Industry

The Weckquaesgeek

Weckquaegeek human population has existed for 5000 years. The woods in the region. had plenty of game. Deer, wildcat, bear, silk, elk, turkey, fox, snakes, frogs,skunks, beaver were all big trade. Women planted and farmed. Herb’s were used with great success. Red berries were used after a child’s birth, hazel was used for fevers, goldenrod was used for curing colds, raspberry plant was used stomach aches, and yarrow was used for curing toothaches.

The Philipse Family

The Philipse family was the biggest and most well known family in the Tarrytown and North Tarrytown. Frederick Philipse was the first great landowner on shores of the Tappen Zee. On December 10, 1681, he was the first to purchase land and Tarrytown. He soon created a mill to make grain which was distant ports and New York City.

Adolph Philipse got the upper mills property when his father died. Fredericks oldest son Philip died before his father. In Fredrick’s will he divided Philipsburgh Manor in half. When Adolph owned the upper mills it reached it’s highest point of trade. When the mills business increased a set of three

millstones were added so barley could be grained with wheat and corn. Some flower was shipped to New York city and some flower was also shipped to other ports. A lot of

the flower was left in the upper mills and made into biscuits at some bake houses. The biscuits were for Adolph’s sailors. Adolph died in 1702. The Manor is now a public restoration.

THE LOVETT SILK MILL

One of the early businesses in the 1800’s was the Lovett Silk Mill. It was located by the Pocantico River in North Tarrtown (which is now Sleepy Hollow) and the Kill Brook river in Ossining. The Lovett Silk Mill was destroyed by a heavy windstorm in 1985. It was rebuilt and years later

burned down in a fire. Then another heavy windstorm the chimney fell off. Before the Silk Mill was destroyed it was for the swift flow of streams.

Charles Cohen

Charles Cohen started one of the first furniture business back in 1888. Tarrytown was its infancy, throughout sixty-seven years. (Charles Cohen furniture had over 7,000 sq. feet of floor space at 133 and 139 Main Street. This furniture store closed down in June 1967. It was open for over 80 years.)

Durcell Factory

In the early 1900’s two major factories in the Tarrytowns were the Durcell and General Motors plant. One major product of the Tarrytowns was the "Durcell" battery. The battery is used in flashlights, radios, photographic equipment, and the mercury power cell, which is used in medical electronics, space exploration and assorted industrial processes. A new lease in auto- manufacturing life was given the following year when they purchased the Steamer factory. Jonathan D.Maxwell and Benjamin Briscoe were the head of the company. In one week the company could make 50-60 cars a week. In 1912 Maxwell Briscoe was the leader. In most of the US school children in their geography classes learned about the auto-manufacturing plant along the Hudson River.

Tarrytown’s first Radio Station

The first radio station in Westchester was above a garage on Old Post Rd. In Tarrytown. Fred and Nicholas Kuenigi owned and operated the radio station in 1907.Fred and Nicholas were pioneers in the area. They were natural born mechanics. Fred Kuenig bought US Army surplus after World War I. He bought parts and a radio transmitter with a 600 volt D.C. generator. Soon he was transmitting with a range of 450 meters.

WOOLWORTH

Woolworth was in TARRYTOWN since 1913 to 1993. It was the end of many memories for many people in January of 1993, when it closed. It was at 45 North- Broadway. Woolworth is a stationary store. Some people say Tarrytown will be a ghost town. But that seems unlikely for a town with 10,790 residents.