Walter E. Bihajlo

Walter was born on October 9, 1922, the only son of Anthony and Katherine (Nee: Zajaczkowski) Bihajlo. He always joked that he was born “across the pond” and because he was proud of his Polish heritage, people assumed he meant he was born in Poland.  Walt was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and the “pond” was Long Island Sound.  Walt had five sisters: Helen, Lillian, Frances (married to John Hoffman, a policeman in Huntington), Jeanette and Irene (married to Lowell Leibbrand, a mechanic for Ramp Ford). Walt moved to Port Jefferson Station, at two-months old, when his parents bought a house and a 37-acre farm. They grew potatoes, cauliflower, beans, peppers, squash, cucumbers, tomatoes and even tobacco. They raised three cows, which were sold.  They raised pigs for food.  They also had chickens, geese, ducks, turkeys, dogs and cats.

Walt attended Comsewogue Elementary School on Terryville Road for 1^st – 8^th grade.  In 1940, Walt graduated Port Jefferson High School.  Just before graduation, at age 17, Walt and all the kids from the small family farms were old enough to be drafted. The farm bureau got involved because while the government needed men to fight, they also needed men on the farms to grow the food for the fighting men. Walt got deferred for 9 months and then got a card to report to the train station in Patchogue.  A whole trainload of farm boys reported for physicals in the city.  The sergeant was calling out the names (there were about 500-600men) but when he got to Walt’s name, he cursed and said he couldn’t get this one. Walt knew he had gotten to the name, Bihajlo, on his list. So after the physical the men were thanked and told to go home. They would be called when needed, but thankfully he was never called.  During WWII, Walt belonged to the local home guard or “Minutemen” group.

In 1948, Walt and some other men in the community began organizing a fire department for the growing community of Port Jefferson Station. The Terryville Fire Department was chartered in 1948 and officially opened for business in August 1950. Surprisingly, the men had pulled it together enough to march as a Department by July 4, 1950. He went through the ranks up to the position of Chief and then held the position of Commissioner of the Fire District. Walt has been a beloved part of the Terryville Fire Department family since its inception 69 years ago. Walt also worked for Wes Waite, Fintain Waite’s father who was the manager of Ramp Ford for a while, but then went on his own and opened a gas station. He was the manager at the gas station, pumping gas, doing minor mechanic work, oil changes and grease jobs. Walt also worked for the Brookhaven Town Highway Department for a number of years.