32 times • APRIL 30, 2015 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.timesnewsweekly.com old timer The story of Glendale’s Unity Hall Thousands of people a day pass by storefronts in our neighborhood and never realize the ties these buildings have with the neighborhood’s history. Take, for instance, the address 65-02 Myrtle Ave. in Glendale. It’s currently used by a carpet retailer, but this site was once known as Unity Hall, a gathering place for politics and leisurely activities operated by one of the area’s most prominent politicians in the early 20th century. Unity Hall, which originally featured grand white marble columns, was built and opened in 1909 by the Unity Democratic Building Association. It was leased to the Unity Democratic Club led by Alfred Denton, a local lawyer with high political aspirations. The hall featured a main entrance below its columns on Myrtle Avenue and a side entrance on what was then called Fresh Pond Road, but is now known as Cypress Hills Street. The ground floor featured a saloon operated by local innkeeper Minnie Peters; there was a gym, a locker room and a bowling alley in the hall’s basement and a meeting room on the second floor. Alfred Denton, a Glendale native, graduated from New York Law School and became an attorney. He was active in the Democratic Party and, by 1909, was a mutual judge for the third district for a 10-year term. At first, Unity Hall got off to a horrific financial beginning, as the revenues it generated weren’t enough to pay the interest on the mortgage. After falling into foreclosure in December 1911, Judge Denton purchased the hall for $17,500, less than half of what it cost to build the structure two years earlier. But Judge Denton’s days on the bench, as it happened, were numbered. In 1919, he began experiencing mental problems and clashed with attorneys practicing in his court. His relatives had him committed to a mental hospital in Suffolk County, where he died of a stroke two years later at the age of 44. Peters purchased Unity Hall in 1920, the same year Prohibition took effect nationwide. Records indicated she leased the building to three men in April 1921, though it was unclear as to what business they operated in the former saloon. By 1922, the saloon changed hands again when the lease was transferred to John and Marie Allgeier, who opened a bicycle shop in its place. The troubles continued at Unity Hall in July 1924, when a two-alarm fire ignited in the structure and spread to several adjacent storefronts on the south side of Myrtle Avenue between present-day Cypress Hills Street and 65th Place, which was then known as Epsilon Place. Firefighters from Ridgewood, Maspeth and Brooklyn responded to extinguish the inferno. What was once Unity Hall was rebuilt, and by 1960 was acquired by the Catholic Kolping Society, a charitable fraternal organization. They leased the ground floor for a tavern and held meetings in a second-floor hall. Taverns continued to operate at the former hall until 1988, when another two-alarm fire severely damaged the entire structure. The building was renovated and repaired and is now occupied by Bay Carpet. Unity Hall: Unity Hall as it appeared in the 1920s. Present: Bay Carpet now occupies the storefront at 65-02 Myrtle Ave. in Glendale, which was once Unity Hall. The old timer wants your memories! Did you grow up in our neighborhood between the 1960s and early 1980s? Do you have stories and color photos to share of memorable events in our area from the recent past? If so, then the Old Timer wants to hear from you! The Old Timer loves to share with readers not only the history of our neighborhood, but also the memories of those who live or have lived in it. Take a pen and paper, or your computer or iPad, with you on your next trip down Memory Lane. Tell us about your experiences in the neighborhood growing up, such as home and school life, stickball games on the block, public gatherings, local parades, major community events, trips to local amusement parks or movie theaters or any other great event that our readers might remember and enjoy. Search through the family album and pick out a few color or black and white photos from these events and send them with your memories to us. You can email digital images or send pictures by “snail mail.” All mailed images will be carefully returned to you. So if you have a story or memory to share with us, email the Old Timer at editorial@ridgewoodtimes. com or write to The Old Timer, c/o Ridgewood Times, 62-70 Fresh Pond Rd., Ridgewood, NY 11385.
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