Iconic Building Survives The Decades in Commack

Imagine Commack in the 1940s and 50s. Families moving out to the suburbs in post war America, the beginnings of what would later become known as suburban sprawl just starting to creep eastward on Long Island. Driving down Jericho Turnpike through Commack, a particular artifact of the mid-20th century sticks out among the strip malls and new facades ganging up along the roadway: Beau Brummel Cleaners.

It's hard to miss the retro design of the building, preserved for decades even though ownership of the business has passed hands.

In 1959, Carolyn Gehlbach moved to Commack and Beau Brummel was already here.

"They were the best cleaners in town," the Commack Historical Society member said in an email recently.

Back then, according to Gehlbach, the dry cleaner did pick-up and delivery, a telling sign of the times.

"Most young families who moved out from the city had only one car and many new moms did not have a drivers license," said Gehlbach.

About a year before Gehlbach moved to the suburbs, Commack was already seeing major development when the Mayfair Shopping Center opened up, perfectly placed on a major thoroughfare to the East End of Long Island before the expressway reached out this far.

"To go out east to the Hamptons etc.. in the 1940's and 1950's the only way to go was Jericho Turnpike through

Huntington, Commack and Smithtown," recalled Gehlbach. "The traffic on a summer weekend was pretty crowded and often bumper to bumper."

Unfortunately, not much has changed but if you're sitting in traffic on Jericho Turnpike you can still spy that throwback to the time when Long Island was just emerging into a major suburban satellite of New York City.

What do you think about the Beau Brummel building in Commack? Share your thoughts in our comments section below.