New Roof for the Hopewell Depot

We have made some major improvements to our web site and Facebook page.
Take a look at our updated information at the following links.

Our web site:
http://www.hopewelldepot.org

Our Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hopewell ... 2071793718

The grand opening for the visitor center section of the depot will be on Wednesday 25 April. Our county exec, Marc Molinaro, will be there to cut the ribbon about 10:00 AM. We expect to have TV and newspaper coverage. The public is invited.

There is plenty of parking space next to the depot and Rail Trail. Stop around and join the fun.

Bernie Rudberg

Today's work was mainly touch up work on the paint job and assembly work on the baggage cart. Meanwhile the display cases were cleaned and arranged.

Next work session will be Saturday 4-21-2012.

4-21-2012 Today's work was mostly getting ready for opening day next Wednesday, 25 April. That included paint touch up, hanging pictures and putting new glass in the sales counter top.

We also held a short organizational meeting on the plans for opening day on Wednesday. We are confident that we are ready.

There will be a last minute work session on Tuesday AM for things like sweeping and dusting and any last minute details that come up.

The big day will be on Wednesday 25 April with the ceremony starting at 10:00 AM. Our county Exec, Marc Molinaro will be there to help with the ribbon cutting. After that there will be short tours of the depot area with a bit of railroad history thrown in for good measure. We expect newspaper and TV coverage.

The public is invited to come around a join in the fun.
We hope to see you on Wednesday morning.

I will be there in my conductor's uniform ready to punch your ticket to 1873.

Bernie Rudberg

Today (4-25-2012) was the grand opening of the visitor center section of the Hopewell Depot Restoration. The weather was a bit chilly and there was a short sprinkle in the morning but the rest of the day was good. Two of our county exec’s (Bill Steinhaus and marc Molinaro ) showed up the help cut the gold ribbon. We had a big crowd and there was TV and newspaper coverage. I was dressed up in my conductor uniform and posed for pictures while punching tickets for the crowd.



We had a mini car show in the parking lot. That “woodie” station wagon belongs to George Cook. John Hickman and Marc Molinaro received desk plaques and framed photos from the depot. A big surprise was the bronze plaque presented to us from the county. That plaque will be attached to the building for future generations to see.



Don’t forget, we have our annual Depot Restoration meeting tomorrow evening (Thursday 4-26) at the depot. We will start at 7:00 PM and featured at the meeting will be a slide show of Hopewell Junction railroads by Dave Williams.

One of our members has created a Facebook Page about the Hopewell Depot Restoration. Take a look at this URL.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hopewell ... 2071793718



Check out this video made by the Town of East Fishkill.

http://www.eastfishkillny.org/content/railroad-depot



The Hopewell Depot Restoration project also has a new web site.

http://www.hopewelldepot.org


Stop around and join the fun.



Bernie Rudberg

Hopewell Depot Restoration Corp. held their first annual meeting in the restored visitor center of the depot. After the business session there was a slide show of Hopewell Junction railroading by Dave Williams. That show included slides he took of the depot two days after the fire in 1986.

We will be asking for volunteers to keep the visitor center open in the near future. The part time work will be to operate the sales counter and be short tour guides. Of course we will provide the training sessions to prepare the volunteers in running the depot sales and also a short course in depot history. There will also be back up documentation and photos for show and tell. If you can help out for a few hours we would love to hear from you. We would like to have the visitor center open when there is the most traffic on the Rail Trail. That would usually be on weekends and holidays. If you can help out, let us know when you would be available and we will work out a schedule.
Contact us at: [email protected] for E-Mail or call 845 221-9330.

The Town of East Fishkill TV channel 22 (Cablevision) will be broadcasting about the Hopewell Depot in the next week or so.
Tuesday at 5 PM
Wednesday at 9 AM
Thursday at 4 PM
Saturday at 8 AM


The next work session at the depot will be on Saturday 4-28-2012.

We also have a list of items that we will be needing in the near future to restore the museum section of the depot. If you know of any good sources for these item let us know.

Hopewell Depot Restoration Corp.

April 25,2012


Items needed to complete restoration of Hopewell Depot

1. 1x4 T&G Fir flooring for 3 rooms $5,800

2. 2- interior door units 600

3. 6” - 3 piece crown molding for ceiling 2,500

4. 5” – 2-piece window and door molding 3,800

5. 7” – 2-piece baseboard trim 1,700

6. 1 – 3’6”x7’ 5 panel exterior door unit 800

7. Closet shelving and supports 500

8. Trim and shelves for 3 ticket windows 870

9. Interior lighting and switches 1,500

10. Trex decking 2,000

11. 1x6 Bead Board for walls & soffit 4,300

12. 4- Exterior window frames at $1000 each 4,000

13. Soffit vents and molding 900

14. Weather board and molding for back wall 850

15. 3- electric wall mounted heat units $400 each 1,200

16. Ductless heat & cooling system 3,100

17. Security system including cameras 5,700

18. Misc. framing lumber for back soffit 200

19. Fire resistant materials for base & wall for pot belly stove 450

20. Misc. display cases & display frames to set up museum 4000



Total $44,770

As you can see from these numbers. we will have to do some serious fund raising.

Here's a summary from the work Wednesday 5-2-2012.

Good progress was made on the exterior soffit amidst lingering April showers.
Installation of the soffit and and remaining wooden brackets on the north side of the depot was completed while the east side was prepared with 2x4 furring strips and nailers for the brackets. Additional beadboard for the soffit was purchased and delivered.
Another milestone was achieved with activation of phone service to the depot.
Guests continue to checkout the new visitor center.
Verne Jackson stopped by and supplied volunteers with samples of his "homegrown" chocolate milk from the Shenandoah Farm.
It hasn't gotten this fresh since the Borden's Creamery left town!

The Rails to Trails conservancy is a national group and they have just posted a note about our depot for their members.

We posted a story for our members on your effort today. Here’s the link.

Be sure to share with your friends and supporters.

http://community.railstotrails.org/blog ... ffort.aspx

As a reminder, I will be giving a talk on our local RR history at the Unionvale Historical Society meeting on Monday 5-7-2012.
The meeting will be at 7:30 at the Tymor Forest Rec area. I hope to see a few of our members there.

Bernie Rudberg Hopewell Depot Restoration Historian AKA “ Mr. Conductor”

5-19-201`2 We had a warm sunny day today and got lots of work done. The north soffits are now complete and scaffolding was set up to work on the south soffits. Several roof braces were refurbished and mounted back on the depot. Meanwhile Mike was working on the frames for the east bay windows.

We plan to have the visitor center open on Sunday 5-20.

The next work session will be Wednesday 5-23-2012. Stop around and get acquainted with our project.

In the near future we must consider some serious fund raising to continue work on the museum section.

With the threat of showers, today was a slow day on the rail trail. We did get more work done on the east side soffits and roof braces.

Next work session will be Saturday 5-26-2012.

5-26-2012 Today's work was painting the east and south soffits and building a new frame for the ticket window.

Next work session will be Wednesday 30 May.

Today’s work was painting and trim around the south and east soffits. Some replacement trim strips had to be made.

We now have the visitor center in working condition but the museum section requires a lot of work and materials. Our bank account is very low and we must do some serious fund raising to continue the project. Please help out in any way you can.

The next work session will be on Saturday 6-2-2012.

STAFF NEEDED for the HDR VISITOR CENTER


Dear Depot Members & Supporters,



As you know, the Depot project reached a significant milestone last month in opening the north waiting room as a visitors' center. Many of you were there to share the moment, and we know the rest of you were with us in spirit.



While work on the remainder of the building continues, we are faced with the challenge of creating a functioning entity in the HDR Visitor Center. To accomplish that, we need your help.



Right now, we are open only two days a week (Wed. & Sat.), while the restoration projects are underway. Three members are doing the "lion's share" of greeting and talking to visitors about the building and its history, as well as staffing the sales counter. It is a low-key, enjoyable task, since only the one room is functioning.



However, with the summer months coming, and Rail Trail use increasing, we must expand the operating hours for the facility. We are asking those of you who can spare three (3) hours, one day a week, to volunteer your time. We plan to work in teams of two or three, with an experienced leader in each group.



To that end, we have scheduled an Orientation / Training Meeting on Tuesday June 7, 2012, 7:00 pm, at the Depot. Please come and help us.



If you would like to help - whether you can be at the meeting or not - would you be kind enough to contact me ([email protected] / 845-226-7631) before the meeting date? I am making up information manuals for each volunteer, and I need to know how many to print.



Thanks,

Paul Stich

HDR Advisory Committee

CORRECTION

The correct date for the orientation meeting is Thursday June 7, not Tuesday.

To that end, we have scheduled an Orientation / Training Meeting on Thursday June 7, 2012, 7:00 pm, at the Depot. Please come and help us.

Today’s work was finishing the soffit painting and installing flooring in the museum section. The new frame was added to the south ticket window.

We now have the visitor center in working condition but the museum section requires a lot of work and materials. Our bank account is very low and we must do some serious fund raising to continue the project. Please help out in any way you can.

The next work session will be on Saturday 6-6-2012.

STAFF NEEDED for the HDR VISITOR CENTER


Dear Depot Members & Supporters,



As you know, the Depot project reached a significant milestone last month in opening the north waiting room as a visitors' center. Many of you were there to share the moment, and we know the rest of you were with us in spirit.



While work on the remainder of the building continues, we are faced with the challenge of creating a functioning entity in the HDR Visitor Center. To accomplish that, we need your help.



Right now, we are open only two days a week (Wed. & Sat.), while the restoration projects are underway. Three members are doing the "lion's share" of greeting and talking to visitors about the building and its history, as well as staffing the sales counter. It is a low-key, enjoyable task, since only the one room is functioning.



However, with the summer months coming, and Rail Trail use increasing, we must expand the operating hours for the facility. We are asking those of you who can spare three (3) hours, one day a week, to volunteer your time. We plan to work in teams of two or three, with an experienced leader in each group.



To that end, we have scheduled an Orientation / Training Meeting on Thursday June 7, 2012, 7:00 pm, at the Depot. Please come and help us.



If you would like to help - whether you can be at the meeting or not - would you be kind enough to contact me ([email protected] / 845-226-7631) before the meeting date? I am making up information manuals for each volunteer, and I need to know how many to print.



Thanks,

Paul Stich

HDR Advisory Committee

A letter from the President

I want to take this opportunity to thank you for supporting our efforts in completing our goal of restoring the Hopewell Depot to the point of opening the Visitor’s Center in 15 months. Phase I was an exciting and intense work project with many milestones, such as roof structure replacement, new windows to let the light in after being closed for almost 30 years, and the installation of slate roofing. I also want to extend a sincere thanks to you as a volunteer. Without your dedicated work we would not had been able to complete Phase I in such a short time.

I would like to give you a brief history of the Depot restoration beginnings to the opening of the Visitor’s Center. In 1996, a small group of volunteers led by President Jerry Carey (1996 – 99), and Bernie Rudberg (2000 – 2010) laid the groundwork. The Town of East Fishkill set up a line of credit of $50,000 at Williams Lumber of which $23,000 was used to start the restoration and $27,000 became unavailable. Work progressed for several years repairing and replacing interior structures, then interest faded because of lack of money and the Depot deteriorated to the point that the roof was caving in. In the fall of 2010, Dutchess County announced that it was planning to demolish the building because it had become an eyesore to the development of the Dutchess Rail Trail. At that point, current President Rich Taylor worked on renewing interest and managed to convince the County to accept his plans for restoring the Depot. With new plans, a new building permit and faith in community support, a renewed effort resulted in the complete roof structure being replaced on January 15, 2011. Work continued with repairs and painting of exterior walls, new windows installed and the construction of a wrap around deck. As visible improvements became obvious, more community members became involved and donations started coming in from all over the country, as well as an additional $11,000 grant from East Fishkill. After 15 months of your hard work and dedication, working mainly on Saturdays and some Wednesdays, we were able to open one room as a Visitor’s Center. With Phase I completed, we are well on our way of completing Phase II in seven months, this will be the completion of the restoration and the opening to the public of the museum. For this to happen, we are looking for your support again in raising the needed $40,000 to complete Phase II. You did not fail in supporting us during Phase I and I strongly believe you will support us this time.

Lastly, we continue expanding our core of supporters – people and organizations who understand that the Hopewell Depot will help connect people of all ages and abilities with the history surrounding Hopewell Junction and its history related to the railroad industry.

Plenty remains to be done, but we are committed to restoring the Depot to its past glory and utilizing this great building to house a vast collection of historical items relating to Hopewell development.

Thank you for supporting and believing in this effort.

Rich Taylor, President HDRC

Most of today’s work went into building the frame for the east deck. Next step will be to add the deck surface.

Our fund raising and donations have dropped off considerably since the grand opening of the visitor center. Maybe some people thought we were done but actually we still have two thirds of the building waiting to be completed into a museum. We have the volunteer workers to do the physical work but we need funding to buy materials. Please help out any way you can. You can stop by the depot on a Wednesday or Saturday while we are working or you can send a donation to:

Hopewell Depot Restoration Corp.
P. O. Box 1044
Hopewell Junction., NY
12533-1044

Our next work session will be Saturday 6-9-12.

Despite morning showers, we finished some exterior trim and cleaned up the area on the east side of the depot. We also accepted three donated steel storage shelves for the construction materials and tools. When the afternoon weather improved, we had a number of visitors from the Rail Trail.

We talked to people from New Hampshire, Florida, Kansas, Oxford England and Liverpool England. We do meet some interesting people on the Rail Trail.



We are actively recruiting people to be part time tour guides for the Hopewell Railroads. There will be an informal training session tomorrow (Sunday 6-10) at the depot. If you are interested, stop around and get acquainted.



The next work session will be Wednesday 6-13-2012.