Building Route 395
The Bill Avery Photos
The photos in the following photo gallery were taken by Mr. Bill Avery during the summer of 1964. These photos provide a historic look at the destruction that took place in the Village during that year. Surely it must of been awful to live in the Village during that time.
There was much opposition to the new road. The beautiful big trees that lined the old road were taken down, the road widened with shoulders and gutters along the road with frontage of homes taken and buildings taken down or moved to accomplish this.
One well known out spoken citizen was Mr Robert Shafer. In the following article Mr. Shafer expresses his outrage.
During the road construction, three homes and one business were moved:
- Grenier’s was moved farther back on their land.
- Dutcher’s was moved over to Stewart Drive,
- Ullman’s rental house-trailer was moved away, and
- Edward’s Coal and Oil business moved to 1000 Acre Road, including the garage/office building and the oil tanks.
Nine houses were taken down:
- Lottie Bradt’s (Jake Bradt’s mother) house at the foot of Quaker Street hill
- Next house Owned by Young’s rented by Harold Bradt’s family before they relocated down the street
- English’s Market with apartment upstairs – the building straddled the Normanskill Creek
- The Shoudy House that sat on the northwest corner beside the RR tracks, which had been converted to two apartments
- Dobert’s Store – right next door, with William Lyons Law office upstairs, accessible by and outside staircase
- Central House Hotel which had been converted to four apartments
- Deming Home Just before Cole Road, across from Reta Smith’s
- Wm. Lyons rental house on the curve by Cole Road
- Resue home – next door [?]
A special thanks to Mr. Al Zubal for providing these photos to the village for use on our website and to Lenny & Pat VanBuren for use of their 1964 Delanson Roadway Improvement Program notes.
Please click on any photo to enlarge.
Enjoy.
