Old Stone Barracks
The "Old Stone Barracks" is the last remaining structure of a proposed quadrangle of early U.S. Army barracks built at Plattsburgh, New York in 1838. Of the four main buildings initially planned for the Plattsburgh post, only two were ever constructed, an officer's barracks and an enlisted barracks which formed an "L" shape. The officer's barracks, which Ulysses S. Grant was stationed at for a time while serving as a young Lieutenant, was partially damaged by fire and torn down in the 1960s. The remaining building, the 200 foot long, two story "Old Stone Barracks," which is entirely constructed of locally quarried limestone, has been mostly empty since the early 1960s and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.
Background
In the decades following the decisive British defeat at the Battle of Plattsburgh and the close of the War of 1812, the United States Military still remained suspicious and wary of British Canada. Relations with England were not cordial following the war and the establishment of a permanent Army Post for a garrison at Plattsburgh, along the strategically important Lake Champlain corridor, which for centuries had been a route for invasion, seemed an obvious choice. Although troops had been stationed there from roughly 1812 to 1825, no permanent military installation had been constructed with the men often being housed in crude and inadequite log structures, especially in view of the usually harsh North Country winters.
The innovative permanent Army post planned for Plattsburgh was initially to be four stone barracks structures positioned in a quadrangle around a parade ground and surrounded by a wooden palisade and western facing gate. Construction began in 1838 on a rise overlooking the lake about a mile outside of the village, just to the south of the three remaining earthwork fortifications left over from the 1814 seige. Two of the four buildings were ultimately completed and occupied by June, 1840 as well as a host of smaller support buildings such as a brick powder magazine, post headquarters, storehouse, icehouse, guardhouse with an area for holding prisoners, and two deep wells for drinking water. The main buildings were built of native limestone which was quarried nearby at Bluff Point and transported to the site. The water filled quarry where the limestone was excavated is still visible today.
When completed, the "Old Stone Barracks" was finished with a very attractive and distinctive two story collumned portico which runs the entire 200 foot length of the building and was covered with a skillion roof. Initially four external staircases along this portico allowed access to the second floor. The structure originally contained 18 rooms, several of which on the first floor were utilized as a post hospital and dispensory. Four small storm-sheds and the hospital bathroom also extended off the first floor backside of the building. Many of the rooms were heated by individual coal stoves as well, providing a much appreciated measure of luxury for the soldiers during the winter months. Initially the western wall of the barracks was built of wood which would have allowed for an addition to be added to the structure later if the Army deemed it necessary. This never came to pass, however, and the temporary wooden wall was eventually finished in stone to match the rest of the facade.
The military presence in the Champlain Valley was further augmented just four years after the completion of the new Army post at Plattsburgh when construction was begun in 1844 on Fort Montgomery at nearby Rouses Point, a massive masonary fortification mounting 125 guns which would guard the northernmost point of Lake Champlain. Fort Montgomery, by design, was never permanently garrisoned and it was assumed that if the need arose, troops from Plattsburgh could quickly be marched there to man the fortification. In May of 1850, Major Thomas J. Jackson, who would later be forever immortalized with the nickname "Stonewall," attended a court martial at Plattsburgh Barracks. While there he wrote his sister Laura describing his surroundings:
"Plattsburg Barracks N.Y.
May 10th 1850
My Dear Sister,
You observe that I am now on the border of Canada, it is for the purpose of trying some prisoners.
My health is still improving and in a short time I expect to return home to Fort Hamilton. In coming to this place I have passed some charming scenery. This place is on the Western bank of Lake Champlain. I should like very much to visit Montreal and Quebec before returning South, but want of time and money will prevent it. On my way here I saw the old Fort Ticonderoga and Crown Point. And in front of this Garrison, was fought the great Naval action of the late war.
Remember me kindly to Mr. A and Family.
Your brother Thomas"
Various Infantry and Artillery units were stationed at Plattsburgh Barracks in spurts throughout the latter half of the 19th Century. Beginning in the mid 1890s, a sprawling expansion program greatly enlarged the Army Post at Plattsburgh with the construction of 3 much larger and more modern barracks, relegating the 1840 era structures to a much more secondary role. It was during this period that the 21st Infantry, known as the "President's Own," was stationed at Plattsburgh. Their nickname was bestowed upon them during their years at Plattsburgh by President William Mckinley, who when frequently summering nearby at the luxurious Hotel Champlain, would often visit the Post to review the troops and attend performances by the unit's band. From their barracks here, the unit would be dispatched to see action in the Spanish American War in 1898 as well as the Philippine Insurrection the following year. In 1899, the original interiors of the "Old Stone Barracks" were gutted and modernised to serve as a barracks for the Post Band which it remained until 1906. During the updating of the structure, two of the external staircases on the front portico were removed and several internal stairways were constructed. It is believed that during this period, the original skillion or "shed" style roof was replaced over the portico with the hip roof we see today. Also, off the backside of the building where the four storm-sheds and hospital bathroom were originally located, several small single and two story porches were built to allow access to rooms from that side.
The barracks served in a variety of capacities throughout the first half of the 20th century. During World War 1 and the years immediately preceding it, the building served as part of the Civilian Military Training Camp at Plattsburgh, the brainchild of General Leonard Wood and forerunner of today's ROTC program. In 1939, on the eve of World War 2, Plattsburgh Barracks hosted the massive 1st United States Army maneuvers, a huge pre-War training operation involving aircraft, tanks, and roughly 20,000 soldiers. The barracks was last used as offices and then apartments for Air Force personnel at Plattsburgh Air Force Base in the late 1950s. Following the demolition of the adjoining officer's quarters in the 1960s, the surviving "Old Stone Barracks" mostly remained dormant. Around this time the small 1899 era porch additions on the rear of the barracks were removed and the entire building was boarded up as a historical structure. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. With the impending closure of the base in 1995, one of the last official acts of the Air Force concerning the building was to perform asbestos abatement, removing most of the remaining interior, and replacing the barrack's slate roof.
Today
Today the only structures which remain of the original 1840 era Army post are the barracks, it's adjacent brick powder magazine, and the nearby "old post cemetary." The post parade ground is also still present. These structures represent one of the last remaining examples of the first generation of permanent U.S. Army barracks in existance in the United States. In 2007, a section of paved road which ran beside the barracks and followed the route of the original dirt road into the post compound through the palisade gate was removed by the City of Plattsburgh.
The "Old Stone Barracks" itself has changed little since the departure of the Air Force in 1995 and remains boarded up and closed to the public. Although public awareness of the building remains high, to date, PARC, the entity established by the Government to re-develop the former Air Force facility, has yet to find an organization willing to take on resposibility for the aging and iconic structure. The building is unfortunately often the target of vandalism and frequent break-ins due to the many ghost stories which have circulated on the internet concerning this building and it's purported (and false) use as a "field hospital" during the Battle of Plattsburgh, 24 years before the barracks was even built. Over the past several years, floodlights have been added which illuminate the front and rear of the barracks at night. This has somewhat decreased the number of forced entries into the structure. Currently, however, many of the spindles which support the long railings of the barrack's signature two story portico, as many as 40 at last count, have been kicked out and upon closer inspection, numerous large areas of rot and deterioration can be seen throughout the woodwork of the imposing structure.
External Links
- Link to a ghost related website containing numerous falsehoods regarding the structure including that it was used during the Revolutionary War: [1]