Seaman Park and the Old Sawyer Gristmill
Lunch on Saturday was a picnic at scenic Seamon Park. It's a lovely park on a hill just outside Saugerties. This was a common location for the annual Mum Festival. The flowers and gardens were always quite pretty. The park seemed much larger when I was a child, but I guess that everything seemed much bigger as a child! It was dedicated by Mr. John Seamon in 1909 according to a NY Times article.
The view is still stunning. I love the mountains in the background - there's something comforting and majestic about a view like that. I also love looking down the hill toward the main gate - with all the spring flowers in bloom.
It was a bit sad for me though. The old gristmill that had intrigued me growing up....and had been mostly restored when I graduated from high school...has now fallen in disrepair. A gristmill adorned the front of the yearbook, The Saugerties Sawyer, the year I graduated. Its likeness also adorned the sides of our class ring.
Sadly, it is no more. Here, you can see how the building has been left to collapse on itself. In the other shot, you can see parts of the gears left out in the elements to rust. The grinding stones are broken and also lay on the hillside. I think the sign says it all...."DEAD END".
It's very sad - I recall that it was in good shape years ago....and I can't believe it's been lost to neglect and disrepair. You can get an idea of the function of the metal parts by viewing the photo next to the entry for the Little Sawyer Association It was also identified as an endangered piece of history when it collapsed in July 2007 as noted by the Hudson Valley Ruins organization - see the Terwilligers Grist Mill entry.
Here, from the side, you can't barely tell that a building existed. The foundation still looked in tact as did the walls of the side, but the collapsed roof and shadows obscure it in the photo. I truly wish they'd completed the renovation and had been able to maintain the mill....it would have remained a beautiful and historic part of the park.
The view is still stunning. I love the mountains in the background - there's something comforting and majestic about a view like that. I also love looking down the hill toward the main gate - with all the spring flowers in bloom.
It was a bit sad for me though. The old gristmill that had intrigued me growing up....and had been mostly restored when I graduated from high school...has now fallen in disrepair. A gristmill adorned the front of the yearbook, The Saugerties Sawyer, the year I graduated. Its likeness also adorned the sides of our class ring.
Sadly, it is no more. Here, you can see how the building has been left to collapse on itself. In the other shot, you can see parts of the gears left out in the elements to rust. The grinding stones are broken and also lay on the hillside. I think the sign says it all...."DEAD END".
It's very sad - I recall that it was in good shape years ago....and I can't believe it's been lost to neglect and disrepair. You can get an idea of the function of the metal parts by viewing the photo next to the entry for the Little Sawyer Association It was also identified as an endangered piece of history when it collapsed in July 2007 as noted by the Hudson Valley Ruins organization - see the Terwilligers Grist Mill entry.
Here, from the side, you can't barely tell that a building existed. The foundation still looked in tact as did the walls of the side, but the collapsed roof and shadows obscure it in the photo. I truly wish they'd completed the renovation and had been able to maintain the mill....it would have remained a beautiful and historic part of the park.
posted by Jinann @ 6:15 AM
1 Comments:
At 11:38 AM,
Anonymous said…
very interesting, thanks
Post a Comment
<< Home