Photos and Captions Courtesy of the Bayside Historical Society
Melissa Chambers Bell (right) and her children are seen in front of the house that was originally built by her grandfather-in-law Abraham Bell I. The home was situation on the northwest corner of Bell and Warburton Avenues.
Abraham Bell II built this home in 1870 as a wedding present for his bride to be, Melissa Chambers. The home was located across the street from Abraham Bell I on the southwest corner of Bell and Warburton Avenues.
Known as the “Cypress Lumber King,” William L. Burton purchased 54 acres from H.W. Leavitt in 1906 and built this 15-room mansion at an estimated cost of $200,000. The property is now the current site of the Baybridge Condominium development.
Pictured here is Bayside and its connection with Little Neck Bay before and after the construction of the Cross Island Parkway. Initiated by the city’s Parks Commissioner Robert Moses, work to build the parkway began in 1934 with sand that was dredged out of the Ambrose Channel, towed up the East River, and pumped onto the shoreline from Willets Point to just past Northern Boulevard. The parkway was officially dedicated in 1940 and included a bridge extending over the highway at 28th Avenue to a pier and launching facility that replaced one built by the Bayside Yacht Club.
