Published for The Rye Historical Society BY MORNING S TAR PRE S S RYE, NEW YORK 2022
All rights reserved. No part of this book, or related materials, may be reproduced or transmitted in any form (electronic, photocopying, recording or in any manner whatsoever) without the express written permission of the publisher and author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Published for The Rye Historical Society www.RyeHistory.org By Morningstar Press www.Morningstar.Press ISBN: 979-8-9860957-0-7
To my wife, Joyce Bagley Rheingold, who walked all of the streets of Rye with me during the Covid pandemic. i
Paul D. Rheingold has written this book for The Rye Historical Society and The City of Rye. It is a labor of love by a long-time resident of Rye and member of the Rye Historical Society who has also written Views of Rye – 1917 & 2007 for the benefit of the Society. Building on a previous compilation concerning the origin of our City’s street names written for the Society by volunteer Bern Fasse back in the 1980s, Paul has continued Bern’s research by working closely with the Society’s archivist and has produced a much more extensive document. With the assistance of archivist Jake GriffithRosenberger and dedicated volunteer Christine Moore, Paul studied old maps and subdivision plans housed in the Society’s archives at the Knapp House. He also researched other materials available at the Westchester County clerk’s office as well as valuable material available on the Internet. The Society is grateful to Mr. Rheingold for spending his own valuable time and resources to make this fascinating information available to both The Rye Historical Society and the public. We thank him for enhancing the records of the Society, enabling us to carry out our mission which includes: “To discover, collect and preserve materials which help to establish or Illustrate the history of the area; and to disseminate a knowledge of local history, and to foster a public awareness of, and pride in, the historic heritage of the Rye Community.” The Board of Directors The Rye Historical Society February, 2022 ii
Rosemere, Goldwin, Rickbern… hen you stop people on their street and ask how it got its name, they generally say, “I don’t know, I just live here.” So if you want to know the answer, this book is for you. This project was started in 2020, which future historians will note as the year of Covid lockdown, which provided the time to do research. Vincent’s Hospital. She died in Charlotte, NC, and had children, grandchildren and one great grandchild. The study into how the streets of Rye got their names, done for this book, builds upon research done in the late 1980s by a volunteer at the Rye Historical Society who gave her name as Bern Fasse. It was published by the Society in its newsletters, running five issues from January 1993 to Spring 1994. Also, as a search in the archives of the Society revealed, Fasse created a sheet for each street, and entered data or attached letters that had more information than in the newsletter publications. SUBDIVISIONS AND THE HISTORY OF RYE Bern Fasse unearthed the sources of many names that I could not have hoped to find today. So, but for her, this book would be much less complete. At the same time, no researcher back then had available the magnificent resources the internet provides today. Much of the new information—and correction of mistakes—arises out of simple Googling on the web, or more sophisticated research on such sites as Ancestry or those that have old newspapers digitized. And since we are all very lame in knowing what future technology will bring, it is probable that tech yet to come will fill in more information as to how our some 320 streets got their name. The history of the subdivision of farms and estates in Rye is in itself of some interest, documenting how Rye from 1869 until 1929 was divided into sections with new streets. Indeed, it seemed logical to present the street name information in this book in chapters based upon subdivisions (c. 2-5, 7). This study delves into who did the subdivision, whose land was being broken up, and what became of the project, if only to discover the source of street names. In a broader sense, in the course of doing this, the history of Rye is being examined. W Before we pass on to other topics, who was Bern Fasse? Well, Google once again informs us. Her obituary, in the White Plains Journal News, 2/13/2000, reveals her full name to Bernadine Fasse, born Bernadine Hirsch 1915 in Dubuque, IA. In her 30 years in Rye she did volunteer work not only at the Rye Historical Society but also St. Note: Throughout this book when I credit her research, I refer to her as Bern Fasse or simply Fasse. It was only a few hours into my research that I realized that what we were really dealing with was a history of the subdivisions of land in Rye, for there is where many names appeared. In fact, in final analysis, over 200 of Rye’s street names, more than half, arose out of subdivisions. The number of subdivisions themselves is about 40 (an accurate count is impossible as there were many “sub-subdivisions”).* Of course, streets came into existence other than subdivisions, first in the earliest periods of Rye history, from the 1600s on. Here one be* While this is not a book about “neighborhoods,” there is some overlap with the subdivision analysis here. Loudon Woods or Glen Oaks is an example of a neighborhood name born of a subdivision. However, you don’t hear people talking of living in “Ryan Park” or “Rye Beach Manor.” iii
writing of Charles Baird. Few towns in the country are as privileged with a thorough and intelligent a history as we in Rye are with Baird’s book. See c. 1 for a detailed analysis of his work. Further, during the main period of subdivisions (1869-1929), individual streets came into existence. Following 1929 and up to the present, many more individual streets have come into existence, mainly by breaking up a specific estate or homestead. In fact, as c. 6 shows, about 35 streets were created in this manner. The examination of the origin of subdivisions in Rye no doubt follows the history of such developments elsewhere in Westchester County and New York State. Common to the earliest ones were major landowners breaking up their estates, such as the Wainwrights, Halsteds, and the Cowles family. But even at early points, there were outside business developers who bought up large plots of land for dividing, such as what led to West Rye and Rye Park (c. 2), and Ryan Park (c. 3) (developers coming over from Port Chester). As time went along we had more of the commercial developers, exemplified by the major projects of Sonn, a Bronx outfit, creating Glen Oaks and Parkway Gardens (c. 4), or the creation of Greenhaven (c.7). One notes the end of large subdivisions in 1929. The most obvious explanation—the Great Depression—does not seem as likely to explain what happened in Rye as is the plain fact that virtually all of the sizeable tracts had been bought up and there was little left to work on. The study of subdivisions leads to information about what happened after they were platted. Having a lay-out of streets and numbered lots is just the start. What occured next is of interest: sale of lots; sale of homes built on the lots; or, frequently, auction of the lots. In fact, this study shows that many of the developments were specifically undertaken to create lots to sell by auction. * A distinguished historian, who was a professor at a prestigious institution, made his annual visit to his ophthalmologist. During the course of the eye exam, the doctor said that he was getting close to the age of retirement and was thinking in his retired years of becoming a historian. That’s odd, the professor replied, I was thinking of retiring and becoming an ophthalmologist. iv Throughout the book, I have tried to give the year when the street came into existence. That would be generally when it appears on a subdivision map. When it was actually developed may be some years later. Still later is when the town/village/city formally accepted the street (by vote of the current legislative body, now the City Council). While Bern Fasse gave significance to that latter date in her research, I have not found it meaningful here. MAPS Old maps play a decisive role in any type of historical research. In the instance of this work, the maps are of two types—the town and the subdivision. Major maps of the town in 1910, 1914 and 1929 have been a major source of information (the 1929 map, by G.M. Hopkins, indeed lists each subdivision by its Westchester number, see fig. I-a). If you are interested in maps of Rye, you can consult these online at the David Rumsey site, a miracle of free information. The site even allows one to “geoposition” an old map, orienting it to the current map. See Bibliography for list of historic maps of Rye. Of greater use to the topic of this book are subdivision maps. Each developer seeking to gain permission to break up a plot of land needs to provide a survey of how the streets and lots will be laid out. These maps, in the case of Rye from 1869 on, had to be submitted to the Westchester County Clerk in White Plains. These were individually numbered, and bore two dates—time of creating the survey, and a later date of approval by the County (which was often a handwritten statement). In describing each of the subdivisions discussed in this book, I have endeavored to list the map number given by the County, the date (if no date, an estimate of the year), the name given the development, and the developer. (Instead of numbers, some of the smaller maps were stored in volumes.) In addition to these maps telling us when a street came into existence, there may also be clues as to how the names were selected, as by learning the name of the developer.
Can you, the reader, find Hix Park 2254? v
were scanned at some time in the past, and placed online on the County’s website. (Unluckily, you have to pay to access these, though I was accommodated through the office of the Rye City Assessor.) Some of the illustrations in this book are copies of these maps (and therefore not very sharp ones). Scrutiny of the subdivision maps online consumed many hours in research. THE OFFICIAL STATUS OF STREETS* Streets often come into existence before names — just roads to somewhere, but even named streets do not become official streets of the City of Rye until they are dedicated to the City and accepted by it. The dedication process is a complex legal one we don’t need to detail, except to say that the developer has to provide title to the land, title insurance, and all of the requirements of water, sewage, and lighting, etc. (Or in some instances, where the plots are already divided and lived on, the law requires each homeowner to deed street rights.) When all is in order, the City Council accepts the dedication. That date, which comes long after the naming process, is of little consequence in this work, but is sometimes referred to. HOW STREETS NAMES WERE SELECTED AND WHAT WE DON’T KNOW In studying how streets, especially those created by subdivisions, got their names, it seems that many developers felt it is more of an obligation than a privilege to select street names. In some of the massive subdivisions, such as Sonn’s Parkway Gardens (c. 4), one gets the impression that it was a rushed nuisance to pick names for blank street demarcations. If so, this created a lot of names which are hard if not impossible to trace to their origins. The effort so far to determine the source of some of Rye’s street names has not, unfortunately, determined the origin of all of our street names. * Why are some called streets, others avenue, road, boulevard, drive, etc.? There seems to be no sense of hierarchy, at least in Rye. vi So far no document has turned up where a subdivider explained the choice of names. About 15-20 are unknown at present, but there is always hope. If you the reader can provide any information, we can include that in a supplement to the book. TYPES OF STREET NAMES Depending on how you count them, there are approximate 320 streets in Rye. The types of names of the streets may be divided into groups: (a) Names of people (eponymous) The total here is about 148, the largest source of street names. Most of course are surnames, but we do have a few first names. About 16 of the latter are first names of developers’ wives and children. The sources of surnames are: —the landowner or the developer (with old streets, it is sometime unclear if a specific person or the whole family was meant). —relatives of the above. —famous people—some four appear to be U.S. Presidents; we have five famous aviators; and several congressmen. —“city fathers”— in all, there are about 24 streets with “city father” names. These are men and women who served the town/village/city. Concurrent with the Rye Planning Commission taking over the naming of streets in the middle of the last century, there has been a practice of selecting names of men and women who meet two qualifications: having been of service, and deceased. Susan Morison, in her capacity as City Manager, drew up an informal list of potential names, which has been periodically updated.
—directions: about eight; e.g., North. (d) Indian names —unknown persons—unfortunately still a lot. Tribes, chiefs, areas—about 12. Most of the surnames, of course, are those of men, but we do have some women: Stuyvesant, Osborn, Bird, Dalphin, Read, the last three being Rye Free Reading Room librarians. To this we can add all those with first names of wives and daughters. It should be noted that some of the names, the source of which are yet to be cracked, could be surnames but also could be “nature” names—e.g., Sylvan, Greenleaf. The ethnicity of names is a topic perhaps best deferred for sociologists, but they are very Anglo-Saxon—at least in comparison to our neighbor Port Chester. None is another race than white (except for Indian names). Having finished this work, one notes that some well-known Rye personages somehow never got streets named after them—but might be selected in the future: Budd, Coe, Studwell, Baird. And we don’t even have a Washington or Lincoln, nor for that matter a Main St. or Broadway. (b) Places Around 36 of these. Examples are: School, Milton. (c) “Nature” names I use quote marks as there is no good overall name for this category, which gives us about 88 of the street names. This can be broken down into: —trees and plants, about 32. —terrain, topography—about 44 (often this is figurative as there is no dale or vale). (e) “Happy” or “Real Estate-y” names Nine or so; e.g. Pleasant., Windcrest. (f ) Other sources About 15 —e.g., First, Purchase. With this mix of sources for names, Rye is probably no different from towns the country over. Anyone interested in the broader topic of street (and town) names, can find information on the web. INFORMATION ABOUT THE PEOPLE BEHIND THE NAMES; ILLUSTRATIONS The Rye Historical Society and I felt that this book would be enhanced by telling the story of the people for whom streets were named, as well as a little about persons involved with the subdivision—the landowners, the developers and the builders. Therefore, brief biographies are presented, sometimes very brief since little information could be found, even after consulting such a data base as Ancestry. Likewise, we have sought photographs or drawings of the persons involved. Other illustrations include maps of subdivisions, some of which are art works in themselves. We have used old (1905-1910) postcard views of streets in various places. Like old maps, they help us remember what Rye looked like at times in the past. Finally, there are some illustrations taken from Views of Rye, a 2007 book which I edited (and the current work makes many references to houses illustrated in that book). vii
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