The Haring-Auryansen House at 377 Piermont Road in Closter goes back to the late 1700s, but when this wintry postcard image was captured a century ago it was Hazelhead Kennels.
The kennel was under the ownership of David A. Wark, who lived in Closter for 30 years and served as mayor of the borough from 1918–1921. His primary profession was not the kennels; rather, he worked on the New York Stock Exchange as a superintendent, retiring in 1927. He had been living in Miami, Florida—certainly a departure from the scene above—for five years when he passed away in January of 1941.
Hazelhead Kennels made national headlines in 1922 when it opened “the first-ever dog clinic of its kind ever projected” to inoculate pups against rabies. The clinic was run in conjunction with the Englewood Kennel Club (of which Wark was an officer), after that city passed an ordinance stating that dogs could run the streets unmuzzled if they had been vaccinated.
—Kristin Beuscher