The Park House was popular destination in Yates until being destroyed by fire in 1981
Photo courtesy of Dawn Metty, Town of Yates Historian: The Park House was a popular destination in Yates along Lake Ontario.
By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian
Illuminating Orleans, Vol. 3, No. 38
YATES – As mentioned in a previous column, the Winghart Grill, flourished in a remote Town of Yates location in the 1920s and 1930s. Owned by former bootleggers, Joe and Mayme Winghart, the tavern was located close to their lakeside cottage which had been the hub of their illicit liquor importation operations during Prohibition.
In 1941, the Wingharts bought a hotel at Point Breeze and advertised the sale of their Morrison Road establishment.
The business went through several changes of ownership in the following years.
This ad is from the Lyndonville Enterprise on March 12, 1942.
From 1945 – 1949, it was operated as the Grand-Vue Grill by William E. Rands and Pearl White. In 1950, the liquor license was held by William Rands and George Stone.
George Stone operated it as Stone’s Inn in 1951 and 1952.
Bert Van Auker operated it in 1953, under the name Van Auker’s Grill.
In December 1959, a liquor license was granted to Loretta and Joseph Perry who changed the name to Lakeshore Villa.
Joseph Perry was killed in an early morning automobile accident on October 8, 1960. He had been traveling south on Route 63 in his 1959 Cadillac, when he went through the intersection with Route 104 and landed in the former Gallagher gravel pit.
Following the death of Joseph Perry, Joseph Jurinich, who owned a restaurant in Medina called the Village Green, purchased Lakeshore Villa and renamed it The Park House. It was soon booked for events, such as the Royalton-Hartland Central School Annual Alumni Banquet, which was held there on August 25, 1962.
The Grand Opening of The Park House took place in July 1964.
(Left) This ad is from Medina Daily Journal, August 14, 1964. (Right) Medina Daily Journal and Medina Register posted this ad on August 27, 1965.
It was a popular venue for many years. Live music attracted an audience to this rural venue. Among the many groups that played there were Cy Roberts and the Troubadours, Orion, Finger Love, Trestle, and Legend.
(Left) This ad was in The Journal-Register, December 8, 1978. (Right) This advertisement was published in The Journal-Register, February 23, 1979.
On March 26, 1981, the Park House was destroyed in “a spectacular blaze.” Lyndonville firemen were the first to respond to the 11 p.m. call, reported to be a chimney fire. Lyndonville fire chief, Fred Goldsmith, said the structure was engulfed in flames when his company arrived. Flames were visible from two miles away. Five other companies assisted: Albion, Barker, Carlton, Ridgeway and Shelby but the fire raged out of control for three hours.
The Journal-Register account of the fire noted that the building had been reportedly used as a speakeasy during Prohibition. Jack McCarthy, Orleans County fire coordinator, noted that he had not found any evidence of the rumored underground tunnel which was alleged to have connected the tavern to the lakeside cottage then owned by the Wingharts.
Many people still remember frequenting the Park House. The tavern was not rebuilt following the fire and the quietness of the countryside returned to this plot of land which for a brief period had witnessed the intersection of legislation, location, alcohol and entertainment.
