Zeta Beta Tau Frat House Fire
Date: May 9, 1957Location: 1 Edgecliff Place, IthacaAround six in the morning on May 9th, 1957, the 37 fraternity brothers at the Zeta Beta Tau Frat House woke up to a blaring fire alarm. The fire was said to have originated from a mattress left out on a sun deck, and the flames spread through the insulation in the roof to the rest of the house. The fire was put out relatively quickly by the Ithaca Fire Department, but Chief Frank Stamp was seriously affected by smoke inhalation and the intense heat. He was transported to the hospital for medical treatment. Despite the quick response, the roof and attics suffered extensive damage. Luckily the lower floors remained untouched by flames, although not by smoke and water damage.For two of the fraternity brothers, this was not the first time they had been forced from their rooms by a fire. David Hirsch and Howard London had been rooming in the Wind and Waves Hotel in April of the same year when a fire ripped through the building, displacing its residents. A month later, in the rush to escape the frat house, Hirsch managed to grab a single personal possession: his copy of the Ithaca Journal that had described the fire in the Wind and Waves hotel.Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
Africana Studies and Research Center Fire
Date: April 1, 1970Location: 320 Wait Avenue, IthacaAround one in the morning, a circuit breaker at the Africana Studies and Research Center on Cornell's campus alerted the authorities to an ongoing fire. The fire, according to police, most likely started on the ground floor, and then spread throughout the building. The resulting damages were valued around $100,000. As well as the building and furnishings, the fire consumed irreplaceable research materials and the work of many professors and graduate students. The center was temporarily relocated to a dormitory near North Campus. In the aftermath, director Dr. James Turner negotiated with the Cornell administration for a new building, and the presence of security around buildings used by the Black community. The fire was investigated by Cornell and by the local police as “suspicious.” The authorities at the time refused to definitively declare the fire an act of arson. The fire occurred in the midst of demonstrations and counter-demonstrations focused on the discrimination and racism experienced by Black Cornell students. The attitude amongst student activist groups, Africana Center staff and students, and Cornell’s Black Liberation Front, was that the fire at the Center was the most recent in a series of attacks on the Black community. To consider the fire as anything less endangered the safety and property of Black people in Ithaca, and further marginalized the rights of non-white students. Recently, there had been fires at both the Southside Community Center and Wari House, a cooperative that housed primarily Black female students. The media considered the Wari House fire "simple" vandalism. Dr. Turner made clear in his statement that it was an attack on the lives of the women inside. He claimed in this statement that gasoline flares had been thrown at the doors of the house to prevent the women from leaving, but this comment garnered the ire of the press in the backlash to what was considered “violent” protests by Black students. A response column in the Daily Sun wrote that Dr. Turner had exaggerated the event to incite anger at the white assailants. The authorities found evidence of only one, unlit kerosene lamp thrown by the front door, which was treated as evidence of Dr. Turner's exaggeration. This fire hit highlighted the imbalance of the press coverage on white and Black student demonstrations. Even the Ithaca Journal spent more pages in the weeks following discussing Black students who had received restraining orders for breaking curfew, than the investigation into the outbreak of fires.Explore building records and maps for 320 Wait Avenue throughout the twentieth century on the HistoryForge Ithaca database: https://www.historyforge.net/buildings/3341Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
Morse Hall Fire
Date: February 13, 1916Morse Hall, home to Cornell's chemistry department, burned down one day before the start of the spring term.The fire may have started at the top of the building in the studio of J. P. Troy, the university photographer from 1900-1928. Professors and students formed a line and saved thousands of library books, valuable equipment, department records, and rare earth materials like radium and platinum. However, valuable manuscripts, research, and data, some dating back to the time of the university’s founding, were destroyed. J. P. Troy’s materials, negatives, and camera equipment were also lost. As the first person to hold the position of University Photographer, Troy had photographed Cornell events, sports games, campus views, and Cornell Library books and valuable documents for reference. At the time of the fire, chemistry was required for almost every student at Cornell. The fire had a big impact on students and their class schedules that semester. After the fire, Morse Hall’s top two floors were removed. The building was torn down in 1954 and renovated as a parking lot. Today the building site is home to the Johnson Museum of Art.Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
McGraw-Fiske Mansion fire
Date: December 7, 1906Location: 810 University Avenue, IthacaThe fire at Jennie McGraw’s McGraw-Fiske Mansion, inhabited by the Chi Psi fraternity, was a tragedy that caught the attention of the state of New York and continued to live in the memories of Ithacans and Cornellians for decades. The fire completely destroyed the mansion, and led to the deaths of four brothers and three firemen. The cause of the fire was reported as a pile of oiled rags at the bottom of the elevator shaft, which “spontaneously combusted.” The fire ripped upwards through the shaft and into all four floors of the mansion. Fire escapes and ladders were uncommon in houses at the time, and the Fiske Mansion was no exception. The two dozen men inside had to escape through windows, or try to fight their way down to the ground floor. Two men perished in the house, and two more escaped only to die from their injuries later that day. Three firemen were crushed by a collapsing stone wall later in the morning, still trying to fight the blaze. The stories of men from inside the house, trying to escape and save each other, are harrowing. The brothers tossed mattresses out of windows to break the fall when they jumped from the second or third floors, or held blankets for each other to act as safety nets. Others crawled along the edge of the roof to shimmy down the drainpipe, and still others tied sheets together as rope to climb to safety. The night was also full of stories of roommates and friends trying to help each other, such as in the case of Oliver LeRoy Schmuck, who escaped out his window, and then returned for his roommate, Billy Nichols. He searched the house for his friend before finally giving up. He leapt from the window, his clothes on fire. Nichols was never found, and Schmuck died a few hours later from his injuries.Explore building records and maps for 810 University Ave throughout the twentieth century on the HistoryForge Ithaca database: https://www.historyforge.net/buildings/3530Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
Chapter House Fire
Date: April 14, 2015Location: 400-402 Stewart Avenue, IthacaThe Chapter House and an adjacent apartment building (406 Stewart Ave) were consumed by a fire that began at approximately 4:30am. The bottom floor of the Chapter House was an iconic pub and bar, famous for hosting performances from many national and local bands. It was the oldest bar in Collegetown, a fixture of the club scene, and a hub for Cornell students, alumni, professors. The building, constructed sometime before 1910, started as a single-story block house that contained several businesses, including a tailor, tobacco shop, pool hall, and a confection shop. Around 1927, the drinking establishment Jim’s Place took over the building, and later became known as The Chapter House at Jim’s Place during the 1960's. After a brief closure and stint as an ice cream parlor in the 1980's, the building reopened as The Chapter House. This iteration of The Chapter House operated as a pub and a brewery, until they stopped their own brewing in the 1990's. After the fire, the building was demolished in October 2015. The owners then rebuilt the Chapter House building, modelling the facade after pictures from the early 1900s—the vaunted roof, brick, and windows all mimicking the original facade.Explore building records and maps for 400 Stewart Ave throughout the twentieth century on the HistoryForge Ithaca database: https://www.historyforge.net/buildings/2536Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.]LISTEN HERE
McCormick Warehouse Fire
Date: May 28, 1840Location: 206 Owego Street (now East State Street), IthacaFrank Atwater was the owner of a theater on Owego St. (now E. State St.) in the early nineteenth century. The theater was located behind a jewelry store, and never saw much business, so he converted it into a billiards hall. Fights frequently broke out at Frank's bar, which some attribute to Ithaca's reputation for high liquor consumption. A little after midnight, a bar fight turned ugly, and chairs and lamps were swung and overturned. In the commotion, a fire began in the billiards hall. The fire spread down the streets, burning over thirty buildings. Tragically, many of these buildings had been recently rebuilt after a fire in 1833. Among these buildings was a warehouse owned by a Mr. McCormick, giving the 1840 fire its name.The authorities offered a $1,000 reward to anyone who found the men responsible for the fight. The catastrophe of the fire shook Ithaca residents, who demanded that another fire company be organized. In 1842, Fire Company No. 4 was organized, and new engines purchased for the protection of the village. Soon after the fire, Henry Walton painted the scene on a banner for the fireman’s parade, depicting young boys and men in tophats helping to put out the fire, and especially to save the Ithaca Hotel across the street from the bar. The banner is on display in the Exhibit Hall of The History Center in Tompkins County. Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins CountyLISTEN HERE
Ithaca High School Fire (Now DeWitt Mall)
Date: February 14, 1912Location: 215 North Cayuga Street, IthacaEarly in the morning, a “laborer” passing by noticed smoke coming from the windows of the high school. He went to the police headquarters to raise the alarm, and soon after, the Ithaca Fire Department responded. Much to the firefighters’ dismay, the cold weather had frozen the fire hydrants and prevented them from pumping any water. Quick to problem solve, they built small fires to melt the ice that prevented access to the water line. Although this step proved successful, they discovered that the water pressure was too low to be effective at extinguishing the fire. The focus turned to rescuing what could be saved from the fire: a new time clock that rang the bell between classes, irreplaceable student records, and a music teacher’s favorite mug, made for her by her students. At seven in the morning, the walls of the building collapsed completely onto Cayuga St. The crowd of onlookers watched as the school fell, with an atmosphere more approriate for funeral. One teacher, however, was overheard commenting that although it was sad to watch the building burn, “It was the most inconvenient place I ever taught in.”Explore building records and maps for 215 North Cayuga Street throughout the twentieth century on the HistoryForge Ithaca database: https://www.historyforge.net/buildings/17Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
The Dark Legacy of the Franklin House
Date:Location: 102 West State Street, IthacaFew fires have a history as long and sordid, and filled with crime and superstition and vigilante justice as the fire at the Franklin House in 1845. The story begins back in 1818, when Luther Gere, proprietor of the Ithaca Hotel, built the Columbia Inn on the corner of Owego and Cayuga. The hotel attracted clientele of a less respectable status than Luther was used to at the Ithaca Hotel. Among the less respectable included a couple named Guy and Fanny Clark, who came to stay the night one hot August evening in 1831. Guy had met Fanny when they worked as school teachers in Pennsylvania. He fought in the War of 1812, and returned a changed man, with a reputation as a drunkard.Guy Clark checked into the hotel in the evening, and by morning had swung an axe through his wife’s head. Guy Clark was quickly arrested and in February of 1832 became the first person to be executed by hanging in Ithaca. A reported 20,000 people came to witness the execution. Guy was buried in Fall Creek but before morning the body had disappeared, alledgedly snatched by doctors wishing to study the body and brain of a murderer.After the murder, the Columbia Inn struggled to attract patrons, and Luther Gere tore down the building. The land and lumber from the inn was bought by a Mr. Carson to build a tavern. Ithacans knew where the lumber had come from and refused to patronize the tavern, so Mr. Carson decided to sell the building to a Mr. Franklin who wanted to open the Franklin House. Still, the tavern did not do much business and failed to attract respectable customers. Passerby would cross the street to avoid coming too close. The superstition proved prescient. In 1841, the site played a prominent role in another murder, this time of a shoemaker named John Jones, further souring the reputation of the building site.The situation finally came to a head in June of 1845. According to local memory, two men were overheard in the Franklin House bar discussing their plans to commit a murder. Only a few days later, someone set fire to a stack of hay in the stables, igniting a fire that would burn down the entire block. Who set this fire, and whether it was to help or prevent this murder plot, is unknown. Unlike many fires viewed as tragic accidents, this razing was thought to have cleansed the street of the evil energy and mystery of the past twenty years. Explore building records and maps for 102 W State Street throughout the twentieth century on the HistoryForge Ithaca database: https://www.historyforge.net/buildings/6944Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
Common Ground Fire
Date: June 30, 1988Location: 132-4 West State Street, IthacaA fire that started at 6:00 am burned for nearly the whole day and destroyed the popular nightclub and bar Common Ground, at 132-134 W. State Street. Firefighters determined the official cause to be a burning mattress on the third floor. However, some local community members believed it to be arson, due to an unexplained ten foot hole in the dance floor and fire in the basement. A candlelight vigil was held the night of the fire to commemorate Common Ground.Founded by gay couple Doug Miller and Kris Marshall in 1978, Common Ground was a fixture in the LGTQ+ community and well-known for its salsa nights. The owners themselves did not classify it as a gay bar and emphasized that everyone was welcome. As Miller himself stated: “The whole purpose behind naming it ‘Common Ground’ was to bring in all different types of people from all different walks of life. Gay, straight, old, young, men, women, anything, all different types of occupations, students as well as townspeople — all in one place to have a fun time.” Following the fire, Common Ground relocated to Danby Road, and in 2008 the nightclub changed ownership and was renamed Oasis.Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
Early Firefighting in Ithaca
In 1828, a man named Phineus Bennet was commissioned by the town of Ithaca to build a log aqueduct running from Six Mile Creek to the corner of State and Tioga. This was part of a series of laws passed by the president of the village, Daniel Bates, to protect against fires. Other laws included building requirements for leather buckets to carry water in case of fire, as well as sanitation laws that prohibited pigs from running untethered in the streets. Fire protection was an important issue in the local government. In 1823, under the advisement of Village President David Woodcock, Ithaca purchased its first fire engine and organized a company of twenty-four men. The fire engine cost $300, which is about $6,500 in 2021. In comparison, modern fire engines can cost upwards of half a million dollars. Fire engines in the early nineteenth century were much different than fire engines today. They were often hand powered, requiring firefighters to both carry the fire engine to the site of the fire, and then hand-pump water from a creek or aqueduct. This was the rationale that supported Phineus Bennet's aqueduct: if water could be made available as far east of Six Mile Creek as Tioga Street, there was a much better chance that the fire engine would make it to the aqueduct to pump water to throw on a fire.
A&P Grocery Fire
Date: February 3, 1970Location: 200 Hancock StreetLate at night on February 3rd, 1970, neighbors of A&P Grocery called the fire department to report an “explosion” that had shattered the front windows of the store. Shortly after the call, flames had risen through the roof and could be seen from the Cayuga Heights Police Department. The fire caused an estimated half a million dollars in damage. Ithaca Police deemed the fire “suspicious,” since it had started in an incredibly short amount of time. At 10:15pm, a patrolman came by the store and noted nothing unusual, but by 10:36, flames were “exploding” out the windows. Firemen were able to put out the fire, but the building was completely destroyed. Bystanders described the water from the fire hoses making an ice rink out of the parking lot, and cans and bottles exploding out of the rubble. The fire was shrouded in an extra layer of suspicion as it occurred at the tail end of a wave of violence targeting A&P Groceries. A federal investigation revealed that these other firebombings were linked to the New York-based Genovese crime family. The family had gained control of a company that manufactured cleaning products, and were looking for retail locations. A&P refused to stock its products, judging them too low quality. The Genovese family retaliated in the most extreme manner possible, resulting in the destruction of sixteen warehouses and stores across the U.S., and the death of one supermarket manager. Ithaca authorities denied that there was any connection between the fire at Hancock St. and mob activity, but the timing and severity of the fire was cause for rumors and suspicion. LISTEN HERE
Fire on the Frontenac
Date: July 27, 1907Location: South of Farley's Point on Cayuga LakeOn a summers day in 1907, the new boilers on the steamboat Frontenac exploded and the boat went up in flames. Wind and rough waves prevented the Frontenac from stopping at Aurora, and the ship sunk into Cayuga Lake south of Farley’s Point around 1-1:30 pm. The passengers that day were primarily women and children. When the boat burned, the men on board escaped, but eight people, all women and children, died in the accident. Some of the women on board and a few male bystanders made heroic efforts to save the passengers. Subsequent media coverage lambasted the the men aboard for failing to risk their lives to save the others.Steamboats have transported people across Cayuga Lake since the 1820's. The Frontenac, which was the largest side-wheel steamship on the lake, had been built around 1869, launched in 1870 and was in service until the fire in 1907. The Frontenac transported passengers up and down the lake, taking a route from Cayuga Lake Park to Sheldrake, to Aurora, then back to Ithaca. The Frontenac was a popular ride across Cayuga Lake in the late 19th century.The burning of the Frontenac “...signalled the end of the steamboat era on Cayuga Lake”, though steamboats were already on the decline, with only six ships left at the time of the fire. Afterwards, Brown Transportation Co. announced plans to build a new steamer but never constructed it. The railroad and automobile eventually took over as the main forms of local transportation. Meanwhile, the Frontenac was submerged in the lake, and parts of the wreck remained there until WWII, when demand for scrap iron led locals to raid the shipwreck. Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
Burning of Coreorgonel
Date: September 24, 1779On September 24-25, 1779, Coreorgonel, the largest settlement of the Tutelo Nation, was burned by Colonel Dearborn and his regiment as part of the Sullivan-Clinton campaign. The village’s residents had already evacuated by the time Dearborn’s regiment found Coreorgonel. In his diary, Dearborn describes his men burning the village, consisting of 25-35 buildings, and nearby crop fields, “from 9 am to sunset.”In the 1740's, the Tutelo and Saponi nations came to the region seeking protection from brutal colonizing campaigns by European immigrants farther south in their traditional homelands. They settled in 1753 in Ithaca’s Inlet Valley and were subsequently adopted by the Cayuga Nation. During the Revolutionary War, the American forces believed the Haudenosaunee nations allied with the British Empire. In retaliation General George Washington ordered the Sullivan-Clinton campaign; a march of destruction and violence through traditional Haudenosaunee territory. The army traveled down the east side of Cayuga Lake, burning Haudenosaunee settlements and destroying crops. Coreorgonel was one of forty villages burned in the Finger Lakes region. The campaign fragmented the Haudenosaunee and caused the Six Nations of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, as well as the Tutelo and Saponi nations to flee west and north. From 1993-1996, Cornell landscape Architecture professor Sherene Baugher and local city planner George Frantz conducted an archaeological study of Inlet Valley to identify and preserve Native American sites, although the exact location of the Tutelos village site was never found.On September 23rd, 2006, Tutelo Park was established in Inlet Valley. The opening ceremony, attended by surviving Tutelo elders, included a memorial to the Tutelos, storytelling, performances from the Haudenosaunee singers and dancers, and other Native American crafts, workshops, activities, and food. The celebration was an expansion on the annual relighting of the sacred Tutelo Council Fire, which represents a symbolic return of the Tutelo to the Inlet Valley. LISTEN HERE
Opera Block Fire
Date: June 25, 1922Location: 2 West Main Street, TrumansburgEarly in the morning of June 25th, Anna Quinn woke in her apartment in the Opera House Block to a loud crackling sound. When she went to her window, she saw a wall of flames engulfing the store below. Trapped in her upstairs apartment, she called for help and caught the attention of Earl Campbell outside. Campbell went to raise the alarm and get the town’s “chemical engine.” The flames had started in the basement of the Pearsall Clothing Store, but strong winds blew sparks from the windows to nearby buildings. In addition to the Pearsall Clothing Store, the Opera Block housed apartments, the First National Bank, an insurance office, a five-and-dime store, a drugstore, and the Opera Hall, among others. The fire spread so rapidly through the block that the priority of responding firefighters turned to containment. The total cost to replace the buildings was estimated around $150,000. The First National Bank, despite this high price tag, later rebuilt in their same location on the Opera Block.Chemical engines, or chemical apparatus, became popular around 1870 as an improvement upon hand-drawn water engines. The engine held tanks with sulphuric acid and bicarbonate of soda, which when mixed together produced carbon dioxide. The pressure of gas in the tank propelled the mixture out onto the fire. Chemical methods were initially touted as a more effective method of putting out fires. However, it became clear that the chemical engine’s primary benefit was not improved performance over water, but simply the time saving measure that firefighters did not have to first manually pump the engine tank full of water before putting out a fire. LISTEN HERE
Trumansburg High School Fire
Date: November 10, 1968Location: 100 Whig Street, TrumansburgEarly on a Sunday morning, three managers of the high school football team arrived at the school to store equipment for the winter. Upon arrival, they spotted thick black smoke spreading through the corridor to the equipment room. They ran to football coach Tom Major’s house, who drove to the building and called the fire department. The Trumansburg Fire Dept. responded, and successfully extinguished the fire. Further inspection found concerning and suspicious, evidence. The firemen found equipment and papers knocked over near an open window in a chemistry lab, suggesting a break-in. The assumed burglars taped a window corner of the door to the main office, where a safe was kept. They were able to reach through the pane to use the doorknob from the inside. It is unclear whether they started the fire or discovered it. The Ithaca Journal theorized that after the burglars were unable to crack the safe in the main office, they started the fire in anger. Luckily the fire was small and had practically burned itself out before the fire department arrived. The cleanup from the smoke and soot was expensive and difficult, but there was very little structural damage. The fire came at an unfortunate moment, however, when Trumansburg was suffering a water shortage due to a break in a critical water line to the town. If the fire had been any bigger, the paper reported, it could have easily wiped out the remaining water supply. LISTEN HERE
Great Fire of 1871 - Trumansburg
Date: May 22, 1871The Great Fire of 1871 had a smaller square footage than the fire of 1864, but was more destructive. It burned down 11 buildings in total, including the Washington House. Further damaged impacted buildings down Main Street and up Union Street. During the fire, someone remembered that the village owned a fire engine. They went searching for it, and found it in a nearby barn. They were able to pull it to the fire, and managed to at least save the Baptist Church from complete destruction.The fire led to the incorporation of the Trumansburg Fire Department in 1872. Main Street buildings were rebuilt with brick (instead of wood) , many of which remain today. Some of the most notable still-standing Trumansburg buildings built after the Great Fire of 1871 include the three-story Opera Block, the Rongovian Embassy (now Garretts Brewing), and the building that would house the R. A. Moog Company Factory (now Little Venice) which produced the first musical electrical synthesizer.In the late nineteenth century, fire companies were both an essential public service, and a social organization for men. As the story goes, one group of men liked to gather in a room in the “Owen building,” most likely a hotel or tavern, to socialize. Eventually the men started having difficulties justifying paying for the room and gathering so frequently. Seeing the need for fire protection in the town, they decided to formalize their club into the Excelsior Hose Company. Sources differ on whether the Excelsior Hose Company became the Fire Department, or if the Fire Department came first, and Excelsior Hose simply joined their ranks. Regardless, these clubs played a vital community role in protecting the village from fire. Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
Great Fire of 1864
Date: February 22, 1864Early in the morning of February 22nd, 1864, a young man named Florence Donahue was returning to his home after being granted furlough from the Union Army. As he crossed over the bridge, he noticed a light reflecting in the ice-filled creek, and when he looked back up, saw flames through the cellar window of the corner store. He immediately ran to raise the alarm, probably by knocking on neighbors’ doors with shouts of “Fire!” The fire spread up Union St. and down towards Main St. Because the town didn’t yet have an organized fire company. Residents formed bucket brigades, passing water from the creek to throw on the flames. Despite their best efforts, the fire ravaged most of Main Street east of the corner store, up to the Presbyterian Church. The church, legend has it, was saved by wet carpets thrown on the roof, held there by an eight year old boy. At the time, the origins of the fire were a mystery. Mr. Bower, the owner of the corner store, was originally a suspect. When the fire started, he rushed over to rescue some books, conveniently placed right inside the window where he could reach them. As stories of his efforts to rescue other residents and their belongings spread community suspicion soon abated. Multiple times, Mr. Bower put himself in great danger, going into burning buildings to rescue money and other valuables for his neighbors.Many years later, Mr. Bower confessed to starting the fire on his deathbed. He started the fire in his own cellar, intending for only his shop to burn down. He was horrified by the rapid growth of the fire and community destruction, and did everything he could to help. He never shared his motives for why he wanted to set his own building and shop goods on fire.A possible motive for arson was the temptation of insurance money. After the fire, Aetna Fire Insurance Company generously provided those in the town who had lost their homes or businesses with the funds to rebuild, including, it is assumed, Mr. Bower. There was so much insurance money in the town that it caused a building craze, and Main Street was rebuilt in no time at all.LISTEN HERE
Page Block Fire
Dates: November 4, 1909, and December 31, 1987The Page Block was one of the oldest buildings in Trumansburg, constructed sometime in the mid 1800’s. It hosted numerous business, apartments, and the Post Office. On November 4th, 1909, the building caught fire. It was made entirely of wood, but surprisingly the fire was contained to the second story and the ground floor survived. The Page building was promptly rebuilt, identical to the building before it, with an ingenious addition. The block was covered with sheets of steel pressed and painted to imitate the appearance of stones, which served both aesthetic and fireproofing purposes. It’s likely that the town’s history of destructive fires, in 1864 and 1871, fueled this innovative form of protection. After rebuilding, the building held a “moving picture hall” and the new Post Office. The building survived into the 1980s, although the steel siding was replaced with white shingles. This proved a poor decision on New Year’s Day in 1988, when a fire burned the building completely and without chance of restoration. LISTEN HERE
Podunk Arson-Murder
Date: March 17, 1888Podunk, despite its reputation as a “podunk” little town or a “sleepy hamlet,” did not escape its own story of flame and drama. Milt Cuffman, Podunk resident and honorary “mayor,” recounted the tale of Richard Barber in This Way to Podunk, a collection of local history vignettes by Harold Jansen. As Milt recalls, on Saint Patrick's Day in 1888, he looked out his window late at night to see the sky lit up over his neighbor Dick Mason’s home. He ran to the fire, and worrying that Dick and his wife Ann were inside, broke a window to call to them. Hearing groaning from a nearby orchard, Milt ran to find his neighbor bloody in the face and lying weak on the ground. Mason called out to Milt, “Come quick. I want to tell you something before I die. Barber has murdered my wife, and tried to kill me.” Milt replied quickly, “Is your wife in there?” gesturing at the burning farmhouse. “Yes. She was dead before the house was set afire. Barber killed my wife with a club."The Barber Dick Mason was talking about was Richard Barber, a young Englishman who was well-liked by Podunkers and Dick Mason himself. As Mason later told the police, Barber had stopped by his home around nine in the evening. Mason went to the cellar to fetch him some apples, and even agreed that Barber could stay the night. When he wasn’t looking, Barber hit him over the head with a piece of firewood, and then went into the room where Ann Mason was sleeping and beat her unconscious. Barber returned to the room, threw a rug over Dick Mason, doused it in oil, and set it on fire. Barber then set some mats on fire, placed a lamp full of kerosene next to the flames, and left. Barber made his escape while Milt helped Mason to a nearby home. Bill Allen, riding along in a buggy, came upon Barber, and asked if he’d like a ride. Allen suspected that Barber might have something to do with the fire he had seen from the road, and brought him in to the authorities. Barber’s attorney successfully argued in his trial that epileptic fits drove him insane. The original death sentence was reduced to a life sentence in prison. Barber, at the age of 50, was released early due to good behavior in 1907.Barber is remembered by prison guards and fellow inmates as being an incredibly hardworking man in prison. He was a highly skilled craftsman and spent much of his time in the woodshop, where he made beautiful jewel boxes and furniture that were valued at incredibly high prices. Once he was released, newspapers reported he lived a quiet and respectable life.Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
Trumansburg Academy Fire
Date: February 17, 1892Late one night in January Fredd Biggs spotted flames through the windows of the Academy, as it was called. He immediately went to start the engine in the firehouse, and along the way ran into Colonel Durling, who set off to ring the bells and raise the alarm. As the night unfolded it revealed the fire company’s shortcomings and weaknesses.It was incredible luck that Mr. Biggs was the first one to see the fire, since he was a member of the fire company and could go fetch the engine. Unfortunately, that was about all he could do. Before the introduction of the familiar large red trucks of today, fire engines were essentially a pumping mechanism on wheels that needed to be pulled to a fire by horse or by man. Once there, the engine needed a water source to pump from, like a creek, well, or pond.Colonel Durling did a poor job raising the alarm. It is unclear whether his shouting was too quiet, or he tried to raise the alarm with a broken or quiet bell. No one responded quickly enough to help Biggs drag the engine to the fire. By the time the bell at the Baptist church rang loud enough to wake up the town, fire had filled the basement of the Academy and was rising through the ceiling into the first floor. Eventually, the men of the town managed to drag the engine up to the fire, and found a water source in a nearby well. However, in another stroke of bad luck, the pump mechanism was frozen. The town, having been startled awake, raced to the academy, and found that all they could do was stand by and watch the building go up in flames. The building, founded in 1854, was destroyed completely, and so were the textbooks, furnishings, and teaching materials inside. The origin of the fire remains a mystery, although of course speculation of trespassers in the school circulated in the press in the following weeks. LISTEN HERE
Newfield Baptist Church Fire
Date: February 17, 1917Location: 105 Bank Street, NewfieldThe Newfield Baptist Church was built in 1842 and was one of the oldest churches in the county at the time of the fire. On a Saturday afternoon in 1917, a fire spread from a furnace in the basement. The fire spread slowly throughout the building. Villagers said that if they had been able to respond immediately, the building and its contents could have been saved. Newfield did not have any firefighters or fire engines of their own at the time, so neighbors started a valiant, but unsuccessful, bucket brigade to quell the flames. A call was made to Chief Reilly of the Ithaca Fire Department, but the fire company didn’t arrive until around 4:30pm, by which point the fire had already destroyed most of the building. Newfield residents blamed Reilly and the fire company for their tardiness. Reilly claimed that the call had not reached him until four in the afternoon, almost two hours after the fire started, and the Ithaca Fire Department had no obligation to help fight any fire outside of the Town of Ithaca.This fire led to Newfield residents to set aside resources for their own fire protection, rather than rely on outside support. Only a month later, a group of men met to organize the first Newfield Fire Company. LISTEN HERE
Dudley Block Fire
Date: August 28, 1926Location: 180 Main Street, NewfieldEarly in the morning, a fire started in the cellar of Hankison’s Store on Main St. in Newfield. The block also contained a post office, Masonic rooms, and a dance hall. The fire spread rapidly through the block and to nearby buildings, including an inn and a restaurant. The fire was so destructive that the post office collapsed, and the hardware store beneath it was “crushed like an eggshell.” The flames burned so hot, almost all of the building contents were destroyed in the blaze.The fire was also the source of some tension and “unfriendly” words between Newfield and Ithaca firefighters. Newfield called on the Ithaca Fire Department for assistance with the controlling the blaze. Before sending an engine, Ithaca Chief Bernard Reilly asked for confirmation that the 5 1/2 ton engine would have a stable foundation to drive up to the creek and pump water. They were assured that this was the case, and so an engine was sent to help. Upon their arrival, they found that the creek bank was too soft to hold the weight of the truck. Even if it could support the truck, the creek did not contain water for the firefighters to pump. Chief Reilly had tried to raise these concerns with local firemen in previous years, and had offered to collaborate in creating a foundation for heavier engines. Nothing was ever done to address these challenges.The fire at the Dudley Block damaged the Newfield Hotel, an important building in the community. On October 24th, 1910, the Newfield Hotel was visited by former president Theodore Roosevelt on his Bull Moose campaign for the Progressive Party. Roosevelt stood on the balcony overlooking Main Street and gave a speech on the farming in Newfield. That weekend he attended a picnic with Newfield residents at the corner of Irish Hill Road and Vankirk Road, where a historical marker stands today. LISTEN HERE
Newfield Main Street Fire
Date: September 19, 1969Location: 198 Main Street, NewfieldA fire started in a restaurant and spread down Newfield’s Main Street, gutting five brick buildings, including the Town Hall and the Newfield Public Library. Sixty firemen from Newfield, Enfield, West Danby, and Ithaca battled the fire and were forced to use water from Newfield Creek to put it out. Library books and important town records were saved, but the buildings, most over 100 years old, were destroyed. The Newfield Public Library had been built eighty years previously.The library reopened in early July of 1970 in the Newfield Grange Hall (donated by the Newfield Grange) across the street from the old location. LISTEN HERE
Cushing Studio Fire
Date: January 10, 1996Location: 83 West Jersey Hill Road, IthacaThe fire destroyed the woodworking studio of Mark Cushing, a bagpipe maker. It is assumed the fire started from hot coals in the studio's wood stove.The studio contained saws, power tools, and 1,000 feet of stacked lumber. The greatest loss was over 20 years of Cushing’s books on bagpipe measurements, research, and development ideas. Luckily, the Cushings' home, which sat only a few hundred feet away from the barn, remained undamaged.Pipe Major Mark Cushing is a bagpipe performer, teacher and maker whose bagpipes have been sold across North America. He is known for leading the Syracuse Scottish Pipe Band, coaching bands in NY and PA and playing in local taverns. In 2008, he founded the Finger Lakes Pipes and Drums ensemble in Ithaca. LISTEN HERE
Bald Hill Forest Fire
Date: November 10, 1931Location: West DanbyThe fire began in West Danby and spread to over 2,000 acres of forest area, including Bald Hill. Over 200 volunteers, county workers, and state troopers battled the blaze over several days. People living nearby recall seeing the light and smoke from the fire filling the sky at night. The fire was minimally damaging, burning mostly second growth timber. Firefighters were aided by a large storm that arrived during the night, which helped extinguish most of the blaze. The theory of the fire was that on the property of Donald Van Buskirk, a “careless hunter” left a smoldering stump that ignited dry grass or leaves nearby.
Haudenosaunee Controlled Burns
For centuries, humans have looked for ways to shape the landscape around them, whether for farming, building homes, or collecting resources like firewood or timber. One of these methods, used by indigenous groups, uses controlled fire to clear land. Smaller fires are used to clear away the underbrush of a forest, leaving behind hardier trees, and clearings on which to build or farm. In Tompkins County, Haudenosaunee people used fire to clear space for settlements. The fires would burn the underbrush and some less fire resistant trees, such as maple birch, dogwood, and elm. Trees such as black walnut, chestnut, and oaks which are more fire resistant would survive the burns. When groups of Haudenosaunee moved to a different settlement, the land would recover some of its diversity in species, but trees encouraged by burning, such as red oaks, are still some of the most common trees in New York state forests. Cultural revitalization efforts lead by Ganondagan State Historic Site, also the location of the Seneca Art & Culture Center, have been coordinating prescribed burns on their reclaimed land in Victor NY since 2016. Allowing the return of native plants and ensuring a healthy ecosystem. LISTEN HERE
Fountain House Fire
Date: November 19, 1916Location: 2743 Slaterville RoadThe Fountain House was one of Slaterville Springs’ three popular hotels in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries that advertised the healing powers of the nearby mineral springs. It was regarded as a destination for the regions most elite and wealthy visitors. Slaterville Springs offered clients the opportunity to show off their horses and wardrobes to their peers, while relaxing in the peaceful beauty of the town. Stays were built around drinking and bathing in the spring’s waters to cure ailments and stress. Fountain House was built in 1872 by the Hornbrook brothers, and went through several owners until, on November 19th, 1916, the hotel went up in flames. Reports disagree on the cause of the fire. Some say it was an explosion of a gas lamp, and others blamed a group of children lighting fire to a pile of leaves. Regardless of the cause, the fire was incredibly destructive and the building unsalvageable. In addition to having curative powers, the spring waters also had the bizarre property of permanently coloring glassware a unique, iridescent amber color. This artistic fluke was discovered by accident by the Middaugh family, whose farm had one of these mysterious springs. They discovered that placing glassware in a stream of running mineral water would cause the glass to change color. The change would be lighter or darker depending on the season, and how long the glass was submerged. The Middaugh family made a business of ambering glasswares, and sold their products to tourists visiting the Fountain House and other spas. Smaller quantities sold in Rothschild’s Department Store, and other local markets. Years later Clarence and Janet Stephens, out of their house built on the site of the former Fountain House, started their own business making and selling water ambered glass out of the building site of the former Fountain House. Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
Tobey Tavern Fire
Date: February 20, 1938The Nathaniel Tobey Tavern was built around 1808 and was a popular stopping points for stagecoaches on the Catskill Turnpike. Nathaniel Tobey, the proprietor of the tavern, helped establish the township and government of Caroline (originally known as Tobey Town) in April 1811. Tobey was selected as the first assessor and first commissioner of highways. Caroline had several of these stagecoach taverns built in the early 1800s, which included the Bush Tavern, where the township was established. The Catskill Turnpike became a state public highway in 1804 and was one of the primary means of travel across New York State for half a century before the introduction of the railroad. The Turnpike played an important role in developing towns like Caroline in Central New York. On February 20th, 1938, a fire started in the building, which housed a family by the name Murray. The fire destroyed the entire house and all the furnishings inside, but luckily, a coating of snow on nearby houses prevented the flames from spreading. LISTEN HERE
Woolen Mill Fire
Date: April 21, 1916Sometime on the night of April 21, 1916, a fire of suspicious and “incendiary” origin started in a wool mill owned by Benjamin Rightmires. The fire migrated from the mill to the shed and ice house of Frank Mulks, and then to Mulks’ house and the post office nearby. Support was immediately requested from Ithaca, and Fire Company No. 5 was dispatched. However, due to some miscommunication, the fire engine was well on its way to Slaterville Springs before they realized they were headed in the wrong direction. The engine and firefighters arrived almost an hour after they were called. By that point, nearly two hundred Ithacans had driven to Brooktondale to help in the bucket brigade. The engine was unable to pump water from the creek, so the Ithaca firefighters joined the community effort to put out the blaze. The fire smouldered all night and into the morning in the rubble of the woolen mill.The location of Brookton's Market held the post office and a store since 1880. In the 1890's Frank Mulk became proprietor, and the Mulk family maintained the market until 1924.Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
Spooky Hollow
As legend has it, an old peddler would visit Ellis Hollow to sell his wares. At night, he would sleep in a farmhouse by a nearby swamp. One day, the peddler arrived to the Hollow, but he never reappeared. Villagers became concerned after several days, noticing that the peddler’s cart and horse hadn’t been moved. The whereabouts of the peddler remained unknown until a group of neighbors started clearing stumps from the swamp for a building project. One of the men in the group owned and lived in a nearby farmhouse. When the group approached a certain pine stump, the man quickly excused himself from the party. Upon pulling up the stump, the men uncovered a pile of human bones.The legend claims the community was suspicious, but didn't take further actions. It was not until many years later, on his deathbed, that the man confessed to the murder of the old peddler. His motive, he said, was the peddler’s gold.He had stolen the pouch of gold from the peddler and buried it in a hidden location. In his old age however, he had forgotten where he hid the pouch of gold, and was never able to cash in on the spoils of his murderous act. Villagers searched the swamp endlessly, digging in search of the gold, but nothing was ever found.The spirit of the peddler is said to rest uneasily. Those who have lived in the murderers farmhouse reported hearing groans from the fireplace and saw the handle of the water pump on the porch spin around untouched. A fire burned down the house decades ago, but the stories of unexplained happenings persist in Spooky Hollow.LISTEN HERE
Dryden Central School Fire
Date: February 2, 1954Location: 36 Union Street, DrydenIn 1954 Dryden Central School suffered a fire that destroyed eight classrooms and the cafeteria. The fire appeared to start on the roof, and spread through the attic and the third floor. The alarm was raised fairly quickly, and the Dryden Fire Company reported to the scene. Unfortunately, the cold New York winters froze the nearby fire hydrants which hampered relief efforts. Despite this difficulty, the town and newspaper praised the fire company under the direction of Fire Chief Fitts, for their skill in putting out the fire and saving what they could.The schoolhouse, which was originally called the Union Free School District building, was built in 1910, with an addition to the building constructed in 1938. Some musical instruments and school records were saved from the fire. In June of 1954, plans for rebuilding the school were approved by the State Education Department and the building was rebuilt into a high school.LISTEN HERE
Dryden Presbyterian Church Fire
Date: December 17, 1938Location: 6 North Street, DrydenIn the afternoon of December 17th, 1938, while decorating for that evening’s Sunday mass, the pastor and two parishioners smelled smoke in the auditorium. Unbeknownst to them, overheated smoke pipes in the organ loft had started a fire that quickly spread to the attic and into the steeple. The organ and church bell, purchased in 1883 and 1831 respectively, were completely destroyed. The loss was estimated at between $10,000 and $15,000, but the historical value of the church to the community of Dryden was incalculable. The church was built in 1820, four years after Dryden’s “Church of Christ” voted to adhere to the Presbyterian denomination. Churchgoers donated small amounts of money in addition to produce, animals, and manual labor to the building of the church. One man was credited with a donation of 75 cents for half a day’s work hauling stone, and another dollar for letting the church use his horses. The church was soon rebuilt in brick instead of wood, using parts of the original building structure that had survived the fire. It continues to serve Dryden more than 200 years later. LISTEN HERE
Dryden Hotel Fire
Date: December 19, 1995Location: 42 West Main Street, DrydenAt 4:30pm on December 19th, 1995, a fire started on the roof of the Dryden Hotel. The fire traveled down the top two floors, destroying them completely. Smoke and water from the firefighting efforts caused further damage to the bar on the first floor, as well as the Dryden Barber Shop owned by well-known local hair-cutter Sylvia Short. Eight people who lived in apartments on the second floor were left homeless. This was not the first time fire caused chaos at the Dryden Hotel. The Dryden Hotel was built in 1871 on the site of the Grove Hotel, which had been destroyed by a fire in 1866. The Grove Hotel was established by Tom Lewis, who is also said to have built the first hotel on the site that later became the Dryden Springs and Sanitarium. The three-story, Italianate-style hotel was the tallest structure on West Main Street. “Many people of note” stayed in the Dryden Hotel, and the hotel was especially popular amongst people coming for the Dryden Fair. The upper floors of the hotel later became a boarding house, and then an apartment.The hotel was also the meeting place of the Spit and Whittle Club, a locally famous club for the town’s elderly, retired men to converse about politics, play cards, and relax with old friends. The club's name, "Spit and Whittle," was a joke that fit within the founding member's well-known sense of humor. Barely any of the men chewed tobacco (or “spit”), and none of them claimed any particular expertise in whittling. They were known to play practical jokes, and in their bylaws decreed that all members must be over eighty years old, have “store teeth” (dentures), and be able to spit into a cup from twenty-seven feet away. Despite their joking, they forbade drinking, gambling, and profanity at their meetings, and were remembered fondly by Dryden residents.The hotel was rebuilt and reopened, with a family restaurant and on the first floor, and apartments above.Images courtesy of The History Center in Tompkins County.LISTEN HERE
Fire at the "Springs House"
Date: June 6, 1915Location: Spring House Road, DrydenIn 1840, the building that would become Dryden Springs Sanitarium was built as a hotel named the Dryden Springs House. It became known for its parties and banquets, and was known by most Drydenites as the “Springs House.” Around 1865, Dr. Samantha Nivison bought the property and founded Dryden Springs Sanitarium.Dr. Nivison was one of the first women to practice medicine in Tompkins County. Before opening a sanitarium in Dryden, she planned a sanitarium in Ithaca called Cascadilla Place. This proposed sanitarium was to be funded by Ezra Cornell. As Ezra Cornell got caught up in the planning of his new university, the costs of a sanitarium became unfeasible and Nivison abandoned the project. Ezra kept the building around as a student dormitory and multi-purpose space. Undeterred, Dr. Nivison later opened Dryden Springs Sanitarium, relying on the reputation of Dryden springs mineral water as a healting therapeutic to entice visitors. The city water, said Nivison, was toxic, and harmful to the health. City dwellers would come to “take waters” and enjoy the tranquil rural environment on extended vacations. Nivison’s venture didn’t end there- the spring water was bottled and sold by grocers and druggists across the state, and even by mail-order. The company was successful for a short period of time, but ran into financial challenges when the popularity of medicinal waters dried up.As the Springs House’s popularity waned, Nivison pivoted to open a home for the poor, and ill women and children. In 1883, she opened the “Cottage,” and took in 27 children. Two years later, tragedy struck when 21 of the children died in a measles outbreak. Their deaths were compounded by Dr. Nivison's failure to report the deaths to the civil authorities, as she was legally required to do.The newspapers had previously reported on her medical expertise with glowing positivity. After the scandal, they denounced Nivison, and questioned her status as a leading physician. It was discovered that the conditions at the Cottage were poor, and that there was not enough staff, supplies, or food to adequately care for so many sick children. The sanitarium in Dryden soon closed, and in 1906 when Dr. Nivison died, the building was sold and then sat neglected for a decade.In 1915, a fire was set on the third floor while groups of people picnicked and played on the nearby grounds. The building, made almost entirely of wood, went up in flames rapidly. The blaze drew a crowd of onlookers. The source of the fire was never investigated, but since the building had been plundered by junk collectors and was a “stomping ground” for “vagrants” and the town’s poor, the fire came as no surprise.Images courtesy of The History Center inTompkins CountyLISTEN HERE
Downey Honey Butter Plant Fire
Date: March 20, 2000Location: 7 Union Street, FreevilleOn March 20th, 2000, the Downey Honey Butter Plant was leveled by a fire with an unknown cause. "The Old Honey Butter factory" was housed in a wooden building constructed in 1875. Originally, the building was Lyceum Hall, a community gathering place and entertainment center. Lyceum Hall was unique in being among the first regional theaters to have staggered seating (seats on different height levels). As early as the 1880's, Lyceum Hall hosted New Year’s Eve parties with the Freeville Brass Band, and gained popularity as a dance hall and roller skating rink. Through the 1920's and 1930's, the theater featured dances, plays, lectures and hosted many performances. Many Tompkins County based groups were featured, including plays put on by the Cornell Dramatic Club, concerts by Ithaca Conservatory musical groups, and shows from the Ithaca Savage Club.In 1969, Lyceum Hall became the Downey Honey Butter Factory, owned by C. W. Sadd. The recipe for honey butter was based on the discoveries of Elton J. Dyce, a graduate student at Cornell. His work and thesis explored the controlled crystallization of honey in the 1930's. Dyce later patented the process, and Cornell University claimed the royalty rights. Some of the profits from the patent funded the Dyce Laboratory at Cornell for honeybee research. In the late 1940's, J. J. Downey leased the patent from Cornell and rented factory space in Groton to start his honey butter business, eventually moving the factory to Collegetown in the 1950's. C. W. Sadd bought Downey’s business in 1955 and rehomed the factory in Lyceum Hall in 1969. The Downey Honey Butter Plant stayed in Freeville for ten years, until it was relocated to Pennsylvania in 1979. The building subsequnetly housed several other businesses since the 1970's, including local sandwich shop Draper Egg, a tie-dye T-shirt factory, and the furniture refinishing business of GSW Vincent and Co.LISTEN HERE
Celie's Diner
Date: January 14, 1996Location: Corner of Locke RoadA favorite local eatery in North Lansing, Celie’s Diner, was damaged by a kitchen fire that began around 11 pm on January 14th 1996. The structure of the building was saved, but the interior was destroyed. The building had originally served as a small schoolhouse that was subsequently moved and turned into a gas station, and then eventually a diner. The diner was previously Sally’s Diner before it was taken over by Celeste and her husband Richard Spoon.Celie's was a popular gathering spot for locals, since it was the only eatery in the area between North Lansing and Genoa. Following the fire, community and family donations and support enabled Celeste to open up the new Celie’s Diner just seven weeks later on March 2nd. One customer, Judy Verbeck, organized a pancake supper that raised $1,400 to help the Spoons. The new diner, located on Route 34B, was twice as big and attracted more customers, though “regulars” from the old diner followed Celie to her new location. LISTEN HERE
Rose Inn Fire
Date: March 12, 2004Location: 813 Auburn Road, GrotonA fire that started from lint in a laundry vent in the basement burned down the 162-year-old Rose Inn on March 12th, 2004. The inn was completely gutted, with only a section of the staircase, some decorative woodwork, and one exterior wall remaining. The Rose Inn, opened in 1983, was a bed and breakfast with multiple four star entries in the Mobile Travel Guide. In 2001, it was one of three establishments in upstate NY to receive a four-star rating. It was famous for being the first bed-and-breakfast in Tompkins County, and for its mahogany spiral staircase in the main hall, completed by carpenter William Houser between 1922 to 1924. The original builder, Abram Osmun, died before he could finish the staircase, and it was so challenging to build that it remained unfinished for nearly 100 years until Houser agreed to build it in exchange for room and board. The staircase was a masterwork of carpentry and architecture, as it was built with no center support and no buttresses or braces. The building itself contained 11,000+ square feet and comprised 15 guest rooms, 21 rooms total, and a 4,000 sq ft. conservatory. The inn featured 19th century period furniture and stood on 20 acres of landscaped lawns and gardens. The early-Italianate home was designed and built by Abram Osmun in 1842 and stayed in the Osmun family for 100 years until their last descendent died in 1942. It was then bought by Malone in 1948 and sold to the Tisdales in 1962. In 1983, Charlie Rosemann, a former general manager of the Statler Inn at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, bought the property and turned it into an inn. The inn was a popular marriage venue and also hosted the Cayuga Chamber Orchestra’s annual 12 Shops of Christmas Fundraiser.After the fire, the Rosemanns decided not to rebuild. In 2006, John and Elizabeth Hamilton, who were married at the Rose Inn in 2003, bought the property and built the John Joseph Inn and Elizabeth Restaurant on the site of the former Rose Inn, which opened for business in 2007. LISTEN HERE
Dusenberry Homestead
Date: May 28, 1936Early in the morning on May 28th, 1936, the Dusenberry homestead in Dusenberry Hollow was struck by lightning and burned to the ground. The home had been built around 1830 by Henry L. Dusenberry, one of the earliest white settlers in the area, and Dusenberry Hollow’s namesake. Henry Dusenberry had been given his land between Catskill turnpike and Bridle Road as compensation for his military service. He built his first home as a log cabin, and later, built the house that would stand for a hundred years. The house was full of valuable antiques, a few of which were saved by volunteers who fought the blaze. Henry's grandson Zina Dusenberry had been confined to his bed the night the fire broke out, likely due to illness, but escaped with the help of a sister-in-law, who was staying at the home.Zina Dusenberry, was the last descendent to bear the Dusenberry name, and perhaps the most well-liked and remembered member of one of Dryden’s pioneer families.LISTEN HERE
