Historians want to save barns connected to Hambletonian

Eagle Crest development forces decision By Pamela Chergotis Sugar Loaf — Local historians are urgently calling for the preservation of two barns connected to the life and times of Hambletonian, the most famous trotting horse in American history. The barns have been sitting for more than 180 years on either side of a country road lined with old stone walls and flanked by meadows. Dr. Richard Hull, a history professor at New York University who has written books on the history of Sugar Loaf and Warwick, said walking down that stretch of Hambletonian Road “gives you a special feeling, like a time warp. You feel like you’ve gone back to the early 19th century.” But the 21st century is closing in. A development proposed for the land on which the barns sit is forcing a decision about whether to preserve them or leave them to the fate of so many other barns swept away by development in recent years. Because of their great historical and architectural value, the Sugar Loaf Historical Society has stepped up with an offer to preserve and maintain the barns. The society’s proposal has been met with a chorus of support from historians in Warwick and Chester. The decision is now up to the town board. Hull said he considered old barns to be of even greater historic importance than old houses because so many more barns than houses are disappearing from the landscape. And barns give the greatest sense of a community’s agricultural past. A rare, singular horse Hull said the prosperous and well-educated Seeley family built the barns to be both functional and beautiful. The craftsmanship of the cupolas and crowned windows is especially fine, he said, and the hand-hewn timbers are made from American chestnut trees, which are all but extinct. “These were no hardscrabble farmers,” he said of the Seeleys. “They wanted a showpiece farm.” The barns were never painted, which was very unusual, Hull said. The action of time and the elements has only made the wood more beautiful. Hull lives on a neighboring property in Warwick and sees the way people are drawn to the barns. “Hambletonian Road is a popular jogging route,” he said. “People stop in their tracks to admire those barns without even realizing their connection to Hambletonian.” The famous stallion was not foaled in either barn — or in any barn, for that matter. He was foaled in a meadow down the road. Gail Cunard, director of the Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame in Goshen, provided a quote from Elizabeth Sharts’ book “Cradle of the Trotter”: “Thus, as a result of fortune and misfortune, in May, 1849, in a pleasant meadow on the farm of Jonas Seely, Jr., between Sugar Loaf and Glenmere, the Charles Kent Mare dropped a foal which later was named Hambletonian.” A monument and plaque marked the spot. When two modern houses went up in the meadow, the monument was moved to the side of the road, where it now sits accompanied by an historical marker. One of the barns once contained stables and very likely sheltered Hambletonian during his first winter, Hull said. The other barn stored grain. It was the Seeley’s hired hand, William Rysdyk, who saw something special in the young Hambletonian. Rysdyk persuaded Jonas Seeley to sell him the horse. He paid $125 for Hambletonian and his mare, a big investment for the time, but one that repaid Rysdyk many times over when he placed him at stud. According to Hambletonian’s obituary in The New York Times in1876, the stallion sired some 1,500 horses. Other bloodlines could never compete and eventually went extinct, making Hambletonian the ancestor of virtually every trotting horse alive today. Eagle Crest discussion postponed The Seeleys owned an expanse of land that has been subdivided several times over the years since. The proposed Eagle Crest development, which is now going through the approval process, is located on the portion long owned by the Lewis family. The Eagle Crest site plan calls for clustering 25 residences on 87 acres, with 64 percent of the land left open, including the land where the barns sit. The town board has been doubtful about the preservation idea, wondering where the money was going to come from and if the structures would pose a safety hazard until repairs could be made. Jay Westerveld, president of the Sugar Loaf Historical Society, said the organization has access to grants that would help defray costs. And the town board has also doubted the feasibility of saving both barns. “The Sugar Loaf Historical Society would prefer to preserve both structures, and made this clear to the project sponsor,” said society president. “Unfortunately, the project sponsor and engineer argued that the structure on the north of Hambletonian Road presents a visual obstruction to egress traffic. I consider this to be an inaccurate statement.” The town board and planning board agreed in late August to greater communication to consider these issues. This week, the town board postponed a discussion on Eagle Crest for the second time. Supervisor Steve Neuhaus said he has since received a lot of feedback on the issue, and wants to take the time to talk with consultants. Anyone wishing to submit a written comment should send it to Chester Town Hall, 1786 Kings Highway, Chester, NY 10918, or e-mail sneuhaus@thetownofchester.org. Support for the barns Tracy Schuh of the Preservation Collective: “Few towns have things like that to be proud of.” According to the town’s master plan, one of the goals of clustering is “to preserve cultural resources, including houses, barns and other historical structures.” Professor Richard Hull: “They are classic examples of Orange County barns of the early 19th century. You can see how well they were made. Their connection to Hambletonian makes them quite historic.” Susan Gardner, Municipal Historian, Village of Warwick and Deputy Municipal Historian, Town of Warwick: “As an historic building, it is not required that it be ‘brought up to code’ (none of the museum buildings of the Historical Society of the Town of Warwick have ever been required to do so, they are grandfathered as historic sites). This is an historic site of national significance, and all efforts should be made to preserve it.” Jay Westerveld, president of the Sugar Loaf Historical Society: “Ultimately, the Lewis farm should serve as an excellent location for an interpretive museum of 18-20th c. agricultural artifacts and associated art, prints, photos, and other ephemera ( Eric Sloane, etc.) , and possibly an interpretive natural history museum of the Moodna and Wallkill watersheds.” Clifton Patrick, Town of Chester Historian: “It is a rare local surviving example of English type, with the dropped anchorbeams that give the feel of a Dutch H-bent system of barn construction.”