Mr. Bayles lived in Middle Island all his life. He was born February 4, 1895 and died June 29, 1977. He spent most of his life working for the Long Island Rail Road. He got his start in the freight office at Camp Upton during World War I. His father, Richard M. Bayles, had been a Suffolk County historian who wrote several books on the history of Suffolk County. When Thomas retired in 1958, he wrote a local history column for years entitled “Footnotes to Long Island History” for the Long Island Advance. He also published over 50 pamphlets on the history of Long Island. Several were published by the Town of Brookhaven during the Bicentennial.