Lost and found: Historian Ernest Pontes tracks down location of the Cortland House, one of Islip's 'wandering' buildings 

Ernest Pontes has lived in Bay Shore all of his 83 years, and he remembers how things used to be.

He remembers stories of when people would drive their cars on the frozen Great South Bay. He remembers when Entenmann’s was a family-owned bakery in the hamlet. And he remembers when the New Cortland House, a hotel that replaced an 1819 farmhouse of the same name on the northeast corner of Fourth Avenue and Main Street, was torn down in 1949.

Now, more than 70 years later, Pontes says he's uncovered the location of the original farmhouse, which because of poor record keeping was for a time lost to history. The structure is just one of many "wandering" buildings in Islip. The town, like much of Long Island, has a history of relocating and reusing historic buildings, local historians say.

The farmhouse, known as the Cortland House, was not demolished. It was moved to the east side of Fourth Avenue and renamed the Prospect House. In the late 1920s, it was moved again to the corner of Brook Avenue and Islip Boulevard. 

It seems to have been moved again in 1959, when Sunrise Highway was widened, but its exact location was unknown by historians until recently. Pontes believes he has identified the original structure on Esther Avenue in Bay Shore, with a permit and certificate of occupancy to prove it. The farmhouse, which also served as an inn at one point, is now a residence.

Islip Town historian George Munkenbeck confirmed Pontes' work. As odd as it might sound, this nomadic structure is not an anomaly on Long Island or in Islip, which has a history of what Munkenbeck calls “wandering” buildings. 

In a June 2022 newsletter for the town historian's office, Munkenbeck wrote that historic structures in the Town of Islip are “all too often … hidden in plain sight, but not in their original context or location.” 

Moving and reusing buildings followed a “waste not, want not” philosophy, which was typical across Long Island, Munkenbeck told Newsday. 

The Bay Shore Historical Society headquarters, for instance, built around 1820 and known as the Gibson-Mack-Holt House, was moved around 1985 to make way for what's now the South Shore University Hospital.

The American Legion Hall in Sayville, formerly the West Sayville Fire House, is another example. The firehouse was built on the south side of Main Street in 1892. After the original building was sold to the Sayville American Legion Post, it moved to Foster Avenue in the 1930s. 

The cost of processing made wood “dear,” said Munkenbeck, and buildings could be cheaply sold and relocated. 

The location of the original Cortland House may have been briefly lost among town records, but it was certainly not forgotten by local historians. A photo of its interior is featured in the 2023 Bay Shore Historical Society calendar and, according to Bay Shore-Brightwaters Public Library, is remembered as the home of the community's first library service. 

Pontes said his interest in the house was piqued by questions from visitors to the Bay Shore Historical Society, where he has volunteered for the past eight years. It took just two weeks of sifting through town records to find it. 

“It’s kind of sad, a lot of the old buildings disappear,” said historical society president Barry Dlouhy. Many structures not lost to fire or other natural disasters have been overtaken by development.

As Pontes described his research and life in the hamlet, another volunteer popped in to listen. 

“The best-kept secret in Bay Shore is this place,” the volunteer said. “We’re trying to preserve what we can remember.” 

CORRECTION: An earlier version of the story said Ernest Pontes remembered people driving their cars on the frozen Great South Bay.

By Brianne Ledda

brianne.ledda@newsday.com@brianne_ledda

Brianne Ledda covers the Town of Islip for Newsday. She previously covered Southold and Greenport for The Suffolk Times and is a graduate of Stony Brook University.