Muttontown is an incorporated village bordering Brookville to the south and west, East Norwich to the north and Syosset to the east. It does not have its own post office and residents of Muttontown have 4 different zip codes - 11791 (Syosset), 11753 (Jericho), 11732 (East Norwich), 11771 (Oyster Bay) and 11545 (Glen Head). Based on the zip codes, Muttontown also has 4 different school districts - Jericho, Syosset, Locust Valley and East Norwich-Oyster Bay.
Delano & Aldrich, the prominent architect of the ‘20s made his first commission in this area. His first commission is the Christie House on Muttontown Rd whose exterior wall was modeled after Mount Vernon, the home of our first president, George Washington. This mansion is now called Nassau Hall owned by Nassau County. Nassau Hall was built by Delano & Aldrich for the Winthrop family and was known originally as the Egerton L. Winthrop Jr. House or Muttontown Meadows. The estate was purchased by Lansdell Christie in 1950 and hence called the Christie House. His widow, Helen Christie sold the house and its 183 acres to Nassau County in 1969. It is now the home of Nassau Parks Conservancy. Nassau Hall has one of the biggest collection of pine trees.
Nearby is another mansion located on the beautiful Muttontown Preserve. Chelsea Mansion with a French Normandy style architecture was built for Mr. & Mrs. Benjamin Moore in 1924. Mr. Benjamin Moore's great, great grandfather was the author, Clement Clark Moore, who wrote the poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas", otherwise known as "T'was The Night Before Christmas". Chelsea Mansion was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. One special feature of this property is the moat around the mansion, an Oriental influence favored by Mrs. Moore after a trip to China on her honeymoon in 1921. Chelsea is also owned by Nassau County and used now for various charity fundraising events and concerts in the summer.
Moore was the first mayor of the village of Muttontown (1931-1938), which he named. Mr. Moore's died in 1938, and 17 years later Mrs. Moore married Robert McKay, a life-long friend. Mr. McKay died in 1958. In 1964, Mrs. Alexandra Moore McKay began donating portion of the property to Nassau County and over a period of 10 years, nearly 100 acres were donated to the County. With this acquisitions plus the Christie House, Nassau County created the 550-acre Muttontown Preserve. Muttontown Preserve is one of the most beautiful preserves in Long Island. An Equestrian Center for those who love horseback riding can also be found on its premises and is accessible at Route 106 entrance. For people who love nature, there are miles of nature trails where you can go on foot or ride your horse. During the early part of the 20th century, this area was a horse country. Fox hunting used to be a favorite pastime by the upper class. King Zog of Albania own a property here at some point but from what I can gather never lived in it.
For dining pleasure, residents of Muttontown take advantage of several restaurants on nearby East Norwich where cuisine range from simple fare to expensive gastronomical experience. We have Rothmann's Steakhouse, Angelina Italian Restaurant, Luce formerly called Café Girasole, Saggio Pizzeria, La Pizzetta Restaurant, Pancake House, Mezzina Market, Taste of China and Tokyo and Bagel Boss Café.
Muttontown residents enjoyed the benefits of living near several golf courses. Tam O'Shanter Club has a prominent location on Route 107 and is located in Brookville. There are other golf courses nearby - Muttontown Golf and Country Club in Muttontown, Pine Hollow Golf and Country Club in East Norwich,The Mill River Club in Upper Brookville, Brookville Country Club located in Old Brookville, Meadow Brook Club in Jericho, Glen Oaks Club in Old Westbury, Piping Rock Club in Matinecock and the Creek Club in Lattingtown.
Copyright © 2009. By Rosalinda Morgan, "The Rose Lady". All rights reserved.. *INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT MUTTONTOWN, NY"
If you are interested in selling or buying a home in Oyster Bay, East Norwich, Oyster Bay Cove, Syosset, Laurel Hollow, Bayville, Centre Island, Brookville and Muttontown, please contact Rosalinda Morgan, "The Rose Lady"
Ph - 516-385-0584
Email - linda@rosalindamorgan.com
Website - www.rosalindamorgan.com
Very cool! Interesting name for a town! :-)
Wow! You packed this full of history. And I love the old photo of "Nassau Hall".
Fascinating historical facts about Muttontown plus many amenities make this location ideal for many people. It certainly is appealing to me. Thanks for a very interesting and informative post!
Liz - Thanks for dropping by. I still have to find out how the name started. That will be another blog someday.
Lisa - I love Nassau Hall. The inside are as gorgeous as the outside. All rooms are well proportioned and well designed for entertaining wealthy friends.
L:nda - It's a beautiful village and was home to very few wealthy industrialists in the '20s where they purchased big tracts of land and big huge houses for their family. It's probably one of the few areas in the U.S. where there are still plenty of open spaces and they are not for sale.