Dan's Papers - May 16, 2008 - Greenport's East End Seaport Museum

Cliff Benfield Sits Down With Us To Talk About
Preserving Local History In Greenport

Cliff Benfield is the only man in Greenport's East End Seaport Museum today. He leaves his jacket on as he hammers in pictures for the new "People on the Floor" exhibit; the heat hasn't been on in months. A volunteer, like all who work here, Benfield is now in his eighties but works full time to preserve the small seaside town's bountiful history. He believes in the often tossed aside ideal that our history is as vital as our future. As the sun passed midpoint and light began to stream thru the museum windows facing the sea, he spoke to the exhibits' historical importance. Excerpts:

DP: How long have you been interested in the preservation of local history?

Benfield: All my life, I suppose.

DP: And how long have you volunteered at the historical society?

Benfield: Since I retired in 1977. We opened the East End Seaport Museum in Greenport in 1990. We also opened Horton's Point Museum that same year.

DP: You do a specific kind of work here at the museum, what is your official title?

Benfield: I don't think I have one of those really.

DP: But it would be fair to call you the curator of exhibits?

Benfield: You could call me that.

DP: Tell me about your newest exhibit in the Museum, the one called, "People on the Floor: Members of the Claudio Family"

Benfield: Well, we're taking a look back at the historic families of Greenport. Old businesses are a part of the history here. But in this case especially so, because it has been handed down through the generations and remains a part of living history today; people can relate to that.

DP: Although created to stand alone, the "People on the Floor" exhibit is part of a series, is it not?

Benfield: Yes, it's the second installment in the series of historic families of Greenport. Last year we put up the W.J. Mills exhibit and that family, as you know, is one of the oldest sail makers on Long Island.

DP: Why did you pick Claudio's as the next installment?

Benfield: Claudio's is the oldest same family run restaurant in the United States. Greenport wasn't really Greenport until Manuel Claudio left the whaling ship "Neva" in 1857 and decided to stay in America and open the restaurant. Originally, Greenport was known as Winter Harbor because its only purpose was its deep-water port. The local yuppies would dock their boats here during winter to keep the bay near shore from freezing. There wasn't much other use for it before the businesses moved in. That's why we wanted to create the series, to commemorate those who made Greenport into what it is today. You can't just overlook Claudio's in that respect.

DP: Space in a museum is always a difficulty. This exhibit was only given a corner of the room. How did you compensate?

Benfield: I wanted to give the impression that you had just stepped into the restaurant itself. The two walls were built to match the texture and color of the place. The fake window holds stained glass from the restaurant itself. Additionally, we've brought in an original ceiling light from the 1800s when Manuel bought the billiard halls and madeit into a restaurant. The table in the middle of the exhibit is also from the restaurant. You can see I've placed a Claudio's oil paint tablecloth from the 1930s on it as well as a menu from 1932, beer mugs from 1890, and a water pitcher from 1940

DP: There is so much recognized history to the place, how did you decide which photos and documents to hang in the frames on the walls?

Benefield: I wanted to make sure I got in at least one picture from all periods of ownership. Those in the family who actually ran the restaurant were a main focus. You can see portraits of all the owners going across the top of both walls in genealogical order from 1870 to 2007. As for the rest, I wanted to include all the important historical elements. Pictures of great storms that almost washed the place away or photos of fishermen and their remarkable catches give the visitor a sense of the history. That frame there is a picture of two men on Claudio's dock with an Orca whale they had caught. My favorite of all the photos is the men sitting on barrels of alcohol outside the restaurant right after prohibition ended. Obviously a big focal point was that it served as a speakeasy during prohibition. Claudio's has a great bootlegging history.