By Alex Prizgintas
Many of you may have noticed the ongoing demolition of the former Nepera chemical plant in Harriman, including the removal last week of the large stone building located alongside Route 17.
The building with its rich heritage has become an eyesore in the last few years, but we should at least take a few moments to reflect upon its rich and varied past before we loose all trace of it ever having existed.
Inclined railroadWhen railroad baron E. H. Harriman arrived in Orange County in 1886, he first lived in Arden in what was called the “Arden Homestead” located near the base of the mountain.
This was his first home before the famous “Arden House” mansion was built on top of the mountain.
To facilitate this massive construction project, an incline railroad was designed installed to deliver workers and construction materials.
It was initially powered by a steam engine located on the top of the mountain. Later (between 1906 and 1911) the large stone building seen in the photo — or as I like to refer to it as “the powerhouse” — was built.
The Harriman legendWhen constructed, it was built to house five Westinghouse bituminous section producers, a large transformer room, as well as offices.
The building was even designed to house a coal dumping system via railroad cars from the Erie Railroad Mainline located next to the building.
Although it was constructed to be a powerhouse, what it was meant to power is still subject to debate. Most likely, the powerhouse was originally planned to be a substation for the Erie Railroad Mainline, which was originally conceived to be an electric railroad from Jersey City to Port Jervis.
Although very little information has been found discussing this plan, local author and historian Michelle Figliomeni states in her book, "E. H. Harriman and Arden Farms, “The new electric power plant is situated on the State Road now Route 17 south. The persistent local legend maintains that E. H. intended to use this plant to provide power to electrify the Erie Railroad line to this region of Orange County."
This plan fell through when Harriman died in 1909.
After HarrimanIt was after his death in 1912 that the The Electrical Review & Western Electrician reported that plans for the powerhouse were used to power three places:
• Arden House itself;
• The incline railroad leading to Arden House; and
• The large blowers at the Sterling Mine located ten miles south.
So it would seem that the “legend” of E. H. Harriman to power the Erie Mainline had been changed after he died.
It is hard to say when the powerhouse stopped operating, but a good guess would be around the early 1920’s since this is when both the incline railroad and the Sterling iron mines stopped operating.
Afterwards, the building was acquired by the Harriman Industrial Corporation, which built many other structures adjacent to the powerhouse.
The corporation was involved with various other projects in the county including the construction of both the Harriman (demolished in 2006) and Monroe (destroyed by fire in 1977) railroad stations as well as the construction of the notable (and recently restored) mansion “Glenmere” in Chester.
The plant was used for a short time during World War II to make coffins for soldiers until it was later bought by the Nepera Corporation in 1942.
Closed since 2005Nepera operated there until 2005 when the company moved to Elizabethport, N.J., where it still operates today.
Demolition of the complex began back in the spring with the removal of much of the outdoor pipelines and smokestacks.
Sadly, demolition of the historic powerhouse began in late August and looks like it might be completed later this month.
I, for one, will miss it when it is gone since I always saw it as vital and exciting part of our most interesting past.
Alex Prizgintas is a sophomore at Monroe-Woodbury High School. He will be giving a lecture on Friday, Oct. 2, in Middletown at the Mulberry Senior House on the little known Harriman Incline Railroad as part of the New York, Ontario & Western Railroad Historical Society’s 7:30 p.m. meeting. For additional information, call Jeff Otto at 845-343-2467.