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The Birches (Garrison, New York)
Encyclopedia
The Birches is a house at the southeast corner of the junction of NY 9D
and 403
in the hamlet of Garrison
, New York
, United States
. It was built for William Osborn, as part of his nearby Wing & Wing estate, by architect Ralph Adams Cram
in the Gothic Revival
architectural style.
In 1982 it was added to the National Register of Historic Places
. It is just across Route 9D from the Garrison Grist Mill Historic District
.
stone. It gives way to frame and a gambrel roof on the upper stories. A projecting, center-shingled pavilion
on the west facade
is trimmed in half-timber, coming to a louver
ed gable
peak with its rafter
s intentionally exposed as decoration
. A similarly-decorated porch
, with open gable, extends from the pavilion. The south profile has a one-story projecting bay
supporting a balcony
. The windows and doors on the first story have arched openings, echoed by a split rounded transom
over the double-doored main entrance.
There is one outbuilding on the property: a one-story frame carriage house, later a garage, to the east. Two apartment
s have since been added to it.
Due to this near-constant use, Osborn and his descendants never followed through on their plans to donate it to the Town of Philipstown
(the town in which the hamlet of Garrison is located) for use as a public library (one was eventually built just across Route 403). So, when the family finally sold it in 1976, it remained in use as a house. It still is.
Gothic Revival cottages that Calvert Vaux
and Frederick Clarke Withers
, following the patterns of their mentor, Andrew Jackson Downing
, had built all over the Hudson Valley
and, later, the country, three decades earlier, before the Civil War
. The result was a late example of the Victorian Gothic style, distinct for a home in the area.
The stone coursework on the lower story links the house with other former Osborn properties in Garrison. Its style links it to the nearby Castle Rock
, which can be seen over the house when it is viewed from the northwest, in the center of the intersection.
New York State Route 9D
New York State Route 9D , also known as the Bear Mountain – Beacon Highway, is a north–south state highway that runs along the eastern shore of the Hudson River in New York in the United States. It starts at the eastern end of the Bear Mountain Bridge at U.S...
and 403
New York State Route 403
New York State Route 403 is a short state highway located entirely within Putnam County. It connects NY 9D in Philipstown at its northern/western end to US 9 in Graymoor, where the Appalachian Trail crosses both highways...
in the hamlet of Garrison
Garrison, New York
Garrison is a hamlet in Putnam County, New York, United States. It is part of the town of Philipstown and is on the east side of the Hudson River, across from the United States Military Academy at West Point...
, 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...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It was built for William Osborn, as part of his nearby Wing & Wing estate, by architect Ralph Adams Cram
Ralph Adams Cram
Ralph Adams Cram FAIA, , was a prolific and influential American architect of collegiate and ecclesiastical buildings, often in the Gothic style. Cram & Ferguson and Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson are partnerships in which he worked.-Early life:Cram was born on December 16, 1863 at Hampton Falls, New...
in the Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
architectural style.
In 1982 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...
. It is just across Route 9D from the Garrison Grist Mill Historic District
Garrison Grist Mill Historic District
The Garrison Grist Mill Historic District is a parcel of Highlands Country Club located at the southwest corner of the intersection of NY 9D and Lower Station Road in Garrison, New York, United States...
.
Building
The first story is built of dressed, randomly-coursedCourse (architecture)
A course is a continuous horizontal layer of similarly-sized building material one unit high, usually in a wall. The term is almost always used in conjunction with unit masonry such as brick, cut stone, or concrete masonry units .-Styles:...
stone. It gives way to frame and a gambrel roof on the upper stories. A projecting, center-shingled pavilion
Pavilion (structure)
In architecture a pavilion has two main meanings.-Free-standing structure:Pavilion may refer to a free-standing structure sited a short distance from a main residence, whose architecture makes it an object of pleasure. Large or small, there is usually a connection with relaxation and pleasure in...
on the west 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"....
is trimmed in half-timber, coming to a louver
Louver
A louver or louvre , from the French l'ouvert; "the open one") is a window, blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain, direct sunshine, and noise...
ed 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...
peak with its rafter
Rafter
A rafter is one of a series of sloped structural members , that extend from the ridge or hip to the downslope perimeter or eave, designed to support the roof deck and its associated loads.-Design:...
s intentionally exposed as decoration
Ornament (architecture)
In architecture and decorative art, ornament is a decoration used to embellish parts of a building or object. Large figurative elements such as monumental sculpture and their equivalents in decorative art are excluded from the term; most ornament does not include human figures, and if present they...
. A similarly-decorated 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...
, with open gable, extends from the pavilion. The south profile has a one-story projecting 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:...
supporting a balcony
Balcony
Balcony , a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade.-Types:The traditional Maltese balcony is a wooden closed balcony projecting from a...
. The windows and doors on the first story have arched openings, echoed by a split rounded transom
Transom (architectural)
In architecture, a transom is the term given to a transverse beam or bar in a frame, or to the crosspiece separating a door or the like from a window or fanlight above it. Transom is also the customary U.S. word used for a transom light, the window over this crosspiece...
over the double-doored main entrance.
There is one outbuilding on the property: a one-story frame carriage house, later a garage, to the east. Two apartment
Apartment
An apartment or flat is a self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building...
s have since been added to it.
History
The Birches was designed in 1882 for William H. Osborn, owner of the nearby Wing & Wing estate. Within the Osborn family, it became known as the Honeymoon House, since both William Church and Fairfield Osborn lived there after their weddings while waiting for their own nearby homes to be completed. When not used by them, it was occasionally home to the family's servants.Due to this near-constant use, Osborn and his descendants never followed through on their plans to donate it to the Town of Philipstown
Philipstown, New York
Philipstown is a town located in the western part of Putnam County, New York, United States. The population was 9,422 at the 2000 census.- History :The town was first settled around 1715....
(the town in which the hamlet of Garrison is located) for use as a public library (one was eventually built just across Route 403). So, when the family finally sold it in 1976, it remained in use as a house. It still is.
Aesthetics
Cram's design, one of the earlier ones in his career, interpreted the PicturesquePicturesque
Picturesque is an aesthetic ideal introduced into English cultural debate in 1782 by William Gilpin in Observations on the River Wye, and Several Parts of South Wales, etc. Relative Chiefly to Picturesque Beauty; made in the Summer of the Year 1770, a practical book which instructed England's...
Gothic Revival cottages that Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux
Calvert Vaux , was an architect and landscape designer. He is best remembered as the co-designer , of New York's Central Park....
and Frederick Clarke Withers
Frederick Clarke Withers
Frederick Clarke Withers was an successful English architect in America, especially renowned for his Gothic Revival church designs.-Biography:...
, following the patterns of their mentor, Andrew Jackson Downing
Andrew Jackson Downing
Andrew Jackson Downing was an American landscape designer, horticulturalist, and writer, a prominent advocate of the Gothic Revival style in the United States, and editor of The Horticulturist magazine...
, had built all over the Hudson Valley
Hudson Valley
The Hudson Valley comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in New York State, United States, from northern Westchester County northward to the cities of Albany and Troy.-History:...
and, later, the country, three decades earlier, before the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. The result was a late example of the Victorian Gothic style, distinct for a home in the area.
The stone coursework on the lower story links the house with other former Osborn properties in Garrison. Its style links it to the nearby Castle Rock
Castle Rock (Garrison, New York)
Castle Rock is the estate of former Illinois Central Railroad president William H. Osborn in Garrison, New York, United States. It sits on the hill of the same name, looking down on the Hudson River below...
, which can be seen over the house when it is viewed from the northwest, in the center of the intersection.