This photo was found in 1997 in the belongings of Louise Leahy. Jacob Huther was one of the first pioneers of the Sunnyside area.  This photo of him was probably taken for his 40th wedding anniversary in 1926.  Jacob was born in 1863 in Reifenberg, Germany and his mother died when he was one year old.  His father remarried, had nine more children and emigrated to the United States in 1881.  Jacob lived in Brooklyn until he was married in 1886.  He and his wife soon moved to Queens where he was a foreman in a white lead factory on Verdon Blvd. in Ravenswood.

Starting about 1890, he and his wife operated a general store on Thompson
Avenue (later named Queens Boulevard) next to the Gleason Centennial Hotel. Additionally, he operated a horse-drawn wagon from which he sold fresh vegetables.  Around 1900, he purchased the house on 44-20 Skillman Avenue for about $500.  They lived in the upstairs and operated a general store on the ground level.  He continued to sell vegetables from his wagon.  At that time, the Skillman Avenue area consisted of woods and open fields.  When he moved to Skillman Avenue, 45th Street did not extend to Queens Boulevard. Using an axe, he cut away the underbrush to make a path.  Today, that path is 45th Street
He and his wife had seven children, of whom four died young.  In about 1910, he purchased the property at 44-18 and 44-16 Skillman Avenue and built two more houses.  In the 1920's, he stopped selling vegetables from his wagon, but continued to operate the store until his death in 1934.
Because of his good nature and because his business allowed him to know
everyone in Sunnyside, some people affectionately called him the first
"mayor of Sunnyside".

(From the archives of the Leahy family)