- Aquebogue THE WITCH's HAT -

BY DANNY McCARTHY

- I located some articles online and I incorporated them into my version {'my-take"}. I located sentences that should’ve been combined better in their original-respective-versions as well as the fact that there was duplication. - Here's a salute for my friend Mary {Smith} Christian -&- you folks too. - HATS-OFF TO YOU. - {!} -

Southold resident Mary {Smith} Christian shared with me that when she was a child in the car with her dad that they both would pass and definitely admire a structure in Aquebogue. ~ It is what is renown for being referred to as The Witch's Hat.
I thank MONIQUE SINGH-ROY {Her online column is titled "Excursions: Just What Is The Witch's Hat?}, FAUSTO GIOVANNI PINTO {Newsday article in the LONG ISLAND/TOWNS section titled Aquebogue Witch's Hat to get a Makeover Updated August 15, 2013 9:22 PM}, BETH YOUNG had her "Celebrating the Restoration of The Witch's Hat" article in the October 26, 2014 East End Beacon, LISA FINN {October 25, 2014 Riverhead Local article titled "Witch's hat in Aquebogue, North Fork icon, dedicated after extensive facelift}, and OLIVER PETERSON {October 8, 2019 Dan's Papers - article titled "Aquebogue's Witch's Hat Remains in Good Hands"}.
"They call it The Witch's Hat, and it's one of the oddest-looking buildings on the North Fork."
{ * THE NORTH FORK DOESN'T BEGIN UNTIL A PORTION OF LAUREL. }
Frankly Speaking
Farming was so crucial to the North Fork. The farming hamlet of Laurel was originally known as Franklinville. The name Franklinville was a tribute to Benjamin Franklin. It was realized that the name Franklinville was taken by another New York State town. And so, the residents changed the name of the North Fork Franklinville to Laurel. Thus, the post office name became the Laurel post office.
Within my online post - Ben Franklin – Not From A Distance … He Was "write" Here! ~ Mark My Words! - I included this information:
Southold Town Historian Antonia Booth reminds us that Southold Town reached all the way from Plum Island to Wading River until 1792. According to the Rev. Charles E. Craven’s A History of Mattituck, Long Island, New York: “When the town of Riverhead was set off in 1792, the west line of the Howell farm {in Aquebogue} became the dividing line between Southold and Riverhead.” When the Riverhead Town was formed from Southold, a hamlet known as the “Middle District” was divided by the new town lines. The Middle District became known as Franklinville (named after Benjamin Franklin). The Franklinville Academy was there and at five dollars a term, boarding students from all over Long Island received a fine education.
Franklinville Academy opened in 1833 and after 57 years of uninterrupted county-wide educational service, Franklinville Academy closed its doors. Esther P. Boucher De Graff wrote in her August 1954 paper Old Franklinville: “I might mention in passing that the Franklinville district school stood on the corner of Main Road and Aldrich Lane, the site originally chosen for the church. There was a large rock in the front yard on which the schoolchildren sharpened their pencils during recess.”
“Franklin villagers” didn’t have a Post Office. Mail came to Jamesport. The Franklinvillagers wanted a Post Office of their own in 1898. They learned that in Cattaraugus County, 50 miles southeast of Buffalo, there was a Franklinville Post Office already. “Sequana” was an Indian name proposed, meaning spring.
* As a writer I've definitely noticed similarities in words or variations that might have different meanings. There is a SEAGYAN Club is Peconic and SEAGYAN is similar to that "Sequana" - Here's my post re: the SEAGYAN Club: SEAGYAN Club in Peconic NY | North Fork, NY Patch
“Laurel” was suggested as well, and the hamlet was renamed with the residents calling it Laurel. The Laurel Post Office opened on February 5, 1898 at Oliver A. Atwood’s General Store, as Mattituck-Laurel Historical Society & Museums Curator/Historian Norman Wamback shared in his May 2008 Peconic Bay Shopper article all about post offices on the North Fork. Oliver Atwood’s General Store is now the location of Elbow Two Restaurant.
* A portion of Laurel is in Riverhead and the other in Southold Town. Riverhead includes Jamesport, Northville, Aquebogue, Roanoke, Calverton, and Baiting Hollow.
Chairman of the Landmarks Preservation Commission Richard Wines gave a history of the Witch’s Hat, originally built as a retirement project by Brooklyn-born Harry Fleming in 1927 to 1928. Fleming, an immigrant from England who’d worked as a machinist and his wife Lena, a midwife, as well as her mother-in-law, ran the tiny shop, which originally sold candy, cigarettes, gas and ice cream, a rarity during a time with little refrigeration, for which enthusiasts would come from as far away as Greenport. Later, the Witch’s Hat was used as a nursery and for plant sales. With the advent of automobiles, Wines said the building was designed in the shape of a Witch’s Hat to attract the attention of passing motorists. “It’s roadside architecture,” he said.
The building, had originally been known as “The Lighthouse.”
In past years, the Witch’s Hat, was once owned by Dr. Gary Brown - used for wedding photos and a photo shoot for a professional guitarist. The property had been unoccupied since before 1970, although Dr. Brown, who first owned the veterinary clinic on the site, re-glazed the windows and restored the exterior around the time when the structure was designated a Riverhead Town landmark in 1987 by the Landmark Preservation Commission.
Dr. {Richard} Hanusch {pointed} out that his contract to buy the Aquebogue Veterinary Hospital included an agreement not to remove or change the Witch’s Hat and he had no intention of harming the landmark. In fact, the Town of Riverhead even offered to take it off his hands and move it to a local park, but Dr. Hanusch declined, choosing instead to keep the Witch’s Hat in it’s {stet} original location, where it belongs.
Beloved by residents in Aquebogue for its resemblance to its namesake, it had been falling apart for years. “A lot of people gave their time for it,” Dr. Hanusch said in appreciation of the many volunteers, including Landmarks Preservation Commission Chairman Richard Wines, who were instrumental in bringing the Witch’s Hat back from the brink of destruction with time, supplies and money.
In an effort spearheaded by the Riverhead Landmarks Preservation Committee and the Save Main Road civic group October 25, 2014 was a perfect time to complete the 18-month rehabilitation project, given its witchy silhouette. {Georgette Keller founded the group called Save Main Road. She posted a photo of The Witch's Hat on the Remembering Riverhead Facebook group and started to drum up support to repair the building.}
Improvements to the structure included the rehabilitation of a light at the tip of the “Witch’s Hat,” which has been restored and will now be illuminated, for the first time in half century, with a modern twist — the light has the capacity to turn different colors, much like the Empire State Building. New electricity has been installed in the Witch’s Hat, as well.
Restoring the Witch’s Hat, said co-project manager Cliff Baldwin, was a labor of love. “It’s fantastic. It’s an icon for the real North Fork, an architectural gem. The Witch’s Hat is the North Fork’s answer to the Big Duck.”
Hanusch said the revamp, which included paint and new cedar shingles, breathed new life into the structure. “I love it, it’s great. It looks better than it did when we bought it 25 years ago.”
The timing, said Larry Simms of the Save Main Road civic group, could not have been better. “How could we not have it ready for Halloween?” The project, he said, was a testament to the structure’s importance to residents. “It’s really neat to see the community come together,” he said, adding the project used absolutely no public funds.
“It’s such a historical landmark—people used to judge their time coming out to the North Fork by it,” Dr. Hanusch said, demonstrating the value of leaving the building on Main Road. Best of all, curious passersby still stop to snap pictures of the Witch’s Hat, proving that it continues to fascinate and welcome North Fork visitors, as it will for many years to come.
No plans are currently in place to use the building for any specific purpose, Hanusch said, adding that due to the heavy traffic on Main Road, adding any type of attraction in the building could spark accidents caused by rubberneckers.
"It's something that's unique and old and that can never be replaced," farmer Susan Wells said. "It's great to see it fixed up."
The Witch’s Hat, said {Georgette} Keller, was called “The Tooth Fairy’s House” by Suffolk County Legislator Al Krupski’s family. He told her that when he was a little boy, they’d see the Witch’s Hat and know — as have so many others who consider the Witch’s Hat a beacon — that they were almost home.
Find The Witch’s Hat just east of the Aquebogue Veterinary Hospital (357 Main Road) in Aquebogue.
Aquebogue Veterinary Hospital | Pet Care | Aquebogue, NY