Van Wyck Gazette Autumn Issue 2016

Autumn Issue 2016

Van Wyck Gazette

Fishkill • Beacon • Wappingers Falls • Poughkeepsie • Newburgh • New Paltz • Rhinebeck • Woodstock

Our Autumn Issue features a unified theme of both historical architecture and gorgeous landscape jewels.

Table of Contents 3

‘OSLO’ at Lincoln Center

4

When The Mountains Call

8

Saugerties Lighthouse Getaway

Thor & Arlene Larsen

Steve Kelman

Barbara Reina

10 Lets Talk About Bullying

Diane Lang

12 Wild Vine - Creating Natural Wines Locally

Samara Ferris

16 Sublime

Katie Maus

18 Headless Horseman - Sleepy Hollow

Adrea Gibbs

22 The Poughkeepsie - Wappingers Falls Trolley

Peter Rae

Cover: “Sawkill River in Woodstock, New York” by Thor A. Larsen Thor Larsen was born in Stavanger, Norway and arrived in NYC in 1948.

Sawkill River, Woodstock, NY (Pastel)

He was educated in NYC schools including Queens College and Columbia University in physics and EE and awarded an IBM fellowship to RPI for one year in Electrophysics.

After graduation, Thor joined IBM in Research and Development, earned 13 US Patents and several Corporate Awards and retired after 37 years. Subsequently, he was a private consultant for five years with clients in Denmark, US and Canada. After retirement, he focused on non-technical writing for Norwegian-American publications, with special focus on Norwegian literature, art and culture. Thor developed skills in oil painting, graphite drawing and pastel at the Woodstock School of Art.

Steve Kelman narrates his trek of “Two Weeks on the Road in Southern Appalachia” with stunning photography J. H. Caplan and insights into the music of the region.

This is a fine follow up to his previous piece on the Hudson River Valley’s National Park Sites on the occasion of the 100th Anniversary of the National Park Service.

Barbara Reina presents her interview with the keeper of the Saugerties Lighthouse in her fabulous photographic essay of the Bed & Breakfast. We welcome Barbara to our eclectic group of contributors.

Samara Ferris features her visit to BashaKill Preserve in Wurtsboro with both her interview of the vintner and terrific photographic grouping. This is a nice follow up to her previous piece titled Ethos & Access – A Glimpse Into Eating Wild.

Katie Maus delivers her review of Hudson Valley walks and hikes with personal recommendations and photography by David Young. Do not miss her list of intense hikes! This is a fine follow up to her previous piece on Fruition Chocolatier in Shokan.

Adrea Gibbs delights once again with her insights about Historic Sleepy Hollow in her story “The Headless Horseman May Lead You, But Sleepy Hollow Will Make You Stay” so timely for October. A very prolific writer, her previous story on “Hats for Cats - a Search for the Truth” was a humorous take on cats, their owners and pet craft business.

Peter Rae performs his magic once again with glimpse into our history with “The Poughkeepsie – Wappinger Falls Trolley” along with unique photographs provided by the Grinnell Public Library, Wappinger’s Historical Society and Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery.

Diane Lang M.A. lectures parents about a very appropriate back-to-school topic in her piece titled “Let’s Talk About Bullying.“ A timely follow-up to her previous counseling on “Keeping Your Kids Happy In The Summer” and other essays.

Thor Larsen serves up both our cover art with his pastel landscape and review with Arlene Larsen of the theatrical drama “OSLO” at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater at Lincoln Center.

In total 31 photographs serve to illustrate our Autumn Issue and share the quest of our writers and photographers to capture the best of the Hudson Valley and regions beyond.

We hope you enjoy this issue.

Van Wyck Gazette is available at any of the four Adams Fairacre Farms plus other fine stores, art/entertainment venues and historical sites in Orange, Dutchess, Ulster and often Westchester County.

Visit our website at www.vanwyckgazette.com for opportunities to join our group of creative writers or loyal advertiser base. Our upcoming 25th Issue Special Edition is slated to publish in March of 2017.

Joseph Caplan - Publisher

Thor & Arlene Larsen

‘OSLO’ at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater at Lincoln Center Playwright TJ Rodgers, via his friend, director, Bartlett Sher, met in 2011 with the two Oslo Accord facilitators, Terje Rod-Larsen, a director at the Fafo Institute for Applied Social Science in Oslo and his diplomat wife, Mona Juul and learned of their role in enabling the Oslo Accord in 1993. The play is the dramatization of the events that occurred secretly between representatives of Israel and the PLO at various secluded locations around the outskirts of Oslo.

The story is told from the point of view of these two main facilitators, who both had spent time in the Middle East and had developed close relationships with Israelis and Palestinians. Their sense of ‘love of mankind’ and a deep sense of humane obligation pushed them into this complicated quagmire of meetings between people sent by Yasser Arafat of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Yitzhak Rabin of Israel.

Mr. Rogers has an interesting way of drawing the audience into these negotiations so that even though we are well aware how history played out in the Middle East, we still feel the same hope and possibility for peace as the main facilitators. Mona and Terje, beautifully played by Jennifer Ehle and Jefferson Mays, project these hopes to all around them. Anyone with a sense of justice, especially if they are Norwegian, cannot help feeling a bit disappointed and regretful that at the actual signing of the Accord, Mona and Terje were relegated to looking on from the back of the room receiving no special accolades or recognition of any kind. Sometimes, personal satisfaction has to be our rewards.

Because of their earnest and truthful nature, Terje and Mona were able to initiate talks with low-level representatives of both parties. It was the first time these individuals had ever met each other. Their government officially did not support these meetings.

In fact, their personal safety was in jeopardy if their respective government officials found out about the meetings. Under extreme tensions, Terje and Mona were able to break the ice of ‘hatred’.

Terje insisted one room would exclusively be used for personal

conversations and the other room for negotiations. The personal interactions started slowly, aided by food and beverages. Little progress was made at first meeting and more progress at subsequent meetings. There remained high tension and its drama was balanced by periodic humorous side dialogues.

The setting for the play, the Newhouse Theater, is relatively small and intimate, with four elevated sides of about 25 rows each surrounding the stage so that the viewer sees every spot on the stage very well. The playwright and the director make sure you do NOT want to leave your seat, even for a moment as you become totally engaged with the drama for three full hours except for two 10 minute breaks. A must-see for anyone who appreciates historical drama, the Middle East, and especially those who want to understand the role Norwegians played in realizing the first of the Oslo Accords.

845.298.8599

• • • • • * * * Hannoush Jewelers new location * * *

On-Site Jewelry Repair Watch Repair Appraisal Services Jewelry Manufacturer Custom Design Services

1655 Albany Post Road, RT9, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590

Steve Kelman

When the Mountains call or two Weeks on the Road in Southern Appalachia

The Biltmore Estate (Photos by Steve Kelman) miles of macadamized roadways, trails, shops and restaurants.

Owned by George Vanderbilt and opened for his family and friends on Christmas Eve of 1895, the Biltmore is the largest privately owned home in the United States. Vanderbilt also originally acquired 125,000 acres of forest, as well as a dairy farm and 250 acre wooded park. A tour guide informed us that it took Vanderbilt two days on horseback to ride to the end of his property. Today the estate encompasses 8000 acres.

A popular t-shirt found in the gift shop at western Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park advertises “the mountains are calling and I must go.”

So when the mountains, specifically the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina and Virginia, called out to me in a manner of speaking earlier this year, I responded in a very big way.

My response was by way of a more than one thousand mile road trip to the mountains of these two as before mentioned states which form a large section of the southern Appalachian Mountains.

This journey encompassed a visit to the culturally rich and scenic city of Asheville, (North Carolina,) a drive with frequent stops for hikes and music along the Blue Ridge Parkway, and several days of hiking in Shenandoah National Park.

No trip to Asheville, with its mix of terrific restaurants and diverse and creative shops would be complete without a visit to the Biltmore Estate.

Here over a two day period we toured the 250-room mansion known as The Biltmore.

You would really need a week to thoroughly explore the mansion, (there are four floors, 43 bathrooms, not to mention the roof!) as well as the five “pleasure” gardens, thirty

Bottom of Linville Falls

The Biltmore was also the location of the first school of forestry in the United States. Students at this school would later go on to form the United States Forest Service.

Next up was a visit to the picturesque town of Blowing Rock, North Carolina, home of that state’s oldest attraction, the Blowing Rock. The site is known for its mysterious winds along with breathtaking scenery of the southern Blue Ridge. Several mountains are visible from vantage points along a short scenic walk including Mt. Mitchell (at 6684 feet, the highest peak in Eastern North America), Grandfather Mountain, and Table Rock.

As for the town itself, think Cold Spring or New Hyde Park at more than 3,500 feet. There is a very attractive Main Street with scores of restaurants, interesting shops, an ice cream parlor and several brewpubs.

We enjoyed a delightful lunch at the Blowing Rock Ale House Restaurant where I feasted on their grilled Carolina Bison Burger which may very well be the best burger I’ve ever eaten anywhere.

Blowing Rock is in close proximity (within two miles of) to the Blue Ridge Parkway, where we would be spending a considerable amount of time on this trip.

Linville Falls

A unit of the National Park Service, the Blue Ridge Parkway extends 469 miles “along the crests of the southern Appalachians and links two eastern National Parks, Shenandoah and Great Smokey Mountains.”

Construction of the parkway began under the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933 with the last section (the Linn Cove Viaduct) completed in 1987.

My first excursion on the parkway was a 1.4 mile round-trip ramble alone at the Stack Rock Parking area (mile 304.8). The short climb took me to jaw dropping views of Grandfather Mountain (elev. 5938 feet) as well as the engineering marvel known as the Linn Cove Viaduct.

The Linn Cove Viaduct is a 1243 foot S-shaped concrete bridge, “situated in one of the most scenically beautiful regions of the United States,” this according to a PCI Journal, (‘Prestressed’ Concrete Institute) special report on the design and construction of the viaduct.

“The Linn Cove Viaduct is probably one of the most complex bridges ever built… the bridge was literally built on the side of a mountain which has to remain in its natural state,” again from the report.

The Blowing Rock

HARRISON PHYSICAL THERAPY, P.C. Orthopedic & Sports Physical Therapy • Post-Surgical Rehabilitation • Total Joint Replacement Rehabilitation • Shoulder & Knee Rehabilitation • Foot & Ankle Rehabilitation • Neck & Back Pain Matthew Harrison, PT, MS • Automobile Injuries • Worker’s Compensation • Arthritis & Joint Pain Brett Laffin, PT, DPT Nicole Casella, PT, MS, CSCS Julio Cabrera, PTA Jared DeBenedictus, PT, DPT, ATC 798 Route 9 Fishkill, NY • 845-896-3750 • HarrisonPT.com

Fitness & Wellness Center

Page 6

Autumn 2016 Issue

At the Linn Cove Viaduct there is a visitor center and a short trail (.03 miles) that takes you directly underneath the structure.

Our final stop for the day was at mile 316 where we undertook a moderately strenuously hike first to the top and then the base of the 150 foot Linville Falls.

The falls pour through a “forested gorge.” Called the “Grand Canyon of the Southern Appalachians,” there are four dramatic viewpoints to view these dramatic cascades.

The big challenge is the combined half mile Plunge Basin Trail along with the .07 mile Gorge Trail that drops down to an area near the foot of the falls, making for an almost two and a half mile moderately strenuous but satisfying round trip hike.

The descent is steep and rocky yet the rewards at the bottom are great. Along with an awe inspiring view looking up at the cascading water and rock, we were able to enjoy several Swallow Tale Butterflies performing what was probably some kind of mating ritual on a sandy patch of land only a few feet in front of us along the Linville River.

The butterflies did not seem to mind the attention I was giving them with my camera.

After leaving Blowing Rock we decided to take the approximately 80 mile drive to the Virginia State Line, a trip of perhaps two hours, and chance to visit the Blue Ridge Music Center.

An entire article could easily be dedicated to this portion of the trip. The center, owned by the National Park Service, offers a museum with interactive exhibits that trace the history of the traditional Appalachian Mountain music, a forerunner to today’s bluegrass and country music.

There is an amphitheater for concerts, which are presented during the summer and fall. In a small outdoor area adjacent to the entrance, local musicians hold fort every day throughout the summer season providing music and stories from the region and beyond.

As we were driving towards the center, a bobcat crossed the road and I nearly missed hitting it.

A little farther north, and just before entering Shenandoah National Park, we were treated to a concert along the farm trail at the Humpback Rocks Visitor Center by a local three piece group called The Sunnyside Band.

With a zither, guitar and upright bass, the trio performed a blend of old time music such as the Carter Family’s ‘Wildwood Flower’ along with country classic’s like Patsy Kline’s, ‘Walking after Midnight.’

Along this trail, there is a collection of old Appalachian farm buildings as well as a working garden patch. The group performed on the porch of the main cabin house.

The next three days were spent hiking in Shenandoah National Park.

Shenandoah National Park is a linear park that has as its main feature the 105-mile long Skyline Drive.

The Appalachian Trail parallels the drive throughout most of the park. The park also features over 500 miles of hiking trails and 75 scenic overlooks.

Some of those hikes go to waterfalls of which we did two, Rose River and White Oak Canyon.

We also took relatively easy excursions to the top of the parks two highest mountains, Hawksbill (elev 4051) and Stony Man (elev 4011).

On these hikes we listened to Golden Eagles fly over us, saw, from a comfortable distance a mother bear and a cub, heard the screeching calls of ravens and observed a spotted newt, a member of the salamander family.

Evenings were spent in The Big Meadows Tap Room where we sipped drinks and listened to local musicians perform bluegrass, country and folk music.

All in all we drove over 1000 miles in two weeks time. And the weather for the most part cooperated with rain mostly confined to the day we departed and again on our last day as we returned to civilization as we know it.

Hawksbill Summit

Page 7

Va n Wy c k G aze t t e

FOLKES Heating / Cooling & Burner Service 850 Route 9, Fishkill, NY 12524

Hudson Valley’s Residential Heating & Cooling Company With our 24 hour / days a week emergency service, we are ready to serve you.

845.896.HEAT (4328) With over a hundred years of combined experience, Folkes can take care of any or your heating and cooling needs.

call us for a free in-home pre-measure

“We’re the good FOLKES people” Follow us on

www.folkesheating.com

THE UPS STORE

C&V Discount Tire & Brake Your Dealership Alternative

982 Main Street, CVS Plaza, Fishkill 897-0097 www.theupsstorelocal.com/4839 M-F 8:30am-7pm, Sat 9:30am-3pm

827 Rt. 82* Hopewell, Unity Plaza (ACME) 226-5070

www.theupsstorelocal.com/5657 M-F 8:30am-7pm, Sat 9:30am-3pm • Packing / Shipping • Mailbox Service / Fax Service • Business Printing / Laminating/Binding • Passport Photo (10:30am to 6:30pm) • Document Scanning / Shredding and much • Crating & Freight Services more • Notary Service (Call for Appt.)

Discount Pricing on all Tires and Repairs • All Work is Guaranteed • Cash for Junk Cars • Triple A Rating with BBB

845.896.9060

Page 8

The Saugerties Lighthouse Getaway Take a short hike to this historic landmark turned B&B

Barbara Reina Tower view of the Esopus Creek to the left and Hudson River to the right.

It has inspired adventure novels and poems. A symbol of strength, shelter and romance, the lighthouse has served as the guiding light to safe passage for many a ship large and small.

Lighthouse, located at 168 Lighthouse Drive in Saugerties, NY, attracts day-trippers and B&B guests year round to experience riparian life on the Hudson River.

You don’t have to be a dreamy-eyed poet or travel back in time to the early 1900’s for a glimpse of lighthouse living. The Saugerties

The scenic half-mile trail leading to the lighthouse runs parallel to expansive river vistas. It is a peninsula of sandy flats and wooden boardwalks surrounded by 17 acres of tidal wetland flats, wooded grounds and almost 100 species of flora.

The tall grass of the wetlands seems to hide the lighthouse from view until you reach your destination. Birders, photographers, couples and families traverse the trail year round. The trail forks to a beachside picnic area on the Hudson.

Lighthouse Keeper Patrick Landewe lives at the lighthouse and runs the B&B with his wife and two year-old son. “There’s ample living space with close proximity to town. I’m not a lonely keeper on an island,” Landewe added.

The Saugerties Lighthouse is unique in its accessibility by both land and water. “Other lighthouses along this part of the Hudson River are isolated, requiring a boat to get to them,” Landewe said.

Saugerties Lighthouse

Although the trail to the lighthouse is maintained, high tides can cause marshy, freshwater sections of the path to turn murky.

“We try to time check-in to avoid high tide,” Landewe said. “We coach guests on the best time to go to town,” he added.

Overnight guests can avail themselves to the tower atop the lighthouse for a panoramic view of the Hudson River and Esopus Creek. The walk up to the tower from inside the house is through the attic, then straight up a sturdy ladder to the circular tower lantern room.

The two second-floor bedrooms, each with a double bed, offer different views of the river: one south and down the Hudson River while the other looks out east onto the river. Guests share the first-floor bathroom, museum room, parlor and antique kitchen.

River breezes set the rhythm for the sun’s rays to dance on the waves in spring, summer and fall. Quiet winter scenes are awakened by the sound of ice moving and breaking along the river.

Trail leading to Saugerties Lighthouse

“I imagine all Lighthouse Keepers used to live in considerable fear of ice floes,” Landewe commented.

Page 9

Van Wy c k G az e t t e Brief History In 1835, the sharp, relentless cutting pressure of river ice chipped away at the original foundation made of wood cribbing and stone fill.

In 1869, a new foundation made of some four-ton massive limestone blocks along with a comparatively roomier lighthouse were erected.

By the mid 1950’s, the Coast Guard automated the light, making light keepers obsolete. The lighthouse was then subject to decades of neglect, disrepair decay and closure.

In 1979, efforts were realized to include the lighthouse on the National Registry of Historic Places.

By the mid-1980’s the Coast Guard relinquished jurisdiction over the lighthouse to the state which sold it along with the adjacent wetlands to the newly formed Saugerties Lighthouse Conservancy for $1.

Saugerties Lighthouse antique kitchen

Officially recommissioned in 1990, the Saugerties Lighthouse, equipped with a solar-powered beacon, stands as an aid to navigation and unique source of riparian entertainment.

For more information, visit: http://www.saugertieslighthouse.com/ (Photographs by Barbara Reina)

Saugerties Lighthouse B&B bedroom

Tower lantern atop the lighthouse

Saugerties Lighthouse built in 1869

Appliance solutions for homeowners, builders, contractors and property managers

2 Stage Door Road Fishkill, NY 12524 Monday - Friday 8:30am to 5:00pm Saturday 8:30am to 1:00pm

(845) 897-3848

automaticnewyork.com

Diane Lange

Lets Talk About Bullying!

With the kids going back to school, we need to discuss bullying. Bullying has been around for many years but recently has caught the media attention due to the increased suicide rates and states like Massachusetts and New Jersey passing antibullying acts. Some stats below will show the reality of bullying. By knowing the signs and questions to ask our children, we can feel prepared for the new school year.

1.

2.

3.

4.

We pick on someone due to their appearance, sexual preference and/or social status.

Types of Bullying Physical bullying consists of shoving, pushing, tripping, hitting, punching or sexual assault.

Verbal abuse/relational aggression is seen mostly in girls – gossip, rumor spreading, using your social power to have everyone dislike, Half of all high school students say they have been talk about, exclude, taunt, tease or spread rumors. We also see bullied or have bullied someone in the past year. verbal abuse through e-mail, notes, texting, posting on social websites A great way to see if students are being bullied is through – this is where it crosses over to cyber bullying. anonymous evaluations. Kids don’t want to tell on anyone due to fear of being bullied more but they do want help Signs Bullying causes people to feel in constant fear. It makes people feel and support. rejected, hurt, scared and sad.

77% of kids are bullied mentally, verbally and physically.

Only 10% of kids tell their parents that they have been Signs/Symptoms • Change in school work and grades bullied.

5. Each day 160,000 students miss school for fear of being bullied.

• Change in eating habits

6. Playground school bullying statistics show that every 7 minutes a child is bullied. Adult intervention – 4%.

Peer intervention – 11%. No intervention – 85%.

• Low self-esteem

7. 33% of students report being bullied at least once a month.

8. 6 out of 10 students say they witness someone being bullied daily.

9. 3.2 million students in 6th-10th grade say they’re a victim of bullying each day.

What is Bullying?

Bullying is when a group or individual picks on another person or group and they have more power either in terms of physical strength or social status.

All ages can be bullied as we see bullying in children as young as pre-school and through adulthood in work situations.

• Health problems like stomach, headache, etc • Stress/anxiety - psychosomatic illnesses such as migraines, lock jaw, IBS, low immune system • Depression and thoughts of suicide • Unexplained bruises, cuts, scratches, torn clothing • Panic attacks • Losing money or objects frequently The bully itself has problems too. Bullies in elementary school usually grow up to be bullies and have aggressive/violent behaviors.

1 out 4 elementary school bullies will have a criminal record by age 30 Bullies have problems developing and keeping friendships School problems - bad grades and early dropout rates

Page 11

Va n Wy c k G a z e t t e Questions to ask your child Sometimes we are not sure if our child is being bullied. There are specific question you can ask to find out how they are feeling and their situation. This is a good way to get a dialogue going with your child. Check the list of signs also.

•

Is someone hurting you? Was it on purpose?

•

Was it done more than once? How many times?

•

Did it make you feel sad, angry, hurt, bad, etc.?

•

Did the child/person who hurt you know that you were feeling_____ (hurt, sad)?

Our own Farm-Raised Chickens, Pheasants, Ducks, Geese, Venison

TURKEYS • WILD TURKEYS • HERITAGE TURKEYS All-natural, strictly antibiotic-and hormone free.

Plump and tender!

•

Is the child more powerful, bigger, scarier, older, etc. than you?

•

Who did you sit with at lunch? Play with at recess?

•

How was the bus ride to and from school?

•

Are there a lot of cliques at school? What are your thoughts on them?

•

Has anyone touched you from your nose to your toes?

Wide Variety of Craft Beers

•

Do kids make fun of you?

Our Own Smokehouse Specialty Meats & Sausages

•

I notice you have been feeling sick a lot and wanting to stay home? Are you ok? What is going on?

Italian Specialties: Cheeses, Pastas, Olive Oil, Vinegars

Mon-Sat 9 am-7 pm

Local: Breads, Vegetables, Honey, Jams, Grains & More

CLOSED TUESDAY

For more information please visit Diane Lang’s website: www.dlcounseling.com or email Diane at Lifeline36@aol.com

VISIT OUR FARM STORE "A Unique Shop"

Custom-Cut Prime Meats: Steaks, Chops, Leg of Lamb, Crown Roasts, Prime Rib, Fresh or Smoked Hams

www.quattrosfarm.com

Route 44 Pleasant Valley NY 12569

845.635.2018

SPECIAL

Purchase a Water System for as little as $29.99 per month

www.thewatersource.com

Sun 9 am-1 pm

Keep Your System Efficient & Save $$$$ 10% OFF Annual Service Special!

FREE Installation

Purchase a Water Conditioner & we’ll install it absolutely free “normal installation only”

845-297-1600 Coming in March 2017 our 25th Issue Special Edition

Page 12

Wild Vine

Creating natural wines locally, despite the odds Organic Marquette grapes, a Cornell-created hybrid, beginning to ripen

Samara Ferris He clutches a trailing bunch of spring-green grapes, dangling from the black arm of the Cayuga grape vine, and frowns, “There was so much winter damage, and I’m not sure these new trunks are going to come through.” Doing things naturally has its difficulties, especially when the focus is growing grapes in the oft-unforgiving Northeastern climate. Paul, vintner and proprietor of BashaKill Vineyards, located inside the 2000+ acres of the BashaKill Preserve in Wurtsboro, NY, is dedicated to his craft and the ethics of it, too.

The desire to grow grapes and make wine was born from his Italian heritage and his dream of escaping his day-job. But, the desire to make, press, ferment, bottle, and even label the wine by hand and to grow the grapes as naturally as possible became a moral imperative after his young nephew was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. Part of the methods the family used to save Dylan’s life was to begin to eat organically, to become acutely aware of health and wellness, to avoid chemicals whenever possible and to adhere to the healing power innate in foods and herbs, in positivity, in community. Dylan is now a happy and very healthy boy who has helped inspire the from-scratch creation of a vineyard that adheres to those very same ideals.

The vines tangle themselves along wire stretched from one beam to another—all made of black locust wood for its resistance to rot, so that none of the posts would have to carry the chemicals

Paul using his netting hook to secure protective netting over organic Marquette grapes

that treated wood does. A small herd of shy sheep graze through the vineyard, munching on clover, Queen Anne’s Lace, and sweet leaves of grass, naturally keeping the weeds down and helping to clear more land for further vine endeavors. Paul brews beer, too, using NY-State-grown barley that is malted by hand at a local malting-house. The spent beer grain goes right back to feeding the sheep, especially in winter when viridescent food becomes scarce. With this logic, everything benefits another element in the system, and generally speaking, things tend to work in harmony, even in times of catastrophe: A few years ago, a neighbor’s dog snuck onto the property and killed two of the sheep. Not to let anything go to waste, Paul ate the sheep, which he zealously insists was some of the best meat he has ever tasted. The wool is sheared once a year and given to a woman who hand-spins the wool into yarn, uses natural dyes to color it, and then pays back the free wool in the form of knitted hats.

But BashaKill Vineyards wants to take this holistic approach to farming and wines even further. This summer, using the organic, estate-grown Cayuga grape wine, Paul created a new kind of wine, perhaps a wine that could even be called a truly American wine, a prototype for something beyond the wine practices emulating their European counterparts. Over a glass of wine with friends who run Winterton Farm, an idea was born: infused wine!

Wine that could meld with the natural flavors and benefits of

Natural practices encourage netting to protect grapes from animals instead of using chemicals

another plant grown by hand, organically…locally. And so came the abstract concept for lavender wine, utilizing the more than 5 varieties of lavender that Winterton Farm grows.

The experiment was carried out on a few gallons at a time, and then, as tastings resulted in an overwhelming outcry of support, 50 gallons were made and infused with the delicate spiciness of lavender that had been extracted using the almost-comical and humble abilities of two industrial-sized pressure-cookers. On the dreaminess of the scent of lavender wafting around as the cookers whizzed away atop the stove, Paul is quick to assure me that it was far from an idyllic experience, the scent so overpowering that it almost prevented him from sleep that night, each breath inundated with the intensified fragrance of over 40 bundles of lavender. The perfumed struggle proved worthwhile as all 50 gallons of organic lavender wine sold out in less than 60 days, proving that the demand for unique products, produced ethically and grown organically, is high.

Elated from the response to the lavender wine, Paul has since delved into fermenting his own Kombucha, an ancient Chinese-turned Russian drink of fermented tea loaded with flavor and probiotics, which he sells on tap every weekend, when crowds gather to listen to live music and enjoy the view of the BashaKill marsh.

There’s a big dilemma in the natural wine world, Paul tells me. A winery can make great wine, and yet that is only half the battle. The rest of the battle is with the very thing that he helps to protect: nature. Unless pasteurized, which would be suicide for a great wine, a wine will naturally age in a bottle; not a problem so much with red wines, whose tannins help prevent the wine from producing ascetic acid, the acidifying agent present in vinegar. White wines, however, lacking the natural tannins in their grape skins, and with their higher sugar content, are more susceptible to spoilage, rendering them a near-impossible product for aging and resale without the use of sulfites. But ah, sulfites! The great divider in the world of wine! Purists argue against the use of sulfites, insisting that it interferes with the true character of the wine. Wineries, among others, often push back against this ideal, attesting to the mercurial nature of wine, maintaining that sulfites help wine, especially white, to exist with some stability, to be kept room-temperature at a wine shop where customers may buy a bottle, take it home, and drink it at leisure. Without sulfites, this would not be possible, as the white wine would have to be kept in a low-light, temperature-

Netting laid out amid the day’s chores

controlled environment to prevent spoilage, and the customer would be required to adhere to the same practices in order to enjoy the wine at its intended best. “Even the Romans burned sulfur candles into their barrels to protect the wine,” Paul, his dark eyes focused upon my notebook, assures me.

He shares with me an anecdotal story: “A wine judge once told me,” he says, offering me another glass of his Cabernet Franc, an award-winning red with the depth of any European equivalent, “ ‘putting no sulfites in your wine is like driving a Ferrari in New York City without any insurance,’ ” and it is clear that though this has been a true experience in his own wine-making, he hopes to one day avoid the use of sulfites all together by tapping into one of the best—if least sexy— methods of keeping a wine stable without using sulfites: kegs. Today, he sterile filters many of his wines and kegs them to provide them a safe place to exist without any air contact, thus reducing the possibility of spoilage. This, he says, would render sulfites nonessential, allowing the wine to be the pure product of grapes and natural fermentation.

As the music ceases behind us and the tables of families and friends begin to dismantle, wandering back to their cars parked along the rows of organic Cayuga grapes, now shielded beneath a vest of white netting to protect them from the ravenous birds, this winery— before an amalgamation of playfulness and noise, music, laughter, and clanking glasses—now becomes a quiet retreat with the sounds of crickets and cicadas and the trajectories of barn swallows curving in at every angle of the wooden overhang. The fog begins its daily rise from the wetlands of the marsh, covering each glaucous orb with its warmth, a factor, Paul says, that allows him to grow grapes in this particular spot that would otherwise have great difficulty growing in the New York climate. The fog, he says, is also what helps protect the grapes in the famed wine-growing region of the Finger Lakes.

The sheep come marching down from their hidden abode in the forest as Paul’s many dogs roam the vines, hunting for voles. I am reminded of the reality of setting a dream into action, of the constant fight for and against nature, of the exigent demand of life that insists on change. Here, pocketed in a little furrow of nature, of warm fog, among the pristine water and lands of this place, is change: is growth. Is invention. Is the hope of health combined with being a steward of the land, with the necessity of inventing something new, something profound, something altogether old and new, better and cleaner, refined and…wild.

Josh, a 17-year-old aspiring brewer, learns to care for grapes

Page 14

Autumn 2016 Issue

Van Wyck Gazette Holiday Issue TAKE ADVANTAGE OF OUR SPECIAL ADVERTISING RATE PROMOTION IN OUR UPCOMING 2016 HOLIDAY ISSUE & GIFT GUIDE

Special Advertising Rate Promotion!

For more information email: vanwyckgazette @ gmail.com

41 Mount Ebo Road N. Brewster, NY 10509 168 Units Active Adult $5,580,000

50 Dicks Castle Road, Garrison, NY 10524 8,000 SF Office Property $2,650,000

1906 Route 52, Wiccopee Plaza, Suite H Hopewell Junction, NY 12533

Email: info@mcgrathrealtyinc.com

139 Windsor Highway, New Windsor, NY 12553 Crestmore 190 Bed Assistant Living Facility $5,700,000

672 Rte. 82 East Fishkill, NY 12533 9 acre Assisted Living Zoning Approved $2,500,000

EXPERT CARE DELIVERED WITH COMPASSION INTERNAL MEDICINE Endoscopy/Colonoscopy, Bronchoscopy, Endocrinology, Respiratory & GI Disease, Ultrasound, Rhinoscopy/Cystoscopy.

EMERGENCY/CRITICAL CARE 24/7/365 Emergency, Walk in/no appointment needed, Trauma, Respiratory Emergencies, Urinary Issues, Seizures, Toxicities.

SURGERY Soft Tissue, Orthopedic, Oncologic, Thoracotomy, Cruciate Repair, Abdominal Exploratory.

ONCOLOGY Chemotherapy, Immunotherapy, Pain Management, Nutritional Support, and an Integrative approach to managing cancer.

IMAGING CT, Digital X-ray, Ultrasound.

24/7/365 Where your pets's health is our top priority and excellent service is our goal!

Driving Directions From the South & East — I-84 West to exit 13N (Route 9, North) proceed North for 4 miles, make a U-turn at CR-28/Old Hopewell Rd. (before Gulf Station), which will put you on Route 9 South – we are in the 2nd Plaza on the right- Corporate Plaza.

From the West — I-84 East to exit 13, make a left at the light onto Route 9 North for 4 miles, make a U-turn at CR-28/Old Hopewell Rd. (before Gulf Station), which will put you on Route 9 South – we are in the 2nd Plaza on the right- Corporate Plaza.

From the North — I-87 to exit 18, follow signs to the Mid Hudson Bridge, take Route 9 South for 9 miles. We are on the right hand side- Corporate Plaza, just south of the CR-28/Old Hopewell Rd. intersection.

Old Hop ewell R

VCA ANIMAL SPECIALTY & EMERGENCY CENTER

d

28

9D

52 9 84

ve ell A ew p o H

St Main

VCA Animal Specialty and Emergency Center 1285 U.S. ROUTE 9, WAPPINGERS FALLS NY 12590

VCAasec.com PLEASE CALL US TO SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT

845-632-3200

Page 16

Sublime Katie Maus

Walkway Over the Hudson at Dusk (Photo by David Young) the birth of a child, riding the fastest rollercoaster we can find, jumping out of planes or off of cliffs, things that make our hearts race and our blood pump, our adrenaline skyrocket…these are the things Kant called sublime and, realistically, such experiences are few and far between.

While there may not be too many tornados or huge rollercoasters in the Hudson Valley, some advantages we do have here are the tremendous views of glittering water, magnificent mountains, and colorful forests.

Whether you want to go for a short walk or intense hike, the trails around here have got it covered. Places like Mohonk Mountain in New Paltz have more leisurely options for the more relaxed outing, as well as tough climbing options for the brave and adventurous types. It doesn’t matter if you’re looking for a place to go for a picnic with the family or discover some new and thrilling heights with your friends; around here, wherever you end up has an almost ethereal view. At the top of Mohonk you can see all the way out to SUNY New Paltz. The Walkway Over the Hudson gives you a slight sense of vertigo, testing your fear of heights, while providing an amazing view of the river and the traffic speeding along the Mid-Hudson Bridge. Mount Beacon, Bannerman’s Island and Overlook have completely unique vibes with their fire towers and old building remains. On a regular day these places are hauntingly beautiful, but go out on a foggy day and Overlook’s ruins can be downright spooky. Nuclear Lake out in Pawling is the perfect place to read or write some sci-fi; not only is the lake stunning, but the history involving a nuclear plant’s explosion definitely gets you thinking.

Mohonk Lake in New Paltz (Photo by David Young) As Immanuel Kant put it, “the sublime is limitless, so that the mind in the presence of the sublime, attempting to imagine what it cannot, has pain in the failure but pleasure in contemplating the immensity of the attempt.”

That inexplicable, stomach dropping, terrifying, fantastic feeling that comes along with a sublime experience is something we all search for throughout our lives. Experiences we cannot describe with words aside from “whoa.” Witnessing a tornado up close, like storm-chasers, watching

We have all of these wonderful places at our fingertips, but it takes work to get there. It makes sense for tourists to spend their days hiking to the top of the tallest mountains near the Hudson, but for us that live here, why would we bother? Sure, exercise is a great motivator and the sheer exhilaration of completing an intense hike or long run is fantastic, but I’m getting at something a little different, back to what Kant talks about in his works on the sublime. We strive to experience this sublime, even if we don’t realize it.

Sure, it’s nice to look at the Hudson River as I drive over it in my car, but the feeling of walking over it, maybe leaning

Page 17

Van Wy c k G az e t t e

Breakneck Ridge (Photo by David Young)

Mohonk (Photo by David Young) over the edge and realizing how high up I am, or just how much is going on in the water is different. I may have attended SUNY New Paltz for four years, seen it up close and personal, and been so lost in its little community that it seemed like the whole world.

Looking back at that school from a mountain makes me realize how small it really is, how small I really am. The views we see at the tops of mountains when we explore the beautiful valley we call home literally take our breath away. They are awesome in every sense of the word, sometimes so much so that “awesome” is the only word that we can find to describe them. That’s why it is still possible to have a great adventure without ever leaving the area in which we live. The adventure is not where we go, it’s how we get there, who we get there with, and what makes our jaws drop and our words escape us. It’s inspiring and silencing at the same time. So, whether you want to go into the woods to “live deliberately,” as Henry David Thoreau did, with your book and your thoughts and nothing else to disturb you or if you want to go on an adventure with your friends and family to see what you can see, I think you should go. Fall is beautiful in the Hudson Valley, so now is the perfect time to go experience the sublime we are so often far too familiar with to appreciate.

Katie’s Recommendations: • Walks: Nuclear Lake,

Walkway Over the Hudson,

Dover Stone Church

Mohonk Mountain House (Photo by David Young)

YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD REALTOR

ANN MARIE ROZMUS REAL ESTATE SALESPERSON

Mobile 914.489.1663 arozmus@houlihanlawrence.com annmarierozmus.houlihanlawrence.com

• Hikes: Minnewaska,

Vanderbilt Mansion,

Depot Hill • Intense Hikes: Overlook, Mohonk (Lemonsqueeze),

Breakneck Ridge Ratings based on hikethehudsonvalley.com

EAST FISHKILL BROKERAGE | 845.227.4400

Page 18

The Headless Horseman May Lead You, But Sleepy Hollow Will Make You Stay Adrea Gibbs Headless Horseman Bridge replica in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery derivations that have incorporated the likes of Scooby Doo, Shelley Duvall’s Tall Tales and Legends, or, the most recent entry, Sleepy Hollow, with Ichabod Crane as a former English professor turned turncoat turned time traveler to become a part of present time are central to mental imaginings. Regardless, there is an allure about the town, tucked into the Hudson Valley, that speaks as much to people today as it did to Irving, if only fictionally.

The honest-to-goodness history of the town called Sleepy Hollow, if only dealing in semantics, is relatively short, having only changed its name officially in 1997. When asked why the town had voted to make that change, Rob Schweitzer, Vice President of Communications and Commerce at Historic Hudson Valley shared, “The voters, of what was then North Tarrytown, wanted to get out of the shadow of the larger municipality of Tarrytown and celebrate and embrace the iconic history that Washington Irving gave to the area. The Village was transitioning away from being a General Motors ‘factory town’ and saw heritage tourism as a future path.” Good plan, as the town formerly known as North Tarrytown, is steeped in both history and folklore. While, from what could be gathered, it is appears a preponderance of the tourists are enticed specifically because of the Headless Horseman, though many only know about the haunting figure and are lost for the details of the proper tale.

Sleepy Hollow. The name itself conjures immediate imagery to the minds of those who have been introduced in any way, shape, or particularly the form of the Headless Horseman, to the Legend of Sleepy Hollow by American writer Washington Irving. With incarnations of the original story dating back to, presumably, a 1908 black and white silent film version, depending on your generation, those mental pictures are left up to personal interpretation.

Perhaps your own memories invoke the Disney cartoon from 1958, Ichadbod!, the musical (yes, there was one, and an opera, as well), the Tim Burton entry featuring Most that set their sights to visit will head Johnny Depp, or maybe television’s straight for the heart of the story, the Old

Dutch Burying Grounds and Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, if only as a starting point. Tucked within a three-acre area around the exterior of the Old Dutch Church, are interred the remains of some of the models for Irving’s well-known characters. Deb McCue, of the Old Dutch Church, is, literally, surrounded by the ghosts of those whose lives, if only in name, influenced varying aspects of Irving’s story. Employed within the hallowed walls of the church, she is a living contemporary of those whose memories she helps to keep alive, so to speak, given her work, proximity, and personal interest in all things Sleepy Hollow. Outside, you’ll find Eleanor Van Tassel Brush, the archetype Katrina, with her aunt, Catherina, contributing the name, resting peacefully. When asked specifically about another slated to be at rest, McCue shared, “Supposedly, if you walk north from the tip of the eastern wall of the church for 50 paces you’ll stumble on the grave of the Headless Horseman.”

The fact there were real people who appeared to have, in some part, inspired Irving’s colorful characters actually buried in the town intrigues. As to the foundation of the actual story, some will argue that Irving’s insight for the story came from local legends. One version says the town buried a Hessian solider, sans head, and each night he would search for that what was taken from his shoulders. Others say the story revolves around Eleanor and a family tragedy. During the Revolutionary War, her farm was overrun with soldiers and set on fire. She was desperate to locate her baby

Page 19

Irving Lot, Sleepy Hollow Cemetery (Photo: Adrea Gibbs) who was nowhere to be found. Conflicting narratives say a Hessian soldier either a) ran back into the burning house to look for, find, and save the baby, b) had taken the baby and hidden him in the barn for safekeeping, or c) found him hidden in the barn. Long story short, a Hessian returned Eleanor’s baby and for that, the family was eternally grateful. Later, when a headless Hessian soldier was found, the Van Tassel’s, out of gratitude what had been done for them, respectfully buried the unknown, headless soldier at the church. It may, or may not have been, the same solider, but you get the idea. There is most likely some truth behind the legend, at least in some teeny, tiny part.

Tourists from all over the world are attracted to Sleepy Hollow because of the Legend, many wishing to pay homage to the author. Interestingly enough, Irving is not buried among his inspirations in the Old Dutch Burying Grounds, but lies for eternity in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery which surrounds the former, but is a separate entity. Amidst his family members, overlooking the Church yard below, he can be found easily enough at the end of a series of small signs pointing the way to his grave marker for those who make the trek. Unless, of course, you are like me and simply wander aimlessly in the hopes of stumbling across his place of rest. Or the guy who asked me if I knew where Irving was, as he doing the same thing I just had. But, Irving is not the sole celebrity buried within that hallowed earth. Tucked between beautiful and touching monuments for both the Revolutionary and Civil Wars, stunning artistry in the form of statuary and headstone, are lots of interesting individuals and families.

Industry and innovation giants Samuel Gompers, Andrew Carnegie, Walter Chrysler, and William Rockefeller slumber there. So, too, does notoriously nasty Leona Helmsly. The mere thought of her may scare away some folks from walking the grounds.

If you weren’t aware when you drove into town that it had any association with The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, by the time you left, at the very least,

Monument presented by the Centennial Committee to North Tarrytown in 1974 (Photo: Adrea Gibbs) you might be wondering what the not-so-lightly veiled references were all about. Street signs are bright orange with black lettering, featuring the Horseman. Shops are filled with charming and creative tchotchkes imprinted with the town spectre. Even the mascot for the high school is, you guessed it, the Headless Horseman. Frankly, the town is right to embrace it. Whether it was an actively promoted initiative or not, people would still come. Best to take both advantage and pride in the town’s history.

McCue said, “You can’t get away from the Legend in Sleepy Hollow. People come to the Old Dutch because of the Legend, but after sitting in our church and feeling the presence of 331 years of worship in that sanctuary,

Page 20

Autumn 2016 Issue

they leave with something much greater. The businesses support the Legend and the Legend supports the prosperity of the village, I suppose. It’s a small town.”

Perhaps more intriguing? Sleepy Hollow is rife with wonderful stories about the American Revolution, witches, pirates, and abolitionists. If there ever was a town that was built for Halloween, like its Massachusetts counterpart, Salem, Sleepy Hollow fits the ticket. Hulda the witch, who was said to be both a holistic healer and doctor, is surrounded by her own mythology including her mass killing British soldiers. Captain Kidd, both before and after his becoming a pirate, haunted the area and stories continue to date that treasure he buried still lays in wait for some modern-day Indian Jones-type to discover. Amanda Foster, a freed slave from Arkansas, provided both assistance and refuge to fugitive slaves, later becoming the Mother of the Foster Memorial AME Church in Tarrytown. There is a rich, unique history tied to this little community that resonate with many who never knew about the varied sagas until they rode in courtesy of Irving’s imagination.

This is no one-Headless Horseman village, as the layers of the proverbial onion continue to peel away, anyone visiting will come to understand.

In reaching out to the The Historical Society serving Sleepy Hollow and Tarrytown, a well-informed trio was able to provide some fascinating information. Sara Mascia, Executive Director for the organization, Henry Steiner, Sleepy Hollow Village Historian, and Tara Van Tassell, Historical Society Trustee, when asked if the portrayal of the community in various media sparks tourism, they collectively cited several examples. Included among these, the many books, plays, and films about the American Revolution and Capture of Major Andre, of which AMC’s Turn, stands as a current example that draws visitors. Disney’s Sleepy Hollow

brings those who have a penchant for the nostalgic evoked in that version, although Tim Burton’s film seemed to create a limited buzz according to their sources. House of Dark Shadows enthusiasts still make their way to Lyndhurst (former home of railroad magnate Jay Gould and located in Tarrytown on grounds beside the Hudson River) and Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, where filming occurred for that novel soap opera treatment. And the present FOX series, Sleepy Hollow, has shown some impact, with an uptick in visitation for both Sleepy Hollow and Tarrytown coinciding with some area events that had started just prior to the show’s premier.

It does seem, though, in spite of the overwhelming assets attributed to both Sleepy Hollow and Tarrytown, the Legend remains the featured attraction. While the local restaurants, shops, and sundry locations are considered “all in,” entities like Philipsburg Manor, Lyndhurst, Sunnyside (Irving’s home), Van Cortland Manor, not to mention Rockefeller National Park, while important sites and landmarks of the region, are, for the most part, supporting players. It is the promise of spirits and supernatural encounters that brings people to visit, which is exactly how the town positions its marketing. That and proximity to New York City which doesn’t hurt either.

People do want to know more about the Legend and how it relates to the community. McCue said recently she had people visit from Poughkeepsie and found herself in a 20-minute conversation about the FOX show. On another occasion, she was talking about the church to a family from Los Angeles when she noticed a young woman, sitting quietly, who was wearing a medical necklace that stated “autistic.” After finishing her talk about the church history, McCue approached the woman and asked if she had come to Sleepy Hollow because of the Legend.

- the best medicine available for a holistic approach to your pet’s health.

Some of our services include:

You’ve worked hard to make your house a home.

Your insurance should work hard, too.

Gregg V. Gerelli Gerelli Insurance Agency Inc

845-227-PAWS (7297) • earthangelsvet.com CONVENIENTLY LOCATED AT 8 NANCY COURT IN WAPPINGERS FALLS, NY

P.O. Box 362 Cold Spring, NY 10516 www.Gerelli-Insurance.com

845-265-2220

Va n Wy c k G aze t t e

Delavan Lot, Sleepy Hollow Cemetery (Photo: Adrea Gibbs) The woman lit up and began talking about the Burton film, of which she was a huge fan. McCue took her to the burying ground to show her the headstone of “Katrina” (Eleanor), which simply made this woman’s experience reach beyond her expectations. “I don’t know what it is about the Legend of the Sleepy Hollow that can reach out and grab the imagination of writers, directors, choreographers, animators and composers, but at that moment, I was grateful for Burton’s Legend because it provided a medium for this young woman to communicate to others.”

Perhaps Schweitzer put it best. “Washington Irving created ‘the brand’ of Sleepy Hollow more than 200 years ago, and Historic Hudson Valley has been extending that brand for many years. Our programming, such as The Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze, which alone draws 150,000 people, along with offerings from other institutions, is what really gives people a reason to come and spend time and money here.” There is an undeniable truth to that and when all is said and done, a visit to Sleepy Hollow, if specifically for the Legend, find Captain Kidd’s elusive treasure, visit the Rockefeller estate, Kykuit, which as an interesting side note, is one of the top cultural attractions in Westchester County, or any one of the credible reasons, no one will be disappointed. With it quickly approaching, most certainly autumn lends itself particularly well toward seeing the sights. One indisputable fact remains, regardless of interest or time of year, which is perhaps the most surprising of all to visitors. That Sleepy Hollow, Legend aside, is a tangible, inviting, thriving community.

Therein is the reality of Sleepy Hollow. This community is smart, playing to its strengths, and with Halloween being the second largest grossing holiday in the U.S., it only seems to reason they are positioned perfectly to take tactical advantage of the season. Economics aside, it is a bastion of historical and fictional wealth, well worth a day trip or overnight for anyone with even the slightest inkling of fascination.

Who wouldn’t want to take night tours in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery while carrying a stone lantern between headstones? Or traipse across the reconstructed bridge that is purportedly in the general area where Ichabod Crane met his demise? Or eat lunch at The Horseman Cafe?

There is something about feeling like you are walking in the steps of others, be it Revolutionary soldiers, fleeing slaves, or the fictitious Ichabod Crane, that is, simply put, appealing. You get to be a see a piece of the story, in a real place, in your own time, even if only on the periphery.

Page 21

Page 22

Autumn 2016 Issue

The Poughkeepsie-Wappingers Falls Trolley Saturday, December 15, 1894, was a memorable day for the citizens of Wappingers Falls. Although the Poughkeepsie Peter Rae & Wappingers Falls Electric Railway, an electrified trolley line connecting those two cities, had opened two weeks earlier, this was the day that many of the locals chose to try it out, maybe for Christmas shopping in Poughkeepsie’s fine stores, or maybe just out of curiosity.

According to the Poughkeepsie Eagle-News, cars departing the railway’s terminus at West Main and Market Streets were full, while hundreds waited on line for the next one and extra cars were hustled into service.

Wappingers Falls had grown into a thriving manufacturing town on account of the plentiful electric power available via Wappinger Creek. Despite this, its citizens felt isolated from the rest of the world because railroads just hadn’t made it there. Materials for manufacturing had to be brought in by boat in the warm months and by wagons in the winter. The opening of the Hudson River Railroad in 1851 helped significantly. But travel for people was still limited to horseback, stagecoach, and later on horse-drawn trolleys, even though electric trolleys had been introduced in cities, including Poughkeepsie, in the 1880s. Now, in 1894, a new era was beginning for Wappingers Falls.

Later that same day, a special trolley carried over a dozen dignitaries including James W. Hinkley, the railway’s president, from Poughkeepsie to Wappingers Falls to help the village celebrate the opening with a reception and banquet at the Central Hotel on West Main Street. Following coffee and cigars there were speeches that the Eagle-News described as both “brief and interesting”. As guest of honor, Mr. Hinkley said that while Wappingers Falls had long been a beautiful village, it was almost inaccessible, that its people had long encouraged the development of the railway, and that he was pleased to lead the way to doing so.

Then, following a second nationwide trend, this one for “interurban” service between two or more urban areas, Hinkley reorganized the company as the Poughkeepsie City & Wappingers Falls Electric Railway Company and, in 1894, opened a new branch line to the Falls city.

At its northern end, the Poughkeepsie City & Wappingers Falls Electric Railway started at the Hudson River Railroad station along the river and wound its way up the hill to Poughkeepsie’s main commercial area along Main Street. There the route turned south along the Albany Post Road (then little more than a wide dirt path), in part following what has now become today’s fourand six-lane Route 9. At the intersection of New Hackensack Road, the Post Road and the railway curved to the right on what is now Route 9D, the Old Post Road, and followed it all the way into Wappingers Falls, ending on West Main Street just to the west of the stone bridge. Some years later the line was extended another 200 feet along Garvan Street to facilitate both trolley and non-trolley traffic.

Typical trolley operated by the Poughkeepsie & Wappingers Falls Electric Railway Circa 1900. It had a capacity of about 50 riders and replaced the line’s original equipment that could handle only about 20 riders. Courtesy Grinnell Public Library, Wappingers Falls, NY.

How the Trolley Came to Wappingers James Hinkley was a prominent Poughkeepsie businessman with many irons in the fire. Born in 1851, he was initially in the newspaper publishing business in both his hometown and New York City. Working his way up, he became editor and owner of the Poughkeepsie News-Press and later the New York Graphic, said to be the first daily illustrated newspaper in the world. He also pioneered the employment of women in the editorial departments of both newspapers.

Hinkley was also involved in the operation of The Walker Company, which manufactured electric motors and generators.

So perhaps it was a short leap from building electrical equipment to using it for transportation. He purchased the Poughkeepsie City Railway Company, which operated horse-drawn trolleys along tracks laid in the streets of that city and its immediate environs, including Vassar College. Following a nationwide trend, the horses were soon replaced by electrified trolleys, and Poughkeepsie’s urban trolley system was born.

The Impact of the Interurban In his best-selling novel Ragtime, E. L. Doctorow wrote of a short-lived but important phenomenon in the United States.

Speaking of the early 1900s, he wrote: “There was in these days of our history a highly developed system of interurban street railway lines. Once could travel great distances on hard rush seats or wooden benches by taking each line to its terminus and transferring to the next.”

Doctorow then described the travels of an elderly immigrant man down on his luck in New York City, with his daughter, a little girl of six or seven. Over a period of several days they traveled from New York to Lawrence, Massachusetts, taking a dozen or more trolleys to the end of their respective lines and transferring to the next one for as little as a single penny. The father calculated the overall cost: about $2.40 for himself, a little more than a dollar for his daughter.

Van Wy c k G az e t t e

Page 23

The Poughkeepsie & Wappingers Falls trolley was just one small component of this vast network of interurban trolleys, which at its peak consisted of more than 220,000 route miles nationwide.

But while it lasted, it was quite popular. In addition to shoppers, it carried commuters to Poughkeepsie offices in the morning and brought them home at night. There was also a reverse commute, as factory workers came from Poughkeepsie to work in Wappingers Falls’ mills. Additional riders were picked up and dropped off at the various stations in between. Business was brisk; the EagleNews reported that on a single Wednesday in 1906 more than 24,000 riders used the service.

The Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery, which is along the current Route 9 south of the city, was opened in 1851 to offer a place for funeral services outside of the city, yet still near enough to it for loved ones to visit easily. The trolley line went right by the cemetery, and Mary Hinkley, wife of the railway president, donated funds enabling the cemetery to build a comfortable waiting shelter just inside the main gate. The line’s marketing department noted that not only could Poughkeepsie-ites visit their dearly departed more easily and comfortably, but that the cemetery was also a fine place for a picnic!

A parade with trolleys on West Main Street, Wappingers Falls, circa 1910. The Central Hotel, later named Ryan’s Central House Hotel, is on the left with the flag. Courtesy Wappingers Historical Society. the automobile came out second best in this particular encounter, it may have been the last time.

The End of the Line Eventually, the internal combustion engine replaced the electric trolley both in cities and between them. A trickle of cars and trucks in the 1900s became a flow in the 1910s and a flood after World War I. Tracks were replaced by paved streets as people recognized the flexibility of busses, and even more importantly, of their own automobiles.

Trolley Shelter at Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery donated by Mrs. Mary Hinkley, with approval of railway President James Hinkley. Courtesy Friends of the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery.

The newspapers of the day reported a number of incidents that most certainly broke the sometimes monotonous routine of commuting by rail. Many happened on the hill from Poughkeepsie’s business center down to the railroad station by the river, particularly on wet and icy days. The Eagle-News once reported passengers tried to jump off a trolley sliding down the hill, but the conductor shut the doors so they couldn’t. He said afterward they’d be safer inside the car instead of jumping out of it, and he was right; the car stayed upright and no one was hurt. Another time, the paper described a carful of Vassar girls sliding down the hill accompanied by considerable screaming. No one was hurt this time, either.

“Miscreants” once smeared oil on a downhill portion of the tracks about 2-1/2 miles from Wappingers Falls. A trolley headed for Poughkeepsie with mostly theatregoers hit the greased rails and skidded to the bottom of the hill, but again, it stayed upright and none of the 50 passengers was hurt.

In 1916, a chauffeur-driven Buick roadster crashed into the side of a trolley and suffered severe damage while the trolley, practically unscathed, was allowed to continue on its way. While

Throughout the 1920s traffic on the Poughkeepsie & Wappingers Falls Electric Railway continued to decline. In 1928, the State was planning to repave the Albany Post Road and asked the railway to relocate its tracks so this could be done. As it was now losing money, the railway went one step beyond, shutting down the line altogether and transferring its interest in the right-of-way to Dutchess County. The County, in turn, removed the tracks and set up bus service.

Trolley service continued in the City of Poughkeepsie until 1935, when it, too, was replaced by busses. The final day of trolley service proved to be a most fitting end. A special ceremony was arranged for the last trolley on the Raymond Avenue line, which served Vassar College. As this trolley approached the end of the line where a group of Vassar students was waiting, the Miscellany News reported that an enthusiastic rider had pulled the trolley’s whistle so often that it “drained all the air out of the compression tanks and left the brakes without any holding power whatsoever,” and the trolley derailed by “going past the end of the track and onto the pavement.”

Nevertheless, the Miscellany News further reported that a brief ceremony followed, and the line’s oldest operator, one Ellsworth Rhodes, who had joined the railway nearly 40 years previously “when the cars had wooden wheels and were drawn...by horses,” was presented with a basket of flowers. “It’s kind of a heartbreaker,” said Mr. Rhodes.

Special thanks for their input to this article go to J. E. Hammond of the Grinnell Public Library, Wappingers Falls, and Evan Jennings of the Trolley Museum of New York, Kingston.

Marius V. Suditu, DDS

1289 Route 9, Suite 8 * Wappingers Falls, NY 12590

FAMILY & COSMETIC DENTISTRY

$99

Adult Exam, X-Rays & Basic Cleaning New patients only. Cannot be combined with any other offer or insurance.

Offer expires 12/31/2016

$59

Child Exam & Basic Cleaning New patients only. Cannot be combined with any other offer or insurance.

Offer expires 12/31/2016

SEDATION DENTISTRY

• Friendly, knowledgeable staff in a calming atmosphere • Emergency appointments available • Complete preventive and restorative dentistry • Most insurances are accepted • Flexible payment plans and CareCredit accepted • Early morning, evening and Saturday appointments

Call For Your Appointment

845-632-6613

Or Email: melmeldental@gmail.com

$399

- $75 Off Offer expires 12/31/2016

SLEEP APNEA TREATMENT & IMPLANTS NOW AVAILABLE