Building community
The scene was similar to an old fashioned barn raising, as between 20 and 30 volunteers grabbed tools and put the siding on the barn behind the Kiersted House. The actual raising of the barn was completed last year, but on Saturday, April 27, the barn siding went up, and it was nearly completed within...
Old Dutch Barn workday this weekend
The Saugerties Historical Society will have volunteers at the Kiersted house on Saturday, April 27 building the walls of the Dutch barn restoration project starting at 7 a.m. and going until… it’s done. The public is asked not to attempt to drive in the back that day: the entrance will be blocked for the safety...
Group forming to save Dragon Inn
A group of residents led by Saugerties Chamber of Commerce chair Mark Smith would like to purchase the Dragon Inn and save it from the bulldozer. “We saw it done by residents who wanted to save the Saugerties Lighthouse, and we saw it again when history buffs organized to save the Kiersted House from being...
Dragon Inn historic status debated
The battle between historic preservations and property-rights advocates over the status of the Dragon Inn grew heated last week, as village trustee Terry Parisian accused the village’s Historic Review Board of “telling people what an individual can do with their property.” After the speakers were through, Review Board chair Richard Frisbie decided to keep the...
Workday set for Dutch Barn siding
Volunteers continue to come forward to help complete the Historical Society’s barn project at the Kiersted House on Main St. A workday is planned for Saturday, April 27 starting at 7 a.m. The plan is to have the barn sided by sundown. It’s taken about 10 years for the historical society to get to this...
Dutch barn nears completion
Fundraising to finish the old Dutch barn at the Kiersted House has kicked into high gear. Organizers hope to raise $5,000 to put up walls onto the historic structure in the next few months. The catalyst was an exhibit of photos from last year’s July 4 parade that a group of local photographers wanted to...
The fight to keep Dragon Inn standing
The race is on. The village Historic Review Board decided today to redesignate Clovelea (the Dragon Inn) a historic landmark after the village attorney said the original 2007 designation would not hold up in court. At the same time, the owner of the property is requesting a demolition permit. In any event, the issue seems...
Dragon Inn demolition likely
A battle between the village’s Historic Review Board and the owner of a 19th-century mansion over a proposed demolition may have became a moot point last week. A review by a state official and the village attorney found the Dragon Inn’s historic designation wasn’t done properly, clearing the way for a demolition permit. According to...
Local filmmakers plan Opus 40 documentary
Opus 40, with its vast terraces and unexpected pools and hypnotic sense of design and layering, is an American masterpiece. Architectural Digest’s Brendan Gill called it “the greatest earthwork sculpture I have ever seen.” Now, two Saugerties natives, Ed Gerrard and Peter Himberger, are working on a documentary about the work. “You’re not going to...
Tojo’s colors in Saugerties?
Among the souvenirs soldiers brought home from World War II were Japanese prayer flags. Many of them were personal, inscribed with prayers or wishes of the soldiers they belonged to. Two of these flags that were once part of the historical collection at Lamouree-Hackett American Legion Post 72 in Saugerties have been returned to relatives...
Shedding light on a Civil War cemetery
History buffs love to uncover local treasures hidden in plain sight. For Kyle Melick, a 17-year-old senior at Saugerties High School, and a member of Boy Scout Troop 135 in Glasco, that little bit of fate or magic brought him together with Bob Chappelle of the American Legion Lamouree-Hackett Post 72. Melick is going for...
Moving the old Dutch Barn
It’s amazing what can happen when you ask for help. In the case of the Saugerties Historical Society and the restoration of the old Dutch barn at the Kiersted House, it resulted in a $10,000 federal grant to put a roof on it, and a load of old beams and siding from a state Senator....