Join Me on Washington Square Neighborhood Architecture and History Tour on Sunday, August 26th

Join Me on  Washington Square Neighborhood Architecture and History Tour
Sunday, August 26th at 2:00 p.m.

I invite you to join me for a tour of the art, architecture and history of the Washington Square neighborhood on Syracuse's Northside.  The tour begins at the recently restored Kirkpatrick Monument at Washington Square Park at 2:00 p.m. and will continue on neighboring Park, Court, Turtle and Bear Streets.

The tour is sponsored by the Preservation Association of Central New York (PACNY), concluding its summer Northside walking tour series.  Tour participation is $5.00 for PACNY members, $10.00 for non-members.

The history of Washington Square, formerly the heart of the town of Salina and then Syracuse’s First Ward, encompasses the region’s history from the Onondaga Nation, to the first white settlement and development of a salt-based economy, to today’s diverse community. The area includes fine art monuments such as the William Kirkpatrick Monument, designed by noted American Renaissance sculptor Gail Sherman Corbett, and a large selection of noteworthy mid-19th-century houses and churches and early 20th-century commercial and industrial buildings. Many of the houses and churches served the leaders of Syracuse’s Salt industry.

The two-hour tour will discuss the area’s history and some of its notable residents, and will especially focus on the urban and architectural trends that shaped neighborhood as seen through individual buildings including the John Lynch House, the William G. Clarke House, the Henry E. Pierce (Octagon) House, the Parke S. Avery House, Westminster Presbyterian Church, St. John the Baptist Church and the Penfield Manufacturing Company.

Old Salts: Oakwood Cemetery Tour of Salt Barons Thursday Evening

Old Salts: Oakwood Cemetery Tour of Salt Barons Thursday Evening
by Samuel Gruber

 Syracuse, NY. Burr Burton tomb, designed by Horatio Nelson White (1866).  Photo: Samuel Gruber

Many of us enjoyed PACNY president Jeff Romano's tour of Oakwood Cemetery last summer, when he pointed out the stories behind the graves of those for whom Syracuse Streets are named.  This week Jeff leads of tour for the Historic Oakwood Cemetery Preservation Association (HOCPA) of the tombs of the city's Salt Barons on Thursday (July 26th) at 6:30 pm.

The tour begins at the Chapel. enter at Comstock gate and follow the tour signs.  The tour takes place train or shine, but will be canceled if there is thunder and lightning.  Wear comfortable shoes.

I'm looking forward to this tour, in part because on August 26th I'll be leading a walking tour of the Washington Square area, where many of the "Barons" presided when they were among the living.

 

 Syracuse, NY. Burr Burton tomb, designed by Horatio Nelson White (1866).  Photo: Samuel Gruber

At Oakwood, I assume we'll visit the tomb of Burr Burton (1804-1865) in section 12.  Burton was a leading salt manufacturer, and former state assemblyman who was shot and killed in his home in 1865 by an unknown assailant.  I guess gun control was a probable after the Civil War, too.  The tomb was designed by Horatio Nelson White, Syracuse leading architect at the time. Built of Onondaga limestone it reportedly cost $8,000. Read more about Burton on the Shades of Oakwood website.

For more information about the tour contact Connie Palumb at 315-415-2954.

My CNY Bike Racks

My CNY Bike Racks
Text and photos by Samuel D. Gruber

I ride my bike a lot - I ride to work and ride downtown and I ride to explore different neighborhoods.  I learned urban riding when I was kid in Center City Philadelphia, then in my high school years in Rome, Italy, and later biking for sixteen years in Manhattan.  Except for some of the hills, I've always thought biking in Syracuse is a breeze.  I like having bike lanes - when they are good ones - but really I've always felt traffic is so light here, and that there are so many one way streets, that getting around (except on Euclid Ave!) has never been a big problem (for me).  What I am always looking for, however, are good bike racks.  Having had three unlocked bikes stolen in Syracuse since 1993, I am maniacal about locking my bike even for the shortest time, even if I'm sitting nearby.

Finding good bike racks in Syracuse, however, has always been tough.  But it is getting better.   We recently welcomed the newest and brightest new bike rack on Harvard Place at Westcott Street, a project organized by 40 Below's Public Arts Task Force and designed by city artist/architect Brendan Rose (of Armory Sq/Creek Walk dragon fame), the simple colorful design combines strong pipe poles and cut metal sheets.  The placement was clearly tested by a biker - since there is plenty of room for every type of bike, and most kinds of locks.  Look carefully, the cut-outs spell "Westcott".  I guess "Harvard"  was thought to be too elitist (not so a hundred years ago when residents successfully petitioned to change the name of Phelps Street to Harvard Place). Brendan has previously designed the sign at the Lipe Art Park.

More creative bike racks can enliven our city streets and parks.  Here is inspiration from Detroit - a downtown bike rack I saw when there last April.  These models can be purchased from Belsen.  Click here to see some more Detroit racks.

This is my favorite bike rack - the one at Bird Library I use everyday.  In my experience this design is the most functional.   Bikes can be parked form either side, and squiggly pipe take every wheel size and handlebar width, and bikes can be locked with U-locks or chains.  No wonder this rack is always filled  (and the overhand of the library roof keeps off most rain).

This is probably the worst  rack in the city and its right across from City Hall.  I use it whenever I bike to public meeting, and I'm always wondering whether my bike will still be there when I get out.   Besides being small and ugly, it is so badly bolted to the sidewalk a heavy man could lean on it an break it loose. 
so what sort of message does this City Hall rack send. 

 

Here are two more good SU racks.  The tops one is from the Warehouse - though I think it has been moved due to the present construction work.  The other is on campus - taken on a weekend - since during the week the rack is filled with bikes.

The rack above is the one that has been on the corner of Marshall Street and University place for years. space for three bikes for all those shops and restaurants!  It works but it is set amidst a lot of street clutter.  It gets a lot of use since the rack in front of Marshalltown Mall is not good - its pressed too close to wall so wheels cannot be inserted for locking.  I haven't tried the new racks on the Connective Corridor (I and I have not seen anyone else use them either.  I report on them when I have.

Lastly, for this blog post, here is an unusual rack at SUNY-ESF.  Bikes hang like sculpture from rack/brackets fastened to the concrete wall. 

What bike racks do you use?  Where do look for bike racks but cannot find them?  Let me know.

Everson Museum and Audis Announce the Stickley House May Become Museum

Everson Museum and Audis Announce the Gustav Stickley House May Become Museum
by Samuel D. Gruber

I was ecstatic to get a call yesterday informing me that some of the ideas I'd been promoting, and rumors I'd been hearing about the future of the Gustav Stickley House on Columbus Avenue, were converging on the same course, and that Everson Museum director Steve Kern and L. & J.G. Stickley Company CEO Aminy Audi would be making a big announcement soon about the historic house, with its iconic Craftsman style interior.  I've known for months about Steve Kern's enthusiasm for the house, and that talks were in the works.  The Preservation Association of Central New York identified the Stickley House as community priority at its annual meeting.  But I was never certain that a bold step would be taken, and a threshold crossed.

Here is the story from the syracuse.com and this morning's Post-Standard.

In May I wrote of different options for the house but favored this one

...And then there is the best case scenario...this would take option three, but ratchet it up a notch so that the Stickley House would not just survive as working house, but would be turned into a full-service research and exhibition center for Central New York's famous (and continuing) Arts & Crafts Movement.  Under the auspices of OHA and/or the Everson, the house would be restored supported by nationally-gathered tax-deductible donations and tax-credits where appropriate.  The house would have galleries for permanent and temporary exhibitions, office space and still (perhaps) house a top floor caretaker's apartment.  The house would function as a satellite museum with regular hours.  There would be difficulties beyond the money (minimally many millions of dollars for restoration, installation, security, curatorship, etc.).  A zoning change would be needed.  Parking would be required - perhaps including the demolition of at least of the later structures on Columbus.  But still... I can cite the success of many similar projects in this country and abroad. Tthe idea is a idealistic, but also realistic, and should be seriously considered - and championed.

Late yesterday afternoon Syracuse.com broke the story the the Everson and the Audi family would move ahead - or at least try to - with plans to make the house an Arts & Crafts center and a satellite museum of the Everson.  Given Stickley's pivotal role in the movement, the Everson's existing strengths in this area, and the importance and achievement of so many regional Arts & Crafts artists, this makes good sense.  I had always imagined a study center, with scholars in staying in Stickley's own house.  But Steve Kern and Crawford & Stearns architects are thinking bigger, and envision an actual exhibition center.

Much needs to be done, but  close examination of the building - both its condition and its spaces - has confirmed that such a new life is indeed possible.  This is what a large local  community of neighbors and a national community of Arts & Crafts enthusiasts have hoped for a long long time.

It will not be easy.  While internationally the $2 million price tag is a pittance for a major cultural attraction, and in NYC or LA, or even in Skaneateles  there are kitchen rehabs that cost a good fraction of this, for cash-strapped Syracuse this is a big step.  Still, as I have written before, I believe this is a project that will generate funds outside of the region to make it happen.  Much is also riding on initial funding from the Regional Economic Development Council.  For this, Central New York residents need to voice their vocally their support to their political representatives and cultural leaders.  I have great faith in Steve Kern's ability to make this happen.

In early September I will be reprising my walking tour of last March of the Columbus Avenue neighborhood.  As before, we'll stop at Stickley House for another long discussion.  This time we will be cautiously optimistic.

Temple Concord Installs National Register Plaques

Temple Concord Installs National Register Plaques
photos courtesy of Mark Kotzin

Syracuse, NY. Temple Concord. Rabbi Daniel Fellman examines new historic plaque noting Temple Concord's National Register designation.  Photo: Mark Kotzin

The congregation of Temple Concord, Central New York's oldest Jewish organization, continued its celebration of congregational history and the distinction of its fine 1910-11 building, the centennial of which was celebrated last year. 

In June, two plaques were installed noting the placement of Temple Concord on the National Register of Historic Places.  The nomination of the building, which was researched and submitted to the State historic Preservation Office with help from the International Survey of Jewish Monuments (ISJM), led to the designation in 2008.  Temple Concord provides office space to ISJM in the 1920s former education wing,  behind the main sanctuary.  The unveiling of the plaque on the sanctuary facade, facing University Avenue, took place after the congregation's annual meeting.  A second plaque is in the Temple complex lobby, which is entered fom the parking lot on Madison street.  With the newly opewned Connective Corridor on University Ave. with 2-way traffic, the new bike path, and new landscaping, the original west-facing Facade of Temple Concord will be getting much more attention than it has in recent years.  Too bad it looks out on a parking lot!

The fabrication of the plaques was made possible by a gift from the Dorothy and Marshall M. Reisman Foundation.  I would love to see more such plaques and other types of notifications marking the historic sites of Syracuse and Central New York.

Here are some photos from the unveiling, courtesy of Mark Kotzin.

Rabbi Daniel Fellman presided. Octogenerian and still-energetic congregants Mike Moss and Alex Holstein helped with the unveiling. Both Mike and Alex were active in getting started the National Register process, getting these plaques up, and the entire building centennial celebration. Mike's parents were married in the sanctuary soon after it opened and Alex's grandfather was on the Building Committee.  Whatever remarks I'm making (above), I'm not sure the rabbi and Mike agree, or maybe I'm was jsut going on too long!

For more on the history and architecture of the building click here.

Historic Samuel Forman House for Sale

Syracuse, NY. Samuel Forman Hse, 417 W. Seneca Turnpike. Photo: Samuel D. Gruber 2012

Syracuse, NY. Samuel Forman Hse, 417 W. Seneca Turnpike. Photo: Samuel D. Gruber 2012

Historic Samuel Forman House for Sale
by Samuel D. Gruber

The historic Samuel Forman House at 417 West Seneca Turnpike, built in 1812, was saved from demolition in 1998.  The house - which has also been used for commercial purpose - is now empty and for sale.

Syracuse, NY. Samuel Forman Hse, 417 W. Seneca Turnpike. Photo: Samuel D. Gruber 2012

The Forman house is prominently sited just west of  the corner of West Seneca Turnpike and Valley Drive.  It is one of Syracuse’s most historic residential structures and one of about a dozen fine masonry Federal-style buildings still intact along Seneca Turnpike from the Onondaga Hollow to Onondaga Hill.  The house was documented as part of the Historic American Building Survey sometime after 1933 (see: http://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/hh/item/ny0608/ ), has been determined eligible for the National Register of Historic Places, and is listed as a Local Protected Site.  The Forman house is notable for its -severe but elegant Federal-style architecture including a well-preserved doorway with sidelight windows an interior curving staircase, and many intact architectural features within and without.  It is also associated with one of the founding families of Syracuse. Samuel Foreman was a brother of Joshua Forman who lived nearby (the Zen Center now occupies what was Joshua's house, now greatly transformed).

Sale of the building for residential use is problematic. While there are many historic sites in close proximity, commercial development in recent decades on the immediate adjacent lot and including a strip mall across the Seneca Turnpike now filled with discount stores, have compromised the home’s original setting. On the other hand, the constant car and pedestrian traffic for nearby shopping and dining (including Gannon's famous and excellent ice cream) offers potential for the right business tenant.  

Syracuse, NY. Samuel Forman Hse. Photo: Samuel D. Gruber 2012

In 1998, the house came under threat when a local developer planned to demolish it along with several surrounding buildings to make way for a new 11,000- square-foot Eckerd drugstore.   Local preservationists (including SUNY-ESF prof Kathy Strickley and myself) and the Preservation Association of Central New York  worked with the developer to save the building intact.   At the end of 1998 the developer rehabilitated the Forman House for professional offices, and the building was later occupied by an antique store.  Eckerd went out of business not long after its new store was built.  That new structure is now a Rite-Aid Drugstore.

The building is now empty and for sale (asking price is $195,000) with its primary listing (with interior pictures) at realtyusa.com: 

http://realtyusa.com/property/property.asp?PRM_MLSNumber=258747&PRM_MLSName=SyracuseNY&source=Trulia

It is listed as appropriate for a ground floor business with an apartment above.  Alternatively, the entire space could be adapted for residential, office or appropriate retails space.  Probably because of the now-commercial nature of its location, the historic character of the building is not being  used as much has it could be in marketing. Now seems a good  the time to list the house and other contemporary structures in the Valley on the National Register.

Syracuse, NY. Samuel Forman Hse & adjacent drugstore.  Photo: Samuel D. Gruber 2012

Some Work at the Stickley House - - And Here are my Ideas (and some others) for the Future

Some Work at the Stickley House - And Here are My Ideas (and some others) for the Future
by Samuel D. Gruber

[if in a hurry - skip to the end and read options 3 & 4.]

Syracuse, NY. Gustav Stickley House.  Work on temporary roof protection. Photo: Samuel D. Gruber May 2012.

In early March I wrote and posted photos about the deplorable condition of the Gustav Stickley house on the East Side's Columbus Avenue, thus breaking a long-suffering silence about the fate of this important CNY site. To my mind the house is the single most influential residential building in Syracuse, having helped define and then witness the Craftsman Movement and its magazine.

Syracuse, NY. Stickley House. Photo: S. D. Gruber Feb. 2012

Whether my public complaining and posting of photos had an influence - or whether it is just the Zeitgeist - I do not know.  But I can report that there has been a lot of talk about the house in the last two months, unpublicized site visits and now some much needed - though still short term - attention to the roof.  Anyone who has passed by on Columbus in recent days has seen a lift and men at work, apparently laying new protective sheeting on the roof to better make the structure watertight.  The house was fortunate to have escaped a harsh winter, but still every rain can bring water into those old wood walls fostering interior rot and bringing damp and decay to plaster walls and ceiling and wood and paint finishes.  The damage is not always visible when it happens - it often only appears when things are dried out and plaster crumbles to dust. 

There is still no public word on the future of the house but there has been quiet discussion in Central New York's culture community.  The wheels of planning in our community work slowly, and sometimes stop altogether.  I've heard some alarming proposals - and some really wonderful ideas.  I hope the latter win out, but as always in our region money needs and expediency will compete.  Will CNY take the long view and create a lasting urban and cultural resource we can be proud of, or will we settle for a quick fix and an easy sale to temporarily solve the problem?  I post this entry to keep the pressure on, with the hope of building, or at least encouraging momentum.

I group the options into four main categories - and I hope we can safely forget the first.

1.  Ignore the building, let decay continue and the building go to hell, until it look like every neglected and abandoned house in the city.  Curiously - the Stickley house is now the WORST looking house on this block of Columbus.  Other people are caring for their properties much better than I have seen in nearly years of watching the street.

Syracuse, NY. Stickley House. Photo: S. D. Gruber Feb. 2012

2. Ignore the building (and screw the neighborhood), but strip it's historic artistic interior features for donation or sale.  We know these fixtures would fetch a high process in today's overheated Arts & Crafts market.  There are also all sorts of museums and cultural institutions locally and nationally that are salivating to get these pieces.  While most will declare "we would never never strip an historic buildings," privately they'll go on to say with an implied wink "but if someone else did and we were offered the pieces, or we saw them for sale at auction, of course we would be interested."   So, to my mind, losing the Stickley interior to some other region of the country is a distinct possibility.  After all, a medieval manuscript in the OCPL was sold a bargain price to a collector in the 1990s, the county sold off large segments of the Salt Museum collection,  Liberty Diner went to a museum in Rhode Island, Tiffany windows from South Presbyterian Church were sold to a collector in California and now the fittings, furnishing and windows from Holy Trinity may leave town for New Orleans.  So let's not kid  ourselves - losing Stickley is a distinct possibility!  Of course, if the building is neglected long enough (see option 1), then stripping the building becomes the munificent thing to do.  Once again, demolition by neglect.

Syracuse, NY. Stickley House. Photo: S. D. Gruber Feb. 2012

3. A third option would be to turn back the clock and put the building to work again.  Some not-for-profit or even a private individual should buy the building or (given the cost of restoration) receive it as a gift, and then restore it with the Stickley downstairs intact and open to view on a schedule or by appointment, and perhaps used for meetings and lectures, with the upstairs floors used again as apartments.  Income from apartments could help maintain the building, and perhaps house an on-site caretaker.  A better version of this would be a similar plan, but run by a not-for-profit, and the apartment could serve visiting Arts & Crafts scholars or artists, and also house a caretaker.  Perhaps a working Arts & Crafts library could be installed.  This gets close to what the Arts & Crafts Society wanted to do in the 1990s.  Something along these lines was quietly floated by representatives of the Audi family and Stickley a number of years ago, but all the interested small organizations realized they didn't have the money, means, staff or stamina to carry out such a project.  The heavy hitters - SU, ESF were not interested (then).  SU was just turning its attention downtown to the Warehouse and then to the Near West Side.  ESF was embarking on its expansion plans to the west as well.  OHA and the Everson - the logical history and art institutions with real ties to the Stickley legacy were struggling then (as they always are) to meet their annual budget needs and to maintain their own buildings. OHA was in the midst of a move and expansion to its new building on Montgomery Street (with its facade and windows now beautifully restored!).  The Everson still officially had its multi-million dollar expansion plan on the table.   This, thankfully, seems now to have passed its moment.  Today, however, things are better.  It is conceivable that any of these four institutions (SU, ESF, OHA or the Everson) could implement a version this option.

Syracuse, NY. Stickley Hse.  Temporary roof protection. Photo: S. D. Gruber May 2012

4.  And then there is the best case scenario...this would take option three, but ratchet it up a notch so that the Stickley House would not just survive as working house, but would be turned into a full-service research and exhibition center for Central New York's famous (and continuing) Arts & Crafts Movement.  Under the auspices of OHA and/or the Everson, the house would be restored supported by nationally-gathered tax-deductible donations and tax-credits where appropriate.  The house would have galleries for permanent and temporary exhibitions, office space and still (perhaps) house a top floor caretaker's apartment.  The house would function as a satellite museum with regular hours.  There would be difficulties beyond the money (minimally many millions of dollars for restoration, installation, security, curatorship, etc.).  A zoning change would be needed.  Parking would be required - perhaps including the demolition of at least of the later structures on Columbus.  But still... I can cite the success of many similar projects in this country and abroad. The idea is a idealistic, but also realistic, and should be seriously considered - and championed.

Personally, as an art historian, local historian, collection curator, historic preservationist, cultural heritage consultant and neighborhood resident I could live with either option 3 or 4.

  

But this is Syracuse.  This time, let's be inspired, let's not settle for second-rate.  Let's do something really great, really noticeable, and something that will be on the map not just for us, but for the entire world.  The Stickley house is a small building - but it can have a big big impact!

Readers....what do you think?  Let me know, let your elected officials know, and let our cultural leaders know.