This is a Sample Extract from Cemetery Publication(97-1), without photos and pictures, from the R.P.H.S. To purchase a complete copy, please send $7.00 to:

The authors are Natalie Aurucci Stiefel, James Higgins and Suzanne Johnson

Artwork by Daria Cwik

This publication provides a wealth of information about the Noah Hallock Cemetery of Rocky Point, including history, full tombstone inscriptions, genealogy of those interred, and many tales gleaned from a variety of sources.

The authors would like to acknowledge a number of people who assisted in the development of material for this booklet.

The Long Island Collection at the Queens Borough Public Library provided the list from Suffolk County Cemeteries, edited by Alice H. Meigs, 1939 from which the list "Rocky Point Hallock burying ground, copied by John Ewell Wilson, Nov. 9, 1938" was taken.

Samuel & Frances Hallock Tuthill provided: the listing of the cemetery copied in 1961 by Agnes O'Brien Hallock, information about the naming of the roads in Rocky Point, and other valuable recollections of Hallock ancestry. Nate Carter provided his list for the "Hallock Family Cemetery," copied July 5, 1976.

David Overton, Brookhaven Town Historian, provided the Historian's Cemetery List that was collected by Osborn Shaw from 1939 to 1941 during his tenure as Town Historian,and was subsequently transcribed in July 1982.

Kevin Lamb,of Boy Scout Troop 299, Terryville, NY cleaned the cemetery and erected a post and rail fence as his Eagle Scout service project in 1986. His documentation and grid became a valuable record for our use.

Suzanne Johnson and Natalie Aurucci Stiefel took the photographs and Rich Jackofsky provided the developing.

We owe a debt of gratitude to Russel Tobin,the Manager of the Sea View Cemetery for his assistance in recovering the stone of Nancy Jones and in relocating it to its proper place in the Noah Hallock Cemetery.

We also would like to thank all of those over the years who have helped in preserving the Noah Hallock Cemetery: members of the Rocky Point Historical Society (especially Peter Carroll), members of the Rocky Point Civic Association, Brookhaven Town Councilwoman Patricia Strebel, Kevin Lamb and Boy Scout Troop #299 of Terryville, David Overton, the Brookhaven Town Departments of Parks and Highways, Rosario Aurucci, and Suffolk County Legislator Martin Haley. We are sure there are others that have contributed over the years, of which we are not specifically aware; and we want to thank them also.

1. Rocky Point Historical Society (RPHS)

In 1995 local residents, led by Peter Carroll, became concerned about the deteriorating condition of the Noah Hallock Cemetery. Their success in improving conditions at the cemetery led to the establishment of the Rocky Point Historical Society in August, 1995, with Peter as the first President. Once they began meeting, the members found many topics and issues of interest in Rocky Point's rich history.

The Society became fully active in 1996 and adopted a constitution and bylaws. The purposes of the Historical Society from the constitution are as follows:

The Historical Society currently meets on the third Tuesday of each month at 7:30 PM. New members are welcome at all times.

2. History of the Noah Hallock Cemetery

The Noah Hallock Cemetery is situated on the north side of Hallock Lane, near the intersection of Hallock Landing Road and Culross Drive in Rocky Point, a small community on the north shore of Long Island. The cemetery dates from the 1700's when Noah Hallock (1696-1773), the great-grandson of Peter Hallock of Southold, settled on the "landing road." Peter Hallock was one of 13 immigrants from England who landed at Southold Village on Peconic Bay in 1640. They were among the first European settlers on Eastern Long Island.

Noah Hallock built the homestead (ca. 1721) which is on the plot of land currently bounded by Hallock Landing Road, Culross Drive, and Hallock Lane. This is the oldest house still standing in Rocky Point. (According to Shaw, Benjamin Brown's house, which was nearby, was probably older than the Noah Hallock house but it no longer exists.) Noah and his wife Bethia were among the first known European settlers of Rocky Point. Approximately 40 family members, starting with Noah and Bethia, were buried in the Noah Hallock Cemetery until the 1920's. Included among those buried there are Josiah Hallock, the 1st, and Noah Hallock, the 2nd, who were both Revolutionary War patriots. Other Hallock descendants are buried in the Sea View Cemetery next to the Congregational Church, just off North Country Road, in Mt.Sinai, as well as in other Suffolk County cemeteries.

Map of Rocky Point Showing Location of Cemetery

The cemetery has been documented over the years by several historians, both professional and amateur. John Ewell Wilson copied the stones in November, 1938. Brookhaven Town historian Osborn Shaw recorded the stones in the 1939 to 1941 time frame. Agnes O'Brien Hallock copied the information in 1961; and Elbert N.(Nate) Carter in 1976. Kevin Lamb worked on cleaning the cemetery and erecting a fence as part of his Eagle Scout project in 1986. All of these early documentation efforts were valuable and contributed to our source of knowledge for the project. This is especially true due to degradation of the cemetery over the years due to weather and vandalism. However, none of the lists provided complete and accurate transcriptions of the tombstones. As a result, in 1995, a full documentation project was begun by members of the Rocky Point Historical Society.

Also in the Spring of 1995, Rocky Point community members were successful in adding the cemetery to the list of those maintained by the Town of Brookhaven. In early 1997 Brookhaven Town lists 147 cemeteries in the town, of which 40 are being maintained by the town. The Noah Hallock Cemetery is "No. 71" in the town listing. The cemetery is also variously known as the "Old Hallock Cemetery" or the "Hallock Cemetery." One big problem over the years has been poison ivy, which grew rampant during the years the cemetery was neglected. The town and the RPHS now periodically clean and landscape the plot.

As noted above, the grounds have suffered some damage over the years. There are currently three stones missing: Polly, Angeline, and George Hallock (see inscriptions). At the beginning of this project in 1996, four headstones were missing. One stone, that of Nancy Hallock (wife of Benjamin Jones and daughter of Deacon Phillip and Ruth Hallock) was found as part of this research project and replaced. Nancy's gravestone was located in the Sea View Cemetery in Mt. Sinai, leaning against some Jones gravestones and next to the plot of Noah and Mehitable Hallock. Nancy's stone was in its original place in the Noah Hallock Cemetery at least through 1986 based upon Meigs/Wilson, Carter, and Lamb. The Manager of the Sea View Cemetery stated that in the summer of 1994 he was notified by Suffolk County Police of several gravestones found on the beach near Long Island Sound in Sound Beach. He went to the 6th Precinct, retrieved them, and placed them in Sea View. Permission was received from the cemetery manager and the stone was relocated to its proper location by Nancy's grave on February 1, 1997 by the RPHS.

Based on the various earlier records of Meigs/Wilson, Carter, Tuthill/ Hallock, and Lamb, the stone of Polly Hallock was lost between 1938 and 1961. George Hallock's and half of Ruth Hallock's stones were lost between 1961 and 1976. Angeline Hallock's headstone was lost between 1986 and 1996, most likely at the same time as Nancy's in the summer of 1994.

Also early 1996, several other headstones and footstones were found loose and lying in disarray in the cemetery. As part of the research for this project, the RPHS identified the proper locations for the displaced stones and relocated them in the fall of 1996. The Society also held a very successful general cleanup and maintenance day at the cemetery during the fall of 1996.

We hope to use the proceeds from the sale of this booklet to further improve the grounds. Items being considered are: repair of broken stones, plaques with inscriptions for those stones that are worn beyond legibility and missing stones, and proper replacement of displaced stones.

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Last modified: Thu Nov 11 10:04:06 EST 1999