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From: "Bernard Rudberg" brudberg AT frontiernet DOT net
Date: Thu, 8 Apr 2004 13:28:33 -0400
Subject: Hopewell Depot Restoration Inc.
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The attached photo is VP Jerry Carey installing a new floor in the
north end of the depot

ANNUAL MEETING
Hopewell Depot Restoration Inc.
Annual meeting and election of officers.

7 PM Wednesday 21 April 2004
East Fishkill Community Center
Located off Rte. 82 in the center of Hopewell between the RR overpass
and the Rte.376 traffic light across from McHoul's.

This will be our annual election of officers and a report on depot work
progress. In recent months the volunteers for work days have been hard to
find. Most of the work has been done by a very small dedicated group.
The depot project is sadly in need of help from Saturday work to fund
raising and publicity. For example; in addition to almost single handedly
rebuilding the floor structure, Jerry Carey is also the VP and treasurer.
The depot project is in danger of stalling out.

Depot Progress
With the backing of the Town of East Fishkill, work has been slowly
progressing on replacing the foundation sills and the floor beams of the
depot. Phase 1 includes new sills around the foundation, a new floor and
a new roof. We presented the plan to East Fishkill Town Supervisor
Peter Idema. He agreed with the plan and presented it to the town board
meeting on Thursday 28 August. The town board voted to accept the
plan and fund the project up to $50,000 in the 2004 budget.

The original sills have rotted because the wooden structure of the
building was in contact with the ground. Plans call for replacement of the
sill beams and new construction of a wooden walkway around the
building so the new sills will not touch the ground. The walkway will be
very similar to the platform around the depot in older photographs. To
date about half of the sill beams have been replaced.

Part of phase 1 is replacement of the dry rotted floor. Our VP and
Treasurer Jerry Carey has already started on the project. The photo shows
Jerry working on the floor beams in the north half of the depot. Once the
sills and floor have been replaced there will be a safe working surface for
the next steps.

One of the cross beams on the east wall has separated and needs repair
and the chimney needs some attention. The next major project in phase 1
will be the roof structure repair and resurfacing.

By the completion of phase 1 the building will be safe and dry to work
inside. Then much of the detailed restoration work can begin on the
interior, walls, ceilings, doors and windows.

There will also be work needed on the stairs down into the basement.
Water erosion had caused a buildup of sand at the bottom of the basement
steps. The sand has been removed and a new masonry wall installed to
prevent more erosion.

Recently the two ceramic sections on top of the chimney have been
removed and stored. They will be reinstalled when the chimney and roof
work is done.There are enough projects to keep us busy for years to come.
With only a small group of volunteers actually working the progress is
slow.

The phase 1 plan includes cost estimates for skilled labor for some critical
parts of the work. The more volunteer labor we get, the farther the
money will go toward future restoration. In the coming weeks we will be
asking for volunteer time and effort to make the best use of the town
financial support. Keep an eye out for E-Mail notes and/or snail mail
letters for specific projects. We will need all the volunteer help we can
get.
Many towns across the country have recognized the significance of their
railroad past and are restoring their railroad stations.

Hopewell Junction is rich in railroad history but much of it is in
danger of being lost forever. We must preserve as much as possible
for future generations.

************************************
The Lighter side of railroading
Of course all that activity around a depot was bound to attract a bit of
"the
other side of life". There was a good example of this in March 1899 at
the Clove Branch Junction station.

A homeless tramp named Barney was drunk one Saturday morning and
standing on the platform as an express train was passing by. The breeze
of the train blew his hat off, and in attempting to catch it, he staggered
into the side of a passing train coach. He was thrown to the ground and
sustained a compound fracture of his right arm. The train stopped and
they took the man to LaGrange where the coroner happened to be at the
station. On the advice of the coroner they then took the injured man to
the General Hospital at Matteawan where the railroad surgeon set his
broken arm.

This was not the end of the story however. Since the man was homeless,
he remained in the Hospital. The railroad did not feel obligated to pay
for the man's keep after a few days of recovery. ND&C Vice President
G. Hunter Brown wrote a letter to Isaac Carman the County
Superintendent of the poor at Oak Summit to get the injured homeless
man moved to the County Poor House. The hospital was willing to keep
the man for $5.00 per week, but Brown asked the County to take over the
case because the railroad was in no way responsible.

How times have changed! In the hands of today's lawyers, a case like
that would be worth millions.
************************************
The ND&C Railroad
There are still some soft cover copies of the book Twenty Five years on
the ND&C RR available. All the hard covers are sold out. Barnes &
Noble in Poughkeepsie had a few as well as the model train shop in Red
Oaks Mill. Other book stores may have a copy or two left. In addition
they are available by mail from the Purple Mountain Press in
Fleischmanns NY and also over the internet on amazon.com and also the
web site of the New Haven RR Historical Society.
Their web site is:
http://NHRHTA.ORG
Just click on the book sales icon.
************************************
Sharing History
Do you know of any photos of Hopewell History ? If you have or know
someone who has photos to share with the members, send a note or call
me, Bernie Rudberg, at 221-9330.. I have facilities to scan and print
photos without any damage to the originals. I can also do minor repairs
of cracks or marks on the scanned prints. I can even do the scanning at
your location with a portable computer and scanner. If you have photos
let me know and I will pick them up and return them after scanning or
scan them on site. We would love to see any old pictures you might have
hidden away in a family album.
**********************************
Do You Have E-Mail ?
With the expansion of our mailing list, the cost of each newsletter has
gone up. Currently each newsletter mailing costs about $50. We feel that
this money could be put to better use on the depot. Therefore we will be
distributing an E-Mail version of the newsletter which costs essentially $0
to send out. In addition, an E-Mail version will reach the members
sooner than a standard post mailing. Our E-Mail list now contains over
75 names while the snail mail list still has about 90 names. Future
newsletters will be sent via E-Mail whenever possible.

If you would like to get your newsletter via E-Mail you can write a
short note to the editor:
Bernard Rudberg
7 Marion Ave.
Wappingers Falls, NY
12590-6017
Or better yet, you can reply via E-Mail to
Brudberg@frontiernet.net
***********************************
MEMBERSHIP DUES
Individuals $10.00
Families $18.00
Seniors/Students $ 5.00
If you get your newsletter via E-Mail, your renewal is due one year from
the last time you paid. If you get the newsletter via snail mail, take a
look
at the address on your newsletter envelope. The date after your name is
the last time your membership was renewed. If the date is more than a
year ago it is time to renew.
Send to the treasurer, Jerry Carey at: Hopewell Depot Restoration
P O Box 1044
Hopewell Junction, NY, 12533-1044

***********************************
CURRENT OFFICERS
President. Bernie Rudberg
VP and Treas. Jerry Carey
Secretary Jackie Prusak
Newsletter Editor Bernie Rudberg

Bernie Rudberg 7 Marion Ave., Wappingers Falls, NY, 12590-6017
phone 221-9330 or E-Mail BRudberg@frontiernet.net


Jerry Carey 27 Tamarack Dr., Hopewell Junction, NY, 12533-6432
phone 897-2145
E-Mail jcarey_mba@idsi.net or JC101694@cs.com


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