By Mary Hoar, President Emerita, Yonkers Historical Society, recipient of the 2004 Key to History, President Untermyer Performing Arts Council
Monday, March 22nd
March 22, 1907: DPW Commissioner Cooper and Mayor John Coyne staked out the location of the new City Hall soon to be built in Washington Park.
March 22, 1922: Mary McDonald of Briggs Avenue appeared in court before Judge Boote; she refused to have her daughter vaccinated. State regulations required every child who attended school have the smallpox shot. McDonald claimed two family members had gotten ill after receiving it. Botte told her as the child could attend public schools, he would give her two choices—have private home tutoring 12 hours a week since state law also required all children to be education, or the court would send the child to an institution. Boote ordered charges be levied against Mr. McDonald.
March 22, 1928: The Ewing Circle, GAR, honored their founding members and officers during a celebration of their 35th anniversary at the Crescent Club. President Marie Halsey was presented a diamond brooch to thank her for her contributions during the previous five years.
Tuesday, March 23rd
March 23, 1945: Three Yonkers heroes were presented with Air Medald for “meritorious achievement” to thank them for their efforts in fighting the war. Second Lieutenant Nils Smith-Petersen, AAF, of Gramatan Drive, received his for leading bombing raids over Nazi Europe. He served as a pilot with a B-24 Liberator bomber group based in Italy. Two men, Staff Sergeant Andrew Wiczkowicz of Orchard Street and Sergeant Thomas Piersall of Riverdale Avenue, served as tail gunners on B-17 Flying Fortresses of the 15th Air Force in Italy, and received the Air Medals for their achievements in aerial fight. Piersall had been reported as missing in action the previous day.
March 23, 1945: Two Yonkers men were presented with Bronze Stars. Technical Sergeant Morton Benson of Randolph Street received his for establishing a record in keeping a plane in perfect flying order; it completed 255 bombing missions without engine trouble. Assigned to a P-47 Thunderbolt base in France, he wore four campaign stars. The second Bronze Star Medal was presented to Sergeant Camillo Bozzi of Kettell Avenue for “extremely meritorious service in support of operations against the enemy.” Stationed in North Africa, he was the Motor Sergeant of a Military Police company in Europe and wore the European-African-Middle Eastern campaign ribbon with two battle stars.
Wednesday, March 24th
March 24, 1929: First Ward Alderman Brian Shaefer announced he would vote against widening Warburton Avenue from Main Street to the Plaza unless the widening continued down Riverdale Avenue to Franklin Avenue.
March 24, 1929: Ohio police, with the help of Westchester County officers, conducted a search of Yonkers and Westchester County; they were looking for Ralph Richards of Saratoga Avenue. Richards had been indicted in Ohio in 1928 on three charges of impersonating a Prohibition Agent.
Thursday, March 25th
March 25, 1899: The Yonkers Historical and Library Association received permission from the Mayor and Common Council to put a bronze tablet on the outside of Manor Hall, our City Hall. The plaque to commemorate the history and importance of Manor Hall was estimated to cost $250 to design. They expected an appropriate celebration for “a gathering of distinguished people” to dedicate the signage would cost about $500.
March 25, 1906: After testing our drinking water, our Water Bureau announced the Yonkers water supply was “one or two percent less than absolute perfection.” Residents continued to complain about the water, claiming Yonkers drinking water was “impure and a disease breeder;” many others filed complaints about the pollution of the Nepperhan River.
Friday, March 26th
March 26, 1922: The Common Council created the position of Plumbing Inspector specifically because large numbers of new homes were being built incorrectly in the Ninth Ward by “amateurs” using substandard and faulty materials. The job paid $1700 per year.
March 26, 1945: Councilmen Thomas Sheridan, Thomas Sullivan and John Whalen walked into City Manager Robert Montgomery’s office to formally advise him they planned to have him ousted. They presented him with a resolution outlining charges against him; Montgomery labeled the allegations as “trumped up charges” that were “flimsy as hell.” The Herald Statesman editorial several days later said they took the action because Montgomery would not “toady” to Thomas Brogan and other Democratic politicians.
Saturday, March 27th
March 27, 1940: Samuel Untermyer’s will was filed for probate. He left his Yonkers Greystone estate to New York State for a public park. He made a provision it be accepted within six months, and recommended George Chisholm, many years Greystone superintendent, be retained. Most of the rest of the estate was left to his three children.
March 27, 1940: The State of New York formally rejected Samuel Untermyer’s bequest of Greystone because it was too expensive to maintain.
March 27, 1941: NYS Department of Labor Division of Statistics and Information reported Yonkers had 156 factories employing 14,345 people, an increase of 2,000. Sixty-one factories employed less than five workers, and four were large with at least 1,000 workers. Factories were not identified, but it was assumed Smith Carpet, Otis Elevator and Habirshaw Cable and Wire companies were in the large group.
Sunday March 28th
March 28, 1930: Mayor John Fogarty demanded Public Safety Commissioner Frank Devlin investigate how a barge load of liquor “happened to come here.” The barge was seized on the Yonkers waterfront, with a cargo of 400 cases of liquor and 125 barrels of malt, with an estimated worth of at least $175,000.
March 28, 1945: Mrs. James Abbatiello of Lake Avenue received her late son’s medals from Major Lucian Youngblood at a Mitchel Field ceremony in the post theater. She received the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with three Oak Leaf Clusters for Staff Sergeant Gaetano “Tommy” Abbatiello, known locally as the “Flying Barber.” A ball turret gunner on a B-17, he originally was reported missing in action, then thought to be a war prisoner. This later was revised to killed in action.
For more information on the Yonkers Historical Society, Sherwood House and our upcoming events, please visit our website www.yonkershistoricalsociety.org, call 914-961-8940 or email yhsociety@aol.com.
