Brookside Museum facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Brookside
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East elevation and south profile, 2008
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 Location in New York
Location in the United States
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| Location | Ballston Spa, New York |
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| Nearest city | Saratoga Springs |
| Area | 1.5 acres (6,100 m2) |
| Built | 1793 |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 75001223 |
| Added to NRHP | 1975 |
Brookside Museum, also known as the Aldridge House, is a historic building in Ballston Spa, New York. It was built in 1792, making it one of the oldest houses in the village. Over the years, it has been changed and updated.
This building was first an inn for people visiting the natural springs in the area. These springs gave the village its name. Many famous people stayed at the inn. For example, it's believed that James Fenimore Cooper wrote parts of his famous book, The Last of the Mohicans, while he was there.
After being an inn, Brookside Museum served many different purposes. It was a school for boys, a private home, a place where people could rent rooms, a health clinic, and even apartments. In 1970, the Saratoga County Historical Society bought the building. They turned it into a museum, which it still is today. In 1975, Brookside Museum was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This means it's recognized as an important historical site.
Discovering Brookside Museum's Design
Brookside Museum is located on a triangular piece of land. This land is about 1.5 acres (0.6 hectares) in size. The area around the museum has some trees and a small creek. Other homes are nearby, and downtown Ballston Spa is to the east.
The museum building is made of wood. It has two and a half stories. The front part of the house is the main section. Behind it, there's a long addition that is half as wide. The house has a steeply sloped roof covered in cedar shingles. You can see three small windows, called dormer windows, sticking out of the roof. There are also two brick chimneys.
A large front porch is supported by four square pillars. Inside the house, most of the original parts have been changed over time. However, the main staircase is from around 1860. It has simple decorations and a railing with narrow posts. The ceilings inside are not very high.
A Look Back at Brookside's History
Native American tribes knew about the special natural springs in this area for a long time. These springs had bubbly, carbonated water. In 1767, they showed the springs to Sir William Johnson, a British general. At that time, the closest European settlement was at Ballston Lake.
Later, important visitors like George Washington also came to see the springs. They all wrote about the healing powers of the spring water. After the American Revolutionary War, a man named Benajah Douglas bought land near the springs. He wanted to welcome the growing number of tourists.
Douglas built a simple log cabin where the museum stands today. This was the only dry spot in an otherwise swampy area. Visitors had been camping there since the time of the Native Americans. Later, a separate small house was built for cooking and other chores.
In 1791, another businessman named Micajah Benedict built a fancier guest house nearby. Benajah Douglas decided to build the main part of the current Brookside structure two years later. It had a porch with columns, though not the exact one you see today. Douglas's inn was very popular, and soon other buildings started to appear, leading to the growth of Ballston Spa.
Douglas later sold the property to Joseph Wescot. In 1798, Josiah Aldridge bought it. Aldridge owned the house for almost 40 years. During this time, he made many changes to the house and helped the village of Ballston Spa grow. The village officially became a town in 1807.
Aldridge added a back wing to the house. He also replaced the old porch with the current grand colonnade, which gave the house a Greek Revival style. He also changed much of the inside of the house. As a leader in the new village, he worked to improve the area around the spring.
In 1835, the original spring stopped flowing. This might have happened because many new springs were dug nearby. The next year, Aldridge's family sold the house. Ten years later, in 1846, the owners started using it only as a family home. This ended its time as a hotel. A new spring, called the Old Iron Spring, was dug just north of the house in 1847. It still flows today.
By that time, Saratoga Springs, which is a short distance north, had become a bigger tourist spot. It offered more fun activities and horse racing. Ballston Spa's economy then shifted to industry, with many small textile mills opening.
In 1859, just before the American Civil War, Brookside became a military academy. After the war, in 1864, it went back to being a home. First, it was a single-family home, and later it was divided into apartments. Eventually, the Saratoga County Historical Society bought Brookside. They use it as a historic house museum and their main office. Besides showing exhibits about its own history, the museum also offers craft classes and hosts an annual Oktoberfest event to raise money.
