Members of the Rocky Point Historical Society in front of...

Members of the Rocky Point Historical Society in front of a drain near Hallock Landing Road and Culross Drive, with the Noah Hallock Homestead in the background. From left: Joan Depken, Suzanne Johnson, Pete Falcetta, Charles Bevington and Ken Krapf. Credit: Elizabeth Sagarin

Rocky Point's historic Noah Hallock Homestead has stood for more than 300 years at the corner of Hallock Landing Road and Culross Drive, surviving the Revolutionary War, hurricanes, blizzards and nor'easters.

But a torrential storm last August that dumped 10 inches of rain on the North Shore in a matter of hours left the Rocky Point Historical Society, which owns the homestead, scrambling to pump 4 feet of water from the building's flooded basement.

It was the third major storm to damage the Hallock house in the past 10 years, historical society officials said. The house required extensive repairs following storms in 2014 and 2021, they said. 

"Every time it rains now more than inch or two, we have a problem," society president Suzanne Johnson said last week.

About the Noah Hallock Homestead

Built in 1721 by Noah Hallock, a farmer and landowner.

Listed on the state and national Registers of Historic Places.

Oldest standing house in Rocky Point, and one of the oldest homes in Suffolk County.

Seven generations of the Hallock family lived there until 1964.

Owned by the Rocky Point Historical Society since 2013.

SOURCE: Rocky Point Historical Society

The historic site is less than a mile east of Hagerman Landing Road, where the Aug. 18-19 storm caused rapidly rising floodwaters that forced residents of five houses to escape their homes in the middle of the night. The storm left a trail of destruction from Smithtown to Rocky Point, causing an estimated $40 million in damage to roads, ponds and overpasses.

The historical society says the storm forced it to divert thousands of dollars from planned projects such as roof restoration at the 303-year-old house and use the money instead for storm repair, and it is concerned that chronic flooding in the neighborhood will lead to additional damage in the future.

Repairs instead of restoration

The storm damaged an oil furnace in the basement and left mud caked on the floor, Johnson said. Society officials believe floodwaters entered the basement through a window and the slanted double doors of an exterior stairway.

The society purchased a new propane-fueled furnace and installed it in the first-floor bathroom to protect it from future flooding. Replacing the furnace cost $21,000, Johnson said.

Repairs were done with a sense of urgency in December as winter set in, said Pete Falcetta, a volunteer who supervises the house and surrounding property. "We were concerned about the pipes freezing," he said.

Local residents loaned a total of $19,800 to pay for repairs and other expenses, society treasurer Ken Krapf said, and the society plans to apply for funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Flooding from the August storm inundated the site's basement. Standing at the...

Flooding from the August storm inundated the site's basement. Standing at the basement stairs are, from left, historical society members Ken Krapf, Charles Bevington, Pete Falcetta, Suzanne Johnson and Joan Depken. Credit: Elizabeth Sagarin

The society also expects a windfall this week when it picks up the first $35,000 check from a special tax that funds the group and programs at the historic site. Rocky Point school district residents voted 787-352 to approve the tax last May.

But those funds were intended for other expenses, such as insurance and heat, freeing the society to spend donations on repairs to the Hallock house's roof, a project that has been started but not completed, officials said. The house, which also serves as the society's headquarters, is open for tours to the general public and school groups, officials said.

"We would love to spend it on restoring the house," Johnson said. "Instead we constantly spend it to repair [storm damage]."  

Historical society: Flooding persists

Society officials believe flooding was caused by rain collecting outside the house and racing across the lawn into the basement. They say persistent flooding on Hallock Landing Road has not abated despite storm drains installed in recent years by Brookhaven Town highway crews, adding that requests to improve drainage have not been heeded by town officials.

"We shouldn't have to sue the Town of Brookhaven to keep floodwater out of our building," Johnson said.

Brookhaven Highway Superintendent Dan Losquadro said the town spent a total of nearly $2 million in 2018 and 2023 to improve drainage in the neighborhood.

He blamed flooding on the shape of the intersection. Hallock Landing Road drops toward Culross Drive before rising again, creating a bowl of water when it rains, he said.

Losquadro said the drainage system "worked exactly as it was designed and intended to," adding that severe storms "can overwhelm any system."

“The ferocity of that rain drove so much debris … that it simply clogged that intake [drain],” Losquadro said.

FAA data analyzed by Newsday shows the number of bird strikes voluntarily reported by airports in New York City and Long Island has increased by 46% between 2009 and 2023. NewsdayTV's Shari Einhorn reports.  Credit: Newsday/File Footage; Photo Credit: AP Photo/Steven Day, Bebeto Matthews; Getty Images

'A different situation at every airport' FAA data analyzed by Newsday shows the number of bird strikes voluntarily reported by airports in New York City and Long Island has increased by 46% between 2009 and 2023. NewsdayTV's Shari Einhorn reports.

FAA data analyzed by Newsday shows the number of bird strikes voluntarily reported by airports in New York City and Long Island has increased by 46% between 2009 and 2023. NewsdayTV's Shari Einhorn reports.  Credit: Newsday/File Footage; Photo Credit: AP Photo/Steven Day, Bebeto Matthews; Getty Images

'A different situation at every airport' FAA data analyzed by Newsday shows the number of bird strikes voluntarily reported by airports in New York City and Long Island has increased by 46% between 2009 and 2023. NewsdayTV's Shari Einhorn reports.

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