WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES OCTOBER 10, 2019 29
SPECIALIZING IN:
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100-07 Metropolitan Avenue,
Forest Hills
718.544.2634
Fax: 718.263.2032
COUNTERTOPS
STARTING AT $45 PER SQ. FT.
Including Installation
$600
OFF FOR PURCHASES OF $5000 OR MORE
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WERST & LABELLA FUNERAL HOME
71-41 COOPER AVENUE
GLENDALE NY 11385
718 821 8777 • 718 366 7200
www.werstlabella.com
Werst & LaBella Funeral Home has been serving the
people of Brooklyn and Queens with care and understanding
for almost 120 years. Originating on Hart Street in Brooklyn,
the funeral home has been at its current location since 1935.
Located at 71-41 Cooper Avenue, our building is recognized
as one of the oldest structures in the Ridgewood and Glendale
communities.
Built in 1852, our mansion-style facility, was originally
built by John Siney, on land owned by his father-in-law,
Nicholas Wyckoff. The Siney family owned and operated a
stage-coach line that ran along Myrtle Avenue, then known
as the Plank Road. In 1886, the house was sold to Henry
Meyer, a Brooklyn grocer. Soon after, Henry began his own
tobacco business and within a few years, his “Ivanhoe
Tobacco Co.” became a major industry in the neighborhood.
Glendale’s Ivanhoe Park is named for Henry’s tobacco brand.
The property changed hands several times and was once used
as a private golf club for the Forest Park Golf Links, after it
opened.
By 1924, the building was being leased to the Glendale
Square Club. It was around this time (in response to
Prohibition) that the building became known as a local
“speakeasy”. Funeral home staff members, recall stories from
elderly neighbors who had patronized the premises back
then. After several raids, New York City’s Mayor LaGuardia
had the illegal business shut down and put the property up for
auction. At this time the property was purchased by the
Werst family, who then moved their funeral business, from
Brooklyn.
In 1937, shortly after moving their undertaking firm to
Glendale, George Werst Funeral Home conducted services
for local resident, Sergeant Major Daniel J. Daly. Sergeant
Major Daly was the most decorated (enlisted) member of the
United States Marine Corps. He was the recipient of 2 Medals
of Honor, Navy Cross, Distinguished Service Cross and
more. In 2004, the Marine Corps was able to trace Sergeant
Major Daily's relatives (he never married) using the funeral
home’s records. Later that year, he was honored with a U.S.
postage stamp and a statue in Great Neck, Long Island, with
his descendants present. Our staff was invited by the
U.S.M.C. to attend the dedication of Daly’s monument.
In 1991, the firm became part of the Dignity Memorial®
network of funeral, cremation and cemetery providers. In
2018, George Werst Funeral Home merged with Glendale
Walsh-LaBella & Son Funeral Home. Glendale
Walsh-LaBella & Son Funeral Home had been another
well-established funeral provider in the neighborhood since
1959. Both firms now known as Werst & LaBella Funeral
Home, operate out of the local landmark building. The
building has recently undergone renovations and upgrades
but still maintains its original grandeur.
/www.werstlabella.com
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