Museum Alphabet Series
Joining the #museumalphabet post movement!
Z is for…
Z is for.. the Trailside Museums & Zoo at Bear Mountain State Park!
The Bear Mountain Trailside Museums & Zoo began as a bear den in 1926 and was later established as a rehabilitation center for local, injured animals. Today it maintains a collection of various animal exhibits and an assortment of trailside museums, interspersed throughout the park running along the adjacent Appalachian Trail. The trailside museums include The Herpetology House, The Nature Study Museum, Geology Museum, and The History Museum.
The zoo was constructed on the former site of Fort Clinton, a Continental Army fort constructed in 1776. Fort Clinton was constructed to defend a wrought iron chain spanning the Hudson River from nearby Fort Montgomery on the west side to Anthony’s Nose on the east side of the river. The fort was commanded by General James Clinton and contained a garrison of 300 soldiers. The fort was destroyed in the 1920’s during the construction of the Bear Mountain Bridge.
All photos/images courtesy of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission via the NY Heritage Historic Photo Collection. In the 1920’s, the American Museum of Natural History donated 1,700 glass lantern slides and another 300 larger glass plate negatives taken by famous photographer William Thompson Howell for the Palisades Interstate Park Commission (Trailside Museum & Zoo website).
They are amazing – check them out here:
https://nyheritage.org/…/palisades-interstate-park-commissi…
Y is for…
Y is for…Chuang Yen Buddhist Monastery!
The Chuang Yen Monastery is a Buddhist temple designed in traditional Tang Dynasty style, built in 1981 in Kent and Carmel. The monastery contains the largest indoor Buddha Vairocana statue in the Western hemisphere, measuring at 37 feet tall! The giant statue is surrounded by a semi-circle of 10,000 smaller Buddhas statues, filling the interior of the Great Buddha Hall, whose opening was attended by the 14th Dalai Lama.
The monastery grounds include various temples and buildings spread across 125 acres. While currently closed due to COVID-19, when it is open, the monastery welcomes visitors seeking “the ideal place to provide inspiration and cultivate awareness to develop wisdom.”
Photo: Buddha Vairocana and The Hall of Ten Thousand Buddhas. Photo by Tony Fisher via Flickr CC.
Learn more here: https://www.baus.org/en/
X is for…
X is for … the Xanthos (yellow) Bird & Bottle Inn, originally called Warren’s Tavern and established in 1761 as a stagecoach stop and tavern on the Old Albany Post Road.
Permit us to use a bit of eXtra creativity on this one 😊
In the Inn’s long history, we imagine that all of the early owners–first the Warrens, then the Nelsons, and the Brinkerhoffs–exuded XENODOCHY (a 17th century word for hospitality).
The owners were likely XENIAL (used to describe a friendly relationship between a hospitable host and their guests), which may be part of the reason why it became a popular watering hole for both the Continental and British forces during the American Revolution. Ultimately, the Inn was seized by the Continental Army and converted into regional headquarters.
Later, in the 1800s, it is possible X-DIVISIONS (Victorian slang for criminals or pickpockets) may have stayed at the Bird & Bottle Inn.
It is also reputed that Emily Warren Roebling, great-granddaughter of the original owner, haunts the Inn. A quick eXtra note on Emily’s story… Emily Warren was married to Washington A. Roebling, lead civil engineer for the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge. Roebling became bed ridden a few years into the project, and Emily then became pupil, secretary, messenger, and engineer throughout the remainder of the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge. She served as a liaison between her husband and the engineers and laborers working on the bridge; she took note of Washington’s directions then relayed the information to the workers.
With all of these being said, it makes sense that the Bird & Bottle Inn has long been studied under XENODOCHEINOLOGY (“the lore of hotels and inns”)!
If you made it this far in the post, we send you an eXuberant thank-you!
W is for…
W is for…Winter Garden Farm in the Town of Kent (1930s-1950s)!
Chic Johnson was one half of the stage, screen, and radio comedic duo Olsen and Johnson in the 1930’s. After staging their 1938 Broadway show “Hellzapoppin,” Chic Johnson and his wife Catherine purchased a 504 acre farm that would eventually become Winter Garden Farm.
The couple spent 1 million dollars rebuilding the farm house and outfitting a new dairy operation with state of the art equipment, including the purchase of “Borden’s” Holsteins from the 1940’s World’s Fair. The farm is easily recognized today by the remaining 8 foot tall milk bottle statues at its entrance on Route 52 in Kent.
In addition to the dairy farm, Catherine operated and managed an onsite hotel and playhouse called Winter Garden Guesthouse. During WWII, the Johnson’s and their daughter June were involved with the USO, hosting and entertaining wounded GI’s on the property with a series of shows and hayrides. After the war, they opened Winter Garden Restaurant, which attracted various well known entertainers and visitors. Catherine managed both the restaurant and guesthouse until the couple retired and relocated in the late 1950’s.
For more info.: https://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/…/hellzapop…/2643684002/
V is for…
Mrs. Carrie Rundle Vreeland
Farm & Mill Worker
b. January 21, 1892, Putnam Valley—d. February 7, 1983, Mahopac
Shrub Oak Class of 1897. Vreeland is the third student from the left, front row.
Rundle Mill, circa 1895. The mill was sold around 1940, after Vreeland’s parents passed away. Photo courtesy of the Putnam Valley Historical Society.
V is for…Mrs. Carrie Rundle Vreeland!
Mrs. Carrie Rundle Vreeland was born January 21, 1892 in Putnam Valley, daughter of the late Arthur and Hannah Jane Tompkins Rundle. Vreeland, a lifelong resident of Putnam County, shared her recollections about school and her family’s mill and farm in a 1972 Reporter Dispatch article by Joan Regosia and Sheryl Nearman:
(From the article)
In the late 1800s, Vreeland spent her first academic years in a one room schoolhouse in Shrub Oak. She recalled that she walked over a mile a day to school. “Girls went to school in little pinafores and had long braids down their backs. They also wore high-buttoned shoes. The boys wore short knee pants.”
When she reached the 4th grade, Vreeland attended another school about one and a half miles from home. “I saw my first car coming over the hill on my way home from school. I was so pleased to see that car that I ran all the way home.”
After 8th grade, some students went on to attend Peekskill High School. However, Vreeland stayed home to work at the mill her family operated on Mill Street in Putnam Valley. The mill was handed down to her father Arthur from her grandfather, Charles Rundle.
Vreeland was the oldest of three children and the mill was the center of the Rundle’s three-acre farm. At the mill, they ground feed for cattle, made rye and wheat flour, and corn meal to make cornbread. The mill was sometimes used to cut lumber or grind charcoal into useable pieces. The charcoal would be brought from pits in Kent Cliffs but they stopped making charcoal at the mill because “it was a dirty job and the charcoal dust could badly affect your lungs.”
Featured in the PHM’s upcoming exhibition: HerStory: Putnam County Women and the Vote. In addition to exploring the women’s suffrage movement, HerStory will feature over 35 mini-biographies celebrating the lives and stories of Putnam County women. For hundreds of years, Putnam County women have dedicated their lives to our local communities through business and industry, arts and entertainment, communications, government, military service, agriculture, philanthropy, social reform, and historic preservation. Museum visitors will also have the opportunity to add their own stories directly into the exhibition.
U is for…
U is for… Undercliff!
Undercliff was the summer estate of writer, poet, and journalist George Pope Morris. It was located on Morris Avenue, on the southern side of Mount Taurus in Cold Spring. Today Undercliff is frequently visited by hikers and day trippers travelling along the Undercliff/Cornish Trail Loop in Hudson Highlands State Park.
George Pope Morris was co-founder of the New York Evening Mirror, where he first began to garner notoriety. He published and wrote on a wide variety of subjects, including art, entertainment, and editorials. He also provided opportunities for up and coming artists, most famously publishing an advance copy of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven” in 1845. He also founded the weekly Home Journal in 1846, which was later renamed Town & Country, which is still in print today. Morris was also a famous songwriter, best known for his song, “Woodman, Spare that Tree.” Morris was close friends with Hudson River School artist Robert Weir, who was a Professor of Drawing at West Point.
T is for…
T is for…Trees!
A staff favorite—here is a grand old white oak tree located just behind the Putnam History Museum in Scenic Hudson’s West Point Foundry Preserve.
“You know me, I think there ought to be a big old tree right there. And let’s give him a friend. Everybody needs a friend.” – Bob Ross
Do you have a favorite tree in your yard or neighborhood? Or even a memory to go along with that tree?
S is for…
S is for … Steamboats!
Steamboats were a vital source of commerce and transportation on the Hudson River for over a century, peaking in popularity between the 1860s-1950s. The most popular steamboats were affiliated with the Hudson River Day Line, which ran a variety of passenger routes between Albany and New York City. The most famous of these boats in our area was the Mary Powell, also known as “Queen of the Hudson,” a boat renowned for both style and speed.
The Hudson River Day Line prospered through the 1950’s, but eventually lost ground to passenger railroad travel and automobiles. The Day Line’s last routes ceased in 1971.
The Hudson River Maritime Museum states that, “Hudson River steamboats are unique in that they have two paddlewheels located in the center of the boat on either side. Which is why they are also called ‘sidewheel steamers.’ In contrast, Mississippi River steamboats have single, wide paddlewheel at the rear or stern of the boat.”
R is for…
R is for…Revolutionary War Redoubts!
As early as 1775, George Washington identified West Point and the Highlands area surrounding it (on both sides of the river) as one of the most critical areas to defend in the American Revolution. He called it “the key of America” believing that if that bend in the Hudson River could not be defended, the Revolution was lost.
There were several years of false starts before a comprehensive fortification system of over 30 forts, redoubts, and batteries were designed and constructed on West Point, Constitution Island, and in Putnam County. Most of the fortification system was designed and built between the years 1778-1780, under the direction of Chief Engineer Thaddeus Kosciuszko.
A redoubt is an earthwork built of earth, sod, and timber. Of the 27 Highland redoubts, Mount Beacon, North Redoubt, and South Redoubt are best known.
Check out the Garrison Union Free School’s concise overview of local Revolutionary War history: https://www.gufsee.org/revolutionary-war-history.html
Q is for…
Q is for … Quarrying!
Bull Hill at Little Stony Point and Breakneck were quarrying sites. Although identification on the back of this photograph indicates quarrying on Breakneck, some researchers think that it may show work on the Catskill Aqueduct, which was begun in 1907. Part of the construction involved sinking shafts into Storm King and Breakneck to build a tunnel about 1,100 feet under the Hudson River.
#breakneckridge #putnamcounty #coldspring #littlestonypoint
P is for…
#museumalphabet P is for …Philipstown!
(Coloring page available of the above postcard: http://www.putnamhistorymuseum.org/home/coloring-pages/)
In 1697, Adolphus Philipse purchased a tract of land that spanned from the eastern bank of the Hudson River to the western border of Connecticut, known at the time as the Highland Patent (a British royal patent). The westernmost portion of this patent was settled in 1715, in what is known today as Philipstown. Philipstown was formally established in 1788 and includes the villages of Cold Spring and Nelsonville and the hamlet of Garrison within its borders.
It is also home to many outdoor recreational sites, including a large portion of the ever popular, Hudson Highlands State Park and Constitution Marsh, historic/cultural sites such as Boscobel House and Gardens, the West Point Foundry Preserve (Scenic Hudson), Manitoga / The Russel Wright Design Center, Magazzino Italian Art, Glynwood, Stonecrop Gardens, and of course the Putnam History Museum!
*Historic Postcard of the Town Hall of Philipstown. It was built in 1867 to house a jail, court sessions, and town elections. Decorative wooden cornerstones imitate stone on this clapboard structure and define the central bay, which is topped by a gable and pediment.
O is for…
O is for… Osborn Castle at Cat Rock!
Osborn Castle at Cat Rock was built in 1919 as a vacation home for Frederick Henry Osborn Sr. It was considered as a gift to his wife, Margaret, on their fifth wedding anniversary. It is a 10,000 square foot Norman style structure situated on 120 acres. Cat Rock is perched on a hilltop in Garrison and has not only spectacular views of the Hudson Highlands but also some of the best views in the entire Hudson Valley. Residents and visitors to the area are likely familiar with another Osborn estate—“Castle Rock” (visible from Rt. 9D), which will be covered in a later post.
Learn more about the Hudson Valley’s castles here: https://hvmag.com/archive/they-are-among-us/
Photo from Hudson Valley Magazine.
N is for…
N is for… Nelsonville’s Village Hall!
Local sportsmen created the Fish and Fur Club in 1895. They built this clubhouse on Main Street in Nelsonville in 1905. The sign above the door features a man, a fish, a fur, and a club. The club moved to the building next door in 1955, and Nelsonville began using the original clubhouse as its village hall (as seen today!).
Read more about Nelsonville’s history here: https://www.nelsonvilleny.gov/untitled-ccjp
M is for…
M is for…Maps!
Maps provide some of the strongest source material on historic research of our area. They can include a wide variety of types (surveying, topographical, general reference, road, political, infrastructural) and subjects (developments, towns, cities, regions). At PHM we have a large collection of area maps, Putnam County and the Hudson Highlands, illustrating multiple phases of development and civic planning over a span of more than 200 years!
This is a Sanborn map of downtown Cold Spring in 1912. The Sanborn Map Company published detailed maps throughout the U.S. in the 19th and 20th centuries. The maps were originally created to allow fire insurance companies to assess their liability.
L is for…
L is for… Local Newspaper Database.
Newspaper databases are an invaluable, engaging, and fun resource. They can provide a snapshot of daily life from a specific moment, or place of your choice and are constantly expanding as more institutions are able document and share more materials! Have you ever wanted to know what life was like in your neighborhood 150 years ago? Maybe you’re interested in politics, social events, or even vintage advertisements. Newspapers are a great source for professional historians and hobbyists alike.
Hudson River Valley Heritage’s database is a great place to start exploring! https://news.hrvh.org/
K is for…
K is for…”Knit your bit.”
“Knit your Bit” was a Red Cross volunteer knitting program for the military and civilians during WWI and WWII. During both conflicts, the Red Cross and the U.S. Military urged the homefront to knit socks, sweaters, scarves, and hats for our soldiers and sailors.
Several appeals were made in Putnam County newspapers—including this one from the January 11, 1918, Putnam County Courier (Courtesy of the Putnam Historian‘s Office & the HRVH Historical Newspapers Database).
Similarly, today, a Putnam County Mask Makers Guild has formed to support the production of masks during the COVID-19 crisis. The guild has sewn 6000+ masks! They are an all-volunteer community that creates masks for first responders, health care workers, and essential employees in non-governmental agencies serving Putnam County during the COVID-19 crisis. Thank you, Putnam County Mask Makers Guild!
For more information, visit the PC Mask Makers Guild website: https://www.pcmaskguild.org/
You may also enjoy this Highland’s Current article about the Guild: https://highlandscurrent.org/2020/04/17/mask-marvels/
J is for…
J is for… John Ferguson Weir and The Gun Foundry, 1864-1866.
John Ferguson Weir grew up at the United States Military Academy at West Point, where his father Robert Walter Weir was a professor of drawing. His only formal art training came from his father.
In 1864, Weir spent several months studying the West Point Foundry in Cold Spring, traveling back-and-forth across the Hudson by boat. He amassed sketches, photographs, and writings related to what he called in his journals “the dear Old Foundry.” Weir captured the extreme work conditions at the West Point Foundry in his completed work The Gun Foundry. At a time when paintings of natural landscapes were popular in the United States, Weir was praised for his industrial subject matter.
During the time of the painting, nearly 1200 workers labored at the foundry in 10-hour shifts. Production took place 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The Gun Foundry, on display at the Putnam History Museum, is one of the most widely known works illustrating American industry from the period. The Gun Foundry’s companion piece, Forging the Shaft, is held in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Collection.
Painting Analysis:
The left third of the painting depicts workers casting a Parrott gun. One team tips a casting ladle of molten iron into a mold. Another team directs the ladles movement using a pulley and a crane.
In the center of the painting a cannon cools in a casting pit dug into the sandy ground. A cooling apparatus brings a tube of water into the bore and out again to ensure uniform contraction of the metal. In the background, a worker stokes a furnace used to melt iron. To the worker’s left is the furnace’s masonry chimney.
To the right a group in formal dress observes the workers. Gouverneur Kemble, a founder and president of WPF is seated. Standing closest to him are Robert Parker Parrott and Parrott’s wife Mary (a sister of Kemble). The figure at left is believed to be Gouverneur Kemble Warren, the famous Union General and Cold Spring native, named in honor of the foundry’s patron.
I is for…
I is for…Iceboats!
About 1893, a man sails an iceboat with a gaff-rigged mainsail from Foundry Cove toward the center of the Hudson River. On windy days, iceboats could travel 60 to 70 miles per hour (can you imagine!?). Ice-sailing races were held on the Hudson River as early as 1790. The sport is said to have originated in the 17th-century Netherlands. Crow’s Nest and Storm King are in the distance. Photography by Albert Terwilliger.
**New this week** Check out the PHM’s Coloring Pages for Children & Adults – including one of this iceboat. http://www.putnamhistorymuseum.org/home/coloring-pages/
Share your completed works with us #phmfromhome – we’d love to see them!
H is for…
H is for…the Hudson Highlands!
We love this historic postcard: “A Scene in the Highlands of the Hudson,” from the early 1900s (Courtesy of Janet Selleck Rust). In times past, children commonly swam in the Hudson River near Cold Spring and Garrison. Here, they play in the water south of Little Stony Point while a New York Central Railroad train heads toward Cold Spring.
Over the years, how have you enjoyed the Hudson River and Hudson Highlands?
The PHM is in the process of digitizing our 300+ historic postcard collection. We will continue to share scanned postcards here and in our database!
G is for…
G is for…Glass-Plate Negatives!
We have over 750 glass-plate negatives in our collection. Most of these sensitive negatives have been digitized and are available for you to view online: https://putnam.pastperfectonline.com/photo
Featured glass-plate negatives above:
~ View down Main Street in Cold Spring, with Crow’s Nest across the river, early 1900s.
~ Construction of the old Haldane Union Free School, 1889.
~ Philipstown Town Hall, taken by John Riggs between 1880-1890.
Learn more about glass-plate negatives here: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/photographys-era-of-glass-plate-negatives/
F is for…
F is for…Fire Department!
When the Cold Spring Fire Company purchased its first motorized truck, a 1923 American LaFrance chemical truck, the firehouse was too small to store it. The company petitioned the village for a new one, resulting in the 1926 Municipal Building, a two-story brick structure on Main Street designed by local architect Louis MeKeel. The village’s offices, located on the second floor, were moved to the adjacent building in 1958. Today, the Cold Spring Fire Company No.1 serves the Villages of Cold Spring, Nelsonville and a district in the Town of Philipstown.
E is for…
E is for…Exhibitions!
The PHM is currently preparing two new exhibitions:
– HerStory: Putnam County Women and the Vote (Spring 2020)
– The History of Recreation & Leisure in Putnam County (Fall 2020)
Read more here www.putnamhistorymuseum.org/home/exhibitions-2/upcoming/.
E is also for…Edith Diehl (b. 1876—d.1953), a bookbinder from the Town of Southeast. Diehl is featured in the HerStory exhibition as one of 40 mini-biographies.
Edith served as the chair of the Brewster Red Cross, and was one of the founding members of the Brewster Public Library. She was also an early founder and organizer of the Brewster Equal Suffrage Organization.
Edith Diehl’s renown came primarily from her career in bookbinding, as well as her involvement in the Putnam County community. She taught a class on the “Art and Craft of Bookbinding” from her studio in New York City and allowed others to make personalized covers. Primarily, she made bookbindings for private collectors and restored old books.
Her passion for books was paralleled only by her involvement with the Wellesley College Training Camp For Land Army Supervisors. With this membership, Edith and other women were taught to respond to calls from local farmers who needed help with farm work; they helped to set up camps on farms and physically train volunteers.
D is for…
D is for Dedicated board, volunteers, staff, and community!
While the doors to our museum are currently closed, we are working behind the scenes to bring you digital content and to prepare for the day we can welcome you back to the museum!
– Check out our new #Museumsfromhome resource page: http://www.putnamhistorymuseum.org/home/2020/04/08/museums-home/. We will continue to update the page as we create new resources for you to enjoy from home.
– We are preparing two new exhibitions for 2020:
HerStory: Putnam County Women and the Vote (Spring Opening)
The History of Recreation & Leisure in Putnam County (Fall Opening)
Read more here www.putnamhistorymuseum.org/home/exhibitions-2/upcoming/.
– Help us archive the pandemic’s impact in Putnam County by documenting and sharing your perspectives with us. Your stories and experiences will aid future researchers. Collect: photographs, documents, and other materials that show how you, your family, and the community have been impacted by COVID-19. Please send them to library@putnamhistorymuseum.org.
– And as always, we are here to help with any of your local history inquiries! Send your questions to library@putnamhistorymuseum.org.
Be well!
C is for…
C is for…Cornish Estate!
In the early 1910s, an estate was built on 600 acres of beautiful land nestled in the side of a mountain. That estate would later become one of the most popular hiking destinations in Cold Spring, and a favorite of ruin-seekers: Northgate, or the Cornish estate as it is popularly known.
Northgate was built by a diamond merchant named Sigmund Stern and his wife Dover Stern. In 1917, Sigmund sold the estate to Edward and Selina Cornish. Northgate was their summer country retreat, as well as a gentleman’s farm where Cornish, who was elected President of the National Lead Company in 1916, later raised award-winning Jersey cows.
In the 1930s, as quarrying began in earnest on Mount Taurus, the Cornishes sought to protect Northgate by selling the mining rights to the Hudson River Conservation Commission and offering the estate to the Taconic State Park Commission in 1936. However, the Commission denied this offer, citing costs and stating that the area wasn’t adaptable for a park.
On May 3, 1938 Edward Cornish passed away at his desk in New York City. Selina Cornish passed away two weeks later. The estate was owned by several Cornish descendants when, in 1958, a fire destroyed most of the mansion. It was not rebuilt and was left to ruin.
Central Hudson Gas and Electric purchased Northgate in 1963, with the intention of building a hydroelectric plant on the site. A similar proposal by Con Edison to build a power plant at Storm King generated public interest in protecting the Hudson River and the Highlands from heightened industrial development. Con Edison abandoned its proposal in 1980; Central Hudson did not wait as long and sold Northgate to the Taconic State Park Commission in 1967.
Today, the beautiful ruins of the Cornish Estate and the surrounding buildings are protected in the Hudson Highlands State Park.
B is for…
B is for…Baseball!
Cold Spring’s baseball clubs began by at least the 1860s. This team, with “CS” on its shirts, poses with the coach, probably between 1900 and 1910. Another team, the Undercliffs, played for several seasons in the 1860s, practicing near Undercliff, the George Pope Morris estate. The Kellogg Ball Club played in the 1870s, and the Pastime Baseball Team was active during 1908 and 1909.
B is also for…Babe Ruth! During Prohibition, Babe Ruth frequented the Town of Putnam Valley—for fun, music, dancing, and relaxation. During this time, Putnam Valley also had many speakeasies that sold alcohol. Check out this fantastic gallery of historic Putnam Valley & Babe Ruth photos here (many photos from the Putnam Valley Historical Society): https://www.lohud.com/…/babe-ruths-lower-hudson-p…/12422483/
Learn more at our “History of Recreation & Leisure in Putnam County” exhibition, set to open in October.
A is for…
A is for Archive. The PHM has been collecting documents and artifacts for over 114 years! You can explore our archival and special collections database here: putnam.pastperfectonline.com/randomimages
A is also for Administration Building. Below is the West Point Foundry’s brick administration building, built in 1865. The administration building still stands today, and can be viewed along a socially distant walk through Scenic Hudson’s West Point Foundry Preserve. www.scenichudson.org/…/scenic-…/west-point-foundry-preserve/