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Marist College
I first became aware of the name John Winslow in
2007 when I was researching deeds connected to
Marist college land. There is a growing tradition for
the women’s basketball teams to gather in early
March at Shadows on the Hudson in their uniforms
to watch the ESPN announcements of where and whom and
when they will play in the NCAA basketball tournament.
During this event I met William Kuffner from Buffalo, the twin
brother of Dan Kuffner of Hyde Park. Both young men had
graduated from Marist College in 1968. During our
conversation Bill asked me what I was doing. I responded that
I was hoping to find information about a man named John
Winslow. Bill said: "You mean John Flack Winslow. I wrote my
senior thesis on him for Brother Edward Cashin! “ Later Bill
sent me a copy of his 1968 thesis; this became the starting
point for my future research about Winslow.
see note 1
Read the entire essay,or
click on item below to go directly to that section.
Winslow estate
Winslow farm
List of owners
John Flack Winslow; life before the Monitor
Monitor Construction
Owners before Winslow
Schoonhoven/Crosby ownership (1847 – 1867)
John Flack Winslow in Poughkeepsie
Poughkeepsie & Eastern Railroad
Harriet Wilkes Winslow
Owners after Harriet Winslow
Woodcliff Pleasure Park
Kem Plastic Playing Cards
The Costanzi family
Frank Eberhard
Endnotes
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Winslow estate
The Winslow estate lies between Route 9 and the Hudson
River. Its northern boundary is a rock wall still visible, marking
the southern boundary of Fern Tor, the Newbold estate. In
2012 it includes the former Dutchess bank building, the
Fontaine academic building, the Gartland Commons student
housing and the Gartland athletic fields. None of the Winslow
estate structures still exist.
Winslow farm
The Winslow farm stretched between Route
9 and Violet Ave. Its southern edge abuts
the Home Depot and Mobil gas station.
There is a street sign at the yellow caution light marked
Winslow Gate Road. Directly north of the Winslow farm was a
similar rectangular parcel owned by the Ziegler family. John
and Harriet Winslow operated a farm on this parcel but also
provided housing for their employees. The Ziegler and
Winslow farms were part of an extensive farm owned by the
Pells family. Later it was sold to Cyrus Mason who sold to John
Corlies. In 1863 John Corlies sold 76 acres to Elias Van
Benschoten who sold it in 1866 to William Ziegler. The Ziegler
family held onto it until it was purchased by the State of New
York in 1904.
see note 2
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The Winslow farm consisted of two packages: Winslow
purchased the portion near Violet Avenue in 1871, and 1877
he purchased 27 acres near Route 9. The Poughkeepsie and
Eastern RR tracks crossed this parcel in two places. Harriet
Winslow transferred the entire farm to the Hudson River State
Hospital in 1912
see note 3
acquired
owner
disposed
1984 & 1992
Marist College
1972
Frank Eberhard
1992
1977
Anthony Costanzi
1984
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1948
Vincent J Costanzi
1977
1946
Kem Playing Cards
1948
1934
Runk Realty Corp
1946
1934
Wesley Ruthkowski
1934
1934
Nicholas & Tempa E Dyruff
1946
1929
Woodcliff Pleasure Park
1934
1926
Fred Ponty
1929
1926
John Marian
1926
1867
John F Winslow
1926
1855
Elizabeth Crosby
1867
1847
James Van Schoonhoven
1855
1844
Henry S Richards
1847
1836
Walter Cunningham
1844
1819
Elijah Martin
1844
1817
Frederic Barnard
1836
1813
Peter Morgan
1817
Samuel Slee
1813
In the next few decades the Winslow farm
may play an important role in the
development of Marist College and future
housing plans for the former Hudson River
State Hospital grounds. One plan under consideration is to
restrict traffic from the hundreds of homes planned on the
hospital grounds from entering Route 9 from the existing entry
road. The state hospital did little or no construction on the
Winslow site, so a cost effective plan is to build a connector
road between Route 9 And Violet Ave. (route 9G) on the
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Winslow farm property. The road would exit at the blinker light
on Route 9. The existing traffic signal between Marist College
and Office Depot would be transferred to the blinker site.
Marist would relocate its North entrance onto the Fern Tor
property. Currently plans for major housing on the state
hospital property are on hold until the national housing
situation improves.
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John Flack Winslow: life before the Monitor
John Flack Winslow was born November 10,
1810 to Captain Richard Winslow of Lyme
CT and Mary Corning Seymour of Hartford
CT. He was born in Bennington VT where
his parents lived there, and then moved to
Albany NY where his father Captain Winslow
worked as a ship’s captain until his
retirement. John worked for four years as a
commercial clerk at the W and A Marvin Company of Albany.
He received a commission to go to New York City as a trainee
at the City Iron Company. He then went to New Orleans to
establish a subsidiary company, but lasted there only a year
because of the stifling weather conditions. He became the
managing agent of the New Jersey Iron Company. In 1832 he
met and married Nancy B Jackson, daughter of a prominent
businessman from Rockaway NJ. During his four year stay in
New Jersey, he met Erastus Corning who later became his
partner in Troy NY.
Winslow and Corning formed an iron company named
and Winslow, but later the Rensselear Iron
Company, soon to become the largest
railroad iron manufacturer on the east
coast. They took in a third partner, John A
Griswald in 1840. By 1845, the renamed
Albany Iron Works became the nation’s
second leading manufacturer of railroad
iron. In 1852, Winslow traveled to England
and returned with the rights to manufacture
iron made by the Bessemer process. The company soon
vaulted into the first position in manufacture of railroad iron.
see note 4
John Winslow and his wife lived in Troy NY, where he became
active in Republican politics. When Abraham Lincoln was
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elected President, John was named an official Elector. He
decided to go to Washington for a few weeks to meet
President-elect Lincoln personally.
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Monitor Construction
see note 5
While in Washington, Winslow met John Ericsson,
who was crestfallen after he had made a proposal to the Navy
Board for an ironclad warship with a revolving turret. The
Navy Board had derided the idea, suggesting that the boat
would sink as soon as it was launched. Winslow asked to see
Ericsson’s plans, and spent a few weeks reviewing them. He
became convinced that the plans had merit, and decided to
intercede with Lincoln himself to approve the construction. A
meeting was arranged with the Navy Board, Ericsson, Winslow,
Griswold, C.S. Bushnell (a Massachusetts capitalist from
Boston and advisor to Ericsson) and Lincoln. After listening to
the presentation, Lincoln approved construction of such a
vessel. But the terms were difficult: the vessel had to be
completed in 100 days, and payment would be made upon
completion.
Winslow’s management skills now came into play. Instead of
using only the Albany Iron Works, he parceled the work out to
several iron manufacturers. Winslow visited each one to
specify exactly what that company was to build, and indicated
that the completed iron be shipped to the Brooklyn Navy Yard,
where he had authorized another company to build the wooden
substructure. To the amazement of his critics, the ship
(named the Monitor) was ready in 101 days!
During the trial runs of the Monitor, it was decided to scrap the
original size cannon for much larger ones. Another snag was
that a patent for a revolving turret has been granted to
Theodore Trembly of Pawling NY in 1843. Winslow overcame
this by promising to pay Trembly $5,000 for any turret
manufactured by Albany Iron Works.
Note that Winslow, Griswald and Bushnell provided the interim
financing of $275,000 for construction of the Monitor until they
were reimbursed by the United States government, which
happened after the classic battle of the Monitor versus the
Merrimac, so an interesting trivia about the battle was that the
North was represented by a privately owned vessel!
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During the construction period, John Winslow’s wife Nancy
became seriously ill, and died on December 19, 1861.
For his part in getting the Monitor built, Winslow was given the
privilege of naming the Captain. He named John Lorima
Worden of Pawling NY who in turn picked a crew of five men.
Within a year of the famous battle, thirty five other vessels
were constructed using the plans for the Monitor. They were
used to patrol and protect rivers and harbors, as the Monitor
design proved not to be seaworthy.
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Prior owners of Winslow estate
Frederic Barnard of Nantucket was a retired whaling ship
captain. He purchased a 104 acre farm along the Hudson
River and moved to Poughkeepsie with his wife and several of
his eventual twelve children.
see note 6
Within two years he
sold the northernmost strip of the farm to Elijah
Martin.
see note 7
The Barnards lived there until 1837 when
Frederic Barnard sold the remainder of the farm to Walter
Cunningham, with Barnard holding a mortgage on the farm.
About the same time, Barnard purchased two lots along
Cannon Street that became the site of a large Barnard family
house.
see note 8
Schoonhoven/Crosby ownership (1847 – 1867)
Walter Cunningham sold the upper section to Henry C
Richards. Henry C Richards also purchased the farm of Elijah
Martin.
see note 9
Henry Richards died shortly thereafter,
and the executors of his estate sold off the 27 northern acres
(including the Elijah Martin parcel) to James Van Schoonhoven
of Troy NY.
see note 10
During the Schoonhoven ownership,
the railroad took a path 924 feet long for its tracks.
see note 11
see note 12
Schoonhoven was a prominent
businessman and President of the Troy Savings Bank. In 1855
he sold the land to Elizabeth Maria (née Schoonhoven) Crosby,
his youngest daughter.
see note 13
Elizabeth and her family
must have been living on the site since the 1847 purchase.
The 1850 census shows her, her husband and one year old
daughter with four servants; the 1860 census shows her
husband, herself, and six children with four servants.
see note 14
The name wood cliff probably originated at this
time, referring to the steep drop-off still visible from the level
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of the Gartland Commons student housing to the Gartland
athletic complex. James Van Schoonhoven died at his
daughter’s home September 9, 1865, age about 84.
A sidebar can be found on the Internet
concerning Edward N Crosby, Elizabeth’s
husband. Samuel F. B. Morse lived at Locust
Grove, just south of Poughkeepsie. Shortly
after Abraham Lincoln issue the Emancipation
Proclamation on 1 January 1963, Professor
Morse published an essay or tract defending
the institution of slavery. Morse was the son
of a minister from New England, and based
his defense of slavery on biblical sources.
Edward took it on himself to publish a reply,
which caused Morse to reply to the reply, which caused Edward
to reply to the reply to the reply, the latter titled “Our country
versus party spirit being a rejoinder to the reply of Prof. Morse
by Edward N. Crosby.’ It was published 1863 by Platt &
Schram, printers in Poughkeepsie. This illustrates that states
rights versus the union was a more compelling cause than
slavery for many Northerners. Elizabeth Crosby’s 1869
application for a passport describes her as widow.
see note 15
Edward Crosby died 7 June 1865 in Troy NY after
a lingering Illness, as noted on the index file of deaths housed
in the Adriance Library. It might explain how Winslow became
interested in the site. Troy is a small enough city that
prominent businessmen like Winslow and Van Schoonhoven
would know each other.
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John Winslow was aware of the Dutchess area also because his
younger brother, James Winslow, a banker in New York City,
purchased a 29 acre site opposite the Poughkeepsie Rural
Cemetery reaching eastward to Beechwood Avenue.
see note 16
When they were younger John Flack Winslow
considered the possibility of joining James in the finance
business, but opted instead to pursue the iron manufacturing
business.
John Flack Winslow in Poughkeepsie
John Flack Winslow came to Poughkeepsie to retire. He was
already a wealthy man, and gained wide recognition as the
man who managed to get the Monitor built. His wife had died
in 1861. Winslow was acquainted with Dutchess County before
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he moved to the county in 1867. His younger
brother James had moved to Poughkeepsie
with his family before 1960 and owned a farm
along Beechwood Avenue. In 1850 the James
Winslow family is listed as living in New York
City. James was still in Poughkeepsie in the
1870 census,
see note 17
but his 1870 listing
for New York City as a banker indicates that
the Poughkeepsie home was a country home,
as he occupied a residence between 35th and
36th street in New York City.
see note 18
John Flack Winslow was active in the Presbyterian Church, and
became acquainted with Harriet Wickes, eldest daughter of the
Presbyterian Minister. Winslow was 57 years old; Harriet
Wickes was thirty years younger. The couple married and
began to establish an estate and a farm and a family.
The estate property already was in nice
condition, with the main house in stone
near the highway. Winslow liked the
emerging Victorian style of architecture,
and surrounded the existing stone house
with a wooden framework, adding a tall
tower which would allow him and his
visitors to gain a sweeping view of the
Hudson River. There was a stream running through the
property.
see note 19
Winslow created several ponds as the
stream ran through the estate; these provided water in dry
periods and formed an elegant setting for walkways and
carriageways. In one of the ponds there was a small island in
the shape of the Monitor.
Although retired from the iron business in Troy, Winslow was
only 57 and remained active in many facets of Dutchess
County history. He was no stranger to Dutchess, although
most of his work had been in the eastern sector of the County,
near Amenia, Millerton, and Pine Plains. The railroad had run
north through the Harlem Valley about ten years before
construction of the railroad along the east bank of the Hudson.
Winslow purchased some farms outright and obtained mining
rights to several others. The railroad reached Chatham where
it connected to a railroad from New England leading towards
Albany and Troy, so it became a major carrier of iron ore from
the rich deposits in the Harlem Valley. By contrast, Edvard
Bech and his partners obtained most of their iron ore from East
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Fishkill, drawn in carts by oxen and along plank roads during
inclement weather.
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Poughkeepsie & Eastern Railroad
Winslow decided to construct a railroad
from the northeast corner of Dutchess
County leading across the county and
joining the Hudson railroad near Edward
Bech’s foundry, which had been relocated from Union Landing
to a site just north of Hoffman Street.
We researched the deeds in 1867 and 1868 which provide a
trail from Millerton through the towns of Pine Plains, Northeast,
Stanford, Washington, Clinton, Pleasant Valley and the Town
and City of Poughkeepsie to the Hudson River.
see note 20
The approach to Poughkeepsie took it next to the Fallkill Creek
along a path which now is the back road for St. Peter’s
Cemetery. Called the Poughkeepsie & Eastern Railroad, it
entered the city of Poughkeepsie at Smith Street, where space
was reserved for storage of railroad cars and engines. It would
have been impractical to head straight downhill to the river
edge, so the path took a serpentine route. It u-turned north
moving into what would become the Hudson River State
Hospital, then u-turned once again to the south west, following
a gradual path which entered the Hudson Railroad just north of
Hoffman Street. The remains of the path are now owned by
CSX, but the tracks have been removed (presumably to lower
the tax rate). The last section of the path passes adjacent to
the Marist College property where the McCann Athletic Center
is located (just behind the McCann Baseball Field). The path
runs under Route 9. On the east side of Route 9 it runs
through Marist College property to behind the Staples store.
Long range plans call for turning it into a hiking path, but
currently attention is focused on connecting the Railroad
Bridge to the rail trails headed towards Poughkeepsie from
Hopewell Junction.
When I was a student at Marist College in 1947-1950, we had
no idea of the history of the Poughkeepsie & Eastern. We
called the section of tracks we observed the New York Central;
we knew it carried paper to Western Printing Company and
coal to the central heating plant of the Hudson River State
Hospital. But it also had spurs leading to the foundry and
slaughter house along Fulton Street and to Schatz-Federal
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plant which was a principal supplier of ball bearings to Ford
Motor Company We were unaware that the original railroad
carried passenger traffic from the eastern part of the county to
Pleasant Valley as recently as 1937!
see note 21
Although the Poughkeepsie & Eastern began operation in 1870,
it did not survive the financial panic of 1873. It went into
receivership, and then went through several cycles of
ownership, often with name changes (although the name
Poughkeepsie & Eastern reappeared in the late 1800s.) At one
time it had a connector railroad leading to Rhinebeck, where
developers planned on moving railroad cars by ferry across the
Hudson to connect with the West Shore Railroad which had
begun in 1881. John Flack Winslow was the President of the
Poughkeepsie & Eastern for several years and the driving force
behind its construction.
For several years he was the President of the company founded
to design and finance the construction of the Poughkeepsie
Railroad Bridge. He may have consulted in the design of the
bridge, although his name is not mentioned in any reference I
found. His major contribution may have been in attracting
investors, as the construction was a private undertaking. The
Winslow estate was useful for this purpose, as John Winslow
and his wife Harriet were gracious entertainers, and the tower
he had added during the construction of the wood exterior to
the main house provided visitors with panoramic views of the
Hudson and the proposed site of the bridge.
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The Winslows loved to entertain. On the
fourth of July, he would fire a small cannon
at the stroke of midnight to celebrate the
holiday. The tradition ended when shot from
the cannon accidentally exploded a small
tug boat moving down the Hudson.
Fortunately no was injured, but to make up
for this incident John Flack Winslow bought
the company a new boat – and the tradition ended!.
see note 22
John Winslow was also active in other
commercial and real estate activities. One
interesting set of real estate activities was
concerned with Eastman Terrace. Harvey G
Eastman (1832 – 1878) founded a business
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college in Oswego NY in 1855, then transferred it to Saint Louis
MO in 1858 and relocated it again in 1859 to Poughkeepsie NY,
naming it Eastman Business College, where it became one of
the largest commercial schools in the United
States..
see note 23
Eastman served as Mayor of
Poughkeepsie in the period 1871 – 1878; his term is noted for
establishing a water treatment plant for a city notorious for its
bad drinking water. The treatment plant took land from the
site now occupied by Marist College. One of Eastman’s
projects was to develop elegant housing similar to that of
Washington Square in New York City. He chose a site adjacent
to South Avenue bordered by Eastman Terrace and
Montgomery Street. A building similar to that at the north
edge of Washington Square between Fifth Avenue and Waverly
Place was constructed along Eastman Terrace, but the square
never got closed in. However several members of the
Improvement Group (an informal group of leading citizens of
Poughkeepsie; Matthew Vassar was an important member)
purchased land along the other sides of the proposed square.
Their homes along Garfield Street, which runs east of and
parallel to South Avenue. now constitute a historical area.
John Winslow purchased property, but when the venture
faltered, he sold the parcel.
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John Winslow lived at the estate on now
Marist College property with his wife Harriet
Wickes until his death on 13 March 1892. He
is buried in Albany Rural Cemetery, Menands
NY. After his death, Harriet Winslow (1837 –
1926) remained on the estate until she died
18 January 1926. She was buried in the Winslow mausoleum
next to her husband. John Winslow and Harriet had two
children. The older, Julia Wickes Winslow, died as a young
person. She is listed in the 1870 census as a 2 year old, but
not in the 1880 census. Another daughter, Mary Corning
Winslow, was born 10 February 1873, married Clarence A Black
11 December 1895 lived for about two decades in Detroit,
Michigan where her husband was a businessman and later a
banker. The Blacks had one daughter, Ruth born about 1897.
Later the couple moved to California, living in Santa Barbara
and Monterey. In the 1870s the Winslows also adopted the son
of Harriet Winslow’s sister in the 1870s. His birth surname was
Williams, but he changed it to be known as Thomas Scudder
Winslow.
see note 24
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Harriet Wilkes Winslow
I was unable to find anything unflattering or negative about
Harriet Wickes Winslow . She was well respected. A later
travelogue depicting sightseeing cruises along the Hudson
specifically noted the grand estates of Mrs. John Winslow and
Mrs. Thomas Newbold (immediately north of the Winslow
estate). She encouraged individuals to further their
education. During his research on his senior thesis, William
Kuffner met often with Dr. Paul Hasbrouck, the historian of the
first Presbyterian Church. Dr. Hasbrouck told him that Mrs.
Winslow had enabled him to pursue his bachelors, masters,
and doctor degrees from Columbia University. When Kuffner
thought this was unusual, Dr. Hasbrouck indicated that she
provided similar assistance to many others. In 1909, four
years after the Marist Brothers had purchased the property just
south of the Winslow estate, a small house near the barn
burned down during the night. Insurance covered part of the
cost. Mrs. Winslow sent $50 to help out. In her will Mrs.
Winslow left $1500 to Huron College.
see note 25
$1500 to
Park College,
see note 26
and $2500 to Lincoln
University.
see note 27
wins10_presbyterian
The Presbyterian Church on Market
Street near Main Street burned down. Mrs. Winslow was a
principal donor for construction of the church at the corner of
South Hamilton and Cannon Street. Recently the church was
sold to another denomination, and the Presbyterian presence
remains in a church along route 55. She donated a large
stained glass window to honor her late husband. It still
remains in the South Hamilton Street church. Marist College
presents its annual program of Christmas carols and readings
in the church.
Towards the end of her life, Harriet stayed at
247 Church Street in the City of Poughkeepsie
with Sophie Harris, who had joined the
Winslow household shortly before John
Winslow’s death, but remained during Mrs.
Winslow’s last years. Sophie is listed in the
annual city directories at that address until
1932, the year she died. The 1920 census
lists Harriet living at WoodCliff, with Sophie her secretary and a
nurse and two maids.
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Owners after Harriet Winslow
WoodCliff Pleasure Park
Shortly after Harriet Winslow died in 1926 her daughter and
adopted son sold the property to John Marian, a Poughkeepsie
real estate developer.
see note 28
By December 1926 the Marians sold the
property to Fred H Ponty of Rye
NY.
see note 29
Ponty had developed an
amusement park in Rye which became
Playland a locally famous attraction after he
disposed of his interest in the operation. He
envisioned a Poughkeepsie in a grander
scale. He kept most of the landscaping, but
instituted several rides, including a roller
coaster which was noted for the steepest
decline in the USA. He also constructed a
swimming pool capable of handling 3000
bathers. There were several other rides and concession
stands. There was an outdoor dance area, and another dance
area inside the Winslow house which also included a
restaurant.
Ponty financed the plan by leasing space to the rides and
concession stands. He transferred ownership of the land itself
to a separate corporation Woodcliff Pleasure Park.
see note 30
The arrival of the Great Depression did not help
matters, and the park went into bankruptcy in 1934, when the
grounds were taken over by Wesley Ruthkowski, who promptly
flipped them to Runk Realty Corporation, a local realtor in Hyde
Park.
see note 31
However the land sale was subject to
requirement that the new owners honor the existing leases for
the rides. The roller coaster had a lease until 1938 with an
option for a five year renewal, so the amusement park would
remain open until 1941.
In 1934 Tempa E Dyruff was awarded interest in much of the
equipment of the park, and in 1935 acquired the land which
was to become Western Publishing Company, a part of which
was leased for parking for the Woodcliff Pleasure Park.
see note 32
Some of the things she acquired were 1500
bathing suits and 1000 towels from the pool, the cars on
several of the rides, and concession stands.
see note 33
see note 34
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The Park operated until 1941. Much of its business was via the
Hudson River Dayliner Trips from New York City. The Dayliners
could dock at a dock at the Park (whether this was built by the
Park or by Winslow is not clear), and a staircase would take
them up to the park. Management was not too precise. On
one occasion the managers granted exclusive use of the
restaurant and former Winslow home to a group from New
York City and exclusive use of the same space to the Polish
American Club of Poughkeepsie. A riot ensued and the park
soon closed.
see note 35
The park remained closed. Part of the operation was
dismantled. The Marist Brothers recovered some of the curved
beams from the main roller coaster and used it as a roof for a
small building which housed their cannery and beehive
maintenance equipment. But vandalism soon changed the
property into an eyesore. Eventually Runk Realty found a
buyer: Kem Plastic Playing Cards of New York City.
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Kem Plastic Playing Cards
see note 36
Kem specialized in plastic playing cards which
were hard to duplicate; its principal clients were casinos who
wanted to discourage cheating. But Kem decided not to build a
factory on the site; instead it purchased a parcel on Beck Place
on the east side of Route 9 offered by Western Printing
Company which kept some rights to some storage space in the
building.
Vincent Costanzi
see note 37
wins13_Costanzi
Kem disposed of the Winslow
estate property by selling it to Vincent Costanzi, a local
contractor whose family lived on North Bridge Street in
Poughkeepsie.
see note 38
Vincent Costanzi and his brothers were contractors who
specialized in home and light industrial construction. Vincent
acquired considerable construction equipment from the sales of
war surplus materials by the United States Government after
World War II.
see note 39
Vincent’s brother Anthony began
his separate business in Kingston NY. Vincent stored his
equipment close to route 9, and the remainder of the property
was unused. He demolished the Winslow house along route 9.
see note 40
In 1972 he sold the river half of the Winslow
property to his brother Anthony.
see note 41
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Frank Eberhard
About 1966 he had sold a small portion of the highway section
for a Sun Oil service station, and in 1972 Victor Costanzi sold
the remainder of the highway section to Frank Eberhard, a
well-known contractor/developer.
see note 42
Eberhard
arranged several leases, the most important of which was to
the Dutchess Bank & Trust Co for a free standing branch at the
north east corner of the parcel.
see note 43
In 1992 the College purchased the parcel next to
Route 9, but was obliged to honor the long term lease to
Dutchess Bank, which lease expired about 2007.
see note 44
This made possible the construction of the Fontaine Academic
Building and more capacious entrances and exits to route 9.
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Remembrances in Poughkeepsie
One hundred and twenty years after John
Flack Winslow’s death, there are few in
Poughkeepsie who recognize his name or
how he helped the Union to win the Civil
War through his construction of the
Monitor. William Kuffner cited three
memorials to Winslow in his senior thesis.
He indicated that two of the cannons
replaced on the Monitor for larger cannon
were located at the entrance to the Adriance
Library and Veterans Square (on Clinton Street). The cannon
at the Adriance Library entrance is mounted on a more recent
cement pedestal, but fits the description of the Monitor’s
earlier cannons. It may also have been the cannon which
almost sank the ferry boat during a July 4 celebration. Mary C
W Black gave the cannon in 1926, which is the year the estate
was sold to John Marian. Kuffner also wrote that the ship’s bell
from the destroyer named after Admiral John Lorima Worden
who captained the Monitor during the battle had been placed
with the Poughkeepsie Naval Reserve Station. Unfortunately,
the Naval Reserve Station was decommissioned in 1993, and
the location of the ship’s bell is unknown. The cannon in
Veterans Square is completely different, so any connection to
the Monitor is tenuous.
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Inside the former Presbyterian Church there
is a large stained glass window dedicated to
John Flack Winslow. As mentioned
previously, Harriet Wickes Winslow was a
major supporter of the construction of the
new church, and there is a private chapel
named after her. During the annual Advent event operated by
Marist College, there are very few who are aware of the
connection between Winslow and the Wood Cliff estate.
So for the average citizen of Dutchess
County there is only a street sign just north
of Marist College marked “Winslow Gate Rd”
that was the entry to the Winslow farm. The road currently is a
shortcut for southbound traffic on Route 9 to enter the
shopping center with Home Depot and Staples as main
tenants.
Sic transit gloria!
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Endnotes
Note 1. Senior thesis, 1968, William Kuffner JOHN FLACK WINSLOW submitted to Bro.
Edward Cashin, Academic Vice President of Marist College, May 1, 1968. A substantial
portion of his thesis was published in The Hudson River Valley Review, A Journal of
Regional Studies, Spring 2012 pp. 94-104. The book by D. H. Wheeler is now available
on the Internet. Google John Flack Winslow.
Note 2. Deeds to the Ziegler farm: 1869 liber 123 page 284 John W Corlies to Elias Van
Benschoten; 1868 liber 143 page 575 Elias Van Benschoten to William Ziegler; 1904
liber 332 page 328 Freeman & Maria Ziegler to People of the State of New York.
Note 3, Deeds related to the Winslow farm: 1870 liber 155 page 73 Elias Van
Benschoten to John F Winslow; 1871 liber 1259 page 290 Elias Van Benschoten to John
F Winslow; 1877 liber 190 page 97 John F Winslow to James H Weeks; 1877 liber 190
page 99 James & Harriet Weeks to Harriet Wickes Winslow; 1912 liber 376 page 44
Harriet Winslow to People of the State of New York.
Note 4. The materials in this section as well as the Monitor Construction are based on
William Kuffner’s thesis.
Note 5. My brief resume of the Monitor construction follows that of William Kuffner’s
thesis, which in turn was based on the privately printed work of Rev. Francis Brown
Wheeler, to whom John F Winslow dictated his memory of the events. In 1968 only two
copies of this work were known to exist, one in the archives of the Presbyterian Church
of Poughkeepsie, the other in the rare book room of the Adriance Memorial Library in
Poughkeepsie N Y. Recently the book has been made available on the Internet at
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www.johnflackwinslow.com/
. The internet site also displays a 1944 article about the
Winslows and a story of the auction of furnishings sometime in 1926.
Note 6. The farm was situated between Route 9 (then called the Highland Turnpike) and
the Hudson River. Its southern border was approximately the Water Works Road on the
Marist Campus.
Note 7. 1817 liber 26 page 41 Peter and Elizabeth Morgan to Frederic Barnard; 1819
liber 34 page 194 Frederic Barnard to Elijah Martin
Note 8. 1836 liber 61 page 141 Frederic & Margaret Barnard to Walter Cunningham;
1836 liber 61 p 139 Walter Cunningham to Frederic Barnard; 1837 liber 62 page 43
Walter Cunningham to Frederic Barnard.
Note 9. 1838 liber 63 page 345 Walter Cunningham to Henry C Richards; 1844 liber
78 p 85 Elijah & Anna Martin to Henry C Richards;
Note 10. 1847 liber 84 page 356 Henry C Richards dec’d to James Van Schoonhoven.
The latter was born 1781.
Note 11. See deed liber 89 page 459 dated 17 June 1849 James Van Schoonhoven of
Troy to Hudson River RR Co. The railroad took parcels 207 and 208 on the maps filed
with the county records. Parcel 207 was 162’ and parcel 210 was 462 feet. The parcel
was bounded on the north by land of John Pell and on the south by land now or formerly
of Charles Trotter, and bounded on the east and west by lands of the grantor.
Note 12.
Note 13, 1855 liber 132 page 407 James Van Schoonhoven to Elizabeth M Crosby
Note 14. 1850 census NY_Dutchess County_Poughkeepsie Elizabeth Crosby
1860 census NY Dutchess County Poughkeepsie Elizabeth Crosby
Note 15. 1869 passport application of Elizabeth M Crosby dated 14 October 1869
Edward Crosby’s death is recorded in the index card file at the Adriance Library. The
index files are locked in a separate room in the reference section, but can be accessed
by asking the reference librarian. The usual listing books for obituaries did not begin
until the 1970-1979 decade.
Note 16. See deed 7 July 1857 liber 109 page 604 Henry and Margaret M Stanton to
James Winslow.
An earlier deed for the property 1 April 1850 liber 91 page 282 Nathan H Jewett to
Henry Stanton
A companion deed $5725 for 35 acres next to the Winslow property was 1 April 1850
liber 91 page 281 Nathan H Jewett to Charles A Macy.
Note 17. US censuses: 1850_ny_nyc_james winslow; US census
1869_NY_dutchess_poughkeepsie_james winslow :
1870_ny_dutchess_poughkeepsie_james winslow; 1870_ny_nyc_james winslow.
Note 18. By 1860 Mrs. James Winslow was the President of the Sanitary Fair, a fund
raising effort which took in $18,640 with expenses of $2,358 for a net of $16,282! See
Platt’s History of Poughkeepsie, page 193.
Note 19. The stream is marked on then contemporary maps as originating in the
northeast corner of the Ziegler farm, passing through the Winslow farm, running under
the highway, then through the Wood Cliff estate and passing to the property to the
south. In the Annals of St. Ann’s Hermitage 1904-1934, page 43, the narrator tells of
providing a cement basin to receive the waters coming from the Winslow farm (1918).
This later became a dam to provide hydroelectric power to the Marist Brothers’ property.
The ravine carrying the stream and the conduit to under the highway are clearly visible
near the Winslow gate.
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Note 20. The proposed railroad also ran through Boston Corners, as did two other
railroads. This was a small triangular parcel belonging to the state of Massachusetts but
separated from the rest of the state by a ridge of hills. It became a hideout for the
lawless, as enforcement was difficult by the Massachusetts police was difficult. The
states of New York and Massachusetts agreed to transfer the triangle of land to New
York. Shortly after the transfer there was a prizefight held there, that became known as
the Boston Massacre. Some writers attribute the transfer of land to that fight, but the
fight occurred after the transfer.
Note 21. The Pleasant Valley station was preserved and relocated to a school
grounds. Current negotiations are to move it again to the Rhinebeck Fairgrounds,
which hopes to set up an area containing historic elements.
Note 22. This incident is reported in William Kuffner’s senior thesis, Chapter III, page
14. Perhaps the cannon was the one donated to the City of Poughkeepsie by Mary C W
Black, the Winslows’s daughter, which now stands guard of the front entrance to the
Adriance Memorial Library on Market Street.
Note 23. Mary Travis, my first secretary when I became President of Marist College was
a graduate; so was Sebastian Spering Kresge (1867 – 1966), founder of S. S.Kresge
stores now known as K-Mart, K-Mart merged with Sears, Roebuck & Co in 2004. It is
the third largest retailer in the United States.
Note 24. The Winslows also cared for Thomas’ sister Cordelia. She is listed as living
with the Winslows in the 1892 New York State census, but kept the surname Williams.
Note 25. Huron College was founded in Pierre, South Dakota in 1883 as the
Presbyterian University of South Dakota but was commonly called Pierre College. In
1897 it moved to Huron SD and became Huron College. It retained its Presbyterian
affiliation until 1984. It has been taken over by several educational entities, as it
encountered difficult financial problems.
Note 26. Park College was founded in Parkville, Missouri in 1875 on land on a bluff
overlooking the Missouri river donated by George Park. For several years it was
affiliated with the Presbyterian Church , but no longer has that affiliation,. It is now Park
University and operates many programs for military bases using distance learning.
Note 27. Lincoln University, the nation’s first historically black university located in
Oxford, Chester County, Pennsylvania was founded in 1854.
Note 28. 1926 liber 465 page 425 Thomas Scudder Winslow to John E Marian & wife
Note 29. 1926 31 dec 1926 liber 475 page 250 John & Elizabeth Marian to Fred H
Ponty
Note 30. 1930 liber 511 page 44 Fred H Ponty to WoodCliff Pleasure Park
Note 31. 1934 liber 537 page 65 Woodcliff Pleasure Park to Wesley Ruthkowski
1934 liber 539 page 97 Wesley Ruthkowski to Runk Realty Corporation. Wesley's wife,
Fran Ruthkowski was a principal in Runk Realty Corporation.
Note 32. 1935 liber 566 pages 566 & 533 Ponty /Woodcliff Pleasure Park to Tempa E
Dryuff
1936 liber 604 page 570 Dutchess County Sheriff to Tempa E Dryuff
Note 34. Wesley and Barbara H. Gottlock in Amusement Parks of the Hudson Valley
describe it a little differently on page 60. “Woodcliff tried to buck the economic trend
and in 1934 it opened under new management headed by Brooklyn attorney Nicholas
Dyruff. Title was eventually passed to Tempa E. Dyruff who bought the park at public
auction on June 4, 1935 as Ponty’s mortgage went into foreclosure. Nicholas Dyruff
overhauled all of the rides, brought in a few new attractions, including a new roller
skating rink, updated the swimming pool, and groomed the gardens and picnic areas.
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The refurbished Woodcliff Inn would now operate under separate management and it
would expand to include an outdoor beer garden and dance area. The Twister coaster
was added in 1938. Apparently it was not enough. The park struggled along into 1941.
Note 35. A reader interested in a more complete story of Woodcliff Pleasure Park may
check two recent books now in the Archives Section of the Marist College Library:
Carney Rhinevault and Tatiana Rhinevault, Hidden History of the Mid-Hudson Valley,
Stories from the Albany Post Road, The History Press, Charleston SC, © 2011 by the
authors, pp 133-143, The Rise and Fall of Woodcliff Pleasure Park; and Wesley and
Barbara H. Gottlock, Lost Amusement Parks of the Hudson Valley, © 2011 by the
authors, pp. 53-78, Woodcliff Pleasure Park.
Note 36. 1946 liber 652 page 64 Runk Realty Company to Kem Playing Cards Inc.
Note 37. 1947 liber 655 page 183 Western Publishing Company to Kem Plastic Playing
Cards Inc
Note 38. 1948 liber 681 page 605 Kem Plastic Playing Cards Inc to Vincent J Costanzi
Note 39. I remember seeing the equipment used to pull stumps from an old orchard
near the main house on the Brothers property north of the Water Works Road. He did
this free of charge. Later in the 1960s Costanzi worked at road construction and took a
major contract in Putnam County for route 301 from route 9 to the Taconic Parkway. He
underbid and was in serious financial trouble. Brother Nilus Donnelly remembering the
many times Costanzi had helped the Brothers free of charge, offered Costanzi free
access to sand and gravel banks on a property in Cold Spring which the Brothers had
purchased for a new Juniorate.
Note 40. I learned this from the late Mary Reilly, who lived on a parcel she and her
husband had purchased from Charles Chlanda. I had visited her to seek the location of
the main house of the Newbold family,. She walked me outside to show me the
foundations. Then she turned toward the Winslow property, pointed to a location along
the road and said: “I saw Costanzi take that house down”. The Reillys lived on North
Bridge Street, which street was also the location of the Costanzi family home.
Note 41. Recorded 1973 liber 1462 page 614 V J Costanzi Co to Anthony Costanzi
Note 42 1972 liber 1332 page 927 V J Costanzi Co to Frank Eberhard dba Kimco
Note 43. 1984 liber 1635 page 463 Anthony Costanzi to Marist College
Note 44. 1992 liber 1918 page 517 Trison Company to Marist College
Research on this project was conducted from January 2008 through August 2012 by
Richard Foy, assisted by student assistants Paul Contarino and Kayla Benefield.
most recent revision and spell check June 13, 2013
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Marist College
I first became aware of the name John Winslow in
2007 when I was researching deeds connected to
Marist college land. There is a growing tradition for
the women’s basketball teams to gather in early
March at Shadows on the Hudson in their uniforms
to watch the ESPN announcements of where and whom and
when they will play in the NCAA basketball tournament.
During this event I met William Kuffner from Buffalo, the twin
brother of Dan Kuffner of Hyde Park. Both young men had
graduated from Marist College in 1968. During our
conversation Bill asked me what I was doing. I responded that
I was hoping to find information about a man named John
Winslow. Bill said: "You mean John Flack Winslow. I wrote my
senior thesis on him for Brother Edward Cashin! “ Later Bill
sent me a copy of his 1968 thesis; this became the starting
point for my future research about Winslow.
see note 1
Read the entire essay,or
click on item below to go directly to that section.
Winslow estate
Winslow farm
List of owners
John Flack Winslow; life before the Monitor
Monitor Construction
Owners before Winslow
Schoonhoven/Crosby ownership (1847 – 1867)
John Flack Winslow in Poughkeepsie
Poughkeepsie & Eastern Railroad
Harriet Wilkes Winslow
Owners after Harriet Winslow
Woodcliff Pleasure Park
Kem Plastic Playing Cards
The Costanzi family
Frank Eberhard
Endnotes
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Winslow estate
The Winslow estate lies between Route 9 and the Hudson
River. Its northern boundary is a rock wall still visible, marking
the southern boundary of Fern Tor, the Newbold estate. In
2012 it includes the former Dutchess bank building, the
Fontaine academic building, the Gartland Commons student
housing and the Gartland athletic fields. None of the Winslow
estate structures still exist.
Winslow farm
The Winslow farm stretched between Route
9 and Violet Ave. Its southern edge abuts
the Home Depot and Mobil gas station.
There is a street sign at the yellow caution light marked
Winslow Gate Road. Directly north of the Winslow farm was a
similar rectangular parcel owned by the Ziegler family. John
and Harriet Winslow operated a farm on this parcel but also
provided housing for their employees. The Ziegler and
Winslow farms were part of an extensive farm owned by the
Pells family. Later it was sold to Cyrus Mason who sold to John
Corlies. In 1863 John Corlies sold 76 acres to Elias Van
Benschoten who sold it in 1866 to William Ziegler. The Ziegler
family held onto it until it was purchased by the State of New
York in 1904.
see note 2
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The Winslow farm consisted of two packages: Winslow
purchased the portion near Violet Avenue in 1871, and 1877
he purchased 27 acres near Route 9. The Poughkeepsie and
Eastern RR tracks crossed this parcel in two places. Harriet
Winslow transferred the entire farm to the Hudson River State
Hospital in 1912
see note 3
acquired
owner
disposed
1984 & 1992
Marist College
1972
Frank Eberhard
1992
1977
Anthony Costanzi
1984
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1948
Vincent J Costanzi
1977
1946
Kem Playing Cards
1948
1934
Runk Realty Corp
1946
1934
Wesley Ruthkowski
1934
1934
Nicholas & Tempa E Dyruff
1946
1929
Woodcliff Pleasure Park
1934
1926
Fred Ponty
1929
1926
John Marian
1926
1867
John F Winslow
1926
1855
Elizabeth Crosby
1867
1847
James Van Schoonhoven
1855
1844
Henry S Richards
1847
1836
Walter Cunningham
1844
1819
Elijah Martin
1844
1817
Frederic Barnard
1836
1813
Peter Morgan
1817
Samuel Slee
1813
In the next few decades the Winslow farm
may play an important role in the
development of Marist College and future
housing plans for the former Hudson River
State Hospital grounds. One plan under consideration is to
restrict traffic from the hundreds of homes planned on the
hospital grounds from entering Route 9 from the existing entry
road. The state hospital did little or no construction on the
Winslow site, so a cost effective plan is to build a connector
road between Route 9 And Violet Ave. (route 9G) on the
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Winslow farm property. The road would exit at the blinker light
on Route 9. The existing traffic signal between Marist College
and Office Depot would be transferred to the blinker site.
Marist would relocate its North entrance onto the Fern Tor
property. Currently plans for major housing on the state
hospital property are on hold until the national housing
situation improves.
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John Flack Winslow: life before the Monitor
John Flack Winslow was born November 10,
1810 to Captain Richard Winslow of Lyme
CT and Mary Corning Seymour of Hartford
CT. He was born in Bennington VT where
his parents lived there, and then moved to
Albany NY where his father Captain Winslow
worked as a ship’s captain until his
retirement. John worked for four years as a
commercial clerk at the W and A Marvin Company of Albany.
He received a commission to go to New York City as a trainee
at the City Iron Company. He then went to New Orleans to
establish a subsidiary company, but lasted there only a year
because of the stifling weather conditions. He became the
managing agent of the New Jersey Iron Company. In 1832 he
met and married Nancy B Jackson, daughter of a prominent
businessman from Rockaway NJ. During his four year stay in
New Jersey, he met Erastus Corning who later became his
partner in Troy NY.
Winslow and Corning formed an iron company named
and Winslow, but later the Rensselear Iron
Company, soon to become the largest
railroad iron manufacturer on the east
coast. They took in a third partner, John A
Griswald in 1840. By 1845, the renamed
Albany Iron Works became the nation’s
second leading manufacturer of railroad
iron. In 1852, Winslow traveled to England
and returned with the rights to manufacture
iron made by the Bessemer process. The company soon
vaulted into the first position in manufacture of railroad iron.
see note 4
John Winslow and his wife lived in Troy NY, where he became
active in Republican politics. When Abraham Lincoln was
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elected President, John was named an official Elector. He
decided to go to Washington for a few weeks to meet
President-elect Lincoln personally.
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Monitor Construction
see note 5
While in Washington, Winslow met John Ericsson,
who was crestfallen after he had made a proposal to the Navy
Board for an ironclad warship with a revolving turret. The
Navy Board had derided the idea, suggesting that the boat
would sink as soon as it was launched. Winslow asked to see
Ericsson’s plans, and spent a few weeks reviewing them. He
became convinced that the plans had merit, and decided to
intercede with Lincoln himself to approve the construction. A
meeting was arranged with the Navy Board, Ericsson, Winslow,
Griswold, C.S. Bushnell (a Massachusetts capitalist from
Boston and advisor to Ericsson) and Lincoln. After listening to
the presentation, Lincoln approved construction of such a
vessel. But the terms were difficult: the vessel had to be
completed in 100 days, and payment would be made upon
completion.
Winslow’s management skills now came into play. Instead of
using only the Albany Iron Works, he parceled the work out to
several iron manufacturers. Winslow visited each one to
specify exactly what that company was to build, and indicated
that the completed iron be shipped to the Brooklyn Navy Yard,
where he had authorized another company to build the wooden
substructure. To the amazement of his critics, the ship
(named the Monitor) was ready in 101 days!
During the trial runs of the Monitor, it was decided to scrap the
original size cannon for much larger ones. Another snag was
that a patent for a revolving turret has been granted to
Theodore Trembly of Pawling NY in 1843. Winslow overcame
this by promising to pay Trembly $5,000 for any turret
manufactured by Albany Iron Works.
Note that Winslow, Griswald and Bushnell provided the interim
financing of $275,000 for construction of the Monitor until they
were reimbursed by the United States government, which
happened after the classic battle of the Monitor versus the
Merrimac, so an interesting trivia about the battle was that the
North was represented by a privately owned vessel!
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During the construction period, John Winslow’s wife Nancy
became seriously ill, and died on December 19, 1861.
For his part in getting the Monitor built, Winslow was given the
privilege of naming the Captain. He named John Lorima
Worden of Pawling NY who in turn picked a crew of five men.
Within a year of the famous battle, thirty five other vessels
were constructed using the plans for the Monitor. They were
used to patrol and protect rivers and harbors, as the Monitor
design proved not to be seaworthy.
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Prior owners of Winslow estate
Frederic Barnard of Nantucket was a retired whaling ship
captain. He purchased a 104 acre farm along the Hudson
River and moved to Poughkeepsie with his wife and several of
his eventual twelve children.
see note 6
Within two years he
sold the northernmost strip of the farm to Elijah
Martin.
see note 7
The Barnards lived there until 1837 when
Frederic Barnard sold the remainder of the farm to Walter
Cunningham, with Barnard holding a mortgage on the farm.
About the same time, Barnard purchased two lots along
Cannon Street that became the site of a large Barnard family
house.
see note 8
Schoonhoven/Crosby ownership (1847 – 1867)
Walter Cunningham sold the upper section to Henry C
Richards. Henry C Richards also purchased the farm of Elijah
Martin.
see note 9
Henry Richards died shortly thereafter,
and the executors of his estate sold off the 27 northern acres
(including the Elijah Martin parcel) to James Van Schoonhoven
of Troy NY.
see note 10
During the Schoonhoven ownership,
the railroad took a path 924 feet long for its tracks.
see note 11
see note 12
Schoonhoven was a prominent
businessman and President of the Troy Savings Bank. In 1855
he sold the land to Elizabeth Maria (née Schoonhoven) Crosby,
his youngest daughter.
see note 13
Elizabeth and her family
must have been living on the site since the 1847 purchase.
The 1850 census shows her, her husband and one year old
daughter with four servants; the 1860 census shows her
husband, herself, and six children with four servants.
see note 14
The name wood cliff probably originated at this
time, referring to the steep drop-off still visible from the level
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of the Gartland Commons student housing to the Gartland
athletic complex. James Van Schoonhoven died at his
daughter’s home September 9, 1865, age about 84.
A sidebar can be found on the Internet
concerning Edward N Crosby, Elizabeth’s
husband. Samuel F. B. Morse lived at Locust
Grove, just south of Poughkeepsie. Shortly
after Abraham Lincoln issue the Emancipation
Proclamation on 1 January 1963, Professor
Morse published an essay or tract defending
the institution of slavery. Morse was the son
of a minister from New England, and based
his defense of slavery on biblical sources.
Edward took it on himself to publish a reply,
which caused Morse to reply to the reply, which caused Edward
to reply to the reply to the reply, the latter titled “Our country
versus party spirit being a rejoinder to the reply of Prof. Morse
by Edward N. Crosby.’ It was published 1863 by Platt &
Schram, printers in Poughkeepsie. This illustrates that states
rights versus the union was a more compelling cause than
slavery for many Northerners. Elizabeth Crosby’s 1869
application for a passport describes her as widow.
see note 15
Edward Crosby died 7 June 1865 in Troy NY after
a lingering Illness, as noted on the index file of deaths housed
in the Adriance Library. It might explain how Winslow became
interested in the site. Troy is a small enough city that
prominent businessmen like Winslow and Van Schoonhoven
would know each other.
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John Winslow was aware of the Dutchess area also because his
younger brother, James Winslow, a banker in New York City,
purchased a 29 acre site opposite the Poughkeepsie Rural
Cemetery reaching eastward to Beechwood Avenue.
see note 16
When they were younger John Flack Winslow
considered the possibility of joining James in the finance
business, but opted instead to pursue the iron manufacturing
business.
John Flack Winslow in Poughkeepsie
John Flack Winslow came to Poughkeepsie to retire. He was
already a wealthy man, and gained wide recognition as the
man who managed to get the Monitor built. His wife had died
in 1861. Winslow was acquainted with Dutchess County before
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he moved to the county in 1867. His younger
brother James had moved to Poughkeepsie
with his family before 1960 and owned a farm
along Beechwood Avenue. In 1850 the James
Winslow family is listed as living in New York
City. James was still in Poughkeepsie in the
1870 census,
see note 17
but his 1870 listing
for New York City as a banker indicates that
the Poughkeepsie home was a country home,
as he occupied a residence between 35th and
36th street in New York City.
see note 18
John Flack Winslow was active in the Presbyterian Church, and
became acquainted with Harriet Wickes, eldest daughter of the
Presbyterian Minister. Winslow was 57 years old; Harriet
Wickes was thirty years younger. The couple married and
began to establish an estate and a farm and a family.
The estate property already was in nice
condition, with the main house in stone
near the highway. Winslow liked the
emerging Victorian style of architecture,
and surrounded the existing stone house
with a wooden framework, adding a tall
tower which would allow him and his
visitors to gain a sweeping view of the
Hudson River. There was a stream running through the
property.
see note 19
Winslow created several ponds as the
stream ran through the estate; these provided water in dry
periods and formed an elegant setting for walkways and
carriageways. In one of the ponds there was a small island in
the shape of the Monitor.
Although retired from the iron business in Troy, Winslow was
only 57 and remained active in many facets of Dutchess
County history. He was no stranger to Dutchess, although
most of his work had been in the eastern sector of the County,
near Amenia, Millerton, and Pine Plains. The railroad had run
north through the Harlem Valley about ten years before
construction of the railroad along the east bank of the Hudson.
Winslow purchased some farms outright and obtained mining
rights to several others. The railroad reached Chatham where
it connected to a railroad from New England leading towards
Albany and Troy, so it became a major carrier of iron ore from
the rich deposits in the Harlem Valley. By contrast, Edvard
Bech and his partners obtained most of their iron ore from East
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Fishkill, drawn in carts by oxen and along plank roads during
inclement weather.
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Poughkeepsie & Eastern Railroad
Winslow decided to construct a railroad
from the northeast corner of Dutchess
County leading across the county and
joining the Hudson railroad near Edward
Bech’s foundry, which had been relocated from Union Landing
to a site just north of Hoffman Street.
We researched the deeds in 1867 and 1868 which provide a
trail from Millerton through the towns of Pine Plains, Northeast,
Stanford, Washington, Clinton, Pleasant Valley and the Town
and City of Poughkeepsie to the Hudson River.
see note 20
The approach to Poughkeepsie took it next to the Fallkill Creek
along a path which now is the back road for St. Peter’s
Cemetery. Called the Poughkeepsie & Eastern Railroad, it
entered the city of Poughkeepsie at Smith Street, where space
was reserved for storage of railroad cars and engines. It would
have been impractical to head straight downhill to the river
edge, so the path took a serpentine route. It u-turned north
moving into what would become the Hudson River State
Hospital, then u-turned once again to the south west, following
a gradual path which entered the Hudson Railroad just north of
Hoffman Street. The remains of the path are now owned by
CSX, but the tracks have been removed (presumably to lower
the tax rate). The last section of the path passes adjacent to
the Marist College property where the McCann Athletic Center
is located (just behind the McCann Baseball Field). The path
runs under Route 9. On the east side of Route 9 it runs
through Marist College property to behind the Staples store.
Long range plans call for turning it into a hiking path, but
currently attention is focused on connecting the Railroad
Bridge to the rail trails headed towards Poughkeepsie from
Hopewell Junction.
When I was a student at Marist College in 1947-1950, we had
no idea of the history of the Poughkeepsie & Eastern. We
called the section of tracks we observed the New York Central;
we knew it carried paper to Western Printing Company and
coal to the central heating plant of the Hudson River State
Hospital. But it also had spurs leading to the foundry and
slaughter house along Fulton Street and to Schatz-Federal
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plant which was a principal supplier of ball bearings to Ford
Motor Company We were unaware that the original railroad
carried passenger traffic from the eastern part of the county to
Pleasant Valley as recently as 1937!
see note 21
Although the Poughkeepsie & Eastern began operation in 1870,
it did not survive the financial panic of 1873. It went into
receivership, and then went through several cycles of
ownership, often with name changes (although the name
Poughkeepsie & Eastern reappeared in the late 1800s.) At one
time it had a connector railroad leading to Rhinebeck, where
developers planned on moving railroad cars by ferry across the
Hudson to connect with the West Shore Railroad which had
begun in 1881. John Flack Winslow was the President of the
Poughkeepsie & Eastern for several years and the driving force
behind its construction.
For several years he was the President of the company founded
to design and finance the construction of the Poughkeepsie
Railroad Bridge. He may have consulted in the design of the
bridge, although his name is not mentioned in any reference I
found. His major contribution may have been in attracting
investors, as the construction was a private undertaking. The
Winslow estate was useful for this purpose, as John Winslow
and his wife Harriet were gracious entertainers, and the tower
he had added during the construction of the wood exterior to
the main house provided visitors with panoramic views of the
Hudson and the proposed site of the bridge.
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The Winslows loved to entertain. On the
fourth of July, he would fire a small cannon
at the stroke of midnight to celebrate the
holiday. The tradition ended when shot from
the cannon accidentally exploded a small
tug boat moving down the Hudson.
Fortunately no was injured, but to make up
for this incident John Flack Winslow bought
the company a new boat – and the tradition ended!.
see note 22
John Winslow was also active in other
commercial and real estate activities. One
interesting set of real estate activities was
concerned with Eastman Terrace. Harvey G
Eastman (1832 – 1878) founded a business
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college in Oswego NY in 1855, then transferred it to Saint Louis
MO in 1858 and relocated it again in 1859 to Poughkeepsie NY,
naming it Eastman Business College, where it became one of
the largest commercial schools in the United
States..
see note 23
Eastman served as Mayor of
Poughkeepsie in the period 1871 – 1878; his term is noted for
establishing a water treatment plant for a city notorious for its
bad drinking water. The treatment plant took land from the
site now occupied by Marist College. One of Eastman’s
projects was to develop elegant housing similar to that of
Washington Square in New York City. He chose a site adjacent
to South Avenue bordered by Eastman Terrace and
Montgomery Street. A building similar to that at the north
edge of Washington Square between Fifth Avenue and Waverly
Place was constructed along Eastman Terrace, but the square
never got closed in. However several members of the
Improvement Group (an informal group of leading citizens of
Poughkeepsie; Matthew Vassar was an important member)
purchased land along the other sides of the proposed square.
Their homes along Garfield Street, which runs east of and
parallel to South Avenue. now constitute a historical area.
John Winslow purchased property, but when the venture
faltered, he sold the parcel.
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John Winslow lived at the estate on now
Marist College property with his wife Harriet
Wickes until his death on 13 March 1892. He
is buried in Albany Rural Cemetery, Menands
NY. After his death, Harriet Winslow (1837 –
1926) remained on the estate until she died
18 January 1926. She was buried in the Winslow mausoleum
next to her husband. John Winslow and Harriet had two
children. The older, Julia Wickes Winslow, died as a young
person. She is listed in the 1870 census as a 2 year old, but
not in the 1880 census. Another daughter, Mary Corning
Winslow, was born 10 February 1873, married Clarence A Black
11 December 1895 lived for about two decades in Detroit,
Michigan where her husband was a businessman and later a
banker. The Blacks had one daughter, Ruth born about 1897.
Later the couple moved to California, living in Santa Barbara
and Monterey. In the 1870s the Winslows also adopted the son
of Harriet Winslow’s sister in the 1870s. His birth surname was
Williams, but he changed it to be known as Thomas Scudder
Winslow.
see note 24
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Harriet Wilkes Winslow
I was unable to find anything unflattering or negative about
Harriet Wickes Winslow . She was well respected. A later
travelogue depicting sightseeing cruises along the Hudson
specifically noted the grand estates of Mrs. John Winslow and
Mrs. Thomas Newbold (immediately north of the Winslow
estate). She encouraged individuals to further their
education. During his research on his senior thesis, William
Kuffner met often with Dr. Paul Hasbrouck, the historian of the
first Presbyterian Church. Dr. Hasbrouck told him that Mrs.
Winslow had enabled him to pursue his bachelors, masters,
and doctor degrees from Columbia University. When Kuffner
thought this was unusual, Dr. Hasbrouck indicated that she
provided similar assistance to many others. In 1909, four
years after the Marist Brothers had purchased the property just
south of the Winslow estate, a small house near the barn
burned down during the night. Insurance covered part of the
cost. Mrs. Winslow sent $50 to help out. In her will Mrs.
Winslow left $1500 to Huron College.
see note 25
$1500 to
Park College,
see note 26
and $2500 to Lincoln
University.
see note 27
wins10_presbyterian
The Presbyterian Church on Market
Street near Main Street burned down. Mrs. Winslow was a
principal donor for construction of the church at the corner of
South Hamilton and Cannon Street. Recently the church was
sold to another denomination, and the Presbyterian presence
remains in a church along route 55. She donated a large
stained glass window to honor her late husband. It still
remains in the South Hamilton Street church. Marist College
presents its annual program of Christmas carols and readings
in the church.
Towards the end of her life, Harriet stayed at
247 Church Street in the City of Poughkeepsie
with Sophie Harris, who had joined the
Winslow household shortly before John
Winslow’s death, but remained during Mrs.
Winslow’s last years. Sophie is listed in the
annual city directories at that address until
1932, the year she died. The 1920 census
lists Harriet living at WoodCliff, with Sophie her secretary and a
nurse and two maids.
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Owners after Harriet Winslow
WoodCliff Pleasure Park
Shortly after Harriet Winslow died in 1926 her daughter and
adopted son sold the property to John Marian, a Poughkeepsie
real estate developer.
see note 28
By December 1926 the Marians sold the
property to Fred H Ponty of Rye
NY.
see note 29
Ponty had developed an
amusement park in Rye which became
Playland a locally famous attraction after he
disposed of his interest in the operation. He
envisioned a Poughkeepsie in a grander
scale. He kept most of the landscaping, but
instituted several rides, including a roller
coaster which was noted for the steepest
decline in the USA. He also constructed a
swimming pool capable of handling 3000
bathers. There were several other rides and concession
stands. There was an outdoor dance area, and another dance
area inside the Winslow house which also included a
restaurant.
Ponty financed the plan by leasing space to the rides and
concession stands. He transferred ownership of the land itself
to a separate corporation Woodcliff Pleasure Park.
see note 30
The arrival of the Great Depression did not help
matters, and the park went into bankruptcy in 1934, when the
grounds were taken over by Wesley Ruthkowski, who promptly
flipped them to Runk Realty Corporation, a local realtor in Hyde
Park.
see note 31
However the land sale was subject to
requirement that the new owners honor the existing leases for
the rides. The roller coaster had a lease until 1938 with an
option for a five year renewal, so the amusement park would
remain open until 1941.
In 1934 Tempa E Dyruff was awarded interest in much of the
equipment of the park, and in 1935 acquired the land which
was to become Western Publishing Company, a part of which
was leased for parking for the Woodcliff Pleasure Park.
see note 32
Some of the things she acquired were 1500
bathing suits and 1000 towels from the pool, the cars on
several of the rides, and concession stands.
see note 33
see note 34
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The Park operated until 1941. Much of its business was via the
Hudson River Dayliner Trips from New York City. The Dayliners
could dock at a dock at the Park (whether this was built by the
Park or by Winslow is not clear), and a staircase would take
them up to the park. Management was not too precise. On
one occasion the managers granted exclusive use of the
restaurant and former Winslow home to a group from New
York City and exclusive use of the same space to the Polish
American Club of Poughkeepsie. A riot ensued and the park
soon closed.
see note 35
The park remained closed. Part of the operation was
dismantled. The Marist Brothers recovered some of the curved
beams from the main roller coaster and used it as a roof for a
small building which housed their cannery and beehive
maintenance equipment. But vandalism soon changed the
property into an eyesore. Eventually Runk Realty found a
buyer: Kem Plastic Playing Cards of New York City.
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Kem Plastic Playing Cards
see note 36
Kem specialized in plastic playing cards which
were hard to duplicate; its principal clients were casinos who
wanted to discourage cheating. But Kem decided not to build a
factory on the site; instead it purchased a parcel on Beck Place
on the east side of Route 9 offered by Western Printing
Company which kept some rights to some storage space in the
building.
Vincent Costanzi
see note 37
wins13_Costanzi
Kem disposed of the Winslow
estate property by selling it to Vincent Costanzi, a local
contractor whose family lived on North Bridge Street in
Poughkeepsie.
see note 38
Vincent Costanzi and his brothers were contractors who
specialized in home and light industrial construction. Vincent
acquired considerable construction equipment from the sales of
war surplus materials by the United States Government after
World War II.
see note 39
Vincent’s brother Anthony began
his separate business in Kingston NY. Vincent stored his
equipment close to route 9, and the remainder of the property
was unused. He demolished the Winslow house along route 9.
see note 40
In 1972 he sold the river half of the Winslow
property to his brother Anthony.
see note 41
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Frank Eberhard
About 1966 he had sold a small portion of the highway section
for a Sun Oil service station, and in 1972 Victor Costanzi sold
the remainder of the highway section to Frank Eberhard, a
well-known contractor/developer.
see note 42
Eberhard
arranged several leases, the most important of which was to
the Dutchess Bank & Trust Co for a free standing branch at the
north east corner of the parcel.
see note 43
In 1992 the College purchased the parcel next to
Route 9, but was obliged to honor the long term lease to
Dutchess Bank, which lease expired about 2007.
see note 44
This made possible the construction of the Fontaine Academic
Building and more capacious entrances and exits to route 9.
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Remembrances in Poughkeepsie
One hundred and twenty years after John
Flack Winslow’s death, there are few in
Poughkeepsie who recognize his name or
how he helped the Union to win the Civil
War through his construction of the
Monitor. William Kuffner cited three
memorials to Winslow in his senior thesis.
He indicated that two of the cannons
replaced on the Monitor for larger cannon
were located at the entrance to the Adriance
Library and Veterans Square (on Clinton Street). The cannon
at the Adriance Library entrance is mounted on a more recent
cement pedestal, but fits the description of the Monitor’s
earlier cannons. It may also have been the cannon which
almost sank the ferry boat during a July 4 celebration. Mary C
W Black gave the cannon in 1926, which is the year the estate
was sold to John Marian. Kuffner also wrote that the ship’s bell
from the destroyer named after Admiral John Lorima Worden
who captained the Monitor during the battle had been placed
with the Poughkeepsie Naval Reserve Station. Unfortunately,
the Naval Reserve Station was decommissioned in 1993, and
the location of the ship’s bell is unknown. The cannon in
Veterans Square is completely different, so any connection to
the Monitor is tenuous.
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Inside the former Presbyterian Church there
is a large stained glass window dedicated to
John Flack Winslow. As mentioned
previously, Harriet Wickes Winslow was a
major supporter of the construction of the
new church, and there is a private chapel
named after her. During the annual Advent event operated by
Marist College, there are very few who are aware of the
connection between Winslow and the Wood Cliff estate.
So for the average citizen of Dutchess
County there is only a street sign just north
of Marist College marked “Winslow Gate Rd”
that was the entry to the Winslow farm. The road currently is a
shortcut for southbound traffic on Route 9 to enter the
shopping center with Home Depot and Staples as main
tenants.
Sic transit gloria!
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Endnotes
Note 1. Senior thesis, 1968, William Kuffner JOHN FLACK WINSLOW submitted to Bro.
Edward Cashin, Academic Vice President of Marist College, May 1, 1968. A substantial
portion of his thesis was published in The Hudson River Valley Review, A Journal of
Regional Studies, Spring 2012 pp. 94-104. The book by D. H. Wheeler is now available
on the Internet. Google John Flack Winslow.
Note 2. Deeds to the Ziegler farm: 1869 liber 123 page 284 John W Corlies to Elias Van
Benschoten; 1868 liber 143 page 575 Elias Van Benschoten to William Ziegler; 1904
liber 332 page 328 Freeman & Maria Ziegler to People of the State of New York.
Note 3, Deeds related to the Winslow farm: 1870 liber 155 page 73 Elias Van
Benschoten to John F Winslow; 1871 liber 1259 page 290 Elias Van Benschoten to John
F Winslow; 1877 liber 190 page 97 John F Winslow to James H Weeks; 1877 liber 190
page 99 James & Harriet Weeks to Harriet Wickes Winslow; 1912 liber 376 page 44
Harriet Winslow to People of the State of New York.
Note 4. The materials in this section as well as the Monitor Construction are based on
William Kuffner’s thesis.
Note 5. My brief resume of the Monitor construction follows that of William Kuffner’s
thesis, which in turn was based on the privately printed work of Rev. Francis Brown
Wheeler, to whom John F Winslow dictated his memory of the events. In 1968 only two
copies of this work were known to exist, one in the archives of the Presbyterian Church
of Poughkeepsie, the other in the rare book room of the Adriance Memorial Library in
Poughkeepsie N Y. Recently the book has been made available on the Internet at
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www.johnflackwinslow.com/
. The internet site also displays a 1944 article about the
Winslows and a story of the auction of furnishings sometime in 1926.
Note 6. The farm was situated between Route 9 (then called the Highland Turnpike) and
the Hudson River. Its southern border was approximately the Water Works Road on the
Marist Campus.
Note 7. 1817 liber 26 page 41 Peter and Elizabeth Morgan to Frederic Barnard; 1819
liber 34 page 194 Frederic Barnard to Elijah Martin
Note 8. 1836 liber 61 page 141 Frederic & Margaret Barnard to Walter Cunningham;
1836 liber 61 p 139 Walter Cunningham to Frederic Barnard; 1837 liber 62 page 43
Walter Cunningham to Frederic Barnard.
Note 9. 1838 liber 63 page 345 Walter Cunningham to Henry C Richards; 1844 liber
78 p 85 Elijah & Anna Martin to Henry C Richards;
Note 10. 1847 liber 84 page 356 Henry C Richards dec’d to James Van Schoonhoven.
The latter was born 1781.
Note 11. See deed liber 89 page 459 dated 17 June 1849 James Van Schoonhoven of
Troy to Hudson River RR Co. The railroad took parcels 207 and 208 on the maps filed
with the county records. Parcel 207 was 162’ and parcel 210 was 462 feet. The parcel
was bounded on the north by land of John Pell and on the south by land now or formerly
of Charles Trotter, and bounded on the east and west by lands of the grantor.
Note 12.
Note 13, 1855 liber 132 page 407 James Van Schoonhoven to Elizabeth M Crosby
Note 14. 1850 census NY_Dutchess County_Poughkeepsie Elizabeth Crosby
1860 census NY Dutchess County Poughkeepsie Elizabeth Crosby
Note 15. 1869 passport application of Elizabeth M Crosby dated 14 October 1869
Edward Crosby’s death is recorded in the index card file at the Adriance Library. The
index files are locked in a separate room in the reference section, but can be accessed
by asking the reference librarian. The usual listing books for obituaries did not begin
until the 1970-1979 decade.
Note 16. See deed 7 July 1857 liber 109 page 604 Henry and Margaret M Stanton to
James Winslow.
An earlier deed for the property 1 April 1850 liber 91 page 282 Nathan H Jewett to
Henry Stanton
A companion deed $5725 for 35 acres next to the Winslow property was 1 April 1850
liber 91 page 281 Nathan H Jewett to Charles A Macy.
Note 17. US censuses: 1850_ny_nyc_james winslow; US census
1869_NY_dutchess_poughkeepsie_james winslow :
1870_ny_dutchess_poughkeepsie_james winslow; 1870_ny_nyc_james winslow.
Note 18. By 1860 Mrs. James Winslow was the President of the Sanitary Fair, a fund
raising effort which took in $18,640 with expenses of $2,358 for a net of $16,282! See
Platt’s History of Poughkeepsie, page 193.
Note 19. The stream is marked on then contemporary maps as originating in the
northeast corner of the Ziegler farm, passing through the Winslow farm, running under
the highway, then through the Wood Cliff estate and passing to the property to the
south. In the Annals of St. Ann’s Hermitage 1904-1934, page 43, the narrator tells of
providing a cement basin to receive the waters coming from the Winslow farm (1918).
This later became a dam to provide hydroelectric power to the Marist Brothers’ property.
The ravine carrying the stream and the conduit to under the highway are clearly visible
near the Winslow gate.
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Note 20. The proposed railroad also ran through Boston Corners, as did two other
railroads. This was a small triangular parcel belonging to the state of Massachusetts but
separated from the rest of the state by a ridge of hills. It became a hideout for the
lawless, as enforcement was difficult by the Massachusetts police was difficult. The
states of New York and Massachusetts agreed to transfer the triangle of land to New
York. Shortly after the transfer there was a prizefight held there, that became known as
the Boston Massacre. Some writers attribute the transfer of land to that fight, but the
fight occurred after the transfer.
Note 21. The Pleasant Valley station was preserved and relocated to a school
grounds. Current negotiations are to move it again to the Rhinebeck Fairgrounds,
which hopes to set up an area containing historic elements.
Note 22. This incident is reported in William Kuffner’s senior thesis, Chapter III, page
14. Perhaps the cannon was the one donated to the City of Poughkeepsie by Mary C W
Black, the Winslows’s daughter, which now stands guard of the front entrance to the
Adriance Memorial Library on Market Street.
Note 23. Mary Travis, my first secretary when I became President of Marist College was
a graduate; so was Sebastian Spering Kresge (1867 – 1966), founder of S. S.Kresge
stores now known as K-Mart, K-Mart merged with Sears, Roebuck & Co in 2004. It is
the third largest retailer in the United States.
Note 24. The Winslows also cared for Thomas’ sister Cordelia. She is listed as living
with the Winslows in the 1892 New York State census, but kept the surname Williams.
Note 25. Huron College was founded in Pierre, South Dakota in 1883 as the
Presbyterian University of South Dakota but was commonly called Pierre College. In
1897 it moved to Huron SD and became Huron College. It retained its Presbyterian
affiliation until 1984. It has been taken over by several educational entities, as it
encountered difficult financial problems.
Note 26. Park College was founded in Parkville, Missouri in 1875 on land on a bluff
overlooking the Missouri river donated by George Park. For several years it was
affiliated with the Presbyterian Church , but no longer has that affiliation,. It is now Park
University and operates many programs for military bases using distance learning.
Note 27. Lincoln University, the nation’s first historically black university located in
Oxford, Chester County, Pennsylvania was founded in 1854.
Note 28. 1926 liber 465 page 425 Thomas Scudder Winslow to John E Marian & wife
Note 29. 1926 31 dec 1926 liber 475 page 250 John & Elizabeth Marian to Fred H
Ponty
Note 30. 1930 liber 511 page 44 Fred H Ponty to WoodCliff Pleasure Park
Note 31. 1934 liber 537 page 65 Woodcliff Pleasure Park to Wesley Ruthkowski
1934 liber 539 page 97 Wesley Ruthkowski to Runk Realty Corporation. Wesley's wife,
Fran Ruthkowski was a principal in Runk Realty Corporation.
Note 32. 1935 liber 566 pages 566 & 533 Ponty /Woodcliff Pleasure Park to Tempa E
Dryuff
1936 liber 604 page 570 Dutchess County Sheriff to Tempa E Dryuff
Note 34. Wesley and Barbara H. Gottlock in Amusement Parks of the Hudson Valley
describe it a little differently on page 60. “Woodcliff tried to buck the economic trend
and in 1934 it opened under new management headed by Brooklyn attorney Nicholas
Dyruff. Title was eventually passed to Tempa E. Dyruff who bought the park at public
auction on June 4, 1935 as Ponty’s mortgage went into foreclosure. Nicholas Dyruff
overhauled all of the rides, brought in a few new attractions, including a new roller
skating rink, updated the swimming pool, and groomed the gardens and picnic areas.
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The refurbished Woodcliff Inn would now operate under separate management and it
would expand to include an outdoor beer garden and dance area. The Twister coaster
was added in 1938. Apparently it was not enough. The park struggled along into 1941.
Note 35. A reader interested in a more complete story of Woodcliff Pleasure Park may
check two recent books now in the Archives Section of the Marist College Library:
Carney Rhinevault and Tatiana Rhinevault, Hidden History of the Mid-Hudson Valley,
Stories from the Albany Post Road, The History Press, Charleston SC, © 2011 by the
authors, pp 133-143, The Rise and Fall of Woodcliff Pleasure Park; and Wesley and
Barbara H. Gottlock, Lost Amusement Parks of the Hudson Valley, © 2011 by the
authors, pp. 53-78, Woodcliff Pleasure Park.
Note 36. 1946 liber 652 page 64 Runk Realty Company to Kem Playing Cards Inc.
Note 37. 1947 liber 655 page 183 Western Publishing Company to Kem Plastic Playing
Cards Inc
Note 38. 1948 liber 681 page 605 Kem Plastic Playing Cards Inc to Vincent J Costanzi
Note 39. I remember seeing the equipment used to pull stumps from an old orchard
near the main house on the Brothers property north of the Water Works Road. He did
this free of charge. Later in the 1960s Costanzi worked at road construction and took a
major contract in Putnam County for route 301 from route 9 to the Taconic Parkway. He
underbid and was in serious financial trouble. Brother Nilus Donnelly remembering the
many times Costanzi had helped the Brothers free of charge, offered Costanzi free
access to sand and gravel banks on a property in Cold Spring which the Brothers had
purchased for a new Juniorate.
Note 40. I learned this from the late Mary Reilly, who lived on a parcel she and her
husband had purchased from Charles Chlanda. I had visited her to seek the location of
the main house of the Newbold family,. She walked me outside to show me the
foundations. Then she turned toward the Winslow property, pointed to a location along
the road and said: “I saw Costanzi take that house down”. The Reillys lived on North
Bridge Street, which street was also the location of the Costanzi family home.
Note 41. Recorded 1973 liber 1462 page 614 V J Costanzi Co to Anthony Costanzi
Note 42 1972 liber 1332 page 927 V J Costanzi Co to Frank Eberhard dba Kimco
Note 43. 1984 liber 1635 page 463 Anthony Costanzi to Marist College
Note 44. 1992 liber 1918 page 517 Trison Company to Marist College
Research on this project was conducted from January 2008 through August 2012 by
Richard Foy, assisted by student assistants Paul Contarino and Kayla Benefield.
most recent revision and spell check June 13, 2013