Clio Logo
This plot of land on the western side of the hamlet was set aside by the Town of Southold for the use of a doctor to administer to the people of the Town in the 1660s. It is thought that this elegant two story house was also constructed by the town around the same time.

The Town Doctor's House, 2020

The Town Doctor's House, 2020

The first doctor in the area was Robert Trusteane, who married a local girl Martha Herbert. After living in the area for several years, he borrowed some money from the Town government then disappeared from the area, leaving behind his wife and two young children. After missing for a number of years, his wife assumed he was dead and remarried, when Doctor Trusteane reappeared. He soon left town again, this time never to be seen again. 

The building was the home of several town doctors after that and in 1830 one of the upstairs rooms was used for a short while as the local school. The large tree in the front yard is a sycamore (also known as a buttonwood) was reputably planted by Hannah Smith in 1795, when she stuck a stick she was playing with into the ground.  

Antiquities, Society for the Preservation of Long Island's. Historic House Inventory - Southold Town. Survey for New York State , unpublished, 1976-1987.

Fleming, Geoffrey K. Images of America Southold. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2004.

Kassner, Robert G. The Trees of Southold. Southold, New York: Southold Town Tree Committee, 2000.

Markers, Committee for the Guide to Historic. Guide to Historic Markers. Southold, New York: Southold Historical Society, 1960.

Whitaker, Epher. Whitaker's Southold. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1931.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Town of Southold Historian's Office