December 12, 1981. Fire origin undetermined. Fire dstroys the famous/infamous establishment that first opened in 1918 through the 1950’s. Scroll all the way down past the photos for some more history on this storied inn.
The restaurant, which was known as the Riverview, had closed two weeks prior to this fire. The building had a checkered history that continued through several operators, and included allegations that organized crime figures had tried to take it over in 1977 and make it the headquarters for a $200,000-a-week floating crap game.
Matthew Kondenar Jr. was an Assistant Chief at the time and was the OIC. Hauppauge, Kings Park, St. James and Nesconset all operated at the scene. Fire was reported at 0220 hours. Two firefighters were injured. When the FD arrived, all of the west end of the building was burning, including the catering hall and the dance floor. The fire was placed under control by day break. Heavy equipment was used to open the building up to allow firefighters to completely extinguish the fire. Arson Sgt at the scene was Joe Maniec.
The restaurant first opened in 1918 by Frank Friede. It was known as a halfway house for the elite who would stop there to dine on their way to the Hamptons. It was the place to be for the whos who…actors, opera singers, politicians etc.. It also became a magnet for gamblers who played craps or roulette or bet on horse races with the entries displayed on large blackboards in a separate building on the property. In 1949, after a Newsday Investigation that included photographs of betting taken with a hidden camera, the gambling operation-reached by motoring down a tree-lined driveway and walking over a small bridge over a pond to a barn hidden behind the restaurant, was shut down. Friede died in 1954. Friedes widow sold the property to Emil Siegel, former proprietor of the Swan Club restaurant in Glenwood Landing, and his two nephews, Richard and Jay Siegel, both Mineola Lawyers. The property was leased to a number of operators, and the controversy continued.
In 1977, the police and district attorney charged that the restaurant, then known as the Riverside Casino, had been used by the Joseph Colombo crime family as a headquarters for a 200K a week floating craps game. Twenty six mob figures and bussinessmen were indicted in connection with gambling at the Riverside and other locations. Authorities said that the players would leave their cars in the parking lot of the restaurant and be chauffeured to a new location each week. To guarantee that the operation ran smoothly, the crime family sent in Alfonse Merolla of Kings Park to wrest the restaurant away from Sam Sgarlato, the 3rd operator since Friede.
Sgarlato said Merolla had gained control and then bled the restaurant of its assets. All was quiet there since 1977. Most recently, the restaurant was leased to Bob Fallacaro, former maitre d’ at the Naragansett Inn. He had closed two weeks ago. Photo in the 12-17-81 Smithtown News. Was also known as Harrys Yellow Balloon. Was located on the south side of Jericho Turnpike, just east of the railroad trestle. It is now Paul Given County Park and will be a Town of Smithtown Park starting in 2023.
From maggieblanck.com:
On the banks of the Nissequogue river in Smithtown, Long Island was a farmhouse which once belonged to the Smith family of Smithtown.
The building was turned into an inn as early as the mid 1800s. Original know as Newton’s Inn it became famous as the Riverside Inn. According to a history of the inn printed on a 1950’s menu:”In 1859 it was sold to Benjamin B. Newton, who conducted it for 17 years as “B. B. Newton’s Hotel, except for a short interval when the hotel belonged to William Spurge.”Benjamin Newton was listed as a hotel keeper in the 1865 and 1870 censuses in Smithtown.
By 1880 William Spurge owned the “popular hostelry” which was called Spurge’s Hotel at that time. Traveling salesman frequently stopped at the well-run establishment. It also attracted trout fishermen and wheelman from far and wide. William Spurge was listed as a hotel keeper in the 1900 censuses in Smithtown. The 1890 census records burned and so are not available. Spurge was still the inn’s proprietor in 1905.
Before the advent of the automobile people came by horse and later by train to Smithtown. In October 1900 the main building burned to the ground but the barns and outbuildings were saved. Under the management of William Spurge the inn was quickly rebuilt with modern conveniences like heat and hot and cold running water.William Spurge sold the inn in 1908 and from that time until the advent of Frank Friede circa 1918 the inn was managed by a number of people, including a woman.
The 1910 census and other records indicate that James P. Kilroy was the manager of the inn from at least 1908 until 1914. James P Kilroy was an ex-cop from Buffalo, New York.In 1914 an excise certificate was issued to the “Smithtown Company” Riverside Inn, Main st. Smithtown Hotel. An advertisement in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle in June 1914 listed J. P. Kilroy as the proprietor.
In a 1915 ad Pearl Hendrickson was listed as the proprietor of the Riverside Inn.(Long Island and Real Life By Long Island Rail Road)An ad in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle in August 1917 listed William Palmer as the proprietor of the Riverside Inn.In June 1918 Henry E. Hayes, “proprietor” was advertising the Riverside Inn in the New York Times.
Frank Friede bought the hotel circa 1919. Local histories say he bought it from William Spurge. Frank Friede and his mother, Rose Freide Welzel, had a restaurant/hotel on Middle Country road near Lake avenue from about 1908. Under Friede’s management the Riverside Inn was a destination for celebrities and socialites who stopped on their way from “the city” to the beaches at the east end of the Island. It was also a place the locals frequented on week-ends and special occasions like birthdays, weddings and anniversaries. In the 1940s and 1950s it was a frequent venue for meetings and fundraisers for a variety of business, civil, political and religious organizations. After Frank Friede died in 1954, the inn was run by his second wife, Thelma Friede Burke. Thelma Friede Burke retired due to ill health circa 1969.The inn burned to the ground in December 1981 and was not rebuilt.
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