THE ROAD DOWN TO UPPER
HOLLOW
by Joseph A. Allgaier
Bethlehem Town Historian
When
our children were young (more years ago than I care to remember) a routine trip
on Delaware Avenue, to or from Albany, would turn into a mini-adventure, if we
agreed to the pleadings from the back seat of our Mercury station wagon, to
follow the yellow brick road. From either direction, the ride was bumpy, on a
steep incline, and the only level spot was on the narrow concrete bridge over
the creek. Songs from the 1939 movie classic, The Wizard of Oz, filled the car.
The road was originally known as the Delaware Turnpike. It was constructed by the Albany-Delaware Turnpike Company, which was incorporated in 1805. The Company abandoned the turnpike in 1868 after spring floods destroyed the wooden bridge crossing the Normans Kill. Subsequently, the City of Albany, the Town of Bethlehem, and the State of New York were involved in varying degrees to maintain the crossing over the Normans Kill, or Beaver Creek, as it was also known. Ultimately, the State constructed a bridge in 1928 that spanned the ravine and permitted travel on a level Delaware Avenue.
The
turnpike spurred development during the 1800s of mills alongside the creek.
Soon, a community formed that became known as Upper Hollow. The name was an
obvious offshoot of Lower Hollow, a downstream area of mills, later called
Kenwood. Similarly, the name of Upper Hollow was changed to Normansville.
Sometime around 1900, the road was significantly improved with the addition of paving blocks with a yellowish hue. That may have been by design since a recently published book by L. Frank Baum entitled The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was quite popular and introduced the "Yellow Brick Road" as the path to the magical kingdom of Oz.
I have been unsuccessful, to date, in finding out the precise time of installation of the paving blocks. It may have been in 1913 when the State authorized an expenditure of $100,000 to build a boulevard and concrete bridge over the creek. The project was to connect with the "old stone road." The 1913 bridge is what exists today, although it is closed to vehicular traffic.
If
you stroll down to the old bridge, the only reminder of twenty-first century
living is traffic humming along the overhead viaduct. One can imagine the hamlet
in its days of high activity. Looking downstream, the creek would be much higher
than today due to dams that created ponds used to power mills and provide ice
that was harvested in winter. The building took place, for the most part, on the
south side of the creek. The Normansville Church, built in 1889, is a prominent
and often used symbol of the hamlet. On the north side, near the bridge, the
Hinckel Hotel stood. The land beyond is owned by Graceland Cemetery. Across the
way, were a bathing beach, the Dance Pavilion, and Harder's Mill. Looking
upstream from the bridge, the Pappalau Icehouse stood on the north side.
Remnants of the foundation are still evident in the water. Most of the
structures were lost to fire.
Plans are being formulated by a group of residents to make the bridge area more inviting for visitors to Normansville. As a destination, or a stop along a hiking trail, this historic site is a wonderful place to reflect on the past.