Most every Sayville Alum has seen the famous Sphinx, that stoic, weathered face gazing out from the side of Montauk Highway – once on the north side, now on the south side.

For generations of Golden Flashes, it’s been more than just a roadside curiosity; it’s a touchstone. Countless class trips, senior pranks, and family drives have paused at its feet. How many of us have visited it for a yearbook-worthy photo? How many have squinted at that faded plaque and wondered just for a moment, if the millionaire promise might actually hold up?

I was recently reminiscing about this very piece of local lore with Terry (Walker) Bodenstein, Sayville Class of 1968 and mentioned I’d found some of the story. So, Terry, this one’s for you and for every Sayville alum who’s ever posed with the Sphinx and wondered about the story behind that enigmatic smile.  Perhaps alum reading this can send in some of their Sphinx photographs?

The story of the Long Island Sphinx is a saga of art, ambition, a giant concrete head, and the kind of roadside Americana that makes you wish you’d been there to see it all unfold.

The Birth of a Landmark

It all began with Captain Will Graham, an Irish sculptor and marble worker who arrived in America from Belfast in 1888 . A man of boundless energy and showmanship, Graham built Ye Anchorage Inn in 1897 on the northwest corner of Montauk Highway and Kennedy Avenue in Blue Point . If you were driving along the Merrick Road back then, you’d spot a sign that, according to the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, read: “An inn what is an inn”. Graham even chronicled his adventures in a personal magazine called The Log, filled with stories, poems, and artwork he created himself .

In the early 1900s, Graham built the Great Sphinx, a 45-ton, one-seventh-scale concrete replica of its Egyptian namesake, as a grand roadside attraction to lure travelers to his retreat . And lure them it did. The inn played host to a who’s who of the era: President Theodore Roosevelt, silent film stars Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, and even cartoonist Winsor McCay, who reportedly left sketches on the walls.

Graham was a master promoter. He staged a faux bullfight that drew two thousand spectators and even built an early aeroplane on the grounds . But perhaps his most enduring—and mischievous—contribution was the plaque he placed at the Sphinx’s feet: 

“She who climbs to the Sphinx’s head a millionaire will surely wed”.

Legend has it that Graham and his friends would spend lazy afternoons on a bench nearby, hoping to catch a glimpse of any adventurous young lady who took the challenge . It was a different time, to say the least.

There’s also a persistent rumor that the iconic actress Mae West was looking to buy the inn just before it burned down . One can only imagine what she would have done with the place.

Fire, Ruin, and a Miraculous Rescue

Will Graham’s story came to a sad end when he died of pneumonia inside his inn on February 20, 1920, at the age of 57 . After his wife passed away, the inn burned down in 1927 . The Sphinx, however, survived. It was moved to the side of the property, where the Ferri family operated a gas station from the early 1930s to 1973, keeping the old girl intact and in good repair .

In 1974, the land was sold to a gas station chain called Power Test. During the construction of a new facility, a bulldozer demolished the original buildings—and the body of the Sphinx. The massive 10,000-pound head was severed at the brow and neck . It looked like the end.

But fate and a lucky coincidence had other plans. Lou Fontana, who owned a concrete business in nearby Bayport with his brother John Fontana, happened to be driving by as the destruction occurred . He intervened and asked the bulldozer operator to save the remains of the head. Remarkably, the man agreed. Lou loaded the colossal concrete noggin onto a truck and transported it to his yard on Montauk Highway, where it sat, deteriorating and hidden from public view, for seven long years .

The Sphinx Rises Again

In the fall of 1981, the Fontana brothers began the painstaking task of restoring the monument . Their efforts drew significant attention, leading to a featured article in Newsday and a broadcast story on WABC-TV in New York City. After nearly two years of hard work, the restoration was completed in May 1983 .

Today, the Great Sphinx sits proudly in front of Fontana Concrete Products in Bayport, a dedicated tribute to the memories of Will Graham, the Ferri family, and the Fontana brothers . The inscription at its base still promises matrimonial wealth to any daring climber, though a modern sign now bluntly adds: “Please KEEP OFF Climbing Sphinx is Prohibited” .

The story is a testament to the fact that some pieces of history are just too wonderful to let disappear. And Terry, I hope this version does justice to our conversation—and to the grand, odd, and unforgettable legacy of the Long Island Sphinx.

As always, special thanks to Tom McMahon (digital creator and Board Member of the Sayville Alumni Association who has another terrific article and old photos/clippings at;

https://www.facebook.com/groups/941718623024140/posts/1615024252360237/

More Sources

1. Waymarking.com – “The Great Long Island Sphinx – Bayport, New York”
2. The Long Island History Project – “The Sage of Blue Point”
3. Roadside America – “Bayport, New York: Cement Sphinx”
4. Atlas Obscura – “The Long Island Sphinx”
5. Clyde’s Guides – “The Great Long Island Sphinx, Bayport, NY and the Anchorage Inn, Blupoint, NY”
6. Hofstra University – “Out and In of Anchorage Inn, At Blue Point, L.I.” (postcard archive)
7. Anonymous Works – “The Sphinx at Ye Ole Anchorage Inn”
8. Konrei Old New York – “She who climbs to the Sphinx’s head a millionaire shall surely wed”