Main Street Historic District (Roslyn, New York)
The Main Street Historic District is one of two such conservation areas in Roslyn and stretches along the main street of the Village between the North Hempstead Turnpike ( New York State Route 25A ) and East Broadway, with Tower Street and parts of Glen Avenue and Paper Mill Road are included.
It is mostly a residential area with a few commercial buildings at the northern end. The 50 structures in it, mostly houses, were mostly built in the 19th century before the American Civil War in the Federal Style and Greek Revival . Main Street has changed little despite the rapid growth of the surrounding areas in Nassau County . The 16- acre Main Street Historic District was created in the early 1970s and inscribed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
geography
The area on Main Street borders Roslyn Pond to the east and is bordered by a steep slope to the west. With the exception of Old Northern Boulevard, which crosses the road between North Hempstead and East Broadway, there are no continuous back streets. This geographical peculiarity is one reason why the monument reserve was able to retain its historical character.
At the beginning of the 20th century, part of the land around the pond was converted into a park as part of a program against malaria . There is a replica of the original paper mill.
history
Present-day Roslyn was first settled as Hempstead Harbor in the mid-17th century and served as a port to Hempstead and several other parishes further south. Today's Main Street is where this settlement was once built. The oldest object in the monument protection area is part of the Van Nostrand-Starkins house from 1680.
The first flour mill was built around 1700 and was taken over by Hendrick Onderdonk in the 1750s, who opened a paper mill in 1773, making it the town's first processing plant. Around this time, the first extant House, 150 Main Street, by Wilson Williams, one working for Overdonk was built on Main Street Cooper was built. George Washington stayed here in 1790 and mentions the two mills in his diary.
In the 19th century, the number of houses on Main Street quadrupled. Most of them were built by local builders and merchants, only John Hendrickson's house at 110 Main Street was a mansion of the kind found on the north shore of Long Island .
The street retained the character of a predominantly residential area in the 20th century, and in the late 1960s the Roslyn Landmark Society worked to protect and preserve the historic buildings. The Roslyn Village Historic District , registered in 1987, makes use of the Main Street Historic District as part of it.
Significant Contributing Objects
Some of the objects of independent significance that contribute to the historic district are:
- The Ellen J. Ward Memorial Clock Tower , built in 1895 at the intersection of Main Street and Old Northern Boulevard, was charged with the building stones of granite and limestone to Roslyns most visible landmark. The tower was built by the New York company Lamb & Rich and the clockwork comes from the watchmaking department of Seth Thomas .
- The William G. Valentine Store is one of Roslyn's rare brick houses from the mid-19th century. Reportedly, Valentine bought the brick at a very low price during the economic downturn that preceded the Civil War and built his store and the two neighboring buildings, 19, 21 and 23 Main Street.
- Obidian W. Valentine House , 105 Main Street, is a clapboard-clad building constructed in the classicism style between 1833 and 1836. It appears taller than it actually is at a story and a half because a little is built into the slope on the west side of the road. Later buildings nearby took over the design of the house.
- Warren Wilkey House , 190 Main Street, was built around 1865 for a wealthy New York businessman. This timber frame house is unusually large and ornate by the standards of Roslyn's Main Street. It has two and a half floors and a mansard roof as well as a prominent belvedere and was converted into a residential building with three condominiums in 1925.
- Van Nostrand-Starkins House , 221 Main Street is a one and a half story building whose construction began in 1680. It is the oldest building in Roslyn and was acquired by the blacksmith Joseph Starkins in 1795. A later addition was removed and the Roslyn Landmark Society restored it to its 1810 state. The house is now used as a museum.
Conservation measures
Roslyn has incorporated regulations in its statutes to protect buildings in both of the town's historic districts. Any changes or demolitions must be approved by a six-person committee. The Roslyn Landmark Society has building restrictions on some properties.
Individual evidence
- ^ A b c d Ellen Rosebrock, Marian Stevens: National Register of Historic Places nomination, Main Street Historic District, Roslyn, New York. New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation , September 27, 1972, accessed June 30, 2008 .
- ↑ Village of Roslyn Historic District Board: Understanding Roslyn's Architectural Styles ( Memento of the original from August 20, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 2.1 MB)
- ^ Roslyn Historic Homes and Buildings. (No longer available online.) Village of Roslyn, January 2008, archived from the original on July 5, 2008 ; Retrieved July 2, 2008 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Historic District Board. (No longer available online.) Village of Roslyn, January 2008, archived from the original on July 5, 2008 ; Retrieved July 2, 2008 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
Coordinates: 40 ° 47 '50 " N , 73 ° 38' 55" W.