Pleasurable summers spent in Moodus

It was a result of a late-at-night whim that I entered a search into Google for Moodus. And boy was I surprised to have located your site!

Moodus was a family affair for us. I spent most of my childhood summers at various resorts in town from 1948 to approximately 1959, but my parents vacationed there slightly longer. As my parents were both teachers, we were able to spend the full ten weeks of vacations away, and we did so each year. We stayed for many years at Karas Rest Farm (unmentioned in your site), Klar Crest Resort and Willow Manor. As I got into my teen years, I spent more time away at camps and teen travel tours, but even then I would still spend several weeks in Moodus.

After spending at least one summer at Karas, my grandparents and my uncle rented a bungalow at Elkin’s and subsequently at Richard’s bungalows. As I recall, they vacationed in Moodus for at least a year or two more than my parents, and this brought me back to town as well as I frequently visited with them for a period of time. Another aunt and uncle took their annual two-week vacations at Orchard Mansion. In summary, our years in Moodus probably spanned from 1948 to 1961.

My days in Moodus were pleasurable, and I was lucky to be able to spend them away from the hot streets in Brooklyn. I was always impressed by the rural character of the area, and the vast differences there compared to back in the city. I can still remember our first arrival day in town with utmost clarity and I believe I still retain a tremendous wealth of information about the area during all of those years. My parents were quite knowledgeable about the affairs of the village, and they knew many of the merchants in town. My father would like to spend some of his spare time analyzing the personalities of each of the different proprietors of Levine’s and Weinstein’s soda shops, and had a number of actual incidents and original jokes to share about each one.

Even though my folks were only summer residents, they held a library card and were quite friendly with one or two librarians whose mutual friendship they enjoyed on their weekly visits for all of those years. In various ways, we also became friendly with a number of local families, and even though we were only summer visitors, we very much felt a part of Moodus ourselves.

Moodus was a part of our lives, and as a child I thought it would go on forever the way it was. I recall the decline of most of the hotels and bungalow colonies, and everyone knew that the demise of the area as a vacation area was soon at hand. A number of years later, I read an article about the destruction of the commercial district, and was even more shocked a few years later; whereupon, I made my first return to the area to have driven by the original location of the village without even being able to spot any vestiges of the past at all. It was just like An Outer Limits TV show. That former main street, an eclectic mixture of a tourist spot with a unique small farm-town flavor, was the basis for making that entire area a community, and what a loss it must have been.

My last visit to the area, about four to five years ago, was with my wife and teen-age children to attempt to show them what it was like for me. Sadly, there was no way to recreate for them the wonderful summers that I spent growing up with my family in this very special place. Obviously, it was a different day and age for me, and others, who spent time there as I did, will probably agree that they really felt a darn lot happier, with a whole lot less, than our kids today.

On my last visit, I was unable to visit the public library to inquire about anyone trying to record the history of the resort period in Moodus. So, it is with a great deal of pleasure that I discovered the existence of your site. Thank you for your efforts.

Sincerely,
--G. Shapiro

Leiber's Mansion a wonderous adventure

Your site on the resorts is fascinating. One minor point. Leiber's (Leiber's Mansion) was actually on Town Street about half a mile toward Hadlyme from where it crosses Valley Brook, or about a mile and a half from Wolf's Den.

My parents bought the house, outbuilldings and 11 acres from Joseph Leiber, the family patriarch and former owner operator of Leiber's Mansion in 1969. We lived there for about 6 years. The rest of the land, approximately 100 acres, was sold years later by Misha, Mr. Leiber's eldest son and has since been subdivided and homes built upon.

The original house and barn had been a farm before the Leibers acquired it. The barn had a stage and jukebox which we found fascinating as children. We had fun with plays and concerts there. The outbuildings were fascinating also. We found many minor treasures left by former guests which had been left there for many years between its days as a resort and our tenure.

The subsequent owners of the property have made it into what appears to be a lovely home. While we lived there we used a wood stove in the kitchen to attempt to heat the 19 rooms of the house. After the first winter we would close up all but about 8 for the winter. We often went to bed in snowmobile suits and I was usually the one who managed to get the dog for warmth.

Despite the minor hardship, it was a wonderful, adventurous place to grow up in.

--Ray Durant, Gloucester, VA

Roy Coo Coo Duka Dies

For years Roy Duka was the all around entertainer for the Frank Davis Resort. From handing out instruments to the guests, with his "wake up" band, to war canoe races, putting on audience participation plays (written by his wife Franny), the man kept going from sunrise to way after the sunset.

CooCoo brought years of joy and laughter to so many guests. To me, he was one of the main reasons many people kept returning to Frank Davis (I know it was the reason for our family returning every year.

I received a call from Roy's wife Franny a few hours ago, and was told Roy had passed away. My family started going to Frank Davis when I was only 12, I am now 42. My father Jack "Jocko" Castronovo was a New York fireman and fell in love with CT and this area so much that when he retired we moved up here. He even got a job at the resort. . He and Roy were close for 30 years.

Thank you,
--Annmarie Anderson

Visits to grandma were a treat

At age 77, I look back with fondness at Moodus. My grandparents lived on the hill behind the Synagogue (Axelrods?). It was accessed by a narrow driveway between the buildings. The Synagogue was formerly a Congregational Church, built on land donated by my Great-grandfather, Asa Hyde Harris who was a Dancemaster in Moodus.

A visit to Grandma's (Mrs. Edwin Hazen Harris) was always a treat and to stay a week was even better. My uncle Raymond Harris was friendly with a lot of the camp owners so I got to see some of them at the height of summer.

Three generations of Harrises are buried at the Southwest corner of The Methodist Hill Cemetery across the street.

I remember the Cone Mill at the bottom of the hill and all the houses near it. The Smiths and the Turczyks.

Redevelopment wiped out most of what I remember, but I suppose it was inevitable.

Thanks for the memories.

--Richard D. Harris, Avon, CT

Former Banner band leader remembers good times

Let me compliment you on a job well done on the sad story about the hardworking Banner family and Banner Lodge. I drove around there a while back and was sick at seeing a wasteland.

I remember the good old days waiting for the busloads of New Yorkers coming for good times. Foozy, who has passed on , was the waker-upper at the Lodge. Oh, just great memories. Thank you again for your report.

--Irv Jeffries

Fond memories of Moodus summers

I came across your website while doing an internet search. My father was Harry Molbert, the "corny dance instructor" from Banner Lodge in the old days. He died 12 years ago. I spent every summer of my childhood in Moodus, and have many, many fond memories. Our family rented the bottom half of the big white colonial style house on the grounds of Orchard Mansion, directly across the road from the Kabatznik's.

It was fun to get a glimpse of the old photos on your pages.

--Robin Lori Molbert

Family bonding at Riveredge

Oh, how I do remember this lovely little home away from home. My family & I came from Milford, CT, just an hour or so from where we lived. Most people thought we were nuts to take a vacation so nearby. Little did they know how delightful it was to arrive not exhausted or fighting with the kids &/or spouse after miles & miles on the road, to be greeted by the friendly faces of Art & Olga Donnellan.

I first found the resort in an ad in the NY Times (when it was obviously much cheaper to advertise) and thought why not? We'd been to Mystic. How about a leisurely jaunt up I-95, skip over to Rte 9 & wend our way up to Moodus??

I sent a check to the resort well in advance of our arrival & on a lovely Saturday afternoon slowly drove our car (a 1969 Oldsmobile) along the gravely dirt road to the resort. We parked near the "office" (just a small room off the kitchen area, where we learned later that Olga would work her culinary magic) and proceeded to check in.

Olga looked & looked and could not find any evidence of our prepayment. But being the jolly, wonderful woman that she was, she said, "Don't worry. We have a nice little cabin available for you and your daughters!"

A young fellow named Mike led us to our accommodations and we were thrilled. A room for my husband & me, and another for our two girls, plus a sparkling clean bathroom, all just feet away from the Salmon River!

The next week consisted of three meals a day, pool games, river boat rides, tennis, archery, evening bonfires (with Art telling stories & serving up way too salty ears of corn), no TV, no radio. Our family actually bonded rather well.

Our first morning's breakfast was one of pancakes, French toast, bacon, sausage & toast, plus eggs over easy for my husband. He said that the eggs were too hard to cut. I looked at him with eyes somewhat squinty and said "What do you mean, you can't cut your eggs??? " I took a knife & tried sawing at the yolks myself. Nothing. We then saw several young folks in the kitchen laughing -- my husband had been given rubber eggs!! We knew then that Donnellans was our kind of place.

We went back for another year, this time booking a cabin right on the river. Our youngest daughter often went off by herself to a little area loaded with wildflowers and called it the "Lands of Love."

We truly miss the camaraderie, kindness and just good old fashioned family togetherness that we found at Donnellans.

--Holly Shore