BARTLETT HOME
Howell - Buckingham - Bartlett house John Howell who came from Southold originally owned this property. The lake on the property now called Spring Lake was known as Howell's pond as early as 1739. After John Howell's death, the property was passed on to his son Reeve Howell who was a patriot during the American Revolution. Reeve Howell married was married to Bathsheba Clark, they had seven children. Reeve Howell died in 1802 and left the property to his son Daniel. Daniel and his wife, had one child, a daughter named Abigail. Abigail married John Buckingham. Later they had a son Daniel Buckingham. At the age of 17 Daniel went to Port Jefferson where he became an apprentice to shipbuilder John W. Mather. After 18 months he grew bored with his "dull" life and went to work with his father who as a wheelwright fixed and built mills. In 1843 he finally found the adventure he was seeking. He went on a whaling voyage from Sag Harbor that took him to the Azores. A later trip in 1846 would take him around Cape Horn bound for the Pacific. When Daniel's father John died in 1852, Daniel was left to take charge of the farm. In 1857 Daniel and his mother leased the home and farm to William Bartlett a famous New York City lawyer. Bartlett increased the size of the farm to 1000 acres by buying additional acreage. Bartlett became legendary for building a spur from the railroad, which extended onto his estate. He kept his workers busy by having them build several stone walls on his estate. His son Willard a noted lawyer and Judge on the New York Court of Appeals became the next owner of the land. The pond near the house now became known as Bartlett Pond. His daughters Maude and Agnes became the last owners of the estate. All three houses including the barn were mysteriously burned in 1965. The land is now being used as a golf course called Spring Lake. Information compiled by |
