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Center Pays Tribute to Dutchess Railroading
Weekends July through September
For the Poughkeepsie Journal (May 9, 2001)
More than 100 years ago, before automobiles dominated mid-Hudson Valley roadways, tracks serving nine railroads crisscrossed Dutchess County..
The Clinton Historical Exhibit Center, on Salt Point Turnpike one mile east of the Taconic State Parkway in the hamlet of Clinton Corners, showcases the history of these railroads year after year. See map and directions
The center, owned and operated by the Clinton Historical Society, is a 1777 stone building constructed as a Quaker Meeting House. The Quakers used the facility until 1927, when it was given to Grange members who donated it to the historical society in 1992. Today the building is listed as a National Historic Landmark..
Display coordinator George Greenwood of Salt Point said the Grange was "an organization of rural farmers whose membership had declined so that they no longer needed a meeting place.".
The state Board of Regents-affiliated society has become the repository and the preservation vehicle for the history of Dutchess County railroads..
The center is open from July through September on weekends, with exhibits changing yearly..
This year's display, "The Enduring Harlem Line," focuses on the Harlem Valley Railroad from 1832 to the present. The exhibit occupies both floors of the center and includes a montage of photographs and memorabilia from throughout this time..
Model of Hopewell line
Featured is a 26 x 20 foot HO-scale modular railroad built by the Hopewell Junction Model Railroad Club. It represents a section of railroad in Hopewell Junction that leads to Poughkeepsie..
Railroad Club member Woody Cohen also created a panel for the exhibit that will take a look at the popularity of rail trails and hiking paths that run through railroad right-of-ways..
"It is a marvelous attraction," Greenwood said of the Hopewell Model Rail Club display..
According to the Town of Clinton historian and Exhibit Center volunteer Bill McDermott, "The railroad exhibits have brought in over 1,000 visitors (annually).".
Summer camps, school children and railroad buffs make it a point to visit the center, which has drawn people from as far away as California..
"We're the best-kept secret around," McDermott said. "It is public education.".
Members of the community have donated items for the displays. The center is funded through membership fees and donations from visitors..
Logging on
