Smith Clove Meetinghouse
Encyclopedia
The Smith Clove Meeting House is a Quaker place of worship in Highland Mills
, New York, United States, a short distance from NY 32
on Smith Clove Road. It is the oldest religious building in the town and village of Woodbury
, dating to the beginning of the 19th century, and is still used by the nearby Cornwall Quakers
for meetings
at least once a year.
While modified and renovated in the mid-19th century, its design still reflects its era of Quaker practice. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
in 1974.
, gently sloping uphill westward. The land is mostly open with several large trees, and some smaller ones that shade the meeting house. A small burial ground for early members of the meeting is located just to the north.
It is a one-and-a-half-story four-by-two-bay
clapboard
-sided
frame
house supported by a fieldstone
foundation
. The gable
d, wood-shingled
roof is pierced by a central chimney
.
A porch
runs the length of the south-facing front facade
. The entrances are on either end, with an accompanying window, reflecting a contemporary Quaker practice of holding separate meetings
for men and women. There are two other windows on the east and west elevations. A small privy
is attached to the rear elevation.
The interior consists of a sparely finished meeting room, with removable wooden partition. The walls are painted plaster, the flooring is wide wooden planks. The furniture consists of simple wooden benches and two wood-burning stove
s.
, a few miles to the north. They met in a member's home until the need for a separate meeting house
became apparent after a decade, and the land for the current meeting house was purchased in 1801. The name Smith Clove came from the original landowner of the area from the Cheesecocks Patent
, William Smith, and the Dutch
term kloof, for a steep, narrow valley such as the one in which Highland Mills is located, between Schunemunk Mountain
and the Hudson Highlands
, where Woodbury Creek flows.
The members built the house themselves, it is believed, and it was complete and in use by 1803. To avoid the possible confiscation
of the land, which had happened to some Quaker meetings in the area before the Revolution
, several of the member families held title
to the land rather than the meeting itself.
In the middle of the 19th century, the meeting house was renovated. Most of the building and the original interior were kept. The clapboard siding matches the wide planks used in other Quaker meeting houses ca. 1800, but may have been replaced at this time as well. In 1886, with confiscation no longer a threat, title was passed to the meeting proper. Over time the Highland Mills meeting dwindled to the point that it merged back into the Cornwall meeting, which still meets in Smith Clove once a year.
Highland Mills, New York
Highland Mills is a hamlet in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 3,468 at the 2000 census, at which time it was a census-designated place...
, New York, United States, a short distance from NY 32
New York State Route 32
New York State Route 32 is a north–south state highway that extends for through the Hudson Valley and Capital District regions of the U.S. state of New York. It is a two-lane surface road for nearly its entire length, with few divided and no limited-access sections. From Harriman to Albany,...
on Smith Clove Road. It is the oldest religious building in the town and village of Woodbury
Woodbury, Orange County, New York
Woodbury is a town and village in Orange County, New York, United States. The town population was 9,460 at the 2000 census. The village was incorporated in 2006 and comprises all of the town that is not part of the village of Harriman. The region was once called Woodbury Clove...
, dating to the beginning of the 19th century, and is still used by the nearby Cornwall Quakers
Cornwall Friends Meeting House
The Cornwall Friends Meeting House is a historic meeting house located on a parcel of land at the junction of Quaker Avenue and US 9W in Cornwall, New York, United States, near Cornwall-St. Luke's Hospital. It is both the oldest religious building in the town, and the first one built...
for meetings
Meeting for worship
A meeting for worship is a practice of the Religious Society of Friends in many ways comparable to a church service. These services have a wide variety of forms, creating a spectrum from typical Protestant liturgy to silent waiting for the Spirit .A Meeting for Worship may start with a query;...
at least once a year.
While modified and renovated in the mid-19th century, its design still reflects its era of Quaker practice. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1974.
Building
The meetinghouse sits in the middle of a two-acre (8,000 m²) lotLot (real estate)
In real estate, a lot or plot is a tract or parcel of land owned or meant to be owned by some owner. A lot is essentially considered a parcel of real property in some countries or immovable property in other countries...
, gently sloping uphill westward. The land is mostly open with several large trees, and some smaller ones that shade the meeting house. A small burial ground for early members of the meeting is located just to the north.
It is a one-and-a-half-story four-by-two-bay
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
clapboard
Clapboard (architecture)
Clapboard, also known as bevel siding or lap siding or weather-board , is a board used typically for exterior horizontal siding that has one edge thicker than the other and where the board above laps over the one below...
-sided
Siding
Siding is the outer covering or cladding of a house meant to shed water and protect from the effects of weather. On a building that uses siding, it may act as a key element in the aesthetic beauty of the structure and directly influence its property value....
frame
Framing (construction)
Framing, in construction known as light-frame construction, is a building technique based around structural members, usually called studs, which provide a stable frame to which interior and exterior wall coverings are attached, and covered by a roof comprising horizontal ceiling joists and sloping...
house supported by a fieldstone
Fieldstone
Fieldstone is a building construction material. Strictly speaking, it is stone collected from the surface of fields where it occurs naturally...
foundation
Foundation (architecture)
A foundation is the lowest and supporting layer of a structure. Foundations are generally divided into two categories: shallow foundations and deep foundations.-Shallow foundations:...
. The gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
d, wood-shingled
Roof shingle
Roof shingles are a roof covering consisting of individual overlapping elements. These elements are typically flat rectangular shapes laid in rows from the bottom edge of the roof up, with each successive higher row overlapping the joints in the row below...
roof is pierced by a central chimney
Chimney
A chimney is a structure for venting hot flue gases or smoke from a boiler, stove, furnace or fireplace to the outside atmosphere. Chimneys are typically vertical, or as near as possible to vertical, to ensure that the gases flow smoothly, drawing air into the combustion in what is known as the...
.
A porch
Porch
A porch is external to the walls of the main building proper, but may be enclosed by screen, latticework, broad windows, or other light frame walls extending from the main structure.There are various styles of porches, all of which depend on the architectural tradition of its location...
runs the length of the south-facing front facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
. The entrances are on either end, with an accompanying window, reflecting a contemporary Quaker practice of holding separate meetings
Meeting for worship
A meeting for worship is a practice of the Religious Society of Friends in many ways comparable to a church service. These services have a wide variety of forms, creating a spectrum from typical Protestant liturgy to silent waiting for the Spirit .A Meeting for Worship may start with a query;...
for men and women. There are two other windows on the east and west elevations. A small privy
Outhouse
An outhouse is a small structure separate from a main building which often contained a simple toilet and may possibly also be used for housing animals and storage.- Terminology :...
is attached to the rear elevation.
The interior consists of a sparely finished meeting room, with removable wooden partition. The walls are painted plaster, the flooring is wide wooden planks. The furniture consists of simple wooden benches and two wood-burning stove
Wood-burning stove
For a list of stove types see Stove .A wood-burning stove is a heating appliance capable of burning wood fuel and wood-derived biomass fuel. Generally the appliance consists of a solid metal closed fire chamber, a grate and an adjustable air control...
s.
History
The Smith Clove meeting began in 1790 as a preparative meeting under the Cornwall meetingCornwall Friends Meeting House
The Cornwall Friends Meeting House is a historic meeting house located on a parcel of land at the junction of Quaker Avenue and US 9W in Cornwall, New York, United States, near Cornwall-St. Luke's Hospital. It is both the oldest religious building in the town, and the first one built...
, a few miles to the north. They met in a member's home until the need for a separate meeting house
Friends meeting house
A Friends meeting house is a meeting house of the Religious Society of Friends , where meeting for worship may be held.-History:Quakers do not believe that meeting for worship should take place in any special place. They believe that "where two or three meet together in my name, I am there among...
became apparent after a decade, and the land for the current meeting house was purchased in 1801. The name Smith Clove came from the original landowner of the area from the Cheesecocks Patent
Cheesecocks Patent
The Cheesecock or Cheesecocks Patent, in the southern part of what became Orange County, New York State, was a tract of land that now covers the towns of Monroe and Tuxedo and extends over part of Rockland County, which was separated from Orange County in 1798A variant of the name is still applied...
, William Smith, and the Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
term kloof, for a steep, narrow valley such as the one in which Highland Mills is located, between Schunemunk Mountain
Schunemunk Mountain
Schunemunk Mountain is the highest mountain in Orange County, New York. The 1,664-foot summit is located in the town of Blooming Grove, with other portions in Cornwall and Woodbury. The community of Mountain Lodge Park is built up its western slope.The mountain is a popular recreational resource...
and the Hudson Highlands
Hudson Highlands
The Hudson Highlands are mountains on both sides of the Hudson River in the U.S. state of New York, between Newburgh Bay and Haverstraw Bay, which form the northern region of the New York - New Jersey Highlands....
, where Woodbury Creek flows.
The members built the house themselves, it is believed, and it was complete and in use by 1803. To avoid the possible confiscation
Confiscation
Confiscation, from the Latin confiscatio 'joining to the fiscus, i.e. transfer to the treasury' is a legal seizure without compensation by a government or other public authority...
of the land, which had happened to some Quaker meetings in the area before the Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
, several of the member families held title
Title (property)
Title is a legal term for a bundle of rights in a piece of property in which a party may own either a legal interest or an equitable interest. The rights in the bundle may be separated and held by different parties. It may also refer to a formal document that serves as evidence of ownership...
to the land rather than the meeting itself.
In the middle of the 19th century, the meeting house was renovated. Most of the building and the original interior were kept. The clapboard siding matches the wide planks used in other Quaker meeting houses ca. 1800, but may have been replaced at this time as well. In 1886, with confiscation no longer a threat, title was passed to the meeting proper. Over time the Highland Mills meeting dwindled to the point that it merged back into the Cornwall meeting, which still meets in Smith Clove once a year.