On occasion, people will express the opinion that if so-and-so knew what has happened to their beloved corporation, institution, or sports team, they would be rolling over in their graves. You can fill in the name of virtually any entity that you wish with few exceptions. However, in the case of the Westchester County Bar Association (WCBA), I believe our founding fathers would be generally pleased and stationary in their crypts.

Through the research conducted by our past highly esteemed president, Richard M. Gardella, Esq., the findings of which were set forth in an article from 2016, we have learned that on March 7, 1896, a group of attorneys met in the “village” of White Plains. There were two charter members (all male) from various parts of the County in attendance. Remember, few, if any, attorneys in New York State were females in 1896. This gathering took place less than a month before the WCBA’s certificate to incorporate was filed, and thus, this was the group’s first official meeting.

I envision nattily attired men smoking cigarettes, pipes, and cigars with no concern whatsoever about secondhand smoke. I cannot imagine that they wore something other than a suit. I doubt any attended in jeans and sneakers— or their Allbirds®! At the conclusion of their meeting, I am also pretty confident that they either gathered at a local watering hole or just downed a few shots from their flasks to celebrate their newly formed organization at the Westchester County Courthouse. (I doubt they fired up the old bong, but I could be wrong.) This Courthouse was not the same beautiful grand-columned courthouse that graced downtown White Plains on the corner of Main Street and Court Street from 1915 to 1977. This was a small modest building with little to write home about.

Take a look at the photo of the Courthouse herein—that lovely columned building was replaced by the Galleria, which is again being replaced by a handful of skyscrapers and purported green space. Construction is to be completed within the next decade. This will result in Main Street, Hamilton Avenue, and other adjacent roads being torn open for the umpteenth time in recent years. The traffic woes will be compounded on a daily basis for hours on end. I can say with near certainty that our founding (WCBA) fathers would not be happy that their beautiful Courthouse that was designated in the national historic archives was torn down for a walled and windowless shopping mall.

However, I believe our founding fathers would be very proud of how diverse we have become as an organization, especially as compared to the time of our founding. It should be noted that in addition to there being very few female attorneys, there were also very few attorneys of color in 1896. The population of Westchester County, which was predominantly rural, was fairly homogeneous. White Anglo Saxon Protestants, Germans, and a growing number of Irish and Italians formed the majority of the County’s populace. It is difficult to accurately calculate the populace by group in Westchester for 1896, because the 1890 Census records were destroyed by a fire in Washington D.C.

One of the other significant achievements of the WCBA is that for decades it has been apolitical. Rarely, if ever, does the WCBA take a partisan position. As an organization, we have many other accomplishments we can be proud of. For example, the Westchester County Bar Foundation, Inc.’s (WCBF) Fellowship Program, which has provided an attorney (fellow) to a local legal not-for-profit for more than a decade—a truly great achievement, particularly for an association of our size.

Overall, I am confident that our WCBA founders would be very proud of our new generation of leaders. If anything, they would only have one admonishment: Do not be political, because politics is divisive.

Anthony J. Enea, Esq., is the managing attorney of Enea, Scanlan and Sirignano, LLP of White Plains, New York. He focuses his practice on Wills, Trusts, Estates and Elder Law. Anthony is the Past Chair of the Elder Law and Special Needs Section of the New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) and is the past Chair of the 50+ Section of the NYSBA. He is a Past President and Founding member of the New York Chapter of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA). Anthony is also a Past President of the Westchester County Bar Foundation and a Past President of the Westchester County Bar Association. He is also fluent in Italian. He can be reached at (914) 948-1500 or at a.enea@esslawfirm.com