Lake Street Historic District (Bergen, New York)
Encyclopedia
The Lake Street Historic District is located along the west side of that street, state highway
NY 19
, in downtown Bergen
, New York, United States. It contains several of Romanesque Revival
style
buildings from the last decades of the 19th century and the first two of the early 20th. Most were built after the village banned wooden buildings following two devastating fires in the area. One is currently used as Bergen's municipal building.
Several of the buildings have intact cast iron
storefronts. It was designated a historic district
and listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1985.
to the district's historic character.
All but one, 23 North Lake Street, are two-story structures with flat roofs. Many have decorative
details such as cornice
s with corbel
s, brackets
and dentils. Another common feature is the cast iron
storefronts, most of which have similar decorative details and remain intact from their original construction. The upper stories are used for offices and residences.
The 11 buildings are:
was built just north of it. The New York Central
's absorption of the railroad in 1853 further fueled development. Around the Civil War
, Bergen's downtown had four blocks of frame commercial buildings.
In early 1866, a fire destroyed the buildings on three blocks of the west side of Lake Street in the present historic district. The community's economy was strong enough to absorb the loss and rebuild. Growth continued and Bergen incorporated
as a village in 1877.
Three years later, another fire in the same area destroyed 45 buildings and structures, 31 of which were businesses. Frame buildings were prohibited as a result, and the replacement buildings were brick. Within two years of the fire the buildings at 13 through 27 North Lake were built, with cast iron storefronts and Romanesque Revival
detailing representing the trends of the time. The Tulley Block at the corner with Buffalo Street came along in 1886.
Bergen was at its most prosperous during the next decades. New businesses, such as a cigar factory, creamery
and gas and coal works, were built in the area. Another fire, in 1906, destroyed older buildings at the north end of the row. They were replaced more slowly, with only 25 North Lake going up immediately afterwards. Seven years later, in 1913, it was joined by 27 North Lake next door. The two show touches, like patterned brickwork
, more typical of early 20th century vernacular
commercial buildings. The Masonic
Temple, also destroyed in the fire, built a new home at 12 South Lake Street.
The empty space left by the 1906 fire was finally filled in 1921 with 23 Lake Street, a grocery store that is today the only one-story building in the district. That would be the last significant building in it. Bergen and its industries went into decline in the Great Depression
. The Housel Bank at 27 North Lake closed. Later the railroads were displaced by the construction of interstates such as the nearby Interstate 490
and New York State Thruway
. In an attempt under urban renewal
in the late 1960s and early 1970s to revive Bergen's downtown, the east side of Lake Street was largely demolished in favor of newer buildings.
The village has subsequently recovered somewhat as a bedroom community midway between the larger communities of Rochester
and Batavia
. The village has made Tulley Block its offices, and some of the storefronts are home to businesses again. A few have been altered, but the district retains its historical appearance..
State highway
State highway, state road or state route can refer to one of three related concepts, two of them related to a state or provincial government in a country that is divided into states or provinces :#A...
NY 19
New York State Route 19
New York State Route 19 is a north–south state highway in Western New York in the United States. It is the longest state highway in that region, and the only other one besides NY 14 to completely transect the state from the Pennsylvania state line to the shore of Lake Ontario...
, in downtown Bergen
Bergen (village), New York
Bergen is a village in Genesee County, New York, United States. The population was 1,240 at the 2000 census.The village lies on the eastern edge of the Town of Bergen. The village is north of the junction of Routes 19 and 33.-History:...
, New York, United States. It contains several of Romanesque Revival
Romanesque Revival architecture
Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...
style
Architectural style
Architectural styles classify architecture in terms of the use of form, techniques, materials, time period, region and other stylistic influences. It overlaps with, and emerges from the study of the evolution and history of architecture...
buildings from the last decades of the 19th century and the first two of the early 20th. Most were built after the village banned wooden buildings following two devastating fires in the area. One is currently used as Bergen's municipal building.
Several of the buildings have intact cast iron
Cast iron
Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
storefronts. It was designated a historic district
Historic district (United States)
In the United States, a historic district is a group of buildings, properties, or sites that have been designated by one of several entities on different levels as historically or architecturally significant. Buildings, structures, objects and sites within a historic district are normally divided...
and listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1985.
Geography and buildings
The district consists of 11 buildings along the west side of the street. Two, 10 and 12 South Lake Street, are south of Buffalo Street. The remainder, 11–27 North Lake, are to the north. The CSX railroad tracks bound the district on the north. All fill most of their lots, for a total area of 2.3 acres (9,307.8 m²) and are contributing propertiesContributing property
In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing resource or contributing property is any building, structure, or object which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic district, listed locally or federally, significant...
to the district's historic character.
All but one, 23 North Lake Street, are two-story structures with flat roofs. Many have decorative
Ornament (architecture)
In architecture and decorative art, ornament is a decoration used to embellish parts of a building or object. Large figurative elements such as monumental sculpture and their equivalents in decorative art are excluded from the term; most ornament does not include human figures, and if present they...
details such as cornice
Cornice
Cornice molding is generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns any building or furniture element: the cornice over a door or window, for instance, or the cornice around the edge of a pedestal. A simple cornice may be formed just with a crown molding.The function of the projecting...
s with corbel
Corbel
In architecture a corbel is a piece of stone jutting out of a wall to carry any superincumbent weight. A piece of timber projecting in the same way was called a "tassel" or a "bragger". The technique of corbelling, where rows of corbels deeply keyed inside a wall support a projecting wall or...
s, brackets
Bracket (architecture)
A bracket is an architectural member made of wood, stone, or metal that overhangs a wall to support or carry weight. It may also support a statue, the spring of an arch, a beam, or a shelf. Brackets are often in the form of scrolls, and can be carved, cast, or molded. They can be entirely...
and dentils. Another common feature is the cast iron
Cast iron
Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
storefronts, most of which have similar decorative details and remain intact from their original construction. The upper stories are used for offices and residences.
The 11 buildings are:
- 10 South Lake Street, a two-story, four-bayBay (architecture)A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
flat-roofed brick Romanesque Revival structure with a cast iron storefront. It was built in 1888, with the original cast-iron cornice replaced in 1930. - Masonic Temple, 12 South Lake Street. The organization built this to replace its original building, destroyed in the 1906 fire. It is also a two-story brick building with a flat roof, but is only two bays wide, with large tripartite windows and segmental arch treatments.
- Tulley Block, 11 North Lake Street. The same size, shape and material as 10 South Lake, its front facade is topped with a pedimentPedimentA pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...
ed parapetParapetA parapet is a wall-like barrier at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony or other structure. Where extending above a roof, it may simply be the portion of an exterior wall that continues above the line of the roof surface, or may be a continuation of a vertical feature beneath the roof such as a...
with "1886", the year of its construction, in the entablatureEntablatureAn entablature refers to the superstructure of moldings and bands which lie horizontally above columns, resting on their capitals. Entablatures are major elements of classical architecture, and are commonly divided into the architrave , the frieze ,...
and a finialFinialThe finial is an architectural device, typically carved in stone and employed decoratively to emphasize the apex of a gable or any of various distinctive ornaments at the top, end, or corner of a building or structure. Smaller finials can be used as a decorative ornament on the ends of curtain rods...
rising from the crest. A similar feature on the 10-bay south facade, along Buffalo Street, has "Tulley Block" in the entablature, and a mural of scenes from local history. The second story has a projecting bay window with a small cast iron balustrade. It is currently used as the village hall. - 13 North Lake Street. One of the first new buildings erected after the 1880 fire, it is like the others to the south save for its three-bay width. It, too, has a parapet and pediment with date in the entablature. The cast iron storefront retains its original metal copingCoping (architecture)Coping , consists of the capping or covering of a wall.A splayed or wedge coping slopes in a single direction; a saddle coping slopes to either side of a central high point....
, corbel, finials and brackets. - 15 North Lake Street. A copy of its neighbor to the south, built a year later with no parapet. The cornice was altered in 1906 and a brick veneerVeneerA veneer is a thin covering over another surface. More specifically, it may refer to:* Wood veneer, a term used in architecture and woodworking...
was added around 1950. - 17 North Lake Street. A four-bay structure otherwise similar to its southern neighbor.
- 19 North Lake Street. Similar in size, shape and material to 17 North Lake. Storefront is unaltered, and window lintels are stone segmental arches.
- Sackett-Merrill-White American Legion Home, 21 North Lake Street. Another two-story four-bay building dating to 1881. Its distinctive features are a detailed corbeled cornice and segmental arched windows with radiating voussoirVoussoirA voussoir is a wedge-shaped element, typically a stone, used in building an arch or vault.Although each unit in an arch or vault is a voussoir, two units are of distinct functional importance: the keystone and the springer. The keystone is the center stone or masonry unit at the apex of an arch. A...
s. - 23 North Lake Street. The youngest contributing property in the district, and the only one to be one story. This small grocery store was built in 1921, with stone coping and decorative brickwork. Its storefront is still the original cast iron.
- 25 North Lake Street. A single-bay building otherwise similar to its other neighbors. Built in 1913, it has similar decorative brickwork to its neighbor at 21 and a detailed corbelled cornice. The second story bay window was resided in shingle in 1971, the storefront has also been altered.
- Housel Bank, 27 North Lake Street. Three bays wide and otherwise similar, this dates to 1906. It has a corbeled cornice and the only quoinQuoin (architecture)Quoins are the cornerstones of brick or stone walls. Quoins may be either structural or decorative. Architects and builders use quoins to give the impression of strength and firmness to the outline of a building...
s in the district. The second story has tripartite windows with flat brick arches. Its storefront was also altered in 1971.
History
Bergen, first settled in 1801, began growing as a small hamlet that served the farms around it. This accelerated after 1836 when the Buffalo and Rochester RailroadBuffalo and Rochester Railroad
The Buffalo and Rochester Railroad, like many others of its day, was a short line that lasted a short time.-The gist of the idea:Initially, the germ of the idea for this line came from the perceived need for a rail line to serve Steuben and Livingston Counties in New York. Farmers and merchants in...
was built just north of it. The New York Central
New York Central Railroad
The New York Central Railroad , known simply as the New York Central in its publicity, was a railroad operating in the Northeastern United States...
's absorption of the railroad in 1853 further fueled development. Around the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, Bergen's downtown had four blocks of frame commercial buildings.
In early 1866, a fire destroyed the buildings on three blocks of the west side of Lake Street in the present historic district. The community's economy was strong enough to absorb the loss and rebuild. Growth continued and Bergen incorporated
Municipal corporation
A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...
as a village in 1877.
Three years later, another fire in the same area destroyed 45 buildings and structures, 31 of which were businesses. Frame buildings were prohibited as a result, and the replacement buildings were brick. Within two years of the fire the buildings at 13 through 27 North Lake were built, with cast iron storefronts and Romanesque Revival
Romanesque Revival architecture
Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...
detailing representing the trends of the time. The Tulley Block at the corner with Buffalo Street came along in 1886.
Bergen was at its most prosperous during the next decades. New businesses, such as a cigar factory, creamery
Creamery
In a dairy, the creamery is the location of cream processing. Cream is separated from whole milk; pasteurization is done to the skimmed milk and cream separately. Whole milk for sale has had some cream returned to the skimmed milk....
and gas and coal works, were built in the area. Another fire, in 1906, destroyed older buildings at the north end of the row. They were replaced more slowly, with only 25 North Lake going up immediately afterwards. Seven years later, in 1913, it was joined by 27 North Lake next door. The two show touches, like patterned brickwork
Brickwork
Brickwork is masonry produced by a bricklayer, using bricks and mortar to build up brick structures such as walls. Brickwork is also used to finish corners, door, and window openings, etc...
, more typical of early 20th century vernacular
Vernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture is a term used to categorize methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs and circumstances. Vernacular architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental, cultural and historical context in which it...
commercial buildings. The Masonic
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
Temple, also destroyed in the fire, built a new home at 12 South Lake Street.
The empty space left by the 1906 fire was finally filled in 1921 with 23 Lake Street, a grocery store that is today the only one-story building in the district. That would be the last significant building in it. Bergen and its industries went into decline in the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. The Housel Bank at 27 North Lake closed. Later the railroads were displaced by the construction of interstates such as the nearby Interstate 490
Interstate 490 (New York)
Interstate 490 is an auxiliary Interstate Highway that serves the city of Rochester, New York, in the United States. It acts as a northerly alternate route to the New York State Thruway , leaving it at exit 47 in the town of Le Roy and rejoining the highway at exit 45 in the town of...
and New York State Thruway
New York State Thruway
The New York State Thruway is a system of limited-access highways located within the state of New York in the United States. The system, known officially as the Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway for former New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey, is operated by the New York State Thruway Authority and...
. In an attempt under urban renewal
Urban renewal
Urban renewal is a program of land redevelopment in areas of moderate to high density urban land use. Renewal has had both successes and failures. Its modern incarnation began in the late 19th century in developed nations and experienced an intense phase in the late 1940s – under the rubric of...
in the late 1960s and early 1970s to revive Bergen's downtown, the east side of Lake Street was largely demolished in favor of newer buildings.
The village has subsequently recovered somewhat as a bedroom community midway between the larger communities of Rochester
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
and Batavia
Batavia (city), New York
Batavia is a city in Genesee County, Western New York, USA, located near the middle of Genesee County, entirely within the Town of Batavia. Its population as of the 2000 census was 16,256...
. The village has made Tulley Block its offices, and some of the storefronts are home to businesses again. A few have been altered, but the district retains its historical appearance..