Bloomvale Historic District facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Bloomvale Historic District
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Dam, bridge abutments and mill house, 2008
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 Location in New York
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| Location | Salt Point, NY |
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| Nearest city | Poughkeepsie |
| Area | 38 acres (15 ha) |
| Built | 1740–1920 |
| Architect | John Rowland, Edward Swezey |
| Architectural style | Federal |
| NRHP reference No. | 91001874 |
| Added to NRHP | 1991 |
The Bloomvale Historic District is a special area in Salt Point, New York. It's a collection of old buildings and structures. You can find it where Clinton Corners Road and NY 82 meet, near the East Branch of Wappinger Creek. Most of this district is in the town of Pleasant Valley. A small part is in the town of Washington.
This area was named after Isaac Bloom. He was a landowner and politician during the Revolutionary War. Isaac Bloom built a large house and ran the first mill here. Because of his mill, the area was sometimes called Bloom's Mill or Bloomdale. By the mid-1800s, it grew into a small industrial town. A cotton mill became the main business. After a big fire destroyed the mill, the community slowly faded away in the early 1900s. Later, a new owner used the remaining buildings as a cider mill. In 1991, the dam, old mill buildings, and some houses became a historic district. This means they are protected and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Contents
Exploring Bloomvale's Geography
This historic district covers about 38 acres (15 hectares). It stretches east and west from the main intersection of Route 82 and Clinton Corners Road. The boundaries follow the land lots where the important historic buildings are located. The creek forms the boundary on the east and southeast sides.
The area is quite wooded, with not much open land around the buildings. There are 13 main features in the district. This includes five buildings and eight structures. Most of these are related to the area's history as a mill site. They mostly date back to the 1800s. Some newer buildings, like a modern garage and a swimming pool, are not considered part of the historic value. The entire area is also important for archeological studies. This means there might be hidden historical clues underground.
Bloomvale's Past: A Timeline
The Bloomvale area has changed a lot over time. It started as a place to encourage people to settle there. The mill property went through three main phases. First, it was a gristmill and sawmill. Then, it became a busy industrial cotton mill. Finally, it transformed into a cider mill.
Early Days: Gristmill and Sawmill (1730s–1839)
The first mention of a mill here was in 1749. A land record described a "kill" (a small stream) where Isaac Filkins' gristmill stood. Filkins inherited the land from his father, Henry. Henry was one of the "Great Nine Partners" who received a large land grant from the king. It's possible a mill was there even earlier, around 1738. Many large landowners built mills to attract settlers.
The mill was known as "Filkin's mill" for many years. But around the time of the Revolution, Isaac Filkins sold the mill to a younger man named Isaac Bloom. Bloom might have come from Brooklyn. Records show Bloom was a witness to a land deed in 1775. Also, a history book from 1852 mentions the Continental Army camped at "Bloom's Mills." By 1785, Isaac Bloom owned a large piece of land that included the mill.
Isaac Bloom was a public servant. He was in the local militia during the Revolutionary War. After the war, he became the first town clerk in Clinton. Bloomvale was part of Clinton at that time. He also served as a county judge and was elected to the New York State Assembly and State Senate. When he passed away, he had just been elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
Bloomvale was his country home. Around 1801, he built a large Federal style mansion there. It faced the mill and the creek. This house was very fancy for its time and place. Today, it's the most important building in the district for its architecture.
After Isaac Bloom died, his land was divided among his children. This was a complicated process. In 1809, the land was carefully surveyed. This survey helps us understand the history of the area. The mill property was separated from the house. New farms were created. Jonathan Bloom, one of Isaac's sons, lived in the house.
Later, the family lost the properties in 1826. A man named William Thurston from New York City bought them. In 1830, he sold the land to Rowland Hazard. Hazard's family was already involved in the growing textile industry. They owned wool and cotton mills in other states. The Bloom property was part of their plan to expand their textile business.
The Cotton Mill Era (1840–1875)
Rowland Hazard couldn't turn the Bloom mill into a big factory right away. In his 1839 will, it was still called a sawmill and gristmill. His family leased the mill to Isaac Merritt and Charles Frost in 1845. They had to build a cotton mill and housing within ten years. By 1850, they had done it. A map from that time shows the cotton mill. The 1850 census showed the mill employed 35 people. It produced 30,000 pounds (13,600 kg) of cotton yarn each year. This is also the first time the name "Bloomvale" was officially used.
In 1856, the Hazards sold the property to David Thomas Vail for $6,000. The name "Bloomdale" was used once in this sale record. It might have been a mistake. Vail quickly resold the property in 1857 for $20,000. The new owner was Charick Rosencranz.
Rosencranz had trouble paying for the mill. In 1862, Benjamin Pond bought the property for $2,100 after a foreclosure. Rosencranz likely stayed on as a manager. By 1870, the mill was called "Rosencranz and Pond's Bloomvale Factory." It employed 60 people and produced 208,000 pounds (94,300 kg) of cotton annually. Bloomvale was a busy industrial village. Pond even gave $10,000 to build a church chapel for the workers.
In 1872, Pond sold the mill to investors from Philadelphia. Three years later, in 1875, he had to take it back. The property was sold at auction to Henry Carson for $3,916.
Local stories say the cotton mill burned down in 1873. It's hard to confirm this from old records. All the sales after that date still called it the "Bloomvale Factory." Carson owned the property for 22 years. By 1897, the price had dropped to $2,500. In 1909, Edwin Swezey, an engineer, bought it for just $1.
The Cider Mill and Beyond (1876–Present)
After the fire, workers slowly moved away. The last sign of Bloomvale's industrial past ended when the chapel closed in 1910. Edwin Swezey bought a large part of the old Bloom property. In 1913, he built a 40-foot (12 m) square cider mill. He used stones from the ruined cotton mill, along with concrete and steel. Swezey also fixed up the manager's house and one of the surviving workers' homes.
In 1919, the Bloom mansion got new attention. It had been a bit neglected. New owners and local historians realized how important it was. They took better care of it. Dutchess County was becoming a popular place for wealthy New Yorkers to have weekend homes. The building of the Taconic State Parkway made it even easier to get there from the city.
Swezey continued to sell off parts of the Bloom property. After he died in 1945, his wife sold the mill property to Joseph DeNatale. In 1950, the house's front porch was removed. In 1989, the old chapel was torn down. Today, the current owner has brought most of the remaining mill properties back together into one large parcel.
Important Historic Buildings and Structures
The Bloomvale Historic District has 13 main features. Ten of these are considered "contributing properties." This means they help tell the story of the district's history. The entire district is also important for what it might reveal through archeological digs.
The Bloom House
Isaac Bloom built this large, two-story house around 1801. It's a Federal style mansion. It faces northeast, looking towards the mill. The outside has special features like a Palladian window and decorative glass around the front door. The windows have stone-like frames. The roof has fancy decorations. In front, there's a paved terrace with wide steps leading to the lawn.
Inside, the house has a central hallway. Large rooms are at the front, and smaller ones are at the back. The inside hasn't changed much. Most of the wood trim is simple. One of the fireplaces is the most decorated part. It has carvings of flowers and an urn. The fireplace opening has gray marble around it. Some large windows have been added to the back rooms.
The second floor is similar but even simpler. In the attic, you can see the strong wooden beams that support the roof. The basement has been made into extra living space.
Over the years, a kitchen wing was added to the south. A front porch was also added, but it has since been removed. There are two other buildings on the property. One is a historic wellhouse. The other is a modern garage, which is not historic. Old barns that used to be here are gone. The swimming pool is also a modern addition.
The Mill Complex
The 1913 stone cider mill sits south of the creek. Its walls are 2½ feet (76 cm) thick. They were partly built with stones from the old cotton mill. This building has since been turned into a house. A small shed behind it is also not considered historic. To the northwest of the house, on both sides of the creek, are the stone supports from the old 1700s road and bridge. No parts of the original sawmill or gristmill have been found.
Further east, along the creek, you can see where the 1800s cotton mill once stood. There's a waterfall there now. Only the foundations and parts of the ground floor walls remain of the large two-story building. To the north and east are smaller foundations. These were once two workers' homes. Even further east, there's another small foundation, which was an icehouse.
One workers' home still stands south of the mill site. The old mill manager's house is also still there. But it has been changed a lot and is no longer considered historic enough. So, the district boundaries were drawn to leave it out.
