Items
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Pratt George Young Man Potrait
Portrait of George Watson Pratt as a young man -
Pratt porte cochere removed
Sometime between 2001 and 2007 the box around the porte cochere was removed, restoring the Pratt house to more like its original condition. -
Pratt House from Baseball Field
The Brothers gradually cleared the fields just east of Holy Rosary. In 1943 there were two baseball fields. The slope to the house was clear of trees, and the house, 257' away was a home run. Gradually many more fields were cleared, probably on land cultivated by the Beavers and later by Pratt. -
Pratt house in winter.
Pratt house in winter. Note porte couchere has been boxed in. Addition at right was put on about 1935 by Episcopal Church when house was used as a dining hall and kitchen. -
The Pratt House
The Pratt house from a picture taken from Elizabeth Burroughs-Kelly essay in "Town of Esopus story" published 1978. Early called the superintendent's house, the Brothers renamed the house Holy Rosary -
Another view of the Icehouse and pond
Another view of icehouse and pond. In dry periods the pond is replenished by the pump along the Hudson River. -
Icehouse near pond
Icehouse near pond west of English Village was designed and built by Julian Burroughs -
Greenhouse Building
Greenhouse east building. Grass in foreground is the area occupied by Payne's greenhouse, which consisted of four regular size greenhouses with a tall domed house in the center. -
Garden
This was a formal garden directly opposite the greenhouses, but within easy walking distance from the main house.. Most of the soil for this garden was reputedly imported from New Jersey, either by rail or by boat, by Neidlinger and/or Payne -
Berchmans House
The home of the chief gardener adjacent to a large greenhouse. The first floor was a workroom. This building has been renamed in honor of Brother John Berchmans This was the gardener's cottage. Living quarters were on the second and third floors. The spaciousness of the rambling ground floor was subdivided into large, white-tiled halls which housed the indoor activities of the florists and gardeners. -
Gatehouse gate removed
The grill had a gate for autos and another for pedestrians. The auto gate was too narrow for later day autos, and after an accident in 1944, the entire gate was removed. -
Gatehouse to the Main Entrance
The gatehouse at the main entrance to the property was designed by Thomas Hastings, but the iron grill at the main gate is the work of Julian Burroughs. The grill was removed in the 1940s. -
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Wartime crew on the Aphrodite
Some of the wartime crew. Payne's crew for the Aphrodite averaged 58.. The wartime crew totaled 128. -
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The USS Aphrodite on patrol as seen from the stern of another loaned steam yacht.
The USS Aphrodite on patrol as seen from the stern of another loaned steam yacht. -
Stateroom door from the Aphrodite.
Stateroom door from the Aphrodite. This is still in use in on of the buildings on Riverby, the Burroughs family land south of Payne's estate. Julian Burroughs was the manager of the estate. Printed with permission of Joan Burroughs. -
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The Aphrodite in drydock, at an unknown location.
The Aphrodite in drydock, at an unknown location. It was constructed at the Bath Iron Works in Maine, but the drydock is huge, as are the two vessels in the background. Another photo of the Aphrodite. This photo and the photo directly left was received September 2008 from Rick Mundy who studied with the Marist Brothers both in Esopus and Poughkeepsie. He thinks he retrieved them from a junk pile in the Marist College darkroom. Both photos are marked mansion in pencil on the back -
Boathouse Peacock
The boathouse had provisions to hoist the tender over the ice. The Aphrodite itself did not dock at the dock but just beyond the outcrop of trees seen through the portcullis (designed by Julian Burroughs). The mooring allowed residents of the main house to see the boat framed by the landscaping. The grill was dropped and left in the water sometime in the 1930s. It has been restored to its former position. -
Sherd from Aphrodite
This sherd of a Minton plate from the Aphrodite is the only memory remaining of its elegant furnishings, which were stored in a Long Island warehouse when the ship was outfitted for war service. The warehouse was destroyed by fire. The sherd was found in a refuse pile on Riverby, the Burroughs family land south of Payne's estate. Julian Burroughs was the manager of the estate. Printed with permission of Joan Burroughs. -
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Aphrodite Model
This model of the Aphrodite was on sale on the internet in 2009 for only $7,500. The steam yacht had beautiful lines. -
Payne's yacht, the Aphrodite
Payne's yacht, the Aphrodite, was usually moored below the mansion, with a tender carrying guests to the boathouse and dock -
Boat House
The Boathouse as it appears today from the river. Note the Julian Burroughs grillwork has been restored and placed in its proper position. The northern portion of the dock adjacent to the boathouse has been cut back and reinforced. -
Door Mantle
The lintel over the boathouse front door marks the construction at 1915 -
Pump House South
In the 1940s, Michael Curtin, the father of Broter Herman Edwin, visited the pumphouse daily. Michael and his wife lived in the gatehouse. In the early 1960s a severe winter froze the water to the depth of the intake pipe. The pipe was extended further into the river, but eventually artesian wells were utilized for regular water. The river pump house still supplies the icehouse lake and swimming pool. -
Pump House North
Payne commissioned a pump house at the extreme northern border of his property in the same style as the English Village, including slate roof which withstood almost 100 years of weather. and a fireplace and chimney to warm the caretaker during the bitter winter weather. -
ST Paul Quarry Marks
One of the few vestiges of the several quarries on the Payne property is just above the coal bin. Note the stone cutters' marks on the rock facade -
Coal Storage Bin Back Wall
Three walls of the coal bin were of rock quarried on site. The fourth wall was the rock in the quarry itself. -
Coal storage bin sits south wall
The walls are two or three feet thick, and made from rock quarried on the site. In 1942-1945 we could see the timbers which once held up the roof. The roof had collapsed, and the timbers are not visible today. -
Coal Storage Bin
The massive coal storage bin sits quietly and unobtrusively within the woods. Coal was unloaded from barges, stored here, and then trucked up to the Payne buildings -
Marist Brothers enjoying the riverfront at St. Paul's Bay
Marist Brothers enjoying the riverfront at St. Paul's Bay (formerly the coal dock -- before that the Pratt landing) -
The wall along the road leading to St. Paul's Bay
The wall along the road leading to St. Paul's Bay -
Boathouse with View
An observer standing on the dock gains a spectacular view looking north, including Esopus Island, located close to the eastern shore of the Hudson. -
Dock
The dock survived over eighty harsh, ice-filled winters and the shifting currents of the Hudson estuary. . In the 1990s, the current owner restored the dock. The capstans so proudly designed by Julian Burroughs had been bent when a barge sank during a storm, and they are now gone. So is the barge. The northern section had to be redone, as the original bulwark was in line with the southern section. -
Boathouse 2
The portcullis was raised by an electric hoist located in the upper floor. This hoist also lifted the tender out of the water to drydock it during the ice season. -
Riverfront Gazebo
The gazebo was the site of many conversations out of the blazing sun. It also served as a buffet table for picnics -
The view south from the dock
The view south from the dock goes well past Hyde Park to a bend in the Hudson. Just below the bend is a four mile straight stretch of the river that for many years was the site of the Poughkeepsie Regatta, one of the few four mile races. -
Peacock Design
Julian Burroughs was especially proud of his design of this peacock for the portcullis closing off the boathouse entry. -
Boat House
In the 1940s, Brother Joseph Cadroes, one of the teachers often sat in this gazebo and watched the students swim off the dock -
Restored Boathouse
The boathouse has been restored. Permission to build the dock was granted by an act of the legislature in 1845 -
Boat House
The Payne Boathouse from the south. The boathouse was designed by Julian Burroughs and the Captain of the Aphrodite -
Another winter view with boathouse in the upper background.
Another winter view with boathouse in the upper background. -
The Hudson River
The Hudson River, the defining element for those who love Esopus -
BR Timothy Daniel Murphy
Timothy Daniel Murphy was a native of Methuen, near Lawrence MA. He transferred from Cath Central in Lawrence to Marist Prep in 1943. A history major, he taught at St. Ann's Academy and Mount St. Micheal. He died in an auto accident while accompanying the MSM basketball to a tournament in Lawrence MA -
Brother Mary Anthony Scheh
Brother Mary Anthony Scheh spent most of his time as a Marist Brother in manual labor, including his years at Marist Preparatory. He also taught at St. Peter's School in Haverstraw NY. -
Brother Linus William Hall
Brother Linus William Hall grew up in the Irish section of Harlem NYC. He was completing his masters degree in mathematics at Catholic University, Wash. DC when he was named the first headmaster of Marist Prep. After completing five years in Esopus, he was named Provincial for the United States Province of the Marist Brothers -
BR. Kieran Martin (Edward Garneau)
Edward Garneau was one of the original 1942-1943 juniors in sophomore year. He died at a young age of a heart attack. He taught in secondary schools in New York and New Jersey. -
BR Linus Carroll
Linus Carroll entered the Juniorate in 1943. He received his masters in mathematics from Columbia University and taught most of his life at Cardinal Hayes and later Mount St Michael. He also served as coach for baseball, basketball and track at those schools