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Pollepel Island

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Pollepel Island is an island in the Hudson River. Also known as Pollopel Island, Pollopel's Island and Bannerman Island, it is the site of Bannerman's Castle. While the two versions of the name are "Pollepel" and "Pollopel", the correct term is "Pollepel",[1][2] from the Dutch word for a waffle ladle.[3]

Pollepel Island is about 50 miles (80 km) north of New York City[4] and about 1,000 feet (300 m) from the Hudson's eastern shore.[2] It contains about 6.5 acres — most of it rock.[2]

Bannerman's Castle

The principal feature on the island is Bannerman's Castle, an abandoned military surplus warehouse.[1] It was built in the style of a castle by businessman Francis Bannerman VI. It remains one of a very small number of structures in the United States which can properly be called a castle. Pollepel Island is sometimes referred to as Bannerman's Island.[5] One side of the castle carries the words "Bannerman's Island Arsenal".[1]

Early history

Pollepel Island was discovered during the first navigation of the Hudson River by early Dutch settlers in New York,[6] at the "Northern Gate" of the Hudson Highlands. There are accounts Native Americans believed the island was haunted and European settlers also told tales about it, including the legend of Polly Pell, invented to explain the island's name after its Dutch origins had been forgotten. It is also said that sailors making their first journey up the Hudson River were left stationed at the island until the ship returned as a rite of passage.

During the Revolutionary War, patriots attempted to prevent the British from passing upriver by emplacing 106 chevaux de frise (upright logs tipped with iron points) between the island and Plum Point across the river. Caissons from several chevaux de frise still rest at the river bottom. However, these obstructions did not stop a British flotilla from burning Kingston in 1777.[7] General George Washington later signed a plan to use the island as a military prison, however there has been no evidence that a prison was ever built there.[6]

Bannerman's Castle

Construction and decay

Francis Bannerman VI purchased the island in 1900 for use as a storage facility for his growing surplus business. [8] After the Spanish-American War Bannerman bought 90% of the US army surplus, including a large quantity of ammunition.[6][8] Because his storeroom in New York City was not large enough, and to provide a safe location to store munitions, in December 1901 he began to build an arsenal on Pollepel. Bannerman designed the buildings himself and let the constructors interpret the designs on their own.[9] Most of the building were devoted to the stores of army surplus but Bannerman built another castle in a smaller scale on top of the island near the main structure as a residence, often using items from his surplus collection for decorative touches. The castle, clearly visible from the shore of the river, served as a giant advertisement for his business. On the side of the castle facing the eastern bank of the Hudson, Bannerman cast the legend "Bannerman's Island Arsenal" into the wall.

Construction ceased at Bannerman's death in 1918. In August 1920, within the largest castle (the arsenal building), 200 pounds of shells and powder exploded, destroying a portion of the complex. After the sinking of the ferryboat Pollepel, which had served the island, in a storm in 1950, the Arsenal and island were left vacant.[4] The island and buildings were bought by New York State in 1967, after the old military merchandise had been removed, and tours of the island were given in 1968.[6] However, on August 8 1969, fire devastated the Arsenal due to a second explosion, and most of the roofs collapsed.[4] The island was placed off-limits to the public.

The castle today

Today, the castle is property of the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and is mostly in ruins. While the exterior walls still stand, all the internal floors and non-structural walls have since burned down. The island has been the victim of vandalism, trespass, neglect and decay.[10] Several old bulkheads and causeways that submerge at high tide present a serious navigational hazard. The castle is not open for regular tours. However, guided hard hat tours have recently been made available by Bannerman's Castle Trust.[11] The castle is easily visible to the riders of the New York Central railroad. The sign may still be seen by riding on Metro-North Railroad's Hudson line. Both Metro-North and Amtrak trains run on this line.

In Literature

Dark fantasy author Caitlín R. Kiernan uses Bannerman's Castle and Pollepel Island as the setting for a number of the stories in her collection, Tales of Pain and Wonder (2000), including "Estate," "The Last Child of Lir," and "Salammbô." In these stories, the castle was constructed by a fictional industrialist named Silas Desvernine and is referred to simply as "Silas' Castle."

References

  1. ^ a b c "Bannerman Castle Trust". Retrieved 2006-11-17. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  2. ^ a b c "Kayaking to Pollepel Island". Retrieved 2006-11-17.
  3. ^ Benson, Egbert (1816-12-31). Memoir read before the Historical Society of the State of New York. p. 119. Retrieved 2006-11-18.
  4. ^ a b c "Explosions on Bannerman's Island". Retrieved 2006-11-17.
  5. ^ "Bannerman's Island Photographs". Retrieved 2006-11-17.
  6. ^ a b c d "Bannerman Island History". Retrieved 2006-11-17.
  7. ^ "Underwater Legacy". Retrieved 2006-11-17.
  8. ^ a b "Bannerman's Arsenal". Retrieved 2006-11-17.
  9. ^ "Visit to Bannerman's Castle". Retrieved 2006-11-18.
  10. ^ "Panorama from Bannerman's Castle, South Terrace". Retrieved 2006-11-17.
  11. ^ "Bannerman Island Tours". Retrieved 2006-11-17.

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