Week 24 - Father's Day - His Homes Through 99 1/2 Years

 

Week 24: Father’s Day – His Homes Through 99 ½ Years

 

My dad was born on April 18^th, 1908. He lived a very long and fulfilling life of 99 years, 4 months, 17 days, passing away quietly of old age, in his own home, on September 4^th, 2007. I was extremely fortunate to have been his son for 67 of those years. I have hundreds of pictures of Dad at all ages, but this is one of the earliest pictures I have of him and me out together.

Yes, car seats were flimsy back in 1941

My dad studied music, art, photography, and architecture and spent his working years as an innovative interior decorator and skilled machinist. He used to laugh and say, “I wanted to be a musician more than anything else, but just couldn’t put food on the table playing the cello.”

Today, when I think about my dad, I always think about the nine houses he called home. After his family, these homes were the objects of his affection and craftsmanship. Fortunately for me, I have pictures of them all.

Greene Avenue, Ridgewood, New York

Dad was born in the front bedroom of the row house on the right. His dad is the man in the straw hat.  Dad is the toddler, in a dress and fancy hat in the center of the picture next to the fence. A dress was common on little boys before potty training was complete. Address: 1555 Greene Avenue, Ridgewood, Queens, New York.

 

Scutt Place, Jamaica, New York

This was our family’s first separate, single-family home. They moved in shortly after it was built in 1912. The only modern amenity missing was electricity. The house still was lit by gaslight. Address: 1 Scutt Place, South Jamaica, Queens, New York.

 

Hollis, Queens, New York

In about 1923, the family moved on up to the village of Hollis in Queens County, New York. Today, we’d call this a new development. That’s my dad standing with his right arm behind his back, next to my grandfather. Grandma is behind the wheel with dad’s sister Grace leaning on the driver’s door. This is the family’s first car…a 1923 Model-T Ford. The picture was taken in 1925, making my dad about 17 years old. Address: 93-03, 206^th Street, Hollis, Queens, New York.

Sound Beach, New York

In the early 1930s, my dad and his father built this family beach house at Sound Beach in Suffolk County on Long Island, New York. I remember asking my dad and grandfather how our family did during the Great Depression of the 1930s, expecting to hear a tale of woe, but to my surprise they both said, “We didn’t have any trouble, we decorated homes of school teachers…they always had money during the Depression.”

Lloyd Street, New Hyde Park, New York

My dad and mom met in 1938, married in 1939, and bought their first house together for a total of $4000. This small, but lovely bungalow, 800 square feet, was the house I was brought home to from the hospital in November 1940. Here’s dad scrapping paint in about 1946, getting it ready for fresh coat of paint. This was the last house we had that was heated by coal. I always looked forward to the once a year arrival of the coalman. He’d arrive in a dump truck, back into the driveway, open a basement window next to the coal bin, fix a metal shute to the back of his truck, and dump about five tons of coal through the window. The noise was horrendous…I loved it!  Address: 32 Lloyd Street, New Hyde Park, Nassau County, New York.

Hillside Avenue, Roslyn Heights, New York

In 1953, my family bought a new, bigger, more modern house about six miles away from Hillside Heights in Roslyn, New York. Now, I felt like we were moving on up again. This was to be my final house living at home during my high school years, 1953-1958. My father lavished some of his best skills on this home. He added a built-in breakfast nook to the kitchen, put Philippine Mahogany paneling on one wall in the living room, built me a big desk and shelves, turned the attic into a beautiful apartment for a family friend, and built me a wooden boat in the garage. Address: 78 Hillside Avenue, Roslyn Heights, New York.

Oceanview Drive, Biddeford, Maine

In 1970, time was ripe for a big move away from densely populated Long Island, New York to the beautiful state of Maine. My parents had vacationed in Maine for years and longed for the opportunity to get away from New York crowds and traffic jams. This house was brand new and again gave my dad the opportunity to use all of his carpentry and interior decorating skills. Here he again finished off the attic, added a skylight, a wooden deck on the end of the house, and another one on the back. There was an ocean tidal basin just down the street and white sandy, ocean beaches about a mile away. This was their retirement home, but my dad found his machine shop and decorating skills were still in high demand, even in Maine. He didn’t stop working until he was 85! I feel like a slacker retiring at 66:-) Address: 6 Oceanview Drive, Biddeford, Maine.

Woodpond Lane, Kennebunk, Maine

By 1995, my dad and stepmom, Vera, finally decided to move to a condo where they could downsize and have all the maintenance to include the yard done for them. This over-55-community was just what they needed. Unfortunately, my stepmom passed away shortly after moving to Kennebunk. Address: 25 Woodpond Lane, Kennebunk, Maine.

Dane Hill Road, Alfred, Maine

In 1996, Dad and a musical friend from church, by the name of Barbara, found they had a great deal in common and married. She was 78 and he was 89. They found this little bungalow to be just what they needed to share their final years together. Barbara and Dad had five very good years together, then she too passed away. It was in this house that he took up the saxophone and played up until about one month before he died at age 99 in September 2007. Address: 20 Dane Hill Road, Alfred, Maine.

All these memories are vivid in my mind in 2021. This blog entry is written for all of you writing or reading Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge, but also for my descendants in years to come.