Evening star., 1932-10-10
|JOHN D.'S HOME"
PUT IN WAREHOUSE
Woman Had Bought Rocke.
feIIer Birthplace for Ex-
hibition at Coney.
Special Dispatch to The Star.


BINGHAMTON, N. Y, October 10
(NANA).-In one corner of the John
B. Southee warehouse in this city is
the dismantled farmhouse in which
John D. Rockefeller, founder of the
worlds greatest fortune, was born.
1t has been there for the last two
years. Will it ever get to Coney Island
to be an "inspirational shrine" as the
present owner has planned?
Fresh speculation over the ultimate
destination Of the storm battered. GEN.
tury-old farmhouse has developed with
the return to the news of the 54-acre
farm on which it stood at Michigan
Hills. Tioga County, N. Y.
The farm was put on the auction
block to collect $47.25 in delinquent
taxes. There were no bidders. So
Tioga County assumed title.
Four years ago the oil aing made his
last visit to his ,lrthp.s-s which was
little more than shack IN July. 1923.
Mrs. Carrie Rockefeller of Hartford
Mills, N Y, cousin of John D.. sold
the property to Mrs. Sarah S. Dennen,
| Brooklyn. N. Y. Title to the land was
| transferred later by the owner to Harry
d. Shea of Brooklyn. But the delin-
quent taxes are assessed against Mrs.
Dennen.
On visits to Binghamton the Brook
| lyn woman maintained secrecy about
| her plans to transport the old house to
Coney Island for exhibition. 1t never
got any farther than Southee's ware
house.
are officials Of the warehouse do not
| knnu- rThox, InnU n11U fhot che y,oy
/ the storage fees regularly.
| First Mrs. Dennen planned to have
| the farmhouse removed on big truck
to the Barge Canal for the trip to
| Coney Island. This plan was blocked
when the State Highway Department
refused her permission to use the high
ways for such a load.
| Rockefeller Family Objected.
| Later her plan was to remove the
structure to the pleasure resort piece
by piece. In dismantling the building
| carpenters marked every piece so it
, could be reconstructed as near the
original as possl Die
| Why the farmhouse is -.>t already up
| at Coney Island Mrs. Deanen has not
explained.
| At the time the birthplace was being
| torn down attorneys for the Rockefel-
Ter Family Association said they would
| attempt to restrain Mrs. Dennen from
using the name of the oil magnate in
connection with the building if it were
reconstructed at Coney.
Coincident with the diSmantling was
the purchase of 248 acres of farmland
| in the immediate vicinity of the IA
nous landmark. John D. Rockefeller,
jr., was named as the purchaser. 1t
| OF ho h. ho 70 1u
association was planning the develop
ment Of huge park and the creation
of an artificial lake through the dam
| ming of Rockefeller Brock.
| The park development never mate
| rialized.
John D." was only 4 years old when
! his parents left the old farmhouse and
moved to Moravia, N. Y. But for sew
eral years before Mrs. Dennen pur-
chased the place the multimillionaire
would return with friends to point out
the place where he was born.
A Loss to Richford.
The townspeople Of Richford-Michi-
gan Hill is in the town Of Richford-
/ wondered why John D." didn't keep
his birthplace in the family. Some said
he wasn't particularly attached to the
place.
With the removal of the old farm
house Richford lost its one claim to
! greatness. Sightseers on their way to
| view the place where John D." learned
TO walk and talk noticed the sign at
the south corner Of the village green
"Richford. Birthplace OF John D.
! Rockefeller"
| Before Mrs. Dennen had the old
building removed it was occupied by
Mr.. and Mrs. Jesse thinner as care
| takers. Penciled on a small piece Of
| clapboard which sat on the top Of the
frame of a lower window was this in
! formation:
"Room-John D. Born
The Zimmers never minded when the
curious filled the yard to read the clap
board sign They did not live in the
actual structure in which the financial
genius was born, but in an addition
built later.
| Visitors saw two barren rooms. one
| upstairs and one down. Hand-hewn
timbers were pegged together with
wooden spikes.
Children tramping to the little dis
trict school up the road miss the old
landmark They miss also the old man
| who used to cause buzz OF excitement
every year and give them shiny new
dimes.
(Copyrisht, 1882, by North American News
paper Alliance, 1nco