years.

In the fall of 1981, the Fontana brothers began the painstaking task of restoring the monument. Their efforts drew significant attention, leading to a featured article in Newsday and a broadcast story on WABC-TV in New York City. After nearly two years of hard work, the restoration was completed in May 1983.

Today, the Great Sphinx sits proudly in front of Fontana Concrete Products in Bayport.  The inscription at its base still promises matrimonial wealth to any daring climber, though a modern sign now bluntly adds: “Please KEEP OFF Climbing Sphinx is Prohibited.”

Source:

 

“The Great Long Island Sphinx: A Tale of Concrete, Celebrities, and Second Chances.” Sayville Alumni Association, Inc., 29 July 2026, sayvillealumni.org/the-great-long-island-sphinx-a-tale-of-concrete-celebrities-and-second-chances/.

 

Rosemary Farm - Huntington

Missouri based entrepreneur and financier Roland Ray Conklin moved back to his ancestral home of Huntington, purchasing significant acreage in 1893 to build his estate, which he called Rosemary Farm after his daughter. A few years after his home was built, Conklin decided he would make a major change to his property by converting the “bowl-shaped hill” under his luxurious mansion into a massive Amphitheater. With an inspiration of Edward Bouton’s “Rusty Rocks”, Conklin approached the Olmstead brothers again in 1912 to build this arena in his backyard

It wasn’t until 1912, that Conklin asked Olmsted Brothers to transform a sloping bowl on their property into an amphitheater, with semi-circular, turf-covered tiers to seat an audience of nearly three thousand.
Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. took lead on the complicated engineering project, which Conklin envisioned would be an attractive landscape feature when not used for performances. In addition to the difficult engineering, the significant financing put a strain on Olmsted Jr.

Conklin took Olmsted Brothers’ plans and chose to construct the amphitheater on his own, with Olmsted Jr. occasionally providing consultation. After the death of his wife in 1919, Conklin sold the property to the Brooklyn Diocese, who built the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception on the grounds in 1924. The house was destroyed by fire in 1990.

The ampitheater could seat 4,000 people for performances on a stage that was surrounded by a moat with bridges.  There were jets of water that would shoot up acting as a curtain hiding the stage until the performers were ready.  Some of the performers that performed there were: Sarah Bernhardt, Tyrone Powers, John and Ethel Barrymore and John Phillip Sousa.

 

 

Sources:

Durst, Kevin. “Druid Ruins and Amphitheater on Long Island -.” Get Out N About, www.getoutnabout.com/blog/druid-ruins-and-amphitheater-on-long-island-remnants-of-rosemarys-farm. Accessed 15 July 2026

“The Remains of ‘Rosemary Farm’, the Roland Ray Conklin Estate.” Saturn Mondays, saturnmondays.wordpress.com/2025/01/31/the-remains-of-rosemary-farm-the-roland-ray-conklin-estate/. Accessed 15 July 2026

“Rosemary Farm.” National Park Service, www.nps.gov/places/rosemary-farm.htm. Accessed 15 July 2026.

 

 

 

Inventor Arthur Minasy

 In the early 1960s, Woodbury engineer Arthur Minasy started playing around with designs for an “article surveillance” device to thwart the theft of clothing from department stores. He was the founder of Knogo Corporation in Hauppauge at the time. The company created plastic tags that hung off clothing. The company also made magnetic strips that could be permanently fixed to articles like library books and hospital linens to prevent theft.

His invention was a clothing tag that triggered an alarm if someone tried to sneak the item past a cashier Minasy’s original device measured five inches, sported a C battery and weighed half a pound, but tests at area Stern’s department stores proved its worth – shoplifting declined noticeable at stores equipped with the devices

He graduated from New York University with an engineering degree in 1949 and got his master’s in industrial engineering. Minasy, who had served in the technical services branch of the Office of Strategic Services during World War II – and Sperry and other defense firms afterwards –opened branch operations across Europe, with headquarters in Belgium.

The 68-year-old inventor died in Brussels in 1994. The firm eventually sold off its highly profitable global business to arch-rival Sensormatic. In 1997, what was left merged with Minneapolis-based Video Sentry Corp., a maker of video surveillance equipment. 

Minasy’s original electronic wafer is in the Smithsonian Museum.

Sources:

"Arthur Minasy, 68, the Inventor of Tags to Thwart Thieves." New York Times (1923-), 12 May, 1994, pp. 1. ProQuest, https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/arthur-minasy-68-inventor-tags-thwart-thieves/docview/109245238/se-2

“Recalling Long Island’s Anti-Theft Clothing Tag Inventor.” Long Island Press, 6 Nov. 2017, www.longislandpress.com/2017/11/06/recalling-long-islands-anti-theft-clothing-tag-inventor

Hempstead House - Sands Point

 Hempstead House is one of four mansions on the grounds of the Guggenheim Estate in Sands Point, which also includes Castle Gould, Falaise, and Mille Fleur. The Tudor-style castle served as a summer residence for the family.

It was designed by architects Hunt & Hunt in 1912. The mansion is a 50,000-square-foot three-story building. It has 40 rooms, including a 60-foot-tall entry foyer. The first and second floors of the Hempstead House measure over 1.5 acres. Inside the foyer, the Wurlitzer Opus 445 Theatre Organ is fully restored. 

The walnut-paneled Library was copied from the palace of King James I, and relief portraits of literary figures still decorate its plaster ceiling. The Billiard Room originally featured a gold leaf ceiling, hand-tooled leather wall coverings, and carved oak woodwork from a 17th-Century Spanish palace. Stone gargoyles around the ceiling peer down into the Summer Living Room.

The sunken Palm Court once contained 150 species of rare orchids, plants and potted trees. An aviary housed exotic birds in ornate cages among the flowers. On the mezzanine level is the Breakfast Room with leaded windows on three sides overlooking the park grounds. All of the rooms on the second floor have carved fireplaces and are detailed with ornate plaster trim on the walls and ceilings, each in a unique style.

After Daniel Guggenheim’s death in 1930, his wife Florence closed Hempstead House. Hempstead House’s furnishings were sold in 1940, and Florence opened the mansion to children evacuated from the war in Europe until foster homes could be found for them. In 1942, she donated 162 acres of the estate to the Institute of Aeronautical Sciences. The U.S. Navy purchased the property in 1946 for a Naval Training Device Center, and, in 1971, the property was acquired by Nassau County.

Source:

“Hempstead House.” Sands Point Preserve, www.sandspointpreserveconservancy.org/about/hempstead-house/. Accessed 14 June 2026. 

Roslyn Grist Mill

The Roslyn Grist Mill is a rare surviving Dutch-framed colonial watermill purposely built for industrial use. It operated as a working water mill for over 150 years. 

In 1698, John Robeson (later Robinson) was granted permission by the Town of Hempstead to establish a grist mill at the Head of Hempstead Harbor on Old Northern Boulevard in Roslyn. Shortly afterwards, Robinson built and began operating his grist mill. The approval Robeson received was obtained under the condition that the mill would be constructed and in operation within two years.

By 1709, Robinson sold the mill in what would be the first of several transfers the Roslyn Grist Mill would experience as ownership changed hands over the next three centuries. On April 24, 1790, the owner of the grist mill Hendrick Onderdonk was visited by President George Washington in his Roslyn residence adjoining the grist mill. Washington referred to the grist mill in his diary.

In 1916, the Hicks family sold the mill to a board of five trustees including Harold Godwin, the grandson of William Cullen Bryant. Their goal was to restore the building to become a museum of industrial arts. From 1916 to 1917, the historic timber beams were reinforced and a concrete base was installed to support the foundation. A concrete floor on the first floor was placed and concrete put on the exterior designed to appear like the original plank boards. The museum opened on June 30, 1917.

From 1920 to 1974, the grist mill building served as a tea house and was a tourist attraction to the village. The building was placed on the National Historic Register of Historic Places in 1986. From 2015 to 2020, $3.1 million was given from New York State, Nassau County, trusts foundations and members of the government grants, trust awards and members of the Roslyn Landmark Society.

The restoration began in November 2018 by the Roslyn Landmark Society. On January 23, 2020, the structure was raised eight feet above ground level in order to construct a future new foundation. The new foundation was completed in November 2021. On May 28, 2022, the structure was lowered to street level for the first time in over 100 years. In April 2023, the restored historic timber frame was being re-installed. On February 10, 2025, the final restored and new rafters were installed. The topping off was celebrated with the timber frame tradition of placing an evergreen branch on the highest peak of the building.

Source:

“Roslyn Grist Mill.” Roslyn Landmark Society, www.roslynlandmarks.org/profiles/roslyn-grist-mill. Accessed 18 May 2026

Roosevelt Raceway

Car racer Eddie Rickenbacker began assembling a group of people to plan a new race to allow the American drivers and cars the chance to battle with the best Europe had to offer. Joining Rickenbacker in the venture were Boston Redskins owner George Preston Marshall, 1908 Vanderbilt Cup winner George Robertson and George Washington Vanderbilt III, nephew of 'Willie K'.

In February 1936 the group announced the creation of a new circuit to host the race, located at Roosevelt Field. To design the course, they enlisted Mark Linenthal, an architect who was involved in the construction of most of the nation's steeply banked board tracks. It was to be a lavish facility. A huge double-deck grandstand overlooked the main straight, while there was also a clubhouse, well-equipped indoor garages and ample parking.

The track design was less successful. Aside from the main long straight, it was a rather tortuous affair, with numerous switchbacks and slow-speed corners in a flat layout which was designed in such a way that all parts would be visible for the grandstands, which would cater for up to 50,000 spectators. There was nothing wrong with the prize money, however, with a total purse of $60,000 for the top finishers. Twelve of the 45 drivers that started the race were Europeans. 

Rickenbacker upped the ante further for 1937, offering an increased prize purse of $70,000 dollars, with awards for lap leaders and the leading American car. It was clear to all that changes to the track would need to be made to pep up the show. In order to up the average speed, the twistier sections in the center were eliminated and banking added at the final turn. In early 1938 the company formed by Rickenbakker and his associates collapsed into bankruptcy.

In May, Los Angeles amusement park owner Frank C. Hulbert announced that he had secured a ten-year lease on the track and would be promoting a 300-mile stock car race there on Labor Day. Despite this, nothing came of the plans and it wasn't until July 1938 that the track would re-open as a venue for midget car racing. 

In early 1940, the site was sold and redeveloped as a harness racing track. The gates opened on Sept. 2, 1940, to a reported crowd of 5,000 eager fans who wagered some $40,000. By 1956 the original Vanderbilt grandstands were burdened by excessive additions and dangerous decay. Within the next season the new clubhouse-grandstand "plant" replaced the old Vanderbilt track without interruption of the racing schedule. The new building was designed by Arthur Froehlich. The architectural plans cost $400,000 and the building was proposed at $12 million. In the end the new "Dream Track" (as it was nicknamed) cost $20 million.

The track closed its doors in 1988. A shopping centre now resides at the location.

Sources:

Monaco, Pete. “Remembering Roosevelt Raceway.” The Spectrum, Desert Valley Times, 28 Feb. 2017, www.thespectrum.com/story/sports/mesquite/2017/02/28/remembering-roosevelt-raceway/98511574/

“Roosevelt Raceway.” RacingCircuits.Info, www.racingcircuits.info/north-america/usa/roosevelt-raceway.html. Accessed 30 Apr. 2026

“Roosevelt Raceway.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 21 Mar. 2026, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roosevelt_Raceway