Talk:Westport, New York

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The Town of Westport on its history page states "Father Isaac Jogues was tortured by Iroquois Indians on the island in Coll’s Bay." Is "Coll's Bay" another name for Cole Bay? --Pleasantville 16:47, 4 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] "Decline"

The article currently says Westport's "popularity declined after the building of the interstate highway system in the 1950s." I question the date. I think the "decline" began with the Depression and was exacerbated by the increase in the number of motorcars, which allowed city residents to travel conveniently to locations not served by trains. Later, airplane travel allowed city residents to travel even farther away, which did not help Westport or indeed any other place in the northeast of the U. S.

The "decline" also stemmed no doubt from the rise of suburbanization: suburb residents can often enjoy amenities such as golf, boating, fishing, and even walking, without spending nights away from their houses.

Finally, if Westport's popularity declined in the 1950s, the cause would be the prevalence of air conditioning in cities, rather than the interstate highway system. In fact the Northway has aided Westport's steady, if unspectacular, increase in land values. --Charlie Cerf Ccerf 14:17, 22 October 2007 (UTC)

As I recall, the claimed cause of decline came from A Walking Tour Guide to Westport. Your version seems to me likely to be more accurate. --Pleasantville 15:25, 22 October 2007 (UTC)