P’ville History Lover Writes Book on Village’s Fascinating Past
Every city, town and village has history. Longtime Pleasantville resident Bert Ruiz has made sure that some of the most memorable moments and stories and the village’s most influential residents have been recorded forever.
Ruiz recently completed a book on Pleasantville for the Images of America series from Arcadia Publishing, which is officially scheduled for release this Monday, April 8. It comes nearly four years after he collaborated with Claudine and George Waterbury on a similar project tracing the history of the Town of Mount Pleasant.
With a roughly 3,000-word narrative and the use of photographs and images of letters and other artifacts that appear throughout the book, Ruiz is able to detail the village’s history from before the Revolution to life as we know today.
“Local history is so important,” said Ruiz, who moved to Pleasantville in 1972 after serving in the Marines in Vietnam. “I think it’s really overlooked in education. I mean they really have so much to teach the kids but a lot of kids don’t know what’s happened right underneath their feet.”
Unlike his effort with the Waterburys for Mount Pleasant, there was no central archive to fall back on. He relied heavily on former village historian John Crandall, Mayor Peter Scherer and members of the community, many of whom have family roots that reach back for generations.
“I do love the community and there were things, the discovery process, was startling,” Ruiz said.
Pleasantville also played a key role in the Revolutionary War.
“I don’t think there’s any doubt that after four disastrous years of war, the capture of Capt. John Andre by Pleasantville militia, Pleasantville and Mount Pleasant guys, these local farm boys catching him, a sophisticated man who spoke French was a miracle,” Ruiz said. “If he got through the lines, the war was over.”
Ruiz, a history lover, said it was the little known facts and stories that made the project special. Originally called Bever Meddow, the village’s name became Clark’s Corner in 1795. In 1828, Henry Romer, the owner of the community’s general store who was also responsible for the mail, petitioned U.S. postal authorities to change the name to Clarkville and Mechanicville. Both requests were denied because other municipalities in the state took those names. He then settled on Pleasantville.
The two most enjoyable chapters, Ruiz said, was when he addressed the Pleasantville Cave, which is filled with intrigue, and the Flats.
There is documentation of the existence of a cave, believed to be located near the Bank Street Cemetery. There were rumors and stories of Native Americans holding rituals there, although Westchester has few caves. But caves are also known to be in areas rich in limestone and marble. For years, there was the limestone quarry in Thornwood.
The Flats, a roughly, three-quarter-square-mile neighborhood located between the back of Pleasantville High School and the Thornwood border, was originally home to mainly immigrant stonecutters from southern Italy. Ruiz traces its development and how the community battled and overcame discrimination against Italians.
Having lived the past 40 years in the village, Ruiz has grown to love Pleasantville and appreciates it more as he gets older.
“The book is uplifting and positive and I’m just proud to say that Pleasantville is as great as ever,” Ruiz said.
The Village Bookstore is among the places around Pleasantville that will carry the book, which costs $21.95. All proceeds from sales will go toward several organizations, including the Mount Pleasant Historical Society, the Pace University Historical Society and the Pleasantville American Legion, of which Ruiz is a member. For more information, visit www.arcadiapublishing.com.
Ruiz will participate in two book signings this spring, one at Barnes & Noble on Route 6 in Mohegan Lake on Saturday, April 20 at 1 p.m. and the other at the Mount Pleasant Public Library on Bedford Road in Pleasantville on Saturday, May 18 at 7 p.m.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
