Part III
In honor of all who have sacrificed and served in the Armed Forces, and of the Veterans Day holiday, The Millerton News has been running a three-part series on WWI veterans from the local area and the letters they sent home to their loved ones from abroad. This is the last of the series, in which the war ends. Below is an edited letter from the Downey Family Archives written by James Downey, uncle of North East Historical Society President and Millerton attorney Ed Downey, first printed in the Millerton Telegram on Dec. 22, 1918. To read the full series, go to www.tricornernews.com.
Somewhere in France -— Nov. 12, 1918
Dearest Mother and all -—
Well mother we have at last received the glad news that Germany has accepted our peace terms, which I am certain will mean the end of the war. I well realize that this is not news to you, but you can bet it is welcome news for us. We have done some awful fighting during this past few weeks and that is what really brought it to an end had they not come to terms as soon as they did we would soon be in Germany.
The weather has been fearful for advancing but that little worried us. We marched in mud up to our ankles over the country which they hurriedly left behind. We are now located near a town which they left a few days ago… they left a large amount of jam and bread, besides large quantities of other things. We are enjoying ourselves on their bread and jam which is not half bad. It indeed tastes good for we have been practically living on iron rations since we started the drive which is about two weeks ago.
You should see us going along the road eating green cabbage, turnips, beets, carrots and all other kinds of other vegetables that they left in the gardens behind. This noon we had cabbage, boiled bacon, crackers, good American bread and coffee… They have large fields of cabbage and other vegetables so we never have to worry about something to eat.
Since we started this drive we have slept in all kinds of places. The first day it was cold and rainy and we hiked until eleven thirty… the traffic was tied up and we were stuck on the road on a steep hill… on account of moving the infantry up in trucks to overtake the Germans who we have since learned left in railroad trains, blowing up the tracks after they left.
When we could not move any further and as we were all muddy and wet, we decided to find some places to stay for the remainder of the night. The ground was too wet to pitch a tent so two other fellows and myself went into an old house that was practically all knocked down from shells… I made a bed out of boards and machine gun ammunition as that was the only thing I could find to lay on for that house had been formerly used as a German machine gun next.
I awoke at three, nearly froze to death for my feet were wet when I went to bed. Someone just said roll pack so I will finish later. God only knows where we are going, but I believe we are started for our long journey home.
Nov. 14
At present we are in a barrack waiting for orders. Everything points towards going home … on our way home by Dec. 5th. Imagine being home by Xmas. It does not sound possible but everything is possible in the army.
It is terrible cold this morning and as our fire is not burning any too good. I am having considerable trouble writing this letter. I was on guard until twelve last night… but the stove kept the fire going.
The other day … had some coffee and cakes with some of the refugees who were captured by the Germans four years ago. … The women wore long dresses and they were covered with mud to their knees. Old men, women, young girls and boys and little children anywhere from a few days old up.
I cannot begin to relate how cruel they were used by the Germans, but they suffered the tortures of Hell. You cannot imagine their joy when we rushed through the towns driving the dirty Germans out… After four long years they are free and you cannot imagine their feeling toward us.
I got a few German coins from them which I am taking home as souvenirs for there have been too many fellows who lost their life picking up various things which had hand grenades, bombs and other explosives attached.
Hoping to be with you all by X-mas. I will close with love and kisses.
Your Loving son,
Jim
Read full letters transcribed by Amenia Historical Society’s Betsy Strauss at www.ameniahs.org. Thanks to her and North East Historical Society President Ed Downey and the Downey Family Archives.
NORTH EAST — Habitat for Humanity of Dutchess County will conduct a presentation on Thursday, May 9 on buying a three-bedroom affordable home to be built in the Town of North East.
The presentation will be held at the NorthEast-Millerton Library Annex at 5:30 p.m.
Any first-time home buyer interested should attend the information session.
The application for this pilot program home-buying opportunity must be made between May 1 and June 10.Minimum household income for the pilot program is $55,000 while maximum income is determined by family size.
Applications are available at the North East Town Hall.Habitat for Humanity describes itself as a nonprofit with global reach, working across the United States and in approximately 70 countries.
‘Migration Collage' by ransome
If you claim a single sobriquet as your artistic moniker, you’re already in a club with some big names, from Zendaya to Beyoncé to the mysterious Banksy. At Geary, the contemporary art gallery in Millerton founded by New Yorkers Jack Geary and Dolly Bross Geary, a new installation and painting exhibition titled “The Bitter and the Sweet” showcases the work of the artist known only as ransome — all lowercase, like the nom de plume of the late Black American social critic bell hooks.
Currently based in Rhinebeck, N.Y., ransome’s work looks farther South and farther back — to The Great Migration, when Jim Crow laws, racial segregation, and the public violence of lynching paved the way for over six million Black Americans to seek haven in northern cities, particularly New York urban areas, like Brooklyn and Baltimore. The Great Migration took place from the turn of the 20th century up through the 1970s, and ransome’s own life is a reflection of the final wave — born in North Carolina, he found a new home in his youth in New Jersey.
‘Square Quilting painting' by ransomeAlexander Wilburn
Map fragments of North Carolina feature heavily in a large collection of eight-by-eight collage and acrylic paintings, sold individually but together mounted on Geary’s wall resembling the stitched patterns on quilts, like the quilts by the late Black American artist Arlonzia Pettway. Along with artists like Annie Mae Young and Mary Lee Bendolph, Pettway was a renowned artist associated with the quilts of Gee’s Bend, generations of women in the town of Gee’s Bend, Alabama who preserved African American culture in beautiful and vibrant textile art with bold combinations of stripes, textures and colors. The influence is also wonderfully clear in ransome large-scale collages and acrylic paintings like “Square Quilt painting” on display at Geary. It’s a powerful symbol of Gee’s Bend’s legacy continuing on, even under a new artistic medium.
In the smaller works, called “Migration Collages,” painted portraits are combined with pieces of floral and pastel paper, evocative of the tradition of “Sunday Best” splendor worn in Black churches in the South. “The women elders at my Baptist church often greeted each other that way on Sunday mornings when one hat was more elaborate, colorful, or wider brimmed than another,” New York Times veteran Lena Williams wrote in her 1996 essay, “In Defense of the Church Hat.” “It was traditional to put on one’s newest finery for church, and in many historically black churches, the wearing of fancy hats by women carried both spiritual and cultural significance.”
“The Bitter and the Sweet” is on view at Geary through Sunday, June 2.
Hospitality, ease of living and just plain fun are rolled into one for those who are intrigued by the leisure-time Caravana experience at the family-owned Four Brothers Drive-in in Amenia. Tom Stefanopoulos, pictured above, highlights fun possibilities offered by Hotel Caravana.
The month-long process of unwrapping and preparing the various features at the Four Brothers Drive-In is nearing completion, and the imaginative recreational destination will be ready to open for the season on Friday, May 10.
The drive-in theater is already open, as is the Snack Shack, and the rest of the recreational features are activating one by one, soon to be offering maximum fun for the whole family.
Tom Stefanopoulos, the second generation helping to guide the Stefanopoulos family’s recreational complex, brings a deep understanding of hospitality and business sense in support of the multi-faceted enterprise, begun in the 1970s, that is now a mainstay of the town of Amenia, located on a corner in the heart of the commercial district. He paused for an interview on Friday, April 26.
Two luxury camping trailers, each with an attached wooden deck and fire pit, make up Hotel Caravana, and each offers a different fun vibe, Stefanopoulos explained. The larger of the two, offers a California lifestyle, retro to 1967, although its modern where it should be. It can sleep four.
The smaller Caravana sleeps two and offers a lifestyle of the future dating to about 2041. It’s a brand-new Airstream, Stefanopoulos noted. It also has an attached deck with firepit.
“We get a lot of New York City people,” Stefanopoulos said when asked what sorts of people are apt to be attracted to Hotel Caravana. “They want to experience the upstate life,” he added. The idea of sitting out on the deck while watching an actual drive-in movie appeals to them, as does room service offered by the restaurant.
The lobster rolls prepared by the Snack Shack, are served on brioche hot dog rolls, either Maine-style or Connecticut-style, and the lobster can be topped with caviar. Four Brothers version is praised by customers for the generous portion of lobster in each, and the price is competitive.
Caravana guests may book for a single night, or maybe two, or even longer, taking advantage of the bicycles to pedal along the nearby rail trail, a local amenity, Stefanopoulos noted.
“We make our guests feel like movie stars,” Stefanopoulos said of the hospitality. And, if they like miniature golf, it is just a few steps away from their Caravana deck.
Asked how and why the Caravana idea began, Stefanopoulos recalled that as the drive-in theater grew in popularity, people were traveling from greater distances away. The last film of the night might start at midnight, he said, so the idea grew that Four Brothers might be able to offer an accommodation to stay the night.
In addition to Caravana, Four Brothers offers an alternative of two or three tent camping sites.
Future plans may include a third Caravana, Stefanopoulos said. Also, there is a giant mastodon skeleton, presently in storage, that should be on display, he said.
“It’s pretty big,” Stefanopoulos added.
The playground might be enlarged in the coming seasons, and perhaps an old-fashioned arcade added for retro amusement.
The community that surrounds Four Brothers remains important to the Stefanopoulos family as they offer substantial summer employment opportunity. Stefanopoulos said that a goal is to contract locally for business needs, such as musical entertainment and advertising. The drive-in also schedules occasion fundraisers to benefit local organizations, including the Amenia Fire Company and area schools.
