Hudson River Cruise, Kingston, New York - 18 June 2019
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| Kingston Pier at Rondbout Creek which is crossed by the Old US Route 9W bridge. |
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Rondout Lighthouse at the exit of Rondout Creek into the Hudson River. The original lighthouse was built in 1837 and was replaced with another which was made of sturdier bluestone. It too was replaced with this current building in 1915 and automated in 1957.
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Esopus Meadows Lighthouse, built in 1871, to warn of the nearby mud flats. The prior lighthouse was constructed in 1838 for $6,000. By 1867, it had been severely damaged by flood and ice. It is the only wooden lighthouse on the Hudson today and the only one with clapboard exterior.
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| Staatsburgh State Historic Site preserves the Beaux-Arts mansion design used by the same architects who designed the Vanderbilt home at Hyde Park. The first house constructed on this site in 1792 was a colonial-style house commissioned by the governor, Morgan Lewis, which burned down in 1832. After several renovations, the current design was completed in 1896 with 65 rooms, 14 bathrooms, and 23 fireplaces. Gilded-age, indeed. |
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| The Mount Academy was purchased in 2012 by the Bruderhof Communities as a high school for youth in their religious community. Originally founded in 1907 as Mount St. Alphonsus Seminary by the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, it began for theological studies and by the time of its closure had ordained some 1,300 deminarians as Catholic Priests. |
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| Wilderstein Historic Site, which is German for "wild stone" and a reference to the American Indian petroglyph found nearby and to reflect its historical significance. Three generations of the Suckley family have lived and remodeled the original Italianate villa into Queen Anne style country house. The last resident, Daisy Suckley, was a cousin of Franklin D. Roosevelt for whom she trained his famous terrier, Fala. |
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David, Cathy, Bob and I had boarded our cruise ship the Rip Van Winkle which was moored under the 'new' 9W highway bridge. The cruise ship turned around for the return trip after passing the Vanderbilt Mansion and Franklin D. Roosevelt Home & Library.
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| Right across the street was the Mariner's Harbor Seafood Restaurant where we decided to have dinner. |
Val Kill, Hyde Park, New York - 20 June 2019
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| Her main home from 1945 until her death in 1962 which she described as the place "where I used to find myself and grow." Two miles from the "big house", it was a place to gather family, friends and associates for picnics, walks in the woods, ride horses and swim. On the property, Eleanor and friends founded Val-Kill Industries as a social experiment designed to provide local farmers and their families with necessary crafting skills to supplement their incomes making furniture and pewter products. |
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| Val-Kill pond and the open fields used for picnics were the main attractions when Eleanor decided to build the cottage. |
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| The cottage room where Eleanor hosted friends and dignitaries. Behind the blue couch is the table and chairs where Democratic presidential nominee John F. Kennedy came to seek her support. She consented after he agreed to make civil rights part of his platform. |
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| A full wall of documents that were treasured by Eleanor. |
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| The dining room where simple meals were served to guests before retiring to the living room. Eleanor had her favorite chair and was never too far from her crocheting. |
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| Stained glass window on the front door of Eleanor's house. |
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| A flowering rose garden in raised beds. |
Birthday Dinner, Saugerties, New York - 21 June 2019
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| It's not often that we get our fancy clothes out but we cleaned up nicely for a special dinner out at Annarella Ristorante. Antipasto appettizer shared, then Bob had the wild boar while I had sea scallops (one of my favorites). Dessert was chocolate and vanilla gelato surrounding a cinnamon covered cherry and then all dipped in dark chocolate, sliced, plated and drizzled in chocolate. Oh, yes. It was a fine ending to a really good meal. |
Rhinebeck Crafts Festival, Dutchess County Fairgrounds, New York - 22 June 2019
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| An afternoon of local arts and crafts with nearly 225 booths. Jewlery, leather goods, paintings, drawings, photography, furniture, gourmet specialties, metal, clay, glass and wood. |
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| Several distilleries and winery samples later. Good weather and a fine, well mannered crowd made for the perfect afternoon. |
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| Some artists did demonstrations of their craft like weaving. Also entertainment for the children including a puppet playhouse. |
United States Military Academy West Point, New York - 23 June 2019
The Academy is a four-year federal service academy originally established in 1801 by President Thomas Jefferson that sits on strategic high ground overlooking the Hudson River 50 miles north of New York City. During the Revolutionary War, the Continental Army occupied the area on 27 January 1778 making it the oldest continuously operating Army post in the country. While the fortifications were known as Fort Arnold during the war, as commander, Benedict Arnold committed his treasonous act of attempting to sell the fort to the British. The Army changed the name to Fort Clinton.
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| The Museum was opened to the public in 1854 and is the oldest military museum in the country. Notable items on display are George Washington's pistols, Napolean's sword, a dagger carried by Hermann Goring when he was captured after Germany's surrender during WWII, his revolver and a silver-plated party book signed by Charles Lindbergh, Herbert Hoover and Mussolini. The most prized artifact on display is a gold-plated pistol that belonged to Adolph Hitler. |
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| Overlooking the Hudson River, the fortifications provided an excellent view of ships passing below thus allowing the Army to prevent the British from sailing up the river and dividing the colonies. |
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| Notable alumni and the tradition of tossing hats at graduation. |
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| Bob tries his hand in the marksman's arena. |
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| Besides the academic requirements, all cadets must attend religious services. This is the interior of the first "chapel" that all cadets attended when class size could be accommodated.Above is the organ and about one fourth of the 23,511 pipes installed around the outer walls. This chapel replaced the Old Cadet Chapel which was built in 1836. The Old Cadet Chapel was deconstructed and relocated at the entrance to the West Point Cemetery. |
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| The stained glass windows at opposite ends of the chapel. Fun Fact: Visitors are asked not to touch the hymnals or service books. They are laid out in exacting straight lines reminiscent of soldiers. |
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| Exterior of the the gothic revival archecture, with its cross-shaped floor plan, soaring arches and ornate stone carvings. |
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| The fancy multicolumned marker for Major General Daniel Buford (composer of Taps) and a bona fide pyramid guarded by two sphynxes is the final resting place for Brigadier General Egbert Viele, chief engineer who oversaw the construction and development of New York City's Central Park (and had a passion of ancient Egyptian history). More notable but less ostentacious interments are: Major General Robert Anderson, Commander of Fort Sumter; Brevet Major General George Armstrong Custer, killed at the Battle of Little Big Horn; General Herbert Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr., commander of coalition forces in the Gulf War; Lieutenant Colonel Ed White, first American to make a space walk, killed in the Apollo I fire on 27 January 1967 and many more. |
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| The "S" curve combined with winds, tides and currents where ships were required to slow their speed to navigate the passage. Creating more obstructions on the river allowed the shore batteries to work their cannons against the enemy. The Continental Army needed a way to stop British ships from sailing up the Hudson. |
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| One method was The Great Chain utilized from 1778-1782. Each spring the chain was reset across the river. When finally completed, the chain was 600 yards long containing huge link, each 2 feet long and weighing 114 pounds. Including swivels, clevises and anchors, the chain weighed 65 tons. After the war, the majority of the chain was sent to the West Point Foundry furnaces to be melted for other purposes. The saved chain, thirteen links representing the original colonies, is displayed at Trophy Point. |
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| Statue of George Washington outside Washington's Hall front entrance, a cadet dormitory. |
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| Dwight David Eisenhower, outside the Pershing Barracks clocktower, West Points oldest barracks. |
Statue of Hannibal - that's the mule, not the rider. Hannibal was the longest serving official Army mule from 1947-1964 and the mule continues to be the Army's mascot.
