Long Island's Prominent North Shore Families: Their Estates and Their Country Homes Vol. 1

Author: Raymond and Judith Spinzia

ISBN 978-1-949756-70-8 (Softcover)

822 pages

Reviews of Long Island's Prominent North Shore Families

". . . a goldmine of information . . . a magisterial reference work, that should be in the collections of every library. . . with its many twists and turns, [these books are] also fun and fascinating to read. The maiden name index was an unexpected delight, which will have great appeal to genealogists, historians, and authors tracing the webs of Gold Coast family connections and relations. These volumes, together with the book in preparation by the Spinzias on the South Shore Gold Coast, are sure to become long-needed standard reference books on the subject."

-Mark H. Rothenberg, Senior Reference Specialist and Historian,
Suffolk Cooperative Library System and Patchogue-Medford Library,
Patchogue, NY


". . . a valuable resource tool for those seeking information on the history of the people and the estates of Long Island."

-Myrna Sloam, Archivist, The Bryant Library,
Roslyn, NY

Long Island's Gold Coast, more than any other section of the country, has captured the imagination of America. This, in part, is attributable to F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby."

This revised and updated two-volume analysis of the North Shore families documents over 1,700 estate owners in a modified "Who's Who" format. Included are 578 photographs of the estates, biographical data on the estate owners and their families, locations of estates using current street references and village designations, estate names, acreage, architects, architectural styles, dates of construction, landscape architects, subsequent owners, location of archival photographs of the estates, and information as to whether mansions are still extant and, if not, the dates of demolition.

Cross-referenced in the second-section appendices are estate names, village locations of estates, as well as architectural and landscape commissions. The civic activity and occupation appendices document the contribution of Long Islanders, including statesmen, intelligence agents, financiers, writers and inventors. Maiden names, rehabilitive secondary uses of estates including golf courses which were formerly private estates, motion pictures filmed at estate sites, a general bibliography of the "Gilded Age," and a bibliography specific to individual estate owners, with the location of personal papers, have also been included.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

The Spinzias first book, Long Island: A Guide to New York's Suffolk and Nassau Counties (3rd edition due in 2007) is a standard reference book which has been used as a textbook for teaching Long Island history and can still be found in almost all public libraries and schools on Long Island. They write and speak on a variety of Long Island-related subjects including the North and South Shore estates, Tiffany stained-glass windows, and the Vanderbilts of Long Island. On several occasions their lectures have been chosen by the radio station of The New York Times, WQXR, as the cultural event of the day in the New York Metropolitan areas. Additionally, they have been featured on local television and radio programs and in articles published by The New York Times, Newsday, and other regional newspapers.

The Spinzias served as Long Island history consultants for a local cable television channel. They also contributed material to a Japanese television network for a documentary on Louis Comfort Tiffany and to the Arts and Entertainment Network's "Biography" series for its presentation on the Vanderbilt and Tiffany families.