About the Society:

The Historical Society of Greater Port Jefferson was founded in 1967. Its purpose is to discover, preserve, and disseminate knowledge about the history of the Greater Port Jefferson area. Monthly meetings with historical presentations are held from September to June. The Society prepares annual exhibits and maintains the Mather House Museum at 115 Prospect Street. A fund-raising auction is held every autumn.

Mather Museum is open from Memorial Day Weekend to Labor Day. The hours are June: Sat. and Sun. 1 - 4 p.m. July and August: Tues., Wed., Sat. & Sun., 1 - 4 p.m. For information: (631) 473-2665 You are cordially invited to become a member.

About Port Jefferson:

Incorporated in 1963, Port Jefferson was originally called Drowned Meadow because the downtown area was tidal and "drowned" by the tide twice a day. Today’s Main Street was created when Capt. William L. Jones built a causeway across the 22 acre salt marsh in 1836. The marsh was then gradually filled in. Today’s Main Street was first called Jones Street. Its businesses supplemented the village’s shipbuilding industry which was the largest in Suffolk County. Four out of ten ships built in the county were constructed here. The village was the home of coastal schooner captains, blue water sailors and seamen. Most families had at least one or two members building ships or at sea.

1. Chamber of Commerce
   Roe House, 118 West Broadway
   (circa 1682) The John Roe House is saltbox in design and originally stood at the edge of the saltmarsh at the corner of present day Main St. and East Main. John Roe, a shoemaker, and the first resident of Drowned Meadow, lived in the house. It was moved in 1896 to a location near the railroad tracks. The house was moved to its present site in 1982, and now serves as a community information center maintained by the Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce.
   
   
2. Marina and Ferry Dock
   102 West Broadway
   John Richard Mather, one of the leading shipbuilders of the village, built marine railways for his shipyard here in 1841. The railway can still be seen at extreme low tides. The shipyard, formerly by Old Mill Creek, was moved to this location by 1878. In 1883, Mather built the Nonowantuc, first ferry on the Bridgeport-Port Jefferson Steamboat Company line. Mather also built the original Park City, which served as a ferry from 1898 to 1949. In 1902, the Martha E. Wallace, a 218’ four-masted schooner, largest vessel built in Port Jefferson, was launched from this yard. The last Mather ship was built here in 1908. The Bridgeport-Port Jefferson Steamboat Company has operated continuously from this site since 1883, making it one of the longest active ferry companies in the country.
   
   
3. Thomas Jefferson Statue
   Corner of Main Street and Broadway
   In 1836, Drowned Meadow was renamed Port Jefferson in honor of Thomas Jefferson at the urging of shipbuilder Elisha Bayles, an ardent Jeffersonian Democrat. Jefferson had helped the Village acquire funds for dredging the harbor channel. The statue dedicated on July 4, 1994, was sculpted by Domenico Facci.
   
   
4. Chandler Square
   98 Main Street
   (circa 1976) Chandler Square is built on the site of the Mather & Jones lumberyard, later the location of a series of automobile agencies. Chandler Square, complete with courtyards and landscaping, was finished in 1976. The Square was the beginning of Port Jefferson’s revitalization in the 1970s.
   
   
5. Barker's Hotel
   109 Main Street
   (circa 1873) Only the four dormers remain to tell of the original 1873 hotel, known as Barker's Hotel from 1901 to 1930. Vacationers attracted by the harbor beaches filled the rooms when Port Jefferson was in its heyday as a resort. Barker's was later used by engineers of Lake Submarine, CT, scientists and engineers from Rocky Point RCA Station, then by officers from the U.S. Naval Fleet stationed in local waters during WWII.
   
   
6. Ardencraig Inn Site
   100 Main Street
   (circa 1873) Described by many as the finest hotel in the village, this hotel hosted card parties, social events and readings by well known authors. The Mather Shipyard’s launching party for the Martha E. Wallace was held here in 1902. Henry Ford was a guest during the Port Jefferson Automobile Club race of 1910. The hotel burned down on March 2, 1920. A bowling alley and billiard parlor took its place; later it became a car dealership, then a supermarket before being acquired by the present retail store.
   
   
7. The Clock
   Corner of Main Street and Arden Place
   Built in 1881, this Railroad Station Clock with original brass gears first stood in Northport, Maine. Purchased in 1973 by Tex Spinney, a resident and avid clock collector, it was donated to the Village in December, 1998.
   
   
8. Elk's Hotel
   201 Main Street
   From 1850, Effingham Tuthill’s carriages, known for their quality, were built on this location. Tuthill produced three times as many carriages as any other New York area competitor. The carriage business continued here until 1920, when the site became the Elk’s Hotel. Owned by the Koutrakos family for more than eight decades and three generations, it was the place for elegant people to dine in a fashionable restaurant. Under new ownership the restaurant is still a popular meeting place for local residents and visitors alike.
   
   
9. Randall Pharmacy
   211 Main Street
   (circa 1850) This two story wood-framed Italianate building has a bracketed roof overhang featuring decorative medallions. It originally had a carved wooden awning. First a pharmacy, the building also housed the village’s telephone exchange run by Randall’s two daughters. Selah E. Randall owned Suwasseff Chief, one of the fastest race horses from Brookhaven during the later 1800s.
   
   
10. Randall Auto Agency
    213 Main Street
    (1893) Arthur Randall (son of Selah E.) began a bicycle business which grew so rapidly he constructed this building as a store and dwelling. Randall then opened the first village car dealership selling Maxwells, then Fords. The building became the home of the largest Ford dealership in Suffolk County. Randall was appointed as Customs Director by the U.S. Government. Port Jefferson was a Port of Entry with the Customs House located on East Main Street.
    
    
11. Original Fire House
    217 Main Street
    (1887) The Port Jefferson Fire Department, established on March 1,1887, moved into its fire house by Nov. 4, 1887. One bay of the building housed the fire truck, the other bay housed the horses. A mechanic’s bell from Bayles Shipyard was placed in a tower atop the building. The tower base is still on the roof. The building served as the fire house until Sept 1927, when it became a retail store.
    
    
12. Darling's Building
    221 Main Street
    (circa 1920-23) Built by W. E. Darling, the Dave Phillips Livery Stable was replaced by this Italianate townhouse styled building with bracketed overhang roof. Originally a meat market, it is still in the Darling Family. It is now the local Sunday morning meeting place and campaign center for candidates running for any local public office. Office seekers meet village residents as they buy their Sunday papers at "Darling’s."
    
    The Italianate townhouse next door at 225 Main Street replaced the corral used by the Phillips Livery Stable.
    
    
13. Tax Office/Youth Bureau
    227 Main Street
    (1900) This building was The First National Bank of Port Jefferson, built in 1900. The Romanesque elements of round-topped arches, a round tower with conical roof, eye-brow dormers and decorative brick masonry made this bank "one of the most thoroughly complete and up-to-date institutions" of its time. It had maple floors with polished oak woodwork, was electrically lit and had central heat. Built entirely by local craftsmen, the bank was a source of community pride. It serves today as the Brooknaven Town Tax Office and Youth Bureau.
    
    
14. Billie's 1890
    304 Main Street
    (1890) This three story brick building originally had an elaborate front porch. Owned by Irving Swezey, the building first housed a pharmacy, then a fruit store and was later the local office for the Long Island Lighting Co. Adorned with its unique roofline, the structure has become a popular local landmark.
    
    
15. Townsend House
    415 & 417 Main Street
    (circa 1682) The Roe House originally stood on the red sandstone foundation on the Main St. side of the building. known as the Townsend House Inn from 1847 to the 1920s, the present three-story center addition was built in 1868. At the turn of the century, the Inn served as a stagecoach depot for Hotel Square when hotels and restaurants were on every corner of Main Street and East Main Street. Visitors from New York City and CT flocked to the village to enjoy the harbor beaches and eateries.
    
    
16. Masonic Temple
    312 Main Street
    (circa 1854) Built as a Presbyterian Church in the Italianate style, the building’s original exterior features include the round-arched windows and entry, the diamond-pane window sash and the bracketed eaves. When the Masonic Lodge purchased the building in 1910, the church belfry tower was modified and reduced to its current height.
    
    
17. First Presbyterian Church
    Main and South Street
    (circa 1910) At the time of its dedication in March, 1912, the church had nearly 220 members. The Georgian styled church of cherry brick has side pedimented gables with dentil trim. The 12 over 12 windows are in arched enclosures. The square entryway with paneled double doors are under an elaborate decorative crown topped by an octagonal dome belfry.
    
    
18. Richard Hallock House
    503 Main Street
    (circa 1869) Richard Hallock built this square two story house with a wrap-around porch immediately after the Civil War. Hallock was listed in the 1860 census as a "Boss Mason." A lumber yard owned by Joseph Brewster, lumber merchant, occupied the northern part of this same property when Hallock built his house.
    
    
19. Capt. John Tooker House
    110 South Street
    (circa 1840) The Italianate two-story, side-gabled house with a three-bay front facade was a popular style during the Federal and Greek Revival periods. The Capt. John Tooker house has shingle siding, boxed eaves with bold returns, an entrance with a simple architrave surround and sidelights. The veranda has tapered posts on square pedestals. The posts have chamfers enriched with bead and reel molding.
    
    
20. Hawkins House
    112 South Street
    (circa 1850) Thomas B. Hawkins was a schooner captain at 16. He became a designer of yachts and designed the Wanderer, the vessel that made the last slave trading voyage from Africa to the United States in 1858. Hawkins' home is Greek Revival in style with a three-bay front facade and a trabeated doorway with front veranda. The original house also has an Italianate style addition with arched windows. The half-hull of the Wanderer can be seen on exhibit at the John Richard Mather House Museum on Prospect Street.
    
    
21. Hallock House
    116 South Street
    (circa 1849) Captain Henry Hallock built seven coastal schooners and one sloop between 1855 and 1878. His grandson, Albert H. Hallock, was a noted local historian who researched and recorded the ships built in the village.
    
    
22. Capt. Punderson House
    117 South Street
    (circa 1844-54) Capt. George M. Punderson was listed as a 24 year old "Captain of a Vessel" in the 1860 census. He lived here in this attractive house with his wife Lucy and daughter, Mary A. Punderson.
    
    
23. Capt. Hugh Wallace House
    123 South Street
    (circa 1880) This house was home to Capt. Hugh Wallace. Born in New Zealand, he went to sea at the age of 12. Between 1888 and 1913, Capt. Wallace was master of three Port Jefferson sailing vessels: Atalanta, the Elsie A. Bayles, and the Manuel R. Cuza. He became captain of steel tankers for the Esso Oil Company before retiring after 65 years as a mariner. Capt. Wallace was one of many of Port Jefferson’s seafarers who mastered vessels spanning the age of sail to the age of steam and diesel power.
    
    
24. Ezra Hart House
    202 South Street
    (circa 1855) Ezra Hart is listed in the 1860 census as a "shipsmith." His sons, Thomas and George, had the same occupation. This two-story, front-gabled Greek Revival house has a three-bay front facade. It has shingled siding, boxed eaves with returns, a triangular light in the gable, and a simple, trabeated entrance.
    
    
25. William M. Jones House
    125 South Street
    (circa 1840-1841) Captain William L. Jones built this house on Jones St. (now Main St.). Left to his son, William Mather Jones, the house originally looked over the marsh to the open harbor and was known as the Point House as it stood on a point of land that extended Into the marsh. The house was moved to its present location in the 1920s.
    
    
26. Samuel S. Still House
    409 High Street
    (1851) Samuel S. Still, a boatman, and his wife, Urania, built and lived in this house for over fifty years. It is a sidegabled, one and a half storied house with lie-on-your-belly windows. Its simple architecture makes it a fine example of a working class family home.
    
    
27. Sylvester Wines House
    401 High Street
    (circa 1855) Sylvester Wines was married to Miami Tooker, niece of James Madison Bayles and Charles Lloyd Bayles, of the leading shipbuilding family of Port Jefferson. Wines himself built five schooners during the time of the Civil War. This charming house has elements of Greek Revival architecture with a full-width entry porch supported with columns. The door surround has a narrow line transom and sidelights.
    
    
28. John Richard Mather House
    115 Prospect Street
    (circa 1840) The original part of this house was built about 1840. The front of the house faced west toward the Mather Shipyard. The front addition, with classic broken pediment details on the wrap-around columned porch, was added in the 1860s. J.R. Mather and his son, John Titus Mather, were leading shipbuilders of the area from 1836 to 1902. J.T. Mather's will provided an endowment for the construction of the John T. Mather Memorial Hospital, built in 1929. The house is presently a museum run by the Historical Society of Greater Port Jefferson.