Unless noted otherwise, all of the historical photos are drawn from this exceptional book. Painting by Manville B. I found the room Web Horton Mansion on the first try and marveled at its marble walls and green ceramic roof tiles. My primary reason for visiting Middletown was to find its classic railroad station. A quick zip up Highway brought me to Bloomingburg and the start of the Catskills. I saw many of the men walking or bicycling about in their formal dark suits and hats, despite the warm temperatures.
Their wives and children were also in evidence, and I received many friendly nods as I walked around. It is now a local community museum. The fresh air and views near the top of the Shawangunk Mountains were a welcome break from the 4-hour train ride from the City. This photo shows the High View station in the distance, together with some support buildings and businesses that have since disappeared.
The Sha-wan-ga Lodge was the largest of the Bloomingburg resorts. Jewish hotel owner Abraham Dan bought the lodge in and rebuilt the resort after a disastrous fire in November Sadly, the resort closed in and burned to the ground a year later. In fact, I was surprised to see that there was no sign whatsoever of the huge resort. It had been completely bulldozed and every brick carted off. Even the swimming pool had been filled in.
In February this year, the town board voted unanimously to approve the building of a casino on the acre site of the Sha-wan-ga Lodge. To the best of my knowledge, however, all such ventures in Sullivan County are still awaiting approval by the State of New York. The crossing was uncomfortable and, in bad weather, even perilous.
The resulting High View Tunnel took 3 years to build and went into service in February I managed to find the Mamakating Station mostly by luck. As I was photographing the station, a large, orange-ish, and rather disheveled sheep dog appeared.
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I also learned from the volunteer that it was possible to walk the old train right of way clear up to the northern entrance of High View Tunnel! Although my schedule was tight, I immediately vowed to find the tunnel. The first section of the right of way proved to be easy going. Later, as the grade steepened, the terrain became a lot rougher and a lot wetter, with all the rainwater finding its way to the path.
I was hoping to discover the old control tower as I hiked up the mountain, but I later learned that it had been dismantled and removed. However, I did find this curious little windowless stone building. I believe it is the same one shown in the old photo below closest to the camera. Subsequent research identified it as an explosives magazine. The stone walls, steel door, and flimsy roof were designed to contain any accidental blast and direct it skyward.
Water was pouring out of the entrance, complicating any attempt at a closer look. The original tunnel extended roughly 20 feet past the present opening. In my photo below, note the brick lining inside the tunnel, which was intended to help prevent cave-ins. The highway is in the process of being upgraded to Interstate 86, and substantial consideration has been given to whether the tunnel poses a problem for the expected heavier traffic flow. If you want to see this tunnel for yourself, sooner would be better than later.
The friendly volunteer gave me a nice cold bottle of water, and I resumed my tour. This Catskills survivor started out in as the Gumaer House, which could handle 80 guests. The ensuing hostilities led to the construction of several forts along the Old Mine Road.
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Fort Roosa still stands and now serves as a private residence. Built in , it is the oldest surviving building in Sullivan County. An elderly passer-by recalled that there used to be a stone guardhouse on the other side of the road, with a tunnel leading back to the fort. The club attracted numerous investors, but it foundered on hard economic times at the end of the s.
Their hotel subsequently became the Mamakating Park Inn and did well enough until going out of business in the s. The property then became Camp Lakota. Temporarily abandoning the faithful i, I walked around the gate and hiked up the hill to the grounds of the former club.
Along the way, I realized that Camp Lakota is still alive and well.
Almost no one was there on the day of my visit, but I got a friendly wave from one of the camp counselors as she drove by. This part of New York is filled with natural ponds. It was very popular and prospered until the main building burned in This one serves as the office for the camp. Comparing these two photos, the Glen Wild Methodist Church looks completely unchanged from its original appearance in But the current photo reveals mischief of some sort.
This bridge carried traffic over the Neversink River starting in As I continued driving through Sullivan County, I became progressively more aware that a large proportion of the houses, motels, camps, and resorts that I passed were either abandoned or for sale. The total collapse of the tourism economy in the county was all too apparent. The door to this old place was wide open, but I defy anyone heavier than a cocker spaniel to make it across the front porch!
The Concord Resort was the largest and most prosperous in the Catskills. It started when Russian immigrant and hair tonic mogul Arthur Winarick bought the Ideal Hotel on Lake Kiamesha, where he had vacationed for several years. It prospered, growing to 2, acres and 1, rooms before facing the late s decline in business. This was the entrance to the Concord not so many years ago. Now, the dilapidated entrance booth is the only recognizable part of the once-proud resort. The rest has been bulldozed to the last concrete block.
In its heyday, the Concord could seat 3, guests for dinner. The demolition ended all that, and a legend is gone. Everywhere I went, in fact, the county residents are pinning their hopes on casinos. Lake Kiamesha lives on, with or without the Concord. Oddly, a rash of suicides took place in this area, beginning in and continuing through But few realize that many of the gangsters of the time were actually Jewish Americans, not Italian.
The first head of Murder, Inc. A number of their victims ended up in Sullivan County, some at the bottom of Lake Kiamesha. His fierce crackdown on organized crime is legendary. Dewey went on to prosecute Buchalter, who was put to death in Sing Sing Penitentiary in An interesting account of the last Murder, Inc. This site has a treasure trove of other articles about Sullivan County. We now return to our regularly scheduled tour report.
Following the Great Depression, many of the major resorts began to cater primarily to Jewish families from New York City.
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Max and Lois Kutsher started the resort with an addition to their farmhouse in The Gumshoe Goddess is a mystery, an action adventure, and a modern-day throwback to the classic noir genre that many are nostalgic for. But there are many layers to this novel that find a place for almost anyone to enjoy: The style and prose flow well and keep you in the front seat of the case with quirky details that would have bogged the likes of the great noir novelist Raymond Chandler.
Each chapter focuses on a new facet of the action-driven mystery case. The finale ties all the loose ends, like any satisfying story should. You will be hooked and left wanting to see what Lucky May will stumble onto next. A Warm Place to Call Home. Ghost Stories And The Unexplained: Seventeen's Terrifying True Teen Stories. I Survived Ted Bundy. A Bump in the Road. Heart of the Old Country.
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- I Capture the Castle (Vintage Childrens Classics).
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Tales from the Teachers' Lounge. Kiss Her, Kill Her. Sex, Love and Sweet Suicide. Hear Through My Ears. A Story of Recovery and Redemption. Yin Yoga Master Class.
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