Tuesday, March 01, 2016

I know it's been an age since I wrote but instead of giving up completely, I'm going to try and recover. My blog will still be a place for me to empty my brain of the various things I am thinking about but they are things I don't feel like putting on Facebook because they are too personal and I imagine (right or wrong) that people who read my blog are more interested in me personally then I feel FB is. At any rate here goes.

For some reason I have been interested in the history of the piece of land where I grew up in New York: the northeastern corner of the unincorporated township of Eastchester. We were a few blocks west of New Rochelle and a few blocks south of Scarsdale. Since we were so far in the north end, I had no contract with the main body of Eastchester until I attended the consolidated middle and high school. In doing my online history research I found a map from 1902 which was the first to show anything in that area, the majority of land being designated as the New Rochelle Water District. There was on this cadastral map (showing land owners) a small block of land labelled C. Hanfling. I lived on Hanfling Road. Then my co-conspirator found Conrad Hanfling's obituary from 1937 which described his truck farm in Eastchester, which his daughter was continuing to run. My next map from 1940 showed the parallel roads of Wilmont and Hilburn which ran through and ended in C. Hanfling's farm. The land north of the farm was already divided into blocks whose names I remembered from walking to and from school. Our house was built around 1954. I remember that our house was built on farm land and my mother had a load of pig manure spread on the side yard for her garden. It really stank until it decomposed! I've looked at the house on Google maps street view and all the landscaping and plantings are gone. The side yard is paved as a patio and all the roses, wisteria, hostas, iris and daylilies are gone. Eastchester and the entire county of Westchester exploded in the 1950's as it became the archetype of New York suburbs. I have ordered a history of Westerchester from Amazon to learn more. I am also interested in the history of Dutchess County which is where our branch of the Cornwell/Cornell family started out. I am searching for my grandfather's birthplace. He was born in 1874 which is before New York registered births. In the 1870 census the family is in Albany and in the 1880 census they are in Schenectady. I would have to find church records and I haven't a clue what church they attended in whatever city.

I am getting ready for J's arrival on Friday for a 10 day visit and while he's here we will plan my trip in May. I've found a housesitter that the cats really seem to like. Max even came out and let a total stranger scratch his ears! He is driving me nuts with his squeaky scratchy voice. However, my purchase of a two-seater recliner for the living room seems to be a hit. Max is not a lap cat but he will curl up next to me on the recliner, which he couldn't do on the wing chair that fit me and The Imp only. My new sofa was delivered today and I need assistance in putting the legs on but it works well colourwise.

Reading The Park Service which is a YA post-apocalypyoc novel about a 15 year old boy who discovers he's been lied to all his lofe.

Knitting: cotton socks in purple and blue. On the leg of the second sock.
Spinning: red and black wool which turns out kind of tweedy. Also finished spinning 50+ gms of camel down on my drop spindle and I plan on plying it on the espinner.

Next week is supposed to be in the 30sC which I really don't like but we might go down to the coast one day. I am fighting off a cold. I have a very sore throat and am coughing like crazy




1 comment:

Jan said...

Welcome back. I too am easing my way back into this type of world.

I am not happy with the heat but generally can cope in Canberra where the humidity is lower than Sydney. Atrocious up here.