Pine Hills, Albany, New York
Encyclopedia
Pine Hills is a neighborhood in Albany
, New York
, generally defined as the area from Manning Boulevard to the west, Woodlawn Avenue to the south, Lake Avenue to the east, and Washington Avenue to the north. The neighborhood consists mainly of freestanding multi-unit, duplex, and semi-detached houses and is home to Albany High School
, the LaSalle school, the College of St. Rose, and the Alumni Quad of the University at Albany. Though mostly residential due to historical reasons from its founding, Pine Hills is home to two neighborhood commercial district
s (designated C-1 district in 1999); Middle Madison, from Partridge to Quail streets was designated first, and then a latter designated district, Upper Madison, from Main Avenue to North Allen Street. The area of Pine Hills east of Main Avenue and north of Myrtle Avenue is commonly referred to as the student ghetto
due to its predominant population of college-age students. The area of Pine Hills west of Main Avenue features many large Queen Anne
, Folk Victorian
, and Colonial Revival
homes. Upper Madison, where it meets Western Avenue near St. Rose is the center of a commercial area, complete with a movie theater, grocery store, fast food strip mall, retail, restaurants, a library, community playhouse, police station, pharmacy, and elementary school.
s. Perhaps the earliest improvement on the land which would later become Pine Hills occurred in 1799 when the Great Western Turnpike
was established through the area and connected Albany to the western portions of the state. This route was used by settlers moving west and cattlemen bringing their livestock back east to sell. In 1849 the turnpike was improved as a plank road
. Two hotels were built during the 19th century, at West Lawrence Street and Madison Avenue and at Western Avenue and Allen Street.
The first railroad in the state, and the first successful passenger steam locomotive
in the United States
was the Mohawk and Hudson Railroad, which ran from the intersection of the Western Turnpike and Madison Avenue ("the Point") in the Pine Hills west to Schenectady
. This railroad was built in order to compliment the Erie Canal
, the canal ran for 26 miles (41.8 km) between Albany and Schenectady, meanwhile the railroad was able to operate in a straight line and cut the distance to 10 miles (16.1 km).
Due to continuing outbreaks of cholera
from 1832 onwards, with increasing cases in 1849 and 1853, the Catholic Bishop
of Albany opened the St. Vincent's Male Orphan Asylum to deal with the ever increasing number of orphans. In 1864 the state of New York passed Laws of 1864 Chapter 434, entitled AN ACT to amend an act entitled "An act to form a separate road district of all that part of the city of Albany lying west of Allen street, and to exempt the same from certain taxes.", banned the city from improving, grading, or opening Madison Ave west from Allen Street to Magazine Street. Allen Street continues to be the western termination of Madison Ave, the street never being opened any further.
The New York Legislature
passed a law in 1869 authorizing the creation of a large public park between future Pine Hills and the established settled areas of Albany, and the creation of the Board of Trustees of the Washington Park of the City of Albany (later Commissioners) to organize, plan, and govern the park.
The Commissioners were given by the state additional powers to build and maintain approaches to the park and other parks as well, this allowed the commissioners to build a series of boulevards around the city, some of whom would later spur development in Pine Hills. Western Avenue from the northwestern corner of Washington Park to the location of the toll gate of the Western Turnpike was under the purview of the commissioners. Work on the road began in late 1876 included paving it with granite blocks, and was finished the next year. In 1878 Northern Boulevard (today Manning Boulevard) was constructed by the commissioners, it extended from the western end of their jurisdiction on Western Avenue north and east to the intersection of Clinton
and Central avenues. Northern Boulevard was planned to encircle the city, but the only section built was the portion in Pine Hills (between 1876 and 1878), Northern Boulevard was renamed Manning Boulevard in honor of Daniel Manning
who was a former commissioner of Washington Park and also United States Secretary of the Treasury
. In 1896 the state legislature also gave the commissioners authority over Lake Avenue from the park corner at Madison Avenue south to New Scotland Avenue (then- Albany, Schoharie, and Rensselaerville Plank Road).
In 1875 the horsecar
line (horse driven predecessor to the streetcar) came to the edge of Pine Hills up Madison Avenue to Quail Street, and by 1886 it reached Partridge Street. In 1890 the horses were replaced with electrified streetcars. Brady Row and Paigeville are two communities that sprang up near Ontario Street on Western and Madison avenues. They mostly consisted of wooden houses for workers at the West Albany
railroad shops. In Paigeville the Albany Baptist Missionary Union, comprising all twenty Baptist
churches in the city, erected a misson for spreading their faith.
The area between Partridge Street to the east, Main Street to the west, Madison Avenue to the south, and Western Avenue to the north, was "Twickenham" the farm of Andrew E. Brown, and upon his death his heir sold the land off in lots. The land was developed quickly, with eight Queen Anne style
detached homes built by 1889 along Madison Avenue.
purposes or the sale of intoxicating liquors" which predate the use of zoning
in the city of Albany. Originally the lots sold for $1,200, but by 1891 reduced to $840, after the Depression of 1893 the bank foreclosed on the land and sold the lots even cheaper. Beginning in 1886, the West End Building Company constructed 200 homes, and in the early 20th century, the Magee-Marino Construction Company constructed another 400.
Even though the original plan for Pine Hills was a fiscal failure for Logan and Pratt, their lots continued to be sold and the area quickly became a fashionable "semi-suburb" with the city beginning to build more infrastructure to service the growing population. The Roman Catholic population of the area established St. Vincent's Church in 1887, and the St Andrew's Episcopal Church
was established in 1897. The Point, the site of the first successful railroad in the nation (site abandoned in 1841), became the site of Engine #10 of the Albany Fire Department (AFD) in 1891, and Public School #4 (PS 4) was built on the corner of Madison Avenue and Ontario Street soon after. Starting in 1899 and for the next two decades the Orphan Asylum began an ambitious construction program, resulting in four new buildings that are still used today. Public School #16 (PS 16) was established on North Allen Street near the Point in 1906.
Logan and Pratt's covenants to keep out commercial activities had a lasting effect on Pine Hills and in the spirit of those who later lived there. In 1900 the Pine Hills Neighborhood Association and in 1902 the Aurania Club (Aurania being the Latin
name for Fort Orange, an early name for Albany) were formed to continue in the tradition of keeping Pine Hills a residential area with strong community spirit. The opposition to commercial activity in the neighborhood successfully derailed attempts to build a school for the deaf and dumb in the 1890s and a "hospital for the incurables" in 1902. In 1925 the streetcars began to be replaced by buses, first The United Traction Company, and later in 1970 the Capital District Transportation Authority
(CDTA). Meanwhile, some commercial activities were allowed such as the Pine Hills Pharmacy at 1116 Madison Avenue and Johnston and Linsley's Grocery a few years later. In 1929 the Madison Theater was opened in Pine Hills, with Mayor John Boyd Thacher II
giving the dedicatory address and Al Jolson
as the master of ceremonies
.
The Vincentian Institute, a Catholic high school was dedicated in 1917 on the corner of Madison Avenue and Ontario Street, as an elementary school, and opened in 1921 as a high school; in 1920 the College of Saint Rose opened at 979 Madison Avenue, which was also a Catholic institution. In 1928 the Catholic Church opened the Vincentian Institute Child Culture Division, a Kindergarten through 8 school in former greenhouses on Morris Street between Main and Partridge Streets. PS 4 burned down in 1922, but was rebuilt designed by Marcus Reynolds. In 1923 the Orphan Asylum was renamed the La Salle School in honor of Saint John Baptist de la Salle.
In 1926 Dan Winchester entered into real estate with his Winchester Villas, 6 houses constructed between 194 and 176 South Main Avenue. From 1928 to 1930 Winchester began building a subdivision in the area bounded by West Erie Street to the east, South Main Street to the west, and Woodlawn and Hansen avenues to the south and north, respectfully. Winchester had wanted his Winchester Gables to be subdivided into 60 lots, but ended up with 55, and only 27 were actually built. Winchester Gables is unique because the houses are in a Spanish-style architecture, predominately stucco with red tile roofs and many have small towers.
In 1927 the 6th Precinct of the Albany Police Department (APD) was formed, with the station located at the Point adjacent to Engine #10 station. PS 16 was expanded in 1930 due to the growing population of Pine Hills. The Alumni Association of the New York State College for Teachers (today the University at Albany, SUNY
) purchased land in Pine Hills along Western Avenue for the construction of dormitories for the college. The Alumni Association's successful funding of the first two dorms, Pierce (1935) and Sayles (1941), was the model for the state's creation of the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York
(Dormitory Authority). The Dormitory Authority then funded the construction of the other three dorms, Brubacher (1951), Alden (1958), and Waterbury Halls (1959). In 1949 the corner of West Lawrence Street and Western Avenue became the site of the first branch of the Albany Savings Bank, the second savings bank that was chartered in New York (1820), though there have been name changes (to Albank in the 1990s) and acquisitions (to Charter One in 1998, and then to Citizens Bank
in 2004) the branch still exists. In 1952 the 6th precinct was renamed Division 1.
In 1964 PS 4 was demolished due to structural problems and the land was converted into a public playground. In 1965 the La Salle School became fully accredited as a high school, prior to that students attended either the Vincentian Institute or Christian Brothers Academy
. In 1977 the Vincentian Institute closed its doors and was turned into senior apartments and the St Vincent's Community Center.
on Brevator Street. The fireman's pole from the station was donated as a prop to Tony LoBianco's Broadway
play Hizzoner
! A Victorian-style
house owned by the St. Vincent's de Paul church at 1000 Madison Avenue, had been since 1951 the Pine Hills branch of the Albany Public Library. In 1985 the building was bought from the church by the College of St Rose, and in 1989 the library was moved out of the building to a temporary location on campus. After being considered as a new home for the Pine Hills branch of the Albany public library system, Engine #10 was transformed into a community playhouse, while the library was moved into a renovated former New York Telephone
building. The former telephone building at 517 Western Avenue is an Art Deco
building built in 1930. The Madison Theater was renamed the Norma Jean Madison in 1994, and renovated in 1995 from a one-screen to a five-screen theater with a total of 702 seats.
In 1989 several streets in Pine Hills were changed to one-way
streets to improve the flow of traffic. Lancaster Street became westbound between North Main Avenue and North Allen Street, Jay Street became eastbound from North Allen Street to West Lawrence Street, and Hudson Avenue eastbound between North Allen Street and North Main Avenue. In 1998 the 6th Precinct of the APD was renamed Center Station.
In 2003 the Norma Jean Madison was forclosed on by a bank and closed. The property was eyed by CVS Pharmacy as a potential site to replace the older CVS next door with a modern drive-thru big box store. The plan was opposed by the neighborhood and the city rejected the plan due to zoning concerns regarding building size and parking. In 2005 the theater was purchased and again became a first-run theater. As part of its 1992 Facility Master Plan the La Salle School performed $13 million worth of renovations and new construction by 2004. In 2005 PS 16 was demolished to make room for a larger modern school, classes were temporarily moved to the former Philip J. Schuyler Elementary School (which in turn was formerly Albany High). The new school was opened in 2007 as Pine Hills Elementary School. 2008 saw the renovation of the Albany Public Library's Pine Hills Branch. In 2011 the neighborhood was dealt a blow with the closing of the Pine Hills station of the United States Postal Service
(USPS). Post Office boxes could be transferred to the Stuyvesant Plaza
branch in the town of Guilderland
, 3 miles (4.8 km) away.
On March 12, 2011 hundreds of individuals, many of which were students from the University at Albany participated in a riot which involved attempts to overturn cars. Labeled the "Kegs and Eggs" riot, it made national news and exaserbated the relations between the colleges and city in the area labeled the "student ghetto".
, softball
, soccer fields, tennis
courts, a 20-plot community garden
, and spray pool
. Woodlawn Park, at the corner of Woodlawn Avenue and Partridge Street has ball fields, basketball courts, and a playground. The Madison Avenue Playground, at the corner of Ontario Street and Madison Avenue is a small park that has basketball
courts along with a playground. The St Vincent's Community Center has two game rooms with ping pong, pool tables, and board game
s, a gym
used for basketball, volleyball
, and whiffleball leagues for children, along with other activities such as jump rope
and kickball
.
(CDTA) runs several bus lines through the area, among the most important are Route 3 (Quail Street), Route 4 (Pine Hills/Corporate Woods), Route 10 (Western Avenue), and Route 12 (Washington Avenue).
, as part of the City School District of Albany. Pine Hills Elementary feeds into Albany's newest middle school
, Stephen and Harriet Myers Middle School, for grades 6-8, then on to Albany High. Pine Hills Elementary is located at 51 North Allen Street, only a block away from the Point in the heart of Pine Hills. Albany High School is at the edge of the neighborhood at 700 Washington Avenue, and within walking distance for most of Pine Hills.
The La Salle School, a private Catholic institution, provides education for grades 6 through 12 for youths at risk, along with specialized programs, such as a chemical dependency clinic and juvenile sexual victim/offender services.
The College of Saint Rose, initially founded as a Catholic college for women with a strong emphasis on training teachers, the school today is co-educational with a diverse curriculum. Fully integrated with the surrounding Pine Hills community, the campus contains many formerly residential dwellings converted into campus buildings along with new construction. The majority of the campus is on both sides of Madison and Western avenues between Partridge Street and Main Avenue. Though the University at Albany, SUNY
has no educational institutions within Pine Hills, it does have the "Downtown Dorms" of Alumni Quad, in which the College of Saint Rose leases 320 beds in Brubacher Hall.
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, generally defined as the area from Manning Boulevard to the west, Woodlawn Avenue to the south, Lake Avenue to the east, and Washington Avenue to the north. The neighborhood consists mainly of freestanding multi-unit, duplex, and semi-detached houses and is home to Albany High School
Albany High School, Albany, New York
Albany High School in Albany, New York, United States, is a public high school with an enrollment of about 2,400 students for the 2010-11 school year. The school is part of the City School District of Albany. It opened on September 7, 1868 as the Albany Free Academy...
, the LaSalle school, the College of St. Rose, and the Alumni Quad of the University at Albany. Though mostly residential due to historical reasons from its founding, Pine Hills is home to two neighborhood commercial district
Commercial district
A commercial district or commercial zone is any part of a city or town in which the primary land use is commercial activities , as opposed to a residential neighbourhood, an industrial zone, or other types of neighbourhoods...
s (designated C-1 district in 1999); Middle Madison, from Partridge to Quail streets was designated first, and then a latter designated district, Upper Madison, from Main Avenue to North Allen Street. The area of Pine Hills east of Main Avenue and north of Myrtle Avenue is commonly referred to as the student ghetto
Student ghetto
A student quarter or a student ghetto is a residential area, usually in proximity to a college or university, that houses mostly students. Due to the youth and relative low income of the students, most of the housing is rented, with some cooperatives. Landlords have little incentive to properly...
due to its predominant population of college-age students. The area of Pine Hills west of Main Avenue features many large Queen Anne
Queen Anne Style architecture
The Queen Anne Style in Britain means either the English Baroque architectural style roughly of the reign of Queen Anne , or a revived form that was popular in the last quarter of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th century...
, Folk Victorian
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
, and Colonial Revival
Colonial Revival architecture
The Colonial Revival was a nationalistic architectural style, garden design, and interior design movement in the United States which sought to revive elements of Georgian architecture, part of a broader Colonial Revival Movement in the arts. In the early 1890s Americans began to value their own...
homes. Upper Madison, where it meets Western Avenue near St. Rose is the center of a commercial area, complete with a movie theater, grocery store, fast food strip mall, retail, restaurants, a library, community playhouse, police station, pharmacy, and elementary school.
Prior 1889
The area of Pine Hills was originally part of the Albany Pine Bush ecological zone full of sand dunes and 150 feet (45.7 m) tall pine trees that were used for ship's mastMast (sailing)
The mast of a sailing vessel is a tall, vertical, or near vertical, spar, or arrangement of spars, which supports the sails. Large ships have several masts, with the size and configuration depending on the style of ship...
s. Perhaps the earliest improvement on the land which would later become Pine Hills occurred in 1799 when the Great Western Turnpike
Great Western Turnpike
The Great Western Turnpike was a series of east–west toll roads that crossed part of New York in the United States. The toll roads that carried this name were:...
was established through the area and connected Albany to the western portions of the state. This route was used by settlers moving west and cattlemen bringing their livestock back east to sell. In 1849 the turnpike was improved as a plank road
Plank road
A plank road or puncheon is a dirt path or road covered with a series of planks, similar to the wooden sidewalks one would see in a Western movie. Plank roads were very popular in Ontario, the U.S. Northeast and U.S. Midwest in the first half of the 19th century...
. Two hotels were built during the 19th century, at West Lawrence Street and Madison Avenue and at Western Avenue and Allen Street.
The first railroad in the state, and the first successful passenger steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
was the Mohawk and Hudson Railroad, which ran from the intersection of the Western Turnpike and Madison Avenue ("the Point") in the Pine Hills west to Schenectady
Schenectady, New York
Schenectady is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 66,135...
. This railroad was built in order to compliment the Erie Canal
Erie Canal
The Erie Canal is a waterway in New York that runs about from Albany, New York, on the Hudson River to Buffalo, New York, at Lake Erie, completing a navigable water route from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. The canal contains 36 locks and encompasses a total elevation differential of...
, the canal ran for 26 miles (41.8 km) between Albany and Schenectady, meanwhile the railroad was able to operate in a straight line and cut the distance to 10 miles (16.1 km).
Due to continuing outbreaks of cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
from 1832 onwards, with increasing cases in 1849 and 1853, the Catholic Bishop
Bishop (Catholic Church)
In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders and is responsible for teaching the Catholic faith and ruling the Church....
of Albany opened the St. Vincent's Male Orphan Asylum to deal with the ever increasing number of orphans. In 1864 the state of New York passed Laws of 1864 Chapter 434, entitled AN ACT to amend an act entitled "An act to form a separate road district of all that part of the city of Albany lying west of Allen street, and to exempt the same from certain taxes.", banned the city from improving, grading, or opening Madison Ave west from Allen Street to Magazine Street. Allen Street continues to be the western termination of Madison Ave, the street never being opened any further.
The New York Legislature
New York Legislature
The New York State Legislature is the term often used to refer to the two houses that act as the state legislature of the U.S. state of New York. The New York Constitution does not designate an official term for the two houses together...
passed a law in 1869 authorizing the creation of a large public park between future Pine Hills and the established settled areas of Albany, and the creation of the Board of Trustees of the Washington Park of the City of Albany (later Commissioners) to organize, plan, and govern the park.
The Commissioners were given by the state additional powers to build and maintain approaches to the park and other parks as well, this allowed the commissioners to build a series of boulevards around the city, some of whom would later spur development in Pine Hills. Western Avenue from the northwestern corner of Washington Park to the location of the toll gate of the Western Turnpike was under the purview of the commissioners. Work on the road began in late 1876 included paving it with granite blocks, and was finished the next year. In 1878 Northern Boulevard (today Manning Boulevard) was constructed by the commissioners, it extended from the western end of their jurisdiction on Western Avenue north and east to the intersection of Clinton
Clinton Avenue Historic District (Albany, New York)
The Clinton Avenue Historic District in Albany, New York, United States, is a area along that street between North Pearl and Quail streets. It also includes some blocks along neighboring streets such as Lark and Lexington....
and Central avenues. Northern Boulevard was planned to encircle the city, but the only section built was the portion in Pine Hills (between 1876 and 1878), Northern Boulevard was renamed Manning Boulevard in honor of Daniel Manning
Daniel Manning
Daniel Manning was an American businessman, journalist, and politician most notable for having served as the 37th United States Secretary of the Treasury....
who was a former commissioner of Washington Park and also United States Secretary of the Treasury
United States Secretary of the Treasury
The Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...
. In 1896 the state legislature also gave the commissioners authority over Lake Avenue from the park corner at Madison Avenue south to New Scotland Avenue (then- Albany, Schoharie, and Rensselaerville Plank Road).
In 1875 the horsecar
Horsecar
A horsecar or horse-drawn tram is an animal-powered streetcar or tram.These early forms of public transport developed out of industrial haulage routes that had long been in existence, and from the omnibus routes that first ran on public streets in the 1820s, using the newly improved iron or steel...
line (horse driven predecessor to the streetcar) came to the edge of Pine Hills up Madison Avenue to Quail Street, and by 1886 it reached Partridge Street. In 1890 the horses were replaced with electrified streetcars. Brady Row and Paigeville are two communities that sprang up near Ontario Street on Western and Madison avenues. They mostly consisted of wooden houses for workers at the West Albany
West Albany, New York
West Albany is a hamlet in the town of Colonie, Albany County, New York. Parts of the neighboring city of Albany around Watervliet Avenue Extension and Industrial Park Road are also considered part of West Albany and includes the majority of the West Albany Rail Yard...
railroad shops. In Paigeville the Albany Baptist Missionary Union, comprising all twenty Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
churches in the city, erected a misson for spreading their faith.
The area between Partridge Street to the east, Main Street to the west, Madison Avenue to the south, and Western Avenue to the north, was "Twickenham" the farm of Andrew E. Brown, and upon his death his heir sold the land off in lots. The land was developed quickly, with eight Queen Anne style
Queen Anne Style architecture (United States)
In America, the Queen Anne style of architecture, furniture and decorative arts was popular in the United States from 1880 to 1910. In American usage "Queen Anne" is loosely used of a wide range of picturesque buildings with "free Renaissance" details rather than of a specific formulaic style in...
detached homes built by 1889 along Madison Avenue.
1869-1980
Gaylord Logan and Lewis Pratt, two Albany lawyers, using a $100,000 bank loan in 1869 to buy the area which later gave birth to the name of Pine Hills. They named the area Pine Hills for the pine forests on hilltops along Western Avenue. The hills were sculptured into terraced lawns, which can still be seen on South Allen Street, where in 1889 tax records describe a "Pine Grove" between 88 and 112 South Allen. The area they had purchased was from Allen Street west to Manning Boulevard and from Cortland Street north to Washington Avenue. Logan and Pratt formed the Albany Land Improvement Company and began selling 50 feet (15.2 m) by 200 feet (61 m) lots in 1881 after having laid out and paved tree-lined streets along with flagstone sidewalks, and laying water, sewer, and gas mains as well. Homes in the area were constructed by the Magee-Marino Construction Company and the West End Building Company. Covenants in the deeds "forever prevent the use of the property for businesspurposes or the sale of intoxicating liquors" which predate the use of zoning
Zoning
Zoning is a device of land use planning used by local governments in most developed countries. The word is derived from the practice of designating permitted uses of land based on mapped zones which separate one set of land uses from another...
in the city of Albany. Originally the lots sold for $1,200, but by 1891 reduced to $840, after the Depression of 1893 the bank foreclosed on the land and sold the lots even cheaper. Beginning in 1886, the West End Building Company constructed 200 homes, and in the early 20th century, the Magee-Marino Construction Company constructed another 400.
Even though the original plan for Pine Hills was a fiscal failure for Logan and Pratt, their lots continued to be sold and the area quickly became a fashionable "semi-suburb" with the city beginning to build more infrastructure to service the growing population. The Roman Catholic population of the area established St. Vincent's Church in 1887, and the St Andrew's Episcopal Church
Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
was established in 1897. The Point, the site of the first successful railroad in the nation (site abandoned in 1841), became the site of Engine #10 of the Albany Fire Department (AFD) in 1891, and Public School #4 (PS 4) was built on the corner of Madison Avenue and Ontario Street soon after. Starting in 1899 and for the next two decades the Orphan Asylum began an ambitious construction program, resulting in four new buildings that are still used today. Public School #16 (PS 16) was established on North Allen Street near the Point in 1906.
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
name for Fort Orange, an early name for Albany) were formed to continue in the tradition of keeping Pine Hills a residential area with strong community spirit. The opposition to commercial activity in the neighborhood successfully derailed attempts to build a school for the deaf and dumb in the 1890s and a "hospital for the incurables" in 1902. In 1925 the streetcars began to be replaced by buses, first The United Traction Company, and later in 1970 the Capital District Transportation Authority
Capital District Transportation Authority
The Capital District Transportation Authority is a public benefit organization that provides transportation in the Capital District of New York State...
(CDTA). Meanwhile, some commercial activities were allowed such as the Pine Hills Pharmacy at 1116 Madison Avenue and Johnston and Linsley's Grocery a few years later. In 1929 the Madison Theater was opened in Pine Hills, with Mayor John Boyd Thacher II
John Boyd Thacher II
John Boyd Thacher II was the Mayor of Albany, New York from 1926 to 1941. He was the nephew of Albany mayor John Boyd Thacher and grandson of another Albany mayor, George H. Thacher....
giving the dedicatory address and Al Jolson
Al Jolson
Al Jolson was an American singer, comedian and actor. In his heyday, he was dubbed "The World's Greatest Entertainer"....
as the master of ceremonies
Master of Ceremonies
A Master of Ceremonies , or compere, is the host of a staged event or similar performance.An MC usually presents performers, speaks to the audience, and generally keeps the event moving....
.
The Vincentian Institute, a Catholic high school was dedicated in 1917 on the corner of Madison Avenue and Ontario Street, as an elementary school, and opened in 1921 as a high school; in 1920 the College of Saint Rose opened at 979 Madison Avenue, which was also a Catholic institution. In 1928 the Catholic Church opened the Vincentian Institute Child Culture Division, a Kindergarten through 8 school in former greenhouses on Morris Street between Main and Partridge Streets. PS 4 burned down in 1922, but was rebuilt designed by Marcus Reynolds. In 1923 the Orphan Asylum was renamed the La Salle School in honor of Saint John Baptist de la Salle.
In 1926 Dan Winchester entered into real estate with his Winchester Villas, 6 houses constructed between 194 and 176 South Main Avenue. From 1928 to 1930 Winchester began building a subdivision in the area bounded by West Erie Street to the east, South Main Street to the west, and Woodlawn and Hansen avenues to the south and north, respectfully. Winchester had wanted his Winchester Gables to be subdivided into 60 lots, but ended up with 55, and only 27 were actually built. Winchester Gables is unique because the houses are in a Spanish-style architecture, predominately stucco with red tile roofs and many have small towers.
In 1927 the 6th Precinct of the Albany Police Department (APD) was formed, with the station located at the Point adjacent to Engine #10 station. PS 16 was expanded in 1930 due to the growing population of Pine Hills. The Alumni Association of the New York State College for Teachers (today the University at Albany, SUNY
University at Albany, SUNY
The State University of New York at Albany, also known as University at Albany, State University of New York, SUNY Albany or simply UAlbany, is a public university located in Albany, Guilderland, and East Greenbush, New York, United States; is the senior campus of the State University of New York ...
) purchased land in Pine Hills along Western Avenue for the construction of dormitories for the college. The Alumni Association's successful funding of the first two dorms, Pierce (1935) and Sayles (1941), was the model for the state's creation of the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York
Dormitory Authority of the State of New York
The Dormitory Authority of the State of New York provides construction, financing, and allied services which serve the public good of New York State...
(Dormitory Authority). The Dormitory Authority then funded the construction of the other three dorms, Brubacher (1951), Alden (1958), and Waterbury Halls (1959). In 1949 the corner of West Lawrence Street and Western Avenue became the site of the first branch of the Albany Savings Bank, the second savings bank that was chartered in New York (1820), though there have been name changes (to Albank in the 1990s) and acquisitions (to Charter One in 1998, and then to Citizens Bank
Citizens Financial Group
Citizens Financial Group, Inc. is an American bank headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, which operates in the states of Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont. Citizens is a wholly owned...
in 2004) the branch still exists. In 1952 the 6th precinct was renamed Division 1.
In 1964 PS 4 was demolished due to structural problems and the land was converted into a public playground. In 1965 the La Salle School became fully accredited as a high school, prior to that students attended either the Vincentian Institute or Christian Brothers Academy
Christian Brothers Academy (Albany, New York)
Christian Brothers Academy is a Catholic college preparatory junior and senior high school for boys founded in 1859 by the De La Salle Christian Brothers . Located within the Colonie School District and the school is located in the town of Colonie, New York near the Albany International Airport on...
. In 1977 the Vincentian Institute closed its doors and was turned into senior apartments and the St Vincent's Community Center.
Post 1980
The late 1980s and early 1990s were a time of transition for the neighborhood as several long time institutions moved to new homes. In 1988 the fire station at the Point, Engine #10, was closed and moved out of the neighborhood into a new building near the W. Averell Harriman State Office Building CampusW. Averell Harriman State Office Building Campus
The W. Averell Harriman State Office Building Campus is an office park in western Albany, New York, United States that houses sixteen New York State Government office buildings. The land totals roughly and over 3 million square feet of office space, and about 7,000 state employees work there...
on Brevator Street. The fireman's pole from the station was donated as a prop to Tony LoBianco's Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
play Hizzoner
Hizzoner
Hizzoner is a corruption of the title "His Honour", used in particular to refer to the mayor of larger North American cities.The term can further refer to:*Hizzoner, a 1933 short film directed by Ray McCarey...
! A Victorian-style
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
house owned by the St. Vincent's de Paul church at 1000 Madison Avenue, had been since 1951 the Pine Hills branch of the Albany Public Library. In 1985 the building was bought from the church by the College of St Rose, and in 1989 the library was moved out of the building to a temporary location on campus. After being considered as a new home for the Pine Hills branch of the Albany public library system, Engine #10 was transformed into a community playhouse, while the library was moved into a renovated former New York Telephone
New York Telephone
The New York Telephone Company was organized in 1896, taking over the New York City operations of the American Bell Telephone Company.-Predecessor companies:...
building. The former telephone building at 517 Western Avenue is an Art Deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
building built in 1930. The Madison Theater was renamed the Norma Jean Madison in 1994, and renovated in 1995 from a one-screen to a five-screen theater with a total of 702 seats.
In 1989 several streets in Pine Hills were changed to one-way
One-way traffic
One-way traffic is traffic that moves in a single direction. A one-way street is a street either facilitating only one-way traffic, or designed to direct vehicles to move in one direction.-General signs:...
streets to improve the flow of traffic. Lancaster Street became westbound between North Main Avenue and North Allen Street, Jay Street became eastbound from North Allen Street to West Lawrence Street, and Hudson Avenue eastbound between North Allen Street and North Main Avenue. In 1998 the 6th Precinct of the APD was renamed Center Station.
In 2003 the Norma Jean Madison was forclosed on by a bank and closed. The property was eyed by CVS Pharmacy as a potential site to replace the older CVS next door with a modern drive-thru big box store. The plan was opposed by the neighborhood and the city rejected the plan due to zoning concerns regarding building size and parking. In 2005 the theater was purchased and again became a first-run theater. As part of its 1992 Facility Master Plan the La Salle School performed $13 million worth of renovations and new construction by 2004. In 2005 PS 16 was demolished to make room for a larger modern school, classes were temporarily moved to the former Philip J. Schuyler Elementary School (which in turn was formerly Albany High). The new school was opened in 2007 as Pine Hills Elementary School. 2008 saw the renovation of the Albany Public Library's Pine Hills Branch. In 2011 the neighborhood was dealt a blow with the closing of the Pine Hills station of the United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
(USPS). Post Office boxes could be transferred to the Stuyvesant Plaza
Stuyvesant Plaza
Stuyvesant Plaza is a major shopping plaza and office complex in the US state of New York's Capital District. It is located in the city of Albany, on Western Avenue , near the south end of the Adirondack Northway, I-87...
branch in the town of Guilderland
Guilderland, New York
Guilderland is a town in Albany County, New York, United States. In the 2010 census, the town had a population of 35,303. The town is named for the Gelderland province in the Netherlands....
, 3 miles (4.8 km) away.
On March 12, 2011 hundreds of individuals, many of which were students from the University at Albany participated in a riot which involved attempts to overturn cars. Labeled the "Kegs and Eggs" riot, it made national news and exaserbated the relations between the colleges and city in the area labeled the "student ghetto".
Location
Recreation
Pine Hills is home to several parks and recreation centers. Ridgefield Park on Partridge Street has a baseballBaseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
, soccer fields, tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
courts, a 20-plot community garden
Community gardening in the United States
Community gardening in the United States encompasses a wide variety of approaches. Some influential community gardens, such as the Clinton Street garden in the middle of Manhattan in New York City, and the Peralta garden in Berkeley, California, inspired by architect and community garden visionary...
, and spray pool
Spray pool
A spray pool is a recreation area and water feature, often in a public park, that sprays water so that users can play in it. The water typically emanates from a point on or near the ground, but in some cases this same kind of mechanism will be installed so as to emanate from near the surface of a...
. Woodlawn Park, at the corner of Woodlawn Avenue and Partridge Street has ball fields, basketball courts, and a playground. The Madison Avenue Playground, at the corner of Ontario Street and Madison Avenue is a small park that has basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
courts along with a playground. The St Vincent's Community Center has two game rooms with ping pong, pool tables, and board game
Board game
A board game is a game which involves counters or pieces being moved on a pre-marked surface or "board", according to a set of rules. Games may be based on pure strategy, chance or a mixture of the two, and usually have a goal which a player aims to achieve...
s, a gym
Gym
The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, that mean a locality for both physical and intellectual education of young men...
used for basketball, volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
, and whiffleball leagues for children, along with other activities such as jump rope
Jump rope
Jump rope or skipping rope is the primary tool used in the game of skipping played by children and many young adults, where one or more participants jump over a rope swung so that it passes under their feet and over their heads...
and kickball
Kickball
Kickball is a playground game and competitive league game, similar to baseball, invented in the United States in the first half of the 20th Century. Kickball may also be known as kick baseball, base soccer, soccer-base, or soccer-baseball...
.
Transportation
Pine Hills is at the intersection of two major thoroughfares in the city of Albany, Madison and Western avenues. Madison Avenue is US Route 20 (US 20) and merges in a Y-intersection with Western Avenue at "the Point", US 20 then continues on the portion of Western Avenue west of the Point. Washington Avenue forms the northern border of the neighborhood, connecting Downtown Albany to the western sections of the city. Those are the major east-west streets, the major north-south streets are Lake, Quail, Partridge, Main, and Manning avenues. The Capital District Transportation AuthorityCapital District Transportation Authority
The Capital District Transportation Authority is a public benefit organization that provides transportation in the Capital District of New York State...
(CDTA) runs several bus lines through the area, among the most important are Route 3 (Quail Street), Route 4 (Pine Hills/Corporate Woods), Route 10 (Western Avenue), and Route 12 (Washington Avenue).
Education
Children in Pine Hills attend the Pine Hills Elementary School, K-5K-5 (education)
K-5 is an American term for the education period from kindergarten to fifth grade. It receives equal amounts of criticism and support in the educational industry...
, as part of the City School District of Albany. Pine Hills Elementary feeds into Albany's newest middle school
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
, Stephen and Harriet Myers Middle School, for grades 6-8, then on to Albany High. Pine Hills Elementary is located at 51 North Allen Street, only a block away from the Point in the heart of Pine Hills. Albany High School is at the edge of the neighborhood at 700 Washington Avenue, and within walking distance for most of Pine Hills.
The La Salle School, a private Catholic institution, provides education for grades 6 through 12 for youths at risk, along with specialized programs, such as a chemical dependency clinic and juvenile sexual victim/offender services.
The College of Saint Rose, initially founded as a Catholic college for women with a strong emphasis on training teachers, the school today is co-educational with a diverse curriculum. Fully integrated with the surrounding Pine Hills community, the campus contains many formerly residential dwellings converted into campus buildings along with new construction. The majority of the campus is on both sides of Madison and Western avenues between Partridge Street and Main Avenue. Though the University at Albany, SUNY
University at Albany, SUNY
The State University of New York at Albany, also known as University at Albany, State University of New York, SUNY Albany or simply UAlbany, is a public university located in Albany, Guilderland, and East Greenbush, New York, United States; is the senior campus of the State University of New York ...
has no educational institutions within Pine Hills, it does have the "Downtown Dorms" of Alumni Quad, in which the College of Saint Rose leases 320 beds in Brubacher Hall.