Other Useful Contacts

Medford, NY

• Medford Music House, 197 Oak Street, Medford, NY 11763; (631) 654-8449; Website:  https://www.medfordmusichouse.com/; Email:  mmh1761@yahoo.com; Contacts:  Mary & Jim Gubitosi, Proprietors (and unofficial village historians).  -- Some years back they created an incipient Medford Historical Society that met one Thursday a month at the Medford Fire House.   At one time they were and perhaps are still gathering material for a museum.
• Medford Chamber of Commerce.   P.O. Box 926, Medford, NY 11763; (631) 386-8899   Website:   https://www.medfordchamberofcommerce.com/
• Medford News Sources: 
            Medford Patch @ https://patch.com/new-york/medford-ny
            Newsday @ https://www.newsday.com/long-island/community/medford

Patchogue, NY

• Greater Patchogue Chamber of Commerce:  15 North Ocean Avenue, Patchogue, NY  11772; Tel.:  (631) 207-1000; Fax:  (631) 475-1599; Website:  https://www.patchogue.com/
• Greater Patchogue Historical Society, P.O. Box 102, Patchogue, NY 11772; Website:  https://www.greaterpatchoguehistoricalsociety.com/
• Incorporated Village of Patchogue.  Historian:  Hans Henke, 78 North Prospect Avenue, Patchogue, NY  11772; Tel.:  (631) 289-1062 (home); Email:  hiam52@yahoo.com; Note:  Copies of Patchogue: The Early Years and Patchogue:  The Twentieth Century are available directly through the author, Mr. Henke, each priced @ $26.00.
• Cemeteries:
  • Cedar Grove Cemetery Association, 80 Jennings Avenue, Patchogue, NY   11772; tel.: (631) 447-1971; Email: patchoguecedargrove@gmail.com; Website: https://patchoguecedargrove.wixsite.com/patchoguecedargrove -- Note:  Some initial burials here were later transferred to Lakeview Cemetery
  • Lakeview Cemetery: Friends of The Lakeview Cemeteries (formerly the Cemetery Restoration Committee) c/o Greater Patchogue Foundation, 15 North Ocean Avenue, Patchogue, NY  11772;  Website: https://www.facebook.com/CRCPatchogue/ and https://www.patchoguecemetery.org/ (formerly http://www.cemeteryrestorationcommittee.com)  Note:  Lakeview Cemetery, actually 5 cemeteries in 1, had been overgrown and seriously vandalized,  but starting in 2006, restoration and maintenance of the cemetery has resumed, and the Friends are seeking funds to ensure regular, long term maintenance of the cemetery.  -- Some burials, initially interred in Cedar Grove Cemetery, were transferred here.
  • Patchogue Hebrew Cemetery: 208-212 Peconic Ave, Holtsville, NY 11742; Patchogue Hebrew Cemetery Association: Contact:  Liz Efimetz, Principal Officer, EIN# 11-6076275, P.O. Box 293, Patchogue, NY 11772; Tel.:  (631) 475-0310; affiliated with Temple Beth-El of Patchogue, 45 Oak Street, Patchogue, NY  11772; Tel.:  (631) 475-1882 -- Some burials, initially interred in other cemeteries, were transferred here.
  • St. Francis de Sales Cemetery, East 2nd St., Patchogue, NY  11772; affiliated with St. Francis de Sales R.C. Church, 7 Amity Street, Patchogue, NY; Tel:  (631) 475-0161.

Brookhaven (N.Y. : Town)

• Brookhaven Town Historian:   Barbara Russell, Brookhaven Town Hall, One Independence Hill, Historian's Office, Farmingville, NY  11738; Tel.:  (631) 451-8038; Fax:  (631) 451-8039, Web Page:  https://www.brookhavenny.gov/524/History

Suffolk County, NY

--  Archaeology

• Suffolk County Archaeological Association:  P.O. Box 1542, Stony Brook, NY  11790; Tel.: (631) 929-8725; Fax:  (631) 929-6967;  Website:  https://scaa-ny.org/

--  History

• East Hampton Library.  The Morton Pennypacker Long Island Collection, 159 Main Street, East Hampton, NY 11937.  Department Tel.:  (631) 324-0222, ext. 4; Web page:  http://easthamptonlibrary.org/long-island-history/
• Smithtown Library.  Richard H. Handley Collection of Long Island Americana, 1 North Country Road, Smithtown, NY  11787.  Tel.:  (631) 360-2480, Ext. 197; Web Page:  https://smithlib.org/long-island-room.html
• Suffolk County Historical Society, 300 West Main Street, Riverhead, NY 11901-2894.  Tel.:  (631) 727-2881.  Fax:  (631) 727-3467; Hours:  12:30-4:30 P.M.:  Museum:  Tu-Sat; Library:  W-Sat -- The Society maintains a museum, library & archives, Weathervane Gift Shop (located in the museum basement), and conducts educational programs.  The latter is one of L.I.’s best-stocked, best-kept open secrets:  a fine source of local history material, ranging from children’s historically-oriented coloring books and historical fluff & puffery, to local history classics, hard-to-find & out-of-print works, as well as recent publications & new scholarship in local history, archaeology, and anthropology.  S.C.H.S.  published The Register; and now the Newsletter of the Suffolk County Historical Society (online back issues)
          Main website:  http://suffolkcountyhistoricalsociety.org/
          Library & Archives web page:  http://suffolkcountyhistoricalsociety.org/library.html 
          Suffolk County Museum web page:  http://suffolkcountyhistoricalsociety.org/museum.html 
          Weathervane Gift Shop web page:  http://suffolkcountyhistoricalsociety.org/gifts.html  
          Journal of the Suffolk County Historical Society (formerly The Register) web page:  http://www.suffolkcountyhistoricalsociety.org/the_journal.html
          Newsletter of the Suffolk County Historical Society web page (Media Room):  http://suffolkcountyhistoricalsociety.org/media.html 

Suffolk County, NY -- Government Records & Archives

• Suffolk County Archivist, Office of the County Clerk. Historic Documents Library, 310 Center Drive, Riverhead, NY 11901-3392.  Tel: (631) 852-2000, ext. 700.Fax: (631) 852-2004; Web Pages & directories of particular interest:  
            Historic Documents Library                             
                   https://www.suffolkcountyny.gov/Elected-Officials/County-Clerk/Historic-Documents-Library  
            Suffolk Historical Societies, comp. by Sharon A. Pullen 
                   https://www.suffolkcountyny.gov/Elected-Officials/County-Clerk/Historic-Documents-Library/Historical-Societies
           Archives and Manuscript Repositories in Nassau and Suffolk Counties, comp. by Sharon A. Pullen    
                   https://www.suffolkcountyny.gov/Elected-Officials/County-Clerk/Historic-Documents-Library/Repository-Directory
• Suffolk County Clerk: 310 Center Drive, Riverhead, NY 11901.  Tel.: (631) 852-2000; web page:  https://www.suffolkcountyny.gov/Elected-Officials/County-Clerk -- Note esp. the entry on Torrens.  The County Clerk’s and County Surrogate’s Office (in the same building) are prime places to research  the history of house ownership in Suffolk County.  You will need your Suffolk County Property Tax I.D. number to access online records.
• Suffolk County Clerk’s Office.  Historical Documents Library  [Alphabetic Nassau-Suffolk Repository Listing] https://www.suffolkcountyny.gov/Elected-Officials/County-Clerk/Historic-Documents-Library/Repository-Directory – Contact information is likely to have changed. But, the institutions are likely to have retained materials pertinent to their geographic locale and/or area(s) of specialization.
• Suffolk County Police Historical Society [& Museum], The John L. Barry Suffolk County Police Headquarters, (P.O. Box 343), 30 Yaphank Avenue, Yaphank, NY 11980; tel.: (631) 852-6174.  Hours: 10 AM - 4 PM daily.

Long Island, NY

-- History & Historical Societies

• Long Island Radio and TV Historical Society – Preserving Wireless History,  41 Sayville Boulevard, Sayville, NY  11782.  Telephone: (631) 589-2700; Email: liradiotelevision@gmail.com; Website:  http://www.lirtvhs.org/
• Long Island Rail Road, Alphabetical Station Listing and History – Compiled from data researched by Vincent F. Seyfried, Robert M. Emery, Art Huneke, and Jeff Erlitz.  Website: http://www.trainsarefun.com/lirrphotos/LIRR%20STATION%20HISTORY.pdf
• Long Island Studies Council, 496 Clarendon Road, Uniondale, NY 11553; Contact:  Dr. Natalie Naylor, Co-President; Founder & Director Emerita, of Hofstra University’s Long Island Studies Institute
• National Railway Historical Society.  Long Island Sunrise Trail Chapter,  NRHS-LIST, P.O. Box 507, Babylon, NY 11702-0507.  Email:  LISunriseTrail@yahoo.com.  Website:  http://www.nrhs-list.org/ 

Libraries, Archives, & Special Collections

• Hofstra University.  Special Collections Department.  Long Island Studies Institute.  Room 032.  Contact:  Prof. Geri Solomon, Assistant Dean of Special Collections, tel.:  (516) 463-6407.  Website:  http://www.hofstra.edu/Library/libspc/libspc_lisi_main.html.  -- The Institute and Special Collections Department at Hofstra University’s Axinn Library (see below) are rich sources of information on both Nassau County and Long Island history, as well as of N.Y.S. and U.S. general and suburban historical studies
• Hofstra University.  Joan and Donald E. Axinn Library.  Special Collections Department.  Long Island Studies Institute Collections.  Website: @ http://www.hofstra.edu/pdf/Library/libspc_lisi_collections.pdf  – excellent resource
• Long Island Library Resources Council.  Contact:  LILRC Regional Archivist.  Tel.:  (631) 675-1570; Fax:  (631) 675-1573. Main web pages: 
         Regional Archival Services @ https://lilrc.org/page/archival_services
         New York Heritage Digital Collections (a consortia service of the Empire State Library Network) @ https://nyheritage.org/
• State University of New York at Stony Brook.  Special Collections and University Archives:   Stony Brook University Libraries, Frank Melville, Jr. Memorial Library, Room E-2320 Stony Brook, NY  11794-3323; Contact:  Kristen J. Nyitray, Head, Special Collections & University Archives / University Archivist / Associate Librarian. Tel.:  (631) 632-7119, Email:  Kristen.nyitray@stonybrook.edu ; Lynn Toscano, Asst. Head, University Archives and Special Collections, Email:  lynn.toscano@stonybrook.edu.  Main web pages:  
         Special Collections and University Archives, Contact Information: 
                https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/libspecial/aboutus/contact.php
         Guide to Special Collections, A to Z Listing:  
                https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/libspecial/collections/manuscripts/
         Long Island Collections (Digital Collections):  
                https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/libspecial/collections/digital.php
         Maps and Atlases:  https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/libspecial/collections/maps.php
         University Archives:  https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/libspecial/collections/archives/
         Note:  The University Libraries’ Archives & Special Collections include excellent L.I-related  resources and a LI / NYS-
         related map collection, that is is the best on L.I., short of NYC.  The Map Library is in the Frank Melville, Jr. Memorial
         Library, 2nd Floor.

Museums

• Cradle of Aviation Museum and Education Center, Charles Lindbergh Boulevard, Garden City, NY 11530.  Tel.:  (516) 572-4111.  Website:  https://www.cradleofaviation.org/ 
• Long Island Maritime Museum:  (P.O. Box 184), 86 West Avenue, West Sayville, NY  11796; Tel.:  (631) 447-8679.  Website:  @ http://limaritime.org/
• Long Island Museum Association [LIMA], P.O. Box 1063, Huntington, NY  11743; website: @ https://www.longislandmuseumassociation.org/

New York City

• Center For Brooklyn History (formerly Long Island Historical Society and Brooklyn Historical Society)  https://www.bklynlibrary.org/center-for-brooklyn-history -- Includes much material on the rest of L.I., as well.  See also  Brooklyn Newsstand:  Brooklyn Daily Eagle, under Newspapers (below)
• New York Public Library https://www.nypl.org/
• New York City Municipal Archives http://www.archives.nyc/
• New York Genealogical and Biographical Society  https://www.newyorkfamilyhistory.org/  
• New York Historical Society (New York, NY)  http://www.nyhistory.org/
• Queens Borough Public Library.  Long Island Room, Jamaica, NY.  Tel.:  (718) 990-0728

New York State

• APHNYS – Association of Public Historians of New York State  Website:  Find an Historian:  https://www.aphnys.org/Find-A-Historian Lets you search for contact information by county, name, or region  (some are difficult to find, such as Suffolk Town Historians), also offers a Speaker’s Bureau, historical markers links, and an Historians’ Manual, among other useful resources. 
• New York State Archives.  Metro-Long Island Region (Part of Catskill-Hudson Valley Region, Bronx, Kings, Nassau, New York, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk and Westchester Counties):  Lorraine Hill, Regional Advisory Officer; Suffolk State Office Building, Room 3A, Veterans Memorial Highway, Hauppauge, NY  11788-5501; tel.:  (631) 521-9796; Email: Lorraine.Hill-Campbell@nysed.gov; NYS Archives website: http://www.archives.nysed.gov/
• New York State Historical Society (Cooperstown, NY)  https://www.nyhistory.org/
• New York State Museum  http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/
• New York State Library
           Digital Collections   http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/scandocs/ 
           Electronic Resources  http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/elecres.htm
          Excelsior:  New York State Library/Archives/Museum Catalog  https://nyst.sirsi.net/uhtbin/cgisirsi/x/x/0/49/
                  Note: Includes Nassau & Suffolk portions of NYS Historical Documents Inventory not available in print, 
                   elsewhere -- listing archival holdings of surveyed institutions, and their location at the time of the survey
• Ask a Librarian  https://www.nysl.nysed.gov/askalibrarian.htm  

United States

• U.S. Library of Congress  https://www.loc.gov/ 
• U.S. National Archives  https://www.archives.gov/
• U.S. Smithsonian Institution  https://www.si.edu/ 
• U.S. National Personnel Records Center (St. Louis, MO)  https://www.archives.gov/st-louis/military-personnel 
• U.S. Navy.  Library.  Ships History Branch https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories.html 

Newspapers    

• NYS Historic Newspapers:  Suffolk County, New York (formerly Suffolk Historic Newspapers) - Contains selected runs of weekly newspapers, selected by public libraries from nine regions of the County.   Website: https://nyshistoricnewspapers.org/?a=p&p=countybrowser&county=Suffolk
• Brooklyn Newsstand:  Brooklyn Daily Eagle Online, 1841-1963 (Brooklyn Public Library.  Brooklyn Collection) - Click on Brooklyn Daily Eagle:  This daily (as opposed to weekly) newspaper covered not only Brooklyn, but Long Island communities, from Brooklyn to Montauk & Orient, and points in-between.  It rewards searching.  https://bklyn.newspapers.com/   
• Searchable at Patchogue-Medford Library, through the Library's subscription, and at many other Long Island area Libraries are the New York Times Historical 1851-2007 and  Newsday Historical 1940-1984, as well as their current editions.  Both often prove valuable sources of Long Island historical information.