Cold Spring Historic District

Until 1818, when the West Point Foundry was established, Cold Spring was a small settlement nestled on the shores of the Hudson River near the river’s narrowest point. The impetus for the foundry’s creation had come from President James Madison, who, after the War of 1812, wanted to establish domestic foundries to produce artillery. The site was ideal, as timber for charcoal was abundant, there were many local iron mines, and a nearby brook provided the required hydropower. The river provided transportation for finished products, and across the river was West Point, available to protect the foundry should need arise.

The foundry’s operations peaked during the Civil War, during which it had a workforce of 1,400 people and produced 2,000 cannon and three million shells. The importance of the West Point Foundry is demonstrated by the fact that President Abraham Lincoln visited and inspected it in June 1862. After the Civil War, business declined with the invention of more modern techniques of iron and steel production, and bankruptcy was declared in 1889.

Cold Spring has shifted from its industrial past to an economy dependent on tourism. Main Street is the focal point of a well-preserved National Historic District and is lined with novelty and antique stores, restaurants, and residences. The Cold Spring Historic District is concentrated along the east-west axis formed by Main Street, a commercial strip where municipal, ecclesiastical and residential structures are interspersed.

All of Main Street, stretching from the Hudson River east to the village limits, is contained within the historic district. Portions of residential streets intersecting Main Street are included in the district, contributing distinctive examples of a range of architectural styles, building types and construction methods, spanning over a century of growth and community development. Most of the houses, churches and commercial buildings came into existence in the years preceding the Civil War, when the West Point Foundry was at the peak of its production and workers were rapidly moving into the area.

A large percentage of the stores on Main Street are antique shops, a theme that fits nicely with the nature of the buildings which they inhabit.

On the West Point Foundry site, only the central office building remains intact, the rest are in ruins. The site can be visited by following a short trail south from the Cold Spring Metro-North station.

Standing on the bank of the Hudson River and facing south, you can see Constitution Island extending from the shoreline, with the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in the background. During the Revolutionary War a Great Chain was stretched across the Hudson River from West Point to the opposite side of Constitution Island, in order to prevent British naval vessels from sailing up the river.

A large number of commercial and private buildings in the Cold Spring Historic District are on the National Register of Historic Places. Shown here are the Hudson House River Inn (top), circa 1832 and the Pig Hill Inn Bed & Breakfast (bottom), circa 1825.

The commercial district of Main Street stretches from the Hudson River to New York Route 9D. The street is lined with an eclectic assemblage of two and three story buildings; early nineteenth century frame buildings are juxtaposed with later brick structures of various scales along the street’s length. The second picture shows an antique clock shop that stays open on Tuesday (the day that I was there), when most shops are closed for the day.