HILLSDALE NEWSLETTER
FEBRUARY 2015

 

The Hillsdale Newsletter provides one of the most comprehensive listings of Roe Jan-area events and happenings around. There's usually a little news, gossip, and scandal, too. And history. 

 

Just want the calendar of events? Click here

THANK YOU, RUTH

 

Ruth Dodds, who has served the town for 19 years and was elected five times by the people of Hillsdale, was presented with large bouquet of yellow roses and a certificate of gratitude at the Town Board meeting on January 20. Ruth submitted her letter of resignation at the Town organizational meeting early last month. "I loved working for the Town over the years and have always considered it a privilege," she said.

 

Supervisor Art Baer said, "Ruth has been a steady, reliable force both in the front line and behind the scenes. We are eternally grateful for her many years of service and unwavering dedication."

 

Ruth is leaving her office in Bill capable hands. He was appointed interim Town Clerk after the Board interviewed 4 highly qualified applicants. Bill will serve for one year, unless he is nominated to run for the seat in the November election and is elected. More about Bill here.

THE APPLE ORCHARD PROJECT

The Farmscape Ecology Program's Apple Orchard Project Report is fresh off the press. It outlines the results of our 2014 study exploring aspects of Apple Orchard Ecology throughout the Hudson Valley. The report can be downloaded from their project page. How do bees, weevils, moths, wasps, spiders and the like move through a landscape that includes orchards? What does that mean for those creatures? What does that mean for apple production? The report doesn't claim to have the answers, but it outlines some initial observations.

HILLSDALE'S LOST BUILDINGS

 

Like many old towns, Hillsdale has lost more than a few buildings. Some were lost to fire, others to modernization or to the best intentions.

 

FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
Hillsdale village was once a "two-church" town. In addition to the handsome United Methodist Church that still stands at the main intersection, the First Presbyterian church once stood on Cold Water Street, where the brick Masonic Temple now stands. Constructed in 1833 and remodeled in 1851, the church is shown here in a 1920 photograph. As far as we know, it burned to the ground before the Second World War but we're still searching for the details.

 

HILLSDALE HIGH SCHOOL

In the days before high school was compulsory, only a handful of area students attended high school. If they were lucky, local scholars might attend the high school closest to their home - Hillsdale, Great Barrington, Millerton, Pine Plains, or Claverack. All we know about the Hillsdale High School, shown below, is that it stood about 8 lots west of the current Town Hall on Route 23 and Brady Lane. It appeared on maps starting in the 1870s and vanished 50 years later. We also know that high school classes were held in the Mount Washington House for a few years after the building vanished, but only until the Roeliff Jansen Central School District was established and the new K-12 building opened in 1933 on Route 22. If anyone can help shed more light on the mystery of our missing high school, we'd love to hear from you. 

 



 

A BRIGHT FUTURE FOR THE TOLL HOUSE?
 

You've driven by it a million times. The 1799 Hillsdale Toll House stands right up against the road it once served. As the toll keeper's house and gate on the Columbia Turnpike for a century, it was part of a series of "toll gates" that funded turnpike maintenance and encouraged commerce between New England, New York, and the busy Hudson River. There's lots more to say about the turnpike system and this little gem of a building. But for now, the Town Board would like it to be known that the building's owner, who has roots in our area but now lives in faraway Nova Scotia, has offered to donate the building. A subcommittee has been formed to explore all the possibilities. The first step, now underway, is to help make the case for it to be added to the National Register. That way, if the transaction proceeds, the building will be eligible for grants and a wide range of funding opportunities. Hillsdale's old Toll House is not yet lost.


A GRANT FOR THE FURNACE 

 

Friends of Taconic State Park kicked off the new year with exciting news. The group has been awarded a $50,000 matching grant from New York State's Regional Economic Development Council for its Furnace Cornerstones Stabilization Project.  With this grant, made through the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, the Friends will re-build the four corners of the 19th century blast furnace at the Copake Iron Works.  Replacement stones will be fabricated to replicate the original cornerstones that were removed after the infamous 1938 hurricane, and used at that time to re-build nearby Route 344. This project is essential to ensure the survival of this centerpiece of the Copake Iron Works historic site.

 

With a total project cost of $100,000, the Friends were obligated to raise $50,000 in private funds to match the New York State grant. Thanks to leadership gifts from Park champions Lucy R. Waletzky, MD and Edgar M. Masters, the match was met in its entirety by the end of 2014.  The stabilization work will be done by Ganem Contracting, Inc., experts in historic masonry and stonework restoration.  The firm has previously completed two other major preservation projects at the Copake Iron Works as well as the recent exterior restoration of the Hillsdale Town Hall. More on their soon-to-be-updated website.

 

REMEMBERING THE WAR TO END WARS
 

One hundred years ago, a savage war was devastating Europe. The fighting began in 1914 and continued through 1918. The United States joined Britain, France and Russia in April, 1917, providing the allies critical support to help defeat Germany and Austria-Hungary.

This March, approximately 400 students in grades 8-12 at Taconic Hills Central School, along with many adult residents of the district, will all be reading and discussing a powerful World War I novel, Private Peaceful, by Michael Morpurgo. Through the shared reading and discussion experience, as well as participation in related events at the school and the local libraries, the organizers hope to foster a greater love of reading as well as a stronger sense of community and a strengthened school/local library connection. More on the library website.

NIFTY EQUIPMENT

More than a few folks have emailed us about the intriguing crates tucked away in one of shelters at the Roeliff Jansen Park. All will be unveiled in the spring when the Town installs two new pieces of playground equipment designed to entertain and completely exhaust 10-year old kids. The playground equipment was funded by Flower Power, the annual benefit that supports our parks and recreation activities.  A bike rack or two appear to be in the mix of goodies, too. The Rail Trail is coming to town in 2015!
NEWS FROM THE COUNTY
 

There's word that the Columbia County Board of Supervisors may take up the matter, previously shelved, of creating a county manager to oversee government operations following a recommendation by one of its members. Here's the article in the Register Star.

 

Also, Patrick Grattan, chairman of the Board of Supervisors, has announced that the recently adopted 2015 Columbia County budget includes funding for the preparation of a plan to improve the quality and accessibility of broadband for county residents. Read their press release copy here.

 


 


The goal of this newsletter, issued by Hillsdale's Town Board, is to share a bit of local news and the long list of the many cool things that are happening in the Roe Jan community.  If you want to promote your upcoming event, email the details. Pictures and jpgs welcome. No pdfs, please. 

Peter Cipkowski and Vivian deGeorges, Editors
Email us at hillsdalecalendar@gmail.com