Village looking for old photos of Lewis Woodlands

Warwick — A place of tranquility and peace, with walking trails and an array of beautiful mature trees, right in the Village of Warwick. That is Lewis Woodlands, a secluded 10-acre sanctuary deeded to the village a few years ago. The property, located at the end of Robin Brae off Maple Avenue, is a low-maintenance park of walking trails. Now, the village would like to help share the beauty that it once was with residents. In the early 1900s, this property was part of the larger estate of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas P. Fowler called Belair. There were gardens, fountains, a tennis court and bowling alley, bridges as well as gazebos. Although the village does not intend to restore the property completely, the trustees want to identify some of the plants and structures and possibly include a walking tour of the history of the property. “Originally, it was Mrs. Fowler’s sunken garden,” said Trustee Eileen Patterson. “We have pictures dating back to the early 1900s and 1920s, but we would like to get some views from the air. There’s no way we can restore it and maintain it cost-wise. But we want to do something so that people can see how beautiful it was. Possibly we could rebuild a gazebo and put drawings along the path showing what it looked like. We could make it a walking tour.” What the village is doing is a cultural landscape report through Heritage Landscapes, a preservation landscape architect and planning group from Connecticut. Peter Viteretto from Heritage Landscapes met with Patterson, Mayor Michael Newhard, village historian Richard Hull and Maureen Charde, a local horticulturist. The report will include historic research and documentation of the evolution of the landscape, comparisons of historic and current conditions to help understand the level of continuity, explore options for treatment of the landscape including preservation, rehabilitation, restoration and reconstruction as well as preservation recommendations. The village received a $7,500 grant from the Preservation League of New York to help pay the $18,300 architectural fee. But the first step to devising this document is to come up with pictures. The village is looking to provide the architect with historical documents, photos, maps and plans. Some photos they have received came through village resident Steve Gross who bought a book that contained them on Ebay. An interesting fact about the woodlands is that some trees there are not native to this area. Since the Fowlers and the previous owners, the Elys, lived in the city and used the home as a country home, they planted some species that wouldn’t normally be found around here such as Sweet Gum and White Birch. In the 1950s, Madison Lewis bought the property. By the mid-1960s, he gifted it to the Garden Club of Orange and Dutchess Counties. In 2004, the Garden Club deeded the property to the village with the restriction that it would never become commercialized. It must remain an undeveloped, natural woodland. “We need this information,” said Patterson. “Check your attics, basements for pictures or articles that can give us any information on what this property was like. This will never be an active park, but from an historical aspect, this is very important to do.” If you have information or pictures on the Lewis Woodlands, contact Village Hall at 986-2031.