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VICTORIAN NEWCOMERS
Following the national economic reverses of the 1870's, new
blood began to discover Bronxville. Much of the old estate land had
been broken up into smaller parcels purchased by new men and women
who would become prominent residents. They included a German
leather manufacturer, Frederick W. Kraft, who purchased 13 acres on
the Bronx River in 1880, where he built a tannery that became
nationally known for fine leather products. On what is today’s
Kraft Avenue, he also built homes for himself and his two sons, both
of whom would serve as Village Trustees.
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The family would later
donate the land for St. Joseph’s Church, opened in 1928.
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In 1884, a cosmopolitan couple from Brooklyn, Harriet Rockwell and
her husband, moved into one of the old Masterton homes on Elm Rock
Road. |
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Within three years, they had acquired 80 acres of prime land
and developed a natural spring which would operate for several
decades as the Gramatan Spring Water Company. After her husband’s
death, Mrs. Rockwell began subdividing her land in the early 1900's.
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In 1888, Frank and Kate Chambers moved into Crow’s
Nest. He would be the second mayor of Bronxville and remembered for
his life-long contributions to the Village as the “first
citizen” of the Village. From his extensive property
holdings, Chambers also generously donated land, free of charge or
at cost, for projects ranging from a trolley line, the current
school grounds, today’s Boy Scout Field and the Bronx River
Parkway. |
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