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Dana Y. Wu

Spotlight on Lila and DeWitt Wallace: Chappaqua’s 20th Century Powerhouse Couple of Modern Media

December 2, 2018 by Dana Y. Wu

2019 marks the 80th anniversary of the Reader’s Digest headquarters in Chappaqua. Lila Bell Acheson Wallace and her husband, Dewitt Wallace were co-founders, co-editors and true partners in their powerhouse media business enterprises for generations, which included the enormously successful magazine, condensed books, direct mail-order books, trade/retail books, children’s books, music and international editions.

They started Reader’s Digest in 1922 with borrowed money and no subscriptions. Within a year of the Digest’s launch from their apartment in Greenwich Village, the Wallaces moved the company office to a garage in Pleasantville but quickly spread to 14 different overflowing offices throughout the village as circulation surpassed one million by 1935. In the late 1930s, they acquired 80 rolling acres of woodlands in Chappaqua to establish the headquarters’ campus but retained “Pleasantville” for its postal address as they liked the name of the town. Visible for miles around when it opened in 1939, the original three-story red-brick structure, had a white cupola featuring a carillon and four flying Pegasus sculptures, symbolizing writers’ inspiration.

Lila Wallace oversaw every aspect of the interior and exterior construction of the headquarters, which was modeled after buildings in Colonial Williamsburg, with the intention of creating a beautiful campus for their growing workforce and rapidly expanding publishing business. She felt that a positive and stimulating environment was important for employees. With her patrician style and love of culture and arts, Lila chose to display her valuable collection of Impressionist art in the headquarters’ hallways, offices, conference rooms and cafeteria.

“Lila Wallace was a huge supporter of the natural world. The property had its own apple orchard, and employees could take home as many apples as they wanted. We were also able to rent, for $10 a year, a fenced-in garden plot up at the top of the property, with free water. Many of us spent our lunch hours up there tending our gardens.” – Mara van Fleet, Former Readers Digest employee

“Rather than just surrounding themselves with all this great art in their Bedford home, High Winds, they shared it with employees by lining the halls and principal rooms on the first floor of the office building accessible to all every day,” remembers Ellis Cousens, a Bedford resident who was a Finance Director at the headquarters in the 1990s.

Former Reader’s Digest senior editor and Chappaqua resident, Suzanne Chazin, recalls, “Lila’s office had French glass doors and a Modigliani right outside. It felt amazing to work in the office that had been hers. And Dewitt’s office was the editor in chief’s office when I was there so I was in it all the time for editorial meetings. I remember the Chagall on the wall.” Chazin continues, “For the people who were there, it was daily life. Now, it seems sort of amazing but we were around this decor every day, with all this art on the walls that you could just walk up to.”

The photos were displayed on panels at the New Castle Historical Society.

Creating charming “outside rooms” with clipped hedges, neat lawns and flower beds was as important to Lila as the antiques and art collection within the buildings and as the back-cover artwork that she selected for each issue. Chappaqua author and illustrator Mara van Fleet, who joined the Reader’s Digest art department in 1999, remembers. ” Cousens adds, “During my time there, many employees maintained vegetable gardens, designated by Lila, behind the auditorium towards Cowdin Lane. She instituted early Friday closure during spring and summer with the explicit intent to give employees several hours of paid time off to tend their gardens, either at the Digest or at home.

While Reader’s Digest publications may be looked upon as a conservative repository of American values, the company had progressive employee policies, including five day work weeks and vacation days, liberal pension plans, life-insurance policies, profit-sharing plans and even a program to encourage employees to volunteer in community organizations. Although the Wallaces did not have children, they ran their internationally successful media company with a family feel that included free trips to Williamsburg, VA (which the Wallaces helped to restore) and free turkeys at Thanksgiving.

Long after they retired in 1973, employees still felt the couple’s nurturing touch. Jennifer Bancroft Payne, a Chappaqua resident, remembers how her father, Norman Bancroft, said that “he always felt like family rather than an employee” at Reader’s Digest. As van Fleet attests, “It was really one of the last old-fashioned companies where you felt you like you like working with your large extended family. Everyone walked down the halls with smiles on their faces and genuine warmth.”

Today, along Reader’s Digest Road, Chappaqua Crossing’s transformation of the former headquarters’ grounds has been stark. However, the new development’s “incomparable array of amenities designed to create a work environment that is both enjoyable and efficient” fittingly continues the Wallace’s original idea of providing many perks for employees on the campus. “Employees of the publication were treated to a large dining hall, gym facilities, a laundry room, a garage onsite for repairs, and even a small medical office where they had MKMG dermatologists come in for free skin screenings.” says van Fleet.  “There was even a subsidized company store with different vendors who came every day.”

In our age of 24/7 news and media, podcasts, Netflix and Youtube, it may be hard to imagine the expansive influence that DeWitt Wallace’s original idea of a magazine with diverse content aimed “to interest and at the same time to widen one’s outlook, to increase one’s appreciation of things and people in the world” had on our global, popular culture. Golda Meir praised Reader’s Digest as “A publication which helps its huge public understand the complex issues of our time.” Pushing for legislation and social reform, Reader’s Digest had a way of presenting complex medical issues in an understandable form and its top articles were on drinking and driving, tobacco/smoking, sex education, drugs and on taboo subjects such as sexually transmitted diseases (1930s), birth control (1960s), pornography (1970s) and AIDS (1980s).

With a worldwide readership with over a 100 million subscribers in 163 countries, 48 editions and 19 languages at its height, the Wallaces sent their optimism around the world through Reader’s Digest’s humorous articles, innovative features and inspiring stories. Chazin recalls how Reader’s Digest was content-driven when she wanted to write about Dr. Barry Marshall who had “discovered a potential cure for ulcers back when ulcers were considered incurable. He was a very controversial figure but Reader’s Digest ran the the piece. When Dr. Marshall won the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 2005, he thanked Reader’s Digest as being one of the very first publications to spread his ideas far and wide.”

The philanthropic programs that Wallaces started have brought benefits to our community, the nation and the world. Much of their fortune went to establishing four private foundations, which then merged into the DeWitt Wallace-Reader’s Digest Fund and the Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest Fund. Early in the 2000s, the funds sold the last of their Reader’s Digest stock and merged into a single national philanthropy with a name reflecting its roots: The Wallace Foundation. With assets of about $1.5 billion in 2015, The Wallace Foundation still stays true to Lila and DeWitt Wallace’s passions for education, youth development and the arts.

Filed Under: Cover Stories Tagged With: DeWitt, Direct Mail, Lila, Lila Bell Wallace, magazine, Mail-order Books, New Castle Historical Society, Pleasantville, Publisher, publishing, Reader's Digest, Readers Digetst History, Wallace

Think Fit For Kids 2018 Raises Funds for Pediatric Brain Cancer Research

March 8, 2018 by Dana Y. Wu

Jumpy castles, hoop games, Zumba for kids, face painting–the annual Think Fit For Kids (TFFK) Family and Fitness event, generously hosted at Club Fit in Briarcliff, is a community fundraiser that has been going strong for eight years.

As we went to press with this issue, the 2018 TFFK team of volunteers, is ensuring that the event on Sunday, March 4, 2018 meets its goal of raising $250,000 to support state of the art pediatric brain cancer research. Getting ready for TFFK involves the support of corporate sponsors, with more than 75 local merchants all donating the food, DJ music, entertainment and photography.

Since 2011 when Chappaqua’s Kim Gilman and Amy Weinstein approached Club Fit’s owner, Ellen Koelsch to sponsor the TFFK event, $1.5 million has been raised for A Kids’ Brain Tumor Cure Foundation, which currently funds two extremely promising projects at Massachusetts General Hospital and Memorial Sloan Kettering. Most excitingly, a Phase 1 clinical trial to test the safety and efficacy of combining immunotherapy agents in children with brain tumors has now expanded into a large-scale clinical trial at 58 centers in 13 countries. This study brings new hope to children across the globe who have run out of treatment options and may provide a completely new avenue for battling deadly brain tumors in children.

Cancerous brain tumors have now surpassed leukemia as the leading cause of cancer death in children. There are 28,000 children battling brain tumors in the U.S., including some in our community, and an additional 4,300 will be diagnosed this year.

Through Horace Greeley High School’s club, SHARE (Students Have A Responsibility Everywhere), enthusiastic student volunteers help before, during and after the TFFK event.  In addition to manning a booth at Community Day to publicize the event, SHARE hosts a Ben & Jerry’s fundraiser in Mt. Kisco. “It’s great to see many Greeley students come to get ice cream and help out this cause and raise community awareness around the dire need for funding pediatric brain cancer research. Plus, we always have fun scooping ice cream!” says Alice Heyeh, a SHARE Community Partners Executive, HGHS ’18.

It’s not too late to donate to the cause. Visit www.thinkfitforkids.org for additional information.

Filed Under: Lifestyles with our Sponsors Tagged With: Bill Clinton, club fit, fitness, kids, think fit for kids

Civic Lessons from Chappaqua’s Historic Women

March 8, 2018 by Dana Y. Wu

Gabrielle Greeley Clendenin (1857-1937) & Carrie Chapman Catt (1859-1947)

2017 marked the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage in New York State.  The New Castle Historical Society celebrated this centennial with an exploration of the women’s suffrage movement and the life of Carrie Chapman Catt, a leading suffragist and former New Castle resident.  Visit the Horace Greeley House to view this special exhibition with displays of photographs and artifacts until May 26, 2018.

In honor of Women’s History Month, The Inside Press focuses on the contributions of these two historic Chappaqua women residents.

In her book What Happened, Hillary Rodham Clinton reflects on “the roles that gender, race an class play in our politics and the importance of empathy in our national life.” This commitment to equality and moral dignity connects her to two other famous women in our town whose civic actions years ago required fortitude, then as now. Like Secretary Clinton, Gabrielle Greeley Clendenin and Carrie Chapman Catt each shared a hope for future generations and harnessed her creative and emotional power in different ways to make tangible differences during her lifetime.

Source: New Castle Historical Society

Gabrielle Greeley Clendenin: A Generous Citizen

When Horace Greeley and his wife Mary both died in 1872, their youngest child, Gabrielle, was only 15. In 1882, her sister Ida died suddenly from diphtheria and Gabrielle became the sole owner of all 78 acres of the Greeley farm in the center of Chappaqua. Gabrielle lived as an independent, educated woman who chose to live in Chappaqua from 1881 until her death.  She resided first in the Side Hill House which burned down in 1890 and then moved to a small house where the New Castle Town Hall is now.  After she married Rev. Dr. Frank Clendenin, the rector of St. Peter’s Westchester (now in the Bronx) in 1891, they remodeled the concrete barn that Horace Greeley had proudly built 35 years earlier and gave their permanent home a biblical name, Rehoboth.  Located on Aldridge Road, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

Gabrielle could have had a socialite’s cosmopolitan lifestyle in New York City or capitalized on the celebrity legacy of being the attractive daughter of Horace Greeley, the influential New York Tribune founding editor/statesman/presidential candidate.  Instead, Gabrielle was a charitable and generous neighbor, particularly to young women “in trouble” who were shunned by others, and personally aided her fellow citizens. She gave open house barn parties featuring traditional games and dances, held outdoor Sunday afternoon readings and book sharings under her father’s beloved evergreen grove and volunteered at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Pleasantville.

“Unlike her father, Gabrielle appears to have never involved herself in politics,” says Gray Williams, the town historian of New Castle. Gabrielle’s civic actions were aligned with her strong moral values and she concentrated her efforts to benefit the community where she lived.  Starting in 1883, she donated part of her land for a right-of-way to connect Pleasantville and downtown Chappaqua along what is now South Greeley Avenue. In 1902, she provided the site for the current railroad station and its adjacent town park (Woodburn Avenue is named for her paternal grandmother). She supplied the four-acre property for the Church of St. Mary the Virgin to be the first Episcopal Church in Chappaqua after the 1903 tragic death of her 5-year-old daughter, Muriel, from tubercular meningitis. A Celtic cross commemorates both Gabrielle and her husband in the family’s burial plot at the back of the Church, just north of the grove of majestic evergreen trees that her father planted a half-century earlier.

Creating A Strong Educational System

Gabrielle’s commitment to local affairs influenced New Castle’s transformation from a farm town to a suburban commuter hamlet with a prized school district where students are encouraged to think critically and actively engage in the community.  Most significantly, in 1926, Gabrielle either donated or sold on easy terms 10 acres of land which fundamentally changed the “common school” system of small one and two room buildings that only offered up to 8th grade instruction into a comprehensive school for elementary to high school instruction. Completed in 1928, the Horace Greeley School was a visual centerpiece of the town, built in native fieldstone like the Church of St. Mary the Virgin next door.

Source: NYS Museum http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/biographies/carrie-chapman-catt

Carrie Chapman Catt: A Leading Women’s Suffragist

Carrie Chapman Catt came to New Castle seeking a less hectic lifestyle as President of the National American Women’s Suffrage Association (NAWSA) following its greatest success, the passage of the 19th amendment by Congress. Having relentless determination and perseverance with the women’s suffrage movement since 1887 in Iowa, Catt was a leading activist, a dynamic organizer, fundraiser and a brilliant strategist. Catt founded the League of Women Voters in 1919, to provide women with the tools and knowledge for meaningfully exercising their right to vote. Believing that the political process should be rational and issue-oriented and dominated by citizens, not politicians, the League of Women Voters remains true to her ideals and promotes issues of public interest over partisan politics.

In 1919, Catt purchased Juniper Ledge, a 16-acre estate between North State and Ryder Roads in the west end of New Castle and was able to pursue her great love of gardening. An article in the New York Times on June 21, 1921 described a tradition Catt had established at Juniper Ledge of dedicating certain trees to famous suffragists. One tree, for example, was dedicated to Esther Morris, a leader in the passage of the Wyoming suffrage amendment. Another was dedicated to Maud Wood Park, who was instrumental in securing the passage of the 19th Amendment and the first president of the League of Women Voters. Juniper Ledge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was designated a town landmark in 2011.

While 2017 did not bring the inauguration of a first female U.S. President, lessons from 1915, when a proposed suffrage amendment to the NYS constitution was defeated, remind us that the struggle for equal rights up through the present day requires active participation of countless individuals at local, state and national levels. When women gained the right to vote in New York State in 1917, Catt said, “I regard the New York victory as the very greatest victory this movement has ever had in any country.” Catt’s successful “Winning Plan” of a state-by-state approach used New York’s win to propel the federal amendment forward.

“It’s a great connection for New Castle that such an important figure in the suffrage movement lived here. As the leader of NAWSA, Catt was instrumental in putting political pressure on President Wilson to support the 19th Amendment and then mobilizing support for ratification in three-fourths of the states. She is part of a long tradition of women’s rights leaders from New York from Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton to Betty Freidan and Gloria Steinem,” says Mary Devane, Horace Greeley HS Social Studies Department Chair.

Pursuing Justice and World Peace

Though she enjoyed her country retreat, Catt remained politically active and pursued her twin interests of women’s rights and world peace. In 1927, to be closer to the regional headquarters of the League of Women Voters in New Rochelle, Catt left New Castle and moved to a home on Paine Avenue in New Rochelle where she continued to garden enthusiastically. In her last years, she founded the National Committee on the Cause and Cure of War, actively supported the League of Nations and championed the newly formed United Nations.

Elevating Women

Knowing how our lives connect to Gabrielle’s civic actions and Catt’s activism can help us, as current residents, to cultivate a new generation of informed citizens in Chappaqua who combine passions with actions against prejudice and inequality. As these notable women recognized the societal issues in their contemporary culture, today we can speak up, stand firm and act generously each in our own way. Their legacy in civics gives us templates for how to build a better world and elevate the status of women.

Filed Under: Chappaqua Community Tagged With: community, famous women, Greeley, Historic women, history, New Castle Historical Society

Le Jardin du Roi: Exceptional Meals and Distinctive Drinks in a Gorgeous Garden

December 1, 2017 by Dana Y. Wu

Joe Quartararo, Cristiaan Lorson, Chef Rudy Beltran-Prats and Wendy Egan                  NOELLE MARIE PHOTOGRAPHY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Running a successful restaurant is both a science and an art. Le Jardin du Roi combines elegant service, laid back style and twists on classic culinary creations.

Originally opened as a white table cloth French bistro with his brother-in-law, Joe Quartararo has morphed this excellent little restaurant tucked away on King Street into a “French-BBQ-Latin Fusion-Café-Bar” food experience. A favorite among locals, Le Jardin du Roi is not too fancy, but not too casual. “We want patrons to feel like our restaurant is an extension of their home” says Wendy Egan, restaurant manager. We are so fortunate to have a core business of mainly families who come for brunch, birthdays and holiday meals.”

Customers love to linger over breakfast, lunch, cocktails and dinner in this serene setting awash with color. Joe’s wife, Donna, has designed the gardens to be a feast for the eyes throughout the seasons. Sumptuous weekend brunch is often accompanied with a live jazz band. As the outdoor patio business winds down with the cooler weather, the inside dining room is warm and inviting.

While “Les hamburgers” are very popular (try the Burger du Roi, topped with fried egg, bacon and Swiss cheese), there are occasional wine dinners with food pairings, all day breakfast and authentic, award winning BBQ. Lobster roll sliders and soft shell crabs appear seasonally along with traditional French cassoulet and coq au vin as the leaves start to fall. Take-out orders are available for pick up anytime.

Joe is always open to customer’s suggestions. “We added meatloaf and chicken milanese as a special because customers asked for comfort food.” While there is no kids’ menu, the menu is kid friendly and parents should feel free to ask for chicken fingers, pasta with butter and pancakes. The word “no” doesn’t come out of our mouth unless we don’t have the product”, says Joe.

BBQ ribs, brisket, pulled pork, pulled chicken, chicken wings and house made pigs-in-a-blanket made their debut for Super Bowl 2008 and is now the heart of Le Jardin’s catering business. Cristiaan Lorson, Joe’s business partner and resident Pit Master, learned the art of smoking BBQ from his brother Ted, of Q Haven BBQ of Orange, C.T. Together the brothers have competed in the Jack Daniels BBQ World Championship, the top BBQ contest in the United States. The success of BBQ on the menu has expanded Le Jardin du Roi’s business plan to include full scale catering for weddings, family parties, holidays and corporate events.

Le Jardin du Roi participates in the Hudson Valley Restaurant Week in the fall and spring, a two week regional foodie extravaganza where restaurants offer prix-fixe menus to showcase their dishes and drinks. “People hear “French” and “Chappaqua” and they might be intimidated so this is an opportunity to draw them out,” says Cristiaan.

Joe is grateful to become part of the greater Chappaqua community, generously supporting local charities and education organizations over the years. “This is more than a job, it’s a lifestyle, it’s like a family. We have met so many people and have seen their kids grow up. We’re glad to make a difference here.” He adds, “When we give a donation to an organization, it comes back to us ten-fold.”

A cozy destination in the downtown, Le Jardin du Roi celebrates its 17th year on January 25, 2018. Joe, Cristiaan, Wendy, Chef Rudy, the kitchen team and the waitstaff are optimistic about the current revitalization plans and anticipate more foot traffic to all the local businesses. Their simple approach to dining is to remain easy and approachable, offering consistently good food and distinctive drinks.

Le Jardin du Roi is a warm, welcoming neighborhood spot that opens daily at 8 a.m. to serve breakfast, lunch and dinner, seven days a week.


Wendy’s Granola Recipe

Wendy Egan, Le Jardin du Roi’s restaurant manager for 16 years, shares her tasty homemade granola recipe. It is simple, full of crunch and always available at Le Jardin.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup toasted chopped nuts or seeds
  • 1/2 cup dried fruit (i.e. raisins, cranberries, chopped mission figs, chopped apricots)
  • 1/4 cup toasted coconut flakes
  • 3 cups old fashioned oats (not instant)
  • 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees and arrange a middle rack.
  2. Place oats, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a bowl and toss to combine.
  3. Mix honey, oil and vanilla in a bowl and mix, pour over oat mixture and stir until oats are well-coated.
  4. Spread mixture in a thin even layer on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.
  5. Take baking sheet out and stir granola.  Bake for 5 minutes more or until oats are a light golden brown.
  6. Cool for about 20 minutes then transfer to bowl. Place in a bowl and add nuts, seeds, dried fruit and coconut.
  7. Place in an airtight container or zip lock bags.

Filed Under: Lifestyles with our Sponsors Tagged With: Bar, bistro, cafe, Chappaqua, culinary creations, Food, french, Joe Quartararo, Le Jardin, Les Hamburgers, Local

Getting to Know Gray Williams: Town Historian Extraordinaire

December 1, 2017 by Dana Y. Wu

Gray and Ike Kuzio, Town Superintdendent of Recreation & Parks at Millwood’s 200 Year Anniversary celebration PHOTO BY ROB GREENSTEIN
Town Historian Gray Williams is a master at painting a vivid picture of history. Quaker, Haight, Sarles, Kipp, Pines Bridge, Greeley, Commodore–the names of these local roads impart a legacy of almost three centuries of history. Other names around town–Stone Road, Hardscrabble Road, Stony Hills, Turner Swamp, Roaring Brook–suggest that the countryside, while perhaps full of natural beauty, was not entirely ideal for agriculture.

Gray’s principal duty as town historian is to serve as chair of the town’s Landmarks Advisory Committee, established in 1990. Jill Shapiro, Town Administrator, says his presentations on properties recommended for landmark status are legendary. “They are so well researched but not dry. He always finds a spark–something interesting and unique–about a property or its former residents that makes it special.”

The Town Historian and the committee, all unpaid volunteers, also makes recommendations whenever an application for significant alteration of a landmark comes before the Architectural Review Board, Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals, or the Building Department so that the historical significance of the site will be taken into account. Some New Castle landmarks are also listed inside the National Register of Historic Places.

Much of Gray’s work as an historian is devoted to writing. His most recent publication is a short illustrated history, Horace Greeley and the Greeley Family in Chappaqua. In addition to research reports, histories of landmarks and exhibitions at the Horace Greeley House and Museum, Gray has a special interest in the eight graveyards in New Castle–the Quaker graveyard, Fair Ridge Cemetery, and six abandoned family burying grounds. While preparing for the recent 150th Anniversary Tour of Fair Ridge Cemetery, Ken White, Jr. a former New Castle Historical Society (NCHS) trustee and current docent, recalls, “In the true spirit of Tom Sawyer, Gray presented me with my own scrub brush and spray bottle to start on a row of headstones and also convinced me that this endeavor was really great fun.”

Gray, an ex-officio trustee of the NCHS and a trustee of the Westchester County Historical Society, states, “The monuments in these graveyards embody the history of Chappaqua from the time it was first settled.” Ken adds, “Almost all of the town’s abandoned cemeteries now lie within private property and have long been neglected. Gray is the consummate statesman in negotiating for access and managing care. Some of the graveyards are on steep hillsides and are badly overgrown, but Gray also is undaunted by bees, brambles or a challenging climb.”

Gray grew up in Chappaqua and, with his wife, Marian, raised a family here. His neighbors have enjoyed the pleasure of Gray’s sense of humor and his intellectual spark. Jamie Comstock, a current NCHS trustee, says “When I moved to Marcourt Drive in the early 90s, Gray and Marian threw a wonderful party to introduce me to my other neighbors. I have valued his warmth and kindness over the years more than I can say. Running into him around town always gives me the same kind of feeling as suddenly remembering there is ice cream in my freezer – such a pleasure!”

Until the 20th century, New Castle was primarily an agricultural town, with grist and saw mills, cider and vinegar works, a shoe factory, and a pickle factory supplementing its dairy farms and apple orchards. Given our town’s origins, Town Supervisor Rob Greenstein says, “It is beyond dispute that in order to know where we are going, we must know where we’ve been. Gray’s endeavors in searching for and memorializing our Town’s history benefits us all.”

Kids love to probe Gray’s vast knowledge of the homes and neighborhoods of New Castle and learn about their own houses. And Gray never disappoints with his stories during the Q &A following the middle school presentations, when kids ask about where they live.

For example, Pierce Drive (right on the border of Chappaqua and Pleasantville) is named for the farm of a Quaker farmer, Moses Pierce, who operated a station on the Underground Railroad before the Civil War. Gray says of Pierce’s farm, “Perhaps this stop was right before the Jay Homestead in Bedford, which is also believed to have sheltered escaping slaves. The Jay family, from John Jay on, steadfastly opposed slavery.” The Pierces were members of the Quaker Meeting, whose meetinghouse was built in 1754, making it the oldest recorded building in Chappaqua. The Quakers who settled here embraced not only non-violence but also the equality of all human beings, regardless of race or sex. From as early as 1775, the Quakers denounced slavery though few went so far as Moses Pierce in defying the law for their beliefs. He and his wife, Esther, together with several others of their family, are buried in the Quaker graveyard.

Along with all of the other NCHS volunteers and the Landmarks Advisory Committee, Gray has preserved and interpreted local historic artifacts, documents, and stories to truly serve broad cultural and heritage goals in our community and beyond. Gray’s professional life as a writer and editor comes through in quality and details of the captions he writes for the rooms and objects at the Horace Greeley House. Suzanne Keay, a current trustee of the NCHS says, “At a recent lecture at the Horace Greeley House about runaway slaves in the mid-Hudson Valley, Gray seemed to know the names of almost every family mentioned by the lecturer. I don’t know what we’d do without Gray and his deep knowledge and dedication.”

NCHS is dependent on volunteers and membership to support its programming and activities, such as the annual Tree Lighting and Carols and the Victorian Valentine Tea Party. Georgia Frasch, NCHS Trustee, thoroughly enjoys going to scout potential old homes with Gray for the annual “Castles of New Castles” house tours. “I learn so much. Gray has spent countless hours looking at foundations and crawl spaces, all to preserve the rich history that has made this town so special. The names–Haight, Taylor, Washburn, Bristol, Quinby–are people who lived here and gave their properties a distinct sense of time and place. We love showing homes that demonstrate how our present is rooted in our past.”

It may be hard to imagine that our suburban homes were once heavily forested hills and valleys occupied by local Wappinger tribes whose totem was the Enchanted Wolf. Gray’s publications, stories and anecdotes keep us remembering and respecting our unique hamlet’s 300 years of significant events, persons, businesses and buildings.

Filed Under: Cover Stories Tagged With: Gray Williams, history, Landmarks, Millwood's 200 Year Anniversary, New Castle, Recreation & Parks, Town Historian, Town of New Castle

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