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1

Bell and Post Auto Factory

According to the New York State Department of State, the Bell & Post Motors Corporation Certificate of Incorporation was filed with them on October 26, 1925. Bell & Post was named after Farmingdale native Harry Lowere Post and James L. Bell. This building still stands and is now an apartment complex called The Lofts

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2

Parkway Hotel

Parkway Hotel was owned by Walter Webber and Gus Finger. They purchased the hotel in 1910 from Fred Kunz, who previously owned the location under the name Kunz Hotel. The hotel was built by Jarvis Lattin in the late 1880s. In 1937, the building was remodeled into apartments.

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3

Farmingdale Train Station

The Long Island Railroad service reached Farmingdale on October 15, 1841 with diesel power. Two trains ran per day and one on Sundays. In 1850, the Long Island Railroad ceased Sunday service. In 1895, the Long Island Railroad proposed to move the Main line’s station a quarter of a mile east. The new depot began having trains arrive at it in May of 1896. In 1909, a tower was built to house the electric transformers for the Cross-Island Trolley. The trolley shut down in 1919. In 1987, the Long Island Railroad began using electrified trains to Farmingdale. The train station was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991 and the interior waiting room was renovated in 1996.

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4

J. Keller's Sons

This pickle works and sauerkraut factory were owned by the Keller family. It opened in 1891 by Jacob Keller. Jacob’s sons, Frederick and Charles Keller were also listed as proprietors for this business at different times during the business’s lifespan. In 1924, Frederick Keller announced the sale of their factory on May 31st. J. Keller’s Sons was sold to Merkel Bros. and Martin Sperling for their grocery stores. It was eventually destroyed by a fire.

5

Morris Karp & Son

Opened in 1927 by Morris Karp and his son Leo. Morris Karp & Son bought fertilizer and then sold it to the local farmers. They also sold feed, grain, and hay. In the 1940s, they added to the building and began to manufacture fertilizer themselves. In the late 1950s, they added more to the building, making it 300 feet long. In 1967, Leo Karp sold the business to Wagner Brothers and the fertilizer business was sold to Lebanon chemical. On June 2, 1985 the building, which wasn’t grounded, was hit by lightning. The entire building burned down.

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6

Rathgeber Hotel

Built by Sidney Wright and then taken over by John Scholl who sold it to William Rathgeber Sr. In addition to the hotel, there was The Amusement Palace. Farmingdale’s first moving picture was shown here. The Palace was home to boxing matches, political party meetings, and many dances. When prohibition began, Rathgeber left the hotel business and started Farmingdale Individual Laundry Services with his sons. The building was razed in 1934.

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7

Freemason Lodge

Bethpage Lodge No. 975 purchased this building in 1921 after they were chartered on June 11, 1921. The building was erected in 1902 and was purchased by the Freemasons for $6,000. From 1942 to 1945, this lodge was one of two Masonic service centers on Long Island for military servicemen. This lodge gave away free food and drinks and entertained the servicemen with books and games. The masons sold the building in 1970 to the Knights of Pythias. Some of its members were Ernest Hackwitz, Charles O. Schmidt, Jesse F. Merritt, and John O. Wagner.

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8

Norman Sullivan Insurance

Norman Sullivan Insurance was opened by Norman Sullivan around 1917. He was one of the founders of the Sunrise Federal Savings & Loan Association. The office moved to 206 Main Street and then 280 Main Street in the mid-1960s.

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9

Noon Hotel

The Noon Hotel was owned and operated by John H. Noon. The hotel was also known as the John H. Noon Hotel and was previously located in East Meadow. The building was built circa 1840 and was used first by Joseph Seligman. After Seligman’s hotel, it was purchased in 1859 by John H. Noon and used as a hotel and tavern. After the Noon Hotel, it was owned by another individual until 1913. Its close proximity to the train station made it a great place for shelter for travelers especially as the depot was at this intersection.

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10

Farmingdale Garage

This garage was built in 1920. It was used as a garage by Al Ruhig and others, including David Dorfman until 1932. In 1932, the garage was taken over by Henry Pape. Henry Pape turned the garage into a plant & distribution station for Hellman Mayonnaise and other products. If you cross the street, you can see the shape and structure is still exactly the same even though they tried to get approval to demolish and erect a new building in 1944.

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11

Greco Tailor

Opened in the 1920s by Joseph Greco on Front Street, it moved to Main Street in the 1930s. The shop specialized in custom tailoring, dyeing, pressing, and cleaning. Mr. Greco hand-tailored the clothes. It closed in 1950 and moved to Wall Street.

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12

Ketcham Music Hall

The music hall was owned by Peter Ketcham. It was in the Deferrari Building. Members of the community would go to shows on the second floor and there was a reading room on the first floor. The fee for the reading room was two cents a week.

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13

Otten Brothers

Opened by Frank and James Otten in 1906. It first began as a bicycle repair business, but it adapted to the increase of automobiles by repairing & selling cars and motorcycles. The store sold Farmingdale Village’s first Ford in 1910. It was one of the first businesses to stock radio equipment and supplies. It moved to 380 Conklin Street in 1936 and closed in 1940.

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14

Fire House

The Ladder & Hose Company and Water Witch Engine Company merged in 1892 and moved to a combined location on Main Street, slightly south of its current location. In 1932, the department moved to its current location. The rescue squad was formed in 1940.

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15

Village Hall

The Town of Oyster Bay established local offices in larger hamlets in the late 1800s so residents would not have to make the trip to Oyster Bay. Farmingdale was one of these offices. The Village arranged to rent the office after its incorporation in 1904. In 1923, the Village purchased the building. The building was later razed and the decision to build a new one was not an easy one in 1930 considering it was during the Great Depression. The first proposition to build a hall/firehouse failed. On March 17, 1931, a second vote was held, with a smaller bond, and this easily passed. The new facility was ready for occupancy in January of 1932. The first regular meeting was held on January 11.

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16

Village Green

In 1967, then Mayor Joseph Zureck and the Village Board completed plans to buy & develop a site to build the Village Green. The Village received a grant from the Federal Home & Finance agency, which provided half the money needed to undertake the process. Construction began July in 1968 and the green was dedicated on October 12, 1968. In the 1980s, the World War I and World War II memorials were relocated from the Main Street school. The gazebo was built in 2004. Walker's Bakery was once on this land.

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17

Kolkebeck House

The Kolkebeck family had a house and barn on this property which were renovated for classroom use after the school district purchased the property. The Farmingdale Free Library was originally located in the Kolkebeck House. The Kolkebeck House and barn were demolished in 1929 to expand the Main Street School property.

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18

Main Street School

The original brick structure of the Main Street School was built in 1912. When Weldon Howitt arrived in 1919, he purchased the Kolkebeck property on behalf of the Farmingdale School District, which included three and a half acres of land to expand the school and its property. The land included a house and barn, which were remodeled into classrooms. In 1922, a middle building was added to the original brick structure. A third portion, the north building, was added in 1929 to meet the need for more space again. By 1950, the school was crowded yet again. Corridors were used as classrooms and some classes were being held outside. The south wing was torn down in 1961 and by 1972, classes were not being held there. The whole building was torn down in 1980.

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19

Post Office

The first post office for Farmingdale was established on July 31, 1845. John Monfort was appointed Postmaster by President James K. Polk. The office was out of his house and it served approximately 30 families. In 1927, the first house-to-house mail delivery began with only two mail routes served by Leo Kantor and Frank Gross. Six hundred homes received mail at their door that year. In 1943, Postmaster Frank Talbot moved the post office to 323 Main Street. The building was owned by Lyman Van Nostrand. By 1962, the post office had outgrown its space and was moved to 380 Main Street, where Dr. Ruth Barsh had her office and home. In 2003, it was dedicated to New York City Fire Chief Peter Ganci, who lost his life on 9/11.

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20

The Farmingdale Theatre

The theatre opened on January 30, 1942. It was designed by John Eberson, an internationally acclaimed architect in theatre planning. Sidney Jacobsen was the manager of the theatre. It had a loge that seated 135, where speaking was permitted and seats for 800 on the main level. Two murals were painted on each side by Oscar Glascot. On October 26, 1950, a fire completely gutted the theatre. A newly built theatre re-opened on July 4, 1951. It closed its doors in the mid-1980s due to the development of cable TV, rental movies, and multi-screen complexes.

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21

General Store

Charles Loehrs owned this general store for about 14 years until his death in 1921. Charles Loehrs sold a variety of items including hay, feed, grain, groceries, and hardware items. After Loehrs death, the store was taken over by Karp and Koblintz. In 1924, Karp became the sole proprietor when Koblintz retired.

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22

Wolly's

Morris Karp purchased the store and adjoining home from Loehr family in 1921. The Loehrs were the proprietors of a general store. It was originally called Karp & Koplentz, but later named Karp’s General Store. In 1930, Morris sold the store to Isidore Wolly. Wolly’s concentrated on hardware rather than be a general store. In 1990, the business was purchased by long-time employee Harry Bowen & his wife Stephanie. Wolly’s closed in 2003.

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23

First National Bank of Farmingdale

The Bank was established in 1907. Adolph Bausch served as its first president until 1913. In addition to Adolph, some of the pioneers of the bank were James F. Michel, Harrison G. Nostrand, Charles Keller, Christopher Fuchs, William H. Trou, Aaron Stern, Frederick A. Kunz, and Charles L. Watkins. In 1957, the bank moved to Main and Conklin Streets.

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24

Farmingdale Public Library

Originally in the Kolkebeck house and then the Main Street School, the library moved to 195 Main Street in 1952. It moved to the southwest corner of Main & Conklin Street in 1959 with Orrin Dow as the Director. A South Branch on Merritts Road was opened in 1961. This & the South branch remained open until 1994 when the current library on Merritts Road was built.

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25

Mahlon Smith Carpenter

Mahlon E. Smith was a carpenter, contractor, and builder. He owned this shop from the 1920s through the early 1950s. Smith was a member of the Volunteer Exempt Firemen’s Benevolent Association. He was a volunteer firefighter for the Farmingdale Fire Department beginning in 1907. He was also a former president for the Village of Farmingdale.

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26

Eagon & Eagon

Henry & Clarissa Eagon received their real estate licenses from New York State in 1927. They were granted a New York State License as a real estate brokerage firm on November 1, 1929. They began being authorized fire insurance agents in January of 1929. They were representatives of the Northwestern National Insurance Company beginning in March of 1930. They filed a certificate of partnership with Nassau County on May 14, 1940. Eagon & Eagon existed in the 1940s to the 1960s.

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27

Hook & Ladder No. 1

Hook and Ladder Company No. 1 was organized in 1886. The Hook & Ladder Co. had its first firehouse on the north side of Conklin Street. The Water Witch’s first house was on Rose Street, but the two joined together in 1892. In 1893, they were moved directly onto Main Street slightly south of its current location.

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28

Bank of Farmingdale

The Bank of Farmingdale was established in 1907. The bank was torn down in the 1920's so that Conklin Street could be widened. In 1952, the Bank of Farmingdale merged with Franklin National Bank. In 1974, European American Bank purchased Franklin National Bank. In 2001, Citibank purchased all of EAB’s offices and decided to close the branch at 266 Main Street. In 2002, the building was purchased and used in addition to 280 Main Street to house the law firm of Carman, Callahan & Ingham.

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29

Wilken's Ice Cream Parlor

Purchased by Gus Oeding and Fred Wilkens in 1929, this shop was best known for its ice cream and confectionary. Fred Wilkens was the manager of the location, as well as owner. It was also known as Pop’s Ice Cream Parlor.

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30

Moby Drugs

Moby Drugs was originally opened in Farmingdale in 1935 by Abner Mobegaht. In 1956, Sal Elbaum and David Budoff purchased the pharmacy. It was purchased in 1980 by current Mayor Ralph Ekstrand alongside Vincent Conte. They co-owned and operated this pharmacy. Mayor Ekstrand earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Pharmacy and became a pharmacist for another company before purchasing and opening Moby Drugs with Conte. In 2008, they sold the business to Prasad Venigalla, but Ekstrand remained as supervising Pharmacist.

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31

Methodist Church

This was the original Methodist Church which was built in 1843, but was formerly known as the Farmingdale Methodist Episcopal Church. The land where this building was erected was donated by Ambrose George. It was a one-room church which could seat approximately 150 people. In 1883, the church was remodeled and a steeple was added. Eventually in 1886, a bell was added to the church, which was also used as an alarm for the fire department. In 1925, this building was sold for $23,000 and the money from the sale was used to begin construction on the current building at the corner of Main Street and Grant Street.

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32

Schmidt's Hardware

Schmidt's Hardware was opened at this location starting in 1915. This store was opened by Charles Otto Schmidt who took over the building from John Duryea, who previously owned a store at this location. It eventually moved to 208 Main Street in 1938 and completely closed in 2008. After Schmidt’s Hardware, the store became Leo Cannady’s.

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