Refurbished Babylon town hall to be unveiled

Usually when sparks fly inside town hall, the cause is a political fight.

But Monday at Babylon's former town hall, sparks flew from a welder's torch, part of a restoration project and the creation of a new town museum.

The newly refurbished building will be unveiled Friday during a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the town's now-defunct trolley lines. The museum will feature interactive exhibits, historical artifacts and recordings of residents speaking about life in the town back when it was crisscrossed by dirt roads.

Monday, the building resembled less museum and more active construction site. A thick film of Sheetrock dust covered the floor and the pungent smell of wood stain lingered in the air as town workers labored furiously to get the building ready for the Friday unveiling.

"I think history is so valuable and important to a community in so many ways," Supervisor Steve Bellone said. "It's the thing that connects everyone and it makes you part of something bigger."

The building's history as a public space spans more than six decades, and it was Babylon's first town hall. In 1872, Babylon residents voted to secede from the Town of Huntington and form their own government. But the new town did not have a central home and for years officials met in hotels and board members' houses, said town historical archivist Mary Cascone.

Built in 1917 on Main Street in Babylon Village, the building was created in the Classical Revival style, with large Greek columns out front and a dramatic grand staircase inside.

By 1958, the town had outgrown the space and built a new hall in Lindenhurst. The old town hall became a district courthouse. In 1979, the building was sold to a photographer and used as a studio.

When he took office, Bellone, a history buff, was determined to reclaim the building. The town bought it back for $1 million in 2004. The next year it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places and renovations soon began. Bellone said great care was taken to ensure the restoration was historically accurate, down to using the same brick-red color paint on the basement floor. The entire restoration cost $1.2 million, he said, paid for through bonds and county money.

Visitors can take a self-guided tour, Bellone said, and will be greeted by large placards that will tell the town's history.

In the basement, the town has welded back together pieces of two jail cells. The medieval-looking iron dates back to the 1870s. A flat-screen TV will play videos of former cops, lawyers and prisoners talking about their time there.

A large touch-screen table on the first floor will showcase more than 400 videos and photos from residents discussing the town's history through their experiences. The table has a database that can be updated; officials hope visitors will add their own stories.

"You can have a new experience every time you come," Cascone said. "This is really just the beginning."

As visitors ascend the stairs, they will be surrounded by blown-up postcards from the former resort town. In the second floor area are more display boards, one for each hamlet and village. Bellone envisions the space being used for art shows, lectures and concerts.

"A hundred years from now, people will be so happy that we did this, that we preserved this history," Bellone said. "This is a true gem for the entire town."