Demolished New York: Massena High School {or: How to Answer “What Used to Be Here?”}

Demolished? It’s a variant on “Abandoned” posts, yes. However; it seems like a good way to show you the mind of a traveling preservation (or at least how mine works). What does a preservationist think about when traveling? And how does a preservationist find the answer to her question? I’ll use Massena, NY as an example, which I visited earlier this summer.

Massena, NY is a town located on the St. Lawrence River in northern New York, just south of the Canadian border. Once economically supported by the railroad and a canal, the car manufacturer, GM, along with Reynolds and Alcoa, Massena has seen better days since GM closed in 2009, removing billions of dollars from the local economy. However, the town has a good stock of historic buildings with tree-lined side streets showing its former prosperity and its potential. We enjoyed walking around town studying its current state and wondering about its past.

Downtown Massena: underground utilities, sidewalk pavers, trees, storefronts – it is clear that there has been investment in this town not too long ago.

The 1918 Strand Theater on Main Street is currently closed, but rehabilitation efforts are in the works.

Theater plans in the window.

Massena Downtown Theatre Association – see here http://massenadowntowntheatre.com/

The remainder of the small downtown “main street” includes abandoned buildings (such as the School of Business), building under rehabilitation, empty storefronts, occupied storefronts, a hotel, a post office, and some stores.

This corner building holds a gym on the first floor.

The rehabilitated bridge over the Grass River.

Outside of the downtown block are tree-lined residential streets with sidewalks and historic houses with front porches. There is a large park between Clark Street and Danforth Street (see map below) with a monument in it. It’s part sign, part monument, you could say.

Massena High School sign and school bell installed in the park.

Memorial sign.

The park and former school grounds as they appear today. The sign is behind me in this photograph.

I wondered what this sign was doing here, oddly located, in the middle of an empty park with nothing else. Where did it come from? A quick look on the map showed it labeled as “Wooden Park.” Other maps showed it as “Old Bridges Avenue Junior High School.” It seems like an odd spot for a school building, as the lot is fairly narrow. There certainly was no parking. What did it look like, if it was a school? When I have a question like this, I turn to historicaerials.com, which usually answers my question. See below. The school filled the entire space between the streets.

The school is in the center of the photograph with Clark Street on the left and Danforth Street on the right. Note the courtyard in the middle of the school.  Photo: historicaerials.com

Massena, 1976.

And, of course, I search for images on Google or Cardcow.com or eBay. In this case I searched for old “Massena High School” NY. I vary the quotation marks until I find what I’m looking for. When you have a common phrase such as “high school” it’s best to use it in quotes with its name, otherwise you’ll have an endless list of search results. Fortunately, this search wasn’t too difficult.

Massena High School. Source: cardcow.com

Massena High School (later Junior High School). Source: http://www.topix.com/album/detail/massena-ny/R3V9PSPSATQBVQOU. Thank you, kind strangers, who post information about your hometowns on the internet.

The high school was closed after the 1980-81 school year and demolished in 1986. I was unsuccessful in discovering why it was removed, but I would guess it had to do with expensive upgrades and maintenance issues. In its place a wooden park was constructed in 1990 and removed in 2015. It was officially known as the Danforth Place Creative Playground. Walking across the grass, you can still find wood remnants of the playground. The playground was removed due to deterioration and increasing vandalism and illegal activity on the playground.

And that, my preservation friends, is a simple way to find out answers to “what used to be here?” What tricks do you have?

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Abandoned New York: Granville House

Granville, NY

Sometimes a house catches your eye and you have to make a U-turn to take a better look. Been there, done that, right? Well, this house in Granville, NY on Route 22 caught my eye. It’s so neat and well-kept, that I couldn’t quite decide what was going on. But it appears that a restoration project has stalled. Have you seen this house? Do you know anything about it?

 

Slate embedded in the sidewalk matches the house.

 

Zooming in, it’s not in the best of shape. Missing windows, missing soffits, porch roof in need of help. Yet, look at the details in the porch.

 

I couldn’t quite call this abandoned as it’s so neat and tidy, perhaps just the restoration is neglected?

 

The detail remains intact.

I’d love to know the history and current status of this house.

Abandoned New York: Fort Edward School

Union School Building in Fort Edward, NY. Early 20th century. Click for source.

The Village of Fort Edward is located on US Route 4 between Hudson Falls and Glens Falls in Washington County, NY. The Hudson River forms the western boundary of the town, and Delaware and Hudson Railroad (now the Canadian Pacific Railway) runs through town. Historically, Fort Edward was known for being a portage between the Hudson River and the Champlain Canal. You wouldn’t know it today, but Fort Edward was once the third largest city in North American after Boston and New York City (18th century).

In the 19th century, paper mills, foundries, and sawmills sustained Fort Edward’s economy. Some companies included International Paper, Marinette Paper Company (bought out by Scott Paper Company then by Kimberly Clark), then Irving Tissue. Read more history at Lakes to Locks. General Electric (GE) opened a plant in 1942 to produce selsyn motors during WWII, and post war produced building capacitors. The plant closed in 2013 when operations relocated to Florida for cheaper labor. (Unfortunately, GE polluted the water and air in Fort Edward for decades.)

You can see the former prosperity of Fort Edward as you drive through the village. Due to the suffering economy and other typical factors of the late 20th century, finding an abandoned school was not surprising.

Fort Edward School, 1915. Click for source. (And thanks to Suzasippi for sending the image!) Note that in this postcard image you can see the adjacent buildings (still standing).

Built as Union School, the building housed the grammar school and the high school until 1923, when the new high school was completed. Later known as the Florence E. Powers School, it housed the elementary school until a new elementary school wing was added to the high school in 1970.

Agway occupied the building until it moved further up Main Street, and since then it appears that the building has sat empty, decaying, and in need of major repairs soon. Take a look around with me.

Changes to the Union School: Corrugated metal façade and paved up the to the foundation.

Union / Powers School.

Altered windows, boarded up windows, and soffits in need of repair.

Agway ghost signs. The corrugated metal will make you cringe, knowing that it covers the historic windows beneath.

Neglect is evident in the brickwork.

The holes in the roof need to be repaired in order to save this building!

Another view of the side. Look at the brick detail!

Through the front door.

Adjacent to the school – an old freight depot perhaps?

Another freight building / storage building.

The entire complex is abandoned.

Internet searching revealed little, other than as of 2013, the Renaissance Plan for Fort Edward included a plan to develop the Agway Complex into a multi-use complex. Hopefully that comes to fruition.

Readers, what do you know about this Fort Edward school? I’d love to hear more.

Abandoned New York: Frontier Town

Consider it pure luck or good karma for chatting with strangers. Traveling up and down Route 9 in New York State, we were intrigued by the sad end of the roadside motels. This one had a small play area out front, so we stopped. (I have a documented interest in playgrounds.)

The Frontier Town Motel off US Route 9 in North Hudson, New York. 

Normally when photographing abandoned roadside anything, it’s more comfortable when no one else is around to either a) get in your photo or b) ask what you’re doing. However, an older couple was strolling around the front of the motel. They seemed nice (and not like people who would be annoyed that I was taking photographs), so I put on my good preservationist smile and went over to say hello. And what a good idea to be friendly that day! This couple shared their memories of this area – formerly known as Frontier Town.

Frontier Town was a wild-west theme amusement park of the 1950s era variety. Think trains & robbers, shooting showdowns on the “Main Street”, sheriff badges, horse shows, kid-friendly, small park activities “cowboy and Indian” style. Art Benson opened the park in 1952 and it operated until 1998, except for a few years in the 1980s. Frontier Town’s prime was the 1960s/1970s. Being located next to I-87 certainly helped its prosperity, and it’s location in the Adirondacks where there are few theme parks.

Back to the couple who started talking about Frontier Town. We chatted for a bit and then they said, Want to see it? Follow us. You can still get there on the access road. But it’s easier to follow. 

Follow us. Hmm. I wouldn’t follow any random stranger into the woods, but since they were in their own car and we were in our car, and they seemed like normal people, this was okay. Such is the life of a curious preservationist. Down this access road we went, dodging potholes, and closing the windows because mosquitoes were starting to swarm into the car.

True to their word, they lead us into abandoned Frontier Town.

Road in Frontier Town.

Main Street, Frontier Town. Mostly overgrown. 

A flash storm had just rolled through the area, hence the hazy air and cloudy skies. And as soon as we got out of the car, mosquitoes swarmed. Intensely. Then again, I’m mosquito bait. Always bring me along if you don’t want to be the one attacked by bugs. The couple walked with us on Main Street for a bit. The woman was especially sweet, warning us of unstable floors and dangerous places to step. I wanted to say, We’re preservationists; we do this all of the time – step on the joists! But I restrained myself, lest she think we’re crazy.

Watch out for the hole in the floor!

Most of the interiors looked like this.

While the four of us were walking along the Main Street stores, the couple told us some of their memories and how their kids like to come walk around Frontier Town when they are home visiting. And, apparently it’s a very popular thing to do. Other folks were strolling around, too. People seemed curious, not destructive.

Another view in Frontier Town. Talk about mosquitoes. 

Frontier Town closed in 1998. Eventually the property was seized due to back taxes. Everything was sold off at auction. And over the years, the property has been vandalized, and anything remaining has been stolen. Various groups over the years have attempted to save Frontier Town, without luck. All that remains is a collection of decaying buildings among the overgrown vegetation, with curious and nostalgic visitors. It holds a special place in the hearts and lives of many. As of July 2015, the land was owned by Essex County and the town of North Hudson was trying to buy it.

And such is the fate of the majority of 1950s era amusement parks. Have any near you? Have you been to Frontier Town, or have you heard of it? Please share in the comments!

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Interested in more photos and info? 

• NY Times article, 2004. 
• Frontier Town – Then and Now (Facebook)
• Frontier Town – Project Absurd (includes videos, too)
• Photos from June 2012 
• April 2015 video

Abandoned New York: Fort Covington Schoolhouse

Sitting alongside State Highway 37, just outside Fort Covington, New York sits this one-room brick schoolhouse. The unmistakable bank of windows caught my eye from down the road. A quick u-turn was definitely worth it to snap a few photographs. Without a sign to its name or any indication of ownership, I had to assume it was abandoned (perhaps only used for storage). If you know anything about this lonely schoolhouse, I’d love to hear.

One room brick schoolhouse. The bank of windows gave it away.

Interesting front entrance: no windows in the front, but nice return cornices, indicative of Greek Revival style. Those trees must have been planted when the school was very young. You can envision the  coats and lunch pails in the front entrance, the blackboard on the front wall, and desks lined up facing the board, so the sun would shine over the students’ left shoulders. A small wood frame addition is on the left, and likely held the privies. A concrete block addition on the rear likely held wood or coal and other supplies. 

Closer view of the front. A slate walkway leads you to the frame door, and planters oppose each other on the large stone slab. The foundation is stone, also. 

A historic doorknob.

Six windows in the bank. A flagpole stands in the school yard without a flag.

Behind the school is a concrete block addition and playground remnants. Here is the frame for a see-saw. No other equipment to be found.

The schoolhouse appears in relatively good condition, despite the broken window sashes. Perhaps it does have an owner, or at least a future.