By Mary Hoar, President Untermyer Performing Arts Council, President Emerita, Yonkers Historical Society
Monday, July 6th
July 6, 1914: The upper wooden portion of the Bryn Mawr Park passenger train station was destroyed by fire. The lower part of the two-story building, at Palmer Road near Mile Square Road, was built of stone. Damage was estimated to be $5,000.
July 6, 1929: Military salutes from veterans of three wars, three volleys of rifle fire and taps honored the late Major Abraham H. Tompkins, Commander of the Kitching Post, GAR, at his interment. His funeral, held at the Central Methodist Episcopal Church on Morris Street, was attended by many dignitaries, including congressmen, mayors, alderman, judges and famed sculptor Isadore Konti.
Tuesday, July 7th
July 2, 1902: More complaints were received at Police Headquarters about boys and men swimming in the Hudson “without proper clothing.” Captain Woodruff ordered his men to “stop the nuisance.”
July 7, 1911: Noted emotional actress Clara Morris, living in her estate on Riverdale Avenue, suddenly recovered her eyesight after being blind for six months.
July 7, 1931: The Common Council adopted a resolution introduced by Seventh Ward Alderman Felix Sarubbi to post speed limit signs on all main Yonkers thoroughfares. Sarubbi believed motorists should know how fast they could drive on Yonkers highways.
Wednesday, July 8th
July 8, 1916: Charles Philip Easton, President of the Yonkers Board of Education, announced postponement of all summer classes because of the polio epidemic.
July 8, 1917: Mabel Bennett organized and directed a Shakespearian festival and pageant at her home on Park Hill Avenue to benefit the Stage Women’s War Relief. Well-known stage stars attending were Mr. and Mrs. William Faversham, Ethel Barrymore, Shelley Hull and Billie Burke.
July 8, 1944: Lieutenant William Douglas Mulcahy, USN, of Kingston Avenue, US Naval Reserve and a member of the Pacific Task Force, shot down one of enemy planes headed for the task force; this was the fifth enemy plane his blazing machineguns had taken down, making him officially an “ace.” Mulcahy was flight leader of two four-plane divisions of Hellcat fighters on combat air patrol when the group of nine enemy Zero fighters was detected. Although outnumbered, the first division led by the Yonkers officer went after the Japanese planes, shooting down five other planes. The second division “polished off” the three other enemy craft. Mulcahy, holder of the Air Medal, was with “Fighting 31” on the USS Cabot. Later that year, his gallantry in action was so outstanding, he not only earned two Gold Stars added to his DFC, he also was awarded the Silver Star.
Thursday, July 9th
July 9, 1904: Work on the inside of the new public library neared completion; by the end of the week, lights in the children’s room, reading room and stock room were installed. The floors were in condition for business and there was enough furniture for library work.
July 9, 1918: The first people arrested under the Anti-Loafing Law appeared in Yonkers City Court; City Judge William Bleakley ordered them to find a job within 5 days. The judge advised their parents not to support idle, loafing sons, and told the defendants to, “Get a job or engage in some occupation that will help the United States win the war.”
July 9, 1930: Marion Cook was awarded the title of “Miss Yonkers” and a trip to Atlantic City as a result of a popularity contest held by the Park Hill Theater; she received 199,890 votes. Miss Cook, who lived at the YMCA, left Yonkers in a car provided by the Yonkers Nash Corporation, accompanied by her employer’s wife, Mrs. Harris Riefe. The pair spent two weeks at the Traymore Hotel.
Friday, July 10th
July 10, 1907: Yonkers declared itself “the healthiest place to live in.” Statistics released by the State Board of Health showed our death rate was much lower than “health-gaining” places such as Saratoga Springs and Niagara Falls.
July 10, 1933: Joseph Urban passed away. Urban, an internationally known architect, illustrator and theater set designer, emigrated to the United States in 1911 to become the Art Director of the Boston Opera Company. He was the originator of the American Art Deco style, and was best known for creating the interior and exterior designs of Mar-A-Lago. He lived at 93 Hudson Terrace and had his studio at 217 South Waverly Street.
Saturday, July 11th
July 11, 1922:A statue was unearthed at Greystone by plumbers repairing a pipe on the estate. Believing the statue, representing the draped figure of Cere, to be ancient, photographer Rudolf Eickemeyer and sculptor Isidore Konti both declared it an amazing discovery.
July 11, 1945: Acting City Manager Norman Henderson sold forty-eight acres of city land on Central Avenue, formerly part of Grassy Sprain golf course, to Herman Binseil and a New York City real estate syndicate; they planned to use the land for real estate development. Yonkers was holding several more acres of the old golf grounds to give gratis to New York State as a location for a proposed technical college.
Sunday, July 12th
July 12, 1934: Supreme Court Justice Raymond Aldrich ordered Mayor Joseph Loehr to reinstate Mary Hallenback and Florence Reinhardt to positions in the Department of Charities abolished six months earlier. The women claimed six temporary employees were doing work they had done. Justice Aldrich ruled this violated both the spirit and letter of the Civil Service Law.
July 12, 1938: Captain Andrew McLean, former Assistant US Attorney and holder of the Distinguished Service Cross for “extraordinary heroism” in France during World War One, was notified he had been cited once again for his gallantry in action in 1918. He would receive the coveted Silver Star with Oak Leaf Cluster because of his actions when an enemy shell struck his battalion headquarters on the Aisne River. At the time, he had been commissioned a second lieutenant on the field for his gallantry in action.
For more information on the Yonkers Historical Society, Sherwood House and our upcoming events, visit our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/YonkersHistoricalSociety. For information on membership in the Yonkers Historical Society, please call 914-961-8940 or email yhsociety@aol.com.
