Renovated Cathedral To Re-Open

On May 29, the Roman Catholic Cathedral of The Immaculate Conception will re-open after a year-long effort to renovate the interior of this historic Gothic church. The Cathedral, which was built in the 1840s, has been undergoing massive restoration work to stabilize the stone exterior and restore the interior to a late 19th-century color scheme while modernizing the worship space. Yesterday's Times Union has additional details with an excellent photo gallery showing the work.

http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=930069&category=region

Fire - and support - for Lark Tavern

Early this morning, Tess' Lark Tavern, a very popular gathering place on Madison Avenue was devastated by a fire which caused "extensive" damage to the historic building which, in an ironic historical footnote, was built in the mid-19th century as a firehouse.

The Lark Tavern has been a beloved part of the Lark Street/Center Square area of Albany for decades and has been active in many fundraisers. In a great example of "giving back," fundraisers are already being planned to help the Lark Tavern and its staff.

If you would like to make a donation to a fund set up by Matt Baumgartner, please check his link for details.

Samson Contompasis of the Martketplace Gallery is organizing a fundraising event to be held at the Gallery on May 22. Contact him at themarketplacegalleryny@gmail.com if you would like to donate work or otherwise lend a hand.

According to Steve Barnes' Table Hopping, the Tavern was responsible for much of the food and beverages for tonight's Champagne In The Park benefit for the Lark Street BID. If anyone can help cover for the loss, there is information in today's blog.

Also, All Over Albany has an excellent roundup of news coverage of the fire and fundraisers.

Newly-revealed history of 118-120 Washington Avenue Buildings

From the Times Union:

Historic Albany uncovers "important past" for buildings.

The Foundation revealed the history of two Washington Avenue buildings targeted for demolition by the Fort Orange Club.

May 2 - Albany History Fair

"Bricks, Posts and Beams: Sustainable Structures of Albany's Past" will highlight Historic Cherry Hill's coming restoration efforts. Highlights: restoration tour of the historic house, tours of the Edward Frisbee Center for Collections and Research, music by Tamarac, exhibits, presentations on the history of the South End by city historian Tony Opalka and the restoration of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, family games and more.

Where: Historic Cherry Hill

When: Sunday, May 2, noon

Price: Free

Phone: (518) 434-4791

The USS Slater returns

This weekend, the World War II Destroyer Escort USS Slater returned to its summer dock at Albany. Located near the Port of Albany and the landmark U-Haul Building with its revolving rooftop truck, the ship will once again be open for tours beginning April 28.

For more information on the ship, tours, and other events, please see the website, ussslater.org

Burgoyne Plaque

Plaque at SUNY Plaza on Broadway at the foot of State Street noting the route traveled by the British officer following his loss at the pivotal Battle of Saratoga. His objective had been to capture Albany, not come here in defeat. However, because of his standing as an officer, "Gentleman Johnny" was a guest at the Schuyler Mansion during his stay here as a prisoner.

For further reading, John Burgoyne at Wikipedia

Liberty Park

It doesn't look like much, really. A tiny patch of grass, a couple of benches, a pair of trees. Nor are there great views to be had here, just parking facilities, the Albany bus terminal, and the back of Plaza Row with its fades ghosts signs for old blacksmith shops and electrical supplies.

But this lonely little green space on Hudson Avenue between Dallius and Liberty Streets is, in fact, Albany's oldest park.

Maps of Albany from 1848 identify it as a park and it can be outlined on maps going back as far as 1770. The park, known as Hudson Park (that name now refers to a neighborhood further uptown) and Diagonal Park, itself may date back to 1808.

Tradition also says that this was once the site of the Patroon's garden, part of the vast Rensselaerwyck "colonie" established in 1630 by Killiaen Van Rensselaer. Records from the late 1640s identify a three-year lease for a garden identified as being just north of "the ground where heretofore the trading house of the honorable patroon stood, and to the east of the churchyard." The patroon's house, which was destroyed by a flood in 1666, was occupied by Killiaen's son, Jeremias who was buried in said garden in 1674.

However, the well-researched The Patroon's Garden and Liberty Park, Albany, New York by Paul R. Huey discounts the connection between the garden and the park.

Ownership of the land that became Liberty Park, however, can be traced to the Wendell family, whose mills stood along the Beaverkill within modern Lincoln Park, and later in part, by Benjamin Knower, a respected Albany businessman whose waterproof hat factory still stands in the village of Altamont. The Patroon's Garden and Liberty Park gives an exhaustive list of the many owners of the lots at the site over the years.

Also of note is the proximity of this park to the oldest house in the city of Albany, the Van Ostrande-Radcliff House just a few yards north at 48 Hudson Avenue. Indeed, the archeological remnants of other 18th-century buildings may still preserved beneath Liberty Park itself since the land has been comparatively undisturbed for so long and one can only hope that this significance will be respected when plans for the nearby Albany Convention Center move forward!