GRANNY ROAD

Granny Road, Davis Erhardt Collection

Granny Road is a very old road that runs from Farmingville to Yaphank. Have you ever wondered why it's called Granny Road?

According to tradition Granny Penny was a midwife or doctress. She delivered babies, fixed broken bones and made her own medicines. It was a common sight to see Granny in a red cloak, on a white horse racing down the road to help a neighbor.

There are many tales of Granny helping people in need. In one case a woman had a felon (a very painful infection) on her finger near the nail. Granny took some wool from a black sheep and made a smudge out of it. Holding the finger over the smoke greatly relieved the pain.

Another tale was that of a frantic man coming to get Granny to come help his friend who had cut his leg and might bleed to death. The man had arrived on his horse and brought a half- broken colt, which he had intended to ride back. Instead of Granny using the man'' tired horse, she jumped on the colt and raced to the man's house in time to save his life.

Granny's maiden name was Dickerson. Her first husband was a Mr. Case whom "simply disappeared" according to a local historian. Later she married Jonah Halsey and had two children, Jonah Jr. and Phoebe. Phoebe married and moved to Wading River.

After Mr. Halsey died Granny married a Mr. Penny and moved to Orange County. When Mr. Penny died Granny moved to Phoebe's house in Wading River. In poor health Granny died at the Wading River home of her daughter.

At the Suffolk County Historical Society museum in Riverhead there is a tool called a surgeon's lancet. The card next to it reads "once the property of Granny Penny for whom Granny Road is named".

Written by,

Lauren Davis

Katy Cuozzo