Ogdensburg Library and the Spirit of Liberty Statue

Today we’re looking at the Ogdensburg Public Library located at 313 Washington Street in the downtown historic section of the Ogdensburg, New York. Behind the library is a green open space called Library Park, which is the home to the Spirit of Liberty monument that was installed in 1905.

The Ogdensburg Library as an organization dates back to 1828 and throughout the years moved around the city and never had a permanent home. That was the case until the 1890’s, through the efforts of Dr. Fred Van Dusen, the Ogdensburg Public Library saw some significant changes that would have lasting effects to the library’s establishment in the city. Changes included getting the library officially incorporated by the State Board of Regents in 1891 and eventually getting a permanent home for the library: the Clark House at 311 Washington Street.

The Clark House was a private residence built in 1888 for George C. Clark, a New York banker, who has used the house as a summer residence for his family. Prior to construction of the new Clark summer home, the property was originally the location of the Greek Revival home of Joseph Rosseel (also spelled Roselle) stood. Rosseel had been the land agent to David Parish one of the early landowners in St. Lawrence County. Rosseel employed Joseph Jacques Ramee to design his Greek Revival home in 1810. When Clark purchased the property, he had the old house demolished to build his Queen Anne home. By 1895, Clark was beginning to have second thoughts. Given the distance from Ogdensburg to New York City, Clark determined it would be better to have a summer residence closer to the city. Clark offered his home and entire block for the new home of the library for $35,000 ($10,000 of which Clark donated). The home was estimated to be worth $125,000. In addition, Clark gave his dock property (land between his residence and the streets) to be used as a park space in the city- this is today’s Riverside Park in Ogdensburg.

A side note about the Clark House, different sources say slightly different things about the house. One article reporting on the fire dated November 25, 1921 (Ogdensburg Republican Journal) said that Clark, “greatly overhauled and renovated,” the original 1812 structure for his summer residence. While other sources say that Clark completely demolished the older building to construct a completely new home. It’s unclear why there is a discrepancy in the information on what exactly happened but it would be safe to say that if any portion of the library is the original 1812 building still exists it would be difficult to determine given the level of renovations through the years and the 1921 fire.

In early 1921, funding was given from the estate of George Hall and John C. Howard to be used to complete needed renovations of the library’s main building and the library’s annex- George Hall’s house across the street. John West was hired as the contractor for the renovations, which were coming along fine and would have been completed by February of 1922 but a fire broke out on November 24, 1921 destroying most of the interior of the library.

Luckily, all of the collections were safe. The books, records, Frederick Remington paintings, and original bronzes had been placed at either the George Hall residence or in a massive safe in the library’s basement.

George Hall’s residence happened to be the former residence of Frederick Remington. The home is literally across the street from the library and today houses the Frederick Remington Museum. The museum does have a permanent exhibit on Sally James Farnham, more about her below.

The fire was discovered around 7 am by a passerby on the way to the local market. The fire department was alerted immediately and the local firefighters in their response to the blaze, were assisted by sailors from the USS Chillicothe, which was moored at Riverside Park. They weren’t’ successful in putting the fire completely out until noon of that day.

John Wert originally estimated the damages could be anywhere between $25,000-$50,000, and the entire building was gutted. A few weeks later, the damages were able to be assessed and the losses only totaled $15,000, which was covered by insurance. The cause of the fire was determined to be an overheated hot air furnace. The flooring and the roof completely burned but the walls somehow remained in good shape, allowing reconstruction to still be possible. The reconstruction work that occurred resulted in the library that we see today- it was rebuilt as a replica of the old 1812 Rossell Mansion.

It is a Pokemon Gym for all those planning on Pokemon Going your way across Northern New York.

Front facade of the Ogdensburg Public Library

 

A view of the backside of the library while standing in Library Park.

Library Park:

Associated with the public library is Library Park, which is home to the Spirit of Liberty, a sculpture by local Sally James Farnham. The Park is behind the library and was laid out in 1903- the area was also part of the Clark Property.

When the library acquired the Clark Mansion in 1895, it also acquired a fantastic open space that was planned out to be a park for the city. Plans were eventually created in 1903 and not finally completed until the following year. The plans for the landscaping of the Library Park as it was called, were drafted by Arnold E. Smith and Dr. Dusen assisted in getting the authorization to complete the layout around the library.

The Commercial Advertiser on July 5, 1904 reported that the park plans consisted of, “a horse-shoe or semi-circle of, prominent, outlining, the concave facing the river, the library building at the apex, forming the background. The fountain, as now located, the central figure; the proposed soldier’s monument about one hundred feet westerly there- from and a little lower down…” In addition to this description, the park was to have trees throughout the park such as cherry, Persian lilac, and hydrangea and principal walkways were to be laid out from corner to corner of the park, crossing at the center in front of the fountain.

An aerial view of Library Park via Google Maps. It gives a good overview of the layout of the Park.

The photographs above show what the walkways look like at the Park as well as the Spirit of Library at the Park.

In the same year that finishing touches were made to Library Park, Sally James Farnahm, won her first commission via competition- a Union soldier monument to be placed in the park. Sally had submitted to models to the monument committee of Ransom Post, GAR, “Defenders of the Flag” and the “Spirit of Liberty.” Funding for the monument came from a number of sources: Mr. and Mrs. George Hall, Swe-Kat-Si Chapter GAR, Fortieth Separate Company, Ransom Post GAR, Post Card Subscriptions, and even from Sally Farnham herself.

The Spirit of Liberty:

The Spirit of Liberty was installed at the Park in 1905. The city of Ogdensburg had held a competition for a Civil Ware monument for the Park for the soldiers and sailors from the town of Oswegatchie who died during the Civil War. Sally James Farnham submitted two different designs: Defenders of the Flag and the Spirit of Liberty. Out of 15 submissions, Sally’s Spirt of Liberty was chosen by the City.

Based on the postmark date of 1909, this shows a pretty accurate view of the Spirit of Liberty after its installation. You’ll notice the statue of the solider at the base. It is no longer a park of the monument due to vandalism and is currently in storage from what I heard.

Sally was born in 1869.  Her mother passed away when she was 10 years old, for this reason Sally was very close to her father and they traveled around the world. While Sally wasn’t formally educated in an art medium, she was exposed to art throughout her travels with her father to France, Norway, Scotland, and even Japan. In 1896, Sally married George Paulding Farnham, who was the design director for jewelry and silver at Tiffany & Co. Yes, THE Tiffany & Co.

Sally’s first experience working with modeling clay was the result of both a personal tragedy- the death of her father- and a serious illness that left her bedridden. Her husband, George, during this time brought home clay for her to work with, hoping it would help improve her spirits. Sally greatly became interested in working with clay as an art medium- she was guided partly by her husband, who was a member of the National Sculpture Society, and more importantly by Frederick Remington, who was another native of Ogdensburg and a family friend of Sally’s. Remington supported and encouraged Sally’s artwork up until his death in 1909. Oddly enough Remington lived in the house across the street from the building that is the city’s public library. It’s fitting that Sally’s sculpture not only stands high in her hometown but also in view of her friend and mentor’s old house. The other unique thing about Sally James Farnham is that she was one of the first women to successfully compete for national sculpture commissions, like the one for the Ogdensburg Civil War monument.

In competing for the Ogdensburg Commission, Sally had a strong connection to wanting to design the city’s Civil War monument, not only was she obviously a local to the city but her father was Col. Edward C. James who commanded the 106^th NY Volunteers during the war. Her winning design features a winged Victory with laurel wreath and flag atop of a 35-foot granite column and pedestal (the granite is from the quarries of Barre, Vermont). The pedestal features four bronze war eagles and shields. Originally, the base also had a life-sized bronze soldier, it has since been removed due to damages caused by vandalism. The monument was officially dedicated on August 23, 1905 and was attended by almost 20,000 people including the USA Vice President, Charles Fairbanks. Later in her career, Sally created a similar Civil War monument for Bloomfield, New Jersey, which was dedicated on June 11, 1912- in 2001 the monument was restored by the city.

The above views are what the Spirit of Liberty currently looks like at Library Park.

Some of Sally’s other sculptures include: The Defenders of the Flag (1908), which is a Civil War monument located in the Mt. Hope Cemetery in Rochester, NY; the Frieze of Discovers (1910) located in the Pan American Union (now OAS) building in Washington D.C.; and the Simon Bolivar statue (1921), which is located in Central Park in New York City.

The Public Library, Library Park, and the Spirit of Liberty make up a portion of the Library Park Historic District in Ogdensburg. Other contributing properties include the Remington Museum and other houses along the square block made by Washington, etc. All of these sites are easily accessible in the historic downtown area of Ogdensburg, NY. The park is also in close proximity to the riverside where there is a walking trail that leads to the Maple City Trail and the Abbe Picquet Trail on Lighthouse Point!

Thanks for reading !

Resources and Further Information

Online Resources:

John C. Howard, “A History of the Ogdensburg Public Library and Remington Art Memorial,” Ogdensburg Journal, May 31, 1938. The Trustees of the Ogdensburg Public Library.

John Harwood, National Register of Historic Places Inventory- Nomination Form, Library Park Historic District, Sept. 1982.

Thayer Tolles and Thomas B. Smith, The American West in Bronze, 1850-1925, (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Distributed by Yale University Press, New Haven, and London, 2013) 154: Sally James Farnham, https://books.google.com/books?id=gRMQAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA154&lpg=PA154&dq=soldiers+monument+ogdensburg,+ny&source=bl&ots=kAr3bPeUkR&sig=aAMifeK_SdEMyHhoWne8Ndo4VG0&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjQm9S6povdAhXiz1QKHSbFDZM4FBDoATAGegQIBBAB#v=onepage&q=soldiers%20monument%20ogdensburg%2C%20ny&f=false

Michael P. Reed, “The Intrepid Mrs. Sally James Farnham, An American Sculptor Rediscovered,” Aristos, November 2007. https://www.aristos.org/aris-07/farnham.htm

Lawrence P. Gooley, “The Career of Ogdensburg Sculptor Sally James Farnham,” Adirondack Almanack, April 4, 2016. https://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2016/04/career-ogdensburg-sculptor-sally-james-farnham.html

“Monumental Notes,” The Monumental News, Vol. 16. No. 9, September 1904, https://books.google.com/books?id=RMU7AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA550&dq=sally+james+farnham+spirit+of+liberty&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj2q-TKnvDeAhVFjlQKHUZeALkQ6AEINjAC#v=onepage&q=sally%20james%20farnham%20spirit%20of%20liberty&f=false

Picture of Sally with the Solider Sculpture: http://ww.sallyjamesfarnham.org/sallywsoldier.html

The website: http://www.sallyjamesfarnham.org/ is dedicated to all things related to Sally. Check it out!

Historic Newspapers via NYSHistoricNewspapers.org

“Laying Out New Park: Library Grounds to the Greatly Beautified by the Changes.” The Daily Journal, Ogdensburg, NY, June 10, 1904.

“The Design Accepted for the Union Soldiers and Sailors Monument: ‘The Spirit of Liberty.’” The Daily Journal, Ogdensburg, NY, July 13, 1904.

“Soldier’s Monument,” The Ogdensburg Advance and St. Lawrence Weekly Democrat”

“Ogdensburg Library,” Northern Tribune, Gouverneur, NY, March 6, 1895.

“Taxpayers to Vote on the Propositions,” The Ogdensburg Republican Journal, January 22, 1921.

“Public Library Damaged by Fire,” The Ogdensburg Republican Journal, November 25, 1921.

“Fire Did $15,000 Damaged to New Public Library,” The Ogdensburg Advance and St. Lawrence Weekly Democrat, December 1, 1921.

“Library and Monument,” Commercial Advertiser, July 5, 1904.

“A Public Library,” The Daily Journal, May 13, 1893.

“Library Park,” The Ogdensburg Advance and the St. Lawrence Weekly Democrat, October 3, 1903.

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San Francisco’s Chinatown

Hello.

Welcome to Adventure with Courtney. We’ll continue to adventure around and see more historically, dorky stuff in 2019. Hopefully, it’s enough to ensure we know way too much about architecture and history to make us all THE person to have on the local trivia team.

I’ve spent the first couple of months 2019 not posting anything. Surprising, I know. If you closely follow this blog, you’ll know that posts were few and far between in 2018 and have probably assumed that 2019 will be similar. There was a lot going on for me in 2018- a new job, moving from Northern New York to Sacramento, CA, and figuring out how to adjust to a new location that’s totally different than NNY. During that time, I didn’t necessarily quite adventuring, I actually saw a lot of cool, historic places: Solvang, tons of things in San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, downtown adventures in Sacramento, Disneyland, etc. you get the point. I saw things, I just sadly didn’t have as much time as I wish I had to share all of those awesome places and little know history on this blog.

So, for roughly the past few months, I’ve been pulling together notes, researching, and planning posts. In doing so, I’ve realized that I have one too many notebooks. It’s a problem that many of us have yet just won’t admit. The exciting news, other than having too many notebooks, is that I think I have pulled together, (I hope) is a good enough starting point to ensure there are enough new Adventures with Courtney to share.   

Starting the belated new year on Adventure with Courtney – not just the literal new year of 2019 but also the third year of this blog being a thing- Happy Belated Birthday to this Blog which celebrated its third year on April 1, 2019!-  we’ll explore/adventure to one of my favorite cities: San Francisco. I was last in the city near the end of of February to hang out in Chinatown during the Chinese New Year Festival and to see the New Year Parade. It was a lot of fun!

The festival occurred on both Saturday and Sunday along Grant Street in Chinatown, with other festival things happening throughout the neighborhood but I only attended the festival on Saturday. That happened to be the same day as the New Year Parade.

This was the year of the Earth Pig (previous years of the pig include: 2007, 1995, 1983, 1971, 1956, 1947, 1935). People born in the year of the Pig think logically and are good at fixing whatever problem they’re in. I was actually born in one of the years of the snake. In planning my trip to Chinatown and San Francisco, I figured I would do some research to turn the adventure into a blog post. So, I did some research before my trip to find some cool places to check out while in Chinatown other than the festival and a parade and to learn more about the history of San Francisco’s Chinatown, which is the biggest Chinatown in the US.

A Very Brief History of San Francisco’s Chinatown:

A very brief history of Chinatown goes something like this….

The first Chinese immigrants that arrived in San Francisco were on February 2, 1848. They included two Chinese male servants and a Chinese maid, named Maria Seise. They were all brought to San Francisco by an American merchant, Charles Van Gillespie and his wife, Sarah Catherine. The two male servants have been lost to history because they went to work in the gold rush for Gillespie but Marie stayed with the family for 30 years. (Information from that book).[i] From there other Chinese immigrants settled along Sacramento Street and spread to Dupont Street (now Grant Street) in the mid-1800’s. The area slowly expanded from 6-8 blocks in 1876 to more than 12 blocks by 1885. It should also be noted that Chinatown’s location in San Francisco today was, in the early years of the city, the center of mainstream San Francisco…. being the center of the city also resulted in it being a location for gambling, prostitution, and all other things that might be frowned upon in a city. Even though the city expanded quite extensively, the questionable businesses remained in Chinatown giving the community not always a great name.

Chinese immigration also increased because of the need for laborers during the Gold Rush and the construction of the transcontinental railroad. Chinese immigrants to America faced many hardships that basically stemmed from racism. There’s no nice way to put it but that’s what it was. Periods of economic hardships in the USA resulted in unfair and unjust laws prohibiting and/or limiting Chinese immigrants; those that were here already had problems becoming US citizens as well. In addition, laws even limited opportunities of those Chinese immigrants already here in America, for example there was one law passed in San Francisco that specifically targeted laundry businesses of Chinatown. The biggest law of concern was the Chinese Exclusion Act, which was passed first in 1882 and then again in 1930, which prohibited the immigration of Chinese laborers. On paper, the law exempted Chinese merchants and their families, teachers, diplomats, students, and travelers but in reality, the law gave authorities the ability to stop all Chinese immigrants. The law wasn’t repealed until 1943 (the Chinese Exclusion Repeal Act), which also allowed Chinese aliens naturalization rights.

During that time and even beyond 1943, the Chinese of San Francisco’s Chinatown worked hard to change the public’s bias and perception of the Chinese. The first opportunities arose from the Great 1906 Earthquake. The earthquake basically destroyed much of Chinatown, which happened to be the older section of the city to begin with. The destruction allowed the rebuilding of Chinatown to take not only an interesting turn but ultimately into the hands of the local Chinese population. Look Tin Eli, the secretary of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce and other Chinese merchants such as Tong Bong and Lew Hing, saw this as an opportunity to rebuilding Chinatown into a “tourist mecca” that could help improve the image of Chinatown and relationship with the San Francisco community.[ii]

Some of the first buildings in Chinatown after the earthquake included Sing Fat Building on the southwest corner of Grant Street and the Sing Chong Building across the street on the northwest corner. The new buildings were eclectic combining Western European building elements, like columns, brackets, cornices, etc. with Oriental rooflines. (Images) Basically, the Chinatown you see today all stems from what was created after the 1906 Earthquake. Throughout this entire time the Chinese brought with them to the USA their heritage and celebrated extensively their culture through events like New Year’s. The first modern Chinese New Year parade in San Francisco occurred in the early 1950’s. The book, Making an American Festival goes into the fascinating history of the New Year festival and parade and how it was in response to Chinese-American leaders of San Francisco’s Chinatown to the political and economic difficulties of the Cold War. One of the interesting quotes from early in the book is as follows, “Chinese immigrants brought old world traditions and rituals- including Chinese New Year celebrations- to the host country. These old world rituals served as a link between immigrants and their home countries and created a sense of community in their adopted country.”[iii] The Chinese Chamber of Commerce was the main push behind the festival and parade. Henry Kwock Wong, a local businessman, and others such as, John Kan, and Paul Louie, saw the festival and parade as a way to change the public image of Chinese Americans and the celebration as an important manifestation of American freedom, “because China had fallen into Communist hands, it was American freedom that preserved Chinese traditions.”[iv]

Basically, the idea was that San Francisco’s Chinatown was “real” tradition China because of the communism in China and again Chinatown’s’ leaders accentuated Chinatown as an exotic and foreign place. “Organizers designed activities that catered to tourists’ orientalist expectations- in other words, their ideas of Chinese American cultures as exotic and different.”[v] Quick example, the fortune cookie was invented in the 1930’s in Chinatown to attract tourists. Though not exactly from the 1950’s it helps show that Chinatown has been catering to tourists for a very long time. Since the 1950’s, the New Year’s festival and parade have grown to be a huge event in San Francisco.

Quick Thoughts:

My knowledge of San Francisco’s Chinatown was pretty limited before researching for my recent visit to see the parade and festival. Researching about Chinatown was an eye opener on a period of history I’m not too familiar with to be honest. It was a lot to think of and also wonder if me visiting Chinatown during the Chinese New Year celebrations would just make me seem like one more person perpetuating all of the bad history surrounding San Francisco’s Chinatown. When thinking of visiting Chinatown to see the New Year Parade and Festival, I was planning on going not because I view Chinatown as exotic but because I think going to Chinatown is a great way to learn more about a culture different from my own. I guess my thoughts on going to Chinatown were not any different than if I had been planning on going to any other new city, town, or place for the first time. I guess being from a small town in Northern New York, any large city or community catches my interest because everything is so different from what I’m used to.

At the writing group I go to on Sundays (Shut Up and Write), I briefly discussed with a few of the regulars the blog post I was writing about Chinatown and how researching the New Year’s festival brought up a bunch of other issues related to cultural identity, cultural appropriation, and racism. How do you combine the history of San Francisco’s Chinatown, its New Year festivities, the fact that Chinatown’s community and people have had to worked hard to promote the community as “exotic” to make US people see them as American citizens, and does me visiting as a tourist or anyone else for that matter, continue the conception that Chinatown is exotic and the underlying history of racism? That’s not an easy combination of ideas to pull together, that’s for sure! It was an interesting conversation to have with other people who helped confirm that there’s a lot going on when acknowledging the history of San Francisco’s Chinatown.  Though it was helpful to talk with some of my co-writers and get their feedback, I’ve realized that there is no easy way to conclude this or even summarize my thoughts. But I guess as someone who likes history and learning about other cultures, all I can do is emphasize how important it is to do research and learn about other cultures, and don’t be surprised when you learn about really crappy things like the Chinese Exclusion Act. Hopefully, learning about those shitty periods in history make you want to be better and more respectful of the hodge-podge of cultures that make up the United States.

How Did My Visit Go:

Did I do the tourist thing in Chinatown? Yes, I think so. At least, I tried to do the things where I got to learn more about Chinese heritage and history. So, things I did included just walking around Chinatown. There’s a lot to see and take in, especially when there’s so many also walking around and enjoying the festivities!

I also went to the Chinese American Historic Society that had some cool events going on to add to Chinatown’s celebrations! I actually didn’t know their schedule but I arrived in time to see the Lion’s Dance!

The building was originally the Chinatown YWCA designed by Julia Morgan.

The performance started at 11 am and was done by the Kei Lun Martial Arts

One of the lions came into performance area by dancing through the audience.

The museum has a number of exhibits related to different aspects of Chinatown’s History. On the lower level are a number of posters related to women’s history in Chinatown. On the main level is a very comprehensive history of the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to Chinatown. There’s also a lot of personal history and stories documented there.

I also went to the Hang Ah Tea Room for lunch. It’s the oldest dim sum restaurant in San Francisco- again, if there’s historic restaurants to hit up, I’m there! The restaurant is located at 1 Pagoda Place; best way to explain that thought is it’s technically in an alley on the backside of buildings located on the corner of Stockton and Sacramento streets. My best advice is to follow the signage to get to the restaurant, which is going to start at the corner of Stockton and Sacramento and point you down Sacramento Street and then point you again into the alley. Google Maps kind of confused me and I wasn’t sure where I was supposed to go until I saw those signs pointing me in the right direction. Trust me, Google Maps will say you’re there but LOL you’re not. Look for the signs!

It is the oldest dim sum restaurant in Chinatown.

Interior when you first walk in.

These were the xiao long bao, also known as the soup dumplings.

These were the ha gow, which are shrimp dumplings. They were very good.

The place, when you find it, will most likely be packed. Being by myself meant it was easy for the servers to seat me. YEA! To Solo Dining. I had no idea where to start on the menu and when my server showed up less than 5 minutes after sitting down, I just asked her what she would suggest to get. Her choices were great and are what I would suggest to you!

Resources:

General information on the Chinese New Year can be found here: https://chinesenewyear.net/zodiac/ .

Additionally, the following books were not at my local library but I found on Google Books and had a lot of interesting information on Chinese celebrations:

Good Luck Life: The Essential Guide to Chinese American Celebrations and Culture, Rosemary Gong, 2005, Published by HarperCollins.

Mooncakes and Hungry Ghosts: Festivals of China, Carol Stephanchuck and Charles Choy Wong, 1991, Published by China Books and Periodicals, Inc.

Chinatown’s Website that gives a timeline of the community: http://www.sanfranciscochinatown.com/history/index.html

This website also has a lot of information on the history of the Chinese in San Francisco. Scroll about half-way down to the page to the find the section on Chinese topics: http://www.sfmuseum.org/hist1/index0.html

PBS also has a fantastic website with more information about Chinatown: https://www.pbs.org/kqed/chinatown/resourceguide/story.html

This website not only gives a brief history of Chinatown but also highlights some of the really awesome things to do and see while visiting Chinatown:  https://www.inside-guide-to-san-francisco-tourism.com/chinatown-history.html

Some news articles Related to San Francisco’s Chinatown:

“Chinatown’s Grant Avenue: A look back at one of San Francisco’s oldest streets,” Alex Bevk, July 24, 2017, https://sf.curbed.com/2017/7/24/15995166/chinatown-grant-san-francisco-sf-history

“San Francisco Chinatown: A Guide to Its History and Architecture: An Excerpt, Philip P. Choy, December 6, 2017,  https://www.huffingtonpost.com/philip-p-choy/san-francisco-chinatown-_b_1728529.html

The Chinese Historical Society of America: https://chsa.org/exhibits/online-exhibits/ .The website has a lot of information about their current exhibits that include: Chinese American Exclusion/Inclusion and there’s a lot of resources about Chinatown and the Chinese experience.

The books I reference below can be found hopefully at your local library but there are portions that can be previewed at Google Books:

San Francisco Chinatown: A Guide to its History and Architecture: https://books.google.com/books?id=mWAI-F80RW8C&printsec=frontcover&dq=chinatown+san+francisco+history&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwipv9_jx4XiAhWqrFQKHcH7AlkQ6AEIKjAA#v=onepage&q=tourist%20mecca&f=false

Making an American Festival: Chinese New Year in San Francisco’s Chinatown: https://books.google.com/books?id=7RwBDcc4CM8C&printsec=frontcover&dq=chinatown+san+francisco+history&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjskYeozrHgAhU2HDQIHbm4DmcQ6AEIQDAE#v=onepage&q=chinatown%20san%20francisco%20history&f=false

End Notes:

[i] Choy, Philip P., San Francisco Chinatown: A Guide to its History and Architecture, (San Francisco: City Light Books, 2012), 30-31. And information from the San Francisco Chinatown website timeline.

[ii] Choy, 45.

[iii] Yeh, Chiou-ling, Making an American Festival: Chinese New Year in San Francisco’s Chinatown, (Berkeley and Los Angeles:  University of California Press, 2008), 15.

[iv] Yeh, 33.

[v] Yeh, 39.

Balustrades? Balusters? What Is This Jargon!?!?

It’s been a while since we’ve talked about some architectural jargon, so that’s what we’re doing this morning!

So, balusters…. balustrades…. you’ve seen them, you’ve heard of them but really, what are they? Could you actually define them? Everything you’re about to read, will be on the test later. So pay attention!

A balustrade as defined by my handy-dandy “Guide to Vermont Architecture” says this:

“A row of vertical balusters or other elements topped by a handrail and used to edge stairways, porches, balconies, and roof lines.”[i]

While Architectural Digest writes this:

“A row of small columns topped by a rail.”[ii]

So, what exactly is a “baluster”?

It just so happens that a “baluster,” is one of number of terms that can be used to name a turned or rectangular upright support seen in the balustrade. Other names you may see include: “banister,” “column,’ “spindle,” or even “stair stick.”[iii] Personally, “stair stick” is my new favorite and will be the technical term I use going forth in any official building description I write ever again. That’s a joke, I’m like 90% sure no State Historic Preservation Office would be pleases to see balusters called “stair sticks.” The term, “baluster,” can also be used to described a type of metal candle stick, an upright furniture support, or event the stem of a brass chandelier.[iv]

Balusters and balustrades can be seen in a number of different forms and materials including wood, stone, metal, and plastic. In the history of baluster development, cast-stone balusters were first developed in Great Britain during the 18^th century. While cast iron ones didn’t make an appearance until the 1840’s.[v]

The term, “baluster,” didn’t really come into use until the 17^th century and originates from the Italian word, balaustro or balaustra, which in turn comes from the Latin word, balaustium. All of these words by the way means, “flower of the wild pomegranate.”[vi] We’ll come back to that interesting word in a moment.

Even though the word “baluster” and “balustrade” wasn’t in use until the 1600’s, the architectural element makes its first appearance in ancient Assyrian sculptural murals, also called “bas-reliefs,” which date all back to the 13^th-7^th century BC. In the murals, balusters and balustrades can be seen in palaces lining windows. This helps hone in on the function of a balustrade other than potentially being a decorative architectural feature, it helps reduce the possibility of a person falling. While balustrades make an appearance in ancient Assyrian art, we’re not sure exactly if there was a specific word used for the building element. Another interesting thing is that balusters and balustrades do not appear in ancient Greek or Roman ruins or art. The Romans did use a type of lattice structure though, crisscrossed panels called, transennae or clathii that could be constructed of wood, bronze, or even marble.[vii]

Balusters and balustrades as we know them did not reappear in the “modern” era until the Renaissance in Italy- not surprising because of the Italian origin of the word. The first known or maybe surviving first use of the balustrade in architecture is on the Pitti Palace in Florence constructed c. 1448. Another important, early example of the balustrade can be seen on the Drum of the Tempietti, which was designed by Donato Bramanti c. 1502. The Drum is at the Monastery of San Pietro in Montorio, which brings us back to the Italian and Latin root of “baluster.” Both origin words of “baluster” means the “blossoming flower of the pomegranate.” Most likely when you think of a single baluster, you think of a vase shaped mini column, which is actually what the blossoming pomegranate flower looks like! Some more trivia about balusters to impress your friends with include that the narrow section of the vase shape is known as the “sleeve,” while the wide section is called the “belly.” The balusters at the Drum of the Tempietti consist of two vase shapes connected at the “belly” end, which kind of looks like a candlestick and was probably inspired by Roman candlesticks. This type of baluster design is sometimes called the “double” baluster.[viii]

Last little tidbit on balusters and balustrades is that they can be found on staircases or porches, as well as along roof tops or roof lines, in a variety of different architectural styles including: Neoclassical, Colonial Revival, Federal, Georgian Revival, Beaux Arts, and Italian Renaissance Revival.

See below for a bunch of examples of balusters and balustrades I’ve photographed throughout the years!

View of the vase-shaped balusters in their balustrade from the Upper Palace of the Belvedere Museum in Vienna, Austria. The baroque castle was constructed from 1717-1723.

This is an interior view of the Library of Congress in Washington D.C. Specifically we’re looking at the ornately designed Great Hall, which along the upper level has a marble balustrade.

A view of the Main Reading Room in the Library of Congress, which also has a lovely balustrade, which consists of the “double” baluster. The Library of Congress is a Beaux Arts style building constructed from 1890-1897 and the main architect was Paul J. Pelz.

This is the balustrade that can be seen along the roof line of the US Capitol Building. The building was designed by William Thornton in the Neoclassical style and was constructed from 1793-1800.

Interior view of the Crocker Museum, which is located in Sacramento, CA. Looking up in the ballroom and you can see the wooden balustrade up above. The Crocker House was redesigned in the Italianate Style by local architect, Seth Babson and was officially completed in 1872.

A view of the balusters and balustrade on the front porch of the Frederic Remington Museum located in Ogdensburg, NY. The house was originally constructed in 1810 for David Parish, an early resident.

A view of the front facade of Hearst Castle, which is located near San Simeon, CA. The castle was designed by Julia Morgan in the Mediterranean Revival style for William Randolph Hearst. The structure was worked and from 1919 to 1947. The balusters and balustrade visible on the upper level are in association with window and balcony openings and are most likely constructed of metal.

Vesuvio Cafe in San Francisco features a balustrade with “double” balusters along the mini balcony created by the set of french windows on the second floor. The building was designed in 1916 by Italian architect, Italo Zanolini.

Add a comment if you have any questions or thoughts about balusters and balustrades!

Thanks for reading!

 

End Notes:

[i] Curtis B. Johnson, editor and Elsa Gilbertson, Principal Author, The Historical Architecture of Vermont: Guide to Vermont Architecture (The Vermont Division for Historic Preservation, 1996) 24.

[ii] “What Is a Balustrade?” Architectural Digest, July 31, 2015, https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/ad-glossary-define-balustrade.

[iii] Buffalo Architecture and History, Illustrated Architecture Dictionary: Baluster. http://www.buffaloah.com/a/DCTNRY/b/baluster.html and Wikipedia’s page of Balusters: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baluster

[iv] Wikipedia’s page of Balusters: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baluster.

[v] Buffalo Architecture and History, Illustrated Architecture Dictionary: Baluster. http://www.buffaloah.com/a/DCTNRY/b/baluster.html

[vi] Calder Loth, “Balusters,” Institute of Classical Architecture and Art, June 1, 2011, https://www.classicist.org/articles/classical-comments-balusters/.

[vii] Ibid.

[viii] Ibid.

Some Exciting News!

I have some big news to share on the blog, today I’m not going to focus on a recent history adventure but instead giving an update on both my blog and life.

If you’ve been following me around recently, you will know that I’ve been temporarily living in California on deployment with FEMA since June 2017. As a reservist with FEMA you’re basically called to go to work in the wake of a disaster. So I originally came to California last June during the response efforts for state wide flooding. Since I’ve been here, California has had other disasters such as a number of large devastating fires in both the north and south of the state, and even mud slides. It’s been a learning experience since this was my first deployment with FEMA and my first excursion on the West Coast. Since I’ve been here I’ve seen a lot of awesome things when I’ve had time to travel.

Well late last year some permanent positions with FEMA’s Region IX office opened up and I applied to see what would happen. Long story short, I was hired for a position in Sacramento, so I’ve officially become a resident of sunny California!

View of downtown Sacramento, hence the “Love Sacramento” graffiti.

I’ve been back in California permanently since May 2018 and it has been a lot take in for the time being since my entire life has been spent on the East Coast and that’s where all of my immediate family and closest friends reside. But at the same time it has been exciting because its all so new- living on the West Coast, and having a full time job doing what I like to do and went to school for.

When I first graduated from UVM (University of Vermont) in December of 2013, when I was 23, I barely had any idea of what the hell I was going to do or how I was going to get a job “doing” historic preservation. I had been involved in a volunteer preservation group created from a class project and was trying to get more involved in Preservation Burlington but it wasn’t enough to get good enough experience to get a job in the field. When I finally moved home about a year later, I was super broke and honestly pissed. I assume a lot of people know that feeling of both anxiety and anger of not being able to get a job doing what you love to do or even makes you happy. When I moved home, I volunteered at the local museum, which I had experience working at before but it didn’t seem like that would help achieve the experience I wanted.

The biggest step in the right direction that I directly link to where I am today, is the Director of the Potsdam Planning Department looking at my resume and suggesting to the Village of Potsdam’s Board of Directors that they should hire me to write a National Register nomination for the Potsdam Civic Center. I got the consulting job by actually creating a proposal for the job and I remember emailing my former UVM professors, Bob and Tom, to ask questions on how to write a proposal and more importantly how to create a cost estimate for my work. Trying to “guess-ti-mate” how much you’re worth isn’t easy or fun and one too many times I’ve been told I’m selling myself short. On that note, if you’re trying to work as a historic preservation consultant, please feel free to reach out to me if you have questions. I might not have all of the answers but I can at least listen and give suggestions from my own experiences!

The consultant jobs I’ve had since that first National Register nomination, while few and far between, are all part of the reason I was hired by FEMA to begin with. But I would also say that maintaining this history-preservation-adventure blog has created “work” for myself and has served a number of purposes. It’s not only been an outlet for showcasing by mad researcher skillz and mediocre writing abilities but also has allowed me to educate the public on historic preservation things. If I remember correctly, in my original interview with FEMA I referenced this blog and the work I put into researching and writing posts for non-preservationists to read and learn about the history and preservation around them.

So, as a quick aside- A Big Thank You to everyone who’s ever read a post, liked a post, shared a post, or even commented on a post. Thank you so much! I honestly hope you enjoy reading my quirky posts and that maybe for other young preservationists out there, you get inspired to start your own blog or create your own “work” to gain the experience you need in preservation. And if you’re super interested in working with FEMA, FEMA’s Environmental and Historic Preservation cadre is always hiring- maybe you’ll find your calling with FEMA too! This is in no way, shape, or form sponsored by FEMA. I just know being hired as a historic preservation specialist reservist, was super exciting and my first “real” job as a historic preservationist, that wasn’t a consulting job.

So what does this big change mean for the blog, since it was started as a Northern New York history adventure blog. Well it means that more of my posts will be West Coast-centric but I still have a lot of posts on Northern New York topics that I want to write about and share with people. I think my “What Is This Jargon!?!” series will be a great way to showcase both architectural jargon and related photographs from both sides of the county. I also think there’s a lot to obviously share from here in California since the architecture and history out here is very different from Northern New York and even the East Coast in general, which is all stuff that you might not be familiar with.

So as not to let this be a post with just a bunch of words, here’s some photographs for planned upcoming posts on both West Coast and East Coast topics:

Ruins of the fireplace from the former observer’s cabin.

Fort Ross

This post took me a little longer than expected to finish up because I have a ton of photographs for Fort Ross. I hope you enjoy them all!

The main route from Point Reyes to Fort Ross is Route 1, which winds dangerously along the coast. Some “shoulders” of the roadway are literally the coastline with the Pacific Ocean with its waves crashing below the cliffs. There are many spots and turn-offs along the road to stop and take photographs, as you can imagine.

Google Maps oddly enough, directed me off of Route 1 and into the mountains and cow pastures along the coast. Eventually, I found myself on a single dirt lane road in the middle of the woods in my Kia Soul rental. I assumed immediately that Google Maps was off its rocker and had gotten me lost, which wouldn’t have been the first time. As I was driving along the dirt road, I figured it had to be an old logging road in the woods and since there were no easy ways to turn around, I decided to keep going because there had to be an end to the road. My favorite part of the dirt road detour was when Google Maps announced that I had arrived at my destination. I had in fact, not arrived at my preferred destination of Fort Ross but was still in the woods.

It would seem that Google Maps had chosen a path less traveled by for me to adventure down. The single lane dirt road ends right across the street from the main entrance of Fort Ross; the dirt road is actually a path that goes by the old Russian orchards that are also part of the Fort. On that note, for those also adventuring along Route 1 to Fort Ross….trust me, just stay on Route 1, you’re drive right by Fort Ross. You won’t miss it.

Fort Ross is for the most part a reconstruction that has been beautifully done and is as historically accurate as possible. Even though it is greatly reconstructed, the Fort has a very interesting history and if I was to do a full run through of the land and it’s history, this was would become a book. So instead I’m going to focus on four different aspects of Fort Ross’ history: the Kashaya Tribe, the Russians, the Call Family, and the preservation efforts of the Fort.

The Kashaya:

Before the Russians began to settle the area that would eventually became Fort Ross, the first people known to live there were the Kashaya- they still live in the region today. The Tribe consider their name to be “People From the Top of the Land,” while the name “Kashaya,” meaning “expert gamblers” was given to them by a neighboring Pomo group. Originally, the Kashaya made the lands surrounding today’s Fort Ross, their home; roughly a range of 30 miles inland from the coast and 30 miles North-South from Gualala River to Duncan’s Point (South of the Russian River). An important village site of Mitini, which was near Fort Ross was important to the Kashaya territory, since it was the site of an assembly house where people would gather for ceremonial and social events.

In comparison to the other California Indians, the Kashaya experiences less acculturation and fewer forced removals to missions and reservations but that doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. When the Kashaya first encountered the Russians in 1812, the two groups came to an agreement over the use of a parcel of land, which was to become Fort Ross. The agreement was in accordance to a Russian policy that had been created to seek cooperation with local inhabitants that had previously been established in Siberia and Alaska. Fort Ross in a short time became a “tri-cultural community” of Russians, the Kashaya, and Aleut hunters where elements of culture and languages came together. Based on historic Fort records it also seems that the Coast Miwok Indians from Bodega Bay had a presence at the Fort as well.

After the Russians left, obvious changes occurred to the Kashaya’s way of life. Access to their traditional resources areas became more difficult because much of the land had become private property. Luckily, relationships with the Kashaya and new settlers near Fort Ross were better than in other parts of California and the country. By the 1870’s, the Kashaya were living in two villages located on property owned by Charles Haupt, a rancher who had married a Kashaya woman. The property was about 5 miles inland from Stewart’s Point, while a third, smaller village had been established near Stewart’s Point. In 1914, the federal government at the behest of Charles Haupt Jr. started the process to purchase a 40 mile acre tract of land four miles inland from Stewart’s Point, as a permanent location for the Kashaya; the location was not the best given that it is on an exposed ridge with poor soils and little water.

The reservation still exists today but the story doesn’t stop there, in 2015 after five years of fundraising through a group effort including the Kashia Pomo (another spelling of Kashaya), The Trust for Public Lands, Sonoma County, as well as other private foundations and groups were able purchase nearly 700 acres of ancestral lands of the Kashaya along Stewart’s Point. In exchange for the land, the Kashia agreed to build a public bluff-top trail along the coastline. The purchase enlarged their small reservation but about 18 times the size it originally was from the 1914 land purchase by Charles Haupt Jr.

The Russians:

Throughout the 1600’s the Russians had begun to move east across Siberia and the Pacific Ocean into Alaska. They set up posts in the Alaskan frontier and began working with Native Alaskan tribes to hunt for furs. From there, the Russians moved south, eventually pushing into California at the beginning of the 1800’s. In 1812, a team of 25 Russians and 80 Native Alaskans arrived in California with a number of goals, which included: establishing both a fort and a colony to grow crops (like wheat) that could be shipped back to Russian settlements in Alaska; hunt marine animals such as otter because the need was great for furs; and to trade with Spain. Spain’s colonies were located across Southern California and would have been a great opportunity for Russia to expand their holdings through trade. Another way to think about all of that, is that this is 1812, and Russia is entering the colony game really late in comparison to Spain, England, France, and now the newly established United States of America. In comparison the French, English, and Spanish already had established colonies as early as 15^th century when Columbus, sailing for Spain, first landed in what is known today as South America. Along those lines throughout the 17^th and into the 18^th centuries France had a steady claim on the fur trade in North America along the St. Lawrence River.

Historic Images of Fort Ross from the museum on site.

Artifacts from the Chapel, as well as a photograph of the Chapel.

The Fort the Russians established was named, “Ross” as a play on words and their mother county, since imperial Russia was known as “Rossia.” Their plans of having a successful establishment never fully came to realization- the climate along the coast was not suited for growing the needed crops; from over hunting, the population of otters drastically declined; and the anticipated trading with Spain never occurred. By 1841, the Russian-American Company was looking to sell their holdings and get the hell out of America, which leads us to the Call Family.

Fort Ross, as I’ve mentioned consists of many replica buildings save for a couple of buildings. With that said, the buildings are authentic to Russian construction methods and exhibits within the buildings give an idea of what life would have been like during its Russian era.

Buildings at Fort Ross:

  The Rotchev House

The Rotchev House is the only surviving building from the Russian Fort. It was renovated in 1836 for Alexander Rotchev, the last manager of the fort, for him and his family. Eventually, the Call family would live in this house before building their own.

 Warehouse

   The Kuskov House

The Kuskov House was the house used by the first manager of Fort Ross, Ivan Kuskov. The replica was completed in 1983 and on the first floor it has storerooms and an armory, while the second floor has living quarters.

   The Official’s Quarters

The Official’s Quarters was reconstructed in 1981 and consists of a dining area, sleeping rooms, storage areas, and various other rooms.

   Blockhouses

The Northwest Blockhouse was reconstructed in the 1950’s.

View from the blockhouse, looking towards the Kuskov House and Chapel.

View from the Southwest Blockhouse towards the ocean and the cove where Russian ships would have been.

The Chapel

The Chapel was destroyed during the 1906 Earthquake and then rebuilt in 1916. The building received a new foundation, walls, and bringing the roof into the right position. In 1955, the Chapel was restored again to make the building closer to its original appearance. In 1960, the cupola was replaced with a more authentic Russian Roof. Sadly, in 1970, a fire completely destroyed the Chapel but it was rebuilt in 1973.

The Call Family:

After the Russians sold their Fort and associated land, the property changed hands a number of times and was used primarily for ranches. The family was care about this post, is the Call family who owned a portion of the original property including the Fort. In 1873, George W. Call purchased 2,500 acres and the Fort property with all of its buildings, eventuality he would go on to acquire a total of 7,000 acres and create a business enterprise with components in agriculture, livestock, and shipping. Under his ownership the property became a community center and a shipping port, which included a post office, store, saloon, hotel, wharf, warehouse, and even a school house.

Prior to purchasing the land, George W. Call had made a fortune in Chile and when he moved to the Fort Ross property he brought his wife, Mercedes Leiva, who is consistently called a beautiful Chilean woman and their four young children. When they Calls moved to their new property, they first lived at the Rotchev House. By 1878, there were a total of 8 Call children (five girls and three boys), which made George build a new house.

The Call Family House is still a part of the Fort Ross State Park site and the building is open for docent led tours the first weekend of each month. That was the main reason for when I visited the Fort when I went. The docent led tour was very informative about the Call Family. The coolest thing about the house is that it was is still very much the homestead of the Call Family; the last Call children passed away in 1976 but descendants of George and Mercedes’ children still live in the area. One of the family’s direct descendants was actually at the house the day I went and he was answering questions for visitors. The family still occasionally has reunions at the home from what my docent said. Another fun tidbit that my docent shared was that the Call family were, “pack rats,” meaning they kept everything and for that reason everything on display in the home was originally was owned by the Calls, which makes for a very real interpretation of the family’s home and the family’s life at Fort Ross. The other cool thing about the home is that parts of the Call House were originally parts of the Fort.

Time Line for Preservation Efforts of Fort Ross:

Fort Ross has a long history of historic preservation started in a way by George W. Call himself. During his family’s ownership of the property, the Rotchev House was maintained, first as the home of the Calls and then as the Fort Ross Hotel. At the same time, the Russian Official’s Quarters were renovated to be a saloon. The family also preserved the Chapel and used it for a number of things including a horse barn and for the occasional wedding.

1891- Interest in Fort Ross for its cultural and historical important as a sacred place for Russians, resulted in many pilgrimages to the site. One such pilgrim was Bishop Vladimir, who made a proposal to George Call to buy the Chapel and cemetery to save them from further deterioration. The purchase never happened, but Call did start putting a thought into preserving the site.

1897– Another Bishop from Russia pilgrimaged to the site- Bishop Nikolai who also attempted to obtain the Chapel and cemetery from Call. Again, nothing came from the talks but in September of that year, Call donated lumber to restore the Chapel for the use as a Sunday school.

1902– The California Historical Landmarks League is incorporated.

1903– William Randolph Hearst sponsors a Citizen’s Campaign to raise money to save several historic landmarks, including Fort Ross. The stockage portion of Call’s property is purchased with funds raised.

1906– Fort Ross becomes an official historic site; less than a month later, the San Francisco Earthquake damaged a number of the historic buildings at Fort Ross.

1916- Funding is made available to begin repairing the damaged buildings at Fort Ross. The organization, Native Sons and Native Daughters of the Golden West take special interest in the Chapel and use the area as a place to celebrate the July 4th for a number of years.

1925- The Russian Orthodox Congregation of Holy Trinity Cathedral in San Francisco are invited to a July 4th celebration by the Native Sons and Daughters; the Congregation still continues an annual July 4th pilgrimage to this day.

1928- Fort Ross becomes one of five historical monuments in the new California state parks system.

1936- A group from the San Francisco Russian community begin the initiative group for the memorialization of Fort Ross and begin publishing articles in Russian newspapers about the property’s history. The new year, the group creates the Russian Historical Society in America.

1945- The Society locates the lost bell of Fort Ross- it was at the Petaluma Adobe. The Society, along with the Native Sons and Daughters bring the bell back to the chapel in a special Labor Day celebration.

The original bell was destroyed in the 1970’s.

The current bell was recreated using materials from the original bell and a rubbing that had been made from the original.

1961- Fort Ross is designated a National Historic Landmark.

1962- Fort Ross becomes a State Historic Park after the State purchases 353 acres from the Call Family.

1966- Fort Ross is nominated to the National Register of Historic Places.

1970- The Rotchev House is nominated to the National Register of Historic Places. That same year, fire destroys the Chapel and the historic bell, less than a year later an arsonist sets fire to the Rotchev House, which luckily only burned the roof and attic.

1972- A new water supply system is built and plans are carried out to reroute Highway 1 (it had originally divided the stockage of the Fort). Federal money is available to restore the sites in the state. Various organizations come together to get funding for the “Restore Fort Ross Fund.” Key groups include the local Sea Ranch residents and several Russian-American groups. That same year, state parks director, William Penn Mott Jr. develops the first Citizens Advisory Committee for Fort Ross, which includes local residents, Russian Americans, and the Kashaya Pomo.

1976- The last of George and Mercedes Call’s children pass away.

1985- Ribbon cutting ceremony for the new Fort Ross Visitors Center

1990- The Citizens Advisory Committee is dissolved. The Fort Ross Interpretive Association continues the work the Committee had started.

2010- Fort Ross almost closes because of the state budget crises. Viktor Vekselberg, president of the Russian business group, Renova Group, meets with then Governor Arnold Schwarzengger to discuss plans to keep the Fort open, and creates the Renova Fort Ross Foundation to help with funding.

2012- Fort Ross celebrates its bicentennial!

This is all a very small snippet of the history of Fort Ross. There’s a lot more I could have went into detail on such as the Native Alaskans who came here with the Russians of the other ranchers who owned the Fort Ross property after the Russians sold the land. Visiting Fort Ross was super exciting and there wasn’t a lot of people there when I visited, so it was nice to be in the building by myself for the most part.

Views of the ocean from Fort Ross and the Call Family House

From left to right: the Officials’ Quarters, the Rotchev House, Warehouse, the Northwest Blockhouse, and the Kuskov House.

There’s a lot more to learn about, so please check out some of the resources listed below for more information on this really amazing place.

As always thank you for reading!

Further Information and Resources:

Most of my information on Fort Ross comes from the following book I purchased during my visit:

Kalani, Lyn, Lynn Rudy, and John Sperry, ed. Fort Ross. Fort Ross Interpretive Association, 1998.

Sections that were relevant to my post include:

Parrish, Otis, “The First People,”pgs. 6-7.

Watrous, Stephen, “Fort Ross: The Russian Colony in California,” pg. 11.

“The Ranchers,” pgs.24-25

Sakovich, Maria, “Partners in Preservation,” pgs. 27-28.

“The Fort: Structural History and Reconstruction,” pgs. 29-38.

Information from the book can be found on the Fort Ross website under “History”: https://www.fortross.org/history.htm

Kashia Coastal Preserve

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/4615137-181/nearly-700-acres-of-sonoma

https://www.tpl.org/our-work/kashia-coastal-reserve#sm.0001vbxegvevcf8hsnq2df732en3d

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/farmer-returns-700-acres-of-california-coast-to-native-american-tribe/#.VjXzRL_rERb.facebook

Call Family House

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NR_rqwA-_6E

Fort Ross Almost Closes

https://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/21/us/fort-ross-park-saved-from-closing-by-renova-group-of-russia.html

https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Rich-Russian-comes-to-aid-of-Fort-Ross-3183955.php

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/when-russia-colonized-california-celebrating-200-years-of-fort-ross-880099/

Point Reyes National Seashore

I meant to get this post out sooner than what I did. Work had been much busier than expected since returning to California in January. So free time after work was limited but I still have been going to the Sunday “Shut Up and Write” sessions. For the time being though I’m currently on a much needed vacation home in Northern New York. So while I’m home, I hope to catch up on a number of posts I’ve written but haven’t yet shared on the blog.

Anyways, the next part of my adventure along California’s coast was in Point Reyes National Seashore where I stayed at a hostel located within the National Park and hiked a couple of shorter trails: the San Andres Fault Loop and part of the Coastal Trail.

The Point Reyes National Seashore was established in 1962 by Congress and is located on the Point Reyes Peninsula. The Peninsula is separated from mainland California by a linear valley, which happens to be on the San Andres Fault. The Fault is where the Pacific and North American Continental Plates meet; geology talk time- this means that the Pacific Plate is slowly sliding underneath the North American Continental Plate and when things don’t go smoothly with this geological process, earthquakes happen. Today about 1/3 of the National Seashore is a protected wilderness, while another third is preserved as a pastoral zone for dairy and beef farms that date back to the 1880’s. The National Seashore also offers numerous outdoor activities and places to see for visitors; there’s roughly 150 miles of trails within the boundaries of the Seashore.

The drive from Sacramento to Point Reyes is roughly two hours. Inverness, which is the place I wrote about in the last post, is about a 15 minute drive from the National Seashore’s main entrance….longer if you’re planning on driving deeper in the Seashore. The car ride is very simple. The route goes through Point Reyes Station- a quaint looking town but I didn’t stop. I drove to the Point Reyes Visitor Center to get a map and to buy some souvenirs. I did walk on a short trail located near the visitor center: the San Andres Fault Loop (roughly 0.6 miles long). The trail is along a mostly even terrain that winds through a field and a forested area, which must be a popular hangout for the local deer population.

The local welcoming committee to the Point Reyes National Seashore

Along the trail there are a number of signs giving both geological history of the region and the history of the Great 1906 Earthquake. By the way, it seems any time I go to something related in anyway to history here in California there’s always some connection to the 1906 Earthquake or the Gold Rush….there always is a connection….no matter what.

View of the trail of the San Andres Fault Loop.

 

The fence was split in two when the 1906 earthquake hit. The blue markers also indicate the active fault line.

Within the National Seashore, I stayed at the Point Reyes Hostel located in the heart of the Seashore. It’s very secluded yet homey with a large kitchen, porch area and a cozy living room. The hostel is at the site of the historic ranch, Rancho de Laguna, which was established at the current site in 1866. Eventually, the ranch buildings were purchased by the Park Service in 1971 and instead of demolishing the buildings, they were renovated and the hostel was opened up in 1972.

Decor outside of the hostel.

The ladies eight bed dormitory was spacious, as was the shared bathroom within the main hostel house. There’s also a number of newer looking buildings that are apparently more dorm rooms for larger groups aiming to stay within the Seashore. When I’m traveling around I like to stay at hostels because it’s way cheaper and it gives the opportunity to meet cool people. While at the Point Reyes Hostel I didn’t really talk to anyone like I had at previous hostel stays in San Francisco and San Luis Obispo. Since the Point Reyes Hostel is secluded and in a forest, there is no Wi-fi and there’s definitely no cell service. I was able to get one bar at the end of the road on both of my cellphones (work phone is AT&T and my personal cell is Straight Talk in case you’re interested). I spent the night at the hostel writing…you guessed it…blog posts and reading on my tablet, A Company of Liars by Karen Maitland is what I had been reading at the time. Side note- it’s a very interesting book but literally the last chapter isn’t the best. I looked up the book after finishing to see if others were as annoyed as I was and it seems like the general consensus was that the ending isn’t the best. So readers beware.

In the morning, I decided to hike the Coastal Trail, which the trail head is just down the road from the hostel. The morning was colder than I expected- probably in the 40’s. I didn’t see a lot of wildlife on the trail other than groups of partridges. On that note, I’ve never seen groups of partridges- they’re funny little posse and they all flap off together when you get too close. Closer towards the coast and the beach, you could hear the crash of the ocean waves.

There were no other people on the trail, which can kind of be unnerving in a large national forest especially since there’s signs telling you to watch out for mountain lions, not to hike alone, and to flee to higher ground in the case of an earthquake/tsunami death combo. On another side note, what the wrong with California?!?!?!?!?! We don’t have these kind of warnings at the beginning of trail heads in New York. This all just continues to solidify my thoughts that California is a hostel environment….

Now back to the coastal trail….

When I emerged from a marshy area with a lot of tree coverage, there were sloping hills where grazing elk could be seen. Let’s be honest, they probably saw me first and were probably wondering what the hell I was and why I was up so early. I assume I must have been a spectacle for the elk to watch since I was flaying my arms around trying to determine if my phones were going to pick up a signal or not.

The trail curved through the hills without any real incline. To be honest most of the trail seemed to be an even grade without any real noticeable inclines/ downhill sections and then finally the path emerged onto rolling hills towards the beach.

There was, unsurprisingly, no one at the beach. So I was able to hang out on the beach by myself and take lots of photographs. Based on the trail signs, the Coastal Trail continues past the first beach stop to another beach area. Instead of continuing on the trail, I decided to head back to the hostel to get ready to leave for the day to travel the rest of the way to Fort Ross, which would be another 1 ½ drive up the coast.

On the walk back through the woods, I was still keeping an eyes and ears alert for any unusual rustling sounds. Call me a Nervous Nancy but there’s a crazy need to be alert in the California woods especially when most trail head signs warn of tsunamis and mountain lions. It also didn’t help that the local, patrolling, partridge posses are noisy in the wee hours of the morning. So while I was walking along the trail observing my surroundings, minding my own business, I looked down the trail and saw that it was clear, I looked down at my feet and then I looked back up and saw some four-legged canine creature ahead of me on the trail.

Well let me tell you. I freaked out. I think it was a coyote.

It looked at me.

I looked at it.

I mentally freaked out.

It remained calm.

I yelled a little to scare it off.

It stayed on the trail staring at me- probably wondering what the hell was happening.

Actually, wait. It was probably judging me for hiking alone on the trail in the early hours of the morning. Obviously that’s what it was doing- judging the lone human in the woods.

I decided my best move in our standoff was to walk towards the coyote while making some obnoxious noises. It must have been my menacing look and walk that caused the coyote to saunter off the trail….LOL. Who are we kidding, probably not. But at that moment I realized that I probably needed an adult supervising my outdoor adventures, especially in California. For the rest of the walk back to the hostel, I only saw a few cute bunnies and luckily no more sightings of larger mammals.

And that was my adventure in Point Reyes National Seashore.

Thanks for reading! Next up, Fort Ross.

*See below for applications to be a “supervising adult for Courtney’s Adventures.”*

 

Further Information:

All of the information about Point Reyes came from a pamphlet I picked up at the Point Reyes National Seashore Museum but more information about the National Seashore can be found here:

https://www.nps.gov/pore/index.htm

http://news.aag.org/2016/02/point-reyes-national-seashore-a-brief-history-of-a-working-landscape/

https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2005/1127/chapter9.pdf

http://www.norcalhostels.org/reyes/history

 

*Sadly, there’s no actual applications to be a supervising adult in my adventures, I just need to be better prepared for the unexpected. Obviously, my years as a girl scout didn’t prepare me for coyotes in the woods at 8 am. But if you’ve had moments in your own adventures, where you questioned your life choices, please feel free to share!

Sight Seeing in Inverness, California

This week is going to focus on a weekend trip I took out to Marin County to see the central coast area of California, especially around Point Reyes National Seashore and up to Fort Ross, a historical site with a reconstruction of the original Fort that was used by the Russian’s from 1812-1840’s. The main reason for the trip was to see Fort Ross but I also stopped along the way in Inverness and Point Reyes.

While in Point Reyes National Seashore, I visited Inverness, California to get dinner. Inverness is located on the west shore of Tomales Bay and is surrounded by the National Seashore. Fun fact about the town, parts of two John Carpenter’s films, The Fog and The Village of the Damned, were shot in and around the community. I only stopped in the town briefly to get dinner at the Saltwater Oyster House but while there I discovered a place that’s part of the Atlas Obscura atlas, the “Tomales Bay Shipwreck,” also known as the S. S. Point Reyes, which is an apparent nod to the S. S. Minnow from Gilligan’s Island. The shipwreck is not really a “shipwreck” but more of a fishing boat that has been grounded in the restored wetlands of Tomales Bay. A previous owner had made plans to restore the boat but these were never acted upon. Instead the boat has become an added tourist attraction and photography spot for the National Seashore and the Giacomini Wetland Restoration Project.

The S. S. Point Reyes is located in the Giacomini Wetlands, right behind the Inverness store. At one point there boat was almost removed because of the restoration work to the native landscape but the photography community rallied around the boat and it has remained in its place. In 2016, the haul of the ship was burned pretty bad by either vandals or photographer’s who screwed up during their photo shoot; a full investigation was never conducted on the fire.

The other cool part of the boat’s location is the Giacomini Wetlands themselves. The Waldo Giacomini Ranch Wetlands Restoration Project, other than being a mouthful, is the attempt of the National Park Service to restore the former dairy ranch back into the tidal wetlands and floodplains the area is meant to be. The project’s roots stem from the 1972 statewide Coastal Act, which places a high value on protecting California’s natural resources. The act was directly related to a failed 1968 plan to extensively develop West Marin. The ranch lands were eventually incorporated into the Boundaries of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, so that the Park Service could purchase the land to do the work. In 2000, the purchase was finally completed and within 7 years the wetlands restoration work done. The project has resulted in 550 acres (roughly 50% of Tomales Bay’s wetlands) to be restored to their native habitat. In comparison though, the 550 acres is the estimated equivalent to just 12% of the total lost coastal wetlands in Central California. The restored wetlands are home to a number of animals including: salmon, seals, bat rays, white pelican, black-bellied plovers, white tailed kits, river otters, raccoon, and even bob cats.

Across the street from the Inverness Store, is the post office and the Saltwater Oyster House, an upscale yet laid back restaurant that’s open for lunch and dinner. I went during their dinner service and was lucky enough to get a seat at the bar during the busy dinner service. My bartender, who happened to be the owner was great and attentive. I went with the Oyster Stew, which was cream based with chunks of oysters, leeks, and brioche croutons. It was very good, not too salty and the leeks went well with the oysters. I know, you’re probably wondering why I didn’t get any raw oysters. It’s because I’ve never had them before and felt a little out of my element trying to order them. But seated at the bar I did get a great view of the man preparing the oysters for those who ordered them. It was hypnotizing to watch him shucking oysters and plate them on a bed of ice. I did order dessert though, the chocolate brownies sundae, to be exact. I was expecting something small and delicate and instead got enough sundae to share! Atop of the very dense brownie was frio gelato and that was covered in a creamy chocolate sauce that also hardened into a shell on the gelato. I just want to let you all know, that I took one for the history adventure team and ate most of the dessert.

I had no regrets.

It was glorious.

I would highly suggest visiting Inverness and especially the Saltwater Oyster Bar to anyone. I definitely plan on visiting the area again and would to go there for food again. It might be fun to go during the lunch services to see how different the menu is and if it is as busy as dinner had been. I would love to go back and explore the small town of Inverness now that I know it was used in a few films. It would be fun to compare scenes to what is there now much like I’ve done with historic postcards in the past.

Watch for my next post on Point Reyes National Seashore and my brief time there!

Thanks for adventuring along with me.

Resources and Further Information:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverness,_California

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/point-reyes-boat

http://www.calexplornia.com/point-reyes-shipwreck-divert-your-plans-to-the-inverness-shipwreck/

https://www.nps.gov/pore/learn/management/upload/planning_giacomini_wrp_legacyfortomalesbay_081026.pdf

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3465854/Heartbreaking-photos-reveal-charred-remains-iconic-Californian-shipwreck-loved-locals-tourists-alike.html

Saltwater Oyster Depot:

https://www.ptreyeslight.com/article/saltwater-one-year-nourishes-verve

https://www.remodelista.com/posts/the-world-is-his-oyster-saltwater-depot-in-inverness/

Rose Windows!?! What is this Jargon?!?!?

Since I’ve been in Sacramento, finding time to write blog posts has been difficult, the same goes for meeting new people other than those I work with. So a way I’m kind of working on both small issues, is by joining a Meet Up group that aimed at writing! There’s a lot of Meet Ups in Sacramento for so many different interests- in comparison there are no Meet Up groups in Northern New York and I’d never actually hear of Meet Up until being in California. So for the twoish months I’ve been going to a Sunday meet up for, “Shut Up and Write! Sacramento,” where I’ve been writing and pulling a bunch of posts together. It just then takes me a while to type everything up and edit my photographs before actually posting on my blog.

It’s been nice meeting new people who are passionate about writing and it’s nice to see them weekly and see how their progress on their own projects is coming along. The Meet Up I go to is at Shine, a really cute coffee shop at the corner of E and 14^th Street. I usually get the Namaste Latte (a matcha latte with vanilla and honey), it’s super good!.

So this week’s post comes to you via my hour of writing at “Shut Up and Write!” It’s been a while since I’ve done a “What is this Jargon” post and today’s topic is……..Rose Windows.

It’s not really jargon sounding, is it? You probably had your hopes up that it was going to be something crazy like oriel….maybe next time it’ll be something outrageous. Any who. Rose Windows are exciting and they’re pretty and they kind of link back to by previous post about Grace Cathedral, which has two rose windows!

So “Rose Window” is a generic architectural term- see told you! Not jargon! A rose window is a term that can be used to refer to any circular window but typically is thought of as a window found in churches constructed in the Gothic architectural style- much like Grace Cathedral, which is a French Gothic style cathedral in San Francisco. The windows are often stained glass and are usually divided into segments by mullions and tracery.

There we go, some real jargon for ya! It’s like historic preservation inception, jargon within jargon…

Let’s get back on topic. So, where were we. Rose windows can also be referred to as a “wheel window” or even a “Catherine window,” a direct nod to St. Catherine of Alexandria, who was sentenced to be executed via a spiked wheel…fun side note, St. Catherine is a martyr who was most likely made up and possibly was based on death of the Greek female philosopher, Hypatia. Look it up, really interesting stuffs. While rose windows made a splash on the architectural scene by the middle of the 12^th century in France, it’s reasonable to assume that the idea of this style of window came from the Roman oculus- a large circular windows-like opening that would allow light and air into a structure. Roman oculus can typically be found on the west facade of a Roman structure. From the Roman oculus, some examples of rose windows can be found in buildings that date to the Romanesque period (10^th century).

By the Gothic period in France, rose windows can be found left and right in churches and cathedrals- typically at the west end of the nave (that’s the big central aisle) and at the ends of transepts (wings on the sides of the nave). A common scene depicted in rose windows includes the “Last Judgment,” especially in the west end, while the transepts would often depict “Mary.” Bar tracery in rose windows was officially introduced int the 13^th century; that’s the stonework that supports the stained glass.

So obviously, I’ve got some awesome photographs to share of stained glass windows:

Memorial Hall, Harvard University:

These photographs are of Memorial Hall on Harvard University’s campus in Boston. It’s a High Victorian Gothic building (Neo-Gothic is another term) that was designed by William Robert Ware and Henry Van Brunt. The Memorial Hall was constructed to honor Harvard men that had fought for the Union during the Civil War. The stained glass window measures 708 square feet and is called McDonald’s Virtues Window. Further information on Memorial Hall:

http://sites.fas.harvard.edu/~memhall/history.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_Hall_(Harvard_University)

St. John’s in the Wilderness:

This little church is located in Paul Smiths, NY in the Adirondacks. The Episcopal Church was constructed in 1930 and designed by William G. Distin. You can only see a small portion of the rose window in the photographs but if you follow the link you can see interior images of the church: http://townofbrighton.net/sjinthew.htm

Trinity Church:

Trinity Church in Potsdam, NY is constructed of fantastic Red Potsdam Sandstone. The church was originally constructed in 1835 as a Federal style building with Gothic elements. In 1886, it was enlarged and renovated into the High Victorian Gothic style church it is today; designs were by James P. Johnson. The stained glass window was a gift of Thomas S. Clarkson and was installed in 1886; the window has many Christian symbols with a dove in the center. The church, as is many of the Potsdam Sandstone buildings in St. Lawrence County, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Further information: https://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/trinitywindows/trinitywindows.php

Zion Episcopal Church:

This rose window can be seen in the Zion Episcopal Church in Colton, NY. It’s also constructed of Potsdam Sandstone and it’s construction was financed by the Clarkson family in 1883. James P. Johnston also designed this church and it was inspired by the Trinity Church in Potsdam. The rose window is located in the south facade and is 10 feet in diameter. The sections of the window represent the 12 apostles surrounding a dove. The Zion Episcopal Church is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Further information:   https://coltonepiscopal.wordpress.com/history-of-zion/

Swill Burger:

This is the former 2^nd German Baptist Church in Rochester, NY; the church was constructed in 1890. Today the building is no longer a church but the home of Swill Burger. While one of the rose windows is gone, the other one still exists and helps point to the former history of the building. More information can be found about Swill Burger and the church in a previous post:

https://adventurewithcourtney.wordpress.com/2017/05/07/food-adventures-in-rochester/

Herring-Cole Hall:

Herring-Cole Hall is located on campus of St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY. The current building was constructed in two different installments both of which are of Potsdam Sandstone. The Herring Library was constructed between 1869-1871 and was designed by the firm, Huberty & Hudson. The Cole Reading Room was added between 1901-1902 and was designed by Joseph Smith. The rose window located at the east of the hall was made by the New York firm, J. & R. Lamb and the window is of the college’s seal. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic places. Further information: http://hcap.artstor.org/cgi-bin/library?a=d&d=p1644

Resources and Further Information on Rose Windows:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_window

https://www.britannica.com/technology/rose-window

http://dragon_azure.tripod.com/UoA/Med-Arch-Rose-Window.html

https://study.com/academy/lesson/rose-windows-definition-design-symbolism.html

https://www.dartmouth.edu/~matc/math5.geometry/unit9/unit9.html

http://www.buffaloah.com/a/DCTNRY/r/rose.html

“Catherine Wheel” and Saint Catherine; My information came from Wikipedia but there are some sources under Note number 7 about Catherine and Hypatia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catherine_of_Alexandria

 

Grace Cathedral, San Francisco

I’m now back in Sacramento after being home for a couple of weeks on vacation. The flight back was luckily, uneventful and there was only one delay at the tiny Massena, NY airport, which didn’t impact the other flights I had in Albany, NY and Chicago, IL.

This post is going to be focusing on another single building. I’ve been doing a lot of those lately because there’s so many awesome buildings that deserve recognition plus it makes you realize that all old buildings have a great story just waiting to be told. Today’s property is, Grace Cathedral, which is the cathedral church of the Episcopal Diocese of California and the third largest Episcopal Cathedral in the county; I saw the cathedral the last time I was in San Francisco on my own. The reason I’m focusing on this property today is because it’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day and on March 28, 1964 the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave a sermon during the Cathedral’s celebrations for its completion and consecration. I didn’t know that information before I visited the Cathedral; the reason I went to check it out was because it was listed as a cool place to visit at the San Francisco Downtown Hostel that I had stayed at when I was there last.

Look at those twin towers, they remind me of Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris!

The cathedral was designed by Lewis Hobart in the French Gothic style.

Grace Cathedral is located on Nob Hill, and it was the last place I was visiting on the Saturday and it was already late in the day- so I had to book it, which is easier said than done since San Francisco is so hilly. The hours of the Cathedral are Sundays 8-7, Thursdays 7-6, and the other days of the week are 8-6. Throughout the week there ares services and many other events going on, so if you’re interested in visiting, I would suggest double checking their website to see whats going on during your visit. For example when I arrived at the Cathedral it was around 4 pm and there were signs up saying they would be closing at 5 pm to set up for a concert later that evening.

Grace Cathedral has its beginnings with the Gold Rush of 1849- the year it was founded. The church was the “daughter” of the historic Grace Church (I assume the one located in Manhattan). The church went through a some location, building, and even name changes during its early history but all of that came to a halt thanks to the Great 1906 San Francisco Earthquake, which completed destroyed the church. After the earthquake, the family of railroad baron and banker, William Henry Crocker,** gave their Nob Hill property for a new a cathedral to be constructed on- the Crocker’s mansion had also been destroyed during the earthquake. A cornerstone was laid in 1910 but construction really did not begin for a number of years until 1927. The cathedral was designed by architect, Lewis Hobart, who designed the property in the French Gothic style as a nod to the Crocker family; a major inspiration of the cathedral is Notre Dame located in Paris, France.

During the Great Depression, work on the Cathedral completely stopped and it officially wasn’t “completed” until 1964. The interior vaulting and the cast-stone walls are actually unfinished. Other really cool details of the building is that it’s frame is raw concrete and steel, which is unusual for cathedrals. There is some pre-fabricated cast stone for decorative details and Guastavino acoustic tiles were used for the vaulting. Other architectural features that indicate its a French Gothic style building include the twin towers, the building’s cruciform plan, rose window, and the polygonal apse (I sense a number of new jargon words to explore at a later date).

Another thing to mention before I get into some of the really amazing things of the building is that there are docent led tours of the building throughout the month Since my visit was spur of the moment, I didn’t really have time to plan my visiting during a tour but Grace Cathedral has a fantastic App that can be downloaded on your phone to do self-guided tours, which is what I used when I was there. The App is the reason I learned that the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave a sermon there in 1964.

Both the interior and the exterior of the cathedral are beautiful and offer a lot to see. Obviously, I had a very limited window of time to see the cathedral so I wasn’t able to see everything, luckily though a member of the Cathedral’s staff who was there closing parts of the building in preparation of the concert was kind enough to let me into the Chapel of Grace, which is the oldest part of the cathedral.

I didn’t take that many photographs of the Chapel of Grace because I was speaking with the staff of the Cathedral. This is the one good photograph I took. The Chapel of Grace features Charles Connick windows (which are known for their blue colors), a Flemish altarpiece, and a French Knight Hospitaller altar, c. 1520.

The gentleman who I think was either a deacon or verger for the cathedral stated talking to me and asking if I had visited the cathedral before. Talking with the staff member, I told him I didn’t know anything about the Cathedral and that it was the first time visiting the building but that the app was really useful for learning about the building, I also told him I didn’t know that Martin Luther King Jr. had spoke here during the Civil Rights Movement. And that’s when the behind-the-scene history adventure happened. The staff member said that he could show me the room that Dr. King prepared and got ready in before his sermon. The room is off the Chapel of Grace and I don’t think is open to the public. The gentleman told me that he believed the room was mostly unchanged since some of the furniture in the room could be seen in historic photographs of Dr. King in the same room. It was also suggested that I go check out the pulpit and that it was okay to step up into it. It was a little too much for me to do, so I didn’t mainly because I was having a lot of feelings, It was kind of like that scene in Wayne’s World when Garth and Wayne meet Alice Cooper and say, “We’re not worthy” or something along those lines. That’s kind of how I felt being told I could go stand in the same pulpit that really amazing people like the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. have spoken from. Hopefully that makes sense.

The following are some links from Grace Cathedral’s YouTube page where they have video recordings of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s sermon:

Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=so8kSH8IwIA

Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaJOKsFfId0

Besides the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Dr. Jane Goodall, the Dalai Lama, and the Archbishop Desmond Tutu have also preached from this pulpit.

I was standing in the apse of the cathedral looking down the nave (central aisle) towards the east rose window. The pulpit can be seen to the far left of the photograph.

The following area other art and architectural features of the cathedral that are amazing:

“The Gift”

The stained glass window seen at the top of the photograph was the last to be installed in the cathedral. The window was created by Narcissus Quagliata and depicts out galaxy in a human silhouette.

A closer view of “The Gift” stained glass window.

AIDS Chapel

Another thing I did not know about Grace Cathedral is the work that the congregation has done towards the AIDS crisis in San Francisco. This altarpiece, “The Life of Christ” was created by New York pop artist, Keith Haring in 1990 and was his last work before his own death from AIDS. The piece was obtained by his friends, Yoko Ono and local San Francisco activist, Frank Malifrando for the cathedral. The chapel was completed  and dedicated in 2000.

Stained Glass Windows:

This is the rose window located in the south transept.

These windows are located in the apse and are from the studio of Charles Connick of Boston. The cathedral has a total of 34 of his windows, which is the largest collection on the west coast.

This painting is located near the Chapel of Grace. The painting was done by Robert Lenz, a Franciscan Friar and dedicated in 1990 by the first woman bishop, Bishop Barbara Harris. The egg that Mary Magdalene holds and points to is symbolic of resurrection.

Murals

There are a ton of murals along the walls of Grace Cathedral. A number of the murals were done by Jan Henryk De Rosen, a Polish painted who lived in exile in the United States after 1939. De Rosen was born in Poland to Jan Rosen and Wanda Hantke. His father was also a painter (Polish historical and genre) who worked at the court of the Russian Czars, Alexander III and Nicholas II. As a child, De Rosen moved to Paris to live with his sisters, Maria and Zofia (a sculptor) and from there enlisted in the French Army during World War 1. After the war he moved back to Poland and studied to be a painter in Warsaw. His painting skills were very much in high demand and he painted murals within many churches and cathedrals across Europe. He came to the United States in 1939 at the request of the Polish ambassador to paint murals at the Polish embassy in Washington DC. With the outbreak of World War 2, he stayed here in the United States where he taught and continued painting.

The murals seen in this image are: “Saint Augustine and King Ethelbert” and “Gov. Portola and Fra Junipero Serra Founding of Misison at Monterey” both by De Rosen and date to 1949/50.

This mural was also painted Jan De Rosen in 1949.

This is the Adoration mural at the Chapel of the Nativity. This mural was completed in 1946 by De Rosen.

The two murals were completed by Bolivian-born, Antonio Sotomayor. They are named: ” Grace Church -1906 Burning of parish after 1906 earthquake” and “United Nations Founding of the UN in San Francisco.” Both date from 1983.

Ghiberti Doors

These doors are replicas of the famed Ghiberti Doors, The Gates of Paradise. The originals were installed at the Baptistry of the Duomo in Florence, Italy. The original doors were designed by Lorenzo Ghiberti and worked on by himself, his son, and the men in his workshop, which took them 27 years to complete. In 1990, the originals were housed in the Duomo Cathedral’s museum and replicas took their on the actual building. So how does Grace Cathedral have a set of replica Italian Renaissance doors who ask?

Way back during WW2, the original doors were removed and hidden. Bruno Bearzi, the master founder and superintendent of the Florence’s art works, had them in his care where he cleaned them and had molds made with the intention of creating replicas to put in place of the originals and place the originals in a museum. That didn’t happen until 1990. But hearing that the molds and replicas existed, Grace Cathedral architects contacted Bearzi in the late 1950’s. Through the generosity of donors, Grace Cathedral was able to purchase the replicas and they were in place by November 20, 1964. The doors are made entirely of bronze with the sculptured portions finished in gold. Each door is 16 feet high, 4 inches think and 5 feet wide. Biblical events are depicted in the panels of the doors.

 

Outdoor Labyrinth 

The cathedral has two labyrinths. This one is located outside of the cathedral and is made of granite and is available to walk through the maze all the time. There is another labyrinth inside of the building. The labyrinth measures 707 feet long.

So after the wonderful and very short visit I had at the cathedral, I would highly suggest visiting it, if you’re in San Francisco. I know I would really like to visit it again and possibly join a docent led tour since there’s probably a lot I missed. Let me know what you think!

Thanks for reading 🙂

Below are some resources I used, most of the information came from brochures I collected while at Grace Cathedral and the websites helped supplement what the brochures had summarized. There’s also some links to my other blog posts that are linked to this one, like the Crocker Museum and the National Mall, which the Lincoln Memorial is part of. The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream Speech” there in 1963.

Further Information:

**William Henry Crocker was the nephew of Edwin B. Crocker of Sacramento whose home is now part of the Crocker Art Museum:

https://adventurewithcourtney.wordpress.com/2017/06/21/portrait-of-a-building-the-crocker-art-museum/

The Washington Mall:

https://adventurewithcourtney.wordpress.com/2017/02/15/afternoon-in-the-capital-history-monuments-and-thoughts/

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in San Francisco:

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/MLK-Day-Martin-Luther-King-Jr-San-Francisco-10860349.php

Grace Cathedral:

https://www.gracecathedral.org/history-art-architecture/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_Cathedral,_San_Francisco

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Henryk_de_Rosen

Portrait of a Building: The Wellesley Hotel

As I sit bundled up in my apartment waiting for the bomb cyclone storm to hit Northern New York, I’m thinking about all the awesome things I experienced in 2017, which is odd to say since 2017 seemed overall craptastic. Last year I started a new and interesting job as a reservist with FEMA. So basically, FEMA sends me and other reservists wherever we may be needed after a disaster hits the country. Since June, I’ve been living in Sacramento, California where I’ve had many opportunities to see much of what the State has to offer and watch in horror as California has been in an almost constant state-of-emergency because of the devastating wild fires. Thankfully, Sacramento has not been in the way of the fires but it still has been a shock to see and read the daily news about the fires while I’ve been in California.

In comparison, since living almost my entire life in Northern New York I’ve never had to really think about wild fires or be worried about them. We get the occasionally, seasonal flooding, which happened this past May and it was worst than normal; and our winters can be brutal. Since arriving home on December 22^nd for a holiday vacation, the warmest it’s been was 26 degrees Fahrenheit….for comparison purposes, water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit.

Taking the dog-nephews outside when it was still “warm.”

As you can imagine, with the wild fires and flooding that California has faced in the past year, work has been super busy and stressful, meaning I haven’t been able to spend as much time as I would like on this history, adventure, and preservation blog. While working and living in California has been very different than what I’m use to in New York, I was able to visit a lot of amazing places that I plan on sharing on this blog in the new year- most of those places have been away from the wild fires.

Right now though, I want to share the one awesome consulting project I had time for, which was a Part 1 of the Historic Preservation Certificate Application for the Wellesley Hotel located in the community of Thousand Island Park.

Over the summer on my first break home from California, I spent two days in the Park, researching and photographing the Wellesley Hotel, as well as visiting old friends. Side Note: I’ve been working on odd projects in Thousand Island Park since I interned there during the summer of 2013.

To complete a Historic Preservation Certificate Application, it’s very much like a National Register nomination: basic information on the property is needed, as well as a detailed building description and a statement of significance (AKA: Why #ThisPlaceMatters). If a property is already listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it makes the job a little bit easier. In the case of the Wellesley Hotel, the property is part of the Thousand Island Park Historic District, which means the documentation for the application has to show that the individual property contributes (historically, thematically, etc.) to the historic district. Long story short, the Wellesley Hotel does contribute to the historic district of the community. I’d like to even push it so far as to say the entire Thousand Islands region.

The following are some snippets of the writing I did for the application for the Wellesley Hotel as well as photographs I’ve taken of the property over the years.

Description of Property

The Wellesley Hotel, in the community of Thousand Island Park, in the township of Orleans, Jefferson County, New York, is a highly intact 3 ½ story wooden frame structure with neoclassical elements, constructed in 1903 as an annex to the Columbian Hotel. There is a small 1-story addition located within the crook of the “L” shaped plan; this addition appears to be original to the property. The hotel occupies a central location at the corner of Rainbow Street and St. Lawrence Avenue within the historic community of Thousand Island Park; listed in the National Register of Historic Places 1982. The most prominent feature of the Wellesley Hotel is its two-story wrap-around veranda that extends from the south facade to the entirety of the east facade. The veranda on the first floor has Tuscan columns that support the roofed second story porch that extends into a balcony on the east facade. The interior of the Wellesley Hotel follows the original floor plans with the first and second floors currently in use. Elements seen with the historic hotel include pressed metal ceilings, hard wood floors, a brick fireplace on the first floor, a central staircase that leads to all floors including the attic and basement, and inter-connected rooms on the second and third floors. Since its construction, the Wellesley Hotel’s exterior has had some changes. The east facade porch and balcony were removed sometime from 1930’s-1980’s; it has been restored since then. There has also been the addition of fire escapes, which are currently in the north and west facades of the building. Other exterior changes include a wheel chair ramp that has been added to the north facade, along with a loading dock that leads into the one-story addition in the back. The interior has remained virtually untouched. The first and second floors have been restored and are currently used as a restaurant, with rooms on the first floor being used as hotel rooms and rental spaces to local businesses. The third floor and attic are currently not used and are in need of restoration. The Wellesley Hotel is in good condition with the only alterations to the property being general maintenance throughout the years; the restoration of the east facade porch has been done to using historic photographs to match the original porch. The maintenance changes and restoration of the east facade porch do not detract from the overall integrity of the Wellesley Hotel in terms of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association.

The Wellesley Hotel has changed very little since it was first constructed in 1903. Throughout the years, there have been some changes but most recently the Thousand Island Park Corporation has been working ot properly restore the hotel.

This is the back side of the Hotel. The smaller, one story section is a later addition for the modern kitchen.

I’m not sure if that payphone actually works or not…

Why #ThisPlaceMatters

The Thousand Island Park Historic District (1982) contains an outstanding concentration of substantially intact late nineteenth and early twentieth century resort architecture. Embellished with elaborate and often unique details, the closely grouped structures in the planned campground represent a significant phase in the history of the internationally recognized resort community in the upper St. Lawrence River. The neoclassical Wellesley Hotel contributes to the significance and context of the Thousand Island Park Historic District because it harkens back to a time when the community was a summer resort destination. The Thousand Island Park was founded in 1874 by Reverend John F. Dayan as a Methodist summer camp. The Thousand Islands region began to evolve into a summer haven for vacationers escaping the dirty industrial cities such as Pittsburgh, Boston, and New York City. Through the years the community as a whole has survived through a number of difficulties including: devastating fires, financial hardship during the Great Depression, and the effects of both World Wars. Today, the Thousand Island Park Historic District maintains its historic character with the Wellesley Hotel as the heart of the surviving commercial block of the Thousand Island Park.

Thousand Island Park

In the early 1870’s the Thousand Islands gained national attention, when George Pullman, the developer of the Pullman sleeping car, invited President Ulysses S. Grant to his summer home on “Pullman Island,” located close to Alexandria Bay.¹ News that the President of the United States had visited the area put the Islands on the map as an elite tourist destination for the upper and middle classes throughout the 1880’s until the early 20^th century. Tourists and summer inhabitants of the Thousand Islands began to be grouped together under the term, “summer people,” referring to the fact that they only lived in the area during the summer months.²

The Thousand Islands and other similar summer resort areas grew in popularity during the Gilded Age for a number of factors. Reasons for the interest in summer vacation spots like the Thousand Islands, included the rise of industrialist capitalism; concerns for health and social issues within inner cities combined with the romantic movement and the celebration of nature; and rapid improvements to modes of transportation of railroads and steamboats.³ The Thousand Islands offered many opportunities to enjoy nature such as fishing, hunting, and boating. Entire families would visit the region, who would engage in more social activities, such as cruises on private yachts and dinner parties at local hotels like the Frontenac and the Columbian.

Not all people came to the islands for fanciful vacations, a number of summer people visited to attend Methodist or Baptist summer camps on a number of the islands. Thousand Island Park was originally one of those revival camps founded by Methodist Reverend John F. Dayan in 1875. Methodist revival camps in the early 19^th century lasted one-two days and were located in the backwoods. After the Civil War, these types of church campgrounds and meetings were shunned by the churches because there was not enough teaching or rational thought. The Methodists moved towards more permanent and elaborate campgrounds that offered an extended camp meeting for specific purposes; this was in part inspired by the Methodist churches establishment of colleges throughout the country. An example of this new type of summer campground was the Chautauqua Institute located near Jamestown, New York. The Institute was established as a center for training Sunday School teachers.⁴

As early as 1867, Reverend Dayan began thinking and planning a summer camp in the Thousand Islands, with the camp’s main focus on encouraging interactions between the peoples of the United States and Canada ⁵ It was not until 1872, that Reverend Dayan really began to form his ideas and for two years worked to gain support for the project from various people. In 1874, Dayan was ready to get the approval of the plan from his colleagues and superiors. At the spring meeting of Methodist leaders in Carthage, New York at the Northern New York Conference of the Methodist Church, Reverend Dayan garnered enough support to a plan an excursion in the Thousand Islands in August of 1874. The purpose of the visit was to find a site for the future camp grounds. The visit happened as planned with 50 clergymen and laymen from both Canada and the United States meeting in Alexandria Bay to find a site. The large group really only viewed one site, Victoria Point, located on Wellesley Island- today known as Westminster Park. It was concluded by the group that another visit would be needed to explore other sites. A committee of 11 were chosen to view other locations and to establish connections with the ship routes and rail lines. The second visit occurred in September of the same year. This time the smaller group found the perfect spot. It was located also on Wellesley Island, just on the opposite end of the island away from Victoria Point.⁶

Within the first year of existence the Thousand Island Camp Meeting Association had not only purchased the land on Wellesley Island but they had constructed a “dining hall,” a shop and warehouse, a trustee’s office, and constructed a tabernacle tent. The Association decided to sell lots 40×80 feet to subscribers and those interested in purchasing a lot within the community. The first lots were sold June 9, 1875 and all were sold, meaning more of the land had to be surveyed and created into more lots to sell. Lot owners established shelters, mostly tents but a number of the lot holders built crude cottages. Attendees of the summer camp had opportunities to listen to daily sermons, lectures, and attend meetings.⁷

From there the Park community grew steadily and was transformed from a “tent city” to a permanent village of residences. During the 1880’s the Park saw management changes and a shift in focus from a campground to a Christian summer resort. Other developments within the community signifying this shift included the Thousand Island Camp Meeting Association changing their name to the Thousand Island Park Association in 1879. Then in 1881, Reverend Dayan resigned from the Thousand Island Park Association and that same year the Association began planning for the construction of a grand hotel. The Park newspapers also reflect these changes were in the 1880’s advertisements could be seen for schools such as Bordentown Female College, Ives Seminary, Syracuse University, and Cazenovia Seminary, along with advertisements for the Pulpit Bible. These types of advertisements slowly gave way to those for hotels, Dey Brothers Co. grocery store, and Watertown Boat and Canoe Co.⁸

Hotels in the Park

The construction of the Thousand Island Park Hotel lasted from 1881-83 and was designed by architect Noah Dillenbeck. The hotel was four stories tall with a three story colonnade surrounding the hotel along with a central tower with a mansard roof. The hotel had a Second Empire Style feel to it with its mansard roof, bracketed balconies, and french windows. This hotel lasted until August 21, 1890 when it burned down within 45 minutes, killing one person and destroying 13 other buildings. The Association decided to rebuild the hotel and by 1892, the Columbian Hotel was open for business on the same site as the previous hotel. The Columbian was designed by Syracuse architect, Archimedes Russell. The hotel was also four floors and could accommodate 300-400 people. While the Thousand Island Park Hotel had a distinctive architectural style, the Columbian did not and had a picturesque castle feel to it.⁹ The Thousand Island Park Hotel and the Columbian were two of the many hotels dotted along the Thousand Islands offering accommodations to the growing numbers of summer people.

The popularity of Thousand Island Park as a summer destination meant the Columbian was frequently packed with guests. By 1902, the Park Association had already begun to discuss and plans for another hotel in the community. A 1902 news article in the Watertown Reunion, estimated that the new hotel would be completed during the summer of 1903 for $15,000 and would be located on the site of the New England Dining Room.¹⁰ The Hotel Wellesley was completed in June of 1903 and located at the corner of Rainbow and St. Lawrence Avenue, diagonally from the Columbian adding to the commercial center of Thousand Island Park.

The Wellesley Hotel was different in appearance from the Columbian’s picturesque castle. In the documents related to the Wellesley, the architect is never named but they were inspired by the neoclassical style that was in vogue throughout the nation after the Chicago World Fair. The three-story structure’s most prominent feature is the wrap-around porch veranda on the first floor with a balcony porch above that supported by Tuscan columns that also wraps around the south and east facades. There are Georgian prototype dormers spaced around the roof. The Wellesley Hotel added another 40 rooms for guests to rent during their stay in the Park.¹¹ The Association leased the hotel to Mr. and Mrs. W. P. Rogers, the first proprietors.¹² The first floor of the hotel consisted of a main entrance on the east facade to the hotel that lead into the hotel’s lobby with main access to the upper floors, along with a dining room and parlor. Within the first year of the hotel being opened, the first floor of the Wellesley Hotel was used for the 22^nd Reunion of the 14^th New York Heavy Artillery in 1904.¹³

When you walk through the screen doors of the east facade of the Hotel, you enter into the lobby area. The stairs that are visible are the main staircase that leads to the upper floors.

This key rack is located in the lobby of the Hotel and while all the keys may not be original the rack and numbering is.

The Hotel as you can guess does not have a lot of interior lighting options. The Hotel can be seem very dark given that it’s sunny outside.

A view of the other side of the dining hall where there is built in cabinetry. Other awesome details include the original lights and the tin-pressed ceiling.

The Wellesley Hotel does not feature often in the local papers but it can be assumed business was as usual during the summer with both the Columbian and Wellesley Hotels being in operation in the early years of the 20^th century. All of that changed on June 9, 1912. In the mid-afternoon, a fire had broken out in the store of H. H. Haller. What exactly caused the fire is unclear since the shop actually was closed for the day because of a funeral. The fire quickly spread and grew beyond the capabilities of the Thousand Island Park residents and fire brigade. The Columbian Hotel caught fire, spreading the flames through the eastern portion of the community. By the time the flames had been put out by the efforts of the residents and the help of Clayton and Alexandria Bay’s fire departments, the Columbian was completely destroyed, along with Haller’s store, three schools, a chapel, and 98 cottages. 500 people were homeless and the losses in the community were estimated at $500,000.

It was reported by local papers that the hotel would be rebuilt and that there would be “a better Columbian than ever next season.”¹⁴ Even with sensationalized news about the fire and the fact that the “…fire practically wiped out this famous summer outing place,” as stated in 1912 article about the disaster entitled “Terrible Holocaust,” the community survived and so did the Wellesley Hotel. In local papers, it was reported that the Wellesley was saved by the quick thinking of 17 year old, Paul Crouch, who stayed on the hotel’s roof, wrapped in wet blankets, to shovel off burning shingles. Crouch was finally relived by other residents and was unconscious for several hours after; Crouch did survive.¹⁵

A year after the fire, the Wellesley Hotel had minor renovations, to equip and update portions of the structure with to follow newly established fire code requirements including fire escapes and ensuring the doors would swing outwards.¹⁶ The hotel continued to be the main hotel at the Thousand Island Park, the Columbian was never rebuilt. The Columbian fire marks the beginning of the slow decline of not only Thousand Island Park but the region as a premier summer destination.

Throughout the 1910’s the Thousand Islands saw a decline due to a variety of reasons, including multiple large fires that destroyed a number of the popular hotels, such as the Columbian and the Frontenac on Round Island. These hotels were at times considered the social center of the Thousand Islands and after they burned in 1911 and 1912. The growing popularity of the automobile and lack of good roads to reach the Thousand Islands also negatively affected the region. The automobile allowed people to travel freely and not be limited to one area during the entire summer season. The deaths of the wealthiest summer people, including George Pullman, helped add in the lack of interest in the Thousand Islands. Political issues also put a damper on ability and means to visit summer resort areas especially World War I, which put an end of the popular steamboats because of government uses and shortages of supplies. This was followed by the stock market crash of 1929 and followed by the Great Depression that followed.¹⁷

In 1922, the Thousand Island Park Association made plans to build another floor to the Wellesley Hotel that would have added an additional 20 rooms. It is unclear what happened but the addition was never constructed given that photos of the Wellesley only ever show it as a three-story structure.¹⁸ This also indicates the financial problems the region was facing and the decline of vacationers during the summer months. The Wellesley finally closed for good in the early 1930’s during the Great Depression. The hotel was only used for special events and occasions during the years until the 1980’s when it was finally reopened by James A. Finger. The opening of the Wellesley Hotel allowed the property to be used again for accommodations and as a restaurant.¹⁹ Since then the Hotel has remained in business owned by the Thousand Island Park Corporation and leased to proprietors to run the hotel and restaurant.

This is the north-south wing of the 2nd floor of the Hotel. The rooms on this wing are used for a number of small, locally owned shops.

This is the east-west hallway of the 2nd floor of the Hotel. The guest rooms are located in this wing.

The Wellesley Hotel currently has five suites/rooms available for guests to stay in. While visiting in August I stayed in The Narrows suite, which has two bedrooms and a bathroom. It was the only one available at the time.

The rooms of The Narrows suite are connected via the bathroom. All of the former guest rooms of the Wellesley Hotel are connected like this.

The third floor of the Wellesley Hotel still needs to be renovated like the lower floors have been. The Thousand Island Park Corporation is in the process of making the restoration work a reality.

The attic of the Hotel would have been used probably for housing employees during the summer months. Some of the wooden beams have “graffiti.”

Another bit of “graffiti” in the attic. The last time I was in the attic of the Hotel was in 2013, while I was an intern for the Thousand Island Park Landmark Society.

Conclusion

The Thousand Island Park was listed as a historic district because the community is an outstanding collection of substantially intact late nineteenth and early twentieth century resort architecture. The Wellesley Hotel has been a landmark within the community of Thousand Island Park since its doors first opened in 1903. The hotel highlights the past and the changes the summer community went through as a Methodist summer camp community that evolved into a premier summer resort. Thousand Island Park as a whole reflects the historic changes that occurred throughout the entire region from 1870 to 1915, a period that is known as the Gilded Age. The Wellesley Hotel is in every way, a significant part of that story, surviving terrible fires and the community’s economical hardships, to exist today as the last remaining Gilded Age hotel within Thousand Island Park and the region as a whole.

Fast forward to today, the Part 1 of the Historic Preservation Certificate Application was officially approved by the National Park Service in November 2017. This means that should the owner of the Wellesley Hotel move forward with their plans on renovation of the upper floors of the Hotel, Parts 2 and 3 of the Certificate Application would need to be completed. Those parts are in regards to the actual proposed work through documentation of the current conditions of the Hotel and then the Hotel after the work has been completed.

References 

1Susan Smith, The First Summer Peoples: The Thousand Islands 1650-1910 (Erin, Ont.: Boston Mills Press, 1993), 82.

2Laurie Ann Nulton, “The Golden Age of the Thousand Islands: Its People and its Castles” (M.A. diss., Georgetown University, 1981) 10.

3Stephen J. Hornsby, “The Gilded Age and the Making of Bar Harbor,” Geographical Review 83 no. 4 (1993): 455, http://www.jstor.org/stable/215826 (accessed April 9, 2016).

4 Helen Jacox and Eugene Kleinhans, Thousand Island Park: One Hundred Years, and Then Some, A Centennial Year History; with “The Study, Architecture of Thousand Island Park,”by Paul Malo (Valhalla Printing Co. T.I.P. N.Y.., 1975 by the Centennial Book Project, Thousand Island Park, New York), 27.

5Jacox and Kleinhans, Thousand Island Park, 27.

6Ibid

7Jacox and Kleinhans, Thousand Island Park, 29.

8Jacox and Kleinhans, Thousand Island Park, 78.

9Jacox and Kleinhans, Thousand Island Park, 223.

10“Another Summer Hotel to be Built at 1000 Island Park,” Watertown Reunion, July 26, 1902.

11Jacox and Kleinhans, Thousand Island Park, 223.

12“Improvements at Thousand Island Park,” Watertown Reunion, June 10, 1903.

13“A Successful Reunion Veteran’s of 14^th Heavy Artillery at TI Park,” Watertown Reunion, July 16, 1904.

14“Terrible Holocaust,” Watertown Re-Union, July 13, 1912.

15“$500,000 Fire Sweeps Thousand Island Park,” The Summary, July 13, 1912.

16“Better Protection: Fire Marshall Issues Sweeping Mandate,” Cape Vincent Eagle, June 19, 1913.

17Susan W. Smith, A History of Recreation in the 1000 Islands, (St. Lawrence Islands Nation Park: Parks Canada, 1976), http://www.oliverkilian.com/ecology/thousand-islands/island-insights/recreation/recreation.html#Hotels and Resorts (accessed August 8, 2016).

18“The Hotel News,” The Hotel World: The Hotel and Travelers Journal 95 (1922), https://books.google.com/books?num=13&id=aNVLAQAAMAAJ&q=thousand+island+park#v=snippet&q=thousand%20island%20park&f=false (accessed August 9, 2017), 25.

19Roswell P. Trickey, “Hotel, Closed 30 Years, Opens,” Watertown Daily Times, August 25, 1984.