I took forty-four big trees down in the front field just so you could clear the front and see the house. Yes, but that was all the legal aspect of it. I restored that, and that was an old mansionan old pillar-fronted mansionlooked like the house, similar. But because I was military, the military shippedwhen they moved me, they moved all my stuff. Burke: Yes, she held the mortgage on it. He come over he looked at it. He said, when he was moving here, he told the people there, he goes, Im moving. Then she got to the point where she couldnt keep it anymore. Daller: I think weve touched on everything, really. So, unfortunately, there arent many people that care that way anymore. Burke: Its right on the Boulevard and it goes down to the beach. Kitchens were always built in a house outside by themself, and a breezeway going to the house, because the kitchens would always burn down. And through all the years that the old lady had this woman taking care of her, the lilacs were always in bloomwhen they were in bloom, they were in the house. Burke: Oh, when I was a kid, we lived in Annandale. And then upstairs was like a big balcony above that porch. Q: So this is going to part of an online archive. And the last time I went there, there was all houses built in it. I mean, its just normal living in a normal house. And then I said, well, now Im going to buy a home. I forgot whose house it was. Burke: So, in other words, fifty years from now, if someone wants to learn about the house, they can find out. It was like a mansion youve never seen. And she was laying with her arms, like that. But I mean, that wasthe holes, the plaster gone. Put through the years, people recognized it and everything. So you really cant even try to say what does it feel like? He was in the Air Force. And my brother Bill and my brother Ed decided to go into an automobile repair shop. He painted that for me. So after a couple of years going back and forth, his daughter, she decided she wanted to get involved in it. Stony Brook. There was nine of us in the whole family. Q: And, do you keep records on, on those kinds of things? Now the little girl had to be moved to Wall Street. And, well, lets face it, they never had any hot water over there at all. Burke: But everything will stay here exactly as it is, because if its going to be a museum, people are not going to come in and look at empty walls. Q: How did you establish a relationship with the Parks Department and the Historic House Trust? Who Where Receive obituaries Yenula Hennaka February 24, 2023 In a house that you dont even own? And, she said, If so, we will give you gifts. And then that was the end. Lets keep fighting it, because there was no way to fight. You could ask for their house and youd get it. So they. Q: Today is November 9, 2021. Q: Andif this is something that you cant discuss, let me knowbut, for example, if you decide to repaint, like you did in this room, is that something that the board fundraises for? Daller: Well, its just the fact that the South Shore has gotten very built-up. Daller: A lot of the paintings came from Europe, though. Daller: No, that still has to be discussed. George Burke was born on Staten Island and grew up in Annandale before moving to Florida with his family. Burke: And he was one of the top portrait painters in Madrid. Daller: Well, they hope to. The ceilings had fallen down because a lot of the drain pipes had leaked. And you cant control it from the grave. Find your ancestry info and recent death notices for relatives and friends. So I moved into the front parlor room, there. And he did these two chairs. Dont forget I, for yearsin London, I went to university. And with the money that I made from there, I put it right back in the building. Burke: I used to, but I didnt I didnt keep it on everything. It was so overgrown in the front yard and everything. I had just bought this house, and it needed a lot of work. Q: The Friends of the Seguine Mansionthe friends group. Yes, of course, they could eat all the grass. If you are going to stay, you better do this this and this, whatever the hell it was. Q: Can you give me an example of one of the things that you worked on together in the house? He was 63. Copyright 1998 2023 New York Preservation Archive Project. Its just a shame. And we were sitting in the kitchen in the basement and he was going on the Ouija board and I said, What does it say, what does it say? And Eric is sitting there and hes talking, and hes sounding like a lady, and hes saying, Youre in my house, and I dont want you. But anyway, I had come back to America. And he said, George, Im selling my business. I, being the youngest, of course, seeing everybody growing up. And I made a lot of money. And it never had a kitchen. And people were coming from all over the island. The stables were here for years. And I had the two apartments! Its a real pretty smell. She said, Yes, its lilacs. She said Mrs. Whatever-her-name-was always had to have lilacs. And it became quite the place to be. And then the people that moved out left a bunch of old furniture, and these were the two that they left. Youd have to see the house to see what Im talking about. And I saved quite a bit of money. Its a big plaque on it, its landmarked and everything. Then I decided, well, Im going to get myself a nice apartment. Daller: You know, people dont understand them. And have something on a loop in here, which weve been trying to do, where itll be an audio and a video of him discussing the house, because nobody knows it any better than he does. And as I said, I was in the military up there and we werent a big group of military, it was like a small base. I had all the plasters done. They cant develop it. I dont know what it is. My big old Victorian house is saved, and thats still there. But she used to wear three, four dresses and she smelled like an old goat! And she was laid in a dress with a big lace collar. I found him through somebody. And Id go downtown and Id wheel and deal for a bottle of whiskey. I just repainted. I could. Then I went looking for the big pieces. [laughs] But, itll be here. Daller: You werent here. Do you remember that? One day, he was gone. As a young adult, he joined the U.S. Air Force and served in the medical department, spending time in locations across Europe and Alaska. Q: Yes. So I went around and looked and looked and I said, You know, I could open a restaurant. And I walked around and I found a couple of nice places. Ill give you a job. Viewing times and guestbooks can be found here . Cohasset crypto case: Everything court documents reveal. I mean, this was just a farmhouse. But I forgot what the other two things were. Its still there, the framework of it, with the brick. You could see with all the houses over here, its gotten very built up. I found these here on Staten Island in somebodys basement! She said, George, when she died, she was laid out in the coffin, right in that room, in front of those two windows. Burke: Yes. Im no bulldozer!. And they were good investments. Thats why I did what I did, because I figured that if anything ever happens to me, all of this, now, will have to stay as it is. In good condition? And then the Eric woke up, and I said, Well, I dont know. Or next to the chair where she was sitting. He had the military ship the items back to family members in New York City, a perk of military service that made moving his collection back to the States possible. Yes. And Ed was very good at taking dents and things out of cars and he could spray paint. Burke: Oh, my nephew. They didnt have it six months and they went under. Now what are you going to do with this? Then upstairs, was all the bedrooms. And my nephewwhat the hell was he? I woke up with a sweat. It was his first time off of Staten Island. Burke: I never lived in a little small house, I have no idea. Click here to view all obituaries Search Obituaries Contact Us / Location. So my sister Bess said, Well, come on, lets go to Florida. Staten Island and the South Shore is the only place where people can still move, be in a country feeling, and build what they want to build, and have a garden and have a lawn and, you know, they can be in the country and still be in the city. When I was over there looking at their house. So I had all my goodies packed in a box, getting ready to go. And then I shipped it all back home. Burke: Yes, but just think of that gorgeous, bigthe mansion that this was their farmhouse, up the street here, that was gorgeous. And the house across the street from it, the Old [Sir Walter] Tyrrell House. And I lived there for quite a few years. But the basement was the summer dining rooms and summer kitchen. I was born on Oct. 11, 1930, one of nine siblings, to an. And I got these. Devoted father of Matthew I. Burke, Jason L. Burke, and Georgina. How the hell they got to the right people, I dont know. So, Id do that. But they hadnt been there, maybe five, six years, and I guess they decided, Oh! Burke: Okay. Q: And so all these items went upwalked up the stairs and were, carried back down the stairs. And I went to Hammersmith College. Of course, I went to school here. Because thats what I bought with the money. Ill tell you the good stuff! [laughs] And that was it. And where to get the good buys, and all that kind of thing. And so people saidthey took all the horses and they moved to New Jersey. He worked by himself. Anyway, there was three things that I found by doing some worklike, giftsI forget what they were. My sisterher mother [indicates Daller], Francesmy sister living in the Bronx, she got me a little apartment and she got me a job working for Saks Fifth Avenue. And, then I gotwhod I get from the city? Q: Yes, absolutely. Devoted father of Matthew I. Burke, Jason L. Burke, and Georgina P. Burke, all of Hull. And he owned the funeral home. And she was laying like this. And if they were there and I could see them, and I could ship them free because the government had to ship it for me, and I had my sisters, who would store them for meI had had a great opportunity to pick up all this stuff that was beautiful, get it for nothing, and the government ship it back for me, and my sisters would keep it until I got a place to put it. And then, on the side of the house in the back, there was a little piece built out. Ticonderoga. And I had this goddamn old sergeant who was going back also, but he was getting out of the service, and he was being discharged. You know, everybody grew up together. [laughs] And I lived there for a long time. But what was really, really bad was people, if they were going to build a garage, or they were going to build something, theyd go to that big, beautiful mansion and rip the siding off of it and take it back to build what they want to build. Burke: Scalia. Because the problem was is that my uncle was paying for everything in the househe was paying for the heating, he was paying all the utilities, paying all the bills. So it was fascinating. Burke: Oh, what I want to do isover that fireplace, I want to take that painting downand bring my painting and put it over that fireplace. Of course, she loved the smell of lilacs. Theyll take care of it and be able to show tours. Loving son of Joan (Perry) Burke of Plymouth and the late George W. Burke. And I took the money. Its all stay in here. Lookit, I saved the police station and the two buildings next to the police station. So most of the stuff is Victorianturn of the century and Victorian. And youd walk out, and the porch was all brick, and at the end of the porch was a big arch that had little windows in it and a French door where you could walk out to the garden. So whenever the big surgeons traveled, I always traveled with themtraveled all over Europe. Yes. Yes. WHEN George Burke was growing up on Staten Island in the 1930s and '40s, he used to ride horses with a pair of sisters, Elizabeth and Belle Seguine. I had all the walls done. And all the time when all the lilacs would come in the spring, and the whole place would smell of lilacs, its gorgeous, still is. Id come back up and I could still smell it in the hallway. That was a great house. So he came out. Burke: Oh, and then the house, when I bought it, everybodythe real estate lady, she wouldnt come in. I wanted to ask about the Equestrian Center. You made enough money. Daller: Well, no, Mrs. Seguine allowed him to buy, Burke: No, I already had this house from the first deal. And I was so damn busy, I never got to go home. George Burke Obituary It is always difficult saying goodbye to someone we love and cherish. So they said, You better get back here and do something. So I came back, got out of the military, got a job working for Saks Fifth Avenue. So I went up with Father Tom and I had to take care of all those Eskimos, if any of them got sick or hurt this or that. Q: And how did you keep track of all the items in your collection as they were moving from, Burke: Well, a lot of this stuff, I never got back, because once you left it for years and years, you werent going to go back and say, Well, give me that, and give me this. Was it your mother I gave her all the blue and. And they said, Oh my god, George, what are you Oh, and who else was that? Then I was down in Florida for a while and Im wondering, Well, what in the hell am I going to do in Florida? What was I? And no ones going to be able to talk about it, and point things out, and say where it came from, or whats the history behind it. And he saw the way to help out, and I said, well form a board and what well do is well continue to have fundraisers in order to support the house, but we need additional help and support as well. Q: [laughs] How did you figure out what needed to be done with the house? I had no idea that that was it, when I bought the house or anything. You know, nobody wanted to end it but nobody wanted to, say, Lets do it. Q: Yes. And with the Air Force, I enjoyed every minute. And a lot of it got given away, got lost. Because look how long the war went, and England had nothing. So I made sure it was filled in with dirt the rest of the way, so I wouldnt have that water getting in the basement. I had the house put back together. But, God, that was almost 100 years ago, you know? Ill do the whole window. Most of the furniture thats hereI never furnished the house until I owned it. And people were selling anything out of their house to support themselves and live. That woman, she lived in riding clothes! All my life, I was raised in a big house. Burke: Oh, it was a relationship over whole period. And it didnt take long to sell because it was a big piece of property, nice house. Yes. That was the most beautiful mansion. That was something that you had restoredis that right? So I had people come in and wanted to buy the Tidewater Inn. She was great because she would know. And my neighbor across the street, who had lived there forever, she comes over again with a couple of little plants for me. I restored the whole housewell, how long did I live there? And I think we can end there. He moved into the house shortly after the sale, and worked from the basement to the roof, and outwards throughout the grounds and stables, to complete the restoration. I mean, I could do a little woodwork, but I wasnt a carpenter. Q: Yes. Well, on theon the fireplace there, those two big candelabras, theyre Meissen. Burke: You want it from the first day I was born in the hospital across the street? It doesnt happen on the North Shore because were very condensed and its a dense population. Q: When you were youngwhen you were a kid. And he was studying art and he painted my portrait that shell show you, thats upstairs. So I run downstairs. So here I was with all this stuff, sending it home to my family, sending it to my sisters. I cant think ofdoesnt matter, the name of the people. It has to stay exactly as an old plantation house. Im getting rid of everything. He said, I have three of the most beautiful Persian carpets from Persia, said, You cant get them anymore. He said, Theyre antiques but they are brand new, never used. He said, Im giving them to you. And this is them. Right? In fact, my mother worked there. Is there anything else that you would like to add about the house as it is now, the history, or the future of the house? Constantly. And hes the one that did my portrait upstairs. And it was quite difficult to maintain the big house we were living in. While stationed in England, he studied interior design and architectural history and began to collect antiques through estate sales and flea markets, focusing on ceramics, paintings, light fixtures, and many other decorative items from the Victorian era. And he did the big sofa in there, didnt he? Is there anything, you think? Burke: Greek revival. All rights reserved. So by the time he came back, all this had changed. She was a nasty old lady! But that was funny. And I went in and I noticed my big box was gone. But when they were building houses, if you had a third story, your taxes went out of sight! I mean, look, theyve been trying to get rid of the carriage horses in the city, for how long now? From what youve described, the different places that have been demolished over the years were extremely different from each other. So I come home dead tired. So I bought it. I fixed it up. Aug. 16, 1954 - February 25, 2023 Loving and loyal husband, father, brother, uncle, great uncle and friend. And all those Eskimos just loved me. And she said, George, you have so much with design and such, I want you to take over the wallpaper department and the fabric department. I did fantastic for the store. So we lived there, and it was a big courtyard and there were four buildings and the center courtyard was all grass. It makes sense because she was an old lady. So I went around to all the nursesof course, I was in the medical departmentand I asked all the nurses, What are you doing with your stamps? And she said, George, do you know who this is? and with her big Southern accent. And I never had timesometimes Id be sleeping on the pool table there because I just couldnt leave! And then one of my brothers had just gotten out of the military. Q: When you were making those decisions about decorating, were you thinking about a particular style, like a historic style, that you were going for? George Memon's passing on Tuesday, October 4, 2022 has been publicly announced by Martin Hughes Funeral Home in Staten Island, NY. I mean, Captains Quarters, instead of building all those condos down there, it would have been beautiful to have another stately home there. Yes, the dining room and the kitchen was on the other two, side. Daller: Thats been acquired over the years. Burke kept records of the work, most of which he completed himself and financed the through the sale of his business, the Tidewater Inn. And I had a beautiful restaurant and a bar connected to it. Like there was old Greek, like the Parthenon, the Greek templesoh, it was beautiful. She was on TV complaining about it. The kitchen was never in the basement. Brother Celestine George Burke, an educator who was a member of the Brothers of the Christian Schools for 63 years, died on Thursday at Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, N.J. . So I go downstairs. Thats the only thing in the house left from the Seguines. And it was actually three stories high. Daller: No. And I said, Was that a dream? I knew what she looked like, I knew where it was. I had a dream thatin my dream, I woke up and I was laying in bed upstairs, and I could smell lilacs. Q: What grabbed your eye? Youre coming with me. So Id say Okay, Murphy, lets go! She was something, I mean. Some kind of jewelry. And Id go in and Id buy all the liquor with those stamps. I need to get someone in to do a good cleaning on the house, someone to take care of maintaining it. So I moved into the house here. I dont want you in this house. Like this chair that youre sitting in, these are Chippendale chairs in the Chinese style. And I never got along with her that much because everything I wanted to do, she said, No, no, no, I dont like that. So Id go over there and, of course, Bess Seguine was always over there. So that was the reason we chose to do a White Party. And my fatherwe were quite wealthy, growing up. The mansion had a huge ballroom and everything in it. Burke: I think that waswhod ya call-it got me involved with that. And, minute he bought the house, did a little work in it, put it right up for sale. So I went out and I said toI had two roommates, and I said to my roommates, Wheres my box? And they said Oh, well, Sergeant Joiner came in and took it. I said, Oh, no! I went running out. You couldnt even see it. Are you still interested? And I said, Well, of course I am. Was her name Mackey? Im sorry that, during all that construction, I wasnt taking photographs, of step by step. And after he died the family still lived like we had my fathers money involved. They tear down one house and build five. And that was it. Burke: Yes. Im going to get gifts now because Im staying in the house and Im going to fix it up.. I mean, its physically impossible. And thats where we are today. And a lot of people kept their horses in the stables. And in the back of the house, its still there, is aChrist, it must be half the size of this roomis a huge, huge lilac bush. And also about the history of Staten Island, or the style that the house is decorated in, the Victorian style, your collection. Right across the creek. I dont think anythings missing? What a shame. Q: And you feel that thats at risk because of the development thats happening now. Burke: And what is a shame islike, you take [one of our former boarders], she has two horses that she used to keep here all the time. That whole salon set there was a Victorian salon setand the couch is a camelback. They were all womens stuff. We were only allowed so much. The Seguine girls, as they were called,. Valley Stream. 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