Building-Structure Inventory Form

Historical Sites

Building Inventory Form

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Unless indicated below, this is a transcript of the original Society for the Preservation of Long Island Antiquities/Town of Brookhaven survey form. Since most of the surveys were conducted in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, much of the information reflects that time period.

Corrections to obvious typographical and spelling errors have been made. Corrections to factual errors in the original surveys, and updates or comments on the information are either enclosed in [square brackets], or are clearly indicated as updated material from the context of the comments.

Sites which have a suffix of “S” are supplemental sites not included in the original surveys.

Building-Structure Inventory Form

Old 1873 Brookhaven School

If checked, this is a Supplemental Form, not in the original surveys.

Inventory Code: Br31.1-S

Prepared Date: 06-21-2003

Last Modified: 01-01-1970

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Photo

People

Submitter

Submitter Name:

John Deitz

Submitter Address:

7 Locust Rd.

Brookhaven, NY 11719
631-286-3178

Organization:

Identification

1-Building/Site Name:Old 1873 Brookhaven School

2a-County:Suffolk

2b-Town:Brookhaven

2c-Village:Hamlet of Brookhaven

If checked, this site is within the Fire Place (Brookhaven Hamlet) Historic District

Ownership

4a-Public Site

4b-Private Site

5a-Owner (at original survey date):

5b-Address:40 Thornhedge Rd., Bellport, NY

Use

6a-Original:School

6b-Present:Residence

Accessibility

7a-Visible From Road

7b-Interior Accessible

7b-Interior Comment:

Building Materials

8a-Clapboard

8b-Stone

8c-Brick

8d-Board & Batten

8e-Cobblestone

8f-Shingles

8g-Stucco

8-Other:

Structural System

9a-Wood Frame Interlocking Joints

9b-Wood Frame Light Members

9c-Masonry

9d-Metal

9d-Metal Comment:

9e-Other

9e-Other Comment:

Condition

10a-Excellent

10b-Good

10c-Fair

10d-Deteriorated

Integrity

11a-Original Site

11b-Moved

If so, when?: 1927

11c-Alterations: Various modifications to its present form as a residence.

Photo & Map

12-Photo:

13-Map:

Threats

14a-None Known

14b-Zoning

14c-Roads

14d-Developers

14e-Deterioration

14f-Other:

14-Comment:

Related Outbuildings and Property

15a-Barn

15b-Carriage House

15c-Garage

15d-Privy

15e-Shed

15f-Greenhouse

15g-Shop

15h-Gardens

15i-Landscape Features

15i-Landscape Features:

15j-Other:

15-Comment:

Surroundings of the Building

16a-Open Land

16b-Woodland

16c-Scattered Bldgs

16d-Densely Built-up

16e-Commercial

16f-Industrial

16g-Residential

16h-Other:

Interrelationship of Building and Surroundings

17-Interrelationships:

Other Notable Features of Building and Site

18-Notable Features:

Significance

19-Initial Const Date: 1873 or 1874

19-Architect:

19-Builder: A note in the South Side Signal (Babylon), 10 Oct 1874 notes: "James Watkins of this village (Bellport) has the contract for building the new school house at Brookhaven, which is to be 27x34 feet with 20 feet posts."

Historic and Architectural Importance

20-Importance: Fire Place had it's first school in 1802. It was on the opposite (west) side of Fire Place Neck Road from the present elementary school. In 1815, a new school was built. And in 1855, the 1815 building was replaced by a third schoolhouse. In 1873, the 1855 school house was replaced by this structure -- the fourth schoolhouse in the Hamlet. The 1855 building became an addition to the Henry Egbert Hawkins (now Watson) house at 310 Beaverdam Road (Br22). The 1873 building lasted as a schoolhouse until 1927, when it was replaced by the present building (see Br31) -- the fifth schoolhouse in the Hamlet. The 1873 building was used for a short while for the Brookhaven Free Library, but was soon floated to Bellport where it became a residence at 40 Thorn Hedge Road.

Sources

21-Sources: Sources: Post card from "Early Photographs of the Hamlet of Brookhaven collected by George Perley Morse." Robert Starke in Post-Morrow Foundation Newsletter, Fall 2003 Schools history from Bigelow (p. 25) and Principe (p. 105).

Theme

22-Theme:

Prepared By

J. Deitz

Supplemental Material

South Side Signal (Babylon), 30 Jan 1875, p. 3:
"Brookhaven has an elegant new Episcopal church. A new union school house two story and other improvements will soon be added. Old Fire Place is warming up."

Robert Starke reports: "… for my first school years I went to the schoolhouse here on Fire Place Neck Road. The old schoolhouse was where the current elementary school is today, but was an old wooden building, two stories, the ground floor had four classes and the upstairs had the other four. Only three people ran the school, two teachers and a custodian."