Posted 1910
| Friede's Inn, Smithtown, Long Island | |||
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| Frank Friede's Riverside Inn, Smithtown Long Island
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| Riverside Inn Smithtown, Long Island, L.I. Posted 1910 |
| Postcard collection of Maggie Land Blanck | |
| Riverside Inn Smithtown, Long Island, N.Y. Posted 1915 |
| Postcard collection of Maggie Land Blanck | |
| "Compliments of Friede's Hotel, Smithtown
Branch, L. I." Mailed in 1919
Sign over door
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| Postcard collection of Maggie Land Blanck Question: This building and it's surroundings does not look much like the other images. Can anyone shed any light on this? | |
| "Famous Frank Friede's Riverside Inn Smithtown, L.I., N.Y. Route 25 Phone: ANdrew 5-9895 - 9898 Now There is MUSIC In the Champion Room Wed. thru Sat. from 9:P.M RAY THOMPSON at the piano" Not posted
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| Postcard collection of Maggie Land Blanck | |
| The Inn on the Nissiquogue River, Smithtown, L. I. Posted 1912
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| Postcard collection of Maggie Land Blanck | |
| Riverside Inn from R. R. Bridge, Smithtown, L. I. Not posted
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| Postcard collection of Maggie Land Blanck | |
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In June 2005 Joan Rust and her sister, Betty Korman, emailed some of their memories of Smithtown/St James including the following
about Freide's:
My Dad was a waiter at Frank Friede's Riverside Inn for many years and still worked there in 1969 or 1970 when he got ill. I have one of their menus from the early 1950's w/ Judy Garland's autograph. (Joan)In February 2007 Arthur Valentine wrote to say, It was actually called "Harry's Yellow Balloon"* at the time of the fire. It was also rumored that it was an insurance job; But I have no idea if that is true or not. Either way, Our town lost a wonderful landmark that day."Joan sent xeroxes of two menus that her father had:
THE LEGEND OF SMITHTOWN Friede's Riverside Inn is proud to carry on a tradition of service to critninating (?) clients. An Inn has stood on this site for nearly 100 years. And long before that the original house, which was turned into an inn in 1859, was a famous landmark; it was the family home of one of the Smiths who have been at Smithtown for three centuries. About 300 years ago Smithtown, also called Smithfield, was settled by the patentee Richard Smith. The Indians he found here, "a friendly people, were the Nissequakes, called so from the character of the terrain, which was known as "The Land of Mud and Clay." The story goes that in 1663 the Indians granted Richard Smith as much land as he could cover in a day. Whereupon Smith, who had trained a bun until he could ride him as other men did horses, rode around almost all the land which today comprises Smithtown Township. From that time on he was called "Bull" Smith. Chief of the Nissequakes was the Sachem Wyandanch. One of the most romantic tales in local history concerns his daughter, who, having been kidnapped, was ransomed from her father's enemies with the help of Lyon Gardiner of East Hampton. The land Gardiner received from the grateful Indian chief was later bought by Richard Smith, and formed part of the tract divided by heirs. Other settlers soon followed Bull Smith, and by the time of the Revolution George Washington, during a visit found a thriving community. Washington slept here, too, it is told, at the Widow Blydenburgh's. The home which later became an inn was built by "Ed Henry" Smith, great-great-grandson of the Founder of Smithtown. In 1859 it was sold to Benjamin B. Newton, who conducted it for 17 years as "B. B. Newton's Hotel, except for a short interval when the hotel belonged to William Spurge. The original inn was burned down during that interval, but was soon rebuilt. At the turn of the century the inn at the Head of the Harbor became a Mecca for New York celebrities of the stage and sport worlds. Frank Friede, present boniface (?) of Riverside Inn, took possession in 1919. It was under his management that Riverside Inn achieved widespread fame. During World War II a soldier in New Guinea enclosed a wrapping from a River Side Inn sugar cube, and wrote that it was a thrill to come upon it in the South Pacific. A noted host, Frank Friede's friends are 14on (?); in every gathering where fine food and Good Companions are mentioned, Frank Friede's name, like Abou Ben Adhem's, leads all the rest. MESSENGER PELINTERY
As taken from a Freide's menu of the early 1950's contributed by Joan Rust whose father worked there. | |
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| Postcard collection of Maggie Land Blanck | |
| Famous
Frank Freide's Riverside Inn, Jericho Tpke, Smithtown , L. I.
Not dated "Gracious country dining- Long Island's oldest and most famous Inn. Princess and Oval rooms for weddings, social and business functions. The Champion Room Open daily except Tuesdays for business lunches, dining, and entertainment. Piano music Sat. nites in the Champion Room" | |
| To see images of the home of Percy Land and Meta Petermann Land at 101 North Country Road, Smithtown go to The Home of Meta and Percy Land |
| To see images of the St James Long Island ( a part of the township os Smithtown) go to St James, Long Island |
| To see images of the Central Islip, Long Island go to Central Islip, Long Island |
| To see images of the Smithtown, Long Island go to Smithtown Photos |
| To see images of the Hauppauge, Long Island go to Hauppauge, Long Island |
| If you have any suggestions, corrections, information, copies of documents, or photos that you would like to share with this page, please contact me at maggie@maggieblanck.com |