The ‘‘Our towns’’ column is compiled each month by Carol Johnson of the Haviland-Heidgerd Historical Collection. The entries have been copied from the April 1925 issues of the New Paltz Independent. To get a closer look at these newspapers of the past, visit the staff of the Haviland-Heidgerd Historical Collection at the Elting Memorial Library at 93 Main Street in New Paltz, or call 255-5030.
It’s time now to, get out the big stone jars and clean them ready for egg preserving time. Eggs are sure to be plentiful and cheap in the spring. Thrifty housekeepers everywhere “put down” a large supply of eggs now, while they are low, for cooking purposes during the winter months, when the price is much higher.
Louis D. LeFevre has erected a large coal elevator and silos for loading, storing and unloading coal on his property on lower Main Street.
Extensive improvements are being made at the Blue Crane Inn. The interior is to be renovated with new floors and fixtures. A new entrance on Main Street is in course of construction. On North Front Street opposite the library, an entrance and dining porch of cobblestone are to be built. This is to be transformed into a miniature Italian garden where meals and refreshments will be served out of doors.
Newman McMickle has been putting the tennis courts in Hasbrouck Park in order.
The United States government has renewed the lease for five years for the rooms in the Wurts DuBois building used as the post office. Mr. DuBois has purchased new boxes and other fixtures for the post office which will be installed as soon as school closes in June.
Part of the increase we are all paying in postal rates since the first of the month is coming back to us in the shape of increased revenues for the rural carriers and the postmaster and assistants. This branch of the postal service, has in many cases, been underpaid for the past several years and all the recipients of the increase are very glad indeed to get it. The rural carriers probably have more right to look for an increase than any other employees for the Post Office Department, especially those that have to serve sections where poor roads are the rule. The postal increase gives each of them an additional four cents a mile.
On Sunday a local fruit grower told us that the prospect for a peach crop was fine. The thunder shower of late Sunday afternoon, however, was followed by a sharp fall in the temperature. There was heavy frost in this vicinity on Monday night. It is perhaps too early to know the exact amount of harm done, but it is a comfort to reflect that often in cases like this a late frost turns out to have done much less damage than was feared.
During the cold spell of the early part of the week, there was a snow fall of one to two feet in the northern part of the state. The snow as especially troublesome because the machinery for clearing highways had been put away for the season.
School reopened on Tuesday after an Easter vacation of ten days. It seems good to see the students on the streets again.
Are women teachers a menace to civilization? Mr. H. G. Wells says that this is so. The Men’s Forum will meet at the Methodist Church next Tuesday evening at 7:30 and decide if he is correct. There are more angles to this subject than would seem at first sight and therefore an excellent discussion is expected. Any man who is interested is invited to attend.
George Millham last week took a motor trip through the Lake Champlain region where President Coolidge was born. Ezra Johnson who has charge of the Coolidge place showed Mr. Millham all over the farm. Mr. Millham brought home with him a quantity of maple sugar made by Mr. Johnson from maples on the president’s farm. He also brought home substantial orders for barrels in which the apples from the president’s orchards as well as from a great number of other orchards in New Hampshire and Vermont will be packed next fall.
Not all of the apples grown in the vicinity of Highland and Clintondale were sold as fresh fruit last year. Not by any means — though of course the great bulk of them were. There was a surprising amount of sweet cider also turned out from the poorer fruit by cider mills of this locality. Most of it went to Long Island for sale and eventually will find its way into the city or will be sold at the roadside resorts of the island. An idea may be obtained of the vast quantity of cider turned out by the three largest cider mills of this region from the fact that George Strongman, Highland truckman, has hauled about 4,000 barrels to Long Island the past four months. Figuring 50 gallons of cider to the barrel we find that about 20,000 gallons have been sent out from here for New York City consumption, and one must admit that this should help somewhat to slake the throats of thousands who are suffering from the effects of prohibition. The largest single manufacturer of cider this year was W. E. Harcourt of Modena, who made about 2,200 barrels. He had been shipping more or less all winter, and now this week Strongman is moving the last of it. Other principal shippers were the Clintondale Fruit Growers’ Association and the firm of M. G. Terwilliger of Highland.
The work of grading and improving the grounds of St. Joseph’s Church, which was begun last fall has progressed very rapidly during the last month. The large amount of shale to be blasted out has made the undertaking an arduous one and the transformation which has been accomplished is remarkable. The whole church property has been enclosed within a massive stone wall, with steps leading up to the church entrance at the corner of Mohonk and South Chestnut Streets. Another approach by roadway is to be built from Hasbrouck Avenue across the church grounds. South Chestnut Street just west of the church property has been widened out and a concrete sidewalk is to be built. The road bed in the hollow below has been raised considerably and large quantities of shale are now being placed upon the southernmost portion of South Chestnut Street.
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