Wow that is spooky. It sure isn't any root cellar or wine cellar either by the looks of it. It looks very innocuous on the outside (last photo in slide show) but inside it looks like it was built to be some sort of torture chamber or underground holding place for prisoners who no matter how much they screamed would never be heard. I think it should be preserved at least until they find out what it was. Maureen ----- Original Message ----- From: <WOLF6PACK@aol.com> To: <NYWESTCH-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, July 06, 2007 6:06 PM Subject: [NYWESTCH] Road repair unearths massive old structure in Ossining > > The following article was just in the Poughkeepsie Journal today. Sounds > like an interesting mystery. Any guesses, my first thought was > underground > railroad, but would they bother with vaulted ceilings and arched > doorways, > probably not. > > Judy Wolf > > > Road repair unearths massive old structure in Ossining > > > By SEAN GORMAN > THE JOURNAL NEWS > > > (Original publication: July 5, 2007) > > OSSINING - Workers who were fixing a sinking road at the Mystic Pointe > condominium complex recently unearthed an underground series of rooms that > may > date to the mid-19th century. > The structure, found around early May, includes arched doorways and > 15-foot-high vaulted ceilings. It rests next to the exit road leading out > of the > condo community off Route 9. > "It's like a huge underground structure of rooms, all made out of brick > masonry, concrete ceilings," Art Haviland, Mystic Pointe's property > manager, said > last week. > Several archeologists and historians have visited the site, but no one can > say with certainty what the building was for, Haviland said. > Some experts think it may have been a root cellar, and they've suggested > it > may date to the mid-1800s, Haviland said. > The structure's exact size is also a mystery, because workers didn't > uncover > all of it. In their excavation they found "approximately eight" rooms, > Haviland said. > Ossining village Mayor William Hanauer, who got to go into the underground > chambers about a month ago, said other possibilities raised about its > purpose > are that it was a wine storage room or a barn for cattle, or part of a > tunnel > network used to transport things from boats on the Hudson River. > "It's like a long hall off of which are other hallways," Hanauer said. > "The > hallways themselves are sort of divided up into rooms. It was clearly > built to > be underground." > The mayor said one of the bricks unearthed while he was at the site was > thought to date to the 1840s. > Linda Kiederer, former president of the Yorktown Historical Society, > cautioned against jumping to the conclusion that the structure was a stop > on the > Underground Railroad - a pre-Civil War network of hideouts where former > slaves > stayed on their way to freedom. > She said such large structures weren't built for that purpose. But it > seems > too elaborate to have been a root cellar, said Kiederer, who learned about > the > structure's discovery from a reporter. > "I do think it was intended for a foundry of some sort, but perhaps never > used since the walls aren't blackened," she wrote in an e-mail to The > Journal > News after viewing photos of the structure online. > Mystic Pointe resident Gay Marglin took the photos, posting them on > _http://ysqrd.smugmug.com/gallery/2831265_ > (http://ysqrd.smugmug.com/gallery/2831265) . > "Whoever built it was a real craftsman," Marglin said last week. "The > thing > looks brand new." > Marglin, a member of the condominium's governing board, said the road sank > because dirt underneath it was slipping into the structure's openings, > including air tunnels leading through its roof toward the surface. > The condo complex has been left with a predicament of how to fix the road > and > what to do about the chambers, Marglin said. One option is to break open > the > top of the structure and fill it in with earth. An engineer has provided > a > $50,000 estimate for filling it in, she said. > The other option, estimated to be four times as expensive, is to build a > retaining wall and cover the openings with custom-made concrete fixtures > so the > dirt doesn't keep seeping into the openings. > Given the price constraints, the association is leaning toward the first > -and more destructive -option, Marglin said. > "I was hoping we could do something to preserve it," she said. "That > doesn't > look like it's economically feasible unless somebody steps up to the plate > in > the next month." > Anyone who wants to contact her about the structure can e-mail > _gmarglin@rivertownsrealty.com_ (mailto:gmarglin@rivertownsrealty.com) . > Elise Godfrey, another Mystic Pointe resident, said the discovery of the > red > brick facility is interesting but the excavation site is a bit of an > eyesore. > Condo residents have dubbed it the "Big Dig." It has orange cones and > fencing around it, and passers-by may not enter. > > > > > ************************************** See what's free at > http://www.aol.com. > *************************************** > Have you checked out the Westchester County GenWeb site yet? > http://www.rootsweb.com/~nywestch/ > *************************************** > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > NYWESTCH-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message

Could have any number of things it was used for includeing cattle to people to root cellar.... Its a part of Ossining history,and should be preserved. Jonnie quillpen1 <quillpen1@optonline.net> wrote: Wow that is spooky. It sure isn't any root cellar or wine cellar either by the looks of it. It looks very innocuous on the outside (last photo in slide show) but inside it looks like it was built to be some sort of torture chamber or underground holding place for prisoners who no matter how much they screamed would never be heard. I think it should be preserved at least until they find out what it was. Maureen ----- Original Message ----- From: To: Sent: Friday, July 06, 2007 6:06 PM Subject: [NYWESTCH] Road repair unearths massive old structure in Ossining > > The following article was just in the Poughkeepsie Journal today. Sounds > like an interesting mystery. Any guesses, my first thought was > underground > railroad, but would they bother with vaulted ceilings and arched > doorways, > probably not. > > Judy Wolf > > > Road repair unearths massive old structure in Ossining > > > By SEAN GORMAN > THE JOURNAL NEWS > > > (Original publication: July 5, 2007) > > OSSINING - Workers who were fixing a sinking road at the Mystic Pointe > condominium complex recently unearthed an underground series of rooms that > may > date to the mid-19th century. > The structure, found around early May, includes arched doorways and > 15-foot-high vaulted ceilings. It rests next to the exit road leading out > of the > condo community off Route 9. > "It's like a huge underground structure of rooms, all made out of brick > masonry, concrete ceilings," Art Haviland, Mystic Pointe's property > manager, said > last week. > Several archeologists and historians have visited the site, but no one can > say with certainty what the building was for, Haviland said. > Some experts think it may have been a root cellar, and they've suggested > it > may date to the mid-1800s, Haviland said. > The structure's exact size is also a mystery, because workers didn't > uncover > all of it. In their excavation they found "approximately eight" rooms, > Haviland said. > Ossining village Mayor William Hanauer, who got to go into the underground > chambers about a month ago, said other possibilities raised about its > purpose > are that it was a wine storage room or a barn for cattle, or part of a > tunnel > network used to transport things from boats on the Hudson River. > "It's like a long hall off of which are other hallways," Hanauer said. > "The > hallways themselves are sort of divided up into rooms. It was clearly > built to > be underground." > The mayor said one of the bricks unearthed while he was at the site was > thought to date to the 1840s. > Linda Kiederer, former president of the Yorktown Historical Society, > cautioned against jumping to the conclusion that the structure was a stop > on the > Underground Railroad - a pre-Civil War network of hideouts where former > slaves > stayed on their way to freedom. > She said such large structures weren't built for that purpose. But it > seems > too elaborate to have been a root cellar, said Kiederer, who learned about > the > structure's discovery from a reporter. > "I do think it was intended for a foundry of some sort, but perhaps never > used since the walls aren't blackened," she wrote in an e-mail to The > Journal > News after viewing photos of the structure online. > Mystic Pointe resident Gay Marglin took the photos, posting them on > _http://ysqrd.smugmug.com/gallery/2831265_ > (http://ysqrd.smugmug.com/gallery/2831265) . > "Whoever built it was a real craftsman," Marglin said last week. "The > thing > looks brand new." > Marglin, a member of the condominium's governing board, said the road sank > because dirt underneath it was slipping into the structure's openings, > including air tunnels leading through its roof toward the surface. > The condo complex has been left with a predicament of how to fix the road > and > what to do about the chambers, Marglin said. One option is to break open > the > top of the structure and fill it in with earth. An engineer has provided > a > $50,000 estimate for filling it in, she said. > The other option, estimated to be four times as expensive, is to build a > retaining wall and cover the openings with custom-made concrete fixtures > so the > dirt doesn't keep seeping into the openings. > Given the price constraints, the association is leaning toward the first > -and more destructive -option, Marglin said. > "I was hoping we could do something to preserve it," she said. "That > doesn't > look like it's economically feasible unless somebody steps up to the plate > in > the next month." > Anyone who wants to contact her about the structure can e-mail > _gmarglin@rivertownsrealty.com_ (mailto:gmarglin@rivertownsrealty.com) . > Elise Godfrey, another Mystic Pointe resident, said the discovery of the > red > brick facility is interesting but the excavation site is a bit of an > eyesore. > Condo residents have dubbed it the "Big Dig." It has orange cones and > fencing around it, and passers-by may not enter. > > > > > ************************************** See what's free at > http://www.aol.com. > *************************************** > Have you checked out the Westchester County GenWeb site yet? > http://www.rootsweb.com/~nywestch/ > *************************************** > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > NYWESTCH-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message *************************************** Have you checked out the Westchester County GenWeb site yet? http://www.rootsweb.com/~nywestch/ *************************************** ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to NYWESTCH-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message --------------------------------- Choose the right car based on your needs. 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I vote for underground armory or munitions depot. Jan jgrellim@sbcglobal.net ----- Original Message ----- From: "quillpen1" <quillpen1@optonline.net> To: <nywestch@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, July 06, 2007 4:16 PM Subject: Re: [NYWESTCH] Road repair unearths massive old structure inOssining > Wow that is spooky. It sure isn't any root cellar or wine cellar either by > the looks of it. > > It looks very innocuous on the outside (last photo in slide show) but > inside > it looks like it was built to be some sort of torture chamber or > underground > holding place for prisoners who no matter how much they screamed would > never > be heard. > > I think it should be preserved at least until they find out what it was. > > Maureen > > > > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: <WOLF6PACK@aol.com> > To: <NYWESTCH-L@rootsweb.com> > Sent: Friday, July 06, 2007 6:06 PM > Subject: [NYWESTCH] Road repair unearths massive old structure in Ossining > > >> >> The following article was just in the Poughkeepsie Journal today. Sounds >> like an interesting mystery. Any guesses, my first thought was >> underground >> railroad, but would they bother with vaulted ceilings and arched >> doorways, >> probably not. >> >> Judy Wolf >> >> >> Road repair unearths massive old structure in Ossining >> >> >> By SEAN GORMAN >> THE JOURNAL NEWS >> >> >> (Original publication: July 5, 2007) >> >> OSSINING - Workers who were fixing a sinking road at the Mystic Pointe >> condominium complex recently unearthed an underground series of rooms >> that >> may >> date to the mid-19th century. >> The structure, found around early May, includes arched doorways and >> 15-foot-high vaulted ceilings. It rests next to the exit road leading out >> of the >> condo community off Route 9. >> "It's like a huge underground structure of rooms, all made out of brick >> masonry, concrete ceilings," Art Haviland, Mystic Pointe's property >> manager, said >> last week. >> Several archeologists and historians have visited the site, but no one >> can >> say with certainty what the building was for, Haviland said. >> Some experts think it may have been a root cellar, and they've suggested >> it >> may date to the mid-1800s, Haviland said. >> The structure's exact size is also a mystery, because workers didn't >> uncover >> all of it. In their excavation they found "approximately eight" rooms, >> Haviland said. >> Ossining village Mayor William Hanauer, who got to go into the >> underground >> chambers about a month ago, said other possibilities raised about its >> purpose >> are that it was a wine storage room or a barn for cattle, or part of a >> tunnel >> network used to transport things from boats on the Hudson River. >> "It's like a long hall off of which are other hallways," Hanauer said. >> "The >> hallways themselves are sort of divided up into rooms. It was clearly >> built to >> be underground." >> The mayor said one of the bricks unearthed while he was at the site was >> thought to date to the 1840s. >> Linda Kiederer, former president of the Yorktown Historical Society, >> cautioned against jumping to the conclusion that the structure was a stop >> on the >> Underground Railroad - a pre-Civil War network of hideouts where former >> slaves >> stayed on their way to freedom. >> She said such large structures weren't built for that purpose. But it >> seems >> too elaborate to have been a root cellar, said Kiederer, who learned >> about >> the >> structure's discovery from a reporter. >> "I do think it was intended for a foundry of some sort, but perhaps never >> used since the walls aren't blackened," she wrote in an e-mail to The >> Journal >> News after viewing photos of the structure online. >> Mystic Pointe resident Gay Marglin took the photos, posting them on >> _http://ysqrd.smugmug.com/gallery/2831265_ >> (http://ysqrd.smugmug.com/gallery/2831265) . >> "Whoever built it was a real craftsman," Marglin said last week. "The >> thing >> looks brand new." >> Marglin, a member of the condominium's governing board, said the road >> sank >> because dirt underneath it was slipping into the structure's openings, >> including air tunnels leading through its roof toward the surface. >> The condo complex has been left with a predicament of how to fix the road >> and >> what to do about the chambers, Marglin said. One option is to break open >> the >> top of the structure and fill it in with earth. An engineer has provided >> a >> $50,000 estimate for filling it in, she said. >> The other option, estimated to be four times as expensive, is to build a >> retaining wall and cover the openings with custom-made concrete fixtures >> so the >> dirt doesn't keep seeping into the openings. >> Given the price constraints, the association is leaning toward the first >> -and more destructive -option, Marglin said. >> "I was hoping we could do something to preserve it," she said. "That >> doesn't >> look like it's economically feasible unless somebody steps up to the >> plate >> in >> the next month." >> Anyone who wants to contact her about the structure can e-mail >> _gmarglin@rivertownsrealty.com_ (mailto:gmarglin@rivertownsrealty.com) . >> Elise Godfrey, another Mystic Pointe resident, said the discovery of the >> red >> brick facility is interesting but the excavation site is a bit of an >> eyesore. >> Condo residents have dubbed it the "Big Dig." It has orange cones and >> fencing around it, and passers-by may not enter. >> >> >> >> >> ************************************** See what's free at >> http://www.aol.com. >> *************************************** >> Have you checked out the Westchester County GenWeb site yet? >> http://www.rootsweb.com/~nywestch/ >> *************************************** >> ------------------------------- >> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to >> NYWESTCH-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the >> quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > *************************************** > Have you checked out the Westchester County GenWeb site yet? > http://www.rootsweb.com/~nywestch/ > *************************************** > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > NYWESTCH-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message