Fascinating QSL Card Sent by Killian Van Rensselaer Langsingh of Elderwood Avenue in 1924

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The nearly one hundred year old QSL Card depicted below reads like a coded message which, in a way, it was.  Killian Van Rensselaer Lansingh of 226 Elderwood Avenue in Pelham Heights mailed the card shortly after a significant event on December 21, 1924.  It reads, in part:

"This crd fm 2ATF Dec. 21, 1924 . . . 
Wud appreciate a QSL on my sigs if QRB is over 1,000 miles, or if u r outside the continental U.S.A.  Vy best 73's"

An image of the QSL Card appears immediately below.

QSL Card Sent by 2ATF (Killian Van Rensselaer Lansingh)

Shortly After December 21, 1924.  NOTE:  Click on Image

to Enlarge.

This is an early QSL Card that says a great deal about the history of the little Town of Pelham.  A QSL Card is a postcard mailed to confirm "either a two-way radio communication between two amateur radio stations or a one-way reception of a signal from an AM radio, FM radio, television or shortwave broadcasting station," among other things.  See "QSL Card" in Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia (visited Oct. 15, 2018).  Indeed, according to one source:

"During the early days of radio broadcasting, the ability for a radio set to receive distant signals was a source of pride for many consumers and hobbyists. Listeners would mail "reception reports" to radio broadcasting stations in hopes of getting a written letter to officially verify they had heard a distant station. As the volume of reception reports increased, stations took to sending post cards containing a brief form that acknowledged reception. Collecting these cards became popular with radio listeners in the 1920s and 1930s, and reception reports were often used by early broadcasters to gauge the effectiveness of their transmissions."  Source:  Id. 

This QSL Card was prepared by Pelham Ham Radio Operator Killian Van Rensselaer Lansingh of Pelham Heights.  At the time he sent this QSL Card, Lansingh was a college student attending the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts.  He was home on Winter Break.

According to the Bureau of Navigation Radio Service, U.S. Department of Commerce and its "Amateur Radio Stations of the U.S. 1924-26," Killian V. R. Lansingh had a 500-Watt Ham Radio Broadcasting station at his home (actually, that of his parents), as indicated on the QSL Card, at 226 Elderwood Avenue in Pelham.  See Department of Commerce Bureau of Navigation Radio Service, Amateur Radio Stations of the United States -- Edition June 30, 1924, pp. 40 & 58 (Washington, D.C.:  Government Printing Office, 1924).   

With this QSL card, Lansingh was acknowledging receipt of a signal from a station the call signal of which was 3BDO.  That station was owned by Russel U. Waite of North West Avenue, Vineland, N. J.  Waite owned a small 25-Watts Ham Radio Broadcast Station at that location.  See id., pp. 69 & 89.  Lansingh noted that he received the signal from Waite's station, about 140 miles away, at 2105 Greenwich Mean Time on December 21, 1924 (5:05 p.m. Eastern on Sunday, December 21, 1924).  

The card itself is fascinating.  At first blush, it seems to be a card printed for use by two stations with the call signals of 2ATF of Pelham, New York (Killian V. R. Lansingh) and 1BAN of Wellesley, Massachusetts.  The latter call signal might seem to belong to a friend or acquaintance of Lansingh who shared the cost of printing the card.  That, however, was not the case.  Lansingh actually operated a second less powerful 100-Watts Ham Radio Station from a second location in Massachusetts.  According to the same Department of Commerce source cited above, Lansingh operated the station at  245 Bellevue Street (actually the address blacked out on the QSL Card) in Newtown, Massachusetts.  See id., pp. 9 & 28.  The card, with the blacked-out 245 Bellevue Street address, indicates the station as located at 18 Abbott Street (about 11 miles away).  

The logo design at the top of the card shows that Lansingh was a member of ARRL (American Radio Relay League, a worldwide organization of amateur radio operators founded in 1914).  Beneath the log is the reference "QRK?"  Posed as a question, this is a reference to the "QRK" signal reporting codes for use in Morse Code / wireless telegraphy.  It is, in effect, the question "What is the intelligibility of my signals?"

Oddly, although the Federal Government listed Lansingh's Pelham station as 500 Watts, on the QSL Card he lists it as 200 Watts within the following reference:

"Receiver:  3 circuit eso step AF.
Transmitter:  200 watts input, CW [struck out] es
ICW, in Coup. Hart circuit.  
Usual QRH abt 75 m."

Lansingh closes his communication in two places with the reference "73's".  The number "73" in Morse Code is an old telegraph code that means "best regards" and is a regular part of the language of Ham Radio.  

This QSL Card provides a fascinating glimpse of an important time in the history of Pelham.  The Roaring Twenties were well underway.  Affluent Pelhamites were fascinated with the relatively new technology of radio broadcasting that was beginning to gain broad consumer acceptance.  Indeed, I have written about Pelham's fascination at the time with the new technology.  See:

Mon., May 22, 2017:  Early Radio in Pelham:  Pelham Firefighters and Business at Pelham Picture House Installed "Radiophone" in 1922.  

Thu., May 22, 2014:  The Earliest Days of Radio in the Town of Pelham. 

Wed., Jan. 22, 2014:  Pelham Becomes Enthralled with the New-Fangled Entertainment Medium of Radio.

Killian Van Rensselaer Lansingh, of course, went well beyond installing a simple radio receiver in his home.  He built two Ham Radio broadcast stations -- one in Pelham and one in Massachusetts.  He clearly was an early and avid Ham Radio enthusiast.  He was born in Chicago on April 3, 1902, a son of Van Rensselaer Killianse Lansingh and Marian Love Miner Lansingh.  He married Velma A. Ahlstrom on November 8, 1930.  They had three children.  He died at the age of 71 on May 16, 1973 in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico of cardiac arrest during a bout of hypostatic pneumonia and is buried at Panteon Colonias, Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico.

Interestingly, only a few months after Lansingh sent this QSL Card, his Ham Radio station became somewhat controversial in the Town of Pelham.  At the time, radio receiver aficionados who were trying to listen to radio broadcasts were experiencing radio interference that made it difficult for them to pick up broadcasts on their expensive radio receivers.  Pelhamites began to point the finger at the Ham Radio broadcast station maintained by Lansingh on Elderwood Avenue.

By February, Lansingh had had enough of the accusations and wrote a letter to the Editor of The Pelham Sun.  Shortly thereafter, the newspaper published an article on the first page of its February 27, 1925 issue entitled "Radio Trouble In Pelham Not Due To Lansingh."  It turned out that shortly after Lansingh sent this QSL Card, he had returned to college as of January 4, 1925.  His transmitter had sat unused since that time while he was away at school, as the article explained.  The article further noted:

"Mr. Lansingh claims he suffers the same interference the others do in Pelham.  He suggests he would be glad to help any who believe they suffer due to undue interference if they will call him up when he is in Pelham.  Owners of single circuit receivers in Lansingh's opinion, not only have not done their share in getting rid of interference by using a sharp tuning receiver, but are causing a large share of the interference from which the other broadcast listeners suffer."

Recent Photograph of the Home at 226 Elderwood, Built in

1910, Where Killian Van Rensselaer Lansingh Maintained

Ham Radio Station 2ATF During the Mid-1920s.  NOTE:

Click on Image to Enlarge.

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"Radio Trouble In Pelham Not Due To Lansingh
-----
Transmitting Station On Elderwood Avenue Has Same Interference As Other Pelham Radio Operators
-----

Killian V. R. Lansingh of 226 Elderwood Avenue, Pelham, in a letter to the Pelham Sun, denies he is responsible for the large part of the interference suffered by Pelham radio broadcast listeners.  He has a radio transmitting station at his home, but tells us he has been away at college since January 4th, and his station was inoperative from that date until February 23rd.  

Mr. Lansingh claims he suffers the same interference the others do in Pelham.  He suggests he would be glad to help any who believe they suffer due to undue interference if they will call him up when he is in Pelham.

Owners of single circuit receivers in Lansingh's opinion, not only have not done their share in getting rid of interference by using a sharp tuning receiver, but are causing a large share of the interference from which the other broadcast listeners suffer."

Source:  Radio Trouble In Pelham Not Due To Lansingh -- Transmitting Station On Elderwood Avenue Has Same Interference As Other Pelham Radio Operators, The Pelham Sun, Feb. 27, 1925, Vol. 15, No. 52, p. 1, col. 3.  

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Decision in 1923 to Extend the As-Yet Unbuilt Hutchinson River Parkway

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During the early 1920s, the open rolling lands alongside the Hutchinson River in the Town of Pelham and the river itself were beauties to behold.  A string of reservoirs and lakes dotted the countryside throughout undeveloped lands between Pelham's border with New York City all the way north to Scarsdale.  The Hutchinson River and its watershed throughout the entire region was an important water supply system that provided drinking water to such communities as Pelham, Mount Vernon, New Rochelle, Eastchester, Bronxville, and Tuckahoe, among others.  

At the time, Westchester County wanted to protect the gorgeous countryside and the water supply system.  What better way than to purchase a lengthy tract along the Hutchinson River to create an undeveloped "Parkway."  The parkway would be the envy of the nation, much like the nearby Bronx River Parkway that was begun in 1907. 

The Hutchinson River Parkway was envisioned as a true park with a quiet winding road adjacent to bridle paths, pedestrian paths, reservoirs and lakes.  The roadway and its bridges and overpasses were intended to be modern but quaint-looking and aesthetically pleasing.  All expected the roadway to be a signature destination for Sunday drivers who wanted a jaunt in their fanciful early automobiles on a beautiful day through a beautiful countryside.

And then it began. . . . . . . 

Even before construction started on the new Parkway in 1924, local officials were pushing to expand the length of the roadway at both ends.  The Hutchinson River Parkway originally was envisioned to end at Lincoln Avenue, Mount Vernon (then connected to 4th Street in Pelham, now also known as Lincoln Avenue).  Their intentions were good -- at least at the outset.  They wanted to protect as much land and watershed as possible within a beautiful Parkway.  "Alea iacta est" as Julius Caesar supposedly said when he crossed the Rubicon with his legions to begin a civil war:  the die [was] cast.  There would be no return.

Thus, during the summer of 1923 while engineers were still trying to survey the expected route of the Parkway and at a time when the exact course of the Parkway had not even been determined, the Westchester County Board of Supervisors approved an extension of the planned Parkway from its planned terminus at Lincoln Avenue all the way to Pelham Bay Park at the New York City border.  

A Commission advising the Board of Supervisors recommended the extension.  The Board received the recommendation and immediately approved it for implementation.  The Commission reported to the Board of Supervisors, in part, as follows:

"While there is no question of the desirability of acquiring these lands for park use, it would not be feasible to interfere with the water supply at this time.  The important thing is to insure that this picturesque tract will eventually be available as a public park.  The Commission is, therefore, negotiating with the New Rochelle Water Company for the purchase of these lands on the basis of the Water Company's retaining the right to use the same for water supply purposes for a period of twelve to fifteen years, by which time it is assumed that the population will have so increased as to affect the purity of the water supply and at the same time the demand for park spaces will be more urgent.  Such an arrangement would operate to materially reduce the purchase price to the county and at the same time insure the county against the certain rise in value during the fifteen year period.  Negotiation[s] to this end are in progress and if satisfactory arrangements can be concluded with the Water Company, the Commission will recommend to your Board the acquisition of this tract."

The goal of preserving the additional lands to the south of Lincoln Avenue adjacent to the Hutchinson River to the New York City line seemed laudable at the time.  Indeed, construction of the Hutchinson River Parkway in the midst of a beautiful park setting began the following year in 1924 and continued for several years.

Soon, however, the automobile became king and the region throbbed with cars trying to get from one place to another using the tiny little Parkway.  As the years passed, the Parkway was expanded in sections (even as late as 1941) until it grew to become a major highway artery running north and south from New York City through Westchester County to the New York - Connecticut state line at Rye Brook.

Today the Hutchinson River Parkway is a nearly 19-mile mess of a thoroughfare that is so crowded with traffic day and night that, at times, it can be so congested that it nearly is impossible to navigate.  The narrow, winding lanes (long since expanded well beyond their original capacities) begin at the Bruckner Interchange in the Throggs Neck section of the Bronx and proceed north, having junctions with I-95 (the Cross-Bronx Expressway), I-295 (Cross Bronx Expressway Extension), I-678 (the Whitestone Expressway), and I-278 (the Bruckner Expressway).  Any time issues arise on any of these connected roadways, traffic piles onto "the Hutch," often bringing that roadway to a near standstill.  To make matters worse, anytime a truck wanders onto the Hutch (trucks are banned on all New York Parkways) and smashes into any of the low overpasses built in the 1920s to allow Model-T automobiles to pass beneath, traffic comes to an absolute standstill for hours and hours.  

Savvy Pelhamites long have known to avoid the Hutch most times of the day and night.  All Pelhamites long for the good old days when the Hutch was, in fact, a Sunday parkway set in a beautiful park. . . . . . 

"Photo 42. View of the parkway looking south from the East Third

Street Bridge, August 31, 1927. This view shows workmen preparing

the roadways for paving. (Westchester County Archives, Park

Commission Photograph Collection, PPC5389)"  Source: LoRusso,

Mark S., An Historic American Engineering Record Level II Documentation

of the East Third Street Bridge Spanning Hutchinson River Parkway

and Hutchinson River NYSDOT PIN 8BOW.01.101 City of Mount

Vernon and Village of Pelham Westchester County New York, p. 94

(2017: Sponsored by The Federal Highway Administration and the

New York State Department of Transportation, Part of the New York

State Museum Cultural Resource Survey Program). NOTE: Click on

Image to Enlarge.

*          *          *          *          *

"River Parkway To Go Through Three Villages
-----
Board of Supervisors Also Want Glen Island Bought For Bathing Park
-----
Definite Course Of Road Through Pelham Not Yet Determined But Surveyors Are Now At Work
-----
River Parkway to Go Through

At a joint meeting held in White Plains on Monday, the County Board of Supervisors formally requested the Park Commission to extend the proposed Hutchinson River Boulevard from its termination at East Lincoln Avenue all the way to Pelham Bay Park in New York City.

The exact course of the parkway has not yet been determined, but engineers are now surveying and the Park Commission will soon begin to look over the property.  The cost of acquiring land in the various localities will determine the course.  Nine hundred thousand dollars is the estimated cost of acquiring the property for the Hutchinson River Parkway.

Glen Island, if the request of the Board of Supervisors is complied with, will be purchased and turned into a public park.  A large bathing beach will be constructed and in all probability a bridge will be built from the mainland to the island.

The report of the Commission to the Board of Supervisors met with such favor that the Board went further and requested that the Hutchinson Parkway be extended and that Glen Island be purchased.  Part of the report follows:

Another project of country-wide importance and of particular interest to the Pelhams, the cities of Mount Vernon and New Rochelle and the town of Eastchester, includes a protective strip along the Hutchinson River from Lincoln Avenue, Mount 

(Continued on page 3)

Hutchinson River Parkway Approved
-----
(Continued from page 1)

Vernon to Eastchester Road and from thence a considerable portion of the lands in the Hutchinson River Valley now used for water supply purposes, extending to Drake Road in the village of Scarsdale and connecting with the Bronx River Parkway at the New Rochelle Water Company's crossing between Crestwood and Scarsdale.

The Commission has no doubt of the desirability of acquiring between 800 and 900 acres in this section.  The lands are particularly beautiful and for the most part already developed as a park.  The three lakes or reservoirs are splendid park features.  However, these lands and lakes now constitute the greater part of an important water supply system, furnishing water to the city of New Rochelle, the town of Eastchester and the villages of Bronxville and Tuckahoe.

While there is no question of the desirability of acquiring these lands for park use, it would not be feasible to interfere with the water supply at this time.  The important thing is to insure that this picturesque tract will eventually be available as a public park.  The Commission is, therefore, negotiating with the New Rochelle Water Company for the purchase of these lands on the basis of the Water Company's retaining the right to use the same for water supply purposes for a period of twelve to fifteen years, by which time it is assumed that the population will have so increased as to affect the purity of the water supply and at the same time the demand for park spaces will be more urgent.  Such an arrangement would operate to materially reduce the purchase price to the county and at the same time insure the county against the certain rise in value during the fifteen year period.  Negotiation[s] to this end are in progress and if satisfactory arrangements can be concluded with the Water Company, the Commission will recommend to your Board the acquisition of this tract."

Source:  River Parkway To Go Through Three Villages -- Board of Supervisors Also Want Glen Island Bought For Bathing Park -- Definite Course Of Road Through Pelham Not Yet Determined But Surveyors Are Now At Work -- River Parkway to Go Through, The Pelham Sun, Jul. 6, 1923, p. 1, col. 6 & p. 3, col. 5.

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The Establishment of Memorial Park by the Town of Pelham During the 1920s

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Introduction

In 1920, Pelham's memories of World War I were still raw.  A "Roll of Honor" listing those who served and who died stood at the Pelham train station.  Plans for the construction of Pelham Memorial High School to honor those who served were well underway.  Additionally, Pelham servicemen who had returned from the war were clamoring for the construction of a memorial building that could serve as a social center for veterans.

At about this time, multiple properties on the southern side of Town Hall (the side on which the Richard J. Daronco Townhouse stands), came onto the market.  Officials of the Church of the Redeemer in North Pelham moved first and bought the tract at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Harmon Avenue to build a new church building to serve as a more central location for North Pelham and Pelham Heights and to draw worshipers from the fast-growing neighborhood known as Pelhamwood.  (The church building built on the site now serves as the Richard J. Daronco Town House, a community center administered by the Town of Pelham.)  The Church of the Redeemer reportedly took title to the tract on July 1, 1920.

The Lot to the South of Town Hall

There was a small tract of land between that purchased by The Church of the Redeemer and Town Hall (located at 34 Fifth Avenue) that was not part of the land purchased by the church.  The tract was immediately adjacent to Town Hall to its south.  Though this tract is on the opposite side of Town Hall from today's Memorial Park, the story of today's Memorial Park cannot be understood without understanding how the Town of Pelham acquired this lot on the opposite side of Town Hall.  Today this southern lot accommodates parking for the Village of Pelham police and for Town Hall.

In 1920, the Town Board appointed a committee to arrange for purchase of the lot next to Town Hall, immediately adjoining it to the south.  Judge Crawford served on the Committee.  The Committee approached the Hewitt Estate, reportedly the landowner.  The owner offered the land at the price of $5,000 (about $63,500 in today's dollars).  

Pelham's former servicemen were thrilled.  They hoped the town would purchase the land, designate it as "Victory Park" in honor of the American victory in World War I, and build a "Victory Memorial Building" on the site to serve as a social center for Pelham veterans.

The proposal to buy the land and designate it as Victory Park was the preferred proposal.  The proposal to construct a "Victory Memorial Building" on the land was far more controversial.  Some believed that the construction of any such building immediately adjacent to the lovely new Town Hall, of which Pelhamites were justifiably proud, would detract from the lovely building and its setting.

Judge Crawford shocked everyone, however, when he announced that the price of $5,000 for the land was "excessive" and, thus, the town would not purchase the plot.  Henry L. Rupert, one of the vestry of the Church of the Redeemer, immediately announced that if the Town of Pelham did not buy the land, the church would "make an effort to get it."  It looked like there would be no Victory Park adjacent to Town Hall.  

Judge Crawford, it seems, was the main obstacle.  He reportedly was adamantly opposed to the construction of any building of any sort next door to Town Hall.  Indeed, he told a reporter at the time that "if a memorial building for the ex-service men is to be erected on the site, he [would] not recommend its purchase."  Clearly the Judge had no problem with a memorial park on the site.  He told the same reporter that if the land were purchased, a cenotaph or "shaft" would be erected -- i.e., a memorial tablet or a memorial monument would be erected. 

The threat that the Church of the Redeemer might buy the lot seems to have spurred the Town into action -- that or everything was merely a negotiating ploy.  By early January, 1921, a tentative deal for the town to purchase the lot for $4,000 rather than the asking price of $5,000 had been reached.  On January 12, a local newspaper reported that the "town board has passed a resolution empowering the supervisor to enter into a contract with the Hewitt estate for the purchase of the lot, approximately one hundred feet square, immediately adjoining the town hall on the south, for the purpose of establishing a memorial park.  The price was fixed at $4,000."  According to one newspaper account, the Town took title to the lot on February 4, 1921.   

Almost immediately, all in Pelham began referring to the newly-acquired south lot as "Memorial Park" rather than "Victory Park."  Indeed, pressure mounted for the Town to open the property as a memorial park as promised.  For example, at about this time various groups within Pelham were arranging for the Federal government to provide them with captured enemy field pieces from World War I for memorial displays.  Indeed, the year before, the War Department had awarded Pelham a German cannon captured at Soissons on July 19, 1918.  See Mon., May 30, 2016:  The Cannon That Roared: Pelham Sacrifices a Memorial for the Nation’s Sake.  The cannon was placed next to a flagpole overlooking Roosevelt Field at Pelham Memorial High School when that field was dedicated in 1920.  Soon afterward the high school moved the cannon to a less conspicuous location, angering veterans who wanted the cannon moved to a place of prominence in a new Memorial Park.  Moreover, in November, 1921, the Pelham Comfort Society announced that "by a special act of congress, a captured German cannon has been awarded to their custody."  They further announced that "in all probability" the cannon would be mounted in a new memorial park next to Town Hall or, perhaps, in front of Town Hall.

Grading to level the property began in the early spring of 1922.  The local newspaper reported as follows:

"Will Grade Memorial Park.  

George T. Cottrell of Third avenue, will begin the grading of the new Memorial Park which adjoins the town hall on the south.  This plot was purchased from the Hewitt estate last year by the town and will be put in attractive shape.  There were three bidders for the contract; Cottrell, $238; John Roggaveen, $335, and Antony Smith, $398."

This lot was relatively level compared to other nearby properties.  Thus, grading did not take long.  As one local newspaper reported, by May 26, 1922, "The work of grading the new memorial park adjoining the town hall on the south is almost finished and will be completed by Tuesday [May 30, 1922] provided the weather is favorable."

The Lot to the North of Town Hall, Today's "Memorial Park"

According to news reports, in 1923 the empty lot to the north of and adjacent to Town Hall was owned by Mrs. May Gage of Sixth Avenue in the Village of North Pelham.  Town officials began negotiating with Mrs. Gage to purchase that lot as well, thinking that park properties on both sides of Town Hall would offer a beautiful setting for the architectural gem.  News reports of the time indicate that the Town envisioned that the lot to the north would simply be a part of (an "extension of") "Memorial Park" -- in effect, merely a continuation of the lot intended as a memorial park on the south side of Town Hall.

The Roaring Twenties were well underway and, by 1923, the real estate market in Pelham already had heated up.  Though the property on the north side of Town Hall was the same size as the lot on the south side that had cost the town $4,000 two years before (100 x 100 feet), it took the Town quite some time successfully to negotiate the purchase of the lot to the north for $12,000.  In June, 1923, Town Supervisor David Lyon announced publicly that arrangements for purchase of the lot to the north had been completed.  

The Town of Pelham was prescient in purchasing the property.  Immediately after the arrangements for acquisition had been made public, private developers approached the town and offered $14,000 for the property so they could construct a "high-class" apartment building on the lot.  The town refused.  

 Almost immediately all the Town's focus on the creation of a memorial park shifted from the lot on the south side of Town Hall to the newly-purchased lot of the same size on the north side of Town Hall.  At the regular monthly meeting of the Town Board held on Wednesday, July 11, 1923, the Board announced that the lot to the north "will be known as Memorial Park."  They further announced that a "tentative scheme . . . calls for a rock garden which will be developed on the sloping bank and the installation of a memorial to the soldiers of the great war bids fair to improve the property in a manner which will be a decided acquisition to the beauty spots of the town."  At the same meeting, the board appointed Judge I. Balch Louis as "a committee of one to carry out the work of beautifying the plot."

All talk of of a memorial park on the property south of Town Hall ended precipitously.  The extant record does not establish the reason.  It may be inferred, however, that the property to the north of Town Hall needed more beautification efforts than the comparatively flat and park-like setting to the south.  A large portion of the rear of the property on the north side sloped upward with a major outcropping of uplifted bedrock formed of gneiss and schist that would be extremely difficult to remove.  In contrast, the property to the south was relatively flat and park-like and would lend itself to larger gatherings and more flexible uses.  Thus, focus seems to have shifted to beautifying the property to the north and converting it into the long-sought "Memorial Park" while developing the property to the south as a lovely lawn adjacent to Town Hall.

Judge Louis promptly announced he would consult a landscape architect and begin work to plant shrubbery and laying sod in the new park.  Moreover, on July 27, 1923, the local newspaper announced that Judge Louis was soliciting suggestions for the landscape design of the property.  Once again, the paper reported the tentative plan was to develop a rock garden on the sloping portion of the property -- no surprise with the giant bedrock outcropping on the site.  

Two weeks later, during the regular monthly meeting of the Town Board held on Wednesday, September 5, 1923, Judge Louis presented a report on beautification of the new Memorial Park together with a landscape plan prepared by "Architect Kirman."  For reasons not yet known, the "matter was laid on the table for future consideration."  There the matter languished for many, many months.

Indeed, the matter lay dormant for nearly five months.  It was resurrected, however, by chance during a Town Board meeting held on Friday, February 1, 1924.  That evening the board was scheduled to hold a special meeting on a budget issue that required the presence of the local fire commissioners.  Because the fire commissioners were late, the Supervisor asked if anyone had any old business to raise.  Judge Louis raised the need to get the Memorial Park project restarted.

Judge Louis told the board that he had approached three "landscape gardeners" for bids to perform the landscape work on the property north of Town Hall.  He further noted that he had received only one acceptable response with three blueprints for the landscaping and a bid of $1,200 to do the work.  He urged the board to authorize the expenditure and get the project started.

The Supervisor, however, reminded the Board that a property tax levy increase would be necessary to deal with sewer taxes and suggested that it might not be time to tack on an additional expenditure of $1,200.  Other members of the Board noted that spread across all taxpayers, the tax levy increase necessary to raise the $1,200 would be minimal.  At that moment, the fire commissioners arrived and the Board tabled the matter yet again.  

At about this time, it seems, Pelham residents began to complain that the creation of Memorial Park was taking too long.  The Board relented and work finally began in earnest.  Indeed, in early January, 1924, a local newspaper announced that it was hoped that the work to create the new Memorial Park would be complete in time for a Memorial Day dedication.  The story further stated, rather sardonically "This is welcome news as there has been much criticism of the delay in completing or even starting these improvements which were authorized by the town board a year ago."

As one might expect, most of the work on the new park seems to have been done shortly before Memorial Day in May, 1924.  On May 15, a local newspaper reported that the previous day workers "were busy all day yesterday grading and clearing off the plot of ground north of the village hall preparatory to the dedicatory services on Memorial Day."  Among the work to be performed were plantings of nine maple trees in honor of those who died.  Long-time Pelham resident and Chief of the Pelham Manor police, Philip Gargan, donated maple trees growing on a local property he owned.  The trees were removed from his property and replanted in the new Memorial Park by Pelham Post No. 50, American Legion, of which Chief Gargan was a member.

Dedication of "Pelham Memorial Park" on Monday, May 26, 1924

Although The Daily Argus of Mount Vernon published a story indicating that "Pelham Memorial Park" was dedicated on Friday, May 30, 1924, the ceremony actually was held, as planned, on Memorial Day (Monday, May 26, 1924).  About one thousand people attended the dedication ceremony.

Any Pelhamite who has attended any Memorial Day commemoration in Pelham at any time during the last several generations would recognize the ceremonies that were held the day Pelham Memorial Park was dedicated.  Many lined the principal streets of the town as a parade of veterans, officials, organizations, and bands made its way to a grandstand constructed across from the new park.  Trolley cars and other traffic were stopped during the course of the parade and ceremony.

A monument with a bronze plaque dedicated to the nine Pelham men who lost their lives during World War I was dedicated.  Civil War veteran Major Charles A. Walker removed an American flag draped over the monument to unveil it.

Local groups sang "The Star Spangled Banner," "America," and "Columbia."  There were an invocation and a benediction.  Lieut. Col. David L'Esperance delivered the main address.  His remarks are quoted in full below and, as one would expect, reflect a stirring, passionate, patriotic, and beautiful view of America, its citizens, and their duties.  It is well worth reading.

Once the ceremony was over that day, the Town of Pelham had a new park:  Pelham Memorial Park.

Pelham Memorial Park on the North Side of Town Hall at 34 Fifth Avenue

in July, 2016.  Source:  Google Maps.  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

World War Memorial Monument With Tablet Unveiled in

Pelham Memorial Park on May 24, 1924.  Undated Postcard

Though Image Likely Shows Monument Immediately After

Unveiling.  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

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Below are a host of news stories that form the basis of today's Historic Pelham article.  Each is followed by a citation and link to its source.

"In the Pelhams
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North Pelham . . . .

The church of the Redeemer has secured the tract of land on the corner of Fifth avenue and Harmon avenue and will take title the first of July.  Immediately plans will be prepared for a beautiful church on this corner with a parsonage.

The committee appointed to arrange for the purchase of the lot next to the town hall and immediately adjoining it on the south, will, according to Judge Crawford last night, not recommend its purchase.  The owner has placed the price at $5,000.  The town had sought to secure it as a memorial park to be known as Victory Park.  Realty appraisers regard the price as a fair one and think Mr. Crawford is wrong in calling the price excessive.  The property lies next to the lots being purchased by the Church of the Redeemer and Henry L. Rupert, one of the vestry of that church, who is engineering the church deal is authority for the statement that if the town does not purchase it, the church will make an effort to get it.  This will mean that the proposed Victory Memorial building which the ex-service men had hoped to have erected will be only a dream. . . ."
"Source:  In the Pelhams -- North Pelham, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], May 29, 1920, p. 10, col. 5.  

"North Pelham. . . . 

The regular meeting of the town board will take place at the town clerk's office in the town hall tonight.  The committee appointed to report on the advisability of purchasing the property adjoining the court house for a memorial park will make its report.  Judge Crawford, one of this committee, is responsible for the declaration that if a memorial building for the ex-service men is to be erected on the site, he will not recommend its purchase.  He states that, a cenotaph or shaft is to be erected, well and good, but he is opposed to having a building of any kind built near the court house. . . ."

Source:  North Pelham, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], Jun. 2, 1920, p. 5, col. 6.  

"Pelham. . . . 

The town board has passed a resolution empowering the supervisor to enter into a contract with the Hewitt estate for the purchase of the lot, approximately one hundred feet square, immediately adjoining the town hall on the south, for the purpose of establishing a memorial park.  The price was fixed at $4,000.  It was reported that the Church of the Redeemer, who own the property south of the lot and are preparing plans for a new church and rectory, were after this lot also."

Source:  Pelham, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], Jan. 12, 1921, p. 10, col. 1.  

"Pelham
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The principal business of the town board, at its meeting Wednesday night, was to arrange the annual budget. . . . 

The supervisor announces there are sufficient funds in the treasury to pay for the six voting machines, as well as the lot adjoining the town hall, which was bought by the town for a memorial park, and to which title will be taken today by the supervisor in the name of the town. . . ."

Source:  Pelham, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], Feb. 4, 1921, p. 3, col. 3.  

"Pelham
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Get Captured Cannon

The Comfort society has been notified that by a special act of congress, a captured German cannon has been awarded to their custody.  The gun will, in all probability, be mounted in the new memorial park next to the town hall or possibly in front of the building, on a concrete base.  The committee from the society yesterday decorated the honor roll with evergreen boughs and planted two evergreen trees, one in memory of George Walsh and the other in honor of the memory of Philip Marvel, the two boys for whom the new post of veterans of foreign wars is named.  The ladies expect to plant a tree in the memorial park for each of Pelham's gold star veterans.

Tells of Captured Gun

At a weekly meeting of the veterans of the foreign wars, held in the courtroom of the town hall last night, William P. Marvel, of North Pelham, and Corporal George Portland, of 25 Cortlandt street, Mount Vernon, put in their application for membership.  The awarding of another captured field piece to Pelham was brought up and this raised the question of the whereabouts of the German cannon which was presented by the war department last year at the dedication of Roosevelt Field at the new high school.  One of the members replied, 'I wish to say something about that field piece.  The war department stamped it 'captured July 19, 1918 at Soissons.'  Now I participated in that battle and I want to tell you that men died defending that gun and men died taking it, so I have a great interest in it, so I have a great interest in it.  Had you seen it on the morning of the capture, you would have seen a pile of German and American dead about it.  For the past several months it has been hidden, neglected in the rear of the high school building behind a big pile of stones.  I do not know in whose custody it is but something ought to be done to insure better treatment of it.'  The post will have a regular monthly meeting at the town hall next Monday night. . . ."

Source:  Pelham -- Get Captured Cannon, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], Nov. 11, 1921, p. 8, cols. 5-6.  

"DAILY NEWS OF The Pelhams. . . 
North Pelham. . . .

Will Grade Memorial Park.  

George T. Cottrell of Third avenue, will begin the grading of the new Memorial Park which adjoins the town hall on the south.  This plot was purchased from the Hewitt estate last year by the town and will be put in attractive shape.  There were three bidders for the contract; Cottrell, $238; John Roggaveen, $335, and Antony Smith, $398."

Source:  DAILY NEWS OF The Pelhams -- North Pelham -- Will Grade Memorial Park, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], May 13, 1922, p. 8, col. 3.  

"DAILY NEWS OF The Pelhams . . .
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Pelham. . . 
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To Finish Before Tuesday.

The work of grading the new memorial park adjoining the town hall on the south is almost finished and will be completed by Tuesday [May 30, 1922] provided the weather is favorable."

Source:  DAILY NEWS OF The Pelhams -- Pelham -- To Finish Before Tuesday, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], May 26, 1922, p. 16, cols. 5-6.  

"Town Purchases Addition To Memorial Park
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Lot 100 ft. By 100 Ft. Adjoining Town Hall On North Purchased At $12,000.00
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Offers Of $14,000 Received Since Deal Was Consummated -- To Improve Property
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The east side of Fifth Avenue will be enhanced by the addition of another 100 feet devoted to park purposes in the immediate neighborhood of Town Hall.  Following an executive session of the Town Board on Tuesday evening, Supervisor David Lyon announced that arrangements had been completed for the purchase of the 100x100-foot plot to the immediate north of the Town Hall on the east side of the avenue.  The price is $12,000.

The Town Board for some time has been negotiating with the owner of the property, Mrs. May Gage, of Sixth Avenue, with the intention of purchasing the property and extending Memorial Park.  It was only this week that a figure could be agreed upon.  It is the plan of the Town Board to have the property graded and improved, to beautify it as was done with the park on the south of the Town Hall.

The town cannot purchase any land excepting for the purpose of a memorial park.  The Pelham Comfort Society will entertain a number of disabled war veterans in Memorial Park, late in July.  It was expressed at the last regular meeting of the Town Board that a fitting use for Memorial Park should be for functions such as the Comfort Society plans.

Private individuals who wished to acquire the property for the erection of a high-class apartment house have offered a sum considerably higher than that at which the town has acquired it."

Source:  Town Purchases Addition To Memorial Park -- Lot 100 ft. By 100 Ft. Adjoining Town Hall On North Purchased At $12,000.00 -- Offers Of $14,000 Received Since Deal Was Consummated -- To Improve Property, The Pelham Sun, Jun. 22, 1923, p. 1, col. 1.  

"Town Property On Fifth Avenue To Be Improved
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Land Recently Acquired North Of Town Hall to Be Beautified In Conformity With Site
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Judge L. B. Louis Appointed By Town Board to Carry Out Work In Memorial Park
-----

The Town Board of Pelham has lost no time in taking action looking toward the improvement of its recently acquired property immediately north of the Town Hall on Fifth Avenue.

At the regular monthly meeting of the Board held on Wednesday night Judge I. Balch Louis was appointed a committee of one to carry out the work of beautifying the plot which will be known as Memorial Park.  A tentative scheme which calls for a rock garden which will be developed on the sloping bank and the installation of a memorial to the soldiers of the great war bids fair to improve the property in a manner which will be a decided acquisition to the beauty spots of the town.

By the purchase of the plot to the north of the Town Hall the town civic center now will have a degree of artistic balance, having a green lawn on either side.  Work will begin on this improvement within a short time."

Source:  Town Property On Fifth Avenue To Be Improved -- Land Recently Acquired North Of Town Hall to Be Beautified In Conformity With Site -- Judge L. B. Louis Appointed By Town Board to Carry Out Work In Memorial Park, The Pelham Sun, Jul. 13, 1923, p. 1, col. 3.  

"Wants Suggestions For Beautifying Town Park
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Judge Louis Will Soon Start Work On Improvement Of Memorial Park
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Who has some suggestions for the landscape design of the new town property on the north side of the Town Hall?  

Judge I. B. Louis, who has been appointed a committee of one to supervise the beautifying of the four lots, says that he will appreciate suggestions.  Next week he will consult a landscape architect and will begin work in planting shrubbery and laying sod.  The tentative plan calls for a rock garden which will be developed on the sloping property.  A monument will be erected as a memorial to the Pelham men who lost their lives in the World War.

The Town Board bought the property from Mrs. May Gage of Sixth Avenue in June at a price of $12,000 to establish a Memorial Park.  As a result of this purchase the town now owns one hundred feet on each side of the town hall."

Source:  Wants Suggestions For Beautifying Town Park -- Judge Louis Will Soon Start Work On Improvement Of Memorial Park, The Pelham Sun, Jul. 27, 1923, p. 7, cols. 4-5.  

"TOWN BOARD MEETS
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The Town Board met Wednesday night at the Town Hall for the regular monthly meeting Supervisor David Lyon, Town Clerk Theodore S. Babcock, Justices David A. L'Esperance, A. M. Menkel, Charles E. Rice and I. Balch Louis, were present.

Judge Louis presented his report as committee on the improvement of the recently purchased Memorial Park adjacent to the Town Hall.  A plan of landscape, Architect Kirman, was presented with the report.  The matter was laid on the table for future consideration.

Motion was made and carried ratifying Judge Louis' action in ordering the Town Hall draped at the death of President Harding.

A communication was received from Trustee R. H. Shaw of the Board of Education, relative to the abandonment of the plans to use the Town Hall for school purposes this term."

Source:  TOWN BOARD MEETS, The Pelham Sun, Sep. 7, 1923, p. 1, col. 6.  

"Pelham Town Board Has Busy Session
-----

North Pelham, Feb. 4. -- The town board met Friday night for the specific purpose of receiving and approving the budget for the first fire district, but after all the members had arrived and were in session, the fire commissioners had not yet put in an appearance, so Supervisor Lyon suggested that if there was any other business it might be disposed of. . . .

Judge Louis then requested the board to take up a matter that had been dormant for several months and that was his report as a committee on the laying out of the proposed memorial park on the property of the town immediately north of and adjoining the town hall.  This was taken up and the supervisor read the report that was presented at the September meeting.  In it Judge Louis stated that he had requested three landscape gardeners to submit plans and estimates for laying out the plot 100x100 and had received but one satisfactory answer and suggested that it be accepted.  This was shown by blue prints and the cost was $1,200.  Judge Louis added that he would include a bronze tablet to be placed in the center suitably inscribed.  Supervisor Lyon reminded the board that this year they might do the same with the exception of the sewer taxes, but found that town taxes must be levied and this $1,200 will increase the budget.  Judge Menkel stated that it was a small amount to be spread over the entire town and Judge L'Esperance agreed with him.  At this juncture the board of fire commissioners entered and the chair suggested that the matter be laid over to the next meeting of the board which takes place Wednesday evening next.  This was so ordered. . . ."

Source:  Pelham Town Board Has Busy Session, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], Feb. 5, 1924, p. 8, col. 2.  

"North Pelham . . . 

To Be Dedicated On Memorial Day

Judge I. B. Louis, who is one of the committee in charge of the improvements to be installed in the new Memorial Park which adjoins the town hall, has announced that the improvements will be ready for the dedication of the park on Memorial Day.  This is welcome news as there has been much criticism of the delay in completing or even starting these improvements which were authorized by the town board a year ago."

Source:  North Pelham -- To Be Dedicated On Memorial Day, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], Jan. 8, 1924, p. 10, col. 1.

"North Pelham. . . 

Prepare for Memorial Day

Workmen were busy all day yesterday grading and clearing off the plot of ground north of the village hall preparatory to the dedicatory services on Memorial Day.  The plot will be made into a memorial park in memory of Pelham men who died during the Great War.  Memorial trees will also be planted by the American Legion Post, in their memory."

Source:  North Pelham -- Prepare for Memorial Day, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY] May 15, 1924, p. 12, col. 4.  

"PELHAM PAYS TRIBUTE TO WAR DEAD
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Military Parade and Dedication of Bronze Tablet
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ON MEMORIAL DAY
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Large Crowd Witnesses Impressive Ceremony -- Judge L'Esperance Speaks.
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Pelham, May 31.  --  Pelham paid a glowing tribute to her soldier dead with impressive ceremonies and the unveiling of a monument dedicated to their memory at the Town Park yesterday morning.  Major Charles A. Walker, a veteran of the Civil War, pulled aside the American flag which was draped over the monument which had been erected to the memory of nine boys from Pelham who made the supreme sacrifice.

The formal affair was the dedication of the Pelham Memorial Park, which is a plot of ground reserved and dedicated to the soldiers of Pelham who never returned.  The monument is a stone one, with a bronze plate, on which is inscribed:  'Hallowed is the Place Where Memories Live -- Dedicated
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(Continued On Page Six)

PELHAM PAYS TRIBUTE TO WAR DEAD
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(Continued from Page One.)
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by the Town of Pelham in Proud Recognition of Those Who Served.'

 There is a gravel walk leading to the monument and around it, planted in a semi-circle are nine trees each with a stone and bronze marker, dedicated to Charles Amato, James S. Brown, Franklin C. Fairchild, Frederick C. Gerloff, Philip F. Hassinger, Ilmani Heine, Robert W. McClain, George Walsh and John . Young.  These are the nine boys whose memories Pelham commemorated yesterday.

The ceremonies started with a parade in the morning of the members of the American Legion, the fire and police departments, the Boy Scouts of America, the Girl Scouts, the Pelham Manor club, members of the Red Cross, Veterans of Foreign Wars and the school children.  Two bands supplied the music for the parade, which passed through the main streets of the town and then stopped at the Town hall, on Fifth avenue, where a grand stand had been erected, across from the Memorial park.

Here the formal dedication of the park and the unveiling of the monument took place.  The invocation was by Rev. J. McVickar Haight.  Next came the singing of the Star Spangled Banner.  Judge I. Balch Louis, master of ceremonies, then made a short introductory address.  'America the Beautiful' was then rendered by the pupils of the Pelham schools and the Scouts.  Lieut. Col. David L'Esperance delivered his address.  The dedication and unveiling of the monument by Major Walker then took place.  Following this 'Columbia' was sung by the school children and benediction was pronounced by Monsignor Francis J. McNichol.

Fifth avenue in Pelham was decorated with American flags and bunting and with the appearance of the sun after many days of rainy weather, the observance of Memorial Day in Pelham was a great success.  About 1000 persons watched the dedication of the monument and many others observed the parade along its line of march.  Street cars in Pelham were discontinued during the time of the parade and everything was at a standstill while honor was being done to the dead soldiers of the town.

The parade had its line of march through the principal streets of the Pelhams and ended at the reviewing stand on Fifth avenue.  In it were veterans of the world war, but Samuel E. Lyon, the only Civil War veteran still residing in North Pelham, was unable to be present.  He paid his annual visit to the St. Paul's church, Eastchester, where the Mount Vernon Memorial Day exercises took place.

The majority of marchers in the parade were veterans of recent wars and the old vets with their blue coats and service medals were conspicuously absent.  Those in the line of march were I. Balch Louis, Rev. J. McV. Haight, Lieut Col. David L'Esperance, members of the town board, members of the board of trustees, J. Gardiner Minard, commander of the Pelham Post 50, American Legion; Stacy Wood, Boy Scouts of America; Mrs. James MacGregor, Girls Scouts; Mrs. Geofrey Oden, who had four sons in the service during the war led the women of the Pelham Comfort Society, their head was Mrs. E. K. K. Adair; Mrs. J. C. Wilberding, Red Cross contingent; Byron McCloskey, school children; Domenick, of the Italian Society; and members of the fire and police departments, Manor club, Men's club, Pelhamwood association; unattached citizens and organizations of the three villages. 

L'Esperance's eloquent address was as follows:

'It is fitting that one day in the year should be set aside for the people of this great country to pause in thoughtful commemoration of the supreme sacrifice paid by its citizens in the maintenance of the republic.  A wise and provident legislature has made it possible for the people of the town of Pelham to appropriate from its resources the funds to purchase and dedicate this spot as a soldier's memorial, upon which has been placed a monument whereon appear the names of those men who in the service of their country have given up their lives.  I conceive no duty more urgent, no task more grateful, than to be here today and aid in this commemoration.

'For almost one hundred and fifty years the government which the Colonial statesmen founded and for which their soldiers fought has stood the wear and strain.  It has repelled foreign foes, it has proved sufficiently compact and elastic to resist the shock of and successfully subdue the mightiest civil convulsion of modern times.  It has eliminated slavery and assimilated the freedmen by its laws.  It has extended its boundaries far and wide.  It has received with open arms the emigrant from every land and conferred upon him the equal rights of citizenship.  Its people have enjoyed unparalleled prosperity and grown rich, and it has withstood the corruption which follows in the train of great riches.  It has twice in my lifetime sent its soldiers and lent its credit and given of all its moral influence to set free for the conservation of democracy the peoples of other countries.

'This republic has lived and will continue to live because it is built upon a substantial foundation, a constitution and law which guarantee a government of the people, by the people, and for the people, protected by a police arm, its soldiers selected as in this last war by conscription from every village and hamlet in this broad land, whose duty it has always been to protect it against destruction and enforce the mandates of the people; and may I say that because its men are clothed with authority to enforce the laws, and protect their country's integrity and honor, they are not preferred in the performance of this duty.  Nor are they entitled to any reward or special merit.  This duty is demanded in return for the guarantee of liberty which is extended to them by this constitution.

'I do not agree with those who have said we voted to send the boys to war, and therefore we must vote to prefer them to those who stayed at home, by some special form of emolument for this service.  For it was my knowledge that nearly every man, woman and child in this great country made some sacrifice of some kind in the service of the country.  In fact, there sits on the platform with me many men and women who either under the banner of the Red Cross, Knights of Columbus, Y. M. C. A., or Comfort societies, gave freely of their time, money and health to add to the comfort or alleviate the sufferings of those who were more fortunate and were able to get into the uniform of either the army, navy or marine corps, and do the actual fighting, and many of them today are suffering from the sacrifices they made, and will continue to suffer under the burden of the oppressive taxation which all must bear, that was occasioned by this frightful conflict.

'It is the knowledge of this duty, my friends, which has made for the continued life of this republic of ours, whose enemies have predicted would not last, and whose friends have sometimes doubted.

'Throughout this great land of ours today, in places like Pelham and in the larger cities and communities, the people are either gathered together as we are or pause individually to commemorate the deeds of their citizens who have paid the supreme sacrifice, and it is well they should, for the examples of fortitude, courage and patriotism that are remembered of them, particularly this day, is what makes for sober thought and reflection upon what the future will provide for the world.

'The Town of Pelham has contributed its share most generously to the history and upbuilding of this republic; its fields were traversed and fought over by the Colonial soldiers during the Revolution.  It gave of the lives of its men and women in that conflict and every other war that this country had been involved in.  And it is indeed proper today that we should gather together to commemorate the deeds of its citizenry by the dedication on this spot where we and our descendants can forever see and know that its men and women were not ungrateful or unmindful of the great privilege of being citizens of this great republic, and the duty each one owes to conserve it.

'Men and women may differ in their political beliefs and each of the great parties may feel that the affairs of this country would be better administered by their representatives, but no one nor any party would prefer to change its flag upon whose field of blue there rests a star representing each of the great sovereign states of our great republic, not one star of which has been lost or dimmed, emblematic more than ever before, and as we are here gathered under its protecting folds, shoulder to shoulder, and see before us our duties and responsibilities, and as we unveil this tablet upon which appear the names of those brave men whose lives and deeds are among the choicest gifts of God to this great republic, let us take them as a precious legacy for the example and inspiration of coming generations."

Source:  PELHAM PAYS TRIBUTE TO WAR DEAD -- Military Parade and Dedication of Bronze Tablet -- ON MEMORIAL DAY -- Large Crowd Witnesses Impressive Ceremony -- Judge L'Esperance Speaks, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], May 31, 1924, p. 1, col. 4 & p. 6, cols. 3-4. 

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