This past week marked the 208th anniversary of George Washington's triumphant tour of Long Island, a journey which included a stayover and breakfast at the house of a Roslyn family. To mark the occasion, Nassau County officials announced the commencement of a Long Island Heritage Trail along Route 25A which notes not only Long Island's role in the Revolutionary War, but the general development of the American nation as well.

Numerous local politicians showed up at the George Washington Manor last Wednesday, April 22, to unveil the plan. All of them, however, took a back seat to the arrival of President Washington himself, who arrived at the manor by way of a horse and carriage that navigated both rainy weather and modern day automobile traffic.

During his brief talk, the president noted all the enormous changes that had taken place in the area he had visited 208 years ago. Long Island has been carved up into numerous towns and villages, he noted, plus his driver had to contend with large numbers of horseless carriages along the new highway. Still, President Washington was glad to review the progress of a Heritage Trail marking his visit to Roslyn and the rest of the North Shore.

The ceremony was sponsored by the North Shore Promotion Alliance, an organization which is active in similar historical reenactments and has also spent the past two-and-a-half years in making the Heritage Trail a reality.

The Trail covers much of the North Shore, beginning at 25A in Great Neck and finishing up at 25N in Mount Sinai, a village slightly east of Port Jefferson. During the early 1700's, the road was called "King's Highway," linking Kings (Brooklyn) and Queens counties with their eastern neighbors.

Today, the highway is remembered mostly as the route for President Washington's April, 1790 Long Island tour when the Father of Our Country traveled the road in a horse-drawn carriage, thanking all faithful Long Island patriots who either fought in or supported the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. Many of those patriots served as spies against the British. During the war, some of Washington's spies communicated by hanging petticoats and handkerchiefs in coded order on a clothesline that could be seen from the harbor.

One of President Washington's early stops was at the Onderdonck residence in Roslyn. This family also served as spies for the Continental Army. President Washington thanked the family for their loyal service and ended up staying the night there. Today, the Onderdonck residence, is, of course, the George Washington Manor restaurant, where last Wednesday's festivities took place.

Legislation to include the North Shore within New York State's Heritage Areas System has been introduced by State Senator Carl Marcellino (R.-Oyster Bay) and State Assemblyman Steven Englebright (D.-Setauket). There are presently fifteen areas within the state's Heritage Areas System, but none on all of Long Island. The closest Heritage Area for Long Islanders is located in downtown Manhattan.

Route 25A is the central feature of the proposed heritage corridor.

"We have been working for two-and-a-half years towards recognizing the North Shore of Long Island as a Heritage Area," said Gloria Rocchio, president of the North Shore Promotion Alliance. "This included producing three editions of a full color brochure depicting eleven self drive tours along the Heritage Trail, producing seasonal event guides, working with Senator Marcellino and Assemblyman Englebright regarding Heritage Area designation, and securing Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) funding in conjunction with Nassau and Suffolk counties for Heritage Trail signage."

The ISTEA funding totals $630,000 between the two counties and provides for a management plan for the corridor, directional and informational signage along the route, as well as production and printing of brochures and maps of the trail.

A suggested list of historical and cultural sites for identification along the trail include Clark Gardens in Albertson, and the downtown Historic District, Cedarmere (home of William Cullen Bryant) and the Nassau County Museum of Art, all in Roslyn.