November Coffee Bark this Saturday, Nov 1st 9am-11am

The St. Nick's Dog Run Coffee Bark happens this Saturday, November 1st from 9am-11am. Come enjoy the Fall weather at the Dog Run with some coffee, donuts and fun while socializing with fellow dog owners and discussing issues concerning St. Nicholas Park and St. Nick's Dog Run. The St. Nick's Dog Run is located in the middle of St. Nicholas Park between 136th and 137th streets. If you are interested in volunteering for the Coffee Bark, contact us at info@stnicholaspark.org

Hope to see you there!

It's My Park Day Success!

We had a wonderful time at It's My Park Day yesterday. We planted tons of Daffodils and Tulip bulbs at the 132nd Street entrance, at the top of the hill at 135th and at the 139th Street entrance. The weather managed to hold up with the occasional sprinkle, but nothing to bad until we decided to wrap things up. Just in time!

We would like to thank all of our volunteers and our gardener, Jennifer, for helping us make It’s My Park Day a success!

It's My Park! Day - next Saturday Oct 25th from 11am-4pm

Dear Friends,

Next Saturday, Oct 25th is It's My Park! Day in St. Nicholas Park. This day is devoted to planting trees, painting fences, and getting the park ready for the Winter and Spring. This year we are planting a couple of more gardens in the park and we need all the help we can get. The event is from 11am to 4pm throughout the park. An information table will be set up in the 135th street plaza (135th Street and St. Nicholas Avenue) providing info and water to participants.

Our event will take place rain or shine. Please dress appropriately in clothes suitable to working in the soil and planting. If you have a pair of work gloves please bring them, but don't worry if you don't - we'll have work gloves available for all volunteers. We'll also have water for all volunteers.

If you have any questions about tomorrow's event please let us know at info@stnicholaspark.org.

Thanks and see you tomorrow in the park!

HAMILTON GRANGE: Restoration Update October 2008

The Hamilton Grange restoration team has spent the past month uncovering
remaining historic evidence of the home’s original roof details. Based
upon this evidence the National Park Service (NPS) proposes to replace the
flat roof with non-historic material and to install stained wood shingles.

Details Emerge from Original Roof

When constructed in 1802, the Grange’s roof was flat and surrounded with a
lower (hipped) roof. We do know that the flat roof failed very quickly, as
the nails that were used for constructing the replacement hipped roof date
to approximately 1815, 13 years after the Grange was built. The only
definitive evidence we found of the original flat roof were small wrought
flashing nails, lead flashing, sealant, sheathing nails and balustrade
(decorative railing) base nails. Even with this evidence, we unfortunately
are unable to conclude what the original flat roof was actually made of.
Options from Hamilton’s day would have included wood shingles, lead sheets,
tin plates or canvas.

Since we cannot conclude what the original flat roof was made of, and given
the uncertain performance of any of the historic options, NPS is proposing
to install a roof made of modern materials that will ensure weather
tightness. The new roof material, which will be a synthetic membrane, will
match the off-white appearance of the historic wood shingles (ranging in
width from 2-3/4" to 5," with 4" exposed to the weather) previously found
on the sloped portion of the roof – see September 2008 update.
.
Additionally, we consider it possible that the roof’s balustrade, which can
be seen in a circa 1860 photograph, is not the original balustrade, and in
fact the original main roof balustrade may have been placed around the
perimeter of the flat roof, connecting the four chimneys on their inside
edges. The balustrade base nails (two large 6" wrought spikes spaced every
15-16" along the flat roof beams), completely flashed over at the
intersection of two flat roof beams, were instrumental in our
re-considering the location of the original main roof balustrade. The
spacing of the double nailing correlates with the balustrade newels and
intermediate bottom rail support blocks.

Temporary Reconstruction of Original Stair Components

When the Grange was moved in 1889, the original stair hall was reconfigured
to accommodate a new front door (the original faced St. Luke’s Church).
The reconfiguration entailed the replacement of the 1802 stair case, three
runs of stairs with two intermediate landings, with a new staircase of one
long run, a short run and one intermediate landing. To our great surprise,
and appreciation to the 1889 carpenters, replacement stairs used all of the
original stair carriages and one of the original landings. Last week we
“temporarily” reconstructed the original stairs, in order to determine the
extent of missing pieces, and verified that the re-used landing was in fact
the original.

Monthly meeting tomorrow night 7pm

Dear friends,

We have our monthly Friends meeting tomorrow evening at St. Marks church located at 55 edgecombe avenue (on thecorner of St. Nicholas park and 137th).

We need volunteers for our Fall festival as well as upcoming events including our holiday tree lighting in december.

The meetig starts at 7pm. If you have any questions contact us at info@stnicholaspark.org

Thanks,

Friends of St Nicholas Park

St. Nick's Dog Run Newly Chipped and Cleaned!

Thanks to the volunteers who came out on this gorgeous Saturday to help spread woodchips and spruce up the St. Nick's Dog Run. We have more woodchip piles for the run and may take those up in a couple of weeks during It's My Park! Day.

Below are some photos of the clean-up day. If you would like to volunteer for either a Coffee Bark or a Clean-up Day please contact us at info@stnicholaspark.org

Thanks!

St. Nick's Dog Run Clean Up Day This Sat. Oct 11th at 10am

Dear Friends,

We are holding the St. Nick's Dog Park Fall Clean-up Day this Saturday, October 11th from 10am to 2pm. We'll be filling in doggie dug holes, spreading new woodchips, replacing bag dispensers, and making sure the place looks great for the Fall season.

Your help is greatly needed and appreciated.

If you have a pair of work gloves please bring them. We will have some available to those who don't. Also, we will have bottled water and coffee for everyone.

It is usually better to come to the workday after you walk your dog. Dogs demand attention while in the dog run, and the workday will be more enjoyable if you can leave your dog in the comfort of his home. Of course, we understand if this is not possible and appreciate any
help you can lend.

Information on this Clean-up Day is below:

St. Nick's Dog Park
Clean-up Day
Saturday, October 11th
10am-2pm

At St. Nick's Dog Park
between 136th and 135th streets in the middle of the park

For more information visit our website at www.stnicholaspark.org

Thanks everyone for making this dog park one of the city's best!

Friends of St. Nicholas Park

October Coffee Bark - Fun for Fall!

There was a great turn out today at the St. Nick's Dog Run Coffee Bark. The cool weather certainly made the case for some warm coffee which went really fast (sorry for those who were a little late and could not enjoy the coffee). Thanks to all the volunteers who brought donuts, coffee (Mike that coffee was awesome this morning) and other items to make this another successful coffee bark. Below are some photos from today's bark.

The next coffee bark will take place on Saturday, November 1st from 9-11am. If you are interested in helping out please let us know at info@stnicholaspark.org.

St. Nick's Dog Run Coffee Bark Tomorrow Sat. Oct 4th from 9-11am

The St. Nick's Dog Run Coffee Bark happens this Saturday, October 4th from 9am-11am. Come enjoy the autumn at the Dog Run with some coffee, donuts and fun while socializing with fellow dog owners and discussing issues concerning St. Nicholas Park and St. Nick's Dog Run. The St. Nick's Dog Run is located in the middle of St. Nicholas Park between 136th and 137th streets. If you are interested in volunteering for the Coffee Bark, contact us at dogpark@stnicholaspark.org Hope to see you there!

St. Nicholas Park Hosts First Bloom with the First Lady

First Lady Laura Bush watches as participants in the First Bloom project at Hamilton Grange National Memorial discover the different things -- from bugs to twigs -- that can be found when you shake the branches of a shrub. Photo taken Sept. 24, 2008.

By Mindi Rambo, NPS (National Parks Service)

Hamilton Grange National Memorial in Harlem, served as the backdrop on September 24 for the second First Bloom event in New York City. First Bloom is a National Park Foundation (NFP) program that connects children to national parks through planting and gardening projects.

First Lady Laura Bush, NPF Honorary Chair, took a tour of the Grange, which moved June 7, and received a briefing on the historic building’s restoration from Stephen Spaulding, the National Park Service’s chief of architectural preservation division for the northeast region.

Mrs. Bush joined children from the Boys and Girls Clubs of Harlem and local schools on the grounds below the house and talked with them at a variety of “stations” where the children were learning about different aspects of gardening. At one table, she saw how they had planted seedlings in compostable pots. Kneeling next to the students at another station, Mrs. Bush took a keen interest in what they discovered when the shook a shrub and sorted what fell onto a tarp – mostly bark and insects. She also heard about their plans, which for one boy means growing up to become an architect.

“[First Bloom’s] a way to connect kids to their parks, their closest national park. And this, the Alexander Hamilton house behind us, is one of our national historic sites,” Mrs. Bush said. “And this neighborhood is going to get to watch while this house is restored. … There’s a historical architect who’s working on it, so it will be historical restoration. And while they watch the house being restored the kids in the neighborhood, and other community members, are going to be involved in planning the site.”

First Bloom was launched in 2007 by Mrs. Bush at the NPF Leadership Summit.
The program provides children in urban environments with the opportunity to get their hands in the dirt and experience planting and gardening in their neighborhoods and our national parks. It is believed that these efforts will “plant the seeds” of conservation and environmental stewardship in the next generation. Program partners include the NPS, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, and community organizations that serve children.

The previous First Bloom event in New York took place at Castle Clinton National Monument on April 21, 2008

First Lady Laura Bush (far left) watches as Stephen Spaulding, chief of architectural preservation division for the northeast region of the National Park Service, talks with Nicholas Irving, a student who wants to be an architect when he grows up. First Lady Laura Bush arranged the introduction, when she learned about Nicholas' career plans during First Bloom at Hamilton Grange National Memorial on September 24, 2008. Photo taken Sept. 24, 2008.