Press Release
March 12, 2008
Contact:
Eileen Larrabee
Dan Keefe
518.486.1868
State Board Recommends Diverse Properties for Listing on State & National Registers of Historic Places
Buffalo's General Electric Tower, Utica's Parks and Parkway District and Westchester home of Salvation Army leader among notable landmarks
The New York State Board for Historic Preservation today recommended the addition of 29 properties to the State and National Registers of Historic Places. Property owners, municipalities and organizations from communities throughout the state sponsored the nominations.
"From imposing office towers to rustic Adirondack camps, from rural farmsteads to fine old churches at the heart of urban neighborhoods, adding these diverse properties to the State and National Registers of Historic Places will help preserve New York's rich heritage," said Carol Ash, Commissioner of the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. "Preserving these unique places helps revitalize local communities, promote tourism, enlighten New Yorkers about our history, and encourage smart, sustainable growth."
Ash cited a number of well-known landmarks and districts that were recommended for listing, including the General Electric Tower in Buffalo, the Utica Parks and Parkway Historic District and the Westchester County home of the longtime leader of the Salvation Army.
The benefits of listing include eligibility for various public preservation programs and services, such as matching state grants and federal historic rehabilitation tax credits.
The New York State Board for Historic Preservation is an independent panel of experts appointed by the governor. The Board also consists of representatives from the following state organizations: Council of Parks; Council on the Arts; Department of Education; Department of State and Department of Environmental Conservation. The function of the Board is to advise and provide recommendations on state and federal preservation programs, including the State and National Registers of Historic Places, to the State Historic Preservation Officer, who in New York is the State Parks Commissioner.
The State and National Registers are the official lists of buildings, structures, districts, landscapes, objects and sites significant in the history, architecture, archeology and culture of New York State and the nation. There are nearly 90,000 historic buildings, structures and sites throughout the state listed on the National Register of Historic Places, individually or as components of historic districts.
During the nomination process, the State Board submits recommendations to the State Historic Preservation Officer. The properties may be listed on the New York State Register of Historic Places and then nominated to the National Register of Historic Places where they are reviewed and, once approved, entered on the National Register by the Keeper of the National Register in Washington, DC. The State Historic Preservation Office and the National Park Service, which is part of the U.S. Department of Interior, jointly administer the national register program.
For more information about the New York State Board for Historic Preservation and the State and National Register programs, contact the Historic Preservation Field Services Bureau at (518) 237-8643, or visit the state parks web site at www.nysparks.com.
The recommended properties listed by county are as follows:
STATE REVIEW BOARD RECOMMENDATIONS
Albany County
1. The Clarksville Elementary School, Clarksville - built in 1949, a mid-twentieth century school designed to accommodate demands of the baby boom and suburbanization, is being recognized as a pioneering example of modern architecture.
Allegany County
2. Friendship Free Library, Friendship - the 1912 structure is a highly intact example of early twentieth century library design.
Broome County
3. Bevier-Wright House, Port Dickinson - one of a handful of properties in Port Dickinson that recall the early history of Port Dickinson's development along the Chenango Canal.
4. Patterson-Hooper Family Cemetery, Endwell - a small rural family cemetery for 19th century settlers.
Cayuga County
5. Augustus Howland House, Sherwood (town of Ledyard) - the early-19th century farmhouse was enlarged and aggrandized in the Italianate style in the 1850s/60s.
6. Job and Deborah Otis House, Sherwood (town of Scipio) - the Federal-style home was built in 1815 for a prominent Quaker family.
Chemung County
7. Chemung School District No. 10, Lowman - built in 1898, the two-room rural school was in use until 1957.
8. Scotchtown Cemetery, Erin - the rural cemetery reflects the early 20th century prosperity of the largely vanished community of Scotchtown.
Chenango County
9. Smyrna Town Hall/Opera House, Smyrna - The 1907 structure was built to house town offices, performing arts and social gatherings after a fire destroyed much of the business district.
Dutchess County
10. St. Luke's Episcopal Church Complex, Beacon - the 1871 stone Gothic Revival church was designed by noted architect Frederick Clark Withers.
Erie County
11. General Electric Tower, (Niagara-Mohawk Building) Buffalo - the 14-story Beaux Arts tower built in 1912 is a reminder of Buffalo's dominance in the power industry.
12. Williamsville Junior and Senior High School, (Williamsville South High School), Williamsville - opened in 1950, the school represents an important milestone in the suburbanization of the Buffalo area and growth of Amherst and Williamsville.
Hamilton County
13. The Hedges, Blue Mountain Lake, Hamilton County - a rustic Adirondack camp that dates to the late 19th century.
Lewis County
14. Lowville Masonic Temple, Lowville - the Georgian Revival temple was built in 1928-29 for one of the nation's most significant fraternal organizations.
Monroe County
15. Linden-South Historic District, Rochester - 136 buildings and outbuildings constructed between 1872 and 1912, reflecting the need for more housing for laborers for Rochester's expanding industry.
New York City
16. 146 East 38th Street, Manhattan - built in 1860-61, the building is an unusually intact example of the New York Italianate brownstone, which, though common in Brooklyn, are rare in Manhattan.
17. Trinity Lutheran Church, Queens - the Collegiate Gothic church was built in 1926 to serve a growing congregation of German immigrants.
Niagara County
19. Chase/Crowley/Keep House, Lockport - built in 1856-57, the limestone structure is an important example of Lockport's stone architecture.
20. Chase/Hubbard/Williams House - the 1870 building is another example of Lockport's stone architecture.
Oneida County
21. Utica Parks and Parkway Historic District, Utica - a significantly intact example of urban parklands and connecting roads, including the Memorial Parkway, Roscoe Conkling Park, F.T. Protector Park, and T.R. Proctor Park, that reflect principles of philanthropy and landscape design of the early 20th century.
22. Calvary Episcopal Church, Utica - built in 1870-1872, the church is an intact example of late Victorian English Gothic architecture.
Orange County
23. St. Andrew's Episcopal Church and Rectory, Village of Walden - the church was built in the Gothic Revival style in 1871.
24. Unitarian Universalist Church of Middletown, Middletown - the stone church was built in the Gothic Revival style at the turn of the 20th century.
24. Unitarian Universalist Church of Middletown, Middletown - the stone church was built in the Gothic Revival style at the turn of the 20th century.
25. District #6 Schoolhouse, Brunswick - the one-room rural schoolhouse was built in 1837 and in use until about 1952.
Rockland County
26. Wells Fargo Express Office, Suffern - built in 1908, the express office is the sole remaining architectural feature of Suffern's Erie Plaza.
Suffolk County
27. Jedediah Hawkins House, Jamesport - the 1864 Italianate structure was home to a prominent sea captain.
28. Benjamin King and Charles Hallock Woodhull House, Wading River - 18th century home expanded in the Greek Revival style in the mid-19th century by a prominent Wading River family.
Washington County
29. Home Farm, East Whitehall - The impeccably maintained 19th farmstead consists of 18 historic buildings and structures.
Westchester County
30. Evangeline Booth House, (St. Andrew's Episcopal Church) Hartsdale - the 1919 Tudor Revival structure was the home of the longtime head of the Salvation Army.
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