Showhouse 6 - SuffolkJournal.com

Holiday Season Kicks Off
at Deepwells Farm
by Nancy A. Bock

November 8, 2001 (Click on photos for more pictures)

This will be the sixth year that the manse at Deepwells has hosted a holiday fair. Each room of the Victorian mansion has become a little gift shop. Once you have walked through the boutiques, be sure to turn and go back, visiting and viewing each room from another direction. You are sure to find something that you missed the first time. Even better, come back another day -- return visits are free.

Antique furniture, jewelry and treasures abound. Displays of dolls, ornaments, Santas and decorative items fill each nook and cranny. In addition, there are a number of artists displaying their work for sale in the halls and stairwells throughout the house. Whether viewed by day or candlelit evening, the house seems to come alive with a Victorian Christmas feeling.

What better way to showcase this once gracious home, which is now part of Suffolk County's historic trust.

Deepwells Farm, built around 1845 for Joel Smith (a descendant or Richard "Bull" Smith, was a working farm of about 50 acres in size. It was bisected by North Country Road (Route 25) and the caretaker's house across the road is now the Village Hall for the Village of Head of the Harbor. Most of the other outbuildings are gone. Deepwells became the summer residence of then-New York City Mayor, William Gaynor in 1905. Suffering from years of neglect it has been restored by the county and is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

A companion event to the Showhouse sales is another in the series of Biographies on Stage, which is held in the dining room of the house. This year, Mrs. Gaynor and her maid, Isabel welcome three new guests for the holidays. Molly Brown, Mary Pickford and Irving Berlin promise to be highly entertaining additions to the festivities. The theme of this years show had been altered somewhat following the tragedies of September 11. According to the producers, the script was completely rewritten to include a theme of "mending fences," in keeping with the increased feelings of family and community.

The Showhouse offers other benefits in addition to shopping at the fine mini-boutiques. Guided tours offer a glimpse of life at the turn of the last century. Volunteer guides tell about how the Gaynor family might have lived at Deepwells, during free tours, four times a day on Tuesdays. Also, special workshops on fall floral design (Nov 14), Holiday Entertaining with Tea (11/28), Creating a Fresh Holiday Wreath (12/5) and Creating a Fresh Floral Arrangement (12/12 will be offered at a cost of $15 each.

The Showhouse is open November 3 through December 23 on Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sundays from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Last minute shoppers can visit from December 27 - 30 from 11:00 - 4:00 p.m. Admission is $4 adults, $2 seniors & children under 12. Pay admission once and return as many times as you want for FREE! You will definitely want to come back!

Reservations for performances, tours, and workshop or other information please call 862-6080.