Photo of the Week
FROM THE SCHS LIBRARY ARCHIVES
“How shall we know it is us without our past?”
– John Steinbeck
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FIRE ISLAND COASTAL FORT / WORLD WAR I ERA
by Wendy Polhemus-Annibell, Head Librarian
On Memorial Day,
we commemorate our brave soldiers
who sacrificed their lives for our freedom.
Fishers Island Coastal Fort: World War I Era, 13th Regiment of Brooklyn. (Image from the Collection of the Suffolk County Historical Society Library Archives. Copyright © Suffolk County Historical Society. All rights reserved.)
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Fort H. G. Wright, begun in 1898, was a U.S. military installation on Fishers Island that was active during the first and second world wars. Named for Union General Horatio G. Wright (1820-1899), the coastal fort guarded the passage into Long Island Sound from the Connecticut shoreline to Great Gull Island, It was linked with Fort Terry, Fort Michie, and Camp Hero. By World War II, the fort had a small airfield. It was decommissioned in 1948.
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported in 1926 that Brooklyn’s 13th Regiment held “one of the most picturesque and impressive review ceremonies in the history of the famous command at Fort H. G. Wright. Generals Charles P. Summerall and Georges A. L. Dumont took the salute of the marching Brooklyn guardsmen. The review of the regiment by the generals culminated a week of formal military pageantry.”
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SUGGESTED READING: The Coastal Forts of Eastern Long Island, by Ruth Ann Bramson, Geoffrey K. Fleming, & Amy K. Folk.
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Be a Witness to History! The Suffolk County Historical Society invites you to be a witness to our living history. Please consider sharing your COVID-19 experiences for our historic archives.
Email your stories to: librarian@schs-museum.org. Be sure to put “COVID-19” in your subject line and to include your location and contact information.
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CLOSURE NOTICE: The Suffolk County Historical Society Museum will remain closed based on the closure order issued by NYS Governor Cuomo in response to the COVID-19 crisis. We are also suspending all upcoming events at this time, and will continue to monitor the situation closely.
The health and safety of our visitors, members, and staff remain the Suffolk County Historical Society’s priority. Every day brings new developments related to the virus, and we understand that uncertainty can be unsettling. Our thoughts are with the entire Suffolk County and Long Island communities and with all who have been impacted by COVID-19.
During our closure, we invite the Long Island community to visit our website for updates and special offerings, including a free subscription to our historic Photo of the Week series and our Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube content: www.
From all of us at the Suffolk County Historical Society, thank you for your continued support through these uncertain times. Stay tuned, and stay safe!
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To View 2014 Photo of the Week pages click here.
To View 2015 Photo of the Week pages click here.
To View 2016 Photo of the Week pages click here.
To View 2017 Photo of the Week pages click here.
To View 2018 Photo of the Week pages click here.
To View 2019 Photo of the Week pages click here.
To View 2020 Photo of the Week pages click here.
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www.suffolkcountyhistoricalsociety.org
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Visit: AAQ / Landmark — World War Memorial, 1923, Agawam Park, Southampton
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AAQ Resource: Westhampton Architectural Glass
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