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Preserving Our Rare Patriotic Quilt
We are thrilled to announce that our organization has received a significant grant from the Greater Hudson Heritage Network to conserve the rare Patriotic Quilt in our collection. The quilt is a remarkable example of folk art and will be conserved by The Textile Conservation Workshop, Inc. in preparation for its exhibition during the Semiquincentennial (America 250) celebrations in 2026! This funding will ensure the quilt's preservation for future generations and honor its historical significance. Stay tuned for more updates as we approach this exciting project!
The NYSCA/GHHN Conservation Grant Treatment Program is made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. The Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation has provided additional dedicated support for conservation treatment projects on Long Island and New York City.
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Thank you to everyone who donated to our Paint the Greeley House year-end appeal! With your support, we achieved our goal of raising $15,000 to repaint the historic Horace Greeley summer home -- and year-round home of the New Castle Historical Society. The funds will help protect and preserve the building and enable us to continue to serve our community. | A Special Thank You to Toni Magnotta and Family of Chappaqua Cleaners | |
A friend of the Society, Toni Magnotta, was instrumental in helping us reach our fundraising goal through selling raffle tickets for our wine basket and Basso 56 gift certificate prize at Chappaqua Cleaners. Thank you, Toni.
And congratulations to our raffle winner, Linda Bosco!
| Toni Magnotta of Chappaqua Cleaners | | | |
HGHS 2003, 2013 and 2016 Yearbooks Needed
As part of our permanent collection on the history of our town, we retain Horace Greeley High School (HGHS) yearbooks. We are seeking donations of the 2003, 2013 and 2016 yearbooks that we found are not in our collection. If you have a copy to gift us, please contact collections@newcastlehs.org!
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Important Art Donations from the Chappaqua Library
We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the Chappaqua Library for its generous donation of a number of art works to our museum, entrusting us to care for and preserve these items for future generations. The gift included four framed watercolor paintings of New Castle scenes by local artist and architect James Renwick Thomson, a framed pencil drawing of the former Levi Hunt Store, on Hunts Place, and a photograph of local baseball players taken by photographer Randy Masser. This thoughtful gift marks our first collection donation of 2025, and we are truly grateful for the support in enriching our collection and enhancing the cultural offerings to our community.
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Thank You to Everyone Who Made our Fourth Annual Great Holiday Train Show a Success!
Thank you to all of our volunteers, sponsors, local businesses that donated goods and services, and attendees who helped make our train show a huge success. We had over 2,000 attendees come through our doors to enjoy our most magical and important fundraiser of the year.
A special thank you to Michael McNamee for his tireless work designing, assembling, maintaining and taking down the train sets.
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Historic Places of New Castle
The Duck Pond
by Gray Williams
| When I was growing up, January would have been the height of the skating season at the so-called Duck Pond between Quaker and Douglas Roads. It was where I first wobbled onto the ice upon double-runner skates in the winter of 1937. It was really too small, and thin ice at both the inlet and outlet was perilous to approach. It was nonetheless very popular, for it was within walking distance of the most developed parts of Chappaqua at that time. And it did have resident ducks on it, even in winter when a few stragglers huddled at the unfrozen inlet and were fed by the neighbors. It was eventually supplanted, first by the flooded wet meadow at the Children’s Aid Society property and then by the pond at Gedney Park. No one skates on it anymore, and the ducks have gone, but it remains one of our most prominent and beloved landmarks | It originated as a millpond, perhaps as early as the pioneer period of the eighteenth century. An oversimplified map of 1797 lists three mills on Quaker Road near the intersection with Kipp Street, and this may have been one of them. The main water supply for them all was a large, shallow lake – now just a marsh – south of Kipp Street, but this mill would also have needed a pond of its own, to provide enough lift to turn the wheel. | |
A map of 1867 definitely shows the dammed pond, together with Chappaqua Mills and the parallel streams of the river and a millrace (figure 3). A separate millrace had the advantage of being shut off when not needed to turn the mill wheel.
The proprietor at this time was Reuben. L. Birdsall. Later on in the century, the mill belonged to Charles B. Griffith, whose mansard-roofed house is a conspicuous landmark on Kipp Street. By 1911, though, the mill was gone, and only the pond and its dam remained. It has been dredged to a greater depth, and the dam had to be rebuilt after it was washed out by the flash flood of Hurricane Floyd in 1999. Otherwise it has probably changed little since it was dammed at least a century and a half ago.
| Charles B. Griffith, built ca. 1890 | | |
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The New Castle Historical Society extends heartfelt condolences for the loss of two of our long-term members. Patty Nicolaysen was the wife of our former trustee and insurance adviser Erik Nicolaysen, particularly noted for her gracious hospitality at their landmark home, for her thriving gardens there, and for the spectacular collection of ornaments and decorations she displayed at Christmastime. Barbara Jackson was the wife of historian Ken Jackson and had a long and distinguished career as an educator and leader of local charities. Both will be greatly missed by their many friends and admirers.
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Museum Shop
For the perfect gift, check out our Museum Store collection of locally inspired products.
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