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| Where is
Hiddenbrooke
located? Hiddenbrooke is located at the foot of the mountain off Depuyster Avenue in the eastern part of Beacon. A private road, Hiddenbrooke Drive, leads into the property. |
| Can I go
there and
see the
property? Unfortunately no, not at the present time; the land is currently privately owned and not open to the public. Please respect the rights and privacy of the landowners. |
| Why is
it that so few
people
know about Hiddenbrooke, even lifelong residents? Hiddenbrooke was a novitiate (training school) for the Ursuline order of nuns for many years, and as such it was a very private place. It must be entered by a private road over one mile long and people respected the nuns’ privacy. |
| Who
owned the land
before
the Ursulines acquired it? Before the Ursulines bought the property, the land was farmed by John Maddox (Maddochs?) from the mid nineteenth century. He built a large manor house and huge barn as well as hothouses and a five car garage. The stone foundation of the barn still stands on the property. It was later owned by Noah Slee, the inventor of 3- in-1 oil, who lived there with his first wife Mary West Slee. A memorial to her still stands on the property. Later Slee married Margaret Sanger, the birth control advocate and founder of Planned Parenthood. They lived on the property until they sold the land to the Ursulines and moved to Fishkill. In 1925, the Ursulines built a beautiful chapel adjacent to the manor house, which served as their convent. In the late 60's, the Ursulines built a more modern convent on another site on the property. The old convent was destroyed in a fire in the early 1970's. This building and some surrounding acreage was later sold and now serves as a monastery for the Discalced Carmelites, a contemplative order of nuns. |
| Just
what property is
Beacon looking to acquire? When the Ursulines sold their novitiate to the Carmelites they also deeded a home and some land to Mr. and Mrs. David Burke, the longtime caretakers of the property. Mr. Burke had farmed, hayed and raised animals on the property for decades in loyal service to the nuns. Mrs. Elsie Burke continues to live here in her longtime family home. She deeded a part of her property to her granddaughter who lives there with her family. These two homes are on the border of the property, where it connects to the Texaco-Chevron property. The remaining 123 acres of Hiddenbrooke remained under the ownership of the Ursuline Order until February of 2005 when they were sold to Preshrock Corporation. 103 acres are within Beacon City limits and the remaining 20 acres are in Fishkill. It is this 103 acres that Beacon is seeking to preserve as open space land for all its citizens. |
| What is
the property
like? The property includes forested areas and the open fields and meadows that comprised the original farm. It adjoins both the Scenic Hudson property on the mountainside and the Texaco Chevron property. Although lying at the foot of the mountain, the land is mainly gently sloped and is easily accessible. There are old logging roads and trails that connect the property to Mountain Lane on one side and to the Texaco-Chevron recreation area on the other. The property includes several streams that come down the mountain side, one feeds the pond and wetlands deep inside the area, while the other, the "Dry Brook", or Hiddenbrooke, flows through the property nearer the road and through the area of Jessen Park. A road side outcropping reveals the native stone of the bedrock. |
| Where do things stand
now? The City of Beacon has signed a letter of agreement with Presrock Corp. to purchase the property for $2.5 Million. They plan to raise money for the purchase by pursuing public and private grants. Since most organizations that provide grant money require that Beacon be willing to shoulder part of the cost, it is important that Beacon raise some money for this purpose. Hence the $1 million bond ordinance. It is hoped that most of the money necessary for the purchase will be grant money, making Beacon's share much less. The bond issue will be voted on by Beacon's citizens in November 2006. If Beacon is unable to fund part of the cost of the purchase it is very difficult to obtain outside grant money since it indicates a lack of interest and willingness on the part of Beacon's citizens to invest in preserving open space for its future. This
is why it is vital to vote "YES" and pass the bond proposition.
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