An Autumn Walk Through a Local Community

It is definitely autumn. Leaves are falling. Halloween decorations are sprouting up all over my neighborhood.

My husband and I decided to enjoy the mild autumn weather by exploring a local village, Oyster Bay. We live on Long Island, and it's still possible in this densely populated suburb of New York City to find a small town. Oyster Bay may not technically be a small town, with a population of over 31,000, but the village feels like a small town. It has a long history. It was granted a patent by the English governor in 1667.

Where else but in a small town would you see a man carrying fresh bread down the street for delivery to a local store?

Where else would you find Church Street?

And the church to go with it. There it is, the First Presbyterian Church, across the street, on a hill. This building was erected in 1873. It is a landmark. U. S. President, Theodore Roosevelt, had his funeral rites performed in the church.

Where else, but in a small town, can you walk up to a window, on the street, and pay your taxes?

It's very quiet in the town. Nobody seems to be in a hurry. The shops are attractive. Look at this pizza parlor, for example.

Or this barber shop.

Every Sunday, there is a street market, right next to the Town Hall.

Here is the sign for the street market.

We didn't find any fresh produce, although there are many farms on the island. Mostly vendors at the market were selling arts and crafts. One stand was selling liquor and handing out free shots. It was Sunday morning and somehow I found it funny to see a man walking down the street, downing his free shot in a paper cup.

There was a bouncy house, for children, at the market.

And a snack truck where anyone could find something to feed that unhealthy impulse we all get from time to time. Sunday morning on an autumn day does fuel the appetite.

Around the corner from the market was a Free Mason's Lodge. The Lodge on Main Street (Main Street, in a small town, of course) was founded in 1892, and President Theodore Roosevelt was a member.

A short walk from the town hall we found the Railroad Museum. I may dedicate a blog to this museum one day, but right now I'll post a few of the pictures I took there.

Here is an old fashioned phone as might have been found in a nineteenth century station house.

Here is a picture of the gauges that were used to run steam trains in the nineteenth century.

The station house, in which the museum is located, was built in 1899 and operated as a station until 1999. The building is considered a New York State Landmark. The current station for Oyster Bay is just a short distance down the tracks. The museum is also listed on the U. S. Register of Historic Places.

Here is the picture of a model locomotive and freight car that were on display.

Here's the picture of a model passenger car. Observation cars were built so passengers could actually stand outside and observe the scenery as the car was moving.

Whistle Stop campaigns from observation cars were quite popular. Presidential candidates would travel across the U.S. by train and give speeches from the backs of observation cars. Here's a picture of President Theodore Roosevelt on his campaign. The stop was in Kansas City, Kansas, 1900. Picture credit: SMU Central University Libraries. Public domain.

Here's a desk in the railroad office that looks as though the clerk got up and went for coffee. The desk is disorganized and very real. You can see the desk phone. Next to it seems to be Morse code key clicker, for sending messages. You also see a gas lamp and manual pencil sharpener. Also a serious-looking hand stapler and a fan in the window. The station is near the bay, and in the summer there must have been a nice breeze coming off the water. With the window open, the fan must have been refreshing in an era that hadn't yet experienced air conditioning.

Several steamer trunks were featured in the museum. Luggage is an important part of train travel. These pieces, displayed below, actually seem quite familiar to me--but then I belong more to the last century than this century :)

We'll leave the museum and go back to the streets of Oyster Bay Village. There are yet many images for us to savor.

Here, for instance, I captured the picture of what seems to be a grandmother patiently walking down the street with her grandchild. I watched this pair as they slowly made their way, child with chest proudly out and grandmother hovering, concerned and encouraging.

The street scene invited one to take time, perhaps stop for an ice cream, or a snack. Here's an arrangement of outdoor chairs and tables in front of a local eatery.

The shot above was taken across from the church. You can see people taking strolls. Nobody seems concerned about safety. You would think, from these pictures that the world is at peace. Well, it is for one Sunday morning in Oyster Bay Village, anyway.

Here are some more pedestrians.

A woman who picked up sundries at a local shop.

When I look at this picture of two pedestrians (who do not seem to be together) I notice the woman's purse. Never, ever in New York City would you carry your purse like that. You have it in front of you, close at hand, where you could keep an eye on it.

Here we have another shot of our baby and grandmother. The woman crossing the street is not concerned about the cars. They actually stop at the stop sign here. Note the scene brings together the pedestrian, the grandma/baby, and the church. It's a small town atmosphere, to be sure.

Every self-respecting town has a bookstore, and sure enough, Oyster Bay Village has at least one.

You notice as you walk around that Theodore Roosevelt is inescapable. His residence was in Oyster Bay. The local beachfront is named after him: Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Park. There are breweries, and bookstores and novelty shops that feature his likeness, or some version of his name. There is a statue of him on horseback at a major intersection.

Here is a bust of Roosevelt for sale at a local art store.

Throughout our walk we noticed plants. There are plants everywhere, adorning buildings, street corners. Here, for example, on one side street, we found a window box.

And here, a rather ugly entrance to an office is spruced up with two planters.

Even the brewery has a small potted plant sitting next to its wooden barrels.

Autumn is my favorite season. Or it used to be, before monster hurricanes became normal. Right now there is a category 4 hurricane slamming into Florida, the second catastrophic hurricane in a couple of weeks. Taking a walk in Oyster Bay Village is like taking a step back in time. At least on a Sunday it is. For a few moments my husband and I can enjoy the illusion that the world around us is at peace.

I hope you enjoyed my stroll around Oyster Bay Village. We'll have to take another walk, sometime.

I'll close with what I think should be the iconic image for a small town: A question window. Apparently, residents can walk up to the window, on the street, and ask questions of a town employee who probably does not act like a bureaucrat.

Thank you for reading my blog. Peace and health to all my readers.