Warwick Village Historic District
Encyclopedia
The Warwick Village Historic District is located in the center of the village of Warwick
in the U.S. state
of New York
. It takes up an irregularly-shaped 130 acres (42 ha) of residential
and commercial neighborhoods centered around NY 94
and 17A
).
Buildings within the district reflect Warwick's growth over almost two centuries, from its origins as a rural settlement in colonial times
through its mid-19th century industrialization as a rail hub to its development as a weekend summer resort town in the early 20th century. It was designated as a historic district
and listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1984.
. Here the neighborhoods are almost all residential, except along Oakland where older houses have become restaurants and bed and breakfast
s. On the west side it remains along Oakland until Campbell Road, where it starts to take in the houses on the west of the street. The Galloway Avenue boundary continues to Clinton Avenue, including all properties on the street to South Street but then excluding most of Belmar Court before returning to South.
At the railroad tracks the district Oakland becomes Main Street and the district boundaries include only it. Here the street lined with stores and multistory buildings, culminating in the village hall and Albert T. Wisner Library. At this busy four-way junction, Main becomes Maple Avenue.
The eastern boundary expands again at the Church Street junction to take in all properties (mainly on half that street, then follows Forester Avenue to Colonial Avenue (Orange County Route 13) in the residential neighborhoods there. All property on the north side to the village's northeastern boundary is included in the district.
West of the intersection, at Pine Island
Turnpike (Orange County 1B), the district takes in the properties associated with St. Anthony's Hospital, Cherry Street and Van Duzer Place. It meets the northern boundary again at Robin Brae.
to Newburgh
. The Shingle House, built in 1764 and the oldest house in the village, is located at 7 Forester Avenue. Baird's Tavern, a stone structure with a gambrel roof built in 1766, is located nearby at 103-105 Main Street. Other buildings in this area, particularly the Old Baptist
Meeting House, built in 1810 by a Connecticut
congregation that had migrated west, date to the early 19th century.
The area along Main Street to the immediate south reflects the explosive growth of the village in the latter half of the 19th century, after the Civil War
. Early industrial development in the Town of Warwick had passed the village by, since it lacked effective water power. But the coming of the Lehigh & Hudson River Railroad
in 1862 changed that. It connected to the Erie Railroad
's Main Line, which ran through the center of the county on its way to New York and other major cities, providing a market for the farmers around Warwick, particularly the nearby Black Dirt Region
. Half of the district's buildings were built between 1860 and 1900.
The railroad continued to benefit the town in the early 20th century, when the descendants of the area's prosperous farming families built weekend cottage
s, large and small, for themselves to return to on weekends. Other city residents came to take advantage of the fresh air and country living, making the village an early resort
destination mentioned in F. Scott Fitzgerald
's The Great Gatsby
. The houses and bungalow
s from this period can be found along the northern and southern ends of the district and its side streets, such as the Warwick Inn on Oakland.
Some of these residences were designed by two local architects, Clinton Wheeler Wisner, and Ernest George Washington Dietrich. Wisner's Warwickshire at 12 Linden Place is his most significant house within the village, and Dietrich's work dominates Oakland Avenue.
The onset of the Great Depression
in 1930 curtailed further resort development, and by the end of that decade passenger rail service to the village ended (freight service via Norfolk Southern continues today, however). The rise of the automobile after World War II
opened up newer areas to weekend travelers, and the village went into a decline, with little new architecture of note in its core. At the end of the century, it began to revive as an exurban home for commuters to New York City seeking a small town lifestyle.
to its overall historic value. The remainder are mostly buildings erected after 1930, such as the village post office, a Burger King
, and a brick gas station at the Main-Maple-Colonial junction.
None of the properties in the district are currently listed separately on the National Register. Some notable ones include:
code with architectural restrictions that, for example, forbid intrusive features such as signs lit from the inside on stores within the district. This caused some local controversy in 1990 when the local Independent Order of Odd Fellows
chapter wanted to renovate its lodge with vinyl siding
, forbidden by the zoning. A bitter confrontation led to a compromise solution where the IOOF was allowed to use vinyl on the rear and sides of the building as long as they painted the front.
The historic district also became the center of another protracted local political dispute in 2000. After the Grand Union
supermarket
chain
closed its downtown Warwick location, within the district, following its third and final bankruptcy
, the CVS drugstore
chain expressed interest in moving into the abandoned space. Some local residents were willing to let that happen since without it there would be no major retailer
in the downtown area, while others feared it would detract from the district's historic character and lead locally-owned shops along Main to close. After two years of debate that included a protest rally at the site, and a proposal to condemn
the site, CVS opened its store in 2003.
Warwick (village), New York
Warwick is a village in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 6,412 at the 2000 census. The 2010 census population was 6,731...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. It takes up an irregularly-shaped 130 acres (42 ha) of residential
Residential area
A residential area is a land use in which housing predominates, as opposed to industrial and commercial areas.Housing may vary significantly between, and through, residential areas. These include single family housing, multi-family residential, or mobile homes. Zoning for residential use may permit...
and commercial neighborhoods centered around NY 94
New York State Route 94
New York State Route 94 is a state highway entirely within Orange County in southern New York. The western terminus is at the New York-New Jersey state line, where it continues as NJ 94 for another to Columbia, New Jersey. Its eastern terminus is located at U.S. Route 9W in New Windsor....
and 17A
New York State Route 17A
New York State Route 17A is a state highway in southern New York, United States, entirely within Orange County. Its western terminus is located at Goshen at a junction with NY 17, and its eastern terminus is at another intersection with NY 17 located in Southfields. It runs...
).
Buildings within the district reflect Warwick's growth over almost two centuries, from its origins as a rural settlement in colonial times
Colonial America
The colonial history of the United States covers the history from the start of European settlement and especially the history of the thirteen colonies of Britain until they declared independence in 1776. In the late 16th century, England, France, Spain and the Netherlands launched major...
through its mid-19th century industrialization as a rail hub to its development as a weekend summer resort town in the early 20th century. It was designated as a historic district
Historic district
A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries, historic districts receive legal protection from development....
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 1984.
Geography
The district begins at the intersection of Oakland and Galloway avenues, where the two state highways begin their concurrencyConcurrency (road)
A concurrency, overlap, or coincidence in a road network is an instance of one physical road bearing two or more different highway, motorway, or other route numbers...
. Here the neighborhoods are almost all residential, except along Oakland where older houses have become restaurants and bed and breakfast
Bed and breakfast
A bed and breakfast is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast, but usually does not offer other meals. Since the 1980s, the meaning of the term has also extended to include accommodations that are also known as "self-catering" establishments...
s. On the west side it remains along Oakland until Campbell Road, where it starts to take in the houses on the west of the street. The Galloway Avenue boundary continues to Clinton Avenue, including all properties on the street to South Street but then excluding most of Belmar Court before returning to South.
At the railroad tracks the district Oakland becomes Main Street and the district boundaries include only it. Here the street lined with stores and multistory buildings, culminating in the village hall and Albert T. Wisner Library. At this busy four-way junction, Main becomes Maple Avenue.
The eastern boundary expands again at the Church Street junction to take in all properties (mainly on half that street, then follows Forester Avenue to Colonial Avenue (Orange County Route 13) in the residential neighborhoods there. All property on the north side to the village's northeastern boundary is included in the district.
West of the intersection, at Pine Island
Pine Island, New York
Pine Island is a hamlet in the town of Warwick in Orange County, New York, United States. It is the largest community in the Black Dirt Region, which is famous for the "black dirt onions." Pine Island is also home to the annual Onion Festival, celebrating the fact that nearly 30% of all the onions...
Turnpike (Orange County 1B), the district takes in the properties associated with St. Anthony's Hospital, Cherry Street and Van Duzer Place. It meets the northern boundary again at Robin Brae.
History
The Colonial-Main-Forester triangle is the oldest part of the district, built when the future village was mainly a stopover along the King's Highway that connected Phillipsburg, New JerseyPhillipsburg, New Jersey
Phillipsburg, known locally as P'burg, is a town in Warren County, New Jersey, in the United States. As of 2010 United States Census, the town's population was 14,950....
to Newburgh
Newburgh (city), New York
Newburgh is a city located in Orange County, New York, United States, north of New York City, and south of Albany, on the Hudson River. Newburgh is a principal city of the Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown metropolitan area, which includes all of Dutchess and Orange counties. The Newburgh area was...
. The Shingle House, built in 1764 and the oldest house in the village, is located at 7 Forester Avenue. Baird's Tavern, a stone structure with a gambrel roof built in 1766, is located nearby at 103-105 Main Street. Other buildings in this area, particularly the Old Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
Meeting House, built in 1810 by a Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
congregation that had migrated west, date to the early 19th century.
The area along Main Street to the immediate south reflects the explosive growth of the village in the latter half of the 19th century, after 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...
. Early industrial development in the Town of Warwick had passed the village by, since it lacked effective water power. But the coming of the Lehigh & Hudson River Railroad
Lehigh and Hudson River Railway
The Lehigh and Hudson River Railway was the smallest of the six railroads that were merged into Conrail in 1976. It was a bridge line running northeast-southwest across northwestern New Jersey, connecting the line to the Poughkeepsie Bridge at Maybrook, New York with Easton, Pennsylvania, where it...
in 1862 changed that. It connected to the Erie Railroad
Erie Railroad
The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in New York State, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, originally connecting New York City with Lake Erie...
's Main Line, which ran through the center of the county on its way to New York and other major cities, providing a market for the farmers around Warwick, particularly the nearby Black Dirt Region
Black Dirt Region
The Black Dirt Region is located in southern Orange County, New York, USA and northern Sussex County, New Jersey. It is mostly located in the western section of the Town of Warwick, centered around the hamlet of Pine Island...
. Half of the district's buildings were built between 1860 and 1900.
The railroad continued to benefit the town in the early 20th century, when the descendants of the area's prosperous farming families built weekend cottage
Cottage
__toc__In modern usage, a cottage is usually a modest, often cozy dwelling, typically in a rural or semi-rural location. However there are cottage-style dwellings in cities, and in places such as Canada the term exists with no connotations of size at all...
s, large and small, for themselves to return to on weekends. Other city residents came to take advantage of the fresh air and country living, making the village an early resort
Resort
A resort is a place used for relaxation or recreation, attracting visitors for holidays or vacations. Resorts are places, towns or sometimes commercial establishment operated by a single company....
destination mentioned in F. Scott Fitzgerald
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald was an American author of novels and short stories, whose works are the paradigm writings of the Jazz Age, a term he coined himself. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. Fitzgerald is considered a member of the "Lost...
's The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby is a novel by the American author F. Scott Fitzgerald. First published in1925, it is set on Long Island's North Shore and in New York City from spring to autumn of 1922....
. The houses and bungalow
Bungalow
A bungalow is a type of house, with varying meanings across the world. Common features to many of these definitions include being detached, low-rise , and the use of verandahs...
s from this period can be found along the northern and southern ends of the district and its side streets, such as the Warwick Inn on Oakland.
Some of these residences were designed by two local architects, Clinton Wheeler Wisner, and Ernest George Washington Dietrich. Wisner's Warwickshire at 12 Linden Place is his most significant house within the village, and Dietrich's work dominates Oakland Avenue.
The onset of 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...
in 1930 curtailed further resort development, and by the end of that decade passenger rail service to the village ended (freight service via Norfolk Southern continues today, however). The rise of the automobile after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
opened up newer areas to weekend travelers, and the village went into a decline, with little new architecture of note in its core. At the end of the century, it began to revive as an exurban home for commuters to New York City seeking a small town lifestyle.
Significant contributing properties
All but 21 of the 229 properties within the district are considered contributing resourcesContributing 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 its overall historic value. The remainder are mostly buildings erected after 1930, such as the village post office, a Burger King
Burger King
Burger King, often abbreviated as BK, is a global chain of hamburger fast food restaurants headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The company began in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida-based restaurant chain...
, and a brick gas station at the Main-Maple-Colonial junction.
None of the properties in the district are currently listed separately on the National Register. Some notable ones include:
- Shingle House: SaltboxSaltboxA saltbox is a building with a long, pitched roof that slopes down to the back, generally a wooden frame house. A saltbox has just one story in the back and two stories in the front...
house built by Daniel Burt in 1764; it is the oldest house in the village and a rare clapboardClapboard (architecture)Clapboard, also known as bevel siding or lap siding or weather-board , is a board used typically for exterior horizontal siding that has one edge thicker than the other and where the board above laps over the one below...
-and-shingle house in the region, recalling the New EnglandNew EnglandNew England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
origins of the Burt family. It is currently maintained and operated as a historic house museum by the Historical Society of the Town of Warwick, which has owned it since 1916. Much of the interior is original. - Baird's Tavern The stone tavern at the center of town was built in 1766. Reportedly George WashingtonGeorge WashingtonGeorge Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
once stopped in for a "drink of grog"; John TrumbullJohn TrumbullJohn Trumbull was an American artist during the period of the American Revolutionary War and was notable for his historical paintings...
also passed through. The wooden floor retains boot marks from the militia mustered here during the Revolution. It is currently used as a law office. - Old School Baptist Meeting House: The 18 congregants who came from Connecticut in 1765 intended to stay only temporarily before moving on to Northeastern PennsylvaniaNortheastern PennsylvaniaNortheastern Pennsylvania is a geographic region of Pennsylvania that includes the Pocono Mountains, the Endless Mountains and the industrial cities of Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Pittston, Hazleton and Carbondale....
, but the Revolution soon made that impossible. So this church built in 1819 became their home. The Historical Society acquired and renovated it in the 1950s to save it from demolition; it was also used as a location for a scene in the 19971997 in film-Events:* The original Star Wars trilogy's Special Editions are released.* Production begins on Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.* Titanic becomes the first film to gross US$1,000,000,000 at the box office making it the highest grossing film in history until Avatar broke the record in 2010.*...
film In & OutIn & OutIn & Out is a 1997 American romantic comedy film directed by Frank Oz and starring Kevin Kline, Joan Cusack, Matt Dillon, Tom Selleck, Debbie Reynolds, Bob Newhart, and Wilford Brimley. The screenplay was written by screenwriter Paul Rudnick...
. - 1810 House. Another of the society's properties, this white cottage across Main Street from Village Hall was at one point the local YMCAYMCAThe Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
. It serves as the main museum for the society, with exhibits devoted to not only the village but famous residents such as Henry William HerbertHenry William HerbertHenry William Herbert , pen name Frank Forester, was an English novelist and writer on sport.-Biography:The son of the Hon. and Rev. William Herbert, Dean of Manchester , Herbert was born in London.He was educated at Eton College and at Caius College, Cambridge, where he graduated BA in 1830...
, whose "Frank Forester" pen namePen nameA pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
lent its name to Forester Avenue. - Dulce Domum: Designed by Clinton Wheeler Wisner for his cousin in 1884, its steep gable and decorativeOrnament (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...
woodwork suggest a late attempt to apply the PicturesquePicturesquePicturesque is an aesthetic ideal introduced into English cultural debate in 1782 by William Gilpin in Observations on the River Wye, and Several Parts of South Wales, etc. Relative Chiefly to Picturesque Beauty; made in the Summer of the Year 1770, a practical book which instructed England's...
aesthetic. The Oakland Avenue home remains a private residence. - John J. Beattie House: This Ernest George Washington Dietrich design on Maple Avenue combines a shingled look with some unusual RomanesqueRomanesque Revival architectureRomanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...
features. - The Warwickshire: Wisner's most significant work in Warwick dates to the 1890s and is located at the corner of Oakland and Linden. It uses randomly coursedCourse (architecture)A course is a continuous horizontal layer of similarly-sized building material one unit high, usually in a wall. The term is almost always used in conjunction with unit masonry such as brick, cut stone, or concrete masonry units .-Styles:...
fieldstoneFieldstoneFieldstone is a building construction material. Strictly speaking, it is stone collected from the surface of fields where it occurs naturally...
and half-timber framing.
Preservation
The buildings of the district were very well-preserved at the time of the district was established. The village has recognized it in its zoningZoning
Zoning is a device of land use planning used by local governments in most developed countries. The word is derived from the practice of designating permitted uses of land based on mapped zones which separate one set of land uses from another...
code with architectural restrictions that, for example, forbid intrusive features such as signs lit from the inside on stores within the district. This caused some local controversy in 1990 when the local Independent Order of Odd Fellows
Independent Order of Odd Fellows
The Independent Order of Odd Fellows , also known as the Three Link Fraternity, is an altruistic and benevolent fraternal organization derived from the similar British Oddfellows service organizations which came into being during the 18th century, at a time when altruistic and charitable acts were...
chapter wanted to renovate its lodge with vinyl siding
Vinyl siding
Vinyl siding is plastic exterior cladding for a house, used for decoration and weatherproofing, as an alternative to traditional wood siding or other materials such as aluminum or fiber cement siding. It is an engineered product, manufactured primarily from polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, resin, giving...
, forbidden by the zoning. A bitter confrontation led to a compromise solution where the IOOF was allowed to use vinyl on the rear and sides of the building as long as they painted the front.
The historic district also became the center of another protracted local political dispute in 2000. After the Grand Union
Grand Union (stores)
Grand Union is a supermarket chain operated by C&S Wholesale Grocers of Brattleboro, Vermont. Originally based in Elmwood Park, New Jersey , the company operated mostly in the northeastern United States but at times its reach extended into the Midwest, Southeast, and the Caribbean...
supermarket
Supermarket
A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
chain
Chain store
Chain stores are retail outlets that share a brand and central management, and usually have standardized business methods and practices. These characteristics also apply to chain restaurants and some service-oriented chain businesses. In retail, dining and many service categories, chain businesses...
closed its downtown Warwick location, within the district, following its third and final bankruptcy
Bankruptcy in the United States
Bankruptcy in the United States is governed under the United States Constitution which authorizes Congress to enact "uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States." Congress has exercised this authority several times since 1801, most recently by adopting the Bankruptcy...
, the CVS drugstore
Pharmacy
Pharmacy is the health profession that links the health sciences with the chemical sciences and it is charged with ensuring the safe and effective use of pharmaceutical drugs...
chain expressed interest in moving into the abandoned space. Some local residents were willing to let that happen since without it there would be no major retailer
Retailing
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...
in the downtown area, while others feared it would detract from the district's historic character and lead locally-owned shops along Main to close. After two years of debate that included a protest rally at the site, and a proposal to condemn
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
the site, CVS opened its store in 2003.