Matches 801 to 850 of 1,463
| # | Notes | Linked to |
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| 801 | Morse notes that William Rose was instrumental in selling the Rose homestead and much property to John Ireland in 1841. | Rose, William M. ^ (I1108)
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| 802 | Morse reports that he "was placed in a coffin too large for the front door of his home" -- which begs the question: "How did they get him out?"From the Minutes of the Town of Brookhaven Trustees: "Whereas Thomas J. Ellison of Fireplace member of | Ellison, Thomas Jefferson ^ (I140)
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| 803 | Most compilations place Joseph as a son of Walter and Jane (Conkline) Brown, overlooking the obvious—that "Walter was perhaps a widower in 1698, living with his sons Daniel and Joseph....", and that Walter and Jane did not marry until 15 May 1699/00. Joseph's brother Daniel was also mentioned in Joseph's will. I have therefore placed Joseph as a son of Walter by his first marriage, her name not known. Of course, this placement does not resolve the ambiguity of Joseph's parentage. While most have concluded that Justice Joseph Brown, Jr. is of the Walter Brown line, it leaves hanging Joseph Brown Sr. who died 14 Jan. 1751 (Salmon Record). While "Sr./Jr." did not always indicate a "father/son" relationship, but rather a way to distinguish "older/younger" individuals of the same name within the sparsely populated early settlements, it would be more satisfying if Joseph Brown, Sr. could be firmly placed in the early Southold Browne family—of which better researchers than I have apparently been unable to do. Most important, just moving a name around in a database does not make it so. | Brown, Joseph > (I3881)
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| 804 | Most sources have combined Sarah and Adelade as one person—Sarah Adelaide. The census evidence suggests that they may have been two separate siblings—Sarah, b. 1859 likely having died young, appeared in the 1860 census, aged one, and does not again appear. Adelaide was born July 1860, appeared in the 1870 census, and lived to maturity. The official enumeration date for the 1860 census was 1 June 1860, before Adelaide birth. | Brown, Sarah Adelaide "Adddie" (I1037)
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| 805 | Mrs. Esther Hayes Wickham is an aunt to Campbell and Maxwell Forbes. | Hayes, Ester A (I12822)
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| 806 | Muriel would have had to have died before 1932, as her mother Lillian had no living children when she died. | Turner, Muriel L. < (I12663)
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| 807 | My interest in James Dayton, and his inclusion in this database is two-fold. James' obituary, sent to me by a correspondent knowing that I was interested in old residents of the hamlet of Fire Place, Town of Brookhaven, NY, mentioned that he was married at Fire Place. Secondly, the descendants of Samuel Dayton, arguably the first European settler in what was to become Fire Place, seem all to have removed to Connecticut, none remaining in the area. I was interested to see if perhaps James could be connected to this Samuel. My research to date has been unable to make any connection between the 19th century James and the 17th century Samuel Dayton. If James is a descendant of the early Dayton settlers, he is more likely a descendant of Robert Dayton, Samuel's brother, who settled at the east end of Long Island, in the Towns of East Hampton and Southold, many of whose descendants continued to remain on the east end. The place of his marriage was also perhaps the "Fire Place" of the east end of Long Island. | Dayton, James H (I14937)
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| 808 | NATHANIEL NORTON Written by Paul Olin Long Island Forum, April 1962 NATHANIEL NORTON was born in the Town of Brookhaven, near Coram, in 1742. Not much is known of his early life except that he worked the land on his father Nathaniel's farm. He apparently was a restless sort for he enlisted as a private in the Provincial Army at the age of 14 in 1756. He served throughout the French and Indian War in the forces under Major General Bradstreet and participated in the Ticonderoga and Crown Point campaigns in 1759. In 1760, he was mustered out at Fort Oswego and returned to Coram. He married and settled down on the farm and by 1776 had a substantial family of four sons and two, daughters. His domestic life was interrupted by the trouble with England. He quickly signed the Association in June of 1775 and before the end of the month had accepted a Congressional commission as 2nd Lieutenant in the 3rd New York Regiment (June 28, 1775). In the meantime, before he could assume his post, he was elected a Lieutenant in the Suffolk County, Militia (August 7, 1775). After the disastrous Battle of Long Island, he packed up his family and belongings and fled to Connecticut where he made off to join his Regiment. In November of 1776, he was commissioned a 1st Lieutenant and transferred to the 4th New York Regiment under command of Colonel Henry Beekman Livingston. He participated in the Saratoga campaign but sickness prevented his being on the battle field at Bemis Heights. After the tortuous winter at Morristown, he was appointed a Captain on April 23, 1778 and assumed command of a detachment of artillery with which he distinguished himself at the battle of Monmouth Courthouse. After a long and weary campaign against the Indians with Generals Sullivan and Clinton in 1779, his Regiment was detached to the Hudson Highlands. The orderly books of the 4th New York tell us that Captain Norton was considered an able officer. He was appointed president of numerous court martials and it is evident he was a stern taskmaster. At Warwick in November of 1779, it was his opinion as president of the court martial that a certain soldier with an unclean musket should be sentenced to 15 lashes. Said sentence was carried out. Another time in December of 1780 at Fort Schuyler, a Corporal John Howe was courtmartialed for "calling Captain Norton a Dam'd Rascall." Near the beginning of 1780, Lieutenant Colonel Frederick Weisenfels appointed Norton to enlist men within the western frontiers of New York State. On August 15th he wrote to Governor Clinton to say he had enlisted some men but was handicapped by a lack of funds. He added that he would like to go with his friend and fellow officer, Major John Davis of East Hampton, to Long Island for money to pay bounties to the newly enlisted men. It was his idea that they visit certain Whigs on the Island whom he considered "our staunch friends who have a considerable quantity of hard cash." Governor Clinton agreed that this was a fine plan but was unable to enter into such a venture without the consent of the Legislature. Norton then resorted to his friend Ezra L'Hommedieu to intercede in his behalf for permission to accomplish this project. On January 1, 1781, he retired his commission and awaited his orders to go to Long Island. In the meantime, he had become a widower, and met and married his second wife by whom he had a son Samuel. He also became active in the Baptist Church and frequently journeyed to Baiting Hollow to lead religious meetings there. Through his efforts, the Congregational Church of Baiting Hollow was organized. Finally on May 2, 1781, L'Hommedieu was able to persuade Clinton to commission Norton to cruise Long Island Sound in an armed boat with the possibility in mind of bringing off some of the loyal inhabitants and taking them to the interior of New York State. He did this for a few months until the end of 1781 when he was secretly commissioned by Governor Clinton to obtain the money on Long Island; and to conceal the object at hand, he was placed in command of an armed gunboat, the "Suffolk,"in which he cruised the length and width of Long Island Sound. In the meantime, his friend Major Davis was commissioned to purchase supplies for the State and was captured with Captain John Grinnel at Sag Harbor. Both were conveyed to the Provost in New York where they were imprisoned. Davis died as a result, so they say, of poisoned chocolates given to him. At the close of the war, Norton returned to Long Island. In July of 1783, he was involved in a fight with Elisha Brown of North Hampton. Brown was killed and Norton escaped. The next we hear of him was that he was in Herkimer, New York, where he became first an Elder and then a minister in the Baptist Church. After joining the Society of the Cincinnati, he went to Connecticut where he assumed another pastorate. He retired this post in 1805 and went to live in New York City with his third wife. He did some preaching there and was influential in the Cincinnati. He died at that city at the age of 95 on October 7, 1837, being the oldest living member of the Cincinnati Society. His funeral was attended by almost all of his surviving fellow officers and his body was conveyed to a plot near the Baptist Church in Coram where it was interred on October 10th. He had lived a life of adventure and action yet was a man of taste and refinement. A brave man and a respected clergyman, he ended his life far more modestly than he had lived it. NATHANIEL NORTON, of Brookhaven, 19 Oct. 1837. Died 7 Oct. last at New York. Adm: widow Ann. Bond: John Denton, Harvey Hulse. Said Ann said to be incompetent by reason of age and infirmity; application of Samuel F. Norton, evidently a son, and Elizabeth, daughter File 2893. p 168. | Norton, Capt Nathaniel (I4395)
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| 809 | Nehemiah Hand had three wives, Mary Bennett being his first, and Mary [Hand] likely his last. | Tyler, Phebe E (I9498)
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| 810 | Nellie Bick of Edinburgh, Scotland, was recorded as John Sives' nearest relative (sister) on several border crossing records from Canada to the United States at Niagara Falls and Buffalo, NY. | Sives, Nellie (I9528)
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| 811 | New York Times. June 16, 2001Dennis Puleston, 95, Environmental Leader Is DeadBy PAUL LEWISDennis Puleston, a naturalist, boat designer and yachtsman who, as founding chairman of the Environmental Defense Fund, played a leading role in getting the in | Puleston, Dennis ^ (I4110)
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| 812 | New Yorker Magazine, 25 Mar 1939: "Asst. D.A." "We have just conducted an investigation of Charles P. Grimes, Dewey's assistant in charge of the Hines investigation. We find that he generally prepares for anything important by staying up all night. He stayed up all night before his marr, in 1933. Last year he stayed up all night before leading the raid in Philadelphia in which Dixie Davis, Hope Dare, and George Weinberg were captured. Accompanied by a sergeant and two detectives, Grimes drove from New York late at night (he had stayed up at a party the night before this) and was stopped on the outskirts of Philadelphia for going eighty M.P.H. He and his men flashed their badges and were permitted to proceed after some scathing remarks. As they were circling the apartment house where their quarry lay, another Philadelphia cop came along and stood right in front of the house under a street lamp. He suspected something interesting was up and didn't want to miss it. A Grimes detective finally drove him off by whipping out a gun and threatening to shoot him. The raiders got into the building when Grimes rang the house telephone of a doctor tenant and told his wife there's been a bad accident. She clicked the electric lock on the front door and the raiding party burst into the Weinberg-Davis suite. Dixie was speechless with fright. He thought someone had sent some of the boys down to knock them off. "The Asst. D.A. is tall, wide, handsome, and reticent, and is called Charlie by most people. He comes of a long line of Virginians but was born, thirty-four years ago, in Tacoma, Washington, where his father was Episcopal Archdeacon of theese of Olympia. At nine he made up his mind to be a lawyer, being moved to this decision by the fact that around that time a crooked lawyer stole a valuable water-power site from his father. Charlie wanted to become a lawyer not to steal power sites but to keep them from being stolen. Most of his father's money was lost in the power site episode, and Grimes went through the Taft School and Yale on scholarships. He was impatient with the New Haven curriculum and took the regular four year course and a half year of law in three years. The college dean, thinking this was a reflection on Yale, tried to discourage him by stipulating that he maintain an honors' average. Grimes did this and on the side won letters in wrestling and crew, read all of Proust, and tutored small, wealthy children in the summer. He graduated with the class of 1927 and still feels a greater spiritual kinship with '28. "After law school, Grimes worked for Cravath, De Gersdorff, Etc., and later was in Washington as counsel for NRA and PWA. He joined Dewey's in 1935. One of his jobs was the extradition of Alexander Pompez, the Harlem numbers banker, from Meo. A Mexican army officer whom Grimes met at a party in Mexico City offered to have Pompez bumped off and delivered for 200 pesos, or $50. Grimes said he wanted him alive. The Mexican officer couldn't get this point of view, Grimes was further astonished in Mexico by the politness of a secret agent with whom he and the Chief of Police of Mexico City drove around a good deal. The agent, a stout, elderly fellow, always insisted on sitting up front with the chauffeur, leaving Grimes in the more comfortable seat with the Chief of Police. Grimes remonstrated at this excessive consideration on the part of an older man. The agent explained that he knew of six criminals who had taken an oath to kill the Chief of Police, and he felt happier in front. "Grimes is a member of the Yale, Union League, and Seawanhaka-Corinthian Yacht Clubs, and of the Boilermakers, Iron Ship Builders & Helpers Union of America, Mt. Tahoma Lodge, No. 348. He joined the union while working summers during the. He likes to sing old sea chanteys he learned during this period, and accompany them by dancing a hornpipe. He did this at the last annual New Year's Eve ball at Tuxedo, raising himself considerably in the estimation of a good many people who had hitherto looked on him simply as an assistant district attorney." | Grimes, Charles Pennebaker (I5513)
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| 813 | Newspaper and other evidence suggests that Wilson was her birth surname. Kate's sister's married name was Mrs. Joseph Dillon. | Wilson, Kate ^ (I16524)
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| 814 | No connection to the Woodruff families of either Bellport/western Fire Place, or Yaphank Neck (South Haven), Town of Brookhaven, Long Island, NY has yet been found. Isaac was among those whom the Long Island Star identified as having left a family. That he was interred, or a memorial monument erected, in the St. John's Church Cemetery in Oakdale suggests that he likely was of that community. In the same row of gravestones at that cemetery were two other Woodruffs and a Morris which may provide clues to the present Isaac's family -- in order from Isaac's stone, north to south: Anna Woodruff, d. May 24, 1835 aged 22 years, 4 months, 12 days; Jacob Morris, d. February 15, 1855, AE 86 years; an unmarked gap; and Isaac Woodruff, d. Jan 10, 1838, AE 28 years, 3 months, 26 days. Anna and the latter Isaac are of an age that they could have been the present Isaac's children; Anna would have been an infant at the time of her father's death. Jacob was likely the Capt. Jacob Morris who ran a coastal schooner between Sayville and New York City hauling firewood; no connection to the Woodruff's has yet been found. | Woodruff, Isaac ^ (I11226)
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| 815 | No George Booth was found indexed in the 1800 census for New York state, suggesting that his death occurred during the preceding decade.. | Booth, George > (I11706)
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| 816 | Norman never married. He lived with his parents in Brookhaven. When his mother died in 1959, he sold the house (that he designed) on Mott's Lane and moved to Wading River, NY. | Nelson, Norman Fairlie Jr. [ii] ^ (I5636)
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| 817 | North Branford record indicated that he was in his 76th year, which does not agree with his birth date. | Rose, Nathan (I12506)
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| 818 | Note ~Matthew and Belle Verspooor DeGraff. Matthew DeGraff (1848-1919) · was the eldest child of Cornelius and Lucy DeGraff. He came to the United States at the age of 4, but the family soon returned to Holland. They came again in 1862 when Matthew was 14. After living in Bayport, and then in Oakdale, they settled in West Sayville, where Matthew lived until his marriage to Belle Verspoor on Marsh 23, 1868 when each was 20 years old. Matthew and Belle DeGraff lived in a house at the corner of Candee and Maple Avenues (NW) in Sayville until, in the late 1870s, they built the house still standing at 53 Greeley Ave. I remember this house from my (BOT) early childhood as a two story structure continuing a parlor and two bedrooms on the first floor and three tiny bedrooms on the second floor. There was a one story wing which held the dining roam-sitting room and the kitchen. An attic over this wing held, for my interest, toys--a cradle, a doll, and doll dishes with which I played. I still have the green glass sugar bowl. Beside the kitchen was s covered well, with a window opening into it from the kitchen. In the rear yard were a big grape arbor, ma~ currant bushes, and a plum tree. The parlor had a lot of fancy shells, corals, etc., that Grandfather had acquired from sea captains. Matthew was a tall 1 bearded man. Captain DeGraff earned his living with his small coastwise schooner, the Marion L. Cummings, on which he carried oysters, clams, coal, etc. to or from New York City and Connecticut. Capt. DeGraff and his schooner appeared in one ofthe very early movies, perhaps around 1907, which may have had Alice Brady as its star. Because of his occupation, Capt. DeGraff was away from home a great deal. Belle DeGraff was a very quiet, placid person, a good housewife who seldom ventured from her own home. After rearing her own family she raised her grandsons George and Burton DeGraff, who with their father Cornelius came to live with her after the death of their mother in 1912. Matthew and Belle DeGraff had two sons, Cornelius ~d Leonard, and four daughters, Lena, who died in childhood, and Dinah, Belle, and Lucy. Dinah DeGraff - Aunt Dinah, She was a milliner, and operated a millinery shop in Sayville until hats for women ceased to be popular and essential. She dabbled in real estate, owning two houses in Ocean Beach, one on lower Greene Ave, and two on Greeley Ave., all of which she rented. She was active in civic affairs, particularly in the votes for women campaigns, in the Study Club, in the Sayville Congregational Church, and in the Sayville Public Library, serving as treasurer of the latter for many years. After their mother's death in 1926, she and Lucy shared the house at 53 Greeley Ave. Cornelius DeGraff moved back here in 1928 with his daughter Betty after the death of his wife Dorothy. Betty lived with Aunt Dinah until 1948, when shemarried Bob DeRoo. David DeGraff spent his summers with Aunt Dinah from 1940, and lived there with her and his sister from 1941.(LLO) Dinah's first millinery shop in Sayville was on Main St. directly opposite the old Post Office. Her younger sister Belle was an assistant in this shop. When it closed Dinah worked for, or with another woman in a women's dress shop at "The Point" (junction north and south Main Streets). Later on, for several summers, she operated a curio shop on the ferry slip in Ocean Beach.6 ,Cornelius DeGraff (1874-1931) ~s the third child and eldest son of Matthew and Belle Verspoor DeGraff. A tall man with abundant dark wavy hairs he was a carpenter and skilled craftsman. Many of his working years were spent in building the houses in the then new development of Brightwaters. He was a skillful sailor, owning a succession of sail or power boats, and was active in sail boat and scooter racing on the Great South Bay. His first wife was Mary Jane Rhodes, daughter of Benjamin and Elizabeth Rhodes. They had two sons, and lived at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Henry Street beside her parents. Jane died of tuberculosis in the year of 1912, and Cornelius moved with his sons to his mother's home. He mailled Dorothy Archer (see Note 7) in 1922. They lived on upper Greene Avenue for a time, then in the house on Greeley Avenue in which Louis A. and Belle DeGraff Otto had lived in the first seven years of their marriage, and in which Lucy Belle and Louis Leslie Otto were born. Betty and David DeGraff were also born there. Cornelius and Dorothy DeGraff had purchased the house at 69 Greeley Avenue and were preparing to move into it at the time of her death. This house was later moved away to make room for the new school yard. This same school expansion demolished the Louis A. Otto house, the John Otto Sr. house, and the John Terry house. Dorothy Archer DeGraff died of pneumonia in November 1928. Cornelius and his three year old daughter then returned to his old home, then occupied by his sisters Dinah and Lucy. His infant son David lived with Cornelius' sister, Belle DeGraff Otto, and her family, two houses up the street. Cornelius died of pneumonia on December 2?, 1931, leaving four tall children as survivors. | Degraaf, Matthew (I30845)
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| 819 | Note 11 Charles Raymond Otto, the youngest child of Louis A. and Belle DeGraff Otto was born in their home at 79 Greeley Avenue in Sayville on October 15, 1914. He had an active childhood, with many playmates in the area. In his late grammar school days he took over from his brother as bicycle delivery boy on Pat Mullens milk route, working for about two hours each morning before school. Later he became a clerk in the Bohack grocery store at the foot of Greeley Avenue, an activity which he continued until he left Sayville to goto college. During his high school years he played saxophone and clarinet in the high school orchestra and in a high-school dance band. Charles graduated from Sayville High School in 1932 as class president, returned there for a year of post-graduate work, and then went to Cornell University in 1933 as a student in Mechanical Engineering. During college his room mate James Buxton hung on Charles the nickname of "Duke", when Charles happened to mention that his grandmother claimed she was a descendant of William, the Duke of Orange of the Netherlands. The nickname stuck. After graduation from Cornell in 1937 with the degree of M.E. Charles went to work almost immediately for the Solray Process plant in Hopwell, Va., in their Engineering Development Department. By the summer of 1942 he had developed an allergy to some within-plant fumes which he regularly encountered, so he left Hopewell and returned to Cornell University as an instructor in the Experimental Engineering Department. Since the two brothers, Charles R. Otto and Louis L. Otto were both instructors in the same department, the students differentiated between them by calling one Cold-Rolled (CR)(a condition of Steel), and the other Log-Log, from the LLO scale on all students slide rules. In the spring of 43 Charles succumbed to the offers of a New York city firm of engineering consultants, and left Cornell at the end of the school year to set up his family in Freeport and commute to New York. By the middle of August the attraction of the new job had disappeared. He did not get the job assignment he had been promised, all promotion opportunities were hotly contested, the company was riddled with internal politics, and commuting was a chore. A call to Cornell revealed his former teaching position was still open to him. He and the family came back to Ithaca. This time he began work towards a masters degree in Engineering and over the course of several years he earned an MME, an Assistant Professor rating in 1946, a professional engineers license in New York State, and developed an outstanding course in Instrumentation for Process Control. By 1951 the Dupont Corporation production people recognized the value of this system, and hired Charles as a Design Engineer in its Engineering Department. In 1956 he became Senior Development Engineer in the Consultant and Development Section of the Engineering Department, and continued in this capacity until forced by illness to retire in 1960. The rapid development of Hodgkin’s disease cost him his career, and then his life (5-01-60). Charles was a long time member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, a member of the Delaware Section of the Society of Professional Engineers and a member of the Newark Chamber of Commerce. He was active in community affairs, especially the Soapbox Derby and Junior Achievement. Charles was a tall man (6'-2"), slender, with brown eyes. He enjoyed rebuilding the homes in which he and his family lived, and often made major changes in their interiors. Note 11 Charles R~ymond Otto, the youngest child of Louis A. and Belle DeGraff Otto was born in their home at 79 Greeley Avenue in Sayville on October 15, 1914. He had an active childhood, with many pls~mates in the area. In his late grammar school days he took over from his brother as bicycle delivery boy on Pat ~llens milk route, working for about two hours each morning before school. Later he became a clerk in the Bohack grocery store at the foot of Greeley Avenue, an activity which he continued until he left Sa~ville to go to college. During his high school years he played saxaphone and clarinet in the high school orchestra and in a high-school dance band. Charles graduated from Sa~ville High School in 1932 as class president, returned there for a year of post-graduate work, and then went to Cornell University in 1933 as a student in Mechanical Engineering. During college his room mate James Buxton hung on Charles the nicknmae of "Duke", when Charles happened to mention that his grandmother claimed she was a descendant of William, the Duke of Orange of the Netherlands. The nickname stuck. After graduation from Cornell in 1937 with the degree of M.E. Charles went to work almost immediately for the Solvay Process plant in Hope~ell, Va., in their Engineering Development Department. By the summer of 1942 he had developed an allergy to some within-plant fumes which he regularly encountered, so he left Hopewell and returned to Cornell University as an instructor in the Experimental Engineering Department. Since the two brothers, Charles R. Otto and Louis L. Otto were both instructors in the same department, the students differentiated between them by calling one Cold-Rolled (CR)(a condition of Steel), and the other Log-Log, from the LLO scale on all students slide rules. In the spring of 43 Charles succumbed to the offers of a New York city firm of engineering consultants, and left Cornell at the end of the school year to set up his family in Freeport and c~,ate to New York. By the middle of August the attraction of the new job had disappeared. He did not get the job assignment he had been promised, all promotion opportunities were hotly contested, the company was riddled with internal politics, and cu~,~ating was a chore. A call to Cornell revealed his former teaching position was still open to him. He and the family came back to Ithaca. This time he began work towards a masters degree in Engineering and over the course of several years he earned an MME, an Assistant Professor rating in 1946, a professional engineers license in New York State, and developed an outstanding course in Instrumentation for Process Control. By 1951 the duPont Corporation production people recognized the value of this system, and hired Charles as a Design Engineer in its Engineering Department. In 1956 he became Senior Development Engineer in the Consultant and Development Section of the Engineering Department, and continued in this capacity until forced by illness to retire in 1960. The rapid development of Hodgkins disease cost him his career, and then his life (5-01-60). Charles was a long time member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, a member of the Delaware Section of the Society of Professional Engineers and a member of the Newark Chamber of Commerce. He was active in community aff~s, especially the SoapBox Derby and Junior Achievement. Charles was a tall man (6'-2"), slender, with brown eyes. He enjoyed rebuilding the homes in which he and his family lived, and often made major changes in their interiors. Johanna Gertrude Huson was born in Holland on May 23, 1916, the daughter of Jan and Caroline DeJonge Huson. She and her younger brother Jan were brought to America by their parents, first to New jersey, and then by 1930 to West Sayville, Long Island, where they lived at the SW corner of Brook Street and Division Avenue. She attended Sayville High School and graduated from it in 1934. She then trained as a secretary at a school in Brooklyn, and as a Dental Assistant in the office of John Freeman, a dentist in Sayville. Johanna snd Charles Otto were married on June 25, 1937 in the Dutch Reformed Church on Cherry Avenue in West Sa~ville, attended by Belle Otto, Josephine Saunders, Lucille DeMeusy, James Buxton, Louis Otto, and Jan H uson. They went immediately to Charles new job in Hopewell, Va., living first in Petersburg and then in a new house in Hopewell. Jan and Joann (Jody) were born here. Of their other children, Jason, Nail, and Kristin were born in Ithaca, N.Y., and Eric was born in Wilmington, Delaware. While they lived in ~%haca Johanna completed courses in child development at Cornell as time allowed, and operated a nursery school at their home on College Ave. When Charles moved to duPont, the family first lived in Wilmington and then moved to Newark to a large house on the edge of the campus of the University of Delaware. Johanna operated a nSrsery school in this house, and completed more courses in child development at the ~University of Delaware, untill~rreceived her RS degree in this field in 1957. Several yearsAshe completed the requirements for an MS degree at this same school. ChQrles' death in 1960 upset plans for a larger nursery school, and Johanna moved with her younger children to a farm in Darlington, Maryland. She was teaching school in Dublin, M~ryland, at the time of her death in an automobile accident on February 22, 1963. In 1946 at the end of WW II Jobanna started the "Adopt-AFamily" movement (assist a family in war-torn Europe), which soon spread across this country. The birth of Kristin prevented her from becoming active in this movement, but others jumped on the bandwagon and expande~ its activities. Johanna was active in the local American Association of University Women, and she and Charles were active in the formation of a Unitarian Church in Newark. Note 12 Leonard DeGraff was born (5-4-1878) as the fourth child and s~cond son of Matthew and Belle Verspoor DeGraff. Like all in his family, he was tall, witha lot of dark wavy hair which turned white as he grew older. He was a very quiet and retiring man. He trained as a young man to be a sailmaker, but when the ~emand for sails died out he became a carpenter. For a time he operat~e~ a tire repair and vulcanizing shop in Sayville, and would take niece Belle Otto along in his red Maxwell roadster when making pickup trips to neighboring co~a~nities. Len married Sarah E. Newton, the daughter of Henry and Delia Hulse Newton. She was as shy and retiring as her husband. They lived for a time in Fresh Pond, Long Island, then returned to Sa~ville and finally moved to Union Avenue, Islip. They became interested in the possible profits from renting beach cottages (like Aunt Dinah aad great uncle Case DeGraff), and Len built first one and then a second and a third cottage in the beach colony of Fair Harbor, just east of Saltsire. There was ample work for carpenters willing to stay on the beach, so Len and Sarah moved to the beach, living in one of their cottages and renting the other two in the summers. Len built new cottages for others during the winter, and made major and minor repairs winter and ~er. After many years of solitary winters on the beach they wished to get back to civilization, and returned to their home in Isllp. Len worked u a ship carpenter at Roy Arnett's boatyard in Islip, but did not like it (nothing was ever square or plumb), and the next fall Sarah sta~ed ashore in their Islip home while Len spent the weekends in Islip and the week days in Fair Harbor, co, minting in his own power boat as long as the bay was free of ice. This activity led to an incident which he remembered the rest of his life. The southern coast of Long Island is exposed to the open Atlantic Ocean, and the laws of probability say that ocassionally the tropical hurrio~nes which work their way up the east coast each fall should cross Long Island. In September 1938 one of these storms was proceeding up the coast following a very erratic course. It was | Otto, Charles Raymond (I30528)
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| 820 | Note 21 Thomas N. Otto Uncle Tom operated a butcher shop in Sayville for many years. He later sold this and bought the coal business (by that time coal and oil) which had been established many years before by his brothers Louis A. and Bertram. He continued to operate this business until his death in 1949. During the 1920s Uncle Tom owed my father some money, which we were to regain by buying goods at his store. This irked my mother, since she had to pay Tom's higher prices. Tom maintained several butcher wagons, (later as trucks) which he sent into the surrounding area on regular routes to serve the people who lived beyond the Village limits. To Descendants of the OTTO and DEGRAFF Families. The accompanying family trees probably give you far more information about your ancestors than you cared to know.. Many of the strangers you see on the streets may be your shirt tail relatives. As with most family trees there must be some sap, and some black misshapen twigs. Fortunately this presentation gives them anonymity. Best leave them that way. The records contain many gaps in information. Belle Otto worked on these gaps for several years,and Louis L. Otto has worked on them some. What is presented is the best information presently available. I hope it expands your knowledge of your"roots'. Using Belle's recorded information and my limited memory I have tried to give some personality (color, as it is called on TV) to key figures among our direct ancestor. For the present generation - -your many cousins -- I will let you gather your own information, you probably know it better than I. For my generation, I know of only five cousins left: 1 ) Louis L. Otto, a retired professor living in Brooksville, Fla.; 2) Dr. Bertram B. Otto, a retired dentist from Bayshore, Long Island, living in Daytona, Fla.; 3) Julia Otto Wallace, a retired realtor from Bellport, Long Island, living in Brookhaven, Long Island; 4) Betty DeGraff DeRoo, an housewife living in Moorestown, New Jersey; and 5) David DeGraff, a stock brokers agent living in Bayport, Long Island. There may be a few others living in the Yonkers area of whom I am not aware. Your generation is spread from California to Vermont, and possibly farther. The Otto and DeGraff families are long-lived. Check the records shown. Prepare yourselves for an extended retirement. As a caution, there are two hereditary defects which John Otto Sr. passed along to his descendants. He was deaf, and was afflicted with familial palsy. His son John and his daughter Anna were very deaf very early in life. His sons Thomas and Louis were partially deaf. In my generation Bertram Otto and Herbert Parkhill are partially deaf. Hopefully this trait will die out, but at present it is treatable by hearing aids. Severe incidence of familial palsy seems to have missed John Otto's children, but showed up in Belle and Louis L. Otto and Herbert Parkhill. Presently the condition is not curable, and only Inderal (propranolol) and ethyl alcohol are effective drugs against it. Indenial is also a heart and blood pressure medicine, and should only be taken under medical supervision. Ethyl alcohol is very effective, tho very temporary, but it is addictive, so beware. Hopefully this trait is recessive, and will also disappear. Unfortunately for the impact of this genealogical record my generation is the last one to have lived in the Sayville area, and to have more than an inkling of the mono-ethnic character of West Sayville from the 1850's to the 1950's. One more generation of separation from our roots in Holland makes the connection with the "old country"; very tenuous also. For your information, West Sayville had only dutchmen (hollanders) in residence, northern East Islip had only Czechs, Waverly Ave. in Patchogue had only italians, Bohemia had only Czechs, Hagerman had only italians. There where also many other small mono-ethnic pockets on Long Island. World war II and its influx of city dwellers ended all this isolation. There are several typing errors in this (per line that is). Anyone wishing to type themselves a perfect copy has my permission. L Otto ss The history of the coal yard starts with Louis Alfred Otto Louis Alfred Otto was the fifth child of John and Cornelia Hage Otto, born on June 5, 1875, in a family of five boys and one sister. His father was a "bayman", and as soon as the boys were physically able they accompanied their father on the bay to tong for clams or oysters, to dredge for scallops, to net for fish. Attendance at school was secondary to working, and only when the bay was iced over, or the weather was too mean to work in exposed locations were the boys allowed to go to school. As a result Louis received only about 4 years of schooling ---I during Januaries and Februaries. Later he supplemented this meager formal training with extensive reading. Father John Otto was a good Dutchman and believed in paying homage to his religion, requiring his family to sit through long prayers and devotions, a practice not understandable to young children to get out and play with their contemporaries. In spite of irksome prayer time at home, Louis and his brothers hung around local out-of-doors revival meetings enough to become well versed in the hymns which were used, so he could teach them to his daughter later. Apparently father John Otto was a strict disciplinarian while at work too. Per my father, one day he was berating John Jr. for loafing while tonging. To escape the tirade John Jr. jumped overboard and swam to an oyster lot stake for support. The stake, weakened by torpedo worms, broke off, and John Jr. had no choice but to come back to the boat and face his father, who was armed with a rope's end. As soon as they were able to support themselves all of the boys left home and made their own way in the world. Louis, and his younger brother Bert, chose to buy their own sailboat and to live on-board her, ice-out to ice-in, while tonging clams in Prince's Bay on the southeasterly side of Staten Island, and selling their catches at the Fulton Fish Market in New York. Somewhere around 1900-1902 Lou fell from the deck into the hold, badly injuring one knee. After months in a hospital on Staten Island, with his knee cap being replaced by a silver plate, he emerged on crutches and with a brace on his leg. Facing insuperable diff~ties in resuming their former life, Lou and Bert returned to Sayville to create a new world for themselves. The new world emerged as Otto Bros. Retail Coal Sales. They purchased a piece of property on the north side of the Long Island Railroad tracks in Sayville, put in a railroad siding and the necessary bins, and became coal dealers. After about five years Bert decided to become a butcher, worked with brother Tom to learn the business, and set up a butcher store in Bayshore. The coal yard became Louis A. Otto, Coal and Wood, Tel. Conn. 157. The coal yard continued to operate for many years. Lou created many mechanical coal moving machines to reduce the back-breaking labor normally present, many of these seemed patentable, but a friend of his in Sayville named Rohm had a valid patent on "friction tape". Goodyear and Firestone produced and sold this material without paying royalties, and postponed and delayed the law suits which Rohm threw at them until he ran out of money. Lou did not bother with patents, but soon engineers from Link Belt appeared and went over his machines with measuring tapes (with Lou's permission) and in a few years had commercial versions of his machines on the market. During the nineteen teens there were two to six draft horses stabled in the barn behind our house to provide tractive effort to the coal delivery wagons. These were joined by two to four milk cows, two to six pigs, and 25 to 40 chickens. Lou was a frustrated farmer, and harvested hay and grain for his animals from many outlying fields. Our gardens were extensive, with asparagus patches, ever bearing strawberries, many rows of peanuts, potatoes, cabbages, brussels sprouts, etc. During WW I we were nearly self sufficient by gardening and canning. Very early in my life I learned to ride my bike to Bayport, West Sayville and Sayville to deliver excess milk from our cows to selected customers. During the early WW I years Lou became interested in lumbering, and developed a portable saw mill with which he could "log-off"; the marketable maple, oak, and chestnut on private estates in Smithtown, Ronkonkoma, and South Haven. The increasing difficulty encountered in buying carload lots of coal, unless you had appropriate political connections, led Lou to sell the coal and wood business to Cecil Proctor, a local politician. Thereafter he devoted full time to the saw mill. When US entered WW I he moved the mill to the Patchogue yard of Bailey and Sons, and cut up locust trees into billets for policeman's clubs. In November 1918 Lou received "Greetings from the President" to report for his Army physical, but the end of the war canceled this. At the end of the war the saw mill was sold, and the proceeds used to purchase tools and materials for the Cuddle Chair Co. Cuddle Chairs unfortunately did not sell, and the investment was lost, so Lou turned to his first skill, clamming. He built, with the help of his cousin Doodle Otto, a 30 ft. V bottom clamming boat, white oak frames, long-leaf yellow pine keel and planking. With this boat he again became a bayman, and with Sylvenus Titus James as a partner, he tonged clams in Great South Bay. One year there was a heavy set of scallops in the bay, so they added a mast, spars, jib and mainsail to the boat and dredged for scallops. Back at home, Louis Leslie Otto and others opened the scallops and prepared them for market. Joseph Weeks joined the team on the boat, and that winter Vene James died. Joe Weeks and Lou Otto clammed for a year or two longer, then came ashore and started a concrete building block business. The plant was at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Church St., north of Sayville. This business prospered moderately, but in 1930 the breaking of a drag-line cable caused lacerations in Lou's arm, an erysipelas infection, and Lou Otto's death. The coal yard established by Lou and Bert Otto around 1902 was purchased by their older brother Tom in the late nineteen twenties and operated by him until his death in 49, and by his two daughters until 1959. About 1915 Louis Ruzicka became a wagon driver and delivery man for my father, and after serving in ~, he returned to the same job. He continued in this capacity for each successive owner, until retiring About 1968. Lou Otto rarely spent an evening at home. He maintained an office downtown in his brother Tom's butcher store, and roamed Main St., account book in his pocket, to meet his debtors when they had money. Saturdays were pay days then, and nearly everyone went shopping along Main St. that evening, so Lou was busy. His favorite haunt was Jake Stryker's fish market on South Main St., counters in front, fish storage and preparation room in the back, but in between was a lounging room with a card table and a pot-bellied stove. Pinochle was the favorite game. Lou also enjoyed watching baseball, would attend the local toE-team games, and would even take his family along in the trusty model T to the out-of-town games. During his entire adult life ashore Lou was an active member of the Sayville Military Band, playing the helical bass horn. His brother Tom played the baritone horn in this same band, and employee Lou Ruzicka played the Sousaphone. I (LLO) believe that when I was born, as soon as my sex was established he went out and purchased an old Alto Horn so I could join him in the band. I did join this group at an early age, playing the Eb alto for many years, then switching to the Bb trumpet until leaving for college in 192~. The John Otto children never operated as a cohesive group due to some family argument in the early 19OOs. I saw my uncle Tom whenever I went into his butcher shop, but the other uncles and aunts I almost never saw. In the early twenties uncle Tom was trying to grow potatoes in sea weed in the beach sand, and one day all.five brothers, John, Tom, Case, Lou, and Bert got together on Tom';s boat (somehow I got to go along) to go to the beach and plant these potatoes. The going was rough outside of greene's river, and when we went into the west slip in West Sayville to get fuel, the boat sailed round and round the same spot. The anchor had fallen overboard from the foredeck and tied us to the bottom. His father indicated to me that this was a good example of uncle Tom's seamanship. In spite of this incident the rest of the day passed peacefully, but this is the last brotherly reunion of which we know. Louis Alfred Otto was a tall man (6'-3") blue eyes, with dark wavy hair and a cookie-duster mustache. He was very muscular from a lifetime of hard physical labor. He enjoyed reading, playing cards, watching baseball, and the military band. Note 9 Note 2] modified 7/27/03 per conversation with JOW) Thomas N. Otto, Uncle Tom operated a butcher shop in Sayville for many years. (Per JOW 7/27/03 he was making allot of money and Mom remembers the figure of $200,000 per year being mentioned- does not know if it was the gross or net income.) He later sold this (per JOW to a Mr Reylick of Sayville for $50,000) and bought the coal business( per JOW 7/27/03- the coal and wood business was sold by Louis and Case to a Mr. Proctor who ran it about ten years, Mr. Proctor did not like to get his hands dirty, when he sold it to Thomas Nelson around 1922. Apparently when Thomas was in the butcher business he borrowed $5,000 from his brothers Louis and Case and thereafter the wives of Louis and Case tried to come to the butcher shop and have a free open charge account to pay off the debt which Thomas wife Julia did not like. Well this became a big thing and the brothers became estranged and may not have spoken to each other thereafter. Mom thinks that the $5,000 did get repaid.) (by that time coal and oil) which had been established many years before by his brothers Louis A. and Bertram. (Per JOW 7/27/03 Mom recalled the her father talked with his wife in the early 1930 to discuss changing the business to coal and oil) He continued to operate this business until his death in 1949. During the 192O's Uncle Tom loaned my father some money, which we were to regain by buying goods at his store. This irked my mother, since she had to pay Tom's higher prices. Tom maintained several butcher wagons, (later as trucks) which he sent into the surrounding area on regular routes to serve the people who lived beyond the village limits. Note 22 Henry "Doodle" Otto was a strong-minded local character. As a young man he had served in World War I, then became a camera man in Hollywood, and traveled world wide. Later he settled in West Sayville. He was an accomplished boat builder, and had a shop near Greene's Creek. He swore in front of everyone, including the neighbors children. Then his shop lease ran out, the neighbors put so much pressure on the landlord that the lease was not renewed. He became partially deaf. | Otto, Thomas Nelson (I21559)
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| 821 | Note 24 Louise Hage one of Cornelius and Minna Hage';s younger daughters, married George Howell. They owned the land on Greeley Avenue immediately north of John Otto';s property. They sold it to the Bezant family, who were Bohemians. They subsequently sold the property to our neighbors, Tony and Mammy Vitoch. George and Louise Howell moved shortly after 1900 to a farm in North Carolina near Morehead City. Lucy DeGraff was a special friend of their oldest daughter Lillian, and visited her frequently. Our parents also went down for a visit, and considered moving there for lumbering operations. | Hage, Louisa Frances (I30559)
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| 822 | Note 25 Addie Hage married John Peter Radcliffe and lived in Yonkers, N.Y. Their son William and his wife were special friends of my parents, and there was much summer visiting while the children were young. Belle also knew John P. Radcliffe IX and Clara and Lincoln Work. Louis Leslie Otto was named after Leslie Radcliffe, the son of William Radcliffe. Note 25 Adriana Hage married John Seerveld, a nurseryman and gardener. Their son Frank had a very fine baritone voice, and was known in New York City and Long Island as "The Singing Fisherman" Note 27 Almina (Alice) Hage who was a humpback, married John Terry, who had lost a leg in the Civil War, and used a wooden leg. He was the local constable, and a carpet weaver. Behind their home, which was next door to that of her sister, Cornelia Hage Otto, was a shop in which was installed a large carpet location. John Terry would make carpets on this loom from strips of rags sewn together end to end and rolled into balls, brought to him by customers. Operation of this loom was a fascinating thing for children to watch. | Hage, Adrianna (I30692)
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| 823 | Note 25 Adriana Hage married John Seerveld, a nurseryman and gardener. Their son Frank had a very fine baritone voice, and was known in New York City and Long Island as "The Singing Fisherman" Note 26 Addie Hage married John Peter Radcliffe and lived in Yonkers, N.Y. Their son William and his wife were special friends of my parents, and there was much summer visiting while the children were young. Belle also knew John P. Radcliffe IX and Clara and Lincoln Work. Louis Leslie Otto was named after Leslie Radcliffe, the son of William Radcliffe. Note 27 Allmina (Alice) Hage who was a humpback, married John Terry, who had lost a leg in the Civil War, and used a wooden leg. He was the local constable, and a carpet weaver. Behind their home, which was next door to that of her sister, Cornelia Hage Otto, was a shop in which was installed a large carpet location. John Terry would make carpets on this loom from strips of rags sewn together end to end and rolled into balls, brought to him by customers. Operation of this loom was a fascinating thing for children to watch. | Hage, Johanna (I30605)
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| 824 | Note 27 Almina (Alice) Hage who was a humpback, married John Terry, who had lost a leg in the Civil War, and used a wooden leg. He was the local constable, and a carpet weaver. Behind their home, which was next door to that of her sister, Cornelia Hage Otto, was a shop in which was installed a large carpet location. John Terry would make carpets on this loom from strips of rags sewn together end to end and rolled into balls, brought to him by customers. Operation of this loom was a fascinating thing for children to watch. | Terry, John (I30547)
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| 825 | Note 8 Belle (Lena Isabelle) DeGraff was the fourth child of Belle and Matthew DeGraff. Until her marriage to Louis Alfred Otto she lived at the family home at 53 Greeley Ave. She attended the local elementary school, and then trained as a seamstress and dressmaker, living for a time in Brooklyn for this training. After her marriage in 1903 she and her husband moved to the stone front house farther up Greeley Avenue which had been built as Ike Greene's architecture office. A daughter Belle (Lucy Belle) and a son Louis Leslie were born there,and in 1911 the family moved to a new them at 79 Greeley Ave. Another son Charles was born in this house in 1914. During the early 1920s this home was rented to summer residents from N.Y. City, while the Otto family lived temporally at 22 Willett Ave. In 1930 she accepted her eight month old nephew home which had been built for Charles, was born in this house home was rented to XXXXXXXXXX ~ residents family lived temporarily at her eight-month old nephew, David DeGraff into her home after the unexpected death of his mother, and kept him until her death in 1937 (coronary thrombosis).Belle was relatively tall (5'-10") and erect, pink-cheekedand comely of face, with brown eyes and very long dark hair. She was a woman of great understanding and sympathy, to whom many persons came for comfort and guidance when troubled. She was active in the Sayville Congregational Church, serving a term as president of its womens society, the Needlecraft Club. She helped found the Sayville Library Association, and was a founding member of the Women's Village Improvement Society, serving a term as president but declining to be its candidate for member of the Sayville-School Beard of Education. For many years she was active in the Sayville Study Club, a group interested in literature. Best of all, she maintained a home to which four children looked with reverent memories, as they strove to provide the same atmosphere for their own children. To Descendants of the OTTO and DEGRAFF Families.The accompanying family trees probably give you far more information about your ancestors than you cared to know.. Many of the strangers you see on the streets may be your shirt tail relatives. As with most family trees there must be some sap, and some black misshapen twigs. Fortunately this presentation gives them anonymity. Best leave them that way.The records contain many g?ps in information. Belle Otto workel on these gaps for several years, andLouis L. Otto has worked on them some. What is presented is the best information presently available. I hope it expands your knowledge of your "roots".Using Belle's recorded information and my limited memory I have tried to give some personality (color, as it is called on TV) to keyfigures among our direct 'ancestres.' • For the present generation -your many cousins -- I will let you gather your own information,you probably know it better than I.For my generation, I know of only five cousins left: 1) Louis L. Otto, a retired professor living in Brooksville, Fla.; 2) Dr.Bertram B. Otto, a retired dentist from Bayshore, Long Island, living in Daytona, Fla.; 3) Julia Otto Wallace, a retired realtor from Bellport, Long Island, living in Brookhaven, Long Island; 4)Betty DeGraff DeRool an housewife living in Moorestown, New Jersey; md 5) David DeGraff, a stock Inters agent living in Bayport, LongIsland. There may be a few others living in the Yonkers area of whom I am not aware. Your generation is spread from California toVermont, and possibly farther.The Otto and DeGraff families are long-lived. Check the records shown. Prepare yourselves for an extended retirement. As a caution, there are two hereditary defects which John Otto Sr. nas3ed llong to his descendants. He was deaf, and was afflicted with familial palsy. His son John and his daughter Anna were very deaf very early in life. His sons Then and Louis were partially deaf. In my generation Bertram Otto and Herbert Parkhill are partially deaf. Hopefully this trait will die out, but at present it is treatable by hearing aids.Severe incidence of familial palsy seems to have missed John Ottos children, but showed up in Belle and Louis L. Otto and Herbert Parkhill. Presently the condition is not cureable, and only Inderal (propranolol) and ethyl alcohol are effective drugs against it. Indegil is also a heart and blood pressure medicine, and should only be taken udder medical supervision. Ethyl alcohol is very effective, tho very teMporary„ but it is addictive, so beware. Hopefully this trait is recessive, and will also disappear.Unfortunately for the impact of this genealogical record my generation is the last one to have lived in the Sayville area, and to have more than an inkling of the mono-ethnic character of West Sayville from the 1850's to the 1950's. One more generation of separation from our roots in Holland makes the connection with the "old country" very tenuous also. For your information, West Sayville had only dutchmen (hollanders) in residence, northern East Islip had only Czechs, Waverly Ave. in Patchogue had only italians, Bohemia had only Czechs, Hagerman had only italians. There ,ere also many other small mono-ethnic pockets on Long Island. World war II andits influx of city dwellers ended all this isolation.There are several typing errors in this (per line that is).Anyone wishing to type themselves a perfect copy has my permission./s/ Lewis Leslie Otto "The following was done by Belle Otto with help from Lewis Leslie Otto" Family Background in Holland Dinah DeGraff gave to Betty DeGraff DeRoo loose pages cut from two Dutch Bibles, carrying written records in Dutch. Since the paper was thin, the ink from one side bled through to the other side, and much of the ink has faded. Some of the script is difficult to read in itself, since the letters are in the forms used at that time and not used now.The older Bible was printed in 1802, its pages are larger than the second Bible. It has not been translated, but with the help of a Dutch dictionary I have gleaned what I could. The smaller Bible pages were translated for me by a friend from Holland.All the people involved (with the few exceptions noted) lived and died in Bruinisse (apparently an older spelling) or Brunisse (modern spelling),a community on the island of Duiveland in the delta of_Ihg-,Scheldt-Maas river system below RotterdamThe older BibleThere are three different handwritings, and I wild judge that they were written by (1)my great-great grandmother Ariejaantje Arijse Borsje *, who kept the records from her marriage in 1816 until her death in 1831, then (2) her husband Pieter de Koning, and finally (3) a third person, possiblyPieter's second wife.page 1 AnUg.Ariejaantje Arijse Borsje, aged 23, and PieterAde Koning, aged 21, were married by the law and by the church on December 8, 1816 in Brunisse.[The child-Pieternella de Koning wrote "Brunisse. PieternelladeKoning" on page 1 and scribbled on page 2.]page 2 [In a different handwriting]Johanna ..n.eerhat (?) was born on August 13, 1805 and baptized on August 18. She married Z (2) on August 15, 1832.[My question: Was she the second wife?]page .2 [In the handwriting of page 1]Lena de Koning was born on Tuesday morning, February 3, 1818 at Wijk A5.[Apparently Wijk A5 was the home address.]Anthonij de Koning was born on Wednesday morning, May 26, 1819. Arij de Koning was born on Friday morning June 16, 1820.Cornelia de Koning was born on Sunday morning October 21, 1821.Dina de Koning was born on Friday morning June 13, 1823 at our home. There seem to be several spellings of this first name. Ultimately my great aunt, Hannah Verspoor Hiddink, who was named Ariaantje, convertedit to Hannah.Family background in Holland3The older Dutch Bible, continuedpage 4 [In the handwriting of page 1]Pieternella de Koning was born on January 7, 1825 at 10 o'clock on Friday morning.Anthonija de Koning was born on Thursday morning, July 26, 1827.Anthonij de Koning was born on December 1, 1828, on Monday afternoon at 6 o'clock.Willemiena de Koning was born on March 3, 1830, Wednesday, and baptized on July 6, 1830.[At this point the handwriting changes, and I cannot read it. Apparently some one, perhaps named Leendert, died on June 7, 1884, aged 65 years, 7 months and 28 days.]page 5 [This page is in the handwriting I presume to be that of Pieterde Koning.]My child Anthonij de Koning died Monday, August 21, 1820, and was buried on Thursday, August 26, 1820.The child Anthonij de Koning died February 3, 1828 The child Anthonij de Koning died June 7, 1830, aged . .My wife, Arijaantje Borsje died Monday, August 8, 1831, aged 38 5 /12 years and was buried August 10. Wijk A5. page 6 [This page begins in the same handwriting as page 5, Pieter de Koning's] My child Cornelia de Koning died Sunday, February 11, 1838, aged 16 years 6 months, and was buried on February 15. Wijk A5My child Anthonij de Koning died at 5 o'clock on Monday, May 21, 1838 at three years, buried May 26. Wijk AS[At this point the third handwriting appears, for the rest ofthe page.] My mother Lena van den Busse died Thursday, March 16, 1844 and was buried March 18, 1844.My child Jan de Koning died58P51E6t 23, 1845, aged 8 months, 19 days, and was buried August 26.The child Jan de Koning died on November 26, 1846, aged 7 months, 12 days.END Notes on the DeGraff and Verspoor Families Ny Grandmother DeGraff (belle Verspoor DeGraff) told me (Belle Otto) about 1917 shout Cornelius DeGraff and his wife Lucy van Overhois DeGraff, Leendert Verspoor and Dihah deKoning Verspoor. They all came from the village of Bruinisse on the island of Duiveland in the mouth of the Maas-Scheldte river system in Holland. The spelling for the names varied. One branch of the DeGraffs used the DeG~aff spelling, a West Sayville branch used DeGraaf, which was probably the original dutch spelling. DeKonig and Wespoor are occassionally seen, although Dinah DIXonlng Verspoor used the additional n and r. This appears in her own handwriting in family bible records. Note 1 Cprnelius DeGraff and his wife Leuntje )sometimes converted into the English equivalents of Lerna and Lucy) came to the United States in 1852 ~ith two children, Matthew and Hannah. They came in a small sailing vessel, and had almost reached their destination when they were driven back almost to Europe by a severe storm, hence thay were six weeks on the way. They went to western New York state for a while, then returned to Holland and in 1 862 came back to the states. They lived then first in Bayport, then in Oakdal~, and finally settled in West Sayville. Their two daughters, Hannah and Coby, lived in or near Grand Rapids, Mich. after they were married. The five sons, Matthew, Cornelius, John, Peter, and Garrett all settled in Sa~ville or West Sa~ville. Peter was shot and killed in a hunting accident. There is a photo of the four surviving brothers taken around 1915. Carol DeGraff (David's daughter) has large photos of Cornelius Sr. and Leuntje. Note 2 Cornelius Jr. and Fannie DeGraff lived in an old house at the far west end of Montauk Highway in West Sayville, beyond the old Bientema Dairy. Charles Dickerson refers to this as the "DeGraff House" on page 14 in his book on the History of Ss~w-ille. Fanny was small, wiry, and eccentric, Cornelius was tall, portly, and stolid. Fannie Smith DeGraff was a sister of Mrs. Jacob Ockers, and an aunt to Miss Louise Ockers. To me (LLO) Cornelius was Great Uncle Case. I made many trips on my bicycle to his house ~ith messages from my Aunt Dinah. He had real estate interests in the beach colony ~ Ocean Beach (as did Aunt Dinah), and periodically he would load a sm~11 motor boat which he kept moored in Greene's River at Montauk Highway with garden produce and go to Ocean Beach to sell the produce and check on his properties. Often Aunt Dinah would go olong --accompanied by me (never miss a chance for a boat ride and a soJour$ at the beach). His boat was a horrible example of ,'b~ling wire and rubber bands", but ~ always man~ ed to get to the beach and back. Note 3 I can just remember and old lady, Aunt Coby. who sometimes came from Michigan to visit. The story is told that she commonly avoided the problem of too much luggage on this journey by ~earing most of her clothing, in layers. Of her children, Lerna and Aunt Dinah were good friends, and ~£ mother was a friend to her cousin "Harm", who sometimes c~me east to visit. Cornelius (Kale) lived in Massachusetts. Matthew V~ ~ke may be in the wrong position, he may have been a son of Cornelius or Henry. He was probRhly born between 1~0-1905. He worked for a number of years in Alaska, operating a fox farm on one cf the islands. He worked also in railroad construction. He returned to the states, coming as a young man to visit the West Ss~ville DeGraffs in the 192Os. He brought with him mar~ pieces of copper ore (green malachite and blue dmurite) which he had made into pendants (drop and heart shapes) with skilled craftsmanship. These he gave to the ladies of the family. I have the one he gave to Grandmother DeGraff. Betty DeRoohas another. There was a dark blue heart given to Aunt Dinah, which she had bound in gold. 4 ~atthew and Belle Versoocr DeGraff. Matthew DeGraff (1848-1919) was the eldest child of Cornelius and Lucy DeGrmff. He came to the United States at the age of 4, but the family soon returned to Holland. They came again in 1862 when Matthew was 14. After living in Bayport, and then in Oakdale, they settled in West Sayville, where Matthew lived until his marriage to Belle Verspoor on Marsh 23, 1868 when each was 20 years old. Matthew and Belle DeGraff lived in a house at the corner of Candee and Maple Avenues (NW) in Ss~wille until, in the late 187Os, they built the house still standing at 53 Greeley Ave. I remember this house from m~ (BOT) early childhood as a two story structure contaiulng a parlor and two bedrooms on the first floor and three tiny bedrooms on the second floor. There was a one story wing which held the dining room-sitting room and the kitchen. An attic over this wing held, for my interest, toysua cradle, a doll, and doll dishes with which I played. I still have the green glass sugar bowl. Beside the kitchen was s covered well, with a window opening into it from the kitchen. In the rear yard were a big grape arbor, many currant bushes, and a plum tree. The parlor had a lot of fancy shells, corals, etc., that Grandfather had acquired from sea captains. Matthew was a t~ll bearded man. Captain DeGraff earned his living with his small coastwise schooner, the Marion L. Cummings, on which he carried oysters, clams, coal, etc. to or from New York City and Connecticut. Capt. DeGraff and his schooner appeared in one of the very early movies, perhaps around 1907, ~ich may have had Alice Brady as its star. Because of bis occupation, Capt. DeGraff was away from home a great deal. Belle DeGraff was a very quiet, placid person, a good housewife who seldom ventured from her own home. After rearing her own family she raised her grandsons George and Burton DeGraff, who with their father Cornelius came to live with her after the death of their mother in 1912. Matthew and Belle DeGraff had two sons, Cornelius ~d Leonard, and four daughters, Lena, who died in childhood, and ainah, Belle, and Lucy. Note 5 Dinah DeGraff - Aunt Dinah, She was a milliner, and operated a millinery shop in S~yville until hats for women ceased to be popular and essential. She dabbled in real estate, owning two houses in Ocean Beach, one on lower Greene Ave, and two on Greeley Ave., all of which she rented. She was active in civic affairs, particularly in the votes for women campaigns, in the Study Club, in the Sayville Congregational Church, and in the S~yville Public Library, serving as treasurer of the latter for many years. After their mother's death in 1926, she and Lucy shared the house at 53 Greeley Ave. Cornelius DeGraff moved back here in 1928 with his daughter Betty after the death of his wife Dorothy. Betty lived ~th Aunt Dinah until 1948, when she married Bob DeRoo. David DeGraff spent his summers with Aunt Dinah from 1940, and lived there with her and his sister from 1941. (LID) Dinah's first millinery shop in Sayville was on Main St. directly opposite the old Post Office. H er younger sister Belle was an assistant in this shop. When it closed Dinah worked for, or with another woman in a women's dress shop at "The Point" (junction north and south Main Streets). Later on, for several summers, she operated a curio shop on the ferry slip in Ocean Beach. ~;ote 6 Cornelius DeGr:ff (1874-1931) was the third child and eldest son of Matthew and Belle Verspoor DeGraff. A tall man with abundant dark wavy hairS he was a carpenter and skilled craftsman. Many of his ~rking years were spent in building the houses in the then new development of Brightwaters. He was a skillful sailor, owning a succession of sail or power boats, and was active in sail boat and scooter racing on the Great South Bay. His first wife was Mary Jane Rhodes, daughter of Benjamin and Elizabeth Rhodes. They had two sons, and lived at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Henry Street beside her parents. Jane died of tuberculosis in the sramher of 1912, and Cornelius moved with his sons to his mother's home. He married Dorothy Archer (see Note 7) in 1922. They lived on upper Greene Avenue for a time, then in the house on Greeley Avenue in which Louis A. and Belle DeGraff Otto had lived in the first seven years of their marriage, and in which Lucy Belle and Louis Leslie Otto were born. Betty and David DeGraff were also born there. Cornelius and Dorothy DeGraff had purchased the house at 69 Greeley Avenue and were preparing to move into it at the time of her death. This house was later moved away to make room for the new school yard. This same school expansion demolished the Louis A. Otto house, the John Otto Sr. house, and the John Terry house. Dorothy Archer DeGraff died of pneumonia in November 1928. Cornelius and his three year old daughter then returned to his old home, then occupied by his sisters Dinah and Lucy. His infant son David lived with Cornelius' sister, Belle DeG~aff Otto, and her family, two houses up the street. Cornelius died of pneumonia on December 2?, 1931, leaving four tall children as survivors. ~rothy Archer DeGraff Dorothy Archer was born in 1890 and lived in the Newark area of New Jersey. She was a graduate of Newark ? High School and of Goucher College, Class of 1913. She was a popular student, active in class affairs. In her Freshman year she was elected by her class as Chairman of Freshman Boat Ride, an important position, and in her Sophomore year she served as Class President. She was a member of Alpha Phi sorority, and active in college dramatics. She majored in history ~/or ~hglish. Dor- othy Archer had a happy cheerful disposition and was an easy con- versationallst. She marne friends easily. She was about 5' ~" in height, had dark hair with a tint of red and some tendency to curl. Her daughter Betty DeRoo looks very much like her. Dorothy's parents, Elliott a~M ELizabeth Lay Archer, had three daughters, Elizabeth (later Mrs William ), Dmeothy, and Julia (later Mrs. ). After Elliott and Elizabeth Archer were divorced, Mrs. Archer mantled William Martin, U.S.Navy. He was sta- tioned at the Wireless Station in West Sayville, and they lived for several years in Sayville, where Dorothy Jained them. Elizabeth continued to live in New Jersey, Julia lived with her mother and ~M. Martin, taking the name Julia Martin. Dorothy worked for a time for a Newark newspaper ?, then as a reporter for the Suffolk County News in Sayville, then became legal secretary to Joseph Wood, a lawyer in Sayville. She held this position until her maA~iage. She did a lot of tutoring in high school subjects along the way, and some substitute teaching in the Sayville High School. /5 Note 8 $elle (Lena Isabelle) DeG~aff was the fourth child of Belle and Matthew DeGraff. Until her marriage to Louis Alfrdd Otto she lived at the family home at 53 Greeley Ave. She attended the local elementary school, and then trained as a seamstress and dressmaker, living for a time in Brooklyn for this training. After her marriage in 1903 she and her husband moved to the stone front house farther up Greeley Avenue which had been built as Ike Greene's architecture office. A daughter Belle (Lucy Belle) and a son Louis Leslie were born there, and in 1911 the f~mily moved to a new home which had been built for them at 79 Greeley Ave. Another sons Charles, was born in this house in 1914. During the early 192Os this home was rented to summer residents from N.Y. City, while the Otto family lived temporarily at 22 Willett Ave. In 1930 she accepted her eight-month old nephew, David DeGraff into her home after the unexpected death of his mother, and kept him until her death in 1937 (coronary thrombosis). Belle was relatively tall (5'-10") and erect, pink-cheeked and comely of face, with brown eyes and very long dark hair. She was a woman of great understanding and sympat~, to whom many persons came far comfort and guidance when troubled. She was active in the Sa~lle Congregational Church, serving a term as president of its womans society, the Needlecraft Club. She helped found the Sayville Library Association, and was a founding member of the Women's Village Improvement Society, serving a term as president but declining to be its candidate for member of the S~yvi!le-School Board of Education. For many years she was active in the S~yville Study Club, a group interested in literature. Best of all, she maintained a home to which four children looked with reverent memoried, as they strove to provide the same atmosphere for their own children. Louis Alfred Otto was the fifth child of John and Cornelia Hage Otto, born on June 5, 1875, in a family of five boys and one sister. H is father was a "bayman", a~ as soon as the boys were physically able they accompanied their father on the bay to tong for clams or oysters, to dredge for scallops, to net for fish. Attendance at school was secondax~y to working, and only when the bay was iced over, or the weather was too mean to womk in exposed locations were the boys allowed to go to school. As a result Louis received only about 4 years of schooling ---1during Januaries and Februaries. Later he supplemented this meager formal training with extensive reading. Father John Otto was a good Dutchman and believed in paying homage to his religion, requiring his family to sit through long prayers and devotions, a practice not understandable to young children ~shlng to get out and olay with their contemporaries. In spite of irksome prayer time at home, Louis and his brothers hung around local out-of-doors revival meetings enough to become well versed in the hy~.~ which were used, so he could teach them to his daughter later. Apparently father John Otto was a strict disciplinarian while at work too. Per my father, one day he was berating John Jr. for loafing ~ile tonging. To escape the tirade John Jr. jumped overboard and swam to an oyster lot stake for support. The stake, weakened by toredo worms, broke off, and ~ohn Jr. had no choice but to come back to the boat and face his father, who was armed with a rope's end. As soon as they were able to support themselves ~11 | DeGraff, Lena " Lucy" Isabella (I30527)
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| 826 | Note 9 Lucy Belle Otto (BOT) was the first child of Louis A. and Belle DeGraff Otto, born on New Years day in 1 905. During her early years in the Greene Cottage she formed what was to be a life-long active friendship with the girl next door, Dorothy Premm, whose father was the manager of Vanderbilts Idlehour Estate in Oakdale. Belle attended "Old 88", the Sayville School close by to their home, graduated as valedictorian of her class in 1922. She then studied chemistry at Barnard College, the women’s college of Columbia University in New York City, graduating in 1926 with an election to Phi Beta Kappa, the national scholastic honorary. Based on her record in Barnard she received a graduate teaching fellowship in Chemistry at Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts. After two years of graduate study in chemistry, plus the usual graduate fellow teaching assignments, she graduated from Mount Holyoke in 1928 with an MA, majoring in Chemistry. In a competition with the usual number of new graduates she won a position, starting in the fall of 1928, as instructor of chemistry at Goucher College, a long-established and scholastically we~ regarded women's college in Baltimore. This was the start of a lifelong career as a teacher, and as an advisor to hundreds of girls who were residents in the dormitory sections of which she the resident advisor. in 1928 Goucher College occupied several old buildings in the area around Maryland Avenue just north of North Avenue, within the city limits of Baltimore. As the college grew in size it became necessary to expand, which could not be done in their city location. A suitable site was found on the outskirts of Towson, just north of Baltimore. Belle participated extensively in the planning for the new campus, and led her colleagues and the architect into the building of a very useful and function~ laboratory and classroom building for chemistry and the physical sciences. During the difficult transition years when the College was partly downtown and partly in Towson she set an example for students and faculty by her cheerful acceptance of trying conditions am~ by a superlative teaching performance under difficulties. Academic customs require a Doctor of Philosophy degree of those aspiring to become full professors, with their accompanying rewards. Belle started a PhD graduate program at neighboring Johns Hopkins University, and after struggling through a very difficult research problem, she was awarded the PhD degree by Johns Hopkins in 194?. She was also elected to Sigma Xi, the national honorary research society. Following the att~4~ent of the PhD came promotion to the rank of full professor at Goucher, and the election by her colleagues to the position of Chairman of the Department of Chemistry ar Goucher College. She continued in this position until her early retirement from Goucher in 1965, leading the department to au enviable record in effective teaching, and in inspiring students to adopt chemistry as a lifetime career. In 1960 Belle's younger brother Charles died, followed soon after by his widow, leaving six children, four of whom were too young to support themselves. Belle helped organize the family so it stayed together, and acted as a senior advisor at such times as it was needed. She always maintained close contact with these children, and ~with the children of her brother Louis. About 1963 Belle became acquainted with a widower, Samuel Armstrong Talbot, who was Professor and Chairman of the Biomedical Engineering Department at Johns Hopkins University. This acquaintance grew into mutual love, and Sam and Belle were married on July 25,1964. As A result of her marriage to Sam, Belle acquired two daughters and some grandchildren. Ann Talbot Boyer, her husband Paul Boyer, and two children live in Madison, Wisconsin, and Marion Talbot Brady, her husband Jem Brady, and son Bruce live in Little Falls, N.J. Belle and Sam took early retirement from their university positions and sold their Baltimore properties, with the expectation of moving/8to a Biomedical Engineering Department at the University of Alabama. At the last moment, a medical diagnosis of the return of cancer in Sam caused the cancellation of these plans. They purchased a home on the outskirts of Towson, and Sam, with Belle helping, set out to complete the writing of a textbook on Biomedical Engineering, entitled ,Systems Philosophy". Sam died (2-20-67) before its completion, but Belle and Urs Gessner of Switzerland, one of Sam's former graduate students completed writing the text. After several trips by Belle to Switzerland to coordinate details the book was completed, and published by John Wiley and Co. in 1973.Belle acted for a time in the 70s as Dean of Vocational Studiesat Essex Community College in Baltimore, but eventually retired completely to enjoy her emeritus connections with nearby Goucher College, and to maintained the Bellona Avenue home which she and Sam had purchased. This home proved to be an increasing chore, and in 1979 when the complete care retirement center of Broadmead opened in Cockeysville, north of Towson, she sold the house and became a charter resident of Broadmead. She enjoyed this situation, entering wholeheartedly into its committees and activities, but in the sumner of 1980 she developed pancreatic cancer, leading to her death on 2,28-81. During her entire residence in the Baltimore area, Belle was active in the local chapter of the American Chemical Society, acting as Editor of its paper, the Maryland Chemist for nearly 20 years. In 1966 she was presented with the Award of Merit by the Baltimore Section of ACS in recognition of her many years of outstanding service to the Section, to the profession, and to her students. Goucher College created the Belle Otto Talbot Room in her honor as a computer terminal room for the use of the students. She is also remembered with reverence by her many neices, nephews, two stepdaughters, a brother, and many, many former students. To Descendants of the OTTO and DEGRAFF Families.The accompanying family trees probably give you far more information about your ancestors than you cared to know.. Many of the strangers you see on the streets may be your shirt tail relatives. As with most family trees there must be some sap, and some black misshapen twigs. Fortunately this presentation gives them anonymity. Best leave them that way.The records contain many g?ps in information. Belle Otto workel on these gaps for several years, andLouis L. Otto has worked on them some. What is presented is the best information presently available. I hope it expands your knowledge of your "roots".Using Belle's recorded information and my limited memory I have tried to give some personality (color, as it is called on TV) to keyfigures among our direct 'ancestres.' • For the present generation -your many cousins -- I will let you gather your own information,you probably know it better than I.For my generation, I know of only five cousins left: 1) Louis L. Otto, a retired professor living in Brooksville, Fla.; 2) Dr.Bertram B. Otto, a retired dentist from Bayshore, Long Island, living in Daytona, Fla.; 3) Julia Otto Wallace, a retired realtor from Bellport, Long Island, living in Brookhaven, Long Island; 4)Betty DeGraff DeRool an housewife living in Moorestown, New Jersey; md 5) David DeGraff, a stock Inters agent living in Bayport, LongIsland. There may be a few others living in the Yonkers area of whom I am not aware. Your generation is spread from California toVermont, and possibly farther.The Otto and DeGraff families are long-lived. Check the records shown. Prepare yourselves for an extended retirement. As a caution, there are two hereditary defects which John Otto Sr. nas3ed llong to his descendants. He was deaf, and was afflicted with familial palsy. His son John and his daughter Anna were very deaf very early in life. His sons Then and Louis were partially deaf. In my generation Bertram Otto and Herbert Parkhill are partially deaf. Hopefully this trait will die out, but at present it is treatable by hearing aids.Severe incidence of familial palsy seems to have missed John Ottos children, but showed up in Belle and Louis L. Otto and Herbert Parkhill. Presently the condition is not cureable, and only Inderal (propranolol) and ethyl alcohol are effective drugs against it. Indegil is also a heart and blood pressure medicine, and should only be taken udder medical supervision. Ethyl alcohol is very effective, tho very teMporary„ but it is addictive, so beware. Hopefully this trait is recessive, and will also disappear.Unfortunately for the impact of this genealogical record my generation is the last one to have lived in the Sayville area, and to have more than an inkling of the mono-ethnic character of West Sayville from the 1850's to the 1950's. One more generation of separation from our roots in Holland makes the connection with the "old country" very tenuous also. For your information, West Sayville had only dutchmen (hollanders) in residence, northern East Islip had only Czechs, Waverly Ave. in Patchogue had only italians, Bohemia had only Czechs, Hagerman had only italians. There ,ere also many other small mono-ethnic pockets on Long Island. World war II andits influx of city dwellers ended all this isolation.There are several typing errors in this (per line that is).Anyone wishing to type themselves a perfect copy has my permission.Family Background in Holland Dinah DeGraff gave to Betty DeGraff DeRoo loose pages cut from two Dutch Bibles, carrying written records in Dutch. Since the paper was thin, the ink from one side bled through to the other side, and much of the ink has faded. Some of the script is difficult to read in itself, since the letters are in the forms used at that time and not used now.The older Bible was printed in 1802, its pages are larger than the second Bible. It has not been translated, but with the help of a Dutch dictionary I have gleaned what I could. The smaller Bible pages were translated for me by a friend from Holland.All the people involved (with the few exceptions noted) lived and died in Bruinisse (apparently an older spelling) or Brunisse (modern spelling),a community on the island of Duiveland in the delta of_Ihg-,Scheldt-Maas river system below RotterdamThe older BibleThere are three different handwritings, and I wild judge that they were written by (1)my great-great grandmother Ariejaantje Arijse Borsje *, who kept the records from her marriage in 1816 until her death in 1831, then (2) her husband Pieter de Koning, and finally (3) a third person, possiblyPieter's second wife.page 1 AnUg.Ariejaantje Arijse Borsje, aged 23, and PieterAde Koning, aged 21, were married by the law and by the church on December 8, 1816 in Brunisse.[The child-Pieternella de Koning wrote "Brunisse. PieternelladeKoning" on page 1 and scribbled on page 2.]page 2 [In a different handwriting]Johanna ..n.eerhat (?) was born on August 13, 1805 and baptized on August 18. She married Z (2) on August 15, 1832.[My question: Was she the second wife?]page .2 [In the handwriting of page 1]Lena de Koning was born on Tuesday morning, February 3, 1818 at Wijk A5.[Apparently Wijk A5 was the home address.]Anthonij de Koning was born on Wednesday morning, May 26, 1819. Arij de Koning was born on Friday morning June 16, 1820.Cornelia de Koning was born on Sunday morning October 21, 1821.Dina de Koning was born on Friday morning June 13, 1823 at our home. There seem to be several spellings of this first name. Ultimately my great aunt, Hannah Verspoor Hiddink, who was named Ariaantje, convertedit to Hannah.Family background in Holland3The older Dutch Bible, continuedpage 4 [In the handwriting of page 1]Pieternella de Koning was born on January 7, 1825 at 10 o'clock on Friday morning.Anthonija de Koning was born on Thursday morning, July 26, 1827.Anthonij de Koning was born on December 1, 1828, on Monday afternoon at 6 o'clock.Willemiena de Koning was born on March 3, 1830, Wednesday, and baptized on July 6, 1830.[At this point the handwriting changes, and I cannot read it. Apparently some one, perhaps named Leendert, died on June 7, 1884, aged 65 years, 7 months and 28 days.]page 5 [This page is in the handwriting I presume to be that of Pieterde Koning.]My child Anthonij de Koning died Monday, August 21, 1820, and was buried on Thursday, August 26, 1820.The child Anthonij de Koning died February 3, 1828 The child Anthonij de Koning died June 7, 1830, aged . .My wife, Arijaantje Borsje died Monday, August 8, 1831, aged 38 5 /12 years and was buried August 10. Wijk A5. page 6 [This page begins in the same handwriting as page 5, Pieter de Koning's] My child Cornelia de Koning died Sunday, February 11, 1838, aged 16 years 6 months, and was buried on February 15. Wijk A5My child Anthonij de Koning died at 5 o'clock on Monday, May 21, 1838 at three years, buried May 26. Wijk AS[At this point the third handwriting appears, for the rest ofthe page.] My mother Lena van den Busse died Thursday, March 16, 1844 and was buried March 18, 1844.My child Jan de Koning died58P51E6t 23, 1845, aged 8 months, 19 days, and was buried August 26.The child Jan de Koning died on November 26, 1846, aged 7 months, 12 days.ENDNotes on the DeGraff and Verspoor Families12My Grandmother DeGraff (belle Verspoor DeGraff) told me (belle Otto) about 1917 about Cornelius DeGraff and his wife Lucy van Overhois DeGraff, Leendert Verspoor and Dihah deKoning Verspoor. They all came from the village of Bruinisse on the island of Duiveland in the mouth of the Maas-Scheldte river system in Holland. The spelling for the names varied. One branch of the DeGraffs used the DeGgaff spelling, a West Sayville branch used DeGraaf, which wasprobably the original dutch spelling. DeKonig and *spoor are occassionally seen, although Dinah Dg(oning Verspoor used the additional n and r. This appears in her own handwriting in family bible records.Note 1Cornelius DeGraff and his wife Leuntje )sometimes converted into the English equivalents of Lerna and Lucy) came to the United States in 1852 with two children, Matthew and Hannah. They came in a smallsailing vessel, and had almost reached their destination when they were driven back almost to Europe by a severe storm, hence thay were six weeks on the way. They went to western New York state for a while, then returned to Holland and in 1862 came back to the states. They lived then first in Bayport, then in Oakdale, and finally settled in West Sayville. Their two daughters, Hannah and Coby, lived in or near Grand Rapids, Mich. after they were married. The five sons, Matthew, Cornelius, John, Peter, and Garrett all settled in Sayville or West Sayville. Peter was shot and killed in a hunting accident. There is a photo of the four surviving brothers taken around 1915. Carol DeGraff (David's daughter) has large photos ofCornelius Sr. and Leuntje.Note 2Cornelius Jr. and Fannie DeGr ff lived in an old house at the far west end of Montauk Highway in West Sayville, beyond the old Bientema Dairy. Charles Dickerson refers to this as the "DeGraff H ouse" on page 14 in his book on the H istory of Sayville. Fanny was small, wiry, and eccentric, Cornelius was tall, portly, and stolid. Fannie Smith DeGraff was a sister of Mrs. Jacob Ockers, and an aunt to Miss Louise Ockers. To me (LLO) Cornelius was Great Uncle Case. I made many trips on my bihycle to his house with messages from my Aunt Dinah. He had real estate interests in the beach colony if Ocean Beach (as did A.unt Dinah), and periodically he would load a small motor boat which he kept moored in Greene's River at Montauk H ighway with garden produce and go to Ocean Beach to sell the produce and check on his properties. Often Aunt Dinah would go along --accompanied by me (never miss a chance for a boat ride and a sojourm at the beach). His boat was a horrible example of "baling wire and rubber bands", but we always managed to get to the beach and back.Note 3I can just remember and old lady, Aunt Cobv, who sometimes came from Michigan to visit. The story is told that she commonly avoided the problem of too much luggage on this journey by uoaring most of her clothing, in layers. Of her children, Lerna and Aunt Dinah were good friends, and my mother was a friend to her cousin "Harm", who sometimes came east to visit. Cornelius (Kale) lived in Massachusetts.Matthew Van Dyisimay be in the wrong position, he may have been a son of Cornelius or H enry. He was probuhly born between 1890-1905.IsHe worked for a number of years in Alaska, operating a fox farm on one of the islands. He worked also in railroad construction. He returned to the states, coming as a young man to visit the West Sayville DeGraffs in the 1920s. He brought with him many pieces of copper ore (green malachite and blue azurite) which he had made into pendants (drop and heart shapes) with skilled craftsmanship. Thesehe gave to the ladies of the family. I have the one he gave to Grandmother DeGraff. Betty DeRoohas another. There was a dark blue heart given to Aunt Dinah, which she had bound in gold.Note 4 Matthew and Belle Verspoor DeGraff. Matthew DeGraff (18). 8-1919) was the eldest child of Cornelius and Lucy DeGraff. He came to the United States at the age of 4, but the family soon returned to Holland. They came again in 1862 when Matthew was 14. After living inBayport, and then in Oakdale, they settled in West Sayville, where Matthew lived until his marriage to Belle Vers000r on Marsh 23, 1868when each was 20 years old.Matthew and Belle DeGraff lived in a house at the corner of Candee and Maple Avenues (NW) in Sayville until, in the late 18705, they built the house still standing at 53 Greeley Ave. I remember this house from my (BOT) early childhood as a two story structure containing a parlor and two bedrooms on the first floor and three tiny bedrooms on the second floor. There was a one story wing rhich held the dining room-sitting room and the kitchen. An attic over this wing held, for my interest, toys--a cradle, a doll, and doll disheswith which I played. I still have the green glass sugar bowl. Beside the kitchen was s covered well, with a window opening into it from the kitchen. In the rear yard were a big grape arbor, many currant bushes, and a plum tree. The parlor had a lot of fancy shells, corals, etc., that Grandfather had acquired from sea captains.Matthew was a tall bearded man. Captain DeGraff earned his living with his small coastwise schooner, the Marion L. Cummings, on which he carried oysters, clams, coal, etc. to or from New York City and Connecticut. Capt. DeGraff and his schooner appeared in one of the very early movies, perhaps around 1907, which may have had Alice Brady as its star. Because of his occupation, Capt. DeGraff was away from home a great deal. Belle DeGraff was a very quiet, placid person, a good housewife who seldom ventured from her own home. After rearing her own family she raised her grandsons George and Burton DeGraff, who with their father Cornelius came to live with herafter the death of their mother in 1912.Matthew and Belle DeGraff had two sons, Cornelius and Leonard, and four daughters, Lena, who died in childhood, and Dinah, Belle,and Lucy.Note 5Dinah DeGraff - Aunt Dinah, She was a milliner, and operated a millinery shop in Sayville until hats for women ceased to be popular and essential. She dabbled in real estate, owning two houses in Ocean Beach, one on lower Greene Ave, and two on Greeley Ave 1 all of which she rented. She was active in civic affairs, particularly in the votes for women campaigns, in the Study Club, in the Sayville Congregational Church, and in the Sayville Public Library, serving as treasurer of the latter for many years. After their mother's death in 1926, sheand Lucy shared the house at 53 Greeley Ave. Cornelius DeGraff moved back here in 1928 with his daughter Betty after the death of his wife Dorothy. Betty lived with Aunt Dinah until 1948, when she married Bob DeRoo. David DeGraff spent his summers with Aunt Dinah /9 from 1940, and lived there with her and his sister from 1941 .(LLO) Dinah's first millinery shop in Sayville was on Main St. directly opposite the old Post Office. H er younger sister Belle was an assistant in this shop. When it closed Dinah worked for, or with another woman in a women's dress shop at "The Point" (junction SS north and south Main Streets). Later on, for several summers, sheoperated a curio shop on the ferry slip in Ocean Beach.Note 6Cornelius DeGrpff (1874-1931 ) was the third child and eldest son of Matthew and Belle Verspoor DeGraff. A tall man with abundant darkwavy hair gl he was a carpenter and skilled craftsman. Many of his working years were spent in building the houses in the then new development of Brightwaters. He was a skillful sailor, owning a succession of sail or power boats, and was active in sail boat and scooter racing on the Great South Bey.His first wife was Mary Jane Rhodes, daughter of Benjamin and Elizabeth Rhodes. They had two sons, and lived at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Henry Street beside her parents. Jane died of tuberculosis in the summer of 1912, and Cornelius moved with hissons to his mother's home.He married Dorothy Archer (see Note 7) in 1922. They lived on upper Greene Avenue for a time, then in the house on Greeley Avenue in which Louis A. and Belle DeGraff Otto had lived in the first seven years of their marriage, and in which Lucy Belle and Louis Leslie Otto were born. Betty and David DeGraff were also born there. Cornelius and Dorothy DeGraff had purchased the house at 69 Greeley Avenue and were preparing to move into it at the time of her death. This house was later moved away to make room for the new school yard. This same school expansion demolished the Louis Otto house, the John Otto Sr. house, and the John Terry house.Dorothy Archer DeGraff died of pneumonia in November 1928.Cornelius and his three year old daughter then returned to his old home, then occupied by his sisters Dinah and Lucy. His infant son David lived with Cornelius' sister, Belle DeGraff Otto, and her family, two houses up the street. Cornelius died of pneumonia on December 2?, 1931, leaving four tall children as survivors.Nn Dorothy Archer DeGraff Dorothy Archer was born in 1890 and lived in the Newark area of New Jersey. She was a graduate of Newark ? High School and of Goucher College, Class of 1913. She was a popular student, active in class affairs. In her Freshman year she was elected by her class as Chairman of Freshman Boat Ride, an important position, and in her Sophomore year she served as Class President. She was a member of Alpha Phi sorority, and active in college dramatics. She majored in history and/or English. Dorothy Archer had a happy cheerful disposition and was an easy conversationalist. She mage friends easily. She was about 51 8" inheight, had dark hair with a tint of red and some tendency to curl. Her daughter Betty DeRoo looks very much like her.Dorothy's parents, Elliott and Elizabeth Lay Archer, had three daughters, Elizabeth (later Mrs William ), Dimothy, and Julia (later Mrs. ). After Elliott and Elizabeth Archer were divorced, Mrs. Archer married William Martin, U.S.Navy. He was stationed at the 'Wireless Station in West Sayville, and they lived for several years in Sayville, where Dorothy jeined them. Elizabeth continued to live in New Jersey, Julia lived with her mother and Mr. Martin, taking the name Julia Martin. Dorothy worked for a time for a Newark newspaper 70 then as a reporter for the Suffolk County News in Sayville, then became legal secretary to Joseph Wood/ a lawyer in Sayville. She held this position until her marriage. She did a lot of tutoring in high school subjects along the way, and some substitute teaching in the Sayville H igh School.Note 8Belle (Lena Isabelle) DeGraff was the fourth child of Belle and Matthew DeGraff. Until her marriage to Louis Alfrdd Otto she lived at the family home at 53 Greeley Ave. She attended the local elementary school, and then trained as a seamstress and dressmaker, living for a time in Brooklyn for this training. After her marriage in 1903 she and her husband moved to the stone front house farther up Greeley Avenue which had been built as Ike Greene 's architecture office. A daughter Belle (Lucy Belle) and a son Louis Leslie were born there, and in 191 1 the family moved to a new home which had been built for them at 79 Greeley Ave. Another sonm Charles, was born in this house in 1914. During the early 1920s this home was rented to summer residents from N.Y. City/ while the Otto family lived temporarily at22 Willett Ave. In 1930 she accepted her eight-month old nephew, David DeGraff into her home after the unexpected death of his mother/ and kept him until her death in 1937 ( coronary thrombosis).Belle was relatively tall (5'-10") and erect, pink-cheeked and comely of face/ with brown eyes and very long dark hair. She was a woman of great understanding and sympathy/ to whom many persons came for comfort and guidance when troubled. She was active in the Sayville Congregational Church, serving a term as president of its womans society, the Needlecraft Club. She helped found the Sayville Library Association, and was a founding member of the Women's Village Improvement Society, sel ing a term as president but declining to be its candidate for member of the Sayville-School Board of Education. For many years she was active in the Sayville Study Club, a group interested in literature. Best of all, she maintained a home to which four children looked with reverent memoried, as they strove to provide the same atmosphere for their ownchildren.Louis Alfred Otto was the fifth child of John and Cornelia Hage Otto/ born on June 5, 1875, in a family of five boys and one sister.H is father was a "bayman", and as soon as the boys were physically able they accompanied their father on the bay to tong for clams or oysters, to dredge for scallops, to net for fish. Attendance at school was secondary to working, and only when the bay was iced over, or the weather was too mean to weak in exposed locations were the boys allowed to go to school. As a result Louis received only about 4 years of schooling -1 duringJaauaries and Februaries. Later he supplemented this meager formal training with extensive reading.Father John Otto was a good Dutchman and believed in paying homage to his religion, requiring his family to sit through long prayers and devotions/ a practice not understandable to young children wishing to get out and play with their contemporaries. In spite of irksome prayer time at home/ Louis and his brothers hung around local out-of-doors revival meetings enough to become well versed in the hymns which were used, so he could teach them to his daughter later.Apparently father John Otto was a strict disciplinarian while at work too. Per my father, one day he was berating John Jr. for loafing while tonging. To escape the tirade John Jr. jumped overboard and swam to an oyster lot stake for support. The stake, weakened by toredo worms, broke off, and John Jr. had no choice but to come back to the boat and face his father, who was armed with a rope's end. As soon as they were able to support themselves ail /6of the boys left home and made their own way in the world.Louis, and his younger brother Bert, chose to buy their own sailboat and to live on-board her, ice-out to ice-in, while tonging clams in Prince's Bay on the southeasterly side of Staten Island, and selling their catches at the Fulton Fish Market in New York. Somewhere around 1900-1902 Lou fell from the deck into the hold, badly injuring one knee. After months in a hospital on Staten Island, with his knee cap being replaced by g silver plate, he emerged on crutches and with a brace on his leg. Facing insuperable diffaulties in resuming their former life, Lou and Bert returned to Sayville to create a new world for themselves.The new world emerged as Otto Bros. Retail Coal Sales. They purchased a piece of property on the north side of the Long Island Railroad tracks in Sayville, put in a railroad siding and the necessary bins/ and became coal dealers. After about five years Bert decided to become a butcher, worked with brother Tom to learn the budiness, and set up a butcher store in Bayshore. The coal yard became Louis A. Otto, Coal and Wood, Tel, Conn, 157.The coal yard continued to operate for many years. Lou created many mechanical coal moving machines to reduce the back-breaking labor normally present. Many of these seemed patentable, but a friend of his in Sayville named Rohm had a valid patent on "friction tape". Goodyear and Firestone produced and sold this material without paying royalties, and postponed and delayed the law suits which Rohm threw at them until he ran out of money. Lou did not bother with patents; but soon engineers from Link Belt appeared and went over his machines with measuring tapes (with Lou's permission) and in a few years had commercial versions ef his machines on the market.During the nineteen teens there were two to six draft horses stabled in the barn behind our house to provide tractive effort to the coal delivery wagons. These were joined by two to four milk cows, two to six pigs/ and 25 to 40 chickens. Lou was a frustrated farmer, and harvested hay and grain for his animals from many outlying fields. Our gardens were extensive, with asparagus patches, everbearing strawberries, many rows of peanuts, potatoes, cabbages, brussels sprouts, etc. Durigl WU I we were nearly self sufficientby gardening and canning. Very early in my life I learned to ride my bike to Bayport, West Sayville and Sayville to deliver excess milk from our cows to selected customers.During the early WW I years Lou became interested in lumbering, and developed a portable saw mill with which he could "log-off"mthe marketable maple, oak, and chestnut on private estates in Smithtown, Ronkonkoma, and South Haven. The increasing difficulty encountered in buying carload lots of coal, unless you had appropriate political connections, led Lou to sell the coal and wood business to Cecil Proctor, a local politician. Thereafter he devoted full time to the saw mill. When US entered WW I he moved the mill to the Patchogue yard of Bailey and Sons, and cut 11D locust trees into billett for policemans clubs. In November i918 Lou received "Greetings from the President" to report for bis army physical, but the end of thewar cancelled this.Art the end of the war the saw mill was sold, and the proceeds used to purchase tools and materials for the Cuddle Chair Co. CuddleChairs unfortunately did not sell, and the investment was lost, so Lou turned to his first skill, clamming, H e built, with the help of his cousin Doodle Otto, a 30 ft. V bottom clamming boat, white oak frames, long-leaf yellow pine keel and planking. With this boat he again became a bayman, and with Sylvenus Titus James as a partner,he tonged clams in Great South Bay. One year there was a heavy set of scallops in the bay, so they added a mast, spars, jib and mainsail1 7to the boat and dredged for scallops. Back at home, Louis Leslie Otto and others opened the scallops and prepared them for market. Joseph Weeks joined the team on the boat, and that winter Vane James died.Joe Weeks and Lou Otto clammed for a year or two longer, then came ashore and started a concrete building block business. The plantwas at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Church St., north of Sayville. This business prospered moderately, but in 1930 the breaking of a drag-line cable caused lacerations cf Lou's arm, an erysipelas infection, and Lou Otto's death.The coal yard established by Lou and Bert Otto around 1902 was purchased by their older brother Tam in the late nineteen twenties and opersted by him until his death in 49, and by his two daughters until 1959. About 1915 Louis Ruzicka became a wagon driver and del-ivery man for my father, and after serving in WW M returned to the same job. He continaed in this capacity for each successive owner until retiring about 1968.Lou Otto rarely spent an evening at home. He maintained an office downtown in his brother Tom's butcher store, and roamed Main St., account book in his pocket, to meet his debtors when they had money. Saturdays were pay days then, and nearly everyone went shopping along Main St. that evening, so Lou was busy. His favorite haunt was Jake Stryker's fish market on South Main St., counters in front, fish storage and preparation room in the back, but in between was a lounging room with a card table and a pot-bellied stove. Pinochle was the favorite game. Lou also enjoyed watching baseball, would attend the local town-team games, and would even take his fam, ily along in the trusty model T to the out-of-town games.During his entire adult life ashore Lou was an active member of the Sayville Military Band, playing the helical bass horn. His brother Tom played the baritone horn in this same band, and employee Lou Huzicka played the Sousaphone. I (no) believe that when I wasborn, as soon as my sex was established he went out and purchased an Eb Alto Horn so I could join him in the band. I did join this group at an early age, playing the Eb alto for many years, then switching to the Bb trumpet until leaving for college in 1020.The John Otto children neveu operated as a cohesive group due to some family argument in the early 1900s. I saw my uncle Tomwhenever I went into his butcher shop, but the other uncles and aunts I almost never saw. In the early twenties uncle Tom was trying to grow potatoes in sea weed in the beach sand, and one day all, five brothers, John, Tom, Case, Lou, and Bert got together on Tom's boat (somehow I got to go along) to go to the beach and plant these potatoes. The going was rough outside of Greene's river, and when we went into the west slip in West Sayville to get fuel, the boatsailed round and round the same spot. The anchor had fallen overboat from the foredeck and tied us to the bottom. My father indicated to me that this was a good example of uncle Tom's seamanship. In spite of this incident the rest of the day passed peacefully, but this is the last brotherly reunion of which we know.Louis Alfred Otto was a tall man (6'-3"), blue eyes, with dark wavy hair and a cookie-duster mustache. He was very muscular from a lifetime of hard physical labor. He enjoyed reading, playing cards,watching baseball, and the military band.Note 9Liar uplie 0 .to (BOT) was the first child of Louis A. and Belle DeGraff Otto, born on New Years day in 1 905. During her early years in the Greene Cottage she formed what was to be a life-long active fthrie emndasnhaigpe r wiofth V athnde ergibirll tns exIdtl dehooorur, DEosrtaotthe yi nP rOemakmd, awlheo. se Bfelalthe era twtaensded "Old 88", the Sa y 111e School close by to their home, graduated as valedictorian of her class in 1922. She then studied chemistry at Barnard College, the women 's college of Columbia University in New York City, graduating in 1926 with an election to Phi Beta Kappa, the national scholastic honorary. Based on her record in Barnard she received a graduate teaching fellowship in Chemistry at Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts. After taw years of graduate study in chemistry, plus the usual graduate fellow teaching assignments, she graduated from Mount Holyoke in 1928 with an MA, majoring in Chemistry.In a competition with the usual number of new graduates she won a position, starting in the fall of 1928, as instructor of chemistry at Gaucher College, a long-established and scholastically wen regarded women's college in Baltimore. This was the start of a lifelong career as a teacher, and as an advisor to hundreds ofgirls who were residents in the dormitory sections of which she wea the resident advisor.in 1928 Goucher College occupied several old buildings in the area around Maryland Avenue just north of North Avenue, within the city limits of PPltimore. As the college grew in size it became necessary to expand, which could not be done in their city location. Asuitable site was found on the outskirts of Towson, just north of Baltimore. Belle participated extensively in the planning for the new campus, and led her colleagues and the architect into the building of a very useful and functional laboratory and classroom building for chemistry and the physical sciences. During the difficult transition years when the College was partly downtown and partly in Towson she set an example for students and faculty by her cheerful acceptance of trying conditions and by a sliperlative teaching performance underdifficulties.Academic customs require a Doctor of Philosophy degree of those aspiring to became full professors, with their accompanying rewards. Belle started a PhD graduate program at neighboring Johns Hopkins University, and after struggling through a very difficult research problem, she was awarded the PhD degree by Johns Hopkins in 194?.She was also elected to Sigma Xi, the national honorary research satiety.Following the attainment of the PhD came promotion to the rank of full professor at Gaucher, and the election by her colleagues to the position of Chairman of the Department of Chemistry ar Gaucher College. She continued in this position until her early retirement from Goucher in 1 965, leading the department to an enviable record in effective teaching, and in inspiring students to adopt chemistryas a lifetime career.In 1960 Belle's younger brother Charles died, followed soon after by his widow, leaving six children, four of whom were too young to support themselves. Belle helped organize the family so it stayed together, and acted as a senior advisor at such times as it was needed. She always maintained close contact with these children, and with the children of her brother Louis.About 1963 Belle became acquaintilid with a widower, Samuel Armstrong Talbot, who was Professor and Chairman of the Biomedical Engineering Department at Johns Hopkins University. This acquaintance grew into mutual love, and Sam and Belle were married on July 25, As A result of her marriage to Sam, Belle acquired two daughters and some grandchildren. Ann Talbot Boyer, her husband Paul Boyer,and two children live in Madison, Wisconsin, and Marion Talbot Brady, her husband Jem Brady, and son Bruce live in Little Falls, N.J.Belle and Sam took early retirement from their university positions and sold their Baltimore properties, with the expectation of moving9to a Biomedical Engineering Department at the University of Alabama. At the last moment, a medical diagnosis of the return of cancer in Sam caused the cancellation of these plans. They purchased a home on the outskirts of Towson, ans Sam, with Belle helping, set out tocomplete the writing of a textbook on Biomedical Engineering, entitled "Systems Philosophy". Sam died (2-20-67) before its completion, but Belle and Urs Gessner of Switzerland, one of Sam's former graduate students completed writing the text. After several trips by Belle toSwitzerland to coordinate details the book was completed, and published by John Wiley and Co. in 1973.Belle acted for a time in the 70s as Dean of Vocational Studies at Essex Community College in Baltimore, but eventually retired completely to enjoy her emeritus connections with nearby Gaucher College, and to maintain the Bellona Avenue home which she and Sam had punchased. This home proved to be an increasing chore, and in 1979when the complete care retirement center of Broadmead opened in Cockeysville, north of Towson, she sold the house and became a charter resident of Broadmead. She enjoyed this situation, entering wholeheartedly into its committees and activities, but in the summer of 1980 she developed pancreatic cancer, leading to her death on 2.28'...81 .During her entire residence in the Baltimore area, Belle was active in the local chapter of the American Chemical Society, acting as Editor of its paper, the Maryland Chemist for nearly 20 years. In 1966 she was presented with the Award of Merit by the Baltimore Section of ACS in recognition of her many years of outstanding serviceto the Section, to the profession, and to her students. Gaucher College created the Belle Otto Talbot Room in her honor as a computer terminal room for the use of the students. She is also remembered with reverence by her many neices, nephews, two stepdaughters, a brother, and many, many former students.Notel0Louis Leslie Otto, the second child cf Louis Alfred and Belle DeGraff Otto, was born in the "Greene Cottage" in 1910, but moved with his family within a year to their new home at 79 Greeley Ave.Here he grew to young manhood, attending the Sayville Schools about a quarter mile north of his home. Very early he acquired a twowheeled bicycle, and by using this increased mobility he expanded his explorations over Bayport, Sayville, West Sayville, and Oakdale, and later to the sound on the north side of the island. Well before the age of ten he became delivery boy for Pat Mullen's milkroute, carrying pails of milk from the wagon into the customers houses for two hours before school each morning.He was always interested in boats, the water, and the beach, and actively wangled boat rides from all of his relatives. He built his own rowboat as a young boy, and used it to explore Brown's River, Greene's River, and the bay shore from Blue Point to Great River.During summer vacations from high school he acted as captain's boy for Sylvenus Titus James on the party-sailing 351 catboat, the Sylvia. This involved day and night sailing over the whole of the Great South Bay. Later he accompanied his father and partners on their clamming and oystering trips on the bay, even to clamming himself after his father went ashore. Early college summers were spent shoveling sand and delivering cement blocks for his father's plant.Education activities occupied most of Ham'slife (this nickname was acquired in high school for some unknown reason). After highschool graduation in 1928 as valedictorian he returned for one year as a post-graduate student, then went upstate to Cornell University20with a tuition scholarship to study Mechanical Engineering. In 1933 he graduated with the degree of M.E., and election to Tau Beta Pi, national engineering scholastic honorary, to Atmos, local mechanicalengineering scholastic honorary, to Quill and Dagger, local campus activities honorary, and as a "Wearer of the C"„ having earned an athletic letter. During his four years of undergraduate residence he played in the freshman ROTC band, played on championship basketball teams in the Intercollege and Interfraternity leagues, and put in one year on the freshman eight-oared crew, two years on the juniorvarsity crew, and one year on the Varsity crew, with a final race at Los Angeles in California. in 1933.Jobs for college graduates were bery hard to get in 1933, so Ham returned to Sayville, working at whatever jobs were available, until moving to Oakfield, N.Y. in January 1935 to work in the Sheetrock plant of U.S. Gypsum CoO In 1937 he moved to Perry, N.Y. to design tanks and machinery for the Kaustine Co., and after marrying in July 1938 he returned to Ithaca, N.Y. in September of that year to become a graduate student at Cornell. In the fall of 39 he started a teaching career as an instructor in the anerimental Engineering Department of Cornell. In 41, with two other instructors he started for the US Navy a 16 week course for Diesel Engineering Officers, which was greatly expanded after Pearl Harbor. There were also classes for Steam Engineering Officers and for Curtiss-Wright Engineering Aides, Navy V 12s, and to upgrade civilian war-plant employees. In 1943 his major professor died, so Lou picked up all of this professors classes in automotive engineering, dropping the other extras.He completed an MME degree in 1943, received a promotion to Assistant Professor, and to Associate Professor in 1946. The next step requireda PhD, so in the summer of 49 he moved with his wife and three children to East Lansing, Michigan, to begin a doctorate program in Engineeringwhile on Sabbatical Leave from Cornell. Two summers, plus an intervening school year as a graduate assistant, and many, many hours of study completed the course work, and the family returned to Cornell in the fall of 50 to rebuild the exchequer and to complete the necessary thesis. By August of 51 the thesis and the necessary final exams were completed and the degree of PhD Cum Laude was awarded. Next came promotion to Full Professor at Cornell, election to Phi Kappa Phi (national scholastic honorary), Sigma Xi, (national research honorary, Pi Tau Sigma, (national mechanical emgineering scholastic honorary) and a new position as Full Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Michigan State University, to te aeh primarily courses in Automotive Engineering.After a quick move to Michigan the now Dr. Otto became immersed in University activities, one year as Acting Department H ead of Mechanical Engineering, three years as Head of Engineering Drawing, and one year as Department Head in Mechanical Engineering, plus service on many University committees. In 1960 there came an opportunity to obtain an industrial design position in Muskegon, Mich. at the Clarke Floor Machine Co., so the family moved to North Muskegon tolive in a home on the shore of Muskegon Lake. Lou Otto led the design and development activities of Clarke in the fields of floor sanders, floor polishers, floor and rug scrubbers, vacuum cleaners, and large area sweepers. These activities involved many trips around the United States and one trip to Europe. In 1970 the retirement of the long-time president of Clarke led to a wholesale replacement of top Clarke personnel by the parent Studebaker-Worthington Corp.Lou and others accepted early retirement. Lou shifted his activities to teaching at Muskegon Community College in the fields of Physical Metallurgy, Engineering Materials, and H ydraulics. Between Jan.73 and July 76 he served as Dean of Vocational Education, and as Assoc2/late Dean of Math, Science, and Technology. After official retirement from the Dean positions he was called back to teach again in 76 and 77.Lou was a tall man (6,-5") in his early years, with blonde hair and hazel eyes. He enjoyed maintaining his own automobiles as an adjunct to his teaching. He used a small trailerable aluminum boat and an outboard motor to explore many of the rivers and lakes in Michigan. He was a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and active in their Oil and Gas Power Division. He was a member of the American Society for Metals, the National Society of Prof essional Engineers, the American Society for Engineering Education, the American Association of University Professors, and the Society of Automotive Engineers, plus many other more specialized technical groups. He was very active in the SAE, being Chairman successively of the Syracuse Section, the Mid-Michigan Section, and the Western Michigan Section, plus membership on many section and national committees.In the fall of 1980 Lou and Dorothy Otto moved to Florida to escape the cold and snowy winters of Michigan.Dorothy H iller was born in Smithtown/ N.Y. on July 3, 1915 to Albert and Edith Feather Hiller. She attended the Smith town Schools, graduating from Smithtown High School in 1933. That summer she became the Secretary to the Superintendent of Schools in Smithtown, and retained this position until her marriage in the summer of 1938. Upon moving to Ithaca, N.Y. with her husband in the fall of 38 she became asecretary in the administrative offices of the Sibley School of Mechanical Engineering at Cornell University, and continued this position until the birth of their first child in 1941 . The next eight years were spent as a housewife, with the birth of two more children.In 1949 she moved her family temporarily to East Lansing, Mich., after one year returned to Ithaca, and moved permanently to East Lansing in 1951 . As her family grew and required less attention she worked as a part-time secretary on the campus of Michigan State Univ. and acted in her home as booking secretary for a professional travel lecturer. When she and her family moved to North Muskegon, Mich.she became the secretary to the Principal of the Elementary School in North Muskegon in December 1962, retaining this position until she retired in December 1 975. After retirement she worked, againas a secretary, in pert-time or volunteer positions, in North Muskegon and then in the Hernando Conty Schools in Florida.During her high achool and post high school years Dorothy was interested and active in amatuer dramatics. Tr irterest in music has been lifelong, and she has acted as accompanist to many singinggroups. She has been very active in Friends of the Library groups. Knitting and crossword puzzles have served as time fillers when there was spare time. Dorothy was 5 ,-8" tall, with dark wavy hairand dark eyes.Note 11Charles Raymond Otto, the youngest child of Louis A. and Belle DeGraff Otto was born in their home at 79 Greeley Avenue in Sayville on October 15, 1914. He had an active childhood, with many playmates in the area. In his late grammar school days he took over from his brother as bicycle delivery boy on Pat Mullens milk route,working for about two hours each morning before school. Later he became a clerk in the Bohack grocery store at the foot of Greeley Avenue, an activity which he continued until he left Sayville to go ctlo arcionllete gien. thDue rihnigg hh issc hhoiolg h orscchheosolt rya eaarnds ihne pal hayigehd -ssacxhaopohl ondae nacen dband.22Charles graduated from Sayville High School in 1932 as class president, returned there for a year of post-graduate work, andthen went to Cornell University in 1933 as a student in Mechanical Engineering. During college his room mate James Buxton hung on Charles the nickname of "Duke", when Charles happened to mention that his grandmother claimed she was a descendant of William, the Duke of Orange of the Netherlands. The nickname stuck.After graduation from Cornell in 1937 with the degree of N. E.Charles want to work almost immediately for the Solvay Process plant in Hopewell, Va., in their Engineering Development Department. Bythe summer of 1942 he had developed an allergy to some within-plant fumes which he regularly encountered, so he left Hopewell and returned to Cornell University as an instructor in the Experimental Engineering Department. Since the two brothers, Charles R. Otto and Louis L.Otto were both instructors in the same department, the students differentiated between them by calling one Cold-Rolled (CR)(a condition of steel), and the other Log-Log, from the LLO scale on all studentsslide rules.In the spring of 43 Charles succumbed to the offers of a New York city firm of engineering consultants, and left Cornell at the end of the school year to set up his family in Freeport and commute to New York. By the middle of August the attraction of the new job had disappeared. He did not get the job assignment he had been promised,all promotion opportunities were hotly contested, the company was riddled with internal politics, and commuting was a chore. A call to Cornell revealed his former teaching position was still open tohim. He and the family came back to Ithaca. This time he began work towards a masters degree in Engineering and over the course of several years he earned an MME, an Assistant Professor rating in 1946,a professional engineers license in New York State, and developed an outstanding course in Instrumentation for Process Control.BY 1951 the duPont Corporation production people recognized the value of this system, and hired Charles as a Design Engineer in itsEngineering Department. In 1956 he became Senior Development Engineer in the Consultant and Development Section of the Engineering Department, and continued in this capacity until forced by illness to retire in 1960. The rapid development of Hodgkins disease cost him his career, and then his life (5-01-60).Charles was a long time member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, a member of the Delaware Section of the Society of Professional Engineers and a member of the Newark Chamber of Commerce. He was actiVe in community affairs, especially theSoapBox Derby and Junior Achievement.Charles was a tall man (6'-2"), slender, with brown eyes. He enjoyed rebuilding the homes in which he and his family lived, andoften made major changes in their interiors.Johanna Gertrude Huson was born in Holland on May 231 1916,the daughter of Jan and Caroline DeJonge H on. She and her younger brother Jan were brought to America by their parents, first to Newjersey, and then by 1930 to West Sayville, Long Island, where they lived at the SW corner of Brook Street and Division Avenue. She attended Sayville High School and graduated from it in 1934. Shethen trained as a secretary at a school in Brooklyn, and as a Dental Assistant in the office of John Freeman, a dentist in Sayville.Johanna and Charles Otto were married on June 25, 1937 in the Dutch Reformed Church on Cherry Avenue in West Sayville, attended by BOetltloe, Oatntdo ,J anJo sHe puhsionne. SaTuhneyde rwsen, tL uimcmielldie aDteellgyeu styo , ChJaamrlese s Bunxetwo njo, bL oiunis25Hopewell, Va., living first in Petersburg and then in a new house in Hopewell. Jan and Joann (Jody) were born here. Of their other children, Jason/ Neil, and Kristin were born in Ithaca, N.Y., and Eric was born in Wilmington/ Delaware. While they lived in Ithaca Johanna completed courses in child development at Cornell as time allowed, and operated a nursery school at their home on College Ave. When Charles moved to duPont, the family first lived in Wilmingtonand then moved to Newark to a large house on the edge of the campus of the University of Delaware. Johanna operated a nirsery school in this house, and completed more courses in child development at the University of Delaware, untillatreceived her BS degree in this field in 1957. Several yearsAshe completed the requirements for an MS degree at this same school. Charles' death in 1960 upset plans for a larger nursery school, and Johanna moved with her younger children to a farm in Darlington, Maryland. She was teaching school in Dublin, Maryland, at the time of her death in an automobile accident on February 22, 1963.In 1946 at the end of NI4 II Johanna started the "Adopt-A, Family" movement (assist a family in war-torn Europe), which soonspread across this country. The birth of Kristin prevented her from becoming active in this movement, but others jumped on thebandwagon and expanded its activities.Johanna was active in the local American Association of University Women/ and she and Charles were active in the formation ofa Unitarian Church in Newark.Note 12Leonard DeGraff was born (5-4-1878) as the fourth child and shcond son of Matthew and Belle Verspoor DeGraff. Like all in his family, he was tall, witha lot of dark wavy hair which turned white as he grew older. He was a very quiet and retiring man. He trained as a young man to be a sailmaker, but when the demand for sails died out he became a carpenter. For a time he operatid> a tire repair and vulcanizing shop in Sayville, and would take niece Belle Otto along in his red Maxwell roadster when making pickup trips to neighboring communities. Len married Sarah E. Newton, the daughter of Henry and Delia Hulse Newton. She was as shy and retiring as her husband. They lived for a time in Fresh Pond, Long Island, then returned to Sayville and finally moved to Union Avenue, Islip. They became interested in the possible profits from renting beach cottages (like Aunt Dinah aad great uncle Case DeGraff), and Len built first one and then a second and a third cottage in the beach colony of Fair Harbor, just east of Saltaire. There was ample work for carpenters willing to stay on the beach, so Len and Sarah moved to the beach, living in one of their cottages and renting the other two in the summers. Len built new cottages for others during the winter, and made major and minorrepairs winter and summer.After many years of solitary winters on the beach they wished to get back to civilization, and returned to their home in Islip. Len worked sa a ship carpenter at Roy Arnett 's boatyard in Islip, but did not like it (nothing was ever square or plumb), and the next fall Sarah stayed ashore in their Islip home while Len spent the weekends in Islip and the week days in Fair Harbor, commuting in his own power boat as long as the bay was free of ice. This activity led to an incident which he remembered the rest of his lifeThe southern coast of Long Island is exposed to the open Atlantic Ocean, and the laws of probability say that ocassionally the ptsrrhooopucilecdeda lic rnhogu srus pr iLtoohKnneg escI oswlashaintd cfh. owlolIrnokw iSntephg etiaerm v bweerray y 1ue9pr3 r8 athotnie ec ecaoosfu tr thcseoesa. se t sItte aorwchmas s fwalals21close enough to Long Island to induce northeast gales and heavy rains on the island during the 19th and 20th. Len had spent these days in Islip with Sarah, but , feeling that the storm had about blown itself out, on the morning of the 21st he drove his car over to his boat in Islip creek and sailed for the beach and Fair Harbor. When in Fair Harbor he would moor his boat to a post (so she could swing with the winds) which he had driven well into the bottom, and then take his"south bay" rowboat ashore to the bay end of the boardwall on which their houses faced, pull the row boat well up onto the shore and tie it to the boardwalk. He would then walk to whichever one of their houses they were currently using, about aa hundred yards.On the 21st of September the hurricane decided to go north and came skittering across the ocean at unprecedented speed. Len had come across the bay from Islip through the northeasterly gale, and because of the height of the waves and wind had gotten somewhat wet from water which blew aboard. He worked his boat up into the cove and moored it as usual to the post and then went ashore with the rowboat. At his house he started a fire in the stove to warm things up and to dry his wet c/othes, and puttered about doing other small chores. The wind and rain kept getting worse so ocassionally he would look out of the window to check on the weather. During one of these visual surveys he saw that their house was surrounded by water, and a house from nearer the ocean came sailing by on a river of water flowing from ocean to bay. He then decided it was time to leave the area, and grabbing an old suitcase he tossed in the alarm clock, some unimportant papers, and a few clean clothes.By that time the water was rising through the cracks in the house floor. He went out the front door and splashed his way along the boardwalk toward the bay. When he arrived at his rowboat it was twothirds full of water from the rain, so he lifted one side to dump it, pushed it afloat, and jumped in. He started rowing out to his own boat moored in the cove, but there was such a strong easterly current from the ocean water flowing into the west end of the cove that he could not make headway against it, so he turned around and started rowing toward the store and jetty in Fair Harbor, where most of the people of the village had gathered. However, a large river was coming across the beach between him and the jetty, and the current swept him out of the cove, away from the jetty, and out into the bay.Since he could not reach the jetty, he headed for the large Ocean Beach ferryboat, which was making its regular trip to Bayshore and was watching the developing drama.Before he could reach the ferry the eye of the storm moved on and the wind came in from the west so strong that all he could do mas to run downwind before it. Fortunately his rowboat became halffilled with water, or the wind when acting on the broad flat transom when lifted by a wave would have flipped the boat end for end. Len managed to stay in the boat by hooking his leg under the seat on which he was sitting, or the wind would have plucked him from the boat. After maybe half an hour of battling to keen the boat from broaching in the seas she was driven up onto the projecting point at the west end of Ocean Beach, in over the salt swamp, and then was wedged into the scrub bushes which grew in Profusion back awaysfrom the shore.Uncle Len tied the boat to the bushes and waded over to the nearest board walk in Ocean Beach. Aunt Dinah had a beach cottage in Ocean Beach fairly close to the beach and on the boardwalk which he had reached. He had a key to this cottage so he went over to it,25let himself in, and built a fire in the stove to get himself warm and dry. Then he walked to the little store, about 100 yards away, at the junction of the bay boardwalk and the walk on which the house fronted, obtained some canned soup and some bread and proceeded back to the house to make himself at home. Meanwhile the Ocean Beach ferry had managed to reach Bayshore and word spread thet Len DeGraff had been drowned when his boat was swept away by the westerly gale.Being warm, sheltered, well fed, and with a comfortable bed, Uncle Len spent a restful nite and the next morning, with the weatherreturned nearly to normal, he walked back to his rowboat and with some difficulty hauled it back to the water and rowed back to Fair Harbor. Al]. three of their cottages had been washed away, although one of them was subsequently located and returned to its lot. His boat was still moored to its post, and had suffered only spperficial damage from contact with the houses which had gone sailing by. with the current. He climbed aboard and motored across the bay to his dock in Islip. His car was still at the dock so he drove to their home to relate to Aunt Sarah the catastrophe which had struck them. Some hours later the police department appeared at their house to announce that Len had been lost at seathe day previous. Surprise: Washing ashore at Ocean Beach was a stroke of luck, because beyond that point was about 40 miles of open 139y, no place to be in an open rowboat in a hurricane. Although Uncle 'Len did repair and refurbish the one cottage of theirs which was salvageable, he and Aunt Sarah never went back to the beach to live as they had done previously.Note j3Lucy D ff was the youngest child of Matthew and Belle Verspoor DeGraff. She was a graduate of Sayville High School, and a pretty, curly-haired girl. After holding several clerical Positions in Sayville she joined the staff of the Sayville Post Office, ultimately becoming Assistant Postmaster. She was active in various village affairs, well known throughout the village, and greatly respected and loved. She was my favorite aunt, and did a great many things for and with me from my childhood on. Her death in 1937 from an acute coronary occlusion was a great schock to everyone, since she was illonly a few hours.The Verspoor BranchNote 14Leendert and Dinah DeKoning Verspoor came to the United States in 1851, settling in Sayville with their three small children when he was 37 and she 28. A fourth child was born in this country but died as an infant. Dinah is the great grandmother of my early childhood (BOT). I have a dim memory of an old lady, all in black, in a wheel chair (broken hip). Her mother died when she was a child, and she had a"cruel stepmother", so that the girl had to work on her father's boat. However, upon her father's death in 1854, shortly after they came to America, she inherited some property, and Leendert went back to Holland to claim it. This was probably the source of the family's Dutch jewelry. On his return, Leendert brought Dinah a Paisley shawl, which I had made into an evening coat about 1935,and still have.Leendert Verspoor is the man to whom the Dutch documents and medal pertain. In a bad winter storm on January 26, 1844 the merchant frigate DeZeeuw foundered in the rough seas at the mouth of the Scheldte river. Leendert volunteered to take out his father's mboakate thoi ma tat ecmrpewt . a rTehse curee sicfu e thofe vsiilxltaegene ppoeeoppllee wofa s Brsuuicnciessssfe uwlo, uladnd in the ensuing months Leendert received two citations, some money, and a silver medal. Translations of the two citations and the medal are attached. Louis L. Otto has the citations, the medal, and apicture made to show the event.When the Verspoors settled in Sayville in 1851 they lived for asi tdie meo fi Mna ian p aSrtrt eoeft tjuhse th oeuasste oowfn Wede sbty BrJ,o oWk il(nsoonw , Grloecenate e'ds oRniv tehre) .northAfter Leendert returned from his trip to Holland to collect Dinah's small inheritance, they bought the house on Candee Avenue, next toCharles Raynor, where they lived out their lives. This house was on the west side of the street, about opposite the office of the Suffolk County News. Leendert and Dinah Verspoor were charter members of the Dutch Reformed Church in West Sayville, organized in 1060.Notg_15,The family of Ida and Sylvenus Titus James. Cousin Ida and Cousin Vene James lived on Roosev | Otto, Isabella "Lucy Belle (I30529)
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| 827 | Note by Sweezey.net: Mary Folger, widow of Peter Paine, on May 24, 1660 in Southold, Long Island, New York. Mary Folger was probably the daughter of John Folger and Meribiah Gibbs of Nantucket and is likely the great-aunt of Benjamin Franklin. Ben Franklin is a grandchild of a Peter Folger, a brother of Mary Folger. This identity is not given in the Vail Genealogy. Torrey gives her maiden name as Folger. I'm not sure of the evidence that led to the discovery of her identity. Mary was likely born about 1630, as she had five children with Jeremiah after 1660. I'm not aware of any children she had from her first marriage; but it's quite possible that descendants of her Vail kids are half cousins to any that she may have had from her Paine/Payne marriage. She must have died before 1685, the estimated date of Jeremiah's third marriage given by the Vail genealogy and also by Torrey. If born in 1630, she would have been about 50 and her five children would have all been under 25. | Folger, Mary (I27419)
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| 828 | Note Matthew and Belle Verspooor DeGraff. Matthew DeGraff (1848-1919) · was the eldest child of Cornelius and Lucy DeGraff. He came to the United States at the age of 4, but the family soon returned to Holland. They came again in 1862 when Matthew was 14. After living in Bayport, and then in Oakdale, they settled in West Sayville, where Matthew lived until his marriage to Belle Verspoor on Marsh 23, 1868 when each was 20 years old. Matthew and Belle DeGraff lived in a house at the corner of Candee and Maple Avenues (NW) in Sayville until, in the late 1870s, they built the house still standing at 53 Greeley Ave. I remember this house from my (BOT) early childhood as a two story structure continuing a parlor and two bedrooms on the first floor and three tiny bedrooms on the second floor. There was a one story wing which held the dining roam-sitting room and the kitchen. An attic over this wing held, for my interest, toys--a cradle, a doll, and doll dishes with which I played. I still have the green glass sugar bowl. Beside the kitchen was s covered well, with a window opening into it from the kitchen. In the rear yard were a big grape arbor, ma~ currant bushes, and a plum tree. The parlor had a lot of fancy shells, corals, etc., that Grandfather had acquired from sea captains. Matthew was a tall 1 bearded man. Captain DeGraff earned his living with his small coastwise schooner, the Marion L. Cummings, on which he carried oysters, clams, coal, etc. to or from New York City and Connecticut. Capt. DeGraff and his schooner appeared in one ofthe very early movies, perhaps around 1907, which may have had Alice Brady as its star. Because of his occupation, Capt. DeGraff was away from home a great deal. Belle DeGraff was a very quiet, placid person, a good housewife who seldom ventured from her own home. After rearing her own family she raised her grandsons George and Burton DeGraff, who with their father Cornelius came to live with her after the death of their mother in 1912. Matthew and Belle DeGraff had two sons, Cornelius ~d Leonard, and four daughters, Lena, who died in childhood, and Dinah, Belle, and Lucy. Dinah DeGraff - Aunt Dinah, She was a milliner, and operated a millinery shop in Sayville until hats for women ceased to be popular and essential. She dabbled in real estate, owning two houses in Ocean Beach, one on lower Greene Ave, and two on Greeley Ave., all of which she rented. She was active in civic affairs, particularly in the votes for women campaigns, in the Study Club, in the Sayville Congregational Church, and in the Sayville Public Library, serving as treasurer of the latter for many years. After their mother's death in 1926, she and Lucy shared the house at 53 Greeley Ave. Cornelius DeGraff moved back here in 1928 with his daughter Betty after the death of his wife Dorothy. Betty lived with Aunt Dinah until 1948, when shemarried Bob DeRoo. David DeGraff spent his summers with Aunt Dinah from 1940, and lived there with her and his sister from 1941.(LLO) Dinah's first millinery shop in Sayville was on Main St. directly opposite the old Post Office. Her younger sister Belle was an assistant in this shop. When it closed Dinah worked for, or with another woman in a women's dress shop at "The Point" (junction north and south Main Streets). Later on, for several summers, she operated a curio shop on the ferry slip in Ocean Beach.6 ,Cornelius DeGraff (1874-1931) ~s the third child and eldest son of Matthew and Belle Verspoor DeGraff. A tall man with abundant dark wavy hairs he was a carpenter and skilled craftsman. Many of his working years were spent in building the houses in the then new development of Brightwaters. He was a skillful sailor, owning a succession of sail or power boats, and was active in sail boat and scooter racing on the Great South Bay. His first wife was Mary Jane Rhodes, daughter of Benjamin and Elizabeth Rhodes. They had two sons, and lived at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Henry Street beside her parents. Jane died of tuberculosis in the year of 1912, and Cornelius moved with his sons to his mother's home. He mailled Dorothy Archer (see Note 7) in 1922. They lived on upper Greene Avenue for a time, then in the house on Greeley Avenue in which Louis A. and Belle DeGraff Otto had lived in the first seven years of their marriage, and in which Lucy Belle and Louis Leslie Otto were born. Betty and David DeGraff were also born there. Cornelius and Dorothy DeGraff had purchased the house at 69 Greeley Avenue and were preparing to move into it at the time of her death. This house was later moved away to make room for the new school yard. This same school expansion demolished the Louis A. Otto house, the John Otto Sr. house, and the John Terry house. Dorothy Archer DeGraff died of pneumonia in November 1928. Cornelius and his three year old daughter then returned to his old home, then occupied by his sisters Dinah and Lucy. His infant son David lived with Cornelius' sister, Belle DeGraff Otto, and her family, two houses up the street. Cornelius died of pneumonia on December 2?, 1931, leaving four tall children as survivors. | Verspoor, Isabella (I30543)
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| 829 | Notes by Julia Otto Wallace written April 1, 2000 About Aunt Lillian, she married Charles Plattenburgh, who had studied for the ministry and advanced to be the Minister of the largest Methodist church in Philadelphia. They had two children, Adelaide and Josephine. Adelaide was pretty, Josephine was a beauty with her mother being as partial to this as peaches and cream young woman she produced that poor Adelaide was completely passed over. Josephine married a man with money, who';s name was Rex. However, she had trouble keeping her marriage together. Adelaide's married last name was Ames. She had four children, some of which I believe were adopted. They had a very happy married life and the last I heard had moved to California where they had an Avocado Farm. However, this was an added career since they were retired, I believe that he taught. But, back to Charles Plattenburgh. He had a roaming eye and unfortunately it did not stop there, for they found him up in the balcony with the organist and they weren't in conversation. So he was gracefully retired or asked to leave. So he became a lecturer on a well known circuit (but I don't know which one). He and Aunt Lil would drive from city to city and apparently had a very interesting life touring the country. A correction about my Great Grandmother, Juliette Saphronia . She was not born in Patchogue, but in Ridge and Aunt Ida pointed out the little house to me. There were other laws in the area and Ida didn't now them . Also, her real name as I saw on her baptismal certificate was "Juliette". | Woodhull, Lilla Sophia (I17458)
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| 830 | Notes on the DeGraff and Verspoor Families NV Grandmother DeGraff (belle Verspoor DeGraff) told me (Belle Otto) about 1917 about Cornelius DeGraff and his wife Lucy van Overhois DeGraff, Leendert Verspoor and Dinah deKoning Verspoor. They all came from the village of Bruinisse on the island of Duiveland in the mouth of the Maas-Scheldte river system in Holland. The spelling for the names varied. One branch of the DeGraffs used the DeGraff spelling, a West Sayville branch used DeGraaf, which was probably the original Dutch spelling. DeKonig and Wespoor are occasionally seen, although Dinah DeKoning Verspoor used the additional n and r. This appears in her own handwriting in family bible records.Note 1 Cornelius DeGraff and his wife Leuntje )sometimes converted into the English equivalents of Lerna and Lucy) came to the United States in 1852 ~with two children, Matthew and Hannah. They came in a sm~11 sailing vessel, and had almost reached their destination when they were driven back almost to Europe by a severe storm, hence they were six weeks on the way. They went to western New York state for a while, then returned to Holland and in 1 862 came back to the states. They lived then first in Bayport, then in Oakdale~, and finally settled in West Sayville. Their two daughters, Hannah and Coby, lived in or near Grand Rapids, Mich. after they were married. The five sons, Matthew, Cornelius, John, Peter, and Garrett all settled in Sayville or West Sayville. Peter was shot and killed in a hunting accident. There is a photo of the four surviving brothers taken around 1915. Carol DeGraff (David's daughter) has large photos of Cornelius Sr. and Leuntje. To Descendants of the OTTO and DEGRAFF Families.The accompanying family trees probably give you far more information about your ancestors than you cared to know.. Many of the strangers you see on the streets may be your shirt tail relatives. As with most family trees there must be some sap, and some black misshapen twigs. Fortunately this presentation gives them anonymity. Best leave them that way.The records contain many g?ps in information. Belle Otto workel on these gaps for several years, andLouis L. Otto has worked on them some. What is presented is the best information presently available. I hope it expands your knowledge of your "roots".Using Belle's recorded information and my limited memory I have tried to give some personality (color, as it is called on TV) to keyfigures among our direct 'andestbrs.' • For the present generation -your many cousins -- I will let you gather your own information,you probably know it better than I.For my generation, I know of only five cousins left: 1) Louis L. Otto, a retired professor living in Brooksville, Fla.; 2) Dr.Bertram B. Otto, a retired dentist from Bayshore, Long Island, living in Daytona, Fla.; 3) Julia Otto Wallace, a retired realtor from Bellport, Long Island, living in Brookhaven, Long Island; 4)Betty DeGraff DeRool an housewife living in Moorestown, New Jersey; md 5) David DeGraff, a stock Inters agent living in Bayport, LongIsland. There may be a few others living in the Yonkers area of whom I am not aware. Your generation is spread from California toVermont, and possibly farther.The Otto and DeGraff families are long-lived. Check the records shown. Prepare yourselves for an extended retirement. As a caution, there are two hereditary defects which John Otto Sr. nas3ed llong to his descendants. He was deaf, and was afflicted with familial palsy. His son John and his daughter Anna were very deaf very early in life. His sons Then and Louis were partially deaf. In my generation Bertram Otto and Herbert Parkhill are partially deaf. Hopefully this trait will die out, but at present it is treatable by hearing aids.Severe incidence of familial palsy seems to have missed John Ottos children, but showed up in Belle and Louis L. Otto and Herbert Parkhill. Presently the condition is not cureable, and only Inderal (propranolol) and ethyl alcohol are effective drugs against it. Indegil is also a heart and blood pressure medicine, and should only be taken udder medical supervision. Ethyl alcohol is very effective, tho very teMporary„ but it is addictive, so beware. Hopefully this trait is recessive, and will also disappear.Unfortunately for the impact of this genealogical record my generation is the last one to have lived in the Sayville area, and to have more than an inkling of the mono-ethnic character of West Sayville from the 1850's to the 1950's. One more generation of separation from our roots in Holland makes the connection with the "old country" very tenuous also. For your information, West Sayville had only dutchmen (hollanders) in residence, northern East Islip had only Czechs, Waverly Ave. in Patchogue had only italians, Bohemia had only Czechs, Hagerman had only italians. There ,ere also many other small mono-ethnic pockets on Long Island. World war II andits influx of city dwellers ended all this isolation.There are several typing errors in this (per line that is).Anyone wishing to type themselves a perfect copy has my permission.Family Background in Holland Dinah DeGraff gave to Betty DeGraff DeRoo loose pages cut from two Dutch Bibles, carrying written records in Dutch. Since the paper was thin, the ink from one side bled through to the other side, and much of the ink has faded. Some of the script is difficult to read in itself, since the letters are in the forms used at that time and not used now.The older Bible was printed in 1802, its pages are larger than the second Bible. It has not been translated, but with the help of a Dutch dictionary I have gleaned what I could. The smaller Bible pages were translated for me by a friend from Holland.All the people involved (with the few exceptions noted) lived and died in Bruinisse (apparently an older spelling) or Brunisse (modern spelling),a community on the island of Duiveland in the delta of_Ihg-,Scheldt-Maas river system below RotterdamThe older BibleThere are three different handwritings, and I wild judge that they were written by (1)my great-great grandmother Ariejaantje Arijse Borsje *, who kept the records from her marriage in 1816 until her death in 1831, then (2) her husband Pieter de Koning, and finally (3) a third person, possiblyPieter's second wife.page 1 AnUg.Ariejaantje Arijse Borsje, aged 23, and PieterAde Koning, aged 21, were married by the law and by the church on December 8, 1816 in Brunisse.[The child-Pieternella de Koning wrote "Brunisse. PieternelladeKoning" on page 1 and scribbled on page 2.]page 2 [In a different handwriting]Johanna ..n.eerhat (?) was born on August 13, 1805 and baptized on August 18. She married Z (2) on August 15, 1832.[My question: Was she the second wife?]page .2 [In the handwriting of page 1]Lena de Koning was born on Tuesday morning, February 3, 1818 at Wijk A5.[Apparently Wijk A5 was the home address.]Anthonij de Koning was born on Wednesday morning, May 26, 1819. Arij de Koning was born on Friday morning June 16, 1820.Cornelia de Koning was born on Sunday morning October 21, 1821.Dina de Koning was born on Friday morning June 13, 1823 at our home. There seem to be several spellings of this first name. Ultimately my great aunt, Hannah Verspoor Hiddink, who was named Ariaantje, convertedit to Hannah.Family background in Holland3The older Dutch Bible, continuedpage 4 [In the handwriting of page 1]Pieternella de Koning was born on January 7, 1825 at 10 o'clock on Friday morning.Anthonija de Koning was born on Thursday morning, July 26, 1827.Anthonij de Koning was born on December 1, 1828, on Monday afternoon at 6 o'clock.Willemiena de Koning was born on March 3, 1830, Wednesday, and baptized on July 6, 1830.[At this point the handwriting changes, and I cannot read it. Apparently some one, perhaps named Leendert, died on June 7, 1884, aged 65 years, 7 months and 28 days.]page 5 [This page is in the handwriting I presume to be that of Pieterde Koning.]My child Anthonij de Koning died Monday, August 21, 1820, and was buried on Thursday, August 26, 1820.The child Anthonij de Koning died February 3, 1828 The child Anthonij de Koning died June 7, 1830, aged . .My wife, Arijaantje Borsje died Monday, August 8, 1831, aged 38 5 /12 years and was buried August 10. Wijk A5. page 6 [This page begins in the same handwriting as page 5, Pieter de Koning's] My child Cornelia de Koning died Sunday, February 11, 1838, aged 16 years 6 months, and was buried on February 15. Wijk A5My child Anthonij de Koning died at 5 o'clock on Monday, May 21, 1838 at three years, buried May 26. Wijk AS[At this point the third handwriting appears, for the rest ofthe page.] My mother Lena van den Busse died Thursday, March 16, 1844 and was buried March 18, 1844.My child Jan de Koning died58P51E6t 23, 1845, aged 8 months, 19 days, and was buried August 26.The child Jan de Koning died on November 26, 1846, aged 7 months, 12 days.ENDNaogtaein: . 1TfhAtenertreh otnwheierj e ddeae paKtphoa nroiennf tg hliy(s 1 a8t3f i5rl-se1ta8 s3wt8 i)fteh riene c18h3il1d, rPeni etferro m det hKios nisnegc omnad rrmiaerdriage: WWaass thheir s mJJsoaaetnnch oeddnre ed LKKweooinnnfaii en nvggta nh e(( DdAepJeconr hi. Baln u1n8s148as44 e -m6A-e(uNnsogtevie. o. n1a8e1b48do 4v5)6ee )arfloir epr aogne p6a)g?e 2 of this Bible?Family background in HollandThe smaller Dutch BibleThe smaller of these Dutch Bibles belonged to my great-grandmother, Dina de Koning (Verspdor), who kept all the records. This material wastranslated for me by a Dutch woman who did what she could with a poor copy.page 1This book belongs to Dina de Koning, born in Brunisse at Thuiswijk A5 on June 13, 1823 on Friday morning at 10 o'clock.My mother Arieaanje Borsje died Monday, August 8, 1831 at the age of 39i years and was buried August 10.Pieter de Koning was born on August 24, 1795. He died February 20, 1854 at the age of 58 years, 5 months.In the year 1820 on January 4 Arij de Koning was born. He died June 7, 1859 at the age of 39.page 2 In the year 1860, on November 27, died Pieternella LaRooi, widow of Arij de Koning, at the age of 37.In the year 1830 on March 3, is born Willemina de Koning at home.Willemina de Koning died March 11, 1868 at age 38 and was buried March 14. In the year 1871 on June 13 Lena de Koning died at the age of 53 years 4 months, in district ASPagelIn the year 1843 am I, Leendert Verspoor, aged 28 years, and Dina De Koning, aged 19, married before the law on Saturday afternoon at 3 o'clock.[This must have been in the spring.]In the year 1814 on October 11, is born Leendert Verspoor.In the year 1793 on the 5th of May [?] is born Arieaantje Borsje on Sunday evening.In the year 1821 on October 21 is born Cornelia de Koning, on Sunday morning at 7 o'clock in Brunisse at home,Cornelia died on Sunday morning at 6 o'clock on February 11, 1838 in her home at Thuis #57 and was buried on February 15, at age 16 years, 4 months.page 4My child Marinus Verspoor was born January 8, 1844, Monday morning at 7 o'clock, at Wijk 886.In the year 1845 on February 13 is born Ariaantje Verspoor on Thursday morning at 3 o'clock at Wijk 886.In the year 1849 on the 17th of March, Isabella Verspoor is born on Saturday morning at 7 o'clock at Thuiswijk B86.In the year 1852 on September 25 is born Pieter Verspoor, Saturday morning at 9 o'clock in Sayville.My child Pieter Verspoor died July 25, 1853 on Monday morning at 5 o'clock at the age of 10 months.Family Background in HollandThe smaller Dutch Bible, continuedpageIn the year 1858 and 7 months wasIn the year 1877 and 2 months, onon August 23, Marinas Verspoor at the age of 24 years married to Helen F. Blydenberg, aged 21 years and 2 months.on August 9, Marinus's wife died at the age of 30 years Thursday morning at 5 o'clock.ENDFamily. Forbears in HollandVerspoor If the family followed the Dutch customs in naming children, 6 and they appear to have done so, then the parents of Leendert Verspoor were named Marinus and Isabella.De KoningPieter Anthae deKoning (8.24.1795-220.1854) mç qriaantje Arijse Borsje (5.5.1793-8.8.1831) Lena (2.3.1818-5.18.1871)Anthonij (5.26.1819-8.21.1820)Arij (6.16.1820-6.7.1859) m. Pieternella LaRooi (1823-11.27.1860) Cornelia (10.21.1821-2.11.1838) Dina (6.13.1823-12.24.1907) m.Leendert Verspoor (see page 8 of DeGraff Pieternella (1.7.1825- ?) family tree)Anthonija (7.25.1827-2.3.1828) Anthonij (12.1.1828-6.7.1830) Willemiena (3.3.1830-3.11.1868)Pieter deKoning married [2] Anthonij (1835-5.21.1838) Jan (1.1845-19.23.1845) Jan (4.14.1846-11.26.1846)There may have been other children. FAMILY BACKGROUND IN AMERICADEGRAFF FAMILY TREEBased upon information from Belle Verspoor DeGraff, tombstones in the Sayville Union Cemetery, items in The Suffolk County News, and the faulty recollections of descendants.This record begins with those who lived in the United States.: Indicates no children from this marriage.Lprnelius DeGraff, Sr. (2.14.1823-2.4.1894) m. Lucy (Leuntje) VanOverhois Hannah m. . . . Andrews (Michigan) (3.6.1820-3.27.190[N3o)te 1Orilla m.. . . . Varnum others?Matthew (3.11.1848-9.19.1919) m. Belle Verspoor (3.17.1848-1.12.19251 [See listing below on paae8]Cornelius, Jr. ( ) m. Fannie Smith : [ate 2 'Garret (10.9.1851-12.13.1937) m. Rebekah Rudolph (3.19.1858-8.25.1941)William C. (10.26.1880- ) m. [1] Hanna C. Koerwer (1887-1918)Muriel m.m.[2] Consuela AyresChristine (1884-1978) m. George E. PellDoris P. m EvansGeorgeGladys m WintersRichardJosephine m. Benjamin AdamsEvelyn m McKennaGarrett!John m. (lassieNeil m. Caroline FialaNeilGilbert m. Albertine Kryser David Carol (died young)JulesLaura m BrandtMelly m. Olaf VonBommelBarbara m. Kenneth Nocar Robin'7)DeGraff family treephildren of John and Gussie DeGraff, continued)Anna m. Milton HaasMilton Robert BettyRobert m . . .Jacob ("Coby") m. [1] . . . VanDyke later m. [2] . . . [Note 3 "Harm" m. Jenny StarkAlbert ( a minister) Donald m. Gertrude . . . Virginia m. . . .8 childrenHenry M. m. . . .Cornelius )"Kale") m. . . .2 childrenLerna (18..-1955) m. B. F. StoutMatthew [Note" tPeter (5.12.18(31-11.3.1899) m. Cornelia VanVessem (1865-1952)Cornelius ("Taffy") (1388-1959) m• • • •James Warren Peter GarretMatthew (1893-1963) m. Minnie WesterbekeDorothyRichard m. Marjorie EgnerBarryBruce m. Margaret Mensching DonaldCornelia ( -19 ) m. Walter VanPoperingWalterRuth m. . . .DePree Jean m. . . . ManionGarret F. (10.28.1895-10.2.1925) m. Adrianna Saunders (a widow)EdgarMyra m. Walter Rowland June m. . . . Miller„ Neltje (1898-1975)Adrianna (1900- ) m. Kenneth Campbell (She lives in Washington, D.C.)Derry (adopted) DeGraff Family Tree(Children of Cornelius and Lucy DeGraff, continued)Matthew (3.11.1848-9.19.1919) m. (carried from page 6)Lena (10.21.1871-3.25.1879) Dinah (4.25.1873-12.31.1955)Belle Verspoor(for her forebears, see page 1-5, 10)[Note A.[Note 5Cornelius (9.5.1874-12.2..19311 m. (11.12.QQ) [1] Mary Jane Rhodes D_liyt_t_s:George Thomas ("Som") (4.12.02-1.14.63) (1878-8.31.1912)(Pm) m. Mattie Zegel HallBurton Lester (1907-1969) m. Rachel Brown(Cornelius) m. [2] (12.22.22) Dorothy Lay Archer (1890-11.21.28) [Hote2Elizabeth Elliott (11.2.25- ) m. (10.23.48) Robert Lester DeRooPeter David (8.14.49- ) m. (1. .77)Linda(son of Harry 1 Elsie DeRc Christine Lay (3.12.52- (N?4'70mas J. JacksonJanet Claire (2.26.55- ) Elizabeth Teale (3.3.50- )David Lay (3.12.28- ) m. (9.13.58) Gloria KamnaCarol Ann (7.1.50- ) David Peter (11.26.64- ) Judith Marie (12.30.65- )Belle (Leat 27 1937) m (12.3.01) Louis Alfred Otto (6.5.75-11.15.30)[Note 8Lucy Belle (1.1.05-2,40 m. (7.25.64) Samuel Armstrong TalbotrI—Louis Leslie (10.25.10- ) m (7.16.38(4) .D1o9r.0ot3-hy2 .E20la.i6n7e) rHMilotlee r9(7.3.15- ) [Note 10 Carol Louise (10.2.41- )(Ki 5am Craig Moody (10.25.41Christopher Edward (11.15:681) Ian Craig (8.23.72-)Elaine Frances (3.27.44- ) m. (6.29.77) Thomas Sigardson, Jr. Robert Louis (12.31.45- ) m. (8.19.67) Judith HahnSean Robert (7.27.70-) Matthew Louis (7.31.73-)[Eharles Raymond (10.15.11-5.1.50) m. (6.25.37) Johanna Gertrude Huson (5.23.15-2.22.63)Jan Charles Huson (4.21.38- ) m. (9.12.59) SusanJan Peter (9.14.60-) m.2((6d.a2u6g.h8t2e)r Golfe nWdial bCearrto l JVoehnnes oGnofrle\\ Joel Christopher (6.14.62-)Nathan Charles (4.14.65-)Joann Carolyn DeGraff (2.20.40- ) m. ((8so.n2 0o.6f 0R) oRbotb. ert Thomas KM'bbuurrgg)DeGraff Family Tree 0 children of Charles Raymond Otto continued)Jason Lewis (12.8.44-) m. Susan Moon (1. .48)Jennifer Lynn (11. 15.58-)Jason Christopher (8.17.71-)Kristin Belle (9.21.46- ) m. (6.22.68) Tunis CoaleFoltz, Jr.Beth Joann (8.27.72 ) Son of T.C.Sr. Foltz) Jason Tunis (3.22.76 )Neil Frederick (12.31.49- ) m. (9. 13.69) Linda Cottardi Eric Peter (9.27. 51-)IbeCrtstail) Leonard ( 5.4. 1878-12.26.1953) m. Sarah E. Newton (1881-1950) : [Note 12Lucy (6. 18.84-5.15. 1937) : [Note 13 DeGraff Family Tree - Vers000r SectionLeendert Verspoor (10.11.1814-6.1.1884 m. Dinade Konin 6.1 .182 -12.24.1907)1} For their forebears, see pages 5 INote» ..1 Marin'uIds a (m18. 4S4-yl1v9e2n3u) s ml,Aame8As. n2g3e.l1i8n6e8 ) DEralline n F: . Blydp1n3bJ uArggghi e( 18Wi47ll-i0am7s7[N)ote 1$ 1Frederick ( -64) m. EdithEdith m. Stuart BallStuart M., Jr.Barbara Ashley (1950- ) Ethel m. Kenneth MilburnSusan Denise (1951- ) Cynthia Ashley (1953- ) Andrew (1963- )Helen m. George Corwin : [They lived in Southhampton, N.Y.] Irene Sylvia m. Orlie Ray BurgerFrederick (1922-1957) m.LindaAlanMarcia m. Cripps} 4Leonard, m. Grace . . .Elsie m. John Edwards Clarence m. . . .Ruzicka Kenneth Roy Ethel (died young)Hannah (2.13.1845-7.18.1937) m. John Hiddink (9.21.1839-3.28.1903):Note 16 (Hannah was christened Ariaantje)Belle (Isabelle) (3.17.1848-3.12.1926) m. Matthew DeGraff (1848-1919).For their descendants see pages 8,9)Pieter (9.25.1852-7.25.1853) His grave beside his parents is marked "Baby".Hiddink Family (came to Sayville in 18524 )Hendrik Jan Hiddink (1802-73) m. Henrietta Florida van Holten (1803-69)Adolphus (1828-75)Bernard (1834-94) m. Lorena (1843-1927)John H. (1865-72) Marinus (1866-1914)John A. (1874-1931)John (1839-1903) m. Hannah yerspoor (1845-1937)(Great Aunt Hannah)Notes on the DeGraff and Verspoor Families12My Grandmother DeGraff (belle Verspoor DeGraff) told me (belle Otto) about 1917 about Cornelius DeGraff and his wife Lucy van Overhois DeGraff, Leendert Verspoor and Dihah deKoning Verspoor. They all came from the village of Bruinisse on the island of Duiveland in the mouth of the Maas-Scheldte river system in Holland. The spelling for the names varied. One branch of the DeGraffs used the DeGgaff spelling, a West Sayville branch used DeGraaf, which wasprobably the original dutch spelling. DeKonig and *spoor are occassionally seen, although Dinah Dg(oning Verspoor used the additional n and r. This appears in her own handwriting in family bible records.Note 1Cornelius DeGraff and his wife Leuntje )sometimes converted into the English equivalents of Lerna and Lucy) came to the United States in 1852 with two children, Matthew and Hannah. They came in a smallsailing vessel, and had almost reached their destination when they were driven back almost to Europe by a severe storm, hence thay were six weeks on the way. They went to western New York state for a while, then returned to Holland and in 1862 came back to the states. They lived then first in Bayport, then in Oakdale, and finally settled in West Sayville. Their two daughters, Hannah and Coby, lived in or near Grand Rapids, Mich. after they were married. The five sons, Matthew, Cornelius, John, Peter, and Garrett all settled in Sayville or West Sayville. Peter was shot and killed in a hunting accident. There is a photo of the four surviving brothers taken around 1915. Carol DeGraff (David's daughter) has large photos ofCornelius Sr. and Leuntje.Note 2Cornelius Jr. and Fannie DeGr ff lived in an old house at the far west end of Montauk Highway in West Sayville, beyond the old Bientema Dairy. Charles Dickerson refers to this as the "DeGraff H ouse" on page 14 in his book on the H istory of Sayville. Fanny was small, wiry, and eccentric, Cornelius was tall, portly, and stolid. Fannie Smith DeGraff was a sister of Mrs. Jacob Ockers, and an aunt to Miss Louise Ockers. To me (LLO) Cornelius was Great Uncle Case. I made many trips on my bihycle to his house with messages from my Aunt Dinah. He had real estate interests in the beach colony if Ocean Beach (as did A.unt Dinah), and periodically he would load a small motor boat which he kept moored in Greene's River at Montauk H ighway with garden produce and go to Ocean Beach to sell the produce and check on his properties. Often Aunt Dinah would go along --accompanied by me (never miss a chance for a boat ride and a sojourm at the beach). His boat was a horrible example of "baling wire and rubber bands", but we always managed to get to the beach and back.Note 3I can just remember and old lady, Aunt Cobv, who sometimes came from Michigan to visit. The story is told that she commonly avoided the problem of too much luggage on this journey by uoaring most of her clothing, in layers. Of her children, Lerna and Aunt Dinah were good friends, and my mother was a friend to her cousin "Harm", who sometimes came east to visit. Cornelius (Kale) lived in Massachusetts.Matthew Van Dyisimay be in the wrong position, he may have been a son of Cornelius or H enry. He was probuhly born between 1890-1905.IsHe worked for a number of years in Alaska, operating a fox farm on one of the islands. He worked also in railroad construction. He returned to the states, coming as a young man to visit the West Sayville DeGraffs in the 1920s. He brought with him many pieces of copper ore (green malachite and blue azurite) which he had made into pendants (drop and heart shapes) with skilled craftsmanship. Thesehe gave to the ladies of the family. I have the one he gave to Grandmother DeGraff. Betty DeRoohas another. There was a dark blue heart given to Aunt Dinah, which she had bound in gold.Note 4 Matthew and Belle Verspoor DeGraff. Matthew DeGraff (18). 8-1919) was the eldest child of Cornelius and Lucy DeGraff. He came to the United States at the age of 4, but the family soon returned to Holland. They came again in 1862 when Matthew was 14. After living inBayport, and then in Oakdale, they settled in West Sayville, where Matthew lived until his marriage to Belle Vers000r on Marsh 23, 1868when each was 20 years old.Matthew and Belle DeGraff lived in a house at the corner of Candee and Maple Avenues (NW) in Sayville until, in the late 18705, they built the house still standing at 53 Greeley Ave. I remember this house from my (BOT) early childhood as a two story structure containing a parlor and two bedrooms on the first floor and three tiny bedrooms on the second floor. There was a one story wing rhich held the dining room-sitting room and the kitchen. An attic over this wing held, for my interest, toys--a cradle, a doll, and doll disheswith which I played. I still have the green glass sugar bowl. Beside the kitchen was s covered well, with a window opening into it from the kitchen. In the rear yard were a big grape arbor, many currant bushes, and a plum tree. The parlor had a lot of fancy shells, corals, etc., that Grandfather had acquired from sea captains.Matthew was a tall bearded man. Captain DeGraff earned his living with his small coastwise schooner, the Marion L. Cummings, on which he carried oysters, clams, coal, etc. to or from New York City and Connecticut. Capt. DeGraff and his schooner appeared in one of the very early movies, perhaps around 1907, which may have had Alice Brady as its star. Because of his occupation, Capt. DeGraff was away from home a great deal. Belle DeGraff was a very quiet, placid person, a good housewife who seldom ventured from her own home. After rearing her own family she raised her grandsons George and Burton DeGraff, who with their father Cornelius came to live with herafter the death of their mother in 1912.Matthew and Belle DeGraff had two sons, Cornelius and Leonard, and four daughters, Lena, who died in childhood, and Dinah, Belle,and Lucy.Note 5Dinah DeGraff - Aunt Dinah, She was a milliner, and operated a millinery shop in Sayville until hats for women ceased to be popular and essential. She dabbled in real estate, owning two houses in Ocean Beach, one on lower Greene Ave, and two on Greeley Ave 1 all of which she rented. She was active in civic affairs, particularly in the votes for women campaigns, in the Study Club, in the Sayville Congregational Church, and in the Sayville Public Library, serving as treasurer of the latter for many years. After their mother's death in 1926, sheand Lucy shared the house at 53 Greeley Ave. Cornelius DeGraff moved back here in 1928 with his daughter Betty after the death of his wife Dorothy. Betty lived with Aunt Dinah until 1948, when she married Bob DeRoo. David DeGraff spent his summers with Aunt Dinah /9 from 1940, and lived there with her and his sister from 1941 .(LLO) Dinah's first millinery shop in Sayville was on Main St. directly opposite the old Post Office. H er younger sister Belle was an assistant in this shop. When it closed Dinah worked for, or with another woman in a women's dress shop at "The Point" (junction SS north and south Main Streets). Later on, for several summers, sheoperated a curio shop on the ferry slip in Ocean Beach.Note 6Cornelius DeGrpff (1874-1931 ) was the third child and eldest son of Matthew and Belle Verspoor DeGraff. A tall man with abundant darkwavy hair gl he was a carpenter and skilled craftsman. Many of his working years were spent in building the houses in the then new development of Brightwaters. He was a skillful sailor, owning a succession of sail or power boats, and was active in sail boat and scooter racing on the Great South Bey.His first wife was Mary Jane Rhodes, daughter of Benjamin and Elizabeth Rhodes. They had two sons, and lived at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Henry Street beside her parents. Jane died of tuberculosis in the summer of 1912, and Cornelius moved with hissons to his mother's home.He married Dorothy Archer (see Note 7) in 1922. They lived on upper Greene Avenue for a time, then in the house on Greeley Avenue in which Louis A. and Belle DeGraff Otto had lived in the first seven years of their marriage, and in which Lucy Belle and Louis Leslie Otto were born. Betty and David DeGraff were also born there. Cornelius and Dorothy DeGraff had purchased the house at 69 Greeley Avenue and were preparing to move into it at the time of her death. This house was later moved away to make room for the new school yard. This same school expansion demolished the Louis Otto house, the John Otto Sr. house, and the John Terry house.Dorothy Archer DeGraff died of pneumonia in November 1928.Cornelius and his three year old daughter then returned to his old home, then occupied by his sisters Dinah and Lucy. His infant son David lived with Cornelius' sister, Belle DeGraff Otto, and her family, two houses up the street. Cornelius died of pneumonia on December 2?, 1931, leaving four tall children as survivors.Nn Dorothy Archer DeGraff Dorothy Archer was born in 1890 and lived in the Newark area of New Jersey. She was a graduate of Newark ? High School and of Goucher College, Class of 1913. She was a popular student, active in class affairs. In her Freshman year she was elected by her class as Chairman of Freshman Boat Ride, an important position, and in her Sophomore year she served as Class President. She was a member of Alpha Phi sorority, and active in college dramatics. She majored in history and/or English. Dorothy Archer had a happy cheerful disposition and was an easy conversationalist. She mage friends easily. She was about 51 8" inheight, had dark hair with a tint of red and some tendency to curl. Her daughter Betty DeRoo looks very much like her.Dorothy's parents, Elliott and Elizabeth Lay Archer, had three daughters, Elizabeth (later Mrs William ), Dimothy, and Julia (later Mrs. ). After Elliott and Elizabeth Archer were divorced, Mrs. Archer married William Martin, U.S.Navy. He was stationed at the 'Wireless Station in West Sayville, and they lived for several years in Sayville, where Dorothy jeined them. Elizabeth continued to live in New Jersey, Julia lived with her mother and Mr. Martin, taking the name Julia Martin. Dorothy worked for a time for a Newark newspaper 70 then as a reporter for the Suffolk County News in Sayville, then became legal secretary to Joseph Wood/ a lawyer in Sayville. She held this position until her marriage. She did a lot of tutoring in high school subjects along the way, and some substitute teaching in the Sayville H igh School.Note 8Belle (Lena Isabelle) DeGraff was the fourth child of Belle and Matthew DeGraff. Until her marriage to Louis Alfrdd Otto she lived at the family home at 53 Greeley Ave. She attended the local elementary school, and then trained as a seamstress and dressmaker, living for a time in Brooklyn for this training. After her marriage in 1903 she and her husband moved to the stone front house farther up Greeley Avenue which had been built as Ike Greene 's architecture office. A daughter Belle (Lucy Belle) and a son Louis Leslie were born there, and in 191 1 the family moved to a new home which had been built for them at 79 Greeley Ave. Another sonm Charles, was born in this house in 1914. During the early 1920s this home was rented to summer residents from N.Y. City/ while the Otto family lived temporarily at22 Willett Ave. In 1930 she accepted her eight-month old nephew, David DeGraff into her home after the unexpected death of his mother/ and kept him until her death in 1937 ( coronary thrombosis).Belle was relatively tall (5'-10") and erect, pink-cheeked and comely of face/ with brown eyes and very long dark hair. She was a woman of great understanding and sympathy/ to whom many persons came for comfort and guidance when troubled. She was active in the Sayville Congregational Church, serving a term as president of its womans society, the Needlecraft Club. She helped found the Sayville Library Association, and was a founding member of the Women's Village Improvement Society, sel ing a term as president but declining to be its candidate for member of the Sayville-School Board of Education. For many years she was active in the Sayville Study Club, a group interested in literature. Best of all, she maintained a home to which four children looked with reverent memoried, as they strove to provide the same atmosphere for their ownchildren.Louis Alfred Otto was the fifth child of John and Cornelia Hage Otto/ born on June 5, 1875, in a family of five boys and one sister.H is father was a "bayman", and as soon as the boys were physically able they accompanied their father on the bay to tong for clams or oysters, to dredge for scallops, to net for fish. Attendance at school was secondary to working, and only when the bay was iced over, or the weather was too mean to weak in exposed locations were the boys allowed to go to school. As a result Louis received only about 4 years of schooling -1 duringJaauaries and Februaries. Later he supplemented this meager formal training with extensive reading.Father John Otto was a good Dutchman and believed in paying homage to his religion, requiring his family to sit through long prayers and devotions/ a practice not understandable to young children wishing to get out and play with their contemporaries. In spite of irksome prayer time at home/ Louis and his brothers hung around local out-of-doors revival meetings enough to become well versed in the hymns which were used, so he could teach them to his daughter later.Apparently father John Otto was a strict disciplinarian while at work too. Per my father, one day he was berating John Jr. for loafing while tonging. To escape the tirade John Jr. jumped overboard and swam to an oyster lot stake for support. The stake, weakened by toredo worms, broke off, and John Jr. had no choice but to come back to the boat and face his father, who was armed with a rope's end. As soon as they were able to support themselves ail /6of the boys left home and made their own way in the world.Louis, and his younger brother Bert, chose to buy their own sailboat and to live on-board her, ice-out to ice-in, while tonging clams in Prince's Bay on the southeasterly side of Staten Island, and selling their catches at the Fulton Fish Market in New York. Somewhere around 1900-1902 Lou fell from the deck into the hold, badly injuring one knee. After months in a hospital on Staten Island, with his knee cap being replaced by g silver plate, he emerged on crutches and with a brace on his leg. Facing insuperable diffaulties in resuming their former life, Lou and Bert returned to Sayville to create a new world for themselves.The new world emerged as Otto Bros. Retail Coal Sales. They purchased a piece of property on the north side of the Long Island Railroad tracks in Sayville, put in a railroad siding and the necessary bins/ and became coal dealers. After about five years Bert decided to become a butcher, worked with brother Tom to learn the budiness, and set up a butcher store in Bayshore. The coal yard became Louis A. Otto, Coal and Wood, Tel, Conn, 157.The coal yard continued to operate for many years. Lou created many mechanical coal moving machines to reduce the back-breaking labor normally present. Many of these seemed patentable, but a friend of his in Sayville named Rohm had a valid patent on "friction tape". Goodyear and Firestone produced and sold this material without paying royalties, and postponed and delayed the law suits which Rohm threw at them until he ran out of money. Lou did not bother with patents; but soon engineers from Link Belt appeared and went over his machines with measuring tapes (with Lou's permission) and in a few years had commercial versions ef his machines on the market.During the nineteen teens there were two to six draft horses stabled in the barn behind our house to provide tractive effort to the coal delivery wagons. These were joined by two to four milk cows, two to six pigs/ and 25 to 40 chickens. Lou was a frustrated farmer, and harvested hay and grain for his animals from many outlying fields. Our gardens were extensive, with asparagus patches, everbearing strawberries, many rows of peanuts, potatoes, cabbages, brussels sprouts, etc. Durigl WU I we were nearly self sufficientby gardening and canning. Very early in my life I learned to ride my bike to Bayport, West Sayville and Sayville to deliver excess milk from our cows to selected customers.During the early WW I years Lou became interested in lumbering, and developed a portable saw mill with which he could "log-off"mthe marketable maple, oak, and chestnut on private estates in Smithtown, Ronkonkoma, and South Haven. The increasing difficulty encountered in buying carload lots of coal, unless you had appropriate political connections, led Lou to sell the coal and wood business to Cecil Proctor, a local politician. Thereafter he devoted full time to the saw mill. When US entered WW I he moved the mill to the Patchogue yard of Bailey and Sons, and cut 11D locust trees into billett for policemans clubs. In November i918 Lou received "Greetings from the President" to report for bis army physical, but the end of thewar cancelled this.Art the end of the war the saw mill was sold, and the proceeds used to purchase tools and materials for the Cuddle Chair Co. CuddleChairs unfortunately did not sell, and the investment was lost, so Lou turned to his first skill, clamming, H e built, with the help of his cousin Doodle Otto, a 30 ft. V bottom clamming boat, white oak frames, long-leaf yellow pine keel and planking. With this boat he again became a bayman, and with Sylvenus Titus James as a partner,he tonged clams in Great South Bay. One year there was a heavy set of scallops in the bay, so they added a mast, spars, jib and mainsail1 7to the boat and dredged for scallops. Back at home, Louis Leslie Otto and others opened the scallops and prepared them for market. Joseph Weeks joined the team on the boat, and that winter Vane James died.Joe Weeks and Lou Otto clammed for a year or two longer, then came ashore and started a concrete building block business. The plantwas at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Church St., north of Sayville. This business prospered moderately, but in 1930 the breaking of a drag-line cable caused lacerations cf Lou's arm, an erysipelas infection, and Lou Otto's death.The coal yard established by Lou and Bert Otto around 1902 was purchased by their older brother Tam in the late nineteen twenties and opersted by him until his death in 49, and by his two daughters until 1959. About 1915 Louis Ruzicka became a wagon driver and del-ivery man for my father, and after serving in WW M returned to the same job. He continaed in this capacity for each successive owner until retiring about 1968.Lou Otto rarely spent an evening at home. He maintained an office downtown in his brother Tom's butcher store, and roamed Main St., account book in his pocket, to meet his debtors when they had money. Saturdays were pay days then, and nearly everyone went shopping along Main St. that evening, so Lou was busy. His favorite haunt was Jake Stryker's fish market on South Main St., counters in front, fish storage and preparation room in the back, but in between was a lounging room with a card table and a pot-bellied stove. Pinochle was the favorite game. Lou also enjoyed watching baseball, would attend the local town-team games, and would even take his fam, ily along in the trusty model T to the out-of-town games.During his entire adult life ashore Lou was an active member of the Sayville Military Band, playing the helical bass horn. His brother Tom played the baritone horn in this same band, and employee Lou Huzicka played the Sousaphone. I (no) believe that when I wasborn, as soon as my sex was established he went out and purchased an Eb Alto Horn so I could join him in the band. I did join this group at an early age, playing the Eb alto for many years, then switching to the Bb trumpet until leaving for college in 1020.The John Otto children neveu operated as a cohesive group due to some family argument in the early 1900s. I saw my uncle Tomwhenever I went into his butcher shop, but the other uncles and aunts I almost never saw. In the early twenties uncle Tom was trying to grow potatoes in sea weed in the beach sand, and one day all, five brothers, John, Tom, Case, Lou, and Bert got together on Tom's boat (somehow I got to go along) to go to the beach and plant these potatoes. The going was rough outside of Greene's river, and when we went into the west slip in West Sayville to get fuel, the boatsailed round and round the same spot. The anchor had fallen overboat from the foredeck and tied us to the bottom. My father indicated to me that this was a good example of uncle Tom's seamanship. In spite of this incident the rest of the day passed peacefully, but this is the last brotherly reunion of which we know.Louis Alfred Otto was a tall man (6'-3"), blue eyes, with dark wavy hair and a cookie-duster mustache. He was very muscular from a lifetime of hard physical labor. He enjoyed reading, playing cards,watching baseball, and the military band.Note 9Liar uplie 0 .to (BOT) was the first child of Louis A. and Belle DeGraff Otto, born on New Years day in 1 905. During her early years in the Greene Cottage she formed what was to be a life-long active fthrie emndasnhaigpe r wiofth V athnde ergibirll tns exIdtl dehooorur, DEosrtaotthe yi nP rOemakmd, awlheo. se Bfelalthe era twtaensded "Old 88", the Sa y 111e School close by to their home, graduated as valedictorian of her class in 1922. She then studied chemistry at Barnard College, the women 's college of Columbia University in New York City, graduating in 1926 with an election to Phi Beta Kappa, the national scholastic honorary. Based on her record in Barnard she received a graduate teaching fellowship in Chemistry at Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts. After taw years of graduate study in chemistry, plus the usual graduate fellow teaching assignments, she graduated from Mount Holyoke in 1928 with an MA, majoring in Chemistry.In a competition with the usual number of new graduates she won a position, starting in the fall of 1928, as instructor of chemistry at Gaucher College, a long-established and scholastically wen regarded women's college in Baltimore. This was the start of a lifelong career as a teacher, and as an advisor to hundreds ofgirls who were residents in the dormitory sections of which she wea the resident advisor.in 1928 Goucher College occupied several old buildings in the area around Maryland Avenue just north of North Avenue, within the city limits of PPltimore. As the college grew in size it became necessary to expand, which could not be done in their city location. Asuitable site was found on the outskirts of Towson, just north of Baltimore. Belle participated extensively in the planning for the new campus, and led her colleagues and the architect into the building of a very useful and functional laboratory and classroom building for chemistry and the physical sciences. During the difficult transition years when the College was partly downtown and partly in Towson she set an example for students and faculty by her cheerful acceptance of trying conditions and by a sliperlative teaching performance underdifficulties.Academic customs require a Doctor of Philosophy degree of those aspiring to became full professors, with their accompanying rewards. Belle started a PhD graduate program at neighboring Johns Hopkins University, and after struggling through a very difficult research problem, she was awarded the PhD degree by Johns Hopkins in 194?.She was also elected to Sigma Xi, the national honorary research satiety.Following the attainment of the PhD came promotion to the rank of full professor at Gaucher, and the election by her colleagues to the position of Chairman of the Department of Chemistry ar Gaucher College. She continued in this position until her early retirement from Goucher in 1 965, leading the department to an enviable record in effective teaching, and in inspiring students to adopt chemistryas a lifetime career.In 1960 Belle's younger brother Charles died, followed soon after by his widow, leaving six children, four of whom were too young to support themselves. Belle helped organize the family so it stayed together, and acted as a senior advisor at such times as it was needed. She always maintained close contact with these children, and with the children of her brother Louis.About 1963 Belle became acquaintilid with a widower, Samuel Armstrong Talbot, who was Professor and Chairman of the Biomedical Engineering Department at Johns Hopkins University. This acquaintance grew into mutual love, and Sam and Belle were married on July 25, As A result of her marriage to Sam, Belle acquired two daughters and some grandchildren. Ann Talbot Boyer, her husband Paul Boyer,and two children live in Madison, Wisconsin, and Marion Talbot Brady, her husband Jem Brady, and son Bruce live in Little Falls, N.J.Belle and Sam took early retirement from their university positions and sold their Baltimore properties, with the expectation of moving9to a Biomedical Engineering Department at the University of Alabama. At the last moment, a medical diagnosis of the return of cancer in Sam caused the cancellation of these plans. They purchased a home on the outskirts of Towson, ans Sam, with Belle helping, set out tocomplete the writing of a textbook on Biomedical Engineering, entitled "Systems Philosophy". Sam died (2-20-67) before its completion, but Belle and Urs Gessner of Switzerland, one of Sam's former graduate students completed writing the text. After several trips by Belle toSwitzerland to coordinate details the book was completed, and published by John Wiley and Co. in 1973.Belle acted for a time in the 70s as Dean of Vocational Studies at Essex Community College in Baltimore, but eventually retired completely to enjoy her emeritus connections with nearby Gaucher College, and to maintain the Bellona Avenue home which she and Sam had punchased. This home proved to be an increasing chore, and in 1979when the complete care retirement center of Broadmead opened in Cockeysville, north of Towson, she sold the house and became a charter resident of Broadmead. She enjoyed this situation, entering wholeheartedly into its committees and activities, but in the summer of 1980 she developed pancreatic cancer, leading to her death on 2.28'...81 .During her entire residence in the Baltimore area, Belle was active in the local chapter of the American Chemical Society, acting as Editor of its paper, the Maryland Chemist for nearly 20 years. In 1966 she was presented with the Award of Merit by the Baltimore Section of ACS in recognition of her many years of outstanding serviceto the Section, to the profession, and to her students. Gaucher College created the Belle Otto Talbot Room in her honor as a computer terminal room for the use of the students. She is also remembered with reverence by her many neices, nephews, two stepdaughters, a brother, and many, many former students.Notel0Louis Leslie Otto, the second child cf Louis Alfred and Belle DeGraff Otto, was born in the "Greene Cottage" in 1910, but moved with his family within a year to their new home at 79 Greeley Ave.Here he grew to young manhood, attending the Sayville Schools about a quarter mile north of his home. Very early he acquired a twowheeled bicycle, and by using this increased mobility he expanded his explorations over Bayport, Sayville, West Sayville, and Oakdale, and later to the sound on the north side of the island. Well before the age of ten he became delivery boy for Pat Mullen's milkroute, carrying pails of milk from the wagon into the customers houses for two hours before school each morning.He was always interested in boats, the water, and the beach, and actively wangled boat rides from all of his relatives. He built his own rowboat as a young boy, and used it to explore Brown's River, Greene's River, and the bay shore from Blue Point to Great River.During summer vacations from high school he acted as captain's boy for Sylvenus Titus James on the party-sailing 351 catboat, the Sylvia. This involved day and night sailing over the whole of the Great South Bay. Later he accompanied his father and partners on their clamming and oystering trips on the bay, even to clamming himself after his father went ashore. Early college summers were spent shoveling sand and delivering cement blocks for his father's plant.Education activities occupied most of Ham'slife (this nickname was acquired in high school for some unknown reason). After highschool graduation in 1928 as valedictorian he returned for one year as a post-graduate student, then went upstate to Cornell University20with a tuition scholarship to study Mechanical Engineering. In 1933 he graduated with the degree of M.E., and election to Tau Beta Pi, national engineering scholastic honorary, to Atmos, local mechanicalengineering scholastic honorary, to Quill and Dagger, local campus activities honorary, and as a "Wearer of the C"„ having earned an athletic letter. During his four years of undergraduate residence he played in the freshman ROTC band, played on championship basketball teams in the Intercollege and Interfraternity leagues, and put in one year on the freshman eight-oared crew, two years on the juniorvarsity crew, and one year on the Varsity crew, with a final race at Los Angeles in California. in 1933.Jobs for college graduates were bery hard to get in 1933, so Ham returned to Sayville, working at whatever jobs were available, until moving to Oakfield, N.Y. in January 1935 to work in the Sheetrock plant of U.S. Gypsum CoO In 1937 he moved to Perry, N.Y. to design tanks and machinery for the Kaustine Co., and after marrying in July 1938 he returned to Ithaca, N.Y. in September of that year to become a graduate student at Cornell. In the fall of 39 he started a teaching career as an instructor in the anerimental Engineering Department of Cornell. In 41, with two other instructors he started for the US Navy a 16 week course for Diesel Engineering Officers, which was greatly expanded after Pearl Harbor. There were also classes for Steam Engineering Officers and for Curtiss-Wright Engineering Aides, Navy V 12s, and to upgrade civilian war-plant employees. In 1943 his major professor died, so Lou picked up all of this professors classes in automotive engineering, dropping the other extras.He completed an MME degree in 1943, received a promotion to Assistant Professor, and to Associate Professor in 1946. The next step requireda PhD, so in the summer of 49 he moved with his wife and three children to East Lansing, Michigan, to begin a doctorate program in Engineeringwhile on Sabbatical Leave from Cornell. Two summers, plus an intervening school year as a graduate assistant, and many, many hours of study completed the course work, and the family returned to Cornell in the fall of 50 to rebuild the exchequer and to complete the necessary thesis. By August of 51 the thesis and the necessary final exams were completed and the degree of PhD Cum Laude was awarded. Next came promotion to Full Professor at Cornell, election to Phi Kappa Phi (national scholastic honorary), Sigma Xi, (national research honorary, Pi Tau Sigma, (national mechanical emgineering scholastic honorary) and a new position as Full Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Michigan State University, to te aeh primarily courses in Automotive Engineering.After a quick move to Michigan the now Dr. Otto became immersed in University activities, one year as Acting Department H ead of Mechanical Engineering, three years as Head of Engineering Drawing, and one year as Department Head in Mechanical Engineering, plus service on many University committees. In 1960 there came an opportunity to obtain an industrial design position in Muskegon, Mich. at the Clarke Floor Machine Co., so the family moved to North Muskegon tolive in a home on the shore of Muskegon Lake. Lou Otto led the design and development activities of Clarke in the fields of floor sanders, floor polishers, floor and rug scrubbers, vacuum cleaners, and large area sweepers. These activities involved many trips around the United States and one trip to Europe. In 1970 the retirement of the long-time president of Clarke led to a wholesale replacement of top Clarke personnel by the parent Studebaker-Worthington Corp.Lou and others accepted early retirement. Lou shifted his activities to teaching at Muskegon Community College in the fields of Physical Metallurgy, Engineering Materials, and H ydraulics. Between Jan.73 and July 76 he served as Dean of Vocational Education, and as Assoc2/late Dean of Math, Science, and Technology. After official retirement from the Dean positions he was called back to teach again in 76 and 77.Lou was a tall man (6,-5") in his early years, with blonde hair and hazel eyes. He enjoyed maintaining his own automobiles as an adjunct to his teaching. He used a small trailerable aluminum boat and an outboard motor to explore many of the rivers and lakes in Michigan. He was a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and active in their Oil and Gas Power Division. He was a member of the American Society for Metals, the National Society of Prof essional Engineers, the American Society for Engineering Education, the American Association of University Professors, and the Society of Automotive Engineers, plus many other more specialized technical groups. He was very active in the SAE, being Chairman successively of the Syracuse Section, the Mid-Michigan Section, and the Western Michigan Section, plus membership on many section and national committees.In the fall of 1980 Lou and Dorothy Otto moved to Florida to escape the cold and snowy winters of Michigan.Dorothy H iller was born in Smithtown/ N.Y. on July 3, 1915 to Albert and Edith Feather Hiller. She attended the Smith town Schools, graduating from Smithtown High School in 1933. That summer she became the Secretary to the Superintendent of Schools in Smithtown, and retained this position until her marriage in the summer of 1938. Upon moving to Ithaca, N.Y. with her husband in the fall of 38 she became asecretary in the administrative offices of the Sibley School of Mechanical Engineering at Cornell University, and continued this position until the birth of their first child in 1941 . The next eight years were spent as a housewife, with the birth of two more children.In 1949 she moved her family temporarily to East Lansing, Mich., after one year returned to Ithaca, and moved permanently to East Lansing in 1951 . As her family grew and required less attention she worked as a part-time secretary on the campus of Michigan State Univ. and acted in her home as booking secretary for a professional travel lecturer. When she and her family moved to North Muskegon, Mich.she became the secretary to the Principal of the Elementary School in North Muskegon in December 1962, retaining this position until she retired in December 1 975. After retirement she worked, againas a secretary, in pert-time or volunteer positions, in North Muskegon and then in the Hernando Conty Schools in Florida.During her high achool and post high school years Dorothy was interested and active in amatuer dramatics. Tr irterest in music has been lifelong, and she has acted as accompanist to many singinggroups. She has been very active in Friends of the Library groups. Knitting and crossword puzzles have served as time fillers when there was spare time. Dorothy was 5 ,-8" tall, with dark wavy hairand dark eyes.Note 11Charles Raymond Otto, the youngest child of Louis A. and Belle DeGraff Otto was born in their home at 79 Greeley Avenue in Sayville on October 15, 1914. He had an active childhood, with many playmates in the area. In his late grammar school days he took over from his brother as bicycle delivery boy on Pat Mullens milk route,working for about two hours each morning before school. Later he became a clerk in the Bohack grocery store at the foot of Greeley Avenue, an activity which he continued until he left Sayville to go ctlo arcionllete gien. thDue rihnigg hh issc hhoiolg h orscchheosolt rya eaarnds ihne pal hayigehd -ssacxhaopohl ondae nacen dband.22Charles graduated from Sayville High School in 1932 as class president, returned there for a year of post-graduate work, andthen went to Cornell University in 1933 as a student in Mechanical Engineering. During college his room mate James Buxton hung on Charles the nickname of "Duke", when Charles happened to mention that his grandmother claimed she was a descendant of William, the Duke of Orange of the Netherlands. The nickname stuck.After graduation from Cornell in 1937 with the degree of N. E.Charles want to work almost immediately for the Solvay Process plant in Hopewell, Va., in their Engineering Development Department. Bythe summer of 1942 he had developed an allergy to some within-plant fumes which he regularly encountered, so he left Hopewell and returned to Cornell University as an instructor in the Experimental Engineering Department. Since the two brothers, Charles R. Otto and Louis L.Otto were both instructors in the same department, the students differentiated between them by calling one Cold-Rolled (CR)(a condition of steel), and the other Log-Log, from the LLO scale on all studentsslide rules.In the spring of 43 Charles succumbed to the offers of a New York city firm of engineering consultants, and left Cornell at the end of the school year to set up his family in Freeport and commute to New York. By the middle of August the attraction of the new job had disappeared. He did not get the job assignment he had been promised,all promotion opportunities were hotly contested, the company was riddled with internal politics, and commuting was a chore. A call to Cornell revealed his former teaching position was still open tohim. He and the family came back to Ithaca. This time he began work towards a masters degree in Engineering and over the course of several years he earned an MME, an Assistant Professor rating in 1946,a professional engineers license in New York State, and developed an outstanding course in Instrumentation for Process Control.BY 1951 the duPont Corporation production people recognized the value of this system, and hired Charles as a Design Engineer in itsEngineering Department. In 1956 he became Senior Development Engineer in the Consultant and Development Section of the Engineering Department, and continued in this capacity until forced by illness to retire in 1960. The rapid development of Hodgkins disease cost him his career, and then his life (5-01-60).Charles was a long time member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, a member of the Delaware Section of the Society of Professional Engineers and a member of the Newark Chamber of Commerce. He was actiVe in community affairs, especially theSoapBox Derby and Junior Achievement.Charles was a tall man (6'-2"), slender, with brown eyes. He enjoyed rebuilding the homes in which he and his family lived, andoften made major changes in their interiors.Johanna Gertrude Huson was born in Holland on May 231 1916,the daughter of Jan and Caroline DeJonge H on. She and her younger brother Jan were brought to America by their parents, first to Newjersey, and then by 1930 to West Sayville, Long Island, where they lived at the SW corner of Brook Street and Division Avenue. She attended Sayville High School and graduated from it in 1934. Shethen trained as a secretary at a school in Brooklyn, and as a Dental Assistant in the office of John Freeman, a dentist in Sayville.Johanna and Charles Otto were married on June 25, 1937 in the Dutch Reformed Church on Cherry Avenue in West Sayville, attended by BOetltloe, Oatntdo ,J anJo sHe puhsionne. SaTuhneyde rwsen, tL uimcmielldie aDteellgyeu styo , ChJaamrlese s Bunxetwo njo, bL oiunis25Hopewell, Va., living first in Petersburg and then in a new house in Hopewell. Jan and Joann (Jody) were born here. Of their other children, Jason/ Neil, and Kristin were born in Ithaca, N.Y., and Eric was born in Wilmington/ Delaware. While they lived in Ithaca Johanna completed courses in child development at Cornell as time allowed, and operated a nursery school at their home on College Ave. When Charles moved to duPont, the family first lived in Wilmingtonand then moved to Newark to a large house on the edge of the campus of the University of Delaware. Johanna operated a nirsery school in this house, and completed more courses in child development at the University of Delaware, untillatreceived her BS degree in this field in 1957. Several yearsAshe completed the requirements for an MS degree at this same school. Charles' death in 1960 upset plans for a larger nursery school, and Johanna moved with her younger children to a farm in Darlington, Maryland. She was teaching school in Dublin, Maryland, at the time of her death in an automobile accident on February 22, 1963.In 1946 at the end of NI4 II Johanna started the "Adopt-A, Family" movement (assist a family in war-torn Europe), which soonspread across this country. The birth of Kristin prevented her from becoming active in this movement, but others jumped on thebandwagon and expanded its activities.Johanna was active in the local American Association of University Women/ and she and Charles were active in the formation ofa Unitarian Church in Newark.Note 12Leonard DeGraff was born (5-4-1878) as the fourth child and shcond son of Matthew and Belle Verspoor DeGraff. Like all in his family, he was tall, witha lot of dark wavy hair which turned white as he grew older. He was a very quiet and retiring man. He trained as a young man to be a sailmaker, but when the demand for sails died out he became a carpenter. For a time he operatid> a tire repair and vulcanizing shop in Sayville, and would take niece Belle Otto along in his red Maxwell roadster when making pickup trips to neighboring communities. Len married Sarah E. Newton, the daughter of Henry and Delia Hulse Newton. She was as shy and retiring as her husband. They lived for a time in Fresh Pond, Long Island, then returned to Sayville and finally moved to Union Avenue, Islip. They became interested in the possible profits from renting beach cottages (like Aunt Dinah aad great uncle Case DeGraff), and Len built first one and then a second and a third cottage in the beach colony of Fair Harbor, just east of Saltaire. There was ample work for carpenters willing to stay on the beach, so Len and Sarah moved to the beach, living in one of their cottages and renting the other two in the summers. Len built new cottages for others during the winter, and made major and minorrepairs winter and summer.After many years of solitary winters on the beach they wished to get back to civilization, and returned to their home in Islip. Len worked sa a ship carpenter at Roy Arnett 's boatyard in Islip, but did not like it (nothing was ever square or plumb), and the next fall Sarah stayed ashore in their Islip home while Len spent the weekends in Islip and the week days in Fair Harbor, commuting in his own power boat as long as the bay was free of ice. This activity led to an incident which he remembered the rest of his lifeThe southern coast of Long Island is exposed to the open Atlantic Ocean, and the laws of probability say that ocassionally the ptsrrhooopucilecdeda lic rnhogu srus pr iLtoohKnneg escI oswlashaintd cfh. owlolIrnokw iSntephg etiaerm v bweerray y 1ue9pr3 r8 athotnie ec ecaoosfu tr thcseoesa. se t sItte aorwchmas s fwalals21close enough to Long Island to induce northeast gales and heavy rains on the island during the 19th and 20th. Len had spent these days in Islip with Sarah, but , feeling that the storm had about blown itself out, on the morning of the 21st he drove his car over to his boat in Islip creek and sailed for the beach and Fair Harbor. When in Fair Harbor he would moor his boat to a post (so she could swing with the winds) which he had driven well into the bottom, and then take his"south bay" rowboat ashore to the bay end of the boardwall on which their houses faced, pull the row boat well up onto the shore and tie it to the boardwalk. He would then walk to whichever one of their houses they were currently using, about aa hundred yards.On the 21st of September the hurricane decided to go north and came skittering across the ocean at unprecedented speed. Len had come across the bay from Islip through the northeasterly gale, and because of the height of the waves and wind had gotten somewhat wet from water which blew aboard. He worked his boat up into the cove and moored it as usual to the post and then went ashore with the rowboat. At his house he started a fire in the stove to warm things up and to dry his wet c/othes, and puttered about doing other small chores. The wind and rain kept getting worse so ocassionally he would look out of the window to check on the weather. During one of these visual surveys he saw that their house was surrounded by water, and a house from nearer the ocean came sailing by on a river of water flowing from ocean to bay. He then decided it was time to leave the area, and grabbing an old suitcase he tossed in the alarm clock, some unimportant papers, and a few clean clothes.By that time the water was rising through the cracks in the house floor. He went out the front door and splashed his way along the boardwalk toward the bay. When he arrived at his rowboat it was twothirds full of water from the rain, so he lifted one side to dump it, pushed it afloat, and jumped in. He started rowing out to his own boat moored in the cove, but there was such a strong easterly current from the ocean water flowing into the west end of the cove that he could not make headway against it, so he turned around and started rowing toward the store and jetty in Fair Harbor, where most of the people of the village had gathered. However, a large river was coming across the beach between him and the jetty, and the current swept him out of the cove, away from the jetty, and out into the bay.Since he could not reach the jetty, he headed for the large Ocean Beach ferryboat, which was making its regular trip to Bayshore and was watching the developing drama.Before he could reach the ferry the eye of the storm moved on and the wind came in from the west so strong that all he could do mas to run downwind before it. Fortunately his rowboat became halffilled with water, or the wind when acting on the broad flat transom when lifted by a wave would have flipped the boat end for end. Len managed to stay in the boat by hooking his leg under the seat on which he was sitting, or the wind would have plucked him from the boat. After maybe half an hour of battling to keen the boat from broaching in t | DeGraff, Cornelis Adriaan Sr (I30843)
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| 831 | Obadiah Platt, a farmer, and took the "Oath of Allegiance and Peaceable Behavior in 1778". After the Revolution, Obadiah made his home on his farm at West Hills. | Platt, Obadiah > (I5939)
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| 832 | Obituary, Patchogue Advance, 15 June 2006:A Sailor's final voyageBrookhaven hamlet man and sailing enthusiast diesby Chuck AndersonBrookhaven hamlet is an unlikely place for nobility, but if there were a royal family, its patriarch would have b | Starke, Robert Westaway ^ (I5504)
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| 833 | Obituary: New York Times, 7 Feb 1959. p. 19."C.O. WELLINGTON, ACCOUNTANT, DIES"Management Engineering Expert Was 72--Wrote 'Primer on Budgeting'"POMPANO BEACH, Fla., Feb 6--Charles Oliver Wellington, senior partner in the accounting firm of Sc | Wellington, Charles Oliver ^ (I4101)
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| 834 | Obituary: New York Times, 7 Feb 1959. p. 19."C.O. WELLINGTON, ACCOUNTANT, DIES"Management Engineering Expert Was 72--Wrote 'Primer on Budgeting'"POMPANO BEACH, Fla., Feb 6--Charles Oliver Wellington, senior partner in the accounting firm of Scove | Wellington, Charles Oliver ^ (I4101)
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| 835 | Obituary: New York Times, 17 June 1972.TUTHILL--Capt. John Terry, Jr. USNR (Ret) in his 78th year. Editor and publisher, The Long Island Advance, who resided at Beaver Dam Road, Brookhaven, N.Y. Beloved husband of Dorothy Cantfield Tuthill, loving fath | Tuthill, John Terry Jr. ^ (I3762)
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| 836 | Obituary: New York Times, October 12, 1913JOHN B. IRELAND DIES AT 80. OLD MEMBER OF THE UNION CLUB EXPIRES OF APOPLEXY.John B. Ireland, a wealthy real estate owner ond one of the oldest members of the Union League Club, died yesterday at his home, 104 | Ireland, John Busteed J.D. (I62)
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| 837 | Obituary: New York Times. March 6, 1938. p. 43 JAMES H. POST DIES PHILANTHROPIST, 78 Brooklyn Civic Figure Noted Financier and a Leader in Sugar Refining BEGAN LIFE AS OFFICE BOY Involved in Famous Anti-Trust Case -- Held Directorates in Many Enterprises James Howell Post, sugar refining financier, philanthropist, and civic leader, died yesterday in his home at 88 Remsen Street, Brooklyn, after a short illness. He was 78 years old. Surviving are his widow, the former Louisa H. Wells of Brooklyn; three daughters, Mrs. Philip A. Hubert, Mrs. Thomas I Morrow, and Mrs. Jessie W. Post, all of Brooklyn, and a sister, Mrs. Charles F. Cantine of New York. The funeral service will be private. Mr. Post, although small in stature, exerted the influence of a giant in those spheres of activities where he labored most effectively for more than a quarter of a century. From his office at 129 Front Street on the southern tip of Manhattan, he directed an industrial empire in sugar, reputed to be among the world's greatest. And in the the family home at 88 Remsen Street, Brooklyn Heights, Mr. Post controlled a flow of donations anonymously to Protestant, Catholic and Jewish charitable and educational institutions. A majority of those who knew him by sight will remember a quiet man, probably in the act if waving aside rounds of applause at a dedication or like ceremony. He attended to many affairs in the roll of officer but seldom delivered speeches. He disliked the limelight. Nevertheless, his generosity frequently placed him squarely before the public. Thus in 1930 the Downtown Brooklyn Association presented him with its first annual medal for distinguished service, and two years later the national Institute of Social Sciences followed suit with a gold medal in recognition of contributions to the "civic and cultural life of Greater New York." Mr. Post expressed his views on charity in a letter to The New York Times in December, 1935. He wrote: "Though long association with charitable work in New York, I have learned something of the individualized care which each family receives from private agencies. I am heartily in sympathy with the great governmental relief program, but I realize that in thousands of instances relief is not enough." Sought to Aid Handicapped "Nearest my heart is the rehabilitation of those so handicapped that they can never return to their former occupation. I believe, furthermore, the American public will give generously when they are convinced the need is real and the funds will be properly administered." Underlying the philanthropist's record was Mr. Post's personal story and vast financial gains from business enterprises. He began work at 15 as an office boy earning $3 a week. Born at New Rochelle, N.Y., on Oct. 13, 1859, the son of William and Eleanor Sackett Post, he traced his descent from New England settlers in 1650, Between the ages of 5 and 12 he lived with his family at Brookhaven, L.I. Years later he was to return to Brookhaven to establish a Summer home on Bellport Bay. In 1872 the Posts moved to Brooklyn. Mr. Post was educated in the Brooklyn public schools, at the International College of the Y.M.C.A. at Springfield, Mass. and at Colgate University, where he received his LL. D. degree. His first job was that of office boy with the firm of B. H. Howell Son & Co., Inc., of New York. The firm was the largest dealer in molasses and molasses sugars in the country with half a dozen factories in New York and Philadelphia. Changes in the tariff laws made it impossible to run the molasses factories. The result was the eventual organization in 1900 of the National Sugar Refining Company of New Jersey. Mr. Post became president of the concern. It had a capital of $10,000,00 preferred and $10,000,000 common stock. Consolidation Prevented Anti-trust litigation instituted in 1911 prevented the American Sugar Refining Company form controlling the National through stock ownership. Again in 1924 rumors spread of an impending consolidation. The resultant firm would have been the largest on earth in that business with control over approximately one-third of the world's sugar refining facilities. Mr. Post was slated to become president of the amalgamated company at a salary of $75,000 a year. Attorney General Harlan E. Stone said he would oppose the move inasmuch as he conceived it his duty "to uphold decrees under the Sherman Law * * * rather than attempt to substitute my judgment for the wisdom of my predecessors and of the courts which entered such decrees." Mr. Post ended the consolidation talk with a statement in which he said the "unwillingness of the Department of Justice" would be accepted as final. During the World War he was chairman of the American Refiners committee of the National Food Administration. He issued repeated warnings of a sugar shortage unless housewives practiced greater economy. A so-called "sugar trust" action of major importance followed the organization in 1927 of the Sugar Institute, Inc., with Mr. Post as chairman of the board of directors and president. Litigation was Protracted In February, 1932, the trial opened in the Federal court here, with the government charging the institute was a blind to hide an illegal price-fixing conspiracy in the restraint of trade. On the other hand, the sugar merchants said the organization swept away grave trade abuses. The case proved one of the most intricate ever tried under the Sherman Law and involved the most elaborate legal test of the activities of a trade association ever undertaken by the government. Points at issue included an unusually large number of those which must be considered by members of an industry seeking to cooperate for the elimination of abuses and general improvement of conditions within the industry. A large number of trade associations had modeled their codes of ethics upon that of the Sugar Institute. The decree permitting the continued existence of the institute, but outlawing many of its activities, was entered Oct. 9, 1934. Further arguments on the case were heard before the Supreme Court in 1936. When the battle lines were drawn between the government and the institute, Mr. Post said: "We welcome the opportunity of having the courts determine finally the correctness of the course which we have followed in good faith." Headed Other Companies Besides the National Sugar Refining Company of New Jersey, Mr. Post was chairman of the board and director of the Cuban-American Sugar Company and president and director of the New Niquero and Guantanamo Sugar Companies. He was a director of the following: The National City Bank of New York, the Title Guarantee and Trust Company, the Atlantic Mutual Insurance Company, the United States Casualty Company, the Manhattan Fire and Marine Insurance Company, the Brooklyn Edison Company, the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Company, the Fajardo Sugar company, the Central Aguirre Associates, the Alliance Realty Company, the Holly Sugar corporation, the American Foreign Marine Insurance Association, the Underwood Elliott Fisher Company, the Westchester Insurance Company, the City Bank Farmers Trust Company, the Terminal Warehouse Company and the New Amsterdam Casualty Company, and a vice president and trustee of the Williamsburgh Savings Bank. He was chairman of the board of trustees of the Brooklyn Y.M. and Y.W.C.A.'s and gave large sums to both institutions; president of the board of trustees of Adelphi College, Garden City, L.I., and a trustee of Princeton Theological Seminary, Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences, Brooklyn Bureau of Charities and a number of educational institutions in the United States, the Near East and Brazil. In 1925 he contributed $25,000 for the establishment of colleges in the Near East. Mr. Post was trustee of the Brooklyn Eye and Ear Hospital and of a number of welfare agencies in Kings county. In 1937 he received an honorable mention award from the Grand Street Boys Association for "his leadership and support of more than a score of philanthropic and civic organizations in Brooklyn." His clubs were the Union League, Engineers, City, the Down town, Hamilton and University of Brooklyn. He was president of the board of trustees of the South Third Street Presbyterian Church of Brooklyn. POST'S DEATH DEPLORED Governor and Mayor Among the Leaders Praising His Work Governor Lehman, while on a visit to Brooklyn yesterday, said: "I have learned with very great regret of the passing of James H. Post. He was a man of kindliest spirit and of the broadest vision, whose sympathy and interest knew no limitations of race, color or creed. He was one of the most valuable citizens of New York. The community has lost a great leader and a friend." Mayor La Guardia deplored Mr. Post's death as "a great loss to the city and real personal loss to me. He was a kindly man and he had a real public interest." James H. Perkins, chairman of the board of directors of the National City Bank of New York and the City Bank Farmers Trust Company, said that "Mr. Post's death has brought deep sorrow to all his associates in the National City Bank of New York. He had been associated with the bank as a director since 1896. He had also been a director of the City Bank Farmers Trust Company since 1929." Justice Louis Goldstein, president of the Y.M and Y.W.H.A.'s of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, said: "I was greatly grieved to hear of the death of James H. Post, who had been for many years a friend of the young people of Williamsburg and was greatly interested in their problems." | Post, James Howell †^ (I354)
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| 838 | Obituary: New York Times. 6 Mar 1944.MRS. JAMES H. POSTDaughter of Pastor Dies 6 Years to Day After HusbandMrs. Louisa Wells Post died yesterday at her home, 88 Remsen Street, Brooklyn, six years to the day after the death of her husband, James H. P | Wells, Louisa Henderson †^ (I355)
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| 839 | Obituary: Daily Capital Journal, Pierre, Hughes Co., South DakotaDate: May 18, 1950William Floyd Sr.William Floyd, Sr., was born at Westernville, NY, Aug. 27, 1858. His father, William Floyd was a grandson of Gen. William Floyd who was one of the sign | Floyd, William (I5080)
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| 840 | Obituary:Elisabeth Post Morrow 1896 - 1992by Dorothy Jones and Faith McCutcheonElisabeth Post Morrow, quiet philanthropist and generous supporter of our community, died at her home on February 26th, after a long illness.She was born in Brooklyn in 1 | Post, Elisabeth Wells (I1)
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| 841 | Of interest on this site is the E. N. Potter who resided on Beaver Dam Rd., Brookhaven Hamlet, NY, during the 1950s and early 1960s. In 1959 he was known to have been a stockbroker, and to have had a wife Barbara. | Potter, Eliphalet Nott III ^ (I9477)
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| 842 | On 12 Sep 1653, Samuel’s wife, not named, was sued for slander by Thomas Vail for £40, and four days later a jury gave the plaintiff £3 damage with cost of Court. | Harcre, Medlen Wilhelmina (I13415)
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| 843 | On the marriage of her mother, Lucile, to C. Oliver Wellington, Elizabeth took Wellington as her surname. | Wellington fka Rhode, Elizabeth A. ^ (I4107)
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| 844 | one of four sisters in Patchogue | Smith, Augusta Josephine (I49372)
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| 845 | one of four sisters in Patchogue | Smith, Elizabeth Ann (I49373)
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| 846 | one of four sisters in Patchogue | Smith, Ruth Newey (I49375)
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| 847 | one of four sisters in Patchogue | Smith, Charlotte G. (I49376)
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| 848 | Only in the 1870 census was her name recorded as Martha; Mattie appears to be the name universally used throughout her lifetime and on her gravestone. | Whitson, Martha F. ^ (I1215)
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| 849 | Osborne records: "John Dyer is said to have had a genial disposition; research shows that he found more than one way to make a bit of gold or sterling: in 1733 he advertised in the Gazette in an effort to sell a 'very good bell, of a very good size and sound, fit for any country church or coart house,' and a 'very good copper (tank?) that holds 120 gallons ...'" | Dyer, John (I6432)
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| 850 | Part of Mr. Aldrich’s grandfather Wyman’s estate "Homewood" in Baltimore, was bequeathed to Johns Hopkins University. Its buildings and campus now cover the entire former grounds of this estate. | Aldrich, Spencer (I5432)
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