The Cutchogue-New Suffolk Historical Council is set to open a new permanent exhibit of artifacts found near the historic Fort Corchaug site, collected decades ago by Cutchogue farmer Harold Grathwohl.
The exhibit, housed in The Red Barn on the Cutchogue Village Green, is the result of a collaboration between Southold Indian Museum president Lucinda Hemmick and Cutchogue-New Suffolk Library historical librarian Mariella Ostroski. READ
Santa Claus arrived by helicopter in Cutchogue Saturday afternoon as dozens of children and their families looked on with excitement. READ
A walkway lined with diverse shrubs and flowers guides visitors to the doors of Cutchogue New Suffolk Free Library.
Built in the mid-19th century, the church-like building on the corner of Main Road and Cases Lane in Cutchogue has housed the Cutchogue New Suffolk Free Library since 1915. READ
Artist Bob Kuhne, president of the Old Town Arts and Crafts Guild in Cutchogue, outside the Cutchogue church building the group hopes to purchase. (Credit: Barbaraellen Koch)
Unable to host winter meetings in their own building due to an inadequate heating system, members of the Old Town Arts and Crafts Guild have been gathering this season in a small downstairs room at Cutchogue-New Suffolk Library.
The nonprofit’s weekly “Wednesday workshops” are typically attended by a dozen members and usually focus on ideas for future events or design concepts for fliers and brochures. (more…)
Despite its age — well over 100 years old — and precarious locations near the bay in New Suffolk, the Galley Ho building (center) managed to survive the 1938 hurricane, the ‘Perfect Storm’ and, most recently, superstorm Sandy, among other weather events. It will soon be renovated, raised and moved for a fifth time — about 30 feet closer to the water — as part of a waterfront development project. (Credit: Andrew Lepre)
Its location has changed at least four times in less than a century, but one thing pretty much has stayed the same. Throughout its history, the building that’s become known locally as the Galley Ho has served the North Fork food industry in some capacity.
At least, when it wasn’t vacant, as it is today.
From the 1940s into the 21st century, it was a place where locals and visitors to New Suffolk could snack on seafood and have a drink. From the 19th century until before World War II, the simple rectangular structure was involved in the wholesale side of the food business — specifically, making oyster barrels. (more…)
The Cutchogue New Suffolk Library is hosting a Civil War series titled ‘The Northern Homefront II’ at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 25.
Richard Radoccia discusses the optimism created by the North’s ability to fight a war and pursue economic development. For more information, contact the library at 631-734-6360.
CLAIRE LEADEN PHOTO | Southold Free Library employee David VanPopering with one of the fishing poles residents can check out.
In recent years, libraries have become much more than just places to borrow books. Patrons have also become accustomed to checking out music and movies and attending classes at their local library.
Still, there are a few things you might not even know your library offers. For example, all Suffolk County libraries accept cards from any library in the county, so feel free to visit the other book lenders if you’re interested. Keep in mind, though, that each library may have its own restrictions about lending items to non-residents.
Here are some unique possibilities available to you at libraries across the North Fork. Some of these features are available in multiple locations, so call ahead to your own local library to see if they offer a similar program or service.
Floyd Memorial Library, Greenport, 477-0660
If you want to exercise your mind, Floyd Memorial allows patrons to take out jigsaw puzzles. It also has a slide projector for rental and a large graphic novel collection in its book section.
Recently, the library established a digital magazine collection so cardholders can read a variety of magazines for free right on their computers. Also, for Orient residents who don’t want to travel to Greenport to check out books, the reference librarian sets up a “pop up” library at the Orient Country Store twice a month with a selection of books to choose from.
Southold Free Library, 765-2077
Patrons of Southold Free Library can use their library cards to borrow Kindles, iPads and Nooks and enjoy reading in a more modern way. Another option that’s uncommon among libraries is that Southold offers fishing poles to take out.
“It’s an idea I came up with last summer,” library director Caroline MacArthur said. “We live in a summer community so it’s perfect for out here.”
The tablets and fishing poles, however, are available only to Southold library cardholders.
The library’s computers are loaded with the Ancestry Plus program, which allows patrons to look up their family history and trace their genealogy for free.
Patrons can also purchase tickets to the Long Island Aquarium in Riverhead at a discounted $14. And for anyone in Southold or Peconic who is unable to make it to the library in person, there are volunteers who will deliver books to them.
Cutchogue New Suffolk Free Library, 734-6360
The Cutchogue library also has a homebound program, but rather than deliver books in person it does so by mail to anyone who cannot visit the library. Through “live-brary,” the cooperative website of all Suffolk County libraries, Cutchogue also offers the Mango language-learning program. There is a wide variety of choices on the website, but if you’d rather not learn online, Cutchogue also holds an Italian conversation class every Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. during July.
There is also a new service on the library’s website called Indieflix, which allows patrons to stream films from independent festivals. There are also iPads available for use within the library.
Mattituck-Laurel Library, 298-4134
The Mattituck library is a designated Family Place Library, offering many services for both children and adults. When school starts again, children going into preschool and kindergarten can borrow backpacks filled with DVDs, books and other materials to help them prepare for the new school experience. Educational toys are also available for children to check out and there are laptops and iPads that can be used in the library’s children’s room. New parents can pick up an Infant Kit filled with materials and information for parents of newborns.
Adult services include a library card smartphone app, which has the patron’s library barcode on it so there is no need to have a library card anymore. The library also offers free passes to nine different museums, including many in New York City.
Patrons can gain access to the program Freegal, which downloads songs, for no charge, and Zinio, which provides free online subscriptions to magazines.
Riverhead Free Library, 727-3228
There is a whole section of the Riverhead library’s website dedicated just to the services it offers. In the library building itself there is a book and magazine magnifier for the sight-impaired, a self-checkout machine for checking materials out quickly, and multiple rooms that can be reserved for no charge by any non-profit organization or group.
Riverhead also offers museum passes at their reference desk and has volunteers that deliver materials to those who need it.
North Shore Public Library, Wading River, 929-4488
North Shore Public Library offers tons of fun for kids — there are Nooks for checkout, iPads for library use and even video games that kids can borrow for PlayStation 3, Wii and Xbox.
For older audiences, the library offers discounted subscriptions to the Metropolitan Opera and New York Philharmonic, with transportation available to and from the library. Museum passes are also available for borrowing.
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Patrons at each of these libraries can manage their library account online. After opening an account you can reserve and renew books, pay fines and view the history of books checked out.
Visit live-brary.com for access to all the information and services from libraries in Suffolk County, and check out each library’s own website for newsletters featuring the many programs for children, teens and adults that are hosted all summer long.
North Forkers will have a chance to hear one of Long Island’s most knowledgable ghost hunters this afternoon when author Kerriann Flanagan Brosky comes to the Cutchogue-New Suffolk Library to discuss the ghosts of the North Fork.
Ms. Brosky, who has written five non-fiction books of Long Island history (some about ghosts, and some not), will also share sections of her recently released first novel, “The Medal.”
“The Medal” is the story of a Northport bakery owner in her late 20s, who is taking care of her ailing father when she becomes involved with the legend of Padre Pio, an Italian saint who was known for his healing abilities and for bearing the stigmata of Christ on his hands.
The lecture begins at 2 p.m.
“My main discussion will be the ghosts of Long Island, what it’s like being a ghost investigator and my research as a historian,” said Ms. Brosky, a Huntington resident who was writing about Huntington history when she met clairaudient medium Joe Giaquinto, who introduced her to the world of ghost hunting.
“People say to me, ‘you don’t look like a ghost investigator. You look like a soccer mom,’ ” she said. “What I do has a lot to do with local history.”
Ms. Brosky will discuss the Wickham murders of 1856, the haunting of the Jamesport Manor Inn and other ghost tales from nearby.
“The North Fork is a hot spot. So is the whole East End,” she said. “Every place has ghosts, but there tend to be more in places that have their history intact.”
BETH YOUNG PHOTO | Police at the scene of the Wednesday afternoon crash on Main Road in Cutchogue.
One man was taken by helicopter to Stony Brook University Medical Center after his car crashed into a telephone pole and then a tree in front of the Cutchogue New Suffolk Library just after 2 p.m. Wednesday, Southold Police said.
Officers on the scene said the man suffered head and possible chest injuries when his Ford sedan veered off the road while traveling eastbound, then struck the pole and a street sign and became wedged on the sidewalk between a tree and a hedge in front of the library.
The eastbound lane of Route 25 was closed for several minutes while the car was removed from the scene. Police said they weren’t yet sure what caused the man to lose control of his vehicle.