And a Creek Runs Through It

Greetings, all.

Hope the weekend continues to go well for everyone.

As we head into our final week, it’s time for Countdown Day 5.

Now I know we haven’t talked a ton of regional travel on here, but let’s buck the trend today and head out to Long Island, New York.

There’s an area out that way known as the Five Towns. Let’s call them sort of an informal array of villages and hamlets in Nassau County, NY, located on the South Shore of Long Island.

And similar to the Robert Redford classic film A River Runs Through It (1992), it seems that a creek – Duffy’s Creek – runs through parts of the Five Towns. While a creek somehow may seem a lot less metaphorical and mysterious than the river in Redford’s story (and hey, that story did feature a very young Brad Pitt, in the film that many feel was his star maker) the Five Towns does have its share of history. Here’s a quick snapshot of each of them:

  1. Cedarhurst – Established in 1910, the village had formerly been known as Ocean Point. History tells us that a post office was introduced in the vicinity, as far back as the mid-1880s. And the new name of Cedarhurst was eventually chosen, meant to reference a grove of trees that once stood at the post office.
  2. Hewlett – It’s name came from George Hewlett, an English-born settler who emigrated to Long Island by way of Connecticut.
  3. Inwood – This hamlet is home to the renown Inwood Country Club, the site of the 1921 PGA Championship and the 1923 U.S. Open.
  4. Lawrence – Back in the 1850s, the brothers Lawrence, Alfred, Newbold and George turned what was wide-open farmland into a summer resort. And today, it’s a busy community of nearly 7000 residents.
  5. Woodmere – As far back as 1910, there were considerations to incorporate the area as a village. The plans to do so, though, never materialized, and even today, Woodmere remains an unincorporated hamlet governed by the nearby Town of Hempstead.

If you haven’t been out in the area of the Five Towns, consider making a visit. There’s a lot of history, some great food and some fabulous golf courses. Maybe a destination for Summer 2024?

See you tomorrow for Day 4.

JFish

@Copyright 2023 by John L. Fischer

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