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Published by the University Press of
New England in association with the Center for American Places and
with the generous support of Futhermore, a program of the
J. M. Kaplan
Fund.
[312 pp. 230 illus. 7 x 10”]
Cloth, 1-58465-598-4. [$35.00]
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An elegant homage to the many deserted buildings along the Hudson
River—and a
plea for their survival
Countless books
have been published on the historical sites of the
Hudson River Valley. But these books
have focused over and over again
on the best-known, best-preserved places. Every bit
as valuable are
dozens of other historical sites that haven’t
fared as well. Many of these
buildings are
listed on the National Register of Historical Places, and a
few are even
National Historical Landmarks. But in
spite of their
significance, these
structures have been allowed to decay, and in some
cases, to disappear
altogether.
In
an effort to raise awareness for their plight, Hudson Valley Ruins offers
the
reader a long overdue glimpse at some of the region’s forgotten
cultural
treasures. In addition to great river estates,
the book profiles sites
more
meaningful to everyday life in the Valley: Churches and hotels,
commercial
and civic buildings, mills and train stations. Included are
works
by some of the most important names in
American architectural
history,
such as Alexander Jackson Davis and
Calvert Vaux.
Divided into four
parts that correspond to the upper, middle, maritime, and
lower sections
of the Hudson Valley, sites have been
selected for their general
historical
and architectural significance; their
relationship to important
themes
in the region’s history; their physical condition or “rustic”
character;
and their ability to demonstrate a particular threat faced by
historical
buildings in the region today. The Dutch
Reformed Church at
Newburgh
tells the story of the Valley’s oldest religious
group; the Luckey
Platt
department store in Poughkeepsie was for decades the “leading
Store
of the Hudson Valley;” and the ruins of the West Point Foundry at
Cold
Spring are all that remain of what was
once one of the river’s most
important
industries. Taken together, these places
present a broad picture
of
the region’s past that is relevant to its present and future. |
More
than 200 black-and-whte illustrations include historic photos, engravings, and plans, as
well as the authors’ contemporary images.
This array of art captures the rustic quality that makes these places so
compelling. At once an extensive overview of the
region’s historical built environment and a plea for
the survival of these dilapidated structures, Hudson Valley Ruins is
a powerful chronicle of, and memorial to,
change.
"The diversity of subject matter encompassed in these engaging, fluent
annals and the way in which they appear somehow to distil and make accessible
the complex history of man's presence on the shorelands of the Hudson River,
is truly admirable. . . With the wide and energized readership that it
deserves, this book should help ensure that many of these and other endangered
structures abide with us, and enrich our lives for many years to come."
~ John Winthrop Aldrich, Advisor, Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area
(Excerpted from the Foreword)
"This book will be of interest to all
who have an interest in the Hudson River and region, industrial archaeology,
architectural history and preservation, land use and regional planning, and
economic and transportation history. The book is highly accurate, well reasoned
and articulated, thoroughly researched and documented and will be useful for
reference as well as general reading."
~
Arthur Adams, author, The Hudson Through the Years and
The Hudson
River Guidebook
"Hudson Valley Ruins is a thoroughly researched, well documented, and skillfully written account of
vestiges of all sorts of architecture along the Hudson from New
York to Albany. The authors guide us to often out-of-the-way locations to ponder the fate of structures built to vanished purposes. Together with and informative catalogue of historic sites, Hudson Valley Ruins thoughtfully reveals how derelict buildings recollect economic and cultural forces that shaped the history and landscape of America's most celebrated and beautiful river."
~
Francis R. Kowsky, SUNY Distinguished Professor, Buffalo State College
"Ruins have always fascinated us with their power to open windows into vanished worlds. In this book, informative prose and evocative photographs show us that the crumbling remains of the Hudson Valley's past, from 18th-century farmhouses to 20th-century factories, can be just as interesting and haunting as those of ancient Egypt and Rome."
~
Richard Moe, President, National Trust for Historic Preservation
“The most beautiful and historical of America's big waterways, the
Hudson River has for almost four centuries reflected the political and
economic development of an entire continent. Hudson Valley Ruins tells of the
factories, railroad stations, quaint estates, department stores, brickyards
and other historic structures near its banks that are now threatened by
redevelopment and argues elegantly and persuasively that we need to save them.
Bravo." ~ Kenneth T. Jackson, Jacques Barzun Professor of History,
Columbia University
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