"Orchard Cottage" (Centre Island, New York)

 residence, LIGC - Long Island Gold Coast

Estate house was constructed c. 1920 for Cecil Parker Stewart {industrialist, capitalist} on 16 acres purchased between 1915 and 1917. Stewart served as president of American Merchant Marine Steamship Corp., director of American Cable & Radio Corp., Commercial Maclay Corp., and International Utilities Corp.

In the 1930's the Stewart's purchased the neighboring estate from Macomb Foster, and in the early 1940's they purchased neighboring "Windy Meadow" estate from the Marshall Clarks. Stewart was the head of the Frank Hall Co. insurance adjusters and President of the American Merchant Marine Steamship Corporation. Stewart was a business associate of Aristotle Onassis. It was at this house in 1924 that the French Dadaist poet Jacques Rigaut dove through a mirror in an attempt to pass through to another dimension. It was subsequently inherited by Count Giovanni G.C. Cardelli {naval architect}. Cardelli was the chief architect of Lyon & Barney Yachts and Rybovich & Sons Boat Works.

A fresh water spring runs from the north end of the property through a stream to a larger pond at the lower end of the property near the shore. The well-graded flat field along the north portion of the property has traditionally been called "Stewart's Field". It was for many years the site of regular Sunday afternoon softball games by the local Centre Island team. Known as "Mooney's Mighty Maulers", the locals competed against teams from across Long Island including a noted victory against "O'Connor's Slugging Shillelaghs" champs of the South Shore. Basil D. O'Connor was FDR's law partner.