By Mary Hoar, President Emerita, Yonkers Historical Society, recipient of the 2004 Key to History, Member of the Yonkers Landmarks Preservation Board, and President Untermyer Performing Arts Council
Monday, April 26th
April 26, 1927: The issuing of a building permit for a proposed new hotel in an exclusive section of Southwest Yonkers caused extreme agitation when area property owners learned the permit had been granted.
April 26, 1933: Ninth Ward residents presented petitions to the Common Council to support Alderman William Slater’s protest against the scandalous “scanty attire” worn every weekend by visitors and hikers from New York City.
April 26, 1956: To celebrate her eightieth birthday, Gisella Haber Horvath of Wellesley Avenue was reunited with all her children and grandchildren for the first time since arriving in 1948 from Czechoslovakia.
Tuesday, April 27th
April 29, 1945: As part of their Arbor Day program, the children of School Eight honored war correspondent Ernie Pyle, who had been killed eleven days earlier. Before dedicating an umbrella pine donated by Boyce Thompson Institute to Pyle’s memory, the children buried a metal memory box with several items: the afternoon’s program; a copy of the dedication; a letter of sympathy sent to Mrs. Pyle that included a description of the tree; a prayer for trees; and a list of the school’s classes and teachers.
One of America’s best-known war correspondents, Pyle was valued for telling the story of the war in “GI language,” just the way our fighting men wanted it to be told.
April 27, 1945: All ninety employees of Schiff and Mirsky, a coat and suit maker at 77 South Broadway, pledged 100% would purchase War Bonds in the Seventh War Loan Drive.
Wednesday, April 28th
April 28, 1933: The Bryn Mawr-Nepperhan League of Women Voters called for a “light strike” to protest higher electricity rates. Mrs. Harry Hewitt, Chairman of the effort, suggested electricity be replaced by candlepower, and noted some homes already were using candles.
April 28, 1945: Constance Warren officiated at her last Sarah Lawrence College commencement after serving as President from 1929 to 1945. She is credited for creating a college devoted to flexible, individualized education; her main goal was to “make students excited about learning.”
April 28, 1950: Alexander Smith and Sons Carpet Company announced January-March 1950 was the best first quarter sales in the history of the company.
Thursday, April 29th
April 29, 1933: Henry Kaltenbach, Hospital Board of Managers President, presented the Ben Morgan apparatus to Yonkers General Hospital. The Ben Morgan apparatus was the most modern anesthetic equipment and could be used to administrator either gas or ether; it permitted almost immediate recovery of consciousness after the mask was removed.
April 29, 1940: Teenager James Liston of Riverdale Avenue received the coveted Carnegie Hero Fund medal, with a $750 award for his education! Liston, who rescued Alphonse D’Amato from drowning in the Hudson, was walking along the waterfront and heard D’Amato’s cries for help. He immediately jumped in the river and swam out to D’Amato. While James was towing D’Amato to the shore, D’Amato went under, so the teen held him up until Detective Thomas Flynn and Patrolman Michael Wertis got to him. The trio brought the man to the riverbank, to the care of YPD Emergency Squad.
Friday, April 30th
April 30, 1929: Mayor John Fogarty announced that the city-owned land under water at Trevor Park would be used as a dumping site, and instructed Deputy City Engineer Norman Henderson to survey the property.
April 20, 1939: Alexander Smith and Sons Carpet Company announced they were preparing to shut down because of the soft coal workers’ strike. The strike also impacted our water supply and our citizens, and would cause a major problem if not settled shortly.
Saturday, May 1st
May 1, 1916: For the first time in the history of Yonkers, the Common Council named two streets after Aldermen. The first would be called Miller Street after First Ward Alderman Charles Miller; the second, Blackford Street, was named after Seventh Ward Alderman John Blackford
May 1, 1944: Yonkers launched its month long “I Won’t Talk” campaign to educate the public on the importance of being discreet about war information. The citywide campaign, designed by the Committee on Safeguarding Military Information, worked with management of factories, union leaders, food and liquor dealers… and owners of beauty shops… to emphasize the important of eliminating war gossip. Yonkers unions arranged to show several “Don’t Talk” films in our movie theaters. Uniformed volunteers visited shops, bars, taverns, etc., to stress the importance of not sharing war secrets; they prominently placed stickers on windows and mirrors n every shop to remind patrons. “I Won’t Talk” posters were placed in all Yonkers factories, and changed weekly to remind workers of the importance of the message.
Sunday, May 2nd
May 2, 1918: Stage and silent film star Marguerite Clark made several appearances in Yonkers for the Liberty Loan campaign. She spoke in Getty Square, and at Proctor’s, Broadway and the Hamilton theaters. Clark was at one time second only to Mary Pickford in popularity. In 1916, the New York Times called her one of the Big Four movie stars; the others were Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin.
May 2, 1927: Yonkers students John H. Van Deventer, Jr. and Joseph Norman Staubach arrived back in in New York; both men had been part of the first College Cruise Round the World or on the SS Ryndam. Van Deventer of Philips Place was a student at Notre Dame. Staubach of Palisade Avenue was a senior at Dartmouth College. Staubach had graduated from School 16 and Yonkers High School, and his father owned Staubach Lumber on John Street. The two men were selected from thousands of competitors for the honor; five hundred students and sixty faculty members from thirty colleges visited thirty-five countries during the educational cruise. Finals were given at the end of the nine-month “floating university,” ending with the first college commencement held on the high seas.
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.
