Town of Plattekill Historian

05/06/2026

02/20/2026

Modena Lake, also referred to as Cole's Pond, or "the Old Hasbrouck Pond," was a popular destination in the town of Plattekill, as evidenced by the many postcards and images that capture scenes around the lake. (Later newspapers would often refer to it as Lembo Lake, confusing it with the nearby lake on the Lembo property.) Modena Lake was once part of the extensive tract of land owned by John Cole and later J.E. Hasbrouck. It was a well-loved site for fishing and local conservation groups would stock the pond each year. Swimming, boating and ice-skating drew crowds to the lake as well, with one local newspaper columnist cautioning the young men of the town to stop skinny-dipping there, as it was “too close to the turnpike for such activity.”
Bungalows were built around the lake in the 1920s and 1930s for use as summer residences and a Y.W.C.A. camp operated there for several years. The lake also played an important role in daily Modena life, as ice was harvested each winter and stored in J.E. Hasbrouck's icehouses and a water tower was constructed to help with fire suppression along the nearby railroad line. Civic groups such as the Modena 4-H and the Plattekill Ladies Aid would plan outings to the lake and would hold their meetings in the bungalows during the winter months.
Over time, the property around the lake was sold off and developed, the “turnpike” road crossing it widened and improved to become today’s Route 44-55, and the water quality altered due to pollution and increased human activity, bringing the days of Modena Lake as a community center to an end. Today, the last reminders of that earlier time can be seen in the anglers who still fish the lake from the road, diners at John Fazio’s BBQ enjoying views of the lake in summer months and in some of the remaining Modena Lake bungalows that are private homes today.

02/18/2026

A century ago...a 1920s postcard view of Modena, looking south toward the four corners. Most of the buildings pictured are no longer standing. The first barn on the left served as the town hall for a period of time, while the second barn on the left would become the first home of Hasbrouck Chemical Company, later the Modena Fire Department. On the right is the I.A. Rawley Cash Grocer (later Wager's Store), a barn used by the Modena Hotel (later the Modena Garage/Weeks Garage/apartments) and the Modena Hotel/Modena Post Office.

02/17/2026

Images of Gerow’s Mill and the Mill Pond on Old Mill Road in Plattekill. Gerow’s Mill was owned by John B. Gerow, who was also the Town of Plattekill Supervisor, Plattekill Postmaster (1872-1885, 1889-1893) and town assessor for over 20 years. His mill was located at the southwestern end of the mill pond.
The Mill Pond postcard shows the former Plattekill Friends Meeting House, a private residence today. Another view of the pond and remains of the mill can be seen in the c.1927 photo taken from the Plattekill Friends Cemetery (photo courtesy Shirley V. Anson collection).

01/14/2026

Undated photographs of a small house being moved along Route 44-55 in Clintondale. Written on the back of the second image is the description " Moving a cabin up the road. Fire house in background."

12/01/2025

With snow on the way this week, here's a look back at some long-ago snowstorms in Clintondale.
(Most of these photos were collected by the late historian Shirley Anson over the years.)

11/29/2025

An early postcard view of the Meadow Brook Farm Boarding House, later known as Simon’s Inn or Simon’s Hall.

Prior to moving to Plattekill in 1912, German-born Charles Simon had worked as a headwaiter at a number of upscale NYC hotels. Around 1918, he and his wife, Mary Ann Foley Simon, opened the boarding house on their 20-acre Unionville Road farm.

At the Meadow Brook, the Simons offered their summer guests a swimming pool, abundant farm fresh meals and dances every Saturday night. A pavilion, restaurant and dance hall that could accommodate nearly 500 people were added to the property by the early 1923, at which point the Meadow Brook came to be known as “Simon’s Inn” or “Simon’s Hall.”

During the off-season, the hall was used as a sort of community center and movie theater, where dances, clam chowder suppers and other fundraising events were held and the Plattekill Rod and Gun Club would host movie nights. The Plattekill Civil Defense Committee used the hall for signal drills during World War II.
Before Our Lady of Fatima Church was built in Plattekill, Catholic Masses were celebrated at Camp Sunset in the summer months and in Simon’s Hall during the winter. A number of fundraisers were held in hall to raise money for the construction of the new church.

Perhaps no community organization utilized Simon’s Hall more than the Plattekill Fire Department. From around 1929 until the late 1940s, card parties and dances organized by the department at Simon’s Hall were a constant source of funds for the newly formed organization, and a great source of entertainment for Plattekill and the surrounding communities. Early dances included music by bands and orchestras from New Paltz, Newburgh and Walden, while in later years orchestras from nearby Villa Nueva, Villa Victoria, Casa Perez and Club El-Ray would draw guests by the hundreds. (A 1945 article in the Kingston Daily Freeman noted that square dances were also popular at the hall for a few years, led by a Plattekill-based band known as the “Plattekillers”.)

Simon’s Hall closed around 1950, shortly before Charles Simon’s death in 1953.

Although there are a number of newspaper articles about the property, this postcard is the only image I’ve some across of the Meadow Brook Farm/Simon’s Inn. Does anyone have more information about this once-popular resort?

11/11/2025

10/19/2025

The home and blacksmith shop of John Benjamin Gunsalus in Clintondale, built around 1890. Both structures were on the town of Lloyd side of "the road going to Elting Corners" (today's South Street, just north of the Ridge by Mill House restaurant). At the time, Mr. Gunsalus was one of three blacksmiths in the Clintondale hamlet. The people in the photograph are most likely Gunsalus and his wife, Elisa Catharine Wager Gunsalus. Neither the house nor the shop stand today.

09/14/2025

Thank you to Tonya Tozzi Mullis for sharing these pictures of the Modena Fire Department Ladies Auxiliary and classes at the Modena School during the 1964-1965 school year!