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Photo of the Week

FROM THE SCHS LIBRARY ARCHIVES

"How shall we know it is us without our past?"
- John Steinbeck

by Wendy Polhemus-Annibell, Head Librarian

Pages from the 1750-1803 Account Book of Ezra L'Hommedieu. (Image from the Collection of the Suffolk County Historical Society Library Archives. Copyright © Suffolk County Historical Society. All rights reserved.)

Ezra L'Hommedieu (1734-1811), of Dutch and French Huguenot ancestry, was born in Southold. He practiced law in New York City after graduation from Yale in 1754. L'Hommedieu was a noted patriot of the Revolutionary War and represented New York in the Continental Congress. He also served in the State Assembly and as one of the authors of the original New York State Constitution. He even helped design the Montauk Point Lighthouse as an advisor to President George Washington on its construction, and was responsible for developing advanced methods of farming, such as using ground seashells to fertilize acid soils.

L'Hommedieu is buried in the Old Burying Ground of the First Presbyterian in Southold near the grave of his first wife, Charity Floyd, whose brother was Colonel William Floyd, a signer of the Declaration of Independence.

ABOUT Our PHOTO OF THE WEEK Series

The Suffolk County Historical Society’s PHOTO OF THE WEEK Series is created by head research librarian Wendy Polhemus-Annibell using historic primary source materials from our local history library’s extensive archives. To subscribe, visit our website or send an email request to Wendy at librarian@schs-museum.org 

Interested in seeing more historical documents from the Collection of the Suffolk County Historical Society? Spend an afternoon at our Local History Research Library perusing our extensive collections. We're open Weds. - Sat., 12:30 - 4:30 PM.

To view our Photo of the Week archives, visit our website at www.SuffolkCountyHistoricalSociety.org.

 

 

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The Suffolk County Historical Society, founded in 1886, collects and preserves the rich history of Suffolk County and beyond. We offer a history museum, art galleries, a research library and archives, and a multitude of exhibits, programs, and educational lectures and workshops year-round. Our unique collections reflect more than three centuries of Long Island history. Click here to learn about Member Benefits!

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Copyright © 2017 Suffolk County Historical Society. All rights reserved. No part of this electronic document may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the Suffolk County Historical Society.