The Historical Society of the Nyacks is a local nonprofit organization. We host programs, exhibits an
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Marydell Faith and Life Center in Upper Nyack provided summer camps for inner-city kids during and after the Depression, offering them fresh air, nature, education, and religious experiences. In 1937, over a hundred children, along with mothers and working girls, got the chance to spend at least a w...
Kathie Bennewitz, Executive Director of the Edward Hopper House Museum & Study Center on North Broadway in Nyack, highlights that Edward Hopper, renowned for his portrayal of houses, had roots in just one—the very house found in Nyack. The impact of Hopper’s formative years in Nyack on his ico...
As Christmas approached 150 years ago, foggy days and nights compelled the closure of steamboat travel to Haverstraw. The roads just outside Nyack consisted of deep, soft mud. Unlike the previous year when two feet of snow fell before Christmas, the warm weather in 1873 made ice skating perilous. Tr...
In 1826, the audacious notion of a village of just two hundred souls embarking on the construction of a steamboat raised eyebrows. Yet, the completion of the Nyack Turnpike opened up new horizons, ushering fresh opportunities for shipping goods from Nyack to New York City. However, the formidable st...
The Tappan Zee Playhouse, housed within a historic 1911 movie theater located at the corner of South Broadway and Church Street, drew crowds to downtown Nyack from 1958 to 1976. This venue hosted a constellation of Broadway and Hollywood luminaries, including household names such as Helen Hayes, She...
75 years ago in 1948, a huge fire destroyed the old Smithsonian Hall, a famous landmark near the Nyack docks. Its name harkens back to its more famous ancestor, the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC, that opened in 1846, thanks to a generous donation by a British Scientist named James Smithson...
In the brisk autumn of 1873, as leaves carpeted the streets of Nyack, a watershed moment unfolded in the history of the town. Hon. William Voorhis, a visionary leader, took the helm as the inaugural president of the Nyack Water Works Company earlier in 1873. This marked the dawn of a new era for Ny...
Note: My annual Veteran’s Day tribute to my parents and the Greatest Generation. Never forget! As I stand on Piermont Pier today at the Camp Shanks Memorial Plaque, I’m transported back to March 1, 1944, when my father, Capt. Ray Hays, weary from a grueling four-day train journey from California...
Recap In the previous parts of the history of the St. George Hotel, we examined its founding, learned about its founder, restauranteur George Bardin, and uncovered what life was like at the hotel. In this final segment, we look at the slow decline from its halcyon days, and then, its miraculous reco...
Hiking, Cycling, Coaching, & More Recap In the previous parts of this history of the St. George Hotel, we examined its origin, and learned about its founder, restauranteur George Bardin, and his famous meals. In this segment, we look at everyday life at the hotel with visits by hiking, cycling, and....
Bardin’s Famous Gilded Age Restaurant Recap In the heyday of Nyack, if you sought the pulse of the town, the St. George Hotel was the epicenter. Dating back to 1885, when Nyack was a favored summer retreat for affluent urbanites, this establishment, owned by the French-speaking George Bardin, offe...
Burd Street & the Birth of a Legend In the late 19th century, the epicenter of Nyack’s social scene was none other than the St. George Hotel. Founded in 1885 during Nyack’s zenith as a sought-after summer refuge for affluent urbanites, this establishment boasted the epitome of fine dining, curat...
In the 19th century, a wave of inns named Mansion House emerged across cities, towns, and villages, perhaps inspired by the grandeur of London’s Lord Mayor residence, also named the Mansion House. Nyack, a vibrant village, was no exception, boasting two distinct Mansion House hotels. These establi...
Opening on September 30, 2023
Standing at a mere 5’2”, Clarence Lexow earned the moniker of the “little Nyack Senator with amusing whiskers and a grand top hat.” Nevertheless, from 1894 onward, Lexow rose to national prominence as the head of a committee investigating police corruption within New York City’s Tammany Ha...
Nyack wears its history proudly, etched in the graceful lines of Victorian homes and the enduring façades of 19th-century brick structures. Yet, time, weather, and urbanization have claimed their share of Nyack’s treasures. One of the the greatest losses occurred within recent memory. For a decad...
Live from historic Jefferson Street! Please join us this Sunday (special street fair hours) for the final celebration and sale of Liza Altman’s paintings! 1-4pm
Back on August 24, 1911, the skies above Upper Nyack bore witness to a spectacular event when Harry Atwood’s biplane executed a daring emergency landing in a nearby field. This momentous occasion marked the first time the villagers had the privilege of gazing upon a magnificent flying machine. Atw...
Garret Henry Hopper, who went by “G.H. Hopper” in business and “Garry” among friends, bore the appearance of an Edwardian intellectual or a European revolutionary. Surprisingly, he spent 15 years as an underwear salesman. In 1890, when Edward was eight years old, his father acquired a dry go...
William Dickey’s handsome Carpenter Gothic at 16 First Avenue. Built approximately around 1850. The first three owners Dickey, Anthony D. Morford, and John Gesner were all bankers and prominent men in the village. Our latest exhibit includes Dickey’s house and more, artfully immortalized by local artists Liza Altman! This Saturday 1-4pm.
Come see Liza Altman’s tribute to Nyack’s built landscape. Open today! 1-4pm at the DePew HQ.
In 1923, in what can only be described as a mind-bogglingly crazy proposition, the Palisades Interstate Park Commission had the audacity to suggest mining the entire remaining Hook Mountain at Nyack Beach to create more parkland. Yes, you read that right, they actually thought it was a good idea to....
Special hours tonight 5:30-8p. Liz Altman gallery show and benefit for the Historical Society of the Nyacks. See Nyack in a new way. 50 Piermont Ave. Nyack. Enter through Library parking lot
Ah, the poetry of white houses in high summer (in this case the Polhemus house)! Join us for our second weekend celebrating Liza Altman’s painterly ode to Nyack’s historic homes. Mansards, second empires, carpenter gothics and more! This Saturday, you know where to find us ;)
Liza Altman Gallery exhibit and benefit sale. Historical Society of the Nyacks Framed watercolors of Nyack homes and businesses. Saturdays through August 26 1-4p 50 Piermont Avenue, enter through library parking lot
Long lost Hook Mountain Beach, once nestled in Rockland Lake Landing, has been overlooked for too long, often overshadowed by its more renowned counterpart, Nyack Beach. But back in the mid 1930s, Hook Mountain Beach was a bustling recreational paradise with a covered riverside carousel, a spacious....
50 Piermont Avenue Suite 1A
Nyack, NY
10960
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A cheeky rhyme featuring Nyack on The Firing Line with William F. Buckley and guest Friedrich Hayek (filmed November 7, 1977)
Old Nyack lore, autumn leaves, and riparian views. Thus concludes our 2023 Oak Hill Cemetery History Tour! Thank you to all attending guests! Until next year! Photos courtesy of attendees, @nickdukemedia @fancynancpants and @vent_trips #nyackny #nyack #uppernyack #southnyack #westnyack #victorianperiod #cemetery #gravesite #famousgraves #headstones #oldcemetery #hudsonvalley #lowerhudsonvalley #rocklandcounty #halloween #macabre #graveyard #graveyards #localhistory #nyackhistory #americanhistory
Nyack’s very own House of Usher, Judge Leo C. Dessar’s “Tower Lea.” Dessar was a much loved citizen and justice. In his later years he set out to build an ornate French Romanesque summer home. It had various storybook details (that would have rivaled @wildersteinhistoricsite ); a five story tower on the southwest corner (containing two observatories and cigar room) and a vast piazza that wrapped around 2/3 of the home. The Debaun Brothers built it to last with 24 inch thick basement walls and 20 inch thick lime mortar and plaster walls above. Records suggest it took over seven years to complete. Dessar sold it roughly a year before his passing in 1924. The initial deal with the notorious Pierre Bernard fell through in 1921. It was finally sold to Harry C. Lee in 1923 who resided their throughout the twenties and thirties. Records suggest it sat empty in the late thirties despite Lee maintaining ownership. Lee finally sold it in 1939 to Harry Turek, a Manhattan developer with a plan for “Tappan Zee Gardens”, a ten lot development of cottages. Mayor Gurnee and the board of trustees approved his plans, and thus resulted the swift dismantling of one of South Nyack’s finest riverfront estates. Curiously, the yellow Westerfeldt house (to the right of Dessar, now on Smith Avenue) remains exactly where it was when Dessar began building his estate. #hudsonvalley #historichomes #historicestates #historichouses #southnyack #nyack #piermont #hudsonvalleyhomes #bigoldhomes #antiquity #architecture #victorianarchitecture #lowerhudsonvalley #historicsite #orangetown #romanesquearchitecture #frenchromanesque #castle #bigoldhomes #oldestates #estates
Part 4 of 4 Oral history with founding President, Winston C. Perry. Topics include the Rockland Steamboat Company, John Van Houten, Upper Nyack’s “under the hill” section, and upward mobility amidst the forties and fifties. The countdown to our celebration of Win and Betty Perry during our Spring Benefit begins! For more information and tickets please visit our site or email nyackhistory.org. #nyack #uppernyack #rocklandcounty #nyackhistory #southnyack #uppernyack150th #localhistory #hudsonvalley #lowerhudsonvalley #clarkstown #orangetown #villageofnyack #vanhoutenslanding
Part 3 of 4 Oral History with founding President Winston C. Perry. As a trained architect, graduate of Yale and Berkeley, Win speaks of the Van Houten enclave’s architecture and sense of place — originally 32 fisherman cottages of which roughly 23 remain. We are celebrating Win and Betty Perry at this year’s Spring Benefit and awarding them with the lifetime Achievement award for their influential involvement in preserving Nyack and fostering both appreciation and community. Please visit our website to secure tickets and for further information or email [email protected] #nyackny #rocklandcounty #southnyack #uppernyack #westnyack #hudsonriver #lowerhudsonvalley #clarkstown #orangetown #nyack #localhistory #americanarchitecture #victorianperiod #piermont #grandviewonhudson
(Part 2/4) Oral History with founding President Winston C. Perry. Win speaks of the changing landscape of North Broadway, John Van Houten’s monopoly and shipyard, School Street, Hartel’s and more. #nyack #nyackny #rocklandcounty #uppernyack #southnyack #clarkstown #orangetown #rocklandcountyhistory #nyackhistory #nyacklibrary
(Part 2/4) Oral History with founding President Winston C. Perry. Win speaks of the changing landscape of North Broadway, John Van Houten’s monopoly and shipyard, School Street, Hartel’s and more. #nyack #nyackny #rocklandcounty #uppernyack #southnyack #clarkstown #orangetown #rocklandcountyhistory #nyackhistory #nyacklibrary
Marla Anzalona ‘Midnight Never Ends’
North Broadway
The John Green House - Nyack, NY
Main Street
