In 1954 this barn stood on the Caleb Smith property to the east of Ruth Blvd. Across Jericho Turnpike, the roof of a small model ranch house can be seen. A sign on top of the model advertises the house for the incredible price $3,995. This ranch was unfinished inside and did not come with property. But a complete home could be built for less than $10,000 in Commack. Photo courtesy of the Smithtown Planning Department.
The Johnson family clan swimming in their backyard pool around 1956: It is interesting to note the encroaching housing development on the potato fields to the north of their property. Notice the potato barn also on the horizon. Photo courtesy of the Johnson family.
News, Feb. 4, 1965, p.23) Tess and Frank Falcetta moved to Commack in 1957. They were married in 1950 and had been living in Queens. But they wanted a home of their own and began to look for a house in Suffolk County. The further east they went, the cheaper the houses proved to be. In Commack, they found houses they could afford. The home they bought was a brick, split-level in the Valmont development on a 1/4 acre plot and it cost them $16,990. Their old neighbors in Queens said they were crazy for having moved so far out into the country. When they moved into their new home in Commack, the Falcettas began to think that their old neighbors might have been right. "There was nothing in Commack.” There was no place to food shop until the A & P opened in 1959. The Falcettas shopped in North Babylon. There were no convenience stores, no department stores. There was no place to eat out and the Falcettas travelled to Centerport to dine at Linck's Log Cabin and the Thatched Cottage. There was no Catholic Church. There was no mail delivery. All of these things contributed to a feeling of being isolated and lost in the sticks. Many newcomers to Commack experienced this feeling, but within a few short years everything began to change. Mary Minutillo, who works as a secretary in the Commack School District’s Personnel Office, came to
stand and developed a local market. In addition, the Johnsons began to supply the Yellow Top Farmstand in Smithtown with fresh corn that was picked in their fields in the morning and sold from the farmstand in the afternoon. Soon the Johnsons had 40 acres of farmland devoted to growing sweet corn, but they had many acres of fallow fields. They were ready to sell off some of their acreage. Real estate developers recognized an opportunity to make a profit and scrambled to snap up the available farmland. According to Howard Moreland, the first real estate developer came to Commack in 1951 looking to buy farms that might be converted into housing subdivisons. By 1954 developers were swarming all over Commack buying up farmland for development. One after another, the farmers of Commack sold out. Almost overnight, it seemed, the pasture lands and cultivated fields of Commack simply disappeared to be replaced by one housing development after another. So many homes were being built so quickly that Commack became known as the “Levittown of Suffolk County.” Developers moved quickly to submit their subdivision plans to town agencies for review. In the 1950’s, developers did not have to meet the stringent requirements placed upon builders today and their applications for development rapidly received approval. By 1955 developers had built model homes and were offering homes for sale in places with names like Mayfair Estates, Parkview Estates, and Valmont Park. Homes were constructed as they were sold and they sold quickly. As the demand increased for homes, the prices began to rise. By 1960, homes on 1/4 acre plots were selling for $12,000, and by 1965, the Carll S. Burr, Jr. Realty was advertising a four bedroom home, on a 1/2 acre lot for $15,990. A two story home could be purchased for $16,800. (Advertisement in the Smithtown
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An advertising brochure for the Burford Homes development, a 33 home subdivision off Burr Road, begun in 1955. Brochure courtesy of Marie and Paul Walter.