“Old houses, I thought, do not belong to people ever, not really, people belong to them.” – Gladys Taber
On a wide, treed avenue leading down to the Great South Bay, a grand old Federal-style home sits graciously on 1.4 acres of verdant land in Bay Shore, its current occupants the most recent in a long line of ‘caretakers’ of this historic property.
Built in the 1870s, the nine-bedroom, five-bath home was a summer residence by the Macy family of New York City. Not to be confused with the founders of the famous department store, this Macy family was, at the time, the largest tea importer to the United States.
The passing years saw additions to the original home, including a sunroom on the south side and a den on the north side. The house was initially constructed in the Victorian style, though years later, the exterior was changed to its current Federal style.
The original front entrance was on the south side of the house, with acres of land stretching south a quarter of a mile to what was then the only other home on the street – and later, the current owner’s childhood home.
Yes, Rhianna Roddy, nee Quinn, grew up in what was historically known as Seaward. It is a very large Queen Anne-style home built by an old sea captain, situated next to an inland lake that is barely visible from the roadway.
Following years of study and employment abroad, Mrs. Roddy returned to the United States with her Irish husband, Eugene, and initially lived in the heart of Manhattan. Several years later, following the birth of their son, Mrs. Roddy looked to return to the neighborhood of her youth.
“I always wanted to live in a big old home like the one I grew up in,” she says. “There were three other houses in the neighborhood that I loved, including the one we now live in.”
Mr. Roddy, a retired international businessman, and his wife devote much of their time to hosting social gatherings and tending to the backyard garden. They are equally passionate about caring for the property, adding thoughtful improvements while maintaining the home’s integrity.
“Everyone that has owned this property has taken great care of it,” shares Mrs. Roddy.
“It was in very good condition when we bought it, and we have made some improvements – we added a large deck on the south side, renovated bathrooms, and put on a new roof.
There are four [visible] fireplaces, and we discovered another three were covered up to make more wall space. People did that back then. We are now working on opening the [walled-up] fireplace in the dining room.”
Mr. Roddy grew up in a nice but decidedly smaller home in Ireland.
“We had to build the country after Irish Independence in 1922,” says Mr. Roddy. “There’s no comparison between the sizes of the homes in Ireland and America.
What I love most [about my home] is the quiet solitude of the garden…..and even though it is an old house, it is a bright house that brings in a lot of sunshine. My mother would have loved it.”
The south shore of Long Island is dotted with the remnants of a glorious past, where wealthy city-dwellers built summer homes on large swaths of vacant land. These grand estates, which provided breezy respite from the baking city heat, are mostly gone, though enough remains to provide a glimpse into what was a time and lifestyle that most today can only experience vicariously through period books, television, and film.
