All of us at the Bayport Heritage Association hope you had a wonderful holiday season and enjoyed special memories with family and friends. We had a busy productive year and accomplished a great deal to support our mission of preserving the rich history of our wonderful hamlet. Of course we could not do any of this without the support of our community; both families and local businesses. We thank you for a wonderful year and look forward to 2018!

From Leanne Berg, Vice President and chairperson

I’d like to thank everyone involved in the 2017 Silver and Gold Christmas at Meadow Croft! it was a successful weekend and I appreciate all of the hard work and dedication everyone put in.

A special “Thank You” goes to Karl at Bayport Flower Houses, Sayville Flowers, Detail Designs, The Sayville Garden Club, Neighbors and Gardeners of Bayport Blue Point, Bayport Homemakers and countless others for giving their time and tremendous efforts in creating a magical weekend for all.

Join us next year where our theme will be “The 12 Days of Christmas” Happy New Year!

Enjoy a short video of the weekend’s events below:

Membership: More information will be forthcoming about membership so please hold off sending any payments at this time. Thank you!

Docents: If you have an interest in Bayport History and would like to volunteer some time to provide a guided tour of Meadow Croft: WE NEED YOU! The association is in need of docents. It requires very little time, less than two hours a day, two days a month from June through October. You will shadow one of our current knowledgeable docents to learn the rich history of Meadow Croft before you will lead a tour on your own. If this sounds like something you may be interested in, please call Harriet Mihlstin.

General Membership Meeting: The next general membership meeting will be held on  
MARCH 11th 2018
not January 11th as reported in our last newsletter. The BHA apologizes for the error and any inconvenience we may have caused with this incorrect date. Hoping to see everyone at the March meeting at the Bayport Blue Point Library. It will feature speaker Bill Bleyer who will speak about Sagamore Hill, President’s Theodore Roosevelt’s Summer White House. Save the date!

Nominations for the BHA Board of Directors:
The nominating committee is developing a slate of members for the 2018 board. There are several seats open; including directors. Any current BHA member may serve on the board. It requires only one meeting per month. If you would be willing to serve for the 2018 year, please contact John Amato at johnfamato@optonline.net.

We are also looking for members to serve on various committees throughout the year. You can work from home! If you have a particular skill or interest (house tour, special events, light clerical and organization) please contact us at BBPhistorical@gmail.com.

Thank you to Mrs. Janet Crampton for sending the BHA a mechanical pencil engraved with the “C. Freiman” on its side. Charles Freiman was one of the Freiman brothers who were prominent businessmen and residents of Bayport. They owned the Freiman Hotel, which is currently the Grey Horse Tavern. The Freiman Hotel served as a de facto train station when the railroad came through in the 1880s. While William Arthur served as station agent out of his residence and store on the north side of the tracks, The Freiman Hotel served travelers and guests. The pencil owned by Charles Freiman, may have been used at the front desk of the hotel.

If you mention Shand’s store to many Bayport and Blue Point residents, they will smile and offer a few heartwarming anecdotes of their childhood days when grandpa or grandma shopped there. This was the place where you could have your groceries bagged and delivered. The place where Mr. Shand was there to greet you by name and talk for a while. Well, Shand’s store originated in Patchogue in 1911in the very building which currently houses the Brick House Brewery. In fact, you can still see the Shand’s sign painted on the west side of the Brick House building when heading East. In the BHA archives, we recently found a whole file of old Shand’s newspaper ads. We have attached one here for you enjoyment. Notice the year written on the smaller one in the top right corner, 1921. Enjoy.