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FALL 2008

INSIDE

Remembering the Pastwith PresentsUnveiling the

Conservancy’s collectionat Village Hall.

A Celebration of Art!A toast to our tenth at a gallery filled

with fine art.

Hyde and Go Seek.A delightful day in search of history.

Prescott Perfect.Touring a ballroom

beauty on the hilltop.

In for life.Marilynn Hill appointed

Life co-chair ofthe Conservancy.

PLUS...History Mystery Revealed.Welcome to Class of 2011

Website in the Works.

And more...

Above: Portrait of Catherine Masterton, by one ofBronxville’s earliest artists, William R. Hamilton, was featured in the

OSilas art exhibit, Bronxville Artists &Friends: Legacies Past and Future.

More inside!

JFK’s legendary speechwriter delivers his own.

Ted Sorensen to speak at 11th Annual Brendan Gill Lecture February 27, 2009 at Concordia College

He helped JFK make history with a single phrase, “Ask notwhat your country can do for you -- ask what you can dofor your country.”

But Theodore Sorensen, John F. Kennedy’s speechwriter,was far more than a wordsmith for the former presidentwho grew up in Bronxville. He was Kennedy’s closest advisor -- some say his “alter-ego,” who was at the verycenter of critical events in American history during thelatter half of the 20th century. "During my 11 years withJFK, my most important national contributions -- advisinghim on civil rights, on the decision to go to the moon andespecially on the Cuban missile crisis -- did not center onspeechwriting," Sorensen writes in his newest book, Counselor: A Life at the Edge of History.

It’s been written that the memoir is “at bottom a lovestory -- the author's expression of his deep and abidinglove for American ideals, for their expression in Americanpolitics, for his remarkable mother and father and, perhaps most of all, for Jack Kennedy.”

You’re invited to hear his own words at the Conservancy’s 11th Brendan Gill Lecture on Friday, February 27, 2009, 8 p.m. at Concordia College’s Sommer Center. Mark your calendar to be there.

He just might leave you speechless.

“Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans - born in this century, tem-

pered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage - and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this Nation has always been committed,and to which we are committed today at home and around the world.”

An excerpt from JFK’s inaugural address, 1-20-61

Bronxville, New York

A Publication of

The Bronxville Historical Conservancy

No harm in judging this book by its cover!The art catalog that was created to accom-

pany the Bronxville Artists & Friends: LegaciesPast and Future exhibit is one of the most com-prehensive pieces ever published on the worksof Bronxville artists. And the most beautiful.

The publication not only illustrates the mostcurrent OSilas exhibit, but also includes the Con-servancy's collection of Bronxville artists' workson permanent display at Village Hall. With aforeword by Jayne Warman and a look atBronxville’s artistic heritage by Marilynn Wood Hill, the 64-page full-colorcatalog gives descriptive characterizations of each painting, as well as bi-ographies and lists of the former residents’ works.

“The exhibition itself made visual connections in style, medium, subjectmatter and across a 175-year timespan. The catalogue, however, servesnot only as an aide-memoire of the exhibition, but it puts into historical per-spective the many Bronxville artists who played such an important role inthe life of the village -- and still do,” noted Jayne Warman, curator.

We owe a full palette of appreciation to Jayne and editor Marilynn Hillwho collaborated on the project, working endlessly throughout the summerto produce the masterpiece. “We saw our work as a gift to the communityin celebration of the Conservancy’s 10th anniversary,” said Marilynn -- whowas multi-tasking this editing effort while working on the upcoming editionof The Bronxville Journal.

“To be able to show the same works of art in two such different formswas very exciting indeed,” added Jayne, who thanks the OSilas Gallery forits beautiful exhibition space and the Conservancy for this catalogue thatwill endure long after the works are returned to their owners. Each memberhas received a complimentary copy; additional copies are available.

Remembering the Past with Presents

COVER STORY

BY NANCY HAND

“A resounding success” and “simplymarvelous” were just two of the phrasesused to describe the official unveiling ofthe paintings by Bronxville artists whichwere acquired by the Conservancyand are now on permanent loan to theVillage. Over 150 members and theirguests attended the reception at Village Hall on May 18th to view the artcollection and admire its new home inthe recently renovated building.

Under the direction of art historianJayne Warman, the Conservancy wasfortunate to assemble a group of paint-ings by local artists such as BruceCrane, George Smillie, Henry HobartNichols, Mary Fairchild Low and her hus-band, Will Low. Over thirteen of thesepaintings grace the walls of the TrusteesRoom, front hall and the Mayor’s Office,thus regaining much of Bronxville’s his-tory to be enjoyed by all our residents.

To further enhance the building, vin-tage postcards and photographs ofBronxville scenes were enlarged andframed to be hung in its various officesand public areas. The portraits of for-mer mayors were reframed to line thetwo major hallways on the first floor. Fi-nally, contemporary photographs ofBronxville taken by Judith Watts Wilsonwere enlarged and framed as a per-manent exhibition for the lower level ofVillage Hall.

As Jayne Warman noted that day“Some extraordinary works slippedaway from us” when “the contents ofMasterton-Dusenberry house at 90White Plains Road were put up for sale.”Nonetheless the Historical Conservancyhas made great strides in ensuring thatwork by Bronxville’s artists slowly findtheir way back to the village for permanent display.

Conservancy memberRoberta Hanson receiveda pleasant surprise whenshe opened Concordia’sinvitation to the recentBronxville Artists & Friendsexhibit at the OSilas. Fea-tured in it was a paintingby Walter Clark entitledThe Pond Field.

“I was immediatelystruck by the shape of the lone tree and color palette,” she ex-plained, “and the uncanny similarity this painting has to a land-scape Bud and I have that was done by his grandfather,Edward A. Morange.”

Scanning Clark’s scene into the computer and reversing theview solidified her theory that Morange’s painting was also ofthe Pond Field. BHC board member, Dale Walker (Hansons’daughter and great-granddaughter of Morange) brought theflipped Clark image and a photo of the Morange painting toJayne Warman, the curator of the well-received exhibit, whoconfirmed the similarity.

“This is one of only two paintings we know of that my great-grandfather signed. It’s dated 1908, a few years earlier than theClark work, and until the exhibit, we had no idea that it was a

Bronxville scene. The fam-ily is thrilled to have thismystery revealed,” Walkersaid.

Warman was excitedto see the Morange paint-ing and hopes furtherstudy of it in conjunctionwith the Clark canvas willenable her to place both

artists in their respective vantage points as they captured thisearly village vista where the Bronxville schools stand today.

Morange lived and painted in Bronxville during the first half ofthe twentieth century. He was a founding partner in the scenicdesign firm of Gates & Morange and the Sagamore Develop-ment Company and is a subject of the cover article of Volume4 of The Bronxville Journal. Morange enjoyed painting from na-ture and found inspiration for many of his set designs in his sur-roundings.

Happy to have the location of one of their many Morangelandscapes identified at last and, in a final irony, Berta Hansonmarveled she had seen the Clark painting many times over theyears when she visited the owner’s home. “Now I know why Iwas always drawn to it,” she said with a smile.

“Scenic hillsides, a meandering river, stone bridges, andpicturesque buildings…" -- one can easily understand whyartists have long been attracted to Bronxville. The art colonythat was established here in the late-19th century is wellknown to many, but less familiar is the fact that earlier no-table artists as well as art patrons have been part of the vil-

lage almost since itsinception.

The artistic legacyBronxville so enjoys is justone of the many cherishedparts of our past that theConservancy has em-braced over the last tenyears, and it seemed onlyfitting to celebrate our 10thanniversary surrounded by

some of the finest works of Bronxville's artistsat the OSilas Gallery’s recentexhibit: Bronxville Artists: Lega-cies Past and Future.

The exhibition was a gather-ing of privately owned works ofart by Bronxville artists, bothpast and present. Because theart was on loan from the collec-tions of private individuals (themajority of whom are Conser-vancy members), it was a

singular presentationof artworks thatprobably will neverappear togetheragain.

As Conservancy Co-chair Nancy Vittorini notedin her welcoming remarks, thiscelebratory event was a delightfulpartnership for the Conservancy and Concordia College.With the OSilas Gallery mission of integrating the visual artsinto the cultural and educational life of Concordia’s cam-pus and community, and the Conservancy’s quest to bringBronxville artists' work back home, it was a perfect marriage!

Marilynn Hill, who, with Bob Riggs, has served as Tenth An-niversary Co-chairs, presented members with copies of anart catalogue that was published by the BHC in honor ofboth the anniversary and the exhibition.

Warman followed the presentation with a talk in whichshe shared insights into the lives of theBronxville artists and their canvases --elaborating on remarks she had given atthe exhibit’s Concordia opening a weekbefore.

Members were able to enjoy a fes-tive champagne reception while view-ing the collection, thanks to the efforts ofBHC events chair Mary Thaler.

A Celebration ofArt

History Mystery Revealed!OSilas Exhibition Provides Vital Clue

BY MARILYNN WOOD HILL

It was a great new deal on Sunday, Oct. 5th when 125Conservancy members andguests boarded theSeastreak at Yonkers Pier fora cruise up the Hudson River,this year in search of historyat Franklin Delano Roo-sevelt’s beloved Hyde Park.

What started out as an over-cast day on the river soonturned into a beautiful au-tumn afternoon. Our voyagetook us north on the Hudson, under theGeorge Washington and Tappan Zeebridges, past West Point on the westernshore, until we docked at Poughkeep-sie. A shortbus ridelater, we ar-rived at ourdestina-tion—FDR’shistorichome,

presidential library, and museum at Hyde Park.

FDR visited his “home on theHudson” more than 200 timesduring his presidency andConservancy members soondiscovered why. The house ispreserved just as it was during

FDR’s last stay in 1945, shortlybefore his death. It is asprawling mansion filled withpriceless antiques and enor-mous history (WinstonChurchill and King George VIslept there!).

We then toured the FDR Mu-seum, which contains manyof FDR and Eleanor Roo-sevelt’s personal treasures,including his Oval Officedesk; 1936 Ford Phaeton; De-

pression, New Deal and WW II memorabilia;and extensive collections of stamps andcoins, books and ship models.

After reliving the Depression and World WarII and celebrating the lives of Franklin andEleanor Roosevelt, we re-boarded theSeastreak for our return voyage and ship-

board dinner. As afinal treat, we all wit-nessed a stunningsunset just beforedocking.

This was the 7th annual boat cruise to

a historic siteand it contin-ues to be one of the high-lights of our year. Rarely dowe get to spend such qual-ity time together as a group!We look forward to seeingyou on our next voyage intohistory.

BY BOB SCOTT

To one and all who helped tomake this year's trip up the

Hudson so special - thank you.We have loved each and everytrip and appreciate all the exquisite planning and the attention to all the details

which make each outing spectacular.

Can't wait ‘til next year.Gratefully,Jane Frank

Hyde and go seek!

BY DALE HANSON WALKER

A warm October sun and cool autumn breeze provided aperfect complement to the Conservancy’s annual housetour held on Sunday, October 26th. This year’s unique touroffered a double treat -- a visit to the home of Marianneand Steven Mills on 16 Prescott Avenue and a self-guidedtour of the Bronxville Women’s Club, celebrating the 80thanniversary of its clubhouse on Midland Avenue where thereception and BHC Annual Meeting were also held.

More than 135 mem-bers signed up to tourthe Mills’ Bates andHow designed house.Built in 1912 on asteeply sloping hill-side, this magnificenthouse was the firstdual-house built in thehistoric LawrencePark district, and thefirst Hilltop house to

be showcased by the Conservancy in its fall tours. Theunique layout of the six-story home and beautiful gardenswas surpassed only by the wonderful paintings in the homewhich included works by Bronxville artists Bruce Crane, WillLow and Milne Ramsey and the magnificent library suitehand-crafted and installed by Mr. Mills.

A special jitney carried members toand from the house and theBronxville Women’s Club during theafternoon. The clubhouse was de-signed by Penrose Stout, a nephew-by-marriage to Anna LawrenceBisland, daughter of William VanDuzer Lawrence. She also owned 16Prescott and donated the land atMidland and Tanglewylde for theWomen’s Club. Completed in 1928,the clubhouse was recently listed on

the National Register ofHistoric Places, and is inalmost original condi-tion.

At the festive receptionand Annual Meeting,the Bronxville HistoricalConservancy pre-sented Joyce Balint,president of theBronxville Women’sClub, with a gift to restore the distinctive lighting fixture atthe Tanglewylde entrance. Mrs. Balint was overwhelmed bythe gift and informed the crowd that this project has beenat the top of the club’s wish list for a very long time. TheConservancy will work with the Club’s restoration architectto accomplish the work.

The afternoon concludedwith the election of new BHCboard members and the an-nouncement of Marilynn Hill’sappointment as Life Co-Chair, joining Robert Riggs inthis well deserved honor.

Ballroom Beauty...

Waltzing through

The south entrance to theBronxville Womenʼs Club wasonce graced with an invitingglobe lighting its curved archway.The Conservancy will restore theoriginal fixture as an 80th anniversary gift to the clubhouseand in recognition of its place-ment on the National Register ofHistoric Places.

The Conservancy’s tenth anniversary year-long celebration ends with aglamorous house tour and festive reception at the Bronxville Women’s Club.

At the Bronxville HistoricalConservancy’s September

board meeting, Marilynn Hill wasunanimously chosen by the board to

join Bob Riggs, fellow co-founder, as Life Co-chair of the organization. Her dedication to history andleadership in the Conservancy has been evident during thegrowth of the group over the past ten years. During thattime, the organization initiated a number of community proj-ects and activities, including an annual Brendan Gill lecture,annual house tours, boat tours to historic sites, the restorationof the Avon Road street lanterns and a permanent collec-tion of works by Bronxville artists on display in Village Hall.She has served as editor of The Bronxville Journal, the Con-servancy’s publication of in-depth articles on Bronxville’s his-tory, and was also the editor of Bronville Artists & Friends, theart catalog accompanying the recent Bronxville artists ex-hibit at the OSilas Gallery.

Appropriately enough, Hill is an historian and author,whose writing has centered on American social and culturalhistory and biography. Her volunteer work has been in theareas of education and historic preservation.

Over the past two decades, Hill has served as chair of theBoard of Ethics, the Bronxville Historical Conservancy, theAdult School, the Friends of the Library of Sarah LawrenceCollege, and the Village Centennial Celebration. She also

served on the boards of the Concordia College Foundationand the Bronxville School Foundation.

She is currently on the board of Harvard’s Schlesinger Library, the Foundation for the National Archives, the Schoolof the Arts of the College of Charleston and the NationalAdvisory Board of the Historic Charleston Foundation.

Other Board NewsDr. Robert Wein has been selected as co-chair beginning

January 2009, filling the position of outgoing co-chair Donald Gray who has served as Conservancy co-chair forthree years and as a board member since the Conser-vancy’s inception in 1998. Nancy Vittorini will remainas co-chair. Wein has served on the board since 2002 aschairman of the Grants and Projects committee. He’s also served as “commodore” of our Historic Hudson Boat cruises.

We also say a fond farewell and thank you to Liz Murphy, an active board member for 3 years, and Jayne Warman, who has served as chairman of the Conservancy’sart acquisition committee for the past decade. Jayne promises to continue the search for Bronxville artists’ works so that we may continue to add to the Conservancy’s collection.

At the October 26, 2008 Annual Membership meeting, the Bronxville HistoricalConservancy voted on its newest board members for theclass of 2011. We welcome Sarah Underhill, Jorie Andews,Jack Kennedy and Andrew Langhoff!

Sarah, a professional in the field of editing, has been anactive member of the Conservancy as an assisting editorand contributor to The Bronxville Journal. Sarah alsoworked closely with the Conservancy in developing theBronxville Artists & Friends exhibit and anniversary reception.

Jorie, a professional portraitist, was one of the artistswhose work was featured in the OSilas Gallery exhibit. Joriestudied life drawing and anatomy at the Art StudentsLeague in Manhattan. We look forward to her help in build-ing the Conservancy’s art collection.

Jack, a classic car buff, is a founding member of the Conservancy and has been helpful in our searches for Brendan Gill lecturers. We’re also hoping he’ll help “crank up” our classic car brigade in Bronxville’s Memorial Day parades.

Andrew Langhoff, a lawyer and internet exec with Dow Jones/WallStreet Journal, is a self-professed American history buff. In his professionalcareer, he has created many internet sites for ABC and Dow Jones and we’re hoping he will pitch in to add his professional touch to our soon-to-debut website.

Bob Wein named new co-chair

All aboard!Andrew Langhoff

Sarah Underhill

Jack Kennedy with wife, Roonie

Jorie Andrews

Life PreserverIn light of her ongoing dedication and commitment, Conservancy co-founder Marilynn Wood Hill unanimously elected to Life Co-Chair.

BY BOB SCOTT

Marilynn Wood Hill

Send us your project ideas! The grants committee wantsyour thoughts on how we can strengthen and preserve ourvillage’s treasured legacies.

In the past ten years the BHC has provided financialgrant support for the Local History Room, has restored theantique lamps on Avon Road, and acquired paintings cre-ated by village artists from as far back as a century and ahalf ago, now on permanent display at Village Hall.

Our organization helped continue the cherished commu-nity Christmas pageant tradition by providing state-of-the-art sound equipment; helped fund the Bronxville VeteransMemorial Day program initiated by local residents CindiCallahan and Jane Staunton; and just recently, joinedhands with Concordia College’s OSilas Gallery for theBronxville Artists & Friends exhibit by contributing an im-pressive art catalog to the event. These are just a few of theprojects that have been underwritten by your BHC duringour first decade.

The mission of the BHC states that the Conservancylends its support for projects designed to strengthen and pre-serve our heritage.

Let us hear from you. If you have a project you wouldlike the Bronxville Historical Conservancy to consider, dropa note to the BHC Projects Committee, (P.O. Box 989,Bronxville, NY 10708), or e-mail to RMWDDS @AOL.COM

Under construction.Thanks to the efforts and I.T. know-how of Conservancy

member Bridget Gibbons, our long-awaited website is nowbeing built, byte by byte.

Working with professional designer Sari Sapon, the BHCwebsite team (Bridget Gibbons, Bob Scott and Nancy Vittorini) is creating a user-friendly, content-rich and visuallystriking site, complete with historical video clips, the Conser-vancy’s art collection, a membership interface...even past issues of The Chronicle!

“Our objective is to create a sophisticated web presencethat can inform, promote and attract new members whileshowcasing the Conservancy’s impressive projects, activitiesand beautiful art collection,” noted designer Sari Sapon, whohas 15 years of experience in digital media and web design.

The homepage -- www.bronxvillehistoricalconservancy.org-- will reflect the unique qualities of the village; internal pagesare being created as a template that can be easily updatedand maintained in-house.

Seeking work.BY BOB WEIN

Volume IV of The Bronxville Journal

Bound for Greatness!Three Bronxville artists who created set designs for some ofAmerica's top theaters at the turn of the twentieth centurywill be featured in Vol. 4 of The Bronxville Journal, which willbe published in early 2009. Dale Hanson, great-grand-daughter of one of the artists, has shared family mementosas well as memories in her lively story of this seldom explored aspect of theater history. Also in this edition is a biographical essay by Village Historian Eloise Morgan abouta Lawrence Park resident who is said to have been the inspiration for the adventure hero Indiana Jones.

Appropriately in an election year when reactions to presi-dential candidates can be emotionally charged, lifetime village resident Anne Fredericks reminisces about the elec-tion of 1936 when responses may have appeared subduedby today's standards, but emotions also ran strong amongmany Bronxville residents. Local politics four decades later isthe subject of an article by Marcia Lee, who looks at thewomen's liberation movement of the 1970s as well as othersocial changes of that era that helped reshape the character of village government.

Marilynn Hill will feature one of the HotelGramatan's many notable residentguests, Varina HowellDavis, widow of Con-federate PresidentJefferson Davis, wholeft a unique recordof her hotel staythat is little knownto Bronxvillianstoday. And, fi-nally, this fourthcollection oflocal historical essays willshowcase two other approaches topreserving history -- the poetry of John Barr, a na-tionally recognized poet, and visual records from the portfo-lios of contemporary photographer Judith Watts Wilson andsome of her Bronxville predecessors who have capturedscenes of the village at different moments throughout acentury of Bronxville history.

The Chronicle © Fall 2008

Editor and Designer: Nancy VittoriniContributing Photographers:

Katie Primerano, Allaire Warner & Neely Bower

Submissions welcome!

The Bronxville Historical Conservancy was founded in 1998 to further the understanding and appreciation of the history and current life of the

village of Bronxville, New York. The Conservancy furthers its mission through the

presentation of programs, publications, lectures andspecial events that foster an awareness of the village’sarchitectural, artistic and cultural heritage and lends

its support for projects designed to strengthen and preserve those legacies.

The BronxvilleHistorical Conservancy

P. O. Box 989Bronxville, NY 10708

...OldNews...Found on ebay!An original 1917Kromo Gravuremovie trading cardfeaturing silentmovie picture actress Ann Murdock who oncelived at 16 Prescottwith her aunt andfour servants. Must be a STAR-

STAGE-AND-SCREEN-something in the Prescott

pipes...Conservancy member Marianne Mills nowlives in the home (sans 4 servants), and is a pro-ducer of the new Broadway production of “All MySons,” starring JohnLithgow, playing nowthrough January 11th atthe Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre.

We owe Conservancy member Nancy Schaefera BUNDLE OF THANKS for sharing a familytreasure -- a Bundles for Britain match boxcover that has graced her family’s QueenAnn coffee table since 1939. The silverfinished holder, engraved

with the British lion on frontand another seal on the side panel,

was one of many items sold as part of awar relief effort to provide non-military aid to theBritish. In addition to buying items like this one,women in Bronxville sewed and rolled bandages forBundles for Britain at the “Oakledge” mansion.

A decade shy of sharing the same birthyear as our village, former Bronxville mayor BertHugill recently enjoyed a CELEBRATION OF ACENTURY at his California home. Our heartiestand happiest 100th birthday wishes to MayorHugill, who served as mayor of the village from1959 to 1965, and served as trustee for five years.

Side panel seal onthe Bundles for

Britain match boxholder.

SAVE THE DATE!February 27, 200911th Brendan Gill Lecturefeaturing legendary JFK speechwriter

TED SORENSEN