News from the Farm

January, 2025

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Happy New Year from Hallockville Museum Farm!

First and foremost, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to all who generously contributed to our Annual Appeal. Your support is the lifeline of Hallockville Museum Farm to care for our 19 historical buildings, the rich 28 acres of our grounds, and our dedicated team of both full-time and part-time staff, not to mention our cherished animals and the diverse events and programs we offer.

This year holds special significance as we continue our work on the Adaptive Reuse Project for the Naugles Barn, a transformative initiative that has received partial funding from the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA). This project will breathe new life into the barn, equipping it with modern indoor restrooms and ADA accessibility, as well as installing a heating system to extend its use throughout the year. Not only will this space serve our museum, but it will also be available for the community and for outside rentals, generating vital income to sustain Hallockville’s mission of preserving the agricultural heritage of the North Fork.

However, we still have a journey ahead to fully fund this pivotal project, and we invite you to join us in this endeavor. Your contributions can make a tangible difference, ensuring that our treasured museum farm continues to thrive and to serve as a beacon of local heritage and sustainability.

Please consider donating to support the Naugles Barn Adaptive Reuse Project and be a part of our exciting future.

Click here: Naugles Barn Donation

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Left to right: New staircase leading to the second floor, second floor storage space, restroom area.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Remembering John Anderson and Thanking the Tuesday Crew

Most of the members of the Tuesday Crew. John Anderson is in the forefront.

If you wander into Hallockville on any given Tuesday, you just might find a group of talented men with hammers in hand, cheerfully fixing or building something. Hallockville would not be what it is today without the efforts of the Tuesday Crew who have helped make the museum farm the community resource it is today. John Anderson of Sag Harbor was instrumental in bringing the Crew to Hallockville for the first time over 20 years ago. John recently passed at age 98, and the Hallockville family is grateful for his long-time dedication.

The Crew is currently comprised of David Higbee, Jim Calkins, Ben Zukosky, Willie Martin, Gary Ristau, Dick Romeo and John Consiglio. The group of skilled craftsmen got its start on a ship restoration project in Greenport and soon found itself helping not-for-profits on both the North and South Forks. David, a past Hallockville Board member, has been keeping track of the many and varied jobs completed by the Crew, and recording their work is a job itself—the over 1400 projects fill 53 lined pages. 

There is no building or structure at Hallockville that has not been touched and improved by the Tuesday Crew. When the Cichanowicz House was donated to the museum farm, it was – in a word – a wreck. The Crew rehabilitated the main floor from the bottom up, providing for the valuable museum space that now showcases the Polish immigrant experience. They also constructed a rental apartment on the second floor, an important revenue source and often providing needed housing for staff. 

Likewise, the Naugles Barn was in very bad shape when it was moved to Hallockville from farther down Sound Avenue. The Tuesday Crew ripped out and replaced flooring, and repaired doors and windows. Ditto for the Trubisz and the Sprout Houses. And in the Hallock Homestead, they repaired the flooring in the parlor and dining room using recycled period wood recovered from the Homestead Barn. 

There is so much more – just to name a few- we thank the Tuesday Crew for:

·      Building the bell tower in front of the Hudson House

·      Erecting new columns on the Homestead front porch

·      Building the display shelter structure for the Farmall tractor

·      Replacing the shed on the west side of the Homestead

·      Restoring the portable lavatory trailer (critical for renting the Naugles barn)

·      Putting a new cedar roof on the shoe shop

·      Repairing the smokehouse

·      Rehabilitating the outhouse

·      Tearing out the rotten floor of the pig sty, pouring new cement and building the new quarters for our friends Millie and Bear

·      Building a new cow feeder

Oh, and did you see the new picket fence along Sound Avenue in front of the Homestead? This is made up of 500 handcrafted spindles and spans over 200 feet. And they are not done yet.

John made the long trip from Sag Harbor to the North Fork many hundreds of times over the last 20 plus years. He cheerfully engaged with many projects at Hallockville and at the end of every session John would say “We did some good today.” This has become the Crew’s mantra. Our heartfelt thanks to the Tuesday Crew. We will always remember John and all he did for Hallockville. 

Written by Christine Killorin

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Become a Volunteer at Hallockville Museum Farm

Speaking of volunteering, are you passionate about history, agriculture, old buildings or community engagement? We have a plethora of volunteer opportunities at Hallockville. By volunteering, you’ll play a vital role in keeping the museum farm’s traditions alive and supporting its programs for visitors of all ages.

Why Volunteer with Us?

  • Hands-On Experience: Work on activities such as historic house tours, building and grounds maintenance, special events, exhibits, school field trips and gardening.
  • Community Impact: Contribute to preserving a piece of the North Fork’s agricultural history.
  • Skill Development: Gain valuable skills in historical preservation, event coordination and more.
  • Meet New People: Be part of a welcoming community of like-minded individuals who share your love of history and the outdoors.

No prior experience required – training will be provided.

To sign up, head to Volunteer at Hallockville.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Upcoming Events

There is still time to register for the virtual presentation “Dead Bees Don’t Make Honey” by author Theresa Martin on January 23 at 7 p.m. She will explore ways to manage bee colonies and increase honey production. You do not have to be a beekeeper to sign up and learn something from this presentation.

To register to receive a Zoom link, email asstdirector@hallockville.org.

For more information about our beekeeping programs, head to https://hallockville.org/beekeeping-program/

Our Candle Making Workshop on February 9 is sold out. To be put on a waiting list, please email asstdirector@hallockville.org.

Events are added to our website continually.

To see what we have in store so far for 2025, go to https://hallockville.org/.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Camp Registration Is Open!

This frigid weather has us thinking about the summer, and summer at Hallockville would not be complete without our one-of-a-kind farm camp. Our camp is so loved that it won Best of the Best North Fork Camp by Dan’s Papers in 2024!

For more information about all of the fun things campers can look forward to and to register, head to Summer Camp. Take advantage of the early bird discounts and register by February 15.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Did You Know?

Board member Richard Wines has told the story of Captain Zachariah Hallock’s chair in the “best” parlor of the Homestead hundreds of times. He has described how Capt. Hallock’s brother-in-law, Rufus Youngs, made Capt. Hallock and his bride a set of chairs as a wedding present. But he always wondered if the story was accurate, if a simple farmer who lived just down the road (near the intersection of Northville Turnpike) could have made such a fancy chair or if he had purchased it. 

Richard recently attended a lecture “The Trials and Tribulations of Preserving the Dominy Family Home and Workplace” at the Cutchogue Historical Society and learned of a book titled Long Island Is My Nation by Dean Fisher. He picked up a copy and found, much to his surprise, that Rufus Youngs was actually an accomplished furniture maker (in addition to farming) and is documented in the book! 

The chair in the photo above is similar to the chair in the Homestead’s best parlor. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Out and About

Buildings and Grounds Manager Matt Boyle took some photos around the farm right before the holidays. No matter the season, there is always a reason to visit Hallockville.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We eagerly look forward to seeing you at the Farm soon.

To a wonderful 2025!

All the best,

Heather

Heather Johnson

Executive Director

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

hallockville.org | (631) 298-5292

————

Facebook  Instagram

Hallockville Museum Farm | 6038 Sound Avenue | Riverhead, NY 11901 US

—————————–

===================================================== 

Visit Website Here.

AAQ / Resource: Christopher Jeffrey Architects

=======================================================

AAQ / Resource: Townsend Manor Inn

Old Fashioned Hospitality

============================================= 

AAQ / Resource: Riverhead GMC

__________________________________________________