Preservation – Lost Treasures
Lost Treasures
Locke Ledge Mansion
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In 1916, opera singer Lydia Locke purchased a 1,000-acre area of land on Route 118 between Yorktown and the Croton Reservoir. The estate that included Turkey Mountain and the 26-room Locke Ledge Mansion. She was said to have entertained several presidents – Woodrow Wilson, William Howard Taft, Warren G. Harding, and Calvin Coolidge – as well as other heads of state, including a Georgian pretender to the Russian throne. The house was lost to fire in 1966.
1852 Inn
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In 1852, a sea captain built what came to be known at the 1852 Inn at Lexington and Strawberry Roads. The captain had made money by trading spices from the Far East and bought 464 acres. A carriage house in the rear was the first location of the Mohegan Lake Volunteer Fire Department. The Inn became known as the 1852 Inn in the 1900s, and later Onofrio's, until it burned to the ground in a tragic fire in 1993.
St. Nicholas Hotel
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During the latter part of the 19th century, there were several large hotels along the shores of Lake Mohegan, including the St. Nicholas. The wood structure was 324 feet long and six stories high in the center, with four story high wings. The hotel could accommodate 500 guests. Perched on the northwest side of the lake, the hotel was owned by Frank Frye. It was destroyed in 1908 in a fire that could be seen as far away as Peekskill. The land where the hotel once stood is new occupied by several condominium communities.
The Colonial Hotel
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The White brothers built the spectacular Colonial Hotel in 1898 in southern Yorktown as a luxury inn. It began with 20 acres and grew to 230 acres with a golf course and 30 to 40 rooms. The hotel once stood at what is now the intersection of Crow Hill Road and Route 100. It burned down in the late 1960s.
Curry House
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Beginning in 1853, Dr. James Hart Curry practiced medicine for 46 years from this house. Dr. Curry’s sign was on his office door entrance, located on a small one-story addition on the north side of the house. After Dr. Curry’s death the house became the home of Mr. and Mrs. James William Martens Jr. (Mrs. Martens was Genevieve Curry, a daughter of Dr. Curry) The house was torn down in 1973 to make way for “Stone Gate” townhouses despite community protests.
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From a member of the Curry family: “It was the home of my great-grandfather, Dr. James Hart Curry, and his wife, Emily Manville Minor. They were married 22 Feb 1853, and they must have moved into the house that year. After Dr. Curry died 24 Sep 1900, my grandfather James William Martens, Jr. bought the house and moved there in 1901 with his wife, Genevieve Curry, and his children, which at that time only included Charlotte, my mother, and Stanton. The house was in the family until my grandmother died in 1960.”
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Article “Save the Curry House Landmark”
Yorktown Heights Firehouse
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The Yorktown Heights Fire Engine Company No. 1 was organized in 1909 when the town had a population of 3,000. This first firehouse was built in 1926 on Commerce Street in the same location that it is in today. The current firehouse was built in 1952 on the same site.
Pines Bridge Manor Hotel
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When Croton Lake and the surrounding properties were altered around 1893 to create the new Croton Dam, Palmer’s Croton Lake House was moved to higher ground and became the Pines Bridge Manor Hotel. The hotel was located on Route 100 next to the reservoir. Later called Longo’s, the building burned down in 1975.
The Shanty
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The Shanty was a summer residence of bygone days. The building still stands on Route 6 and Horne Circle, but it is not easily recognizable. It still has the same distinctive chimneys but is now clad in diagonal wood siding and the gazebo, awnings, and trees are absent.
The Whitney House
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The Whitney House was steps away from the Yorktown Heights railroad station. Ezekiel Palmer opened the hotel in 1882 on land deeded to him by Silas Whitney. The three-story structure accommodated 20 guests. Palmer’s Hall was built at the rear of the hotel and was used for meetings and social activities, including elections, dances, and church services. An icehouse and stables were adjacent to the hall. The hotel was demolished in 1944. The area is now occupied by Underhill Apartments.
Mohegan Farm
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During the late 1800s, the Mohegan Farm was a local landmark. Located at the South and East side of the lake – from Christine Road to Judy Road, to Sylvan Road, the farm covered 300 acres and produced dairy products, fruit and grains. It was owned and operated by William Baker, owner of Baker Chocolates, for whom Baker Street is named. We assume the Mohegan Farm milk cows contributed to the world-famous taste of Baker Chocolate. Several old stone walls and the old Milk house – converted into a small home between Judy Road and Turus Lane – remains of the once-great farm.
Rock Hill Lodge
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The "Rock Hill Lodge" was one of several local resort hotels in the Mohegan area. It was constructed in the early 1800s on the property of Countess B.F. de Nemours. Some locals speculate it was a gift to the widow of a French officer who fought in the American Revolution. It became the Rock Hill Lodge, a 14-acre resort on the northwest edge of Lake Mohegan. It later became known as the Belvedere Hotel until Andrew Loggem purchased it in 1965, converting it into the Holland Sporting Club. Yorktown purchased the property from the club to provide the first public parkland and access along the shore of Lake Mohegan. All of the buildings on the site were demolished by the town in July 2012.
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Yorktown's Holland Sporting Club Demolished, The Examiner News, July 10, 2012