FEBRUARY 1986 Published by The Stockade Association VOLUME XXV, '~umber 6

THE MAYOR RIDES AGAIN!

February 6th, in the morn ... Twas the reenactment of the

ride of Schermerhorn.

At 8 a.m. in weather chilly (probably frigid)

From City Hall the entourage -.:-------e _ departed (stalions_rigid) .. _!_

They braved the three hour ride

To boost Schenectady's heritable pride.

In tri-cornered hats and capes a sailin'

The group landed in Albany met by Mayor Whelan.

And all in the Colonial Festival Spirit of course,

did the Mayor agree to ride the horse!

-Kathy Pierone

THE STOCKADE SPY

Editor. . . Kathy Pierone

Business Manager . ....•..... J. Dawson Van Eps

Contributors .............. John Ronayne

Tidings ......... .

Distribution .... . .

George Weinheimer Richard L. Leveroni

Dorothy Knisely

........ Chris and Sherri Foster

Sponsors-Stockade Association

A cling Pre:rident

Recording Secretary ................. . ........ John Harter

........ John L. Zcggcr

. . . Marie Cordero-Jones ...... Ka1hy Johnson

Corresponding Secrerar)

Treasurer ..

In Remembrance The van der Bogert family would like to put on

record their sorrow and profound appreciation of the loss which this neighborhood has sus­tained in the death of Ernie Cohen.

Ernie's influence on the development of the "Stockade" is a lasting one because of the houses he saved from demolition due to their neglect. And, because of his assistance with the preserva­tion of this neighborhood. His generosity with time and sage advise helped in the establishment of the Stockade Association and the Villagers Art Show. Ernie's vision contributed to what we now enjoy as an attractive place to live. Less lasting, because the memory will die with us, was his capacity to live life, his hospitality and his pleasure in entertaining friends. Each time you talked with Ernie you felt a wonderfully renewed joy in his humour, knowledge and integrity. The best of all was his real interest and affection for people. Paintings and poetry by Ernie reflect the depth and genuineness of his feelings.

Ernie Cohen, the most steadfast of friends, your memory will be ever cherished with gratitude and affection.

Mary E. van der Bogert

Of My Friend Ernie

When first approached to write a few lines about my friendship with Ernie, it seemed like an impossible task ... but, perhaps it is not so after all. To speak of a friend, past or present, is to speak of someone very special in a lifetime. Ernie and I were friends in a deep sense. He still is my friend and I continue to think of him in that tense.

Our interest in many things were mutually shared ... a love of classical music, the visual arts, classical literature, nature. Yes, we not only shared these interests, but argued points of differing opinions. Always with humor. Humor was one of the keys to our enduring friendship.

Other things we found in common were the fact we were both Sagitarians. Ernie's birthdate, December 10th, was also my father's. In spite of the difference in our ages, we both have daughters the same age. Another shared interest and love was living in the Stockade. Although, I have been a resident here fot thirteen years, I am a newcomer when compared to Ernie's long residence.

For several summers I tended Ernie's garden. During the Summer of '85 it was glaniaus. First planted by Ann and Bob Grange and then nurtured by me. It was his last, as he knew, but he was never maudlin. He viewed it all with failing eyesight, but "felt" the beauty.

Ernie was not only my friend, but a mentor. One of several in my lifetime. I am fortunate ... privileged ...

One of the many things I will always remem­ber about him was his keen mind. Keen until the end. Schooled in the old school of memoriza­tion, he would often ask me to retrieve a book of Shakespeare, Shelly and Keats, etc. Then he would request I turn to a page, scene and proceed to quote numerous lines and never miss a beat.-All to test his late age acuteness.

... It has been a privilege to have known you my friend. My life has been greatly enriched.

- Ruth Harvey

- from a 1956 painting by Ernest Cohen

p; 7 THE CAPITAL REGION'S

HOMETOWN BANK.

~--·1 Schenectady Trust ~ Trust in us. .._,,DIC ,_.

Of11ces in Albany, Calsklll. Clifton Part<. Colonie. Glenville. Guilderland, Latham. Niskayuna, Rotterdam, Schenectady

Prudential-Bache Securities

James "Skip" Meisner Account Executive

Prudential-Bache Securities Inc. 650 Franklin Street, Schenectady, NY 12305 518 346-6101 Home 374-0776

M.C.S. JOSEPH M. PHLIPSAK OWNER/OPERATOR

(518) 346-3144

METRO CONTRACT SERVICES HOME IMPROVEMENT• REPAIR• PROPERTY MAINTENANCE

QUALITY WORK - GUARANTEED & FULLY INSURED

27 NORTH STREET

SCHENECTADY. NEW YORK 12305

• Custom Pic1ure Framing • Interior Design & Consultation • Wallpaper • Posters • Window Treatments • Art Supplies

527 Union Street 381-9208

Michael Brandone Personal Financial Planner IDS AMERICAN

E>CP.RE55

IDS/American Express Inc. IO I State Street Schenectady, NY 12305 An American Express Cornrany

Bus. (518) 374-1656 1657

TA VERN ON THE ~ NOW IN THE HISTORIC 1)·' ~ i;:

STOCKADE AREA •· .. • -~ An exquisite dining experience ..:, ...-::3

in a pub type atmosphere. t--.. ::::::-. AMPLE PARKING FOR RESERVATIONS :-..

10 State St., Sch'dy 382-8844

TIMECENTER J~!:E~

428 State St. Three Doors From Proctors Downtown Schenectady (5 I 8) 374-0183

OPEN EVENINGS THURS & FRI till 9

We're old enough to know better.

,P~!!~w~!t ~o~~o~~l!g By Registered Nurses

381-6529 30 Jay Street Schenectady, NY

Thoughts on the

"Indian Connection" by Susan Jane Staffa

Stockade Historian

In the last issue of The Spy two articles appeared which eloquently expressed facts and sentiments concerning the beloved statue that marks the heart of our neighborhood. It still seems, however, that the significance of "The Indian" for Schenectady is not fully appreciated. Its symbolism is not primarily of the Stockade, or the town, or even of "Lawrence" the friendly Mohawk. Even as the statue represents an Indian, it should remind us of the following facets of the "Indian Connection" that provided the driving force throughout Schenectady's critical formative period.

I. Schenectady was founded by people who recognized the advantages of extending Dutch settlement closer to the land of the Iroquois and at the urging of the Mohawks (the easternmost Iroquois tribe) who saw that it would be to their advantage to have the Dutch as nearer neighbors.

2. At least a quarter of Schenectady's earliest proprietors had ties of kinship or marriage with Indians. Arent Van Curler, the founder, himself had an Indian daughter who was recognized by the court at Albany.

3. Following the massacre of 1690, many Mohawks and also Mahicans (an Algonquin tribe of the Hudson River valley, Vermont, and western Massachusetts) supported the survivors. A group of Indians led by "Lawrence" were the first to selout in pursuit oft he raiding party and, at the urging of the Albany authorities, several Mohawk families took up residence in the town to protect it in case of another attack and to plant the corn the following spring.

4. "Lawrence" was not a rare example of an Indian friend. We happen to know more about him than most other Indians with the exception of the great sachem, "Hendrick" and some other chiefs, but the record also shows that hundreds of Indians died defending Anglo-Dutch and English settlements in King William's War and the wars that followed.

5. For more than seventy years following the massacre, Schenectady was the place where the colonial militia and Indian allies would usually gather when setting out against the French. At those times, there may have been more than twice as many Indians as Whites in Schenectady. For instance, in 1692, two years after the massacre, when the settled population could not have been more than about 150, 350 Indians met here with Peter Schuyler, leader of the Albany militia and Commissioner of Indian Affairs, to prepare for a raid on a fortress in Canada.

6. Many of Schenectady's early settlers who knew Indian languages by virtue of Indian parentage or by virtue of being adopted by Indians who captured them in the massacre, became interpreters, that is, agents and am­bassadors to the tribes on behalf of the British. Few, if any, of the British knew Indian languages in the early days, and the success of their Indian policy and eventual victory over France de­pended in large part on Schenectady agents. Some family names which figure importantly in this respect are Yan Slyck, Viele', Van der Volgen, Van Eps, Wemple, and Stevens. As early as the I 720s some of them were working as far west as the Great Lakes.

7. Although, as the colonial period drew to a close, milling and other industries tended to replace the fur trade as the principal focus of the economy, as late as 1764, Schenectady's citizens pointed the development of Indian commerce as the principal reason for the town's prosperity and expansion. To quote from their petition to Lt. Governor Cadwallader Colden which re­sulted in their being granted a borough charter:

The said town from its advantageous situation on the Mohawk River, the only communication by water to the numer­ous Tribes of Indians to the West, has long been the place where all goods intended for the Indian trade have been imbarked. and at which all the returns have been unladen; ... this intercourse with the Western Nations and the extent of the important commerce with them has long occasioned not only a great increase of Inhabitants of the said Town and the parts adjacent, but also a vast resort of others employed in carrying on that trade ...

Thus the Indian Connection was not only the principal reason for the founding of the town, but was the primary stimulus which brought it to the first stage of independent town government.

Even as the Indian was the key figure through­out more than a century of Schenectady's formative period, it is fitting that the statue ofan Indian be the symbolic "keystone" of our community. To think of it as simply "Lawrence" or a familiar landmark, however highly prized, is to miss the point.

Architectural Quiz Wayne Harvey's answers to his January quiz:

1. 109 Union St. (gable has brick finial) 2. 121 Front St. (gambrel roof) 3. 108 Union St. (Dutch concept Raven's foot or Corbal Gable) 4. 21 North Ferry and 12 North Ferry (Cantilever Gable) 5. 238 Union (Dutch Concept Clipped Gable) 6. First Reformed Church (Dutch Gothic Revival, broad based A frame Gable).

This editor will be the first to admit no knowledge of Dutch rooflines. In respect of Colonial Week concern was expressed at our quiz not defining "Dutch" roof. Susan Staffa felt if our definition of "Dutch" roof meant a steep gable, she counts eight including three roofs in the rear section. Susan only considers authentic "Dutch" roofs which is why the English roof with a Dutch gambrel as on 2 I 2 Front is not counted. Her answers are: 1. 109 UnionSt. built 1710 2. 14 North Church (rear) - Hendrick Brouwer House, Ca. I 695 3. 119 Front St. built 1710 by a member of the Teller family 4. 114 Front St. built by Dieter Yan Slyck, Ca. 1737 5. 29 Front St. built by Teunis Swart, Ca. I 720 6. 31 Front St. built by Wonter Vrooman, Ca. 1725 7. 17 North Ferry (rear) built by Jan Mebie Ca. 1710 8. 205 Union St. (rear) probably built by Ryer Wemp, Ca. 1730.

Susan Staffa's identifications are in the process of being written i·n a new historical and architectural guidebook.

The quiz for this month is "A Family of Homes": I lived in an old house on Union Street. My brother resided in a double house on North Church Street. My cousin built a large home on Maple Avenue in Scotia, his two sons and later a grandson owned homes on Front Street.

What is my name and what are the street numbers of the Stockade Homes mentioned?

Cross Country Ski Trips Cross country skiing is an active sport and as

you exercise you will get warm. Instead of one heavy jacket, it is best to dress in lawyers so that you can remove clothing as you go. These ski trips are planned for everyone from the novice to the experienced skier. At the ski area we will divide into groups depending on the level of skiing ability, with each group having a leader. Meet at the designated area at the indicated time and plan on about two hours of skiing plus travel time. In case of severe cold or poor skiing conditions, the trip may be cancelled. If condi­tions are in question, call Nancy Tobiessen (399-1889) or Ann Hammett (393-9914) before 8:30 AM for Tuesday trips or the Schenectady Museum (382-7890) between noon and 12:30 for Sunday trips.

Tuesday Yischers Ferry Nature Preserve-Feb. 4 meet at Edison Club parking lot, 9 am

Sunday Feb 9

Tuesday Feb 11

Tuesday Feb 18

Museum Preserve-meet at Lock 7 parking lot-I pm

Garnet Hill Wilderness-meet at Glenville K-Mart-9 am all day-bring lunch

Lapland Lake Ski Area-meet at Glenville K-Mart-9 am all day­bring lunch

Tuesday Stevens School-meet at Feb 25 Glenville K-Mart-9 am

Tuesday Partridge Run (Berne)-meet at SCC Mar 4 bike trail-9 am

Tuesday Mar II

Rockwood Forest (Johnstown) meet at Glenville K-Mart-9 am all day­bring lunch (intermediate skiers)

_ Sponsored by Environmental Clearinghouse of Schenectady, 12 North Church Street 370-4125 and Schenectady Museum 382-7890.

Iroquois Nation Visits YWCA

An Iroquois Cultural Program and Indian Pow Wow will be held on February 8, 1986, from I 0:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., at the Schenectady YWCA, 44 Washington Avenue. Members of the Iroquois Six Nations (Mohawk, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas, Senecas, and Tuscaroras) will be performing traditional dances and chants. They are coordinated by Maize Shen­andoah from the Oneida Territory, Wolf Clan. Handmade Indian crafts will be for sale. Various craftspeople will be demonstrating their au­thentic handcrafted baskets, corn husk dolls, wood and stone carvings, bone carvings, beadwork, porcupine quill work and silver­smithing. There will be speakers on the Iroquois way of life, Iroquois games and Iroquois legends. Traditional Indian corn soup and fried bread will be served along with tacos and chili. A video tape will be shown on the 200 year anniversary of the signing of a treaty with the Iroquois Council of Chiefs at Fort Stanwix held on October 23, 1984, at Rome, New York. The public is invited to come and is welcome to bring cameras. Admission is $1.00 per person.

COLONIAL FESTIVAL EVENTS CALENDAR February 2

February 5

February 6

February 7

February 8

February 9

February 16

-Historic lecture and slide show at Schenectady County Historic Society on Dutch Architecture by Shirley Dunn - 3:00 p.m.

-Gazette Tabloid -Kick-off Reception at SCCC for Committee and Guests sponsored by N orstar Bank and

SCCC - 5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.

-Mayor Johnson, Harry Downie, Trooper Bill Claus and Nan Veeder Ride to Albany via Horse starts - 8:00 a.m.

-Wayne Harvey and Susan Staffa give costume historic talks for City school children (Thursday and Friday/ IO schools)

-Torch Run-Middle School kids run from three (3) directions to light caldron in front of Center City start - 3:00 p.m.

-Boy Scouts will raise flags in front of Center City immediately after torch run -Crowning of Snow Queen in front of Center City by Guest Dignitary after flag ceremony -Snow Queen dance at the Annie Schaffer Center - Public Welcome - 7:30 p.m. -WGY-WGFM Live broadcast from Center City - 9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

12:30 p.m.-7:00 p.m.

-Wayne Harvey costume visitors to schools -Upper Union Street Colonial Celebration-3:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. -Ice Skating Central Park Iroquois Lake

-Indian Festival at YWCA - 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Dancing, Arts and Crafts, Storytelling - Sponsored by Schenectady Trust Company

-YWCA Hug-a-thyon -Horse Drawn wagon rides in the Stockade - Historian Wayne Harvey will be the Tour

Guide 12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. -Tundra Trot 5K Footrace I 1:00 a.m. Canal Square sponsored by Andaconda Kaye -Proctor's theatre special film presentation sponsored by Grand Unio.n -Gala Dinner Dance at Ramada Inn - 6:30 p.m.

-Schenectady County Public Library special lecture on Colonial Schenectady in Maps presented by Dr. Susan Staffa - 3:00 p.m.

-Celebrity Volley Ball match at Mt. Pleasant High School 3:30 p.m. WGY-WGFM All-stars vs Merchants & City Council

-Schenectady Museum and Planetarium - Special lecture on Colonial women in the Mohawk Valley presented by Wayne Harvey - 3:00 p.m.

HELP RESTORE OUR LOCAL LANDMARK, "LAWRENCE", the INDIAN STATUE

* * * *

* * * *

*

*

* * * * * * * * *

Attend our

GALA BENEFIT DINNER - DANCE

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 1986

Ramada Inn, Nott Street

Tickets $25.00 - Patrons $40.00 - Benefactor $60.00

By Advance Sale Onl)I

To make Reservations, Contact Eileen Julian 346-7474 (days) or evenings (before 8:30) 346-6765

* * * * * * * * *

Purchase a signed & numbered, limited-editon LITHOGRAPH of "LAWRENCE"

* *

* *

created by Joseph Daniel, local artist & Stockade Art Show winner Available for $75.00 from the Mayor's Office

Phone 382-5094

* * *

* * *

4th Militia to Camp in Stockade

On Saturday, February 8th a contingent of the 4th Albany County Militia will construct a military encampment at the Schenectady YWCA. The group takes its name from an actual Militia from this area that fought in the American Revolution.

The Militia engages in a full range of colonial period activities including:

Parades Battle re-enactments Black powder shooting competitions Colonial music and dance Crafts:

Musket ball and cartridge making Needlework Pottery making Colonial cooking Leather work Woodworking

On Saturday the men will perform drills based on the original 1779 "Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States." Women will also be on hand to perform various crafts of the Colonial times.

The 4th Albany County Militia is a social group with a diversity of interests and activities. Individuals or full families are included.

Members make their own dress and ac­counterments and secure their own arms.

The group is donating their time to help celebrate the Schenectady Colonial Festival, and the restoration of "Lawrence the Indian."

The Colonial Petal

Send the Valentine Ciassic­

Roses, Roses, and more Roses

We offer all sizes and colors ORDER EARLY!

131 Canal Square

The Shop at St. George's

377-6648

30 N. Ferry St., Schenectady. NY

Consignments, Gifts Open Thursdays 10:30 - 3:30

For Appointment Call: The Shop 374-6920

or Mrs. Kennison 785-9852

• <1~.~E:..rotct

Our 38th Year

Shoes for . .. Men, Women and Children

147 Jay Street, Schenectady, NY 374-7777

Stockader's Book Reviewed

HUDSON RIVER VILLAS

John Zukowsky and Rob be Pierce Stimson

280 Pages 11" x I I" 300 illustrations, 50 in color Price: 45.00 (Maps included)

From its source at Lake Tear of the Clouds to the Atlantic Ocean, the banks of the Hudson River extend over 300 miles offering many spectacular sites populated by imposing villas and grand estates. Utilizing photographs, historical drawings and factual commentary, this book documents over 120 such residences built up and down the Hudson River Valley over the last 300 years. Maps delineating scenic routes are provided for those wishing to personally visit these sites.

In 1609 while trying to find northwest passage to India for the Dutch East India Company, Henry Hudson, discovered and explored the river which has come to bear his name. By the end of the 17th century it was in the Hudson

Schenectady Museum Exhibits

Entire Paintings Collection January 19 to February 28

What does one do with a collection of 270 paintings, drawings and prints while their storage space is being renovated? Director William Vernor encouraged Curator of Exhibits Georgia Cascio to go ahead with her proposal to put the whole collection on display. Nearly all of the framed work acquired in the Museum's fifty­two year history is hanging, salon style, in the Turnbull and Broughton Galleries.

Giants from the history of Art, Rembrandt, Whistler, Goya, Lautrec, Correggio, de Chirico and Picasso are represented· on etchings, drypoints or lithograph prints. The complete sets of the Museum holdings of paintings by Samuel Sexton, John Beneker, Morris David­son and John Carroll are grouped. There are two hand-colored Havel prints of Audobon's birds and a pair of cartoons by the great tenor of the Metropolitan Opera, Enrico Caruso.

River Valley that most of the Dutch settlements Among regional artists represented are Ed in North America were made. Influences in Cowley, Donald Machon, Bill Wilson, Tom architecture, customs, and culture are evident O'Connor, Ethel Magafau, Jim Gilliland, even today. A strong aristocracy evolved J.M. H. Saksdorf, Ray Andrews, Sunshine characterized by large manorial estates ad- Golub and David Miller. Museum instructors ministered by "patroons", who with their power whose work is in the exhibition are Ted Batzell, and property were the closest thing to royalty on Sal Cascio, Charles Annau, Arnold Bittleman, this side of the Atlantic. Families with names like John Watrous, George Weinheimer and Lex Van Rensselaer, Livingston, and Philipse, Martin. transformed the river valley from wilderness into A colored print by John Boydall, 178 I, was a prosperous agricultural region. based on a floral by Jan Van H uysum, painted in

Through the years this area referred to as the 1723. An oil by the American impressionist, "American Rhine" has been steadily trans- John Twachtman, is from the transition period formed a-nd red-evel-epecl-i-n-aeeoFd-a-nee wit lrthe--G-Ll:i.is-cha n.ge-Q¥e-r-f.rom-t-he-M..u-r-1-ich-S t-;z-le~

visions of each successive generation of the The style of the exhibition recalls the annual prominent and wealthy. The area's proximity to salon of the French Academy which was held at New York City, together with its expansive the Louvre. Paintings are hung from floor to landscape made it a choice location for palatial ceiling as they were in the popular French country homes and summer villas for families exhibition. It offers a unique opportunity to like the Astors, Vanderbilts, Roosevelts etc. In view the totality of the Schenectady Museum the service of clients such as these many collection. The public is invited to vote for its distinguished architects developed some of their favorites. These will be exhibited in 1987 in a most impressive and lavish work. show to be entitled "Visitors' Choice." -G.W.

The authors have put together a well org,u1-ized, informative and smoothly written book with many interesting and beautiful photo­graphs. The end result is a texturally rich view into the social, architectural, economic and historical backgrounds of these homes and their owners. Changes in style from Early Dutch, Georgian and Federal, along with Gothic, Tudor, and Italian Villa are traced. The reader is left with a comprehensive appreciation of this type of historical architecture and its develop­ment, in the Hudson River Valley and provided with hours of enjoyable reading.

Author John Zukowsky is Curator of Archi­tecture at the Art Institute of Chicago and formerly Architectural Archivist at the Hudson River Museum. Robbe Pierce Stimson lives on a Hudson River estate and here in The Stockade on North Street. Rob be is a land-use specialist and writer - Joe Phlipsak

Tidings This year-end, as in times past, residents

continued their tradition of celebrating the end of the old year and the beginning of the new. New arrivals in the Stockade held first-time New Year's parties too for their friends and neigh­bors. All were most enjoyable, and much safer than traveling on dangerous streets.

The funeral of Catherine Donovan, much loved by all who knew her, was held in Decem­ber. She had served as maid to the Waller household for many years. The funeral was attended by Ann George, Vinnie Shanklin, and the Jerry Waller family.

The Mordecai family, Max and Jo, celebrated the holiday season in the Stockade with their children and grandchild.

All of us in the Stockade welcome Jon and Marie Eoss, now at 5 Front Street, and C. Scott Stevenson, of 5 North Ferry Street.

Anyone recognize a familiar face in those

SCC ads?

Let me have your news for the next edition of the Spy.

-Dorothy Knisely 19 North Ferry Street (374-0244)

J\m.eri.can illarp.et Qlh~aninB Qlo_ Specializing in cleaning delicate fabrics oriental- domestic - imported- antique

UPHOLSTERING CLEANING ALSO: satins - velvets - cottons - tweeds

Drapery cleaning in your home No removal, no shrinkage, no color loss. Amique satins a specialty

MEMBER ASSOC. OF CLEANING TECHNICIANS

Exchange 611 Union Street

382-0984

Workshop Mill Lane

Office 206 Union Street

372-1780

XEROX COPIES Low Low Prices

OFFSET PRINTING Small or Large Orders

124 Jay Street 393-0301

f~Hr™ Schenectady Safe & Lock Co.

Stanley Wolfe Proprietor

1033 Erie Blvd. (next to Convenient Foods/Corner Green St.)

Tel. 346-3407

SAFES • LOCKS • KEYS Safe and lock experts for two generations

1597 UNION STREET 370-3170

&\nnahe~ FOR HAIR

137 south ferry st schenectady n y 12305 518-372-1949

(518) 372-4788 (518) 377.WINE

At Englehardt'■ , wine I ■ our bu■lne-■ and ou.r pleaaure.

Joseph J Bokan Jr

Patricia A. Bokan Wtnt' Enthusw.Hs

511 UNION STREET SCHENECTADY, N.Y. 12305

~ JAY JEWELRY COMPANY

"Jewelers to the Stockade for 65 years"

Diamonds - Watches - China - Silver - Gifts 374-8219

315 State Street Schenectady

Phone Bus. 393-2109 Res. 399-6410

Charles W. Merriam & Son, Inc. Always Ready To Serve Your Insuring Needs

Since 1905

Charles W. Merriam, Jr.

202 State Street Schenectady, NY

Interview with Leslie Villiers Gemmette

7 P.m., Sunday, January 5, 1986

Leslie Gemmette, age ten, presented himself in his new crewcut, the hair style de rigueur for this interviewer's own sons in the fifties but rarely seen nowadays. "Happy New Year, it was not my idea, he asked for that haircut", was the hasty response of Mother Liz Gemmette (S UNY A Professor and former Spy editor) to my greeting and question. Leslie answered less defensively: "I have decided to go into the army. I have always wanted to and in the airport on the way home from Bermuda last week and I talked to some soldiers. Now, I am sure." The brushcut is step one. Leslie declares that his favorite subject is science. He conjectures that after being in the army for a while, he may want to work on designing new kinds of aircraft. In preparation Leslie intends to enroll at West Point to study engineering.

How long has Leslie lived in the Stockade? Ever since he came out of the incubator at Ellis Hospital and was brought home to 19 Front Street. He is never going to move because he loves his old blue and white federal brick house and gets homesick when away. Recently, Miss Susan Staffa (see the Spy December, 1985) told his family that their house is probably a century older than the plaque affixed outside states (Ca. 1790/ Jacob Swits House). Les says Susan thinks it was built about 1675. The Cellar is the oldest part and each floor above is younger. "The Stockade has been through several wars," says Leslie. "The Revolutionary War and the French and Indian War were here." In the attic of Leslie's house a set of wooden steps leads up to a platform under a high window which he thinks would have been a good vantage from which to fire on attackers.

Down at the bottom of his garden near the iron gate to Riverside Park is built a room which intrigues Leslie. Early householders probably used it as a summer kitchen and dining area. Leslie hopes his father (Attorney Gerard R. Gemmette) will restore it for family use. He also anticipates the time when a pond can be installed under the stone fish from whose mouth water once spouted. Leslie wants to keep goldfish there.

Born March 11, 1975, Leslie is enrolled in Mrs. Sally Van Schaick's fifth grade class at Zoller School. He describes the group as "mischievous" and thinks that their sporting behavior on their last visit to the Schenectady Museum may have jeopardized future trips. One class outing recalled vividly was a lunch-time hike to the park next to the Unitarian Society on Wendell Avenue. Some of the children running through the forest next to the ravine disturbed a bees' nest and many children were stung.

"All the kids think I'm crazy because I like Beethoven," declares Leslie, explaining that his parents have always played classical music and he shares their appreciation. They have been enjoying together the WMHT presentation of

Dickens' "Bleek House." "I believe everything Einstein says," volunteers Leslie. "His is the atoms theory of relativity." Les likes to read about atoms and marvels at the notion that within himself .could be atoms that were once part of a dinosaur!

Leslie often draws in pencil at home. He specializes in gruesome pictures of friendly ghosts. Once he invented a game based on the horror movie, "Friday, the 13th," in which players must pass monsters of his invention in order to win. He found that Coleco was already producing such a game.

"I'm really into guns," enthuses Leslie as he demonstrates his western-style six-shooter of French make. Later, we admire his bee bee gun and this interviewer recollects the magic of first holding his father's Winchester at age ten.

During ten years Leslie has traveled widely including Bermuda, Jamaica, Cape Cod and Coventry, England. He has about one hundred twenty relatives in Great Britain. Once, they all met at a Villier's family affair there; coming even from Wales and Scotland. In 1975 the Gem­mettes rented a farm cottage in the Cotswald for a month and his maternal grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins visited. It was a great locale for hiking down the lane and for playing with the sheep in the neighbor's fold. He went every day to pet a horse he had befriended. In Bermuda Leslie catches lizards, called Chameleons (American anole) to examine and then release in the bushes. They resemble the Salamanders he finds in the garden on Front Street. Over the Jamaica coral reef in a glass-bottom boat Leslie has seen predatory fish, barracuda, similar to the pike he has seen from the Mohawk.

Leslie is excited abour the reparations to be undertaken on Lawrence, the Indian, and intends to contribute. He hopes the horses' drinking fountain will be restored as the monument was originally designed. If he owned the Stockade, Leslie would undertake further renovations. He would add a horse trail through the park and plant trees where the streets are presently. Wildlife, rabbits and snakes would be introduced and all the houses made to look old­fashioned Dutch.

This ten-year-old with the freckled nose and cheek reflects seriously on how things were, on how they are, and, particularly on how they ought to be.

-George Weinheimer

Was It the Painter, Paint or Photographer?

Congratulations to Joe Phlipsak, 27 North Street! Joe won third prize in the Dutch Boy "Pretty As A Picture" contest. What we cannot figure out is who really gets the credit. Was it Dutch Boy's special red brick outdoor house paint, the talents of the painter, or the talents of the photographer/ owner of the I I 9 Front Street entry? One of them knows for sure!

SSO Tickets on Sale at Proctor's

Schenectady Symphony Tickets can now be purchased in advance at Proctor's Box office. Stockaders can now charge tickets to Master­Card or Visa. The SSO's next concert is February 22, Saturday at 8:00 P.M. Our own Allen Mills exhibits his classical talent as organ soloist playing Saint - Saens. Prokofiev and Barber are also on the program.

5 South Church St., Sch' dy 393-3609

OPPER UNION TRAVEL. INC. 1708 UNION STREET

(Opposire Ben & Jem,.s Ice Cream)

• Domestic & International Travel • Ticket Delivery EILEE1' .JULIA1' JESSICA W. SPACIL

346-7474 Hours: Mon. - Fri. - 9:00 AM 10 5:00 PM orb, Appointment

Need Cash? Visit the Schenectady Loan Store. We approve loans fast! """'

See: Nancy Lovell NORSTAR 216 State St. BANK 370-7623

UPSTATE NY

the difference is . the difference is exciting gifts the difference is distinctive stationery and cards the difference is your kind of clothes

the difference is corner of liberty & s. ferry sts. 382-7600 visa

We're here

master card

to help!

LAWRENCE INSURANCE GROUP• INSURANCE & UNDERWRITING 5 I 8/ 370-1720

Arthur's Market Chicarina Soup ................................... I. 75 pint Seafood Salad ..................................... 3. 98 lb. Cole Slaw ........................................... 89 lb. Broccoli Bread . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.00 each Sausage Bread ................................... 1.00 each Cheese Pizza ....................................... 50 slice Home Co.oked Roast Beef .......................... 4.99 lb. Fried Boneless Chicken Breast ....................... 3. 99 lb. Breaded Pork Steaks ............................... 3.29 lb. Fried Fish ........................................ 3.29 lb. Meatballs In Sauce ................................. 1.99 lb. Sausage In Sauce .................................. 2.29 lb. Chili Con Carne ................................... 1.69 lb. Our Own Italian Sausage ........................... 1.99 lb.

GOURMET SANDWICHES

FINE CHEESES Cheddar - Danish Blue - Jarlsberg - Stilton

HOME BAKED GOODS Brownies .55

Cream Puffs .85 Cake .65 Turnovers .85

Sour Cream Danish . 70 Homemade Cheese Cakes

PARTY PLATTERS

HOME DELIVERY 372-4141 372-3304

35 North Ferry Street At the Indian ARTHURPOLACHEK-PETERPOLAC~EK