Community Corner

Editor's Notebook: Light Show Boasts Replicas of Smithtown Landmarks

Smithtown resident William Bowers constructed the replicas that are on display at Girl Scout Camp Edey in Bayport.

When I saw my father, William Bowers, down in the basement of his Smithtown home that he has lived in for over 30 years with pieces of wood strewn everywhere, curiosity got the best of me. What was he building this time?

It wasn't one of the many puzzles or wooden trucks that he often builds for my two children or his other five grandchildren.  It was something else.

On the wall above his workbench were photographs of buildings around the town where I grew up — pictures of the at the corner of Route 111 and Main Street, the Smithtown Post Office, the Smithtown School District Administration Building, the Smithtown theater and some of the older store fronts and homes on Main Street.

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What was he up to? I knew he was volunteering and working on the annual light show at the Suffolk County Girl Scout Camp in Bayport where both he and my mother work. 

I soon put it all together — he was constructing replicas of Smithtown landmarks to display as part of the holiday light show, which is run and put together by volunteers.

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I am always impressed by my father's work, which always includes intricate architectural detail, right down to molding. I'm guessing the skill came to him through his genes — his great-grandfather, was a house builder in Smithtown, building homes on Oak Avenue and Bowers Court. His family home once sat on Main Street in Smithtown, across the way from the Bank of Smithtown.  

My dad's miniature replicas, which were built over several months, were no different than his other work — once finished, he adorned them with holiday lights and decorations. They were so intriguing that my kids couldn't even stop gawking at them, repeatedly asking to play with them.

For the past two years, the replicas have held a special place at the Girl Scout holiday light show, which features one mile of drive-through holiday light displays.

My dad said he chose to reconstruct the structures because of their historical value and architecture, and like his other completed woodwork designs, he would never sell them. It's just a hobby, he always tells me.

The Smithtown replicas can be seen at the light show which is open every night from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. The cost is $12 per car load on Monday through Thursday and $15 on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The show is closed on December 24 and 25, but will reopen on the December 26 and run until December 30. Proceeds benefit Suffolk County Girl Scout programs and outreach services.

Editor's Note: William Bowers is the daughter of the author of this article, who is also a volunteer Girl Scout leader and whose mother also works for Girl Scouts. Erica Jackson is the editor for Westhampton-Hampton Bays Patch.


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