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Nanuet Postcards And Other Images

Nanuet: "The flawed jewel of the Hudson Lowlands"

Was a time when Nanuet warranted a postcard or two, but those days are sadly behind us. Here you can see a collection of postcards, along with other images of interest.


N.B.: I add images as I acquire them. Since this page is quasi-thematically arranged, I'm afraid your best bet for finding new images is to check in every six months or so and scroll the whole megillah. More techy types can set up a page-update alert at Google.


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Looking north on Main Street, just south of the old Erie-Lackawanna tracks that went to Piermont, with the Hutton General Store (later Hutton Johnson) on the left. These tracks were still in place when I was growing up. The building on the right is the Nanuet Hotel, which still stands today.

The gleaming streets outside The Red Rail. "Nanuet; city of light, city of magic".

 

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Another fine view of Main, looking south.

 

early po

The Hutton General Store also served as the post office in the early days.

 

upper main street

Looking towards downtown from near 59, 1909.

 

nanuet bird's eye view

This is only a bird's eye view if the bird in question is peacefully on the ground! This is a view of downtown from Jerry's Avenue or thereabouts, just south of Prospect. The road to the left is Prospect itself. The building in the center of the image, just to the right of the clump of trees, looks to be the old rail station; you can see a steam engine headed toward the Spring Valley depot. Hutton Johnson is at the far left. Off in the distance is Casper Hill and the way to Nyack.

 

country scene

Another view of the "skyline".

 

nanuet station 1

This is a lovely image of our old station. My, what fond memories I have hopping up onto that platform at the north side of the station (at the right of the image). When the antiques shop was open, the north side doors were open wide (as pictured here, too). One could find old Lifes and National Geographics, and all sorts of old stuff.

 

nanuet station 2

And this is a nice photograph of the old station.

 

station from the west

This is a wonderful image of the station as viewed from the west.

 

erie station

Yet another view of the old station, this time looking northwest.

 

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The old station yet again.

 

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An especially lovely shot of the station, shortly before its sad demise. I wish I knew who took this photo.

 

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The station amidst the reeds, at the southern edge of the swamp which was better and more delicately (and rather misleadingly) known as "Nanuet Meadows" before the mall bullied out the wilds.

 

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"Erie-Lackawanna Depot".

 

nanuet station today

This is our warm, cozy, intimate station as it stands today. Mies van der Rohe eat your heart out!

 

boggianos

A remarkable shot of Boggiano's interior, circa 1970 (Thanks to Ron Lugo for this one).

 

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Perrinos at Orchard and Main, SW corner.

 

Jocar Pizza, Orchard and Main, SE corner.

 

Brunard Cleaners.

 

Nanuet Confectionary at Prospect and Main, SW corner, later Boggianos, and now--and we all hope forevemore--our beloved Martio's.

 

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The Red Rail!!


American Master RUPERT HOLMES lived in this house, 59 Prospect, in his earliest years.

 

RUPERT HOLMES's family then moved here, 19 Demarest, across from Grace Baptist Church, and next door to the Overmeyers.


highview school

highview school

Two views of the original Highview School. There were only eight classrooms at that time, along with the public library. I had first grade (Miss Siegel) and fourth grade (Mrs. McCoy and Miss Kassetta) in this oldest section. Three wings have been added since these postcards were issued, the last one in 2004. (Thanks to RH for the second image.)

 

highview view 3

This is another view of Highview, highlighting the first addition, at the south end of the school. Speaking of "highlights", the name of the (mimeographed) school paper was "Highview Highlights".

 

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Highview again.

 

100th

Highviews' 100th birthday, June 1, 2008.

 

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Two images of an early Nanuet school.


orchard street

An oil painting of Demarest Street, looking toward Orchard Street.

 

yoko and michael

Here is the little house on Doris Stark's property, just south of the Hebrew Center, where author Michael Rumaker lived in the late 50s. In his book "The Butterfly" he writes of "Eiko"'s visit to the house. "Eiko" is, in reality, Yoko Ono. So, "Yoko slept here". I took this picture in December 1980, a few days after John's murder. What an awful time.

 

nauraushank river

The Nauraushank Brook (hardly a river!) is one of four streams that flow through Nanuet, the other three being the Nauraushaun, the Pascack, and the mighty Muddy. The Nauraushank passes just behind Highview School and then under Church street at the bottom of the hill. The Nauraushank opened into the Mill Pond at Highview, and as recently as the late fifties, Nanuetters ice-skated there. The pond was mostly shored up when the homes on Norwood were built in the late sixties. The Nauraushank crosses Middletown Road just a few feet north of 59, where the Highway Department put up a big sign reading "Nauraushaun Brook". An email to them pointing out the error has gone unacknowledged.

Roll on, big river! Roll on!

 

A lovely view of the Nauraushank RIver.

 

pond bridge over church street

At the bottom of the hill, just past the Highview School on Church Street, is Pond Bridge, crossing the mighty Nauraushank. The house to the left was standing until the early 00s. To the right was Mill Pond.

 

mill pond

Here's Mill Pond, at the base of the hill behind Highview.

 

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Another at Mill Dam


baptistchurch

This is an early incarnation of Grace Baptist Church at the Corner of Orchard and Demarest.

 

The interior of Grace Baptist Church

 

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Grace in color.

 

grace

A more recent view of Grace.

 

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Grace again.

 

church street

Midge's Beauty Parlor across from Grace.


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The old Hebrew Center. Site of my bar mitzvah (among other world-changing simchas!)


The Holiday Inn at Grandview and 59.

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Summer fun at the Holiday Inn.

 

ashley

Here's the Ashley Motor Court, which used to be on 59 as it slopes up towards Spring Valley. It faced eastward, toward the northbound Thruway entrance.

 

nanuet motel

A few interiors of the Ashley Motor Court.

 

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The mid-mod splendor of the Ashley.

 

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Motel Matches. Notice the phone number prefix, "NA3". when I was very young, we just needed to dial a "1", then the four last digits, if the call was within NA3. The first phone call i ever made was to Kathy Tedesco, who lived around the corner on Briar.

 

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Ashley Motel ashtray.


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I vaguely remember the Pascack Motel, "Rockland County's Finest Ranch Type Motel" according to one source (its management!).


milk bottles

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When I was little we used to get our milk delivered in the morning. I remember the metal milkbox that sat just outside the front door.


route 59 theatre

This is the old Route 59 Theatre, with a temporary promotional facade constructed for "The Lion In Winter."

 

west side story

The first movie ever to play at the 59 was "West Side Story". Here's an ad.

 

2001

Our family saw "2001" at the 59.

 

59 theater

59 theater 2

A two page spread on the Route 59 from the December 12, 1962 issue of Motion Picture Herald.


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Mapleways bowling alley, later Nova Lighting.


st. anthony

 

St. Anthony's shrine is at the end of College Avenue, at old "59A". Nanuet has attracted a large Catholic community--Italian, Irish, Polish--up from the city.

 

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Stately St. Anthony.

 

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St. Anthony's interior.

 

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The large cemetery between St. Anthony and Palmer is rung by the Stations of the Cross.

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Lo! There's Jesus at St. Anthony.

 

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Another view of Jesus.

 

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A lovely view of St. Anthony from 59A.


 

nanuet mall

The good ol' wishy-washy Nanuet Mall, circa 1969.

 

mall aerial

An aerial view of the mall, revealing it's true ugliness. The old AC Field is towards the upper left. I confess I never even knew about the AC while growing up. I always took my bike to the mall, never the shortcut through the woods, with friends Jamie Overmeyer, Robert Kirby, Paul Lankau, and the ubiquitous Mike Goldfarb.

 

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Om. Our beloved head shop.


nanuet fire brigadef

The old fire brigade.

 

original fire house

Our original Fire House, circa 1900, located on Old Middletown, across from Church Street. This area has been an eyesore for my entire life, just a pile of dirt, really.

 

second firehouse

The second fire house, from the 1940s. This building was also on Old Middletown, visible from Middletown Road. It was torn down in the 70s, to make way for more piles of dirt.

 

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A far better shot of the ol' "Firemen's Town Hall"

 

nanuet fire house

Our fire department, on Prospect between Middletown and the tracks, as it looks today.

 

engines

Here're some of our proud engines.

 

four corners

This is supposedly "The Four Corners" which refers to the intersection of Middletown and 59. I don't think anyone but Nanuet old-timers knows this expression. To be honest, this shot looks more like the intersection of Middletown and Church/Old Middletown, looking north. You can see what looks to be the fire bell in the middle of the image, prominently featured in the image of our first firehouse, above.


martin's lake

Martins Lake is just north of Townline Road, and just east of the old Erie-Lackawanna tracks. It was largely shored up when Argow was constructed.


lederle

This is a sky-view of Lederle Labs. Most of the greenery seen beyond the campus is in Nanuet, though the campus itself is in Pearl River.

 

lederle facade

A very nice view of Lederle.

 

lederle cafeteria

Here's the cafeteria at Lederle. I've never had the pleasure, alas.

 

...And here's a whole series of fascinating images of Lederle, from an obviously bygone era:

lederle house

lederle at night

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lederle 4

lederle nice

lederle devo

(No, it's not a long-lost DEVO record!)

lederle devo2

lederle industry

lederle again

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This is "Council Rock" at the corner of Poplar and Middletown.

 

pond

A nice afternoon on a Nanuet pond.

 

The Floridian: The Silver Pheasant when I was a boy, on Middletown as we approach Pearl River.


st agatha admin bldg

St. Agatha Home was a retreat for city kids who were having a hard time at home. "The Home" as we called it, is located around the corner from my house, on Convent Road.

 

st. agatha chapel

Here's a fine view of the main building at St. Agatha, razed in 2007.

 

st. agatha chapel

Here'a another view of the main building at St. Agatha. The chapel was located upstairs in the back.

 

boys dorm at st. agatha

This is the boys' dorm at St. Agatha.

 

girls

And here's the girls' school.

 

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A Striking view from near the corner of Duryea and Convent.

 

st agatha house

A small residence at St. Agatha.

 

st. agatha shrine

Grotto and shrine on the grounds of St. Agatha's.

 

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Another lovely grotto view.

 

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Another dorm on the St. Agatha grounds.

 

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Another view of St. Agatha.

 

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The Sacred Heart Shrine

 

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Sick kids were moved to the Preventorium.

St. Agatha chapel, shortly before its end.


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The Coachlight


requa lake

Requa Lake was a swim club on Saddle River Road in Monsey. To get there, we drove along the old western portion of Old Nyack Turnpike, up the steep hill off Pascack, behind Singers. When they closed that road (for reasons that remain obscure even today), we had to drive over to Pipetown, or take Scotland Hill. Requa was great fun. There was a huge sliding pond (pictured at the far right) that I was always too little to ride. My brothers used to swim out to the rafts (with my mom's permission), but I was too young. At the kiddie end of the lake was a big pipe which dumped a heavy flow of ice cold water into the lake. I used to take my blue Charm Pop and let the water run over it, for some strange reason. I remember playing pinball at the snack bar (also pictured) and listening to the jukebox play "Get Ready" by Rare Earth.The pool (just south of the lake) was always much colder than the lake. Consequently, I never swam in the pool!

 

Requa in black and white

Another view of Requa.

 

Ah, the high dive!

 

 

requa fire

And here's the Requa snack bar, July 17, 1990; an "arcade fire".

 

requa sign

The Requa sign, auctioned at Ebay. The beautiful little valley that was Requa is now--you guessed it--a housing development.


A few more images of Requa, care of Rich Mauro


 

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Nanuet Lake...Lake Nanuet.

 

carriage

Here's a nice image from 1920. Looks more like Strawtown to me.

 

Days of heaven in Nanuet

 

winter

a wintry scene

 

river

Oops! Well, we wish this were Nanuet, but this 1929 postcard looks to be a scene at the Hudson River, a few miles east of town.

 

greetings

Happy days in...Nanuet? I'm not sure 'bout that...

 

greetings

A beautiful sunset or sunrise in....Nanuet? This looks more like Congers, or even Harriman.

 

nanuet greetings

A conspiracy is clearly afoot. This is so not Nanuet!

 

mountains

Okay, this is getting a little ridiculous. This isn't Nanuet either.

 

Out in the machine.

 

...into the woods

 

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Another generic postcard that may or may not be Nanuet. Moo.

 

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A few more cows.

 

Nanuet....not! Hello!

 

the pines

I have no idea what or where "The Pines" was.

 

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Is this Nanuet?


 

nanuet milk farm

This is the Nanuet Milk Farm, located at the intersection of Hutton and 59. This is where Eagle Day Camp stood in later days.

 

milk farm 2

Another view of the Milk Farm.

 

milkfarm3

A third scene at the Milk Farm.

 

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The Milk Farm again.

 

milk farm 4

The Milk Farm burned down under suspicious circumstances, it turns out.

 

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A "beauty spot" at the Milk Farm.

 

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I miss the Milk Farm, even though I was born long after its demise.

 

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The Milk Farm's Solarium.

 

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More beauty at the Milk Farm. Indeed, they paved paradise...


 

hanover hotel, nanuet

The Hanover Hotel (Gustav Arwe, Prop.) was located on the northwest corner of the Four Corners, on the banks of the Nauraushank.

 

hobnob restaurant, nanuet

The Hob-Nob Restaurant was on 59....it later became "Swiss Trudy's".

swiss trudy's

Here're a few images of Swiss Trudy's.

 

swiss trudy

A bash at Swiss Trudy's

 

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Yodeleheehoo!

 

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hidden brook haven back

Hidden Brook Haven was apparently on 59 as well. No girls allowed!!

 

Polters - Nauraushaun - Willow House on Blauvelt Road

 

blauvelt farm

The Blauvelt Farm on the lower reaches of Convent. The main house still stands today.

 

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The beautiful Whitlock house on Highview.

 

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Vancourt later housed the Partridge law offices in the 1950s.

 

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A gorgeous house on Highview. Highview, and the portion of Grandview south of Prospect, have Nanuet's most beautiful properties (and views--"high", and "grand", respectively--all the way to Nyack).

 

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Some gorgeous homes on Highview.

 

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A Gothic wonder down Dyke's Park.

 

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The Mandell residence

 

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The Insley residence

 

elm brook farm

I don't know "Elm Brook Farm". Can't say's I know the dog either.

 

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Another scene from Elm Brook Farm.


 

morgan park

This is a 1911 image of Morgan's Park, which, it seems, lay between First Street and Route 59, long before the Nauraushank was almost completely obscured from view by the subsequent construction of Normandy Village.

 

morgan's park 1910

Morgan's Park certainly did look lovely.

 

morgan scene

Yet another view of Morgan's Park.

 

nanuet revitalization

And a drumroll please....Here is Main Street , Fall 2007, our first postcard since the mall came in. Clarkstown finally put a few bucks into Nanuet, giving us nice streetlamps, new sidewalks, and some Garden State Brick Face-esque crosswalks. What possessed the powers-that-be to take a snap from this ugly angle is one for the gods to ponder!

 

five bucks

A bank note issued at Nanuet.

 

nanuet mall

We were immortalized in The New Yorker with this Roz Chast cartoon. Yup, us and Lincoln Center.

 

Limericks by Canadian-American man of letters Morris Bishop, 9-19-36 in The New Yorker.