Welcome to Fire Island Pines. A Family Community… the sign
1955
The Home Guardian Company of New York – a subsidiary of the Smadbeck Company, and owned by brothers Warren and Arthur Smadbeck, were responsible for developments on Long Island including in Mastic, Syosset and Rocky Point. In 1952 they began planning a new community called Fire Island Pines. Designed and envisioned as what they called “A family community.” They communicated this with a large sign in the harbor.
The marketing literature targeted a certain demographic.
As the word of the new Pines community spread the gays of the nearby Cherry Grove, a known gay community began a migration. Also because of it’s connection to the Broadway and Hollywood personalities through owner Peggy Fears that population were finding their way to this oceanfront community. Realtors were advised to pick and choose who were going to be possible home owners of the Pines.
As more and more gays arrived, Home Guardian found it necessary to create a sign dictating their moral values. They felt this would discourage the growing homosexual population.
As you can imagine the sign created a divide in the community. Not only for it’s message of prejudice, but for the misspelling in the sign itself showing the authors intelligence. The gays were an unspoken population at that point. Somewhat accepted and some not. The sign posted in the harbor would mysteriously disappear on weekends as it became a running tug of war…
1960’s
The sign had to be replaced several times until there was a homeowners FIPPOA meeting where all parties were represented. The realtors, acting in the owners HGC behalf realized they were fighting a losing battle as the Pines was at least 25% gay by then and growing. Many longtime Pines people would speak out like Alice Thorpe proposing a truce to live side by side. And so it would be. The sign hung on the Post Office deck as a reminder of our history for years. As the percentage has now shifted to mostly gay with a 25% straight population. Tolerance and unity must preside… In 2019 the sign was taken down as it was noticed that it was damaged by the weather. Its future is being determined…
FIPHPS President Bobby Bonanno & Architect Scott Bromley. What the sign would look like imagined today…
In 2022 the sign was recreated by FIPHPS and brought back to its rightful place. There was a flurry of controversy about its place at the Post Office where it has been for years, as many felt it was not in step with the world today. However it remains an example of what the community could have become, and how far we have come from that time…
2022. FIPHPS President Bobby Bonanno with both the original sign that sit open and unpreserved in Whyte Hall.
The sign replica hangs in its original place at the Post Office in the harbor.
