As we all have heard the saying “It takes a Village.” Through good times and strenuous times, through challenges and achievements, celebrating life and helping each other through another day, that is Babylon Village. We are each other’s cheerleaders and when difficult times occur, we triumph together as one. Unfortunately, this is one of those difficult times for our community.
Babylon Village: Where History is Made
Stories from the Village of Babylon's rich history
Wednesday, September 3, 2025
Remembering Sean Goodwin
Monday, June 23, 2025
A Hero's Welcome: A Status Update of the Heroes Fountain at Hawley's Pond
![]() |
Soon...all will be revealed |
A Good News Story
A frequent question asked of both Judy and me is “what is happening with the Heroes Fountain at Hawley’s Pond?” I thought the best way to address this good news story is to tell you the tale of the year 2000 construction of the Robert Moses statue that stands in front of the Village Hall.
The most confounding decision that took over a year and a half to come to agreement on was what should the statue would look like? It took months of public query, involving our diligent community committee members, to finally agree on his look. I remember the night we discussed the cut of his pants. But you know what? I think everyone would agree ..we got it right. That statue is Robert Moses, a community member that changed our world forever.
We tell this story for one reason: creating a world class fountain is an historic undertaking. To properly salute our everyday heroes, to say thank you to our nurses, Fire Department, our EMTs, our teachers, our morticians, our grocery workers, health care providers, and so many others, it must be done right. This is an extremely ambitious project honoring our everyday heroes in the world, and it has taken some time.
![]() |
The time has come! |
We are proud to announce that this time has been put to good use and that the fountain has been fully designed and will soon be ready to be viewed. You will be so proud of this Fountain!
A scaled working model and maquette (model) of the nurse that will stand proudly atop of the fountain has been completed. The nurse was received last week, and we expect the fountain shortly. Special thanks to resident artists Shawn and Allison Uttendorfer who have been working with the renowned sculptor, Jose Fernandez, in creating the fountain. The nurse maquette will ‘knock your socks off’.
For this important project, funding is dependent solely on grants and donations. Plan to join us in September when we will sponsor a ‘Grand Reveal’ fundraiser as we roll out these two extraordinary works of art. Certainly, the Heroes Fountain will have a positive and dramatic effect for both entering Babylon Village or West Islip. Picture traveling along Montauk Highway at night and approaching a beautifully lit fountain. Although it is not going to be easy, we are already nearly halfway to our goal. Stay tuned for more information about the September fundraiser.
To visualize the project, the Heroes Fountain will stand at seventeen feet
tall and twenty feet wide. This week we met with our Village engineer and
Highway Superintendent to scope out an engineering plan. This phase would
include soil testing, load bearing and such matters. This process of creating a
plan should take us several months. During those months we are going to
assemble the best and brightest team to erect our ‘Heroes Fountain’. We already
have several builders who have volunteered their expertise.
Returning to the often-asked question, when will the Heroes
Fountain be built? Our goal is to break ground next Spring. When I once asked
sculptor Jose Fernandez, how’s it going? He responded...’it will be epic’.
Epic: honoring the deeds of heroic or legendary figures
Wayne Horsley
Tuesday, April 22, 2025
A Motto For Babylon Village
Question: why we need a motto?
Answer: because this motto is true!
“We Didn’t Start the Fire”
Remember the old Billy Joel song, ‘We Didn’t Start the Fire’? Billy lists historical events in chronological order bringing us forward, through the decades, to the present. His point: we get to today by layering on those events of our past.
Now that I have firmly implanted
the song in your mind, substitute his words with Babylon Village history.
Babylon has had that rich of a history. Literally, the story of Long Island can
be told through the history of Babylon Village. With our song in mind substitute Salt Hay, Nathan Conklin, Baymen, Argyle Hotel, Marconi, Cuban Giants, Babylon
Railroad station, Robert Moses, Captain Kangaroo, Beatification Society Fair,
The Gazebo. As Billy Joel sings those notes, ‘it goes on and on’!
To drive home a point, just within the last month, Babylon
Village was reminded of two historic occurrences that may have slipped from our
collective memories. The first, the publishing of a memoir “This is Panther
Country”, were Tom McKeon, formally a Babylon High School student, tells the
story of growing up in Babylon and witnessing the improbable underdog spirit
and Basketball Glory of the 1974-5 Panther team that won the first ever Long
Island Championship. Tom recently told his story to a spellbound crowd of over
a hundred at the American Legion. Among those in attendance were coach Roy Koebel and star player Glenn Vickers.
![]() |
Proud Panther Glenn Vickers addresses the crowd |
The second historic marker was a surprise to everyone. While removing the facade of the closed Horace and Sylvia's restaurant on Deer Park Avenue, the name of Breitbard's Department Store resurfaced after having been covered over since the 1940s (see previous blog post for more information on this discovery). After a little research, we learned that this store was owned by the parents of Radio Hall of Famer William B. Williams, who was a graduate of the 1940 class at Babylon High School.
It is true that ‘We didn’t Start the Fire’ and it is still ablaze; Babylon Village-Where History is Made!
Why a motto?
A motto will focus a preconceived idea of what our community
values while instilling civic pride. If you're looking to buy into a community, whether for a home or
business, and you see a motto reflecting the value of its history, it
differentially sets apart our south shore community from any other. This is the
same concept that drove the repurposing of the Village Historical Society
Museum, the erection of the Bayman Statue, the Gazebo, the restoration of the Conklin House and
more. It defines what people think of us as a community and will increase the
value of Village property.
A motto as proposed, will also stimulate interest by our residents in our history. This and programs like our Circa Board program for homes over 100 years old, encourages residents to maintain and nurture our older housing stock. Older communities that have a visible history become a place to visit.
History, good schools and appreciation for the arts are drivers
of a successful community. Let’s be sure we capitalize on our good fortune and
brag about it to the world by adopting the motto Babylon Village- Where
History is Made!
- Wayne Horsley
Thursday, April 3, 2025
A Babylon History Mystery: The Breitbard Department Store Sign
There’s always something or someone coming and going in the Village. Take, for instance, the building where the old Horace and Sylvia’s restaurant used to be (100 Deer Park Avenue). A new restaurant called The Babylon Social will be opening in that space, but first, a lot of renovation is taking place. As the construction crew worked on the front of the building, an interesting artifact was revealed.
Obviously,
this sign was a remnant of a long-ago retail establishment. Now, if you are a long-time
resident of Babylon Village, you know that there are folks who have lived here
for generations and know just about everything about everything that took place
here. But no one seemed to remember Breitbard’s Department Store. It wasn’t The
Necessary Store or H.C. Grand’s 5 and 10 Cent Store that many remembered. It was a mystery.
Here’s
where the power of social media comes in. Someone knew that Breitbard was the
birth name of famous NY radio personality William B. Williams. His online
biography states that he was born in 1923 in Babylon. That’s all we needed. The
Historical Society was able to locate his 1940 year book and a few other
tidbits of information. Among the comments on the Historical Society’s Facebook
page were some additional pieces of information provided by residents and –
best of all- a message from William B. Willams’ son, Jeffrey.
We
were able to connect with Jeffrey and give him a tour of his dad’s home town
and, with the help of Babylon Town Historian Mary Cascone, fill in a lot of
blanks in the story of his father and grandparents. The Historical Society
wants to find a proper way to honor him as a Babylon Notable and will be working
with Jeffrey to plan an event.
And
just in case you’re too young to remember, William B. Williams was the host of
WNEW radio’s “Make Believe Ballroom.” He was a connoisseur of the great
American songbook and holds the distinction of bestowing on Frank Sinatra the
nickname “The Chairman of the Board.”
As
for future developments – as William B. Willams might say – stay tuned!
- submitted by guest poster Marsha Collock
Tuesday, February 4, 2025
BABYLON VILLAGE: THESE ARE THE GOOD OLD DAYS
While driving through the Village it occurred to me just how much the downtown has improved over the last several decades. It is human nature to long for and recall the past only in glowing terms. In the mind's eye the economy and a community culture were always better back when we were younger. However, when it comes to Babylon Village, we have never looked better than we do now.
When I returned from college in 1972, I was upset over the appearance and economic viability of the Village. Everyone knows that a community is judged by the success of its downtown and schools. There were few who clamored, like now, “I would love to move to Babylon Village.” Back in the 70s Long Island’s south shore was caught up in the fever that bigger was better. Malls and large supermarkets defined suburban culture. As a result, markets like Bohack, A&P, and Big Ben left the Village.
![]() |
Main Street in the 1970s was in need of some TLC |
Like falling dominos, stores began closing due to the loss of foot traffic. Up to the late sixties Babylon Village was always a thriving economic south shore community, but starting in the 70s, all of that changed. Sadly, we watched our beloved community grow tired.
Concerned Citizens
With this “These are the Good Old Days’ blog in mind,
I searched out an old file on a short-lived group that I worked with who were
called the Babylon Promotional Council. The Council was sponsored by the
Chamber of Commerce, Mayor Hanse and the Village Board, Babylon High School
technology classes and a number of concerned folks from the community. If
nothing else was achieved by the Council, we brought attention to the state of
the downtown. The one concrete achievement was that we produced a survey of the
residents and existing businesses. The entire Village and business community
was surveyed to measure the level of community concern and what if anything we
should do about our downtown. We received 325 respondents who had to return
their extensive surveys to a local store. We thought that was pretty good, and
the bottom line was that the community was ready to involve themselves in the
rescuing of their Village. As quoted in a Promotional Council article in the
Beacon, “Since we live in a quaint, convenient, old-fashioned village, let us
seek out enterprises that will accentuate our positive qualities.”
We Had a Movement
The story has been told many times about the newly formed Babylon Beautification Society placing flower barrels on the street corners of our downtown. They were wooden beer barrels cut in half and tended to by volunteers (including watering). By the way, the flower baskets that we see throughout the downtown, now attached to the BBS inspired and donated antique lights, are direct descendants of those original barrels. It was at this same time that the Historical Society was created. These two organizations alone created the BBS fair, the Gazebo, The Historical Society Fountain, Downtown Tree Plantings, the Robert Moses Statue, and the Bayman Plaza, to name a few. Layer on the good works of the Rotary, Lions, Fire Department, Village Arts Council, Babylon Business and Professional Women’s Association, the Chamber of Commerce, the Pilot Club and so many others and the list of accomplishments and contributions becomes endless. It wasn’t long before it became evident that this community was a good financial bet, particularly for the restaurant business.
The point of this reflection is for you to take a
second look at our downtown. As you do, factor in the Railroad Station re-do,
the new construction of store fronts and apartments, The Argyle Theatre and the
growth of our arts community, street fairs, etc. Change is necessary for
growth. We and our Village can never look like we did in the 60s and before.
The important thing is that Babylon Village is experiencing positive growth
while still retaining the vibrancy and charm of a traditional south shore community.
These are truly the Good Old Days in Babylon Village - Where History is
Made!
Wayne Horsley
Village Historian
Friday, January 3, 2025
Congratulations Judy Skillen: Our Historical Society President Has Been Named The Herald Person Of The Year!
This article first appeared in the Babylon Herald Beacon
HERALD PERSON OF THE YEAR JUDY SKILLEN
For more than three decades, Judy Skillen has dedicated herself to the betterment of the Village of Babylon.
“Judy is not only one of my closest friends but may be the most skillful public administrator I’ve ever worked with,” said Wayne Horsley, historian at the society. “For more than 40 years, I have been amazed at how much she has accomplished without ever seeking credit.”
For those reasons and many more, Skillen is honored as the Babylon Herald Record’s Person of the Year.
A retired educator, Skillen served for many years as the chairperson of the Special Education program in the West Babylon School District. “I loved every minute and I was so fortunate that I had wonderful people who I worked with,” she said. Alongside her career, Skillen and her late husband, Gerald, were deeply involved with the Conklin House and the historical society. “We as a couple did a lot together, and when he passed away, I was honestly grateful to have these groups because each one has become like a family to me,” she said.

Person of the Year, Judy Skillen, is a devoted member of the Babylon Historical Society. Christie Leigh Babirad/Herald
Skillen’s involvement in the village began with her appointment to the Architectural Review Board, followed by the Planning Board, and eventually as a trustee of the historical society. She recalled how the mayor at the time would frequently ask her to assist with various projects. “I’ve always loved working with people, and I was eager to help,” she said.
Mayor Mary Adams praised Skillen for her long-standing commitment to the village. “Judy Skillen is an incredible woman who throughout the years has been dedicated to the best interests of the Village of Babylon,” Adams said. “Through Judy’s extraordinary efforts, sacrifice, and volunteerism, she has helped preserve the history of Babylon Village, brought awareness of the village’s history to all generations, and has contributed so much to making Babylon Village a great place to live, work, and raise a family.” Adams also called Skillen a “wonderful role model for women of all ages in the community.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Skillen led efforts to preserve and catalog historical artifacts that had been improperly stored. “Everything I do, I do because I truly enjoy it,” Skillen said. “What I do here in the village, I love, and I feel very privileged and honored.”
“Judy is an absolute gem,” said Village Trustee Sean Goodwin. “Her dedication to Babylon Village is truly awesome. I enjoy working on so many committees with her. She is my hero!”
One of Skillen’s most rewarding projects was planning the 20th anniversary commemoration of 9/11. “They honored me by letting me plan for that, and you know how sometimes when you plan something it just turns out perfect; that’s the way this was,” she said. But she credited her board of trustees and volunteers for making the event a success. “We just have the best board of trustees; each one has a special skill, talent or forte, and they give it so willingly,” she said. “It’s a team effort, and I have to say, it’s a lot of fun.”
Skillen has led many major initiatives, including the installation of the Robert Moses statue, the historic fountain outside the historical society building, and the Bayman statue. She is also spearheading the Heroes Fountain project at Hawley’s Pond, which will honor essential workers of the 2020 pandemic.
Marge Intreglia, a former colleague at West Babylon High School and a friend for nearly 50 years, described Skillen as “the ultimate professional with a tremendous amount of energy.” Intreglia praised her for her boundless efforts, noting that Skillen has also been involved in fundraising for Superstorm Sandy victims, as well as volunteering at the soup kitchen and for various drives. “She is everywhere and does everything while being so gracious and humble,” Intreglia said. “She also organized every get-together with our friend group and sends inspirational text messages since the pandemic.”
Skillen’s contributions have not gone unrecognized. In 2009, she received the Nathaniel Conklin Award for volunteerism and outstanding community service. She was also named a Woman of Distinction by New York State.
In addition to her work with the historical society, Skillen is the only woman currently serving on the village Planning Board and is an elder at the First Presbyterian Church of Babylon. She acknowledges the good work done by other community groups including the Babylon Beautification Society, the Rotary Club, the Lions Club, and the Pilot Club.
Reflecting on the recent holiday tree lighting in Babylon Village, Skillen shared her emotional reaction. “When that Santa Claus came on the bold firetruck, I started to cry,” she said. “I said to Mayor Mary Adams that it doesn’t get any better with the high school chorus singing ‘Here Comes Santa Claus.'”
Looking ahead, Skillen expressed her enthusiasm for future projects. “We’re just here to bring joy and happiness, which is a nice position to be in,” she said. “I’m very fortunate to have two great daughters, Kim and Michelle, and my three grandchildren beside me through it all.”
“Judy Skillen is a special treasure,” said Town of Babylon Supervisor Rich Schaffer. “She is always working in the background, getting it done in so many ways as a community leader and compassionate soul.”
Monday, November 25, 2024
The Value of Arts in the Community: More Than Entertainment
Since the beginning of the 20th century, Babylon Village has not been without an arts and entertainment venue.
A Quick Timeline:
Early 1900s – 1914
The Alhambra Hall was an early center of community activities showing movies in the early-1900s in addition to live performances, dances, etc. Movies ceased to be shown there when it was sold to the Odd Fellows in February 1914 for a reported $13,300. The site is currently used for retail and was the site of the Suffrage Study Club.
1913 – 1922
The Babylon Theatre: Ground was broken for the original Babylon Theatre on January 24, 1913. It opened on April 15, 1913 and was closed in July 1922. Movies and vaudeville acts were featured.
1922 – 1924
1925 – 2014
The Capitol reopened under new ownership with the name Babylon Theatre in February 1925. In later years it was operated by Prudential Theatres (1929). After a fire on April 3, 1955, it was remodeled. Later operated by United Artists it became a triplex on December 14, 1984. It was then operated by Clearview, and as of June 2013 it was operated by Bow-Tie Cinemas with a total capacity for 688. The Babylon Cinemas was closed on September 7, 2014.
2018 - Present
It re-opened as the 500-seat Argyle Theatre on April 21, 2018 Not only has the Argyle brought first class entertainment to Babylon Village, but is has established Babylon as a destination for quality entertainment. Audiences from other parts of the Island and beyond come to Babylon, not just for entertainment, but for a dining or shopping experience while they are here for a show.
The Many Ways Art Enriches a Community
The role of arts in a community is more than just a
way to offer entertainment.
In this era of social media and isolation, it
fosters a social connection, bringing people together in a real and tangible
way. Watching a show alone on television can’t compare with the shared
experience of laughter or a dramatic moment with an audience. Arranging a night
or afternoon out with friends or family through the arts is a way of
maintaining social connection.
The presence of art in community lends to its
identity. A vibrant and important theatre such as the Argyle lends prestige to
the Village.
Lastly, the presence of
the arts in a community drives economic development. The role of arts and
entertainment in a community is not to just offer a few hours of entertainment,
but to also provide an opportunity for the visiting public to support local
businesses and create a thriving downtown.
Have you seen the outside of the newly renovated
Argyle Theatre? They have retained a neon “Babylon” sign as a nod to the past
while providing Babylon Village with the highest quality entertainment.
Take a drive by, especially at night. It’s
beautiful. Many thanks to Mark and Dylan Perlman for providing a first-class theatre
experience and for helping Babylon Village maintain its reputation as a “go-to”
location for arts and entertainment.
Wayne & Judy