Mamaroneck, a name sometimes translated as “the place where the sweet waters fall into the sea,” is one of the oldest settlements in Westchester County. Established at the mouth of a river and at the head of a harbor, it was purchased in 1661 by John Richbell, a London merchant, from the Siwanoy Indians.
A town census of 1698 recorded seventy-seven people. Descendents of some of these original families still reside in the area. Two years later, the population increased to eighty-four with most residents living on the “East Neck,” which is the present Village of Mamaroneck.
During the Revolutionary War Westchester County was declared neutral territory and Mamaroneck was unhappily sandwiched between the Colonial Headquarters north of Peekskill and the British forces in New York City. Without civil or military protection, residents often found themselves pillaged by both sides.
On May 17, 1788, the Town of Mamaroneck was created by an act of the New York State Legislature. During the Civil War its citizens were divided in their political affiliations, although a majority voted Democrat in the election of 1860.
Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century residents earned their livelihoods by farming, fishing, lumbering, and milling. When manufacturing came to the Town, most was located (as it is today), in the Mamaroneck Village section. Larchmont Village and the Unincorporated Town were, and largely remain, residential.
By 1888, a four-track line of the New York and New Haven Rail Road was completed and a huge granite station which also served as a post office was built on Chatsworth Avenue. Mamaroneck became a popular summer residence for New York City’s upper classes and a haven for those fleeing polio and influenza epidemics.
The 1920’s were a time of growth and expansion which continued until the stock market crash of 1929. During the Great Depression so many families were forced to sell their homes that the Town prohibited “For Sale” signs from being displayed for fear of starting a panic. The Larchmont Aid Society was established at that time to offer charitable relief.
The end of World War II brought economic recovery, however, and by 1946 Westchester County was enjoying a housing boom. The Boston Post Road soon became inadequate to handle the increased volume of traffic. During the 1950’s the Town sold part of Larchmont Gardens Lake and the surrounding park to the Thruway Authority. The New England Thruway, originally called the Pelham-Port Chester Highway, opened in 1958 carving a path through the Unincorporated Area.
Today, the Town of Mamaroneck, with its easy access to highways, airports, and Metro North train service to New York City, is a prime suburban residential community.
| Town of Mamaroneck History | |
|
