Sunnycroft - Highland Mills / Monroe / Orange County / NY

[Manny]

I was lucky enough to escape sweltering, noisy summers (we lived in the flight path of JFK) in Queens NY and escape to the "country" every year from 1968 - 1975 when we'd head to the Sunnycroft Bungalow Colony, a property which was the former summer estate /retreat and workshop of composer George M. Cohan. It was an amazing piece of land that stretched over what must have been a 100 acres and had been converted to a bungalow Colony by Moe and Estelle Spivak sometime in the early 1960's I think. Sunnycroft was located off of Bakertown Road (very close to Coronet Lake although I never knew that name as a child) and just a couple of miles from Monroe, NY.

If you were there, post up, get in touch and share some memories. I'm hoping this sight becomes a repository of knowledge for that bygone era of close knit summer community and carefree childhood fun.

[Cheri Winston]

Manny - I was delighted to find a sunnycroft reference on the Internet. Sunnycroft is a very happy memory, and I'm glad you also have fond memories. But I'd like to correct the history.

My father, Nat Gorelick, and uncles, Al and Sam Gorelick and Max Frankiel, bought the Sunnycroft property from Mrs. Cohan in the winter of 1951-52, and in the summer of '52 began to run it as a bungalow colony. The property then consisted of 50 acres, and I think I remember that the selling price was $25,000. There were five buildings - The main house, servant quarters, cottage, a barn (complete with chicken coops on the side) and a garage. The barn became the casino, and they made about 25 units out of the other buildings, four of the units occupied by the owners' families (us). For the first two years we swam in the small lake down the hill from the main house. Then we built the pool and also built the double bungalows you may remember (adding 25 more units) where there had been an old apple orchard - toward the top of the hill leading down to the lake. We also bought 50 adjacent acres and created a larger lake - what I think is now called Coronet Lake, and also built and sold several houses near the lake. My father built a small house fronting on Bakertown Road for our immediate family. The house was later enlarged and occupied by Moe Spivak after he bought Sunnycroft from us in 1959. My uncles bought or built houses for their families a few hundred yards down and accross Bakertown Road, in a little area called Sky Top.

I think the bungalow colony culture started to die in the mid or late sixties, and you were there near the end. As you may know, Moe Spivak sold the property to Chasidim, who abandoned it a few years later. I did a Google search for Sunnycroft a few years ago and sadly learned from a local news item that a few of the Sunnycroft buildings had been destroyed by a fire.

[Manny]

Cheri, thank you so much for the history lesson! It's a treat to hear the true origins of the place that meant so much to me, my family and so many others. Funny that we all knew that the property had once been the George M. Cohan estate but had never heard about the Gorelick and Frankiel estate! One of things that propogated the story for me was that my father used to keep an old padlocked steamer trunk in the garage/storage area of the building next to the barn (there were apartments up top), he used to tease all the kids with a story that it was George Cohan's old trunk and that he had locked it up before he died, that the contents were a mystery and that anyone who opened it would be haunted by his ghost.

While the properties were on a smaller scale, my maternal grandparents families (both sides) had a history of buying and selling boarding houses in the Monticello area in the early 1900's, I guess it was a natural for us to end up spending our summers at a Bungalow colony a generation or so later.

The lake you used to swim in at the very bottom of the hill was endlessly fascinating to all of the kids. Plenty of scary tales were woven around the old ice house and an old abandoned shack / playhouse that there was barely anything left of and which was located around the back of the lake to the right. I don't think any of us ever swam in that lake though (unless we fell in) but plenty of fishing and frog catching was done every summer to be sure.

The larger lake was a complete mystery to us, I remember "sneaking" down there to fish once or twice but we always assumed it was "off limits" to the bungalow colony. That little road that divided the houses your family built next to the lake from the Colony was our unofficial boundary as kids. The last year we there, we ended up renting an apartment in an old house on that road and I assume paid for "access" to the colony, I'm guessing Moe had jumped the rates a bit and my dad found a better deal, it wasn't quite the same though and proved to be our last year there, I believe it was the summer of 1975.

I'm very sorry to hear that some of the buildings burned down, I've wanted to go "find" Sunnycroft and see it again for quite some time. Perhaps I'll take a drive up one weekend this summer (I live in Brooklyn) and see if whoever lives there wouldn't mind me walking around the property and taking some photos/video of the place. Funny that the Chasidim abandoned it, I think Sunnycroft was one of the last colonies to sell out to them, I assumed that they were still there to this day!

Thanks again for the history. I've got some great old super 8 film that my parents shot there, I had it transferred to video a number of years ago and will try to post some video and pictures soon.

[Ellen Bochner]

I never knew there was an owner between Moe & George M. Cohan, so it was really neat to learn that!

 

Beginning in the very late 50s, little 4-room homes were built on the dirt road at the bottom of the hill (that was the Sunnycroft geography to us - "up the hill" and "the bottom of the hill") by Ostrow, a local builder who had a home at Raananah Park and who also built the structures & pool at Camp Shoshana for Sue & Harry Rachlin. Ostrow was a "lantsman" with friends of our family and that's how we came to the area (our family friends didn't, though - go figure!). My folks had the house from 1961 until 1998.

 

There were 2 lakes. One was a kind of creepy little lake - more a glorified puddle! - beyond the bottom of the hill, at the end of our dirt road, past the Lehmans' house. As campers, we went to that lake for cookouts and poison ivy ;)

 

Coronet Lake, which I've never actually seen except on a map, was behind the woods beyond our backyards. I don't know how it was accessed - probably from Acres Road.

 

I remember Sky Top - one of our babysitters lived there. I think her name was Barbara Trachtenbroit. Sound familiar at all?

 

This is a wonderful site - thanks, Manny, for starting it. Sorry I don't remember knowing you.

[Alan Eisman]

I worked at Sunnycroft around 1975-76. My friend and myself ran the food concession there. It was a great place to spend the summer. I remember the men coming up and playing cards Friday all night. Then setting up for the shows on Sat.

[Ira Rogers]

Hello former Sunnycroft people!

Although I was only 5 and 6 years of age (1956 and 1957) when my parents and I spent our summers at Sunnycroft, my memories are still amazingly vivid. We lived in the Bronx at the time, and Sunnycroft was my first real taste of experiencing the "country" as a young curious boy.

One adventure I've never forgotten, was the time one of my day camp counsellors (Linda) was ill and didn't come to work that day. A couple of the other campers were planning to visit her that evening and I asked to come along. Linda was staying with her family off the premises, a little ways down the road. After dinner, I found out that the others had already gone and returned without me. I was incensed and decided I would go myself to see her! I didn't tell my mother, and while I was gone she apparently searched for me frantically. When I returned, I learned that someone had told her they last saw me near the lake down the hill! To this day, I still feel guilty for putting my loving mom through such a fright!

I remember some names from those summers: There were Linda and Debbie, my counsellors. There was Alan Marsh whose family stayed in the unit adjacent to ours in '56. The camp director was Ed (or Bill) Weston(?). The Aronson family (son Paul) were also there -- I think my parents knew them from the Bronx. Same for the Bargs (Lillian, Charlie, and kids Ira and Lois). I also remember camp kids named Peter, Regina and Owen. Our last name at the time was Rosenblum, but my parents (Bill and Florence) changed it around 1960.

The songs I remember hearing or actually singing at camp were: Rise and Shine, and B-I-N-G-O. Other popular tunes sung there were Bye-Bye Love, Que Sera Sera, and Getting to Know You. Hard to believe this was all in the same lifetime!

I went back to visit Sunnycroft one winter's day around 1970. It was still there, of course. Haven't been back since, but would love to plant my feet in that soil again and recall two of my most wonderful summers of childhood. I currently live in Vancouver, British Columbia (yes, home of the recent Olympics!) -- a long, long way from Highland Mills and those beloved times of innocence.

Please share your thoughts and memories, especially if anything I've mentioned rings a bell! Thanks and take care.
~~Ira Rogers

[Gail Einson Davis]

I think often of my magical hazy and not so lazy summer days at Sunnycroft. How privledged we are were to spend an entire summer year after year in the mountains.Our annual family pilgrimage began memorial day weekend every year. We loaded up the car and converged to rehearse for would be yet another exciting summer. While our parents unpacked we ran off to reunite with friends . The long weekend was just a teaser of what was to come. The month of June proved agonizing as we waited for school bell to ring on that last day of school.Alas it did and before long we were on a fourth of July roadtrip to the place that sometimes seemed more like home, then home.

It was not at all like the city. Everyone knew one another, everyone's mom looked out for everyones children. The Dads came on the weekend the woman ran the place all week long. I adored Sunnycroft day camp.I loved meeting at the flagpole, making lanyards in arts and crafts. I was never a athlete but somehow I enjoyed playing volleyball , tetherball , and newcomb. When I became a nursery counselor and eventually a junior girls counselor, I had no idea how pivotal these jobs would be to my future endeavors. Those carefree summer days were molding my future. I went on to be a early childhood educator. My camping days helped foster my love for theatre. I would particpate eagerly in the summer theatre productions. My favorite production was the King and I . I thought back then that we were broadway calibre and always felt Mr. George M Cohan was directing from the side lines. I had my first summer crush at Sunnycroft, and my first heartbreak.My favorite time of all was Color War where the green and the white teams competed honorably in sports, songs, and skits to be declared the rightful winner.I would stay up late into the night writing songs, building a covered wagon, and a coffin which became the source of controvercy.One of my favorite moments is when my uncle Dave flew his plane over head dropping flyers declaring the start of color war. I will never forget the look of the opposing teams faces when I arranged for a rider on horseback to promote the white legends. We were a power to reckoned with.

[Manny]

Gail, thanks for contributing your memories.  While I don't remember your name - we were clearly there at the same time - I vividly remember the letter drop and have super 8mm film of the infamous coffin (I'll try to post it here soon!), I can clearly remember the chant that went along with that march (I was on the green team) that caused such a big stir.  My brother George, who I'm sure you knew, was one of the counselor/leaders of the green team that year and took a ton of flak for the coffin.  He too met his first love at Sunnycroft, Jill - I alas, was a little too young for any such romantic interests but I remember being quite jealous of the older kids playing spin the bottle - my friend Evan and I would try to surreptitiously peek in the Honigs window whenever we saw a group of kids gathering there.  Cheers!

 

 

[Ira Rogers]

Alas, I'm a bit older than both of you.  My only memories date back to 1956-57, and I'm fairly certain the day camp did not have color war at that time.  Still, it is nice to read the recollections of others who knew the physical place of Sunnycroft.  We all hold dear those precious and carefree summer memories.  I look forward to seeing any photos you might care to post.  ~~ Regards, Ira

 

 

 

[Gail Einson Davis]

Manny, Jill is my cousin, and I recall the romance that happenned between her and your brother. I just watched the video you posted, it was cool to see the covered wagon, that I worked so hard on late into the night. Mitchell Grossman was our color war captain that year. we were the green wranglers. I just found Larry Benowich on face book. He was the one we eulogized with the coffin. We sang poor Larrys dead, poor Larrys dead and gone, He tried but he simply couldent win. His mom went ballastic , because we were pretending that Larry the opposing team captain was in that coffin. His mom even got mad at my mom , because of my involvement. It was so crazy back then. I loved every minute of it. I cant wait for part two of your video.

 

[Manny]

Gail, I'm sitting with my mom reminiscing sunny croft and she's cracking up over the whole eulogy explosion which she remembers so well. Hope you're having a great summer! Btw, she realized she hasnt spoken to Shirley in about a year - if you speak to her send our love - Jill too! Oh, and she just realized who you are and she fondly remembers your mom!

[Arthur Rosen]

My family stayed at Sunnycroft in the early 60's for about 6 or so years. We stayed in the first double-bungslow closest to the rock road that went downhill past the swimming pool. One year we stayed in the main house where the laundry rooms were. My wife and I attedded a wedding last year in Middleton NY about 15 minutes north of Sunnycroft and we were early so we decided to take a look at Sunnycroft and then Colonial Cottages where we stayed post-Sunnycroft. I was devastated to see though not surprised to see that all of the bungalow colonies are gone. Other than one six foot high stone pillar with the metal sign attached to it saying"Sunny Croft" there is nothing left. There are now paved streets, lawns and backyards with large houses, few trees, as if Sunnyroft and our childhood lives ever existed in our Summer home. We drove to the town where we used to go bowling, the movies, ice cream and the two big lakes. It is crowed with the Chasidim with their trail of kids, and carriages/strollers being pushed. All that is left now are our memories, black and white photos and movies. 

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