Flowerfield station

Flowerfield
Building near the former Flowerfield station, viewed from a passing train in 2022
General information
LocationParkside Drive
St. James, New York
Coordinates40°53′50″N 73°8′35″W / 40.89722°N 73.14306°W / 40.89722; -73.14306
OwnerLong Island Rail Road
Line
  Port Jefferson Branch
Platforms1 side platform
Tracks1
Other information
Station codeNone
Fare zone10
History
Opened1910
Closed1959
Services
None
Preceding station Long Island Rail Road Following station
Former services
St. James   Port Jefferson Branch   Stony Brook
Location

Flowerfield was a station along the Port Jefferson Branch of the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) in St. James, New York. Opened in 1910, it served the nursery estate of John Lewis Childs, which cultivated and shipped flowers, bulbs, and seeds. The LIRR discontinued the station agent in 1925, although passenger service continued. The station agency closed in 1944. The station closed in 1959, and its building was demolished in July of that year.

History

Around 1909, horticulturist John Lewis Childs purchased 20 farms east of St. James, New York, which he consolidated to form a nursery estate named Flowerfield and used to expand his mail-order flower and seed business based in Floral Park. The new estate, located adjacent to North Country Road (Route 25A) and the Wading River Branch of the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), encompassed hundreds of acres devoted to flower cultivation.

In 1910, Childs had a railroad station built to serve his Flowerfield nursery estate. The ground floor of the station building was built of roughly finished concrete and housed the railroad's facilities, including the station office and waiting room. The second floor, which was used by Childs, contained two large rooms, including a sun parlor at its west end. The upper story projected beyond the lower floor, with its overhanging sections supported by four large columns constructed of cobblestones set in cement. It was topped by a hip roof with dormer windows.

Childs' fireproof bulb house at Flowerfield, measuring 90 by 200 feet.

The railroad station served passenger traffic as well as freight and express shipments associated with the nursery estate. It also had a railroad siding. A 90-by-200-foot (27 by 61 m) fireproof bulb house with a 40-by-90-foot (12 by 27 m) basement was built near the station to pack and ship flowers as well as to store bulbs and seeds. A post office was also established at Flowerfield and began operation in November 1910. These facilities supported Childs' large mail-order business, which annually sent out over one million catalogs and received as much as three million pieces of mail. The nursery shipped bulbs around the world from its railroad station, while a regular afternoon train carried freshly cut flowers to markets and bulk purchasers.

In 1925, the LIRR sought permission from the New York State Public Service Commission to abolish Flowerfield station, arguing that it had insufficient business to justify its continued operation. At the time, the station reportedly had only one commuter. The Public Service Commission authorized the removal of the station agent but required passenger service to continue. A caretaker was to maintain the building and attend to freight deliveries. The station agency closed in 1944.

Childs died in 1921, and portions of his estate were offered for sale in 1934. A total of 314 acres (127 ha) of vacant land from the Flowerfield tract were sold in 1935. In 1937, a 335-acre (136 ha) portion of the estate, including residences, barns, and bulb storage buildings, was reported sold to an unnamed General Motors Corporation official. By March 1942, Mrs. James D. Mooney owned the Flowerfield Bulb Farm. A later account reported that she had attempted to operate Flowerfield as both a business and a horticultural hobby, but the venture was consistently unprofitable. In 1950, Flowerfield Bulb Farm advertised its business for sale, noting among its facilities a bulb storage warehouse adjacent to a railroad siding. One year later, the Gyrodyne Company of America acquired a 362-acre (146 ha) tract of the property from the interests of James D. Mooney.

Few trains stopped at Flowerfield station after the nursery was abandoned. On July 2, 1959, the LIRR petitioned the Public Service Commission for permission to discontinue all passenger services and team tracks at the station. The station building was demolished in July 1959.

Gyrodyne ceased operations building helicopters at the site in 1975 and turned some of the property into an industrial park. A proposal to redevelop the Gyrodyne site in the mid-1990s included reopening Flowerfield station and closing St. James station.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Industrial Park Tries To Get Off The Ground". The Smithtown News. November 25, 1976. p. 2. Retrieved October 13, 2026 – via NYS Historic Newspapers.
  2. 1 2 Wallace, George (February 19, 2019). "Flowerfields Was Home To LI Seed King's Gladiolus Farm". Northport Journal. p. 1. Retrieved October 13, 2026 – via NYS Historic Newspapers.
  3. ↑ "Unique Depot of L. I. R. R., Flowerfield, L. I." The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. November 25, 1910. p. 6. Retrieved July 2, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ Ziel, Ron; Wettereau, Richard (1988). Victorian Railroad Stations of Long Island. Bridgehampton, NY: Sunrise Special. p. 159. OCLC 19319353. Retrieved October 13, 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 "Childs' Rare Flowers, Vegetables and Fruits". Floral Park, NY: John Lewis Childs. 1911. p. 3. Retrieved October 13, 2026.
  6. 1 2 "Childs Properties Placed on the Market". The New York Times. February 18, 1934. p. RE1. ProQuest 101080074.
  7. ↑ Miller, E. S. (September 16, 1911). "Two Long Island Bulb Farms". Horticulture. Vol. 14, no. 12. p. 397. Retrieved October 13, 2026 – via Google Books.
  8. ↑ "Island News Notes". The Suffolk County News. November 25, 1910. p. 6. Retrieved October 13, 2026 – via NYS Historic Newspapers.
  9. 1 2 Fullam, Kathleen (August 5, 1966). "'Copter Site Was Famed for Gladiolus". The Three Village Herald. Stony Brook, NY. pp. 1, 6. Retrieved October 13, 2026 – via NYS Historic Newspapers.
  10. ↑ "Commission Gets All Testimony In L. I. Station Case". New York Daily News. February 26, 1925. p. 15. ProQuest 2260653410.
  11. ↑ "Statement Showing Number of Commuters at Each Station, Months of February and August, 1925". Long Island Railroad Information Bulletin. Vol. 4, no. 4. January 1926. p. 66. Retrieved October 13, 2026 – via HathiTrust.
  12. ↑ "L. I. R. R. Must Continue Laurel and Pinelawn Stations". The County Review. Riverhead, NY. July 16, 1925. p. 1. Retrieved October 13, 2026 – via NYS Historic Newspapers.
  13. 1 2 Morrison, David D. (2013). Long Island Rail Road: Port Jefferson Branch. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing. p. 87. ISBN 978-1-4671-2013-5. Retrieved March 19, 2023 – via Google Books.
  14. ↑ "J. L. Childs Estate Sells Large Flowerfield Tract". New York Herald Tribune. April 3, 1935. p. 36. ProQuest 1221582553.
  15. ↑ "John Lewis Childs Estate Sells Flowerfield Tract". New York Herald Tribune. January 22, 1937. p. 37. ProQuest 1223171364.
  16. ↑ "John Lewis Childs' Property Sold". The Mid-Island Mail. Medford Station, NY. February 3, 1937. p. 7. Retrieved October 13, 2026 – via NYS Historic Newspapers.
  17. ↑ "Spring Comes to Town as the Flower Show Moves Into Grand Central Palace". New York Herald Tribune. March 16, 1942. p. 13. ProQuest 1322401439.
  18. ↑ "Advertisement". American Nurseryman. Vol. 91, no. 7. April 1, 1950. p. 40. Retrieved October 13, 2026.
  19. ↑ "Helicopter Firm Plans Expansion". The New York Times. June 19, 1951. p. 50. Retrieved October 13, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Gyrodyne Co. Buys Large Flowerfield, L. I., Tract". New York Herald Tribune. June 30, 1951. p. 18. ProQuest 1327581887.
  21. ↑ "117 Years of Long Island Railroading". Long Island Railroader. October 1952. p. 6. Retrieved October 13, 2026.
  22. ↑ "Legal Notice". Newsday. July 9, 1959. Retrieved March 19, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ↑ Sound, Sean (July 26, 1959). "County Lines". New York Daily News. Retrieved March 19, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ↑ Seyfried, Vincent F. (1975). The Long Island Rail Road: A Comprehensive History (PDF). Vol. 6. p. 275. Retrieved October 13, 2026.
  25. ↑ Salamanca, Jean-Paul (October 30, 2023). "State interested in preserving 43 acres of Flowerfield property". Newsday. p. 16. ProQuest 2883458894.
  26. ↑ Winzelberg, Daniel (August 4, 2025). "B2K buys 49 acres of Gyrodyne's Flowerfield for new development". Long Island Business News. Retrieved October 13, 2026.
  27. ↑ Ambro, David (September 19, 1996). "Flowerfield Station Could Signal An End To Stop In St. James". The Smithtown News. p. 10. Retrieved July 29, 2024 – via NYS Historic Newspapers.
  28. ↑ Jaleshgar, Ramin P. (November 10, 1996). "Plan for an Access Road Upsets Stony Brook". The New York Times. Retrieved November 24, 2011.