Oral History

Shirley Porter speaks about her involvement with the Moriches Bay Historical Society and the Ketcham Inn.

Mrs. Danowski did not live in Center Moriches, but most of her life she attended school in Center Moriches along with other students from surrounding towns. In her lifetime, Mrs. Danowski has seen major changes in the community. Center Moriches was the community center for many of the surrounding towns because it was where the school and library were located.

Mrs. Danowski was there when the library was first built. The amount of money it cost to build the library came out of the taxpayer’s pockets. Members of the library had a fee to pay as well. The fee was paid in the form of taxes. Mrs. Danowski heard her classmates talk about being members of the library and she would go to there once in a while herself. Mrs. Danowski loved books. Before the library was established, her mother would buy her books from the bookstore.

Mrs. Danowski and her friends would hang out at the pharmacy, which is now a restaurant in town. She used to love getting milkshakes at the counter. The pharmacy was the hang out spot. When Mrs. Danowski looks in the restaurant now, she can still picture where the old milkshake counter used to be.

Dionne Levine grew up in the city and moved to East Moriches in 1956. She has lived in East Moriches and Center Moriches for over 50 years. She taught in the Center Moriches Schools and owned the Bailstone Flower Shoppe and raised her children in East Moriches from 1956-1980.

During the 1960's or 1970's there were many problems that arose. There was an East Moriches arsonist that set fire to the East Moriches School, Fire House, and a couple of other public buildings. Racial problems also arose as people moved in from NewYork City.