Wells-Robinson House

1854

233 Roanoke Avenue

Narrator: Carrie [Corwin] Terry (1857-1940), voiced by Cindy Clifford

Hello, this is Carrie Terry. You may have met me back at East Lawn, my family house, when I was still Carrie Corwin. Then, in 1897, when I was 40, I married Dr. Henry Terry and came to live in this impressive house.

Did I tell you he was almost 60 and that I was his third wife and that there were three teenage daughters to deal with when I arrived on the scene? We added one more daughter of our own, by dear Marion. Fortunately, we had help – a Polish girl named Martha Sendlewski.

Did I tell you that I my father sent me to the Oswego Normal School so I could become a teacher? And did I tell you that in 1896 I was one of the founders of the Riverhead Free Library and became one of its original trustees? Would you believe that before then people here had to pay to join a library?

My Henry gave up doctoring because his night-blindness ruled out making after-dark house calls by horse and buggy. He then moved to Riverhead and went into business. He was an officer of the Riverhead Savings Bank and the chief organizer of the Suffolk County National bank. Raised $50,000 of capital in just ten days. Eventually became the president. Like my father Hubbard Corwin, Henry also served a term as town supervisor.

Just like at East Lawn where I was born, our house had the flat roofline, square cupola, Tuscan windows and ornate brackets under the wide eaves of this house were intended to remind viewers of a picturesque Italian country villa. It reminded me a lot of like East Lawn where I grew up. This “Italianate” style was widely popular in the middle decades of the 19th century and is seen on a number of other Riverhead homes.

Henry didn’t build this house. In fact he was the fifth owner. Joshua L. Wells Jr. built it sometime after 1854 when he purchased this prime corner lot for $329.00. Wells was a partner was a partner with Silas S. Terry in a general store and lumber yard. I think he must have made a lot of money, because he only lived here for a few years before he built an even grander Italianate home on lower Griffing Avenue in 1868. It had 14-foot ceilings. Reputedly it cost $19,000. It was the grandest house in Riverhead, but the Telephone company razed it in 1938 to make way for the brick building on the site now.

After us, our house belonged to L.Y. Robinson, a farmer who became an automobile dealer. I’ve heard stories that Mrs. Robinson charged her husband for bedroom visits. Would you believe that? We have lots of stories here in Riverhead. I’m so glad to see that both of my beautiful houses have been preserved.