Today Is Dutch-American Heritage Day

November 16 is Dutch-American Heritage Day. It was proclaimed so by Congress and the first President Bush in 1991 because on November 16 in 1776 Dutch forces on the Caribbean island of St. Eustatius returned the salute of the American brig-of-war Andrew Doria, making the Netherlands the first country to salute the flag of the new United States. In 1782, the Netherlands was also the first country to recognize formal diplomatic relations with the United States.

Of course, Dutch-American Heritage Day is of particular interest to me since I'm of Dutch origin--descended not from the Dutch who settled here in the Hudson River Valley in the seventeenth century but from the Dutch who immigrated to America in the nineteenth century and settled in southwestern Michigan. For anyone who's interested, I'm including a link to an opinion piece that appeared yesterday in the Holland Sentinel, the newspaper of the city where I grew up. If curiosity compels you to read it, you will understand why I accompanied this post with a picture of wooden shoes I danced in when I was in high school.

Latest News from North Front Street

The salvaged materials are being sold at the site, but if you need to speak with Jim Bent before going down there, I now have his phone number: 518 332-6848.

I learned today that there are no plans to salvage the brick. The walls will simply be knocked into the cellars. So if you need old brick, you might want to call Jim Bent and make some arrangement.

Demolition Update

The disassembly of the brick buildings on North Front Street next to the Fugary Boat Club continues, and the prediction is that the connector building and the north building will be gone by the end of the week. But there is hopeful news for the south building--the one that has been determined to be structurally sound.

The south building had been scheduled to be demolished in April, but I learned today that Eleanor Ambos--owner of the Pocketbook Factory and the Allen Street School--has gotten involved and is working to persuade Bentley Meeker, whom she knows, to keep that building standing. Of course, with the other two buildings gone, a major impediment to developing the site--lack of parking--has been eliminated, and with the $14 million upgrade to the City's waste water treatment plant soon to begin, another major impediment to development--odor from the treatment plant--may also be alleviated.

In the meantime, there are wonderful salvaged building materials for sale at the site. Douglas fir and heart pine flooring--all pegged, so there are no nails--and heart pine columns--8-foot columns selling for $30 a piece; 12-foot columns for between $30 and $55 each. If you have need for such materials, it would be great to keep these things in Hudson.