Green Hotel STILL Threatened!

Update: It's gone.

http://www.nj.com/gloucester-county/index.ssf/2015/04/pre-demolition_work_underway_at_green_hotel.html

http://www.nj.com/gloucester-county/index.ssf/2014/08/woodbury_approves_demolition_of_victorian-era_green_hotel.html

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URGENT!!

Holy Angels Parish overseen by the Diocese of Camden will yet again attempt to apply for demolition for the historic Green Castle Hotel located at 85 Cooper Street in Woodbury, NJ. Your help is needed! The last thing Woodbury needs is more surface parking!

You will have an opportunity to speak out against this intended action in person at the following times:

Holy Angels Parish will appear before the City of Woodbury's Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) on 8/13/2014 at 7pm.

HPC's decision is then turned over to the joint Planning/Zoning Board which will meet on: 8/20/2014 at 7pm.

Please also consider sending polite but firm emails to the City of Woodbury Mayor and Council stating that you are against demolition:

Mayor: Bill Volk Tracey L. Parker	BVolk@woodbury.nj.us (856) 845-1300 ext. 137 Tparker@woodbury.nj.us
Lester Lockman	LLockman@woodbury.nj.us
Danielle Carter	DCarter@woodbury.nj.us
David Trovato	DTrovato@woodbury.nj.us
Theodore Johnson, Jr.	TJohnson@woodbury.nj.us
William H. Fleming	BFleming@woodbury.nj.us
Heather S. Tierney	HTierney@woodbury.nj.us
Richard Hock	RHock@woodbury.nj.us
David Swanson	DSwanson@woodbury.nj.us

In addition please contact the Parish and Diocese and tell them you are against demolition:

Holy Angels Parish

64 Cooper Street

Woodbury, NJ

08096

Phone: 856-845-0123 

Fax: 856-845-7409

Email: mail@holyangelsnj.org 

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Diocese of Camden 

631 Market Street

Camden, NJ 

08102 

Phone: 856-756-7900 

Fax: 856-963-2655

and of course

Bishop Dennis Sullivan
510 Cooper Street
Woodbury, NJ
08096

Tell the Catholic church that they should be more concerned with building communities and not in tearing them down! "Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set." - Proverbs 22:28

Progress or Regress?

The subtitle of this post could very well be: How to Start Your City's Downward Spiral with One Fell Swoop. I have blogged about the loss of the Lewis M. Green mansion before but some recent historic artifacts were turned over to me that once again sparked my dismay over the whole matter. The outcome of the senseless demolition still affects us today and we should really take note.

 In 1869, Lewis M. Green, a five-term Mayor of Woodbury, NJ, had built for the pride of the city a magnificent four story residence of handmade pressed brick, featuring 10 bedrooms, walnut floors, French glass windows, gas lit crystal chandeliers, white marble steps, wrought iron trim, and formal gardens across from the Town Hall at the corner of German (now Barber) and Broad, the most public street in town. After many happy years in the community, the mansion was sold to Gulf Oil Corporation in 1944 and promptly torn down for a gas station. Don't believe me? Let's have Gulf Oil tell the story for you. Here is the postcard they sent out to Woodbury residents (this particular one to G.G. Green, Jr.) announcing the "great" news!

Front

Back

In case you don't believe your eyes, let me transcribe what the back of that postcard actually says. For added effect, try reading the following in your best 1940's narrator-voice... you know, the same voice that told you to "Duck and Cover" in case of a nuclear bomb blast in your area.

"Do you recognize this picture? 

Yes, it's the corner of Broad Street and Barber Avenue as it looked not so long ago. Now this familiar landmark has given way to the construction of a modern "One Stop" Service Station and Merchandising Center. When completed, we know you'll be proud of this modern addition to Broad Street. Watch for the opening date announcement. 

Gulf Oil Corporation"

There's a word for this sort of candy-coated corporate public relations nonsense... it's called "bullshit."

The lesson? Let's take away that not all "progress" is very progressive when you consider the future health of your community, especially when it calls for eliminating proud historic structures from the urban fabric, negatively impacting the quality of life for everyone. I would LOVE to sit down today with the very folks at Gulf Oil, city leaders and citizens in 1944 who sat back and let the Green Mansion "give way" for "modernity." Mostly I would want to know how that worked out for them. Did they make that killer profit!? I have said that an ounce of forethought is worth a pound of future investment, and apparently no one in 1944 had even close to an ounce.

I heard a great story recently of an 85 year old lifelong Woodbury resident standing up to City Council in the late 1970s when they proposed to return the brick sidewalk and decorative streetlamps along Broad Street. His statement was simple, "You might call this progress, but we had all of this and more when I was a kid. Why did the city rip it all out in the first place?" I think it's wonderful to recognize that certain actions were bad in the long run, such as originally removing the brick pavement and decorative streetlamps the first time around, but by then the damage is done and I'm certain that what has replaced the originals is a second rate knockoff, an insincere fake.

So the next time you hear someone argue the senseless destruction of quality urban fabric in the name of "progress," question that it will not ultimately be in the name of regress. I've said it before, the art of a good preservationist is concerned more so with the future and for the quality of life for residents in the "here and now" and for generations to come. It should alarm every one of us that America is starting to look like a substandard, plastic-wrapped, third-world country. This affects us all, whether you want to see the bigger picture or not.

Top: circa 1900 Mayor Lewis M. Green's mansion on Broad, a place worth caring about
Bottom: Same location now, the curb cut between the Bottom Dollar and the Rite Aid
(both currently vacant buildings, humorously enough)

Do we really wonder why we can't attract new residents, customers, and businesses to the area when these are our aesthetics... fake windows, unwelcoming storefronts, and MORE setback parking lots? The bottom photo does nothing to inspire the soul.

___________________

Many folks are quick to blame the current climate of politics, etc. for the ills of the world today, but the truth is that things were set in motion after WWII in America that has lead us to today. Since roughly the 1940's, all across America, seemingly nothing better has replaced what was torn down for "progress." The Lewis M. Green mansion stood for 75 years, the cheap plastic gas station that replaced it only lasted about 30 and then a vacant lot stood there for nearly the same amount of time. The Rite Aid business that eventually replaced the gas station lasted about 20 years... are we getting the picture, yet!? We are constructing increasingly worthless buildings, housing increasingly worthless enterprises.

Today, many studies show that the auto-centric "modernizing" of America through horizontal development (sprawl) has had devastating effects to our once proud towns and cities. The effects reveal themselves through crime, anti-socialism, depression, segregation, isolation, and more. "Anybody who travels back and forth across the Atlantic has to be impressed with the differences between European cities and ours, which makes it appear as if World War Two actually took place in Detroit and Washington rather than Berlin and Rotterdam." - JHK. Do not Americans deserve better?

Progress should be measured over time, and the demolition of the Lewis M. Green mansion certainly did not progress the city, but rather I would argue the opposite holds. By tearing down that mansion and other proud buildings during the same time period, Woodbury entered an age of blight. Holes or "missing teeth" from senseless demolition and an over-catering to the automobile were beginning to form downtown which eroded its walkable functionality and aesthetic appeal. Coupled with the growing trend of suburban flight, it was a one-two-punch that has left Woodbury reeling.

Lewis Morris Green Mansion in a wintry photo from 1898

Moving forward we must realize that our actions today WILL affect future generations. It's not all about the immediate rewards... how about some forward-thinking? A single action in the past, by a single-minded person (or corporation) can deprive all future generations from enjoying a better quality of life and experiencing our American Heritage in the form of our proud local landmarks.

"Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set." - Proverbs 22:28

The dreaded For Sale ad!

Thanks for nothing, GULF Oil!

Below: some rare photos of the mantels that once adorned and warmed the interior of the Lewis M. Green mansion.

Paschal Medara: Woodbury's Victorian Architect

An original envelope showing the inscription of Allen & Medara

Not much is known about Woodbury's own 19th century architect and builder, Mr. Paschal Medara, yet some of his wonderful buildings still inspire us today. He was described in 1910 as "an architect of rare ability" having planned the city's "most prominent buildings." Even to this day anyone who passes through Woodbury has most likely laid eyes on his creations in the form of the Green Opera House block on Broad (recently restored by RPM Development) and the Green Laboratory on Green Avenue (Woodbury Mews). Medara's other buildings that have been lost to the ages continue to live through historic photographs and lithographs and have appeared worldwide in 19th and 20th century issues of Green's August Flower Almanac.

Odd Fellows Hall

In the mid-1840's, Paschal's father, Jacob was involved with Woodbury in part as a building committee and was responsible for the erection of the now demolished Odd Fellows Hall formerly on Cooper Street. Perhaps it was through this involvement that his son became interested in the creation of grand civic buildings roughly 30 years later. Whatever the case, Paschal Medara came to be - one could consider- the personal architect to Woodbury's multimillionaire family, the Greens. Having designed both Lewis and George G. Green's palatial mansions (pictured below) he also designed, among many others, the lab and opera house, as mentioned above and most likely the Merritt's Drugstore corner building commissioned by G.G. How this relationship with the Green family developed is unclear but records show interestingly enough that both Medara and G.G. Green were in Company E, 6th Regiment of the National Guard; Medara a Corporal, G.G. a Captain (later Colonel). According to New Jersey Civil War Gravestones website, Paschal Medara was also a Union Civil War US Navy Seaman who served aboard the USS Catskill.

A feature on Medara in the 1878 issue of the Green's Almanac

Paschal Medara's obituary notice in the Jul 30 1910
issue of the Woodbury Daily Times

Paschal now lies quietly beside his mother and father (Lydia Ann Dilks and Jacob R. Medara) in the Mantua Cemetery, his accomplishments nearly forgotten. Although very few associate his name with the buildings, I like to think that he would be happy to know that his laboratory and his opera house have been restored in recent years, much to the pride of his old hometown.

Paschal Medara's gravestone

Let's take a look at some of his astounding creations:

Medara's Gray Towers mansion for G.G.Green
Learn everything about the mansion HERE

Medara's Gray Towers is featured in the seminal reference book:
A Field Guide to American Houses

Medara's Italianate mansion for Mayor Lewis Morris Green

Medara's Laboratory for the Greens.
It was a state of the art lab/factory with bottling rooms, printing press, offices, etc.

... and don't forget the grand stable house in the rear of the lab

Medara's Opera House block.
He may have designed the church in the rear as well

Medara's Drugstore Corner Block

Medara's architectural creations live on
through the MANY Green Almanacs
and August Flower sales materials

Result of True Merit

Preservation Potentials: Green Castle Hotel

Very excited to present the latest Preservation Potential! A once lovely 1880 building chock full of history and potential is up for sale. The building has been under threat of demolition and this could be a chance in a lifetime to save it whilst investing in this historically scenic gateway into Woodbury. Situated on the corner of Cooper and Railroad, the former Victorian-era hotel built by a 5-term mayor, Lewis M. Green is located across from a successful cafe-style restaurant and a few steps from the active Priya art gallery! It will also be nearby the planned light rail stop which is in development now. The building needs some restorative work but the bones are good! The potential is enormous! This spot would be an amazing coffee shop, arts center, museum, storefront, bed and breakfast... you name it! Original exterior window shutters as shown on the photo below are currently stored in the basement. Available grants for restoration funding are available to non-profits. Also because the property is a contributing building in the New Jersey Register of Historic Places' Green Era District potential grant aid is available. More information HERE.

From the listing: The subject property is a combination two and three story building with a partial basement. The Owner has authorized the sale of the building, subject to the City of Woodbury approving a formal minor subdivision plan creating a lot with the building on it of approximately 45' x 90'; this will result in a non-conforming lot requiring a variance(s). The Owner will consider a license for the land retained by the Owner for a buyer's adjacent on site ingress and egress as well as parking use under terms and conditions to be determined by the Owner. The building contains approximately 24 rooms with various bathrooms and kitchen areas. The total estimated gross building area is 5,348 SF. The building is in need of complete restoration and remodeling both inside and out. It is the intent of the Owner to have the building restored by and investor or user. The proposed sale is part of Block 118 Lot 27. Real Estate taxes would be determined after an approved subdivision. Located in the Historic District.

Offered at $250,000! 

Full listing HERE.

For the back story visit HERE and HERE.

Rare Photo: Cooper Street West from Railroad

Thanks to an anonymous tip, I recently came into possession of an extremely rare personal photo of Woodbury. On the back of the photo written in pencil is: "West from Rail Road Woodberry New Jersey." The photo clearly shows the 1881 Green Castle Hotel and across from that, an empty lot which would later in 1909 become the site of the Saint Patrick's Roman Catholic Church. The photo is estimated to be circa 1900.

Also notice the Vanneman residence (Cooper Street Greenhouse) across from the empty lot on the opposite (NW) corner of Cooper and Euclid before the construction of the Daniel Steelman residence replaced it circa 1907. In 1964, 94-year-old I. Hampton Williams recalled the Vanneman Greenhouses had an actual banana tree growing inside (Hoelle, 1964). The Steelman residence, which still stands today became the rectory of St. Patrick's Church in 1957.

I will be donating the image to the Gloucester County Historical Society shortly so that they may properly preserve the photograph and so that members may enjoy the original.


Circa 1900 Cooper Street West from Railroad. Click for larger.

 

1880 ad for Cooper Street Greenhouse
 



October 14th, 1903 WDT article announcing the sale of the  long empty lot which would later become the site for St. Patrick's Church across from the Green Hotel

 

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Hoelle, E. (Ed.). (2005). Vignettes of "historic Woodbury". Woodbury, NJ: Gloucester County Historical Society.

Green Hotel Selected for Preservation NJ's 2013 10 Most Endangered List

image: Denise
Henhoeffer/Courier-Post

Very excited to announce that the Green Hotel located at the corner of Cooper and Railroad Avenue has been selected for this years 10 Most Endangered List from Preservation NJ. For the back story which began way back in February, 2012 see my earlier post. We hope the listing brings the current owners extra resources and help to work with saving this important historic structure in our downtown!

Whereas, historic preservation has been proven an effective tool for revitalizing neighborhoods, fostering local pride and maintaining community character while enhancing livability, we believe a restored Green Hotel will help fortify a strong gateway into the City of Woodbury and help spearhead further preservation efforts. Saving the Green Hotel is quite literally the environmentally green choice. Rehabilitating old buildings keeps existing materials out of landfills and eliminates the energy consumption that the process of demolition, landfilling, the production of new materials, and new construction necessitates. Demolishing the hotel for the creation of a parking lot was the original desire of the Holy Angels Parish, the buildings current stewards. It has been repeatedly shown that eliminating traditional downtown density damages the aesthetic quality, walkability, and vibrancy of urban areas; such as when buildings are replaced by parking lots. In addition we believe saving a locally important historic building is completely aligned with Main Street Woodbury's latest branding: Arts. History. Home.

 

Local Press Coverage:

Philadelphia Inquirer: Trying to rejuvenate Woodbury a building at a time

South Jersey Times: Nonprofit lists Woodbury, Camden sites as 'most endangered' in state

Courier Post: Preservation group aims to save structures

Times of Trenton: N.J.'s Top 10 Most Endangered Historic Places 2013 list includes Sandy damaged communities, sites in 8 counties

From Preservation NJ's press release:  

PRESERVATION NEW JERSEY'S 2013 10 MOST ENDANGERED

  

TRENTON, NJ - In recognition of National Preservation Month, Preservation New Jersey, Inc. (PNJ) announced its 19th annual list of the 10 Most Endangered Historic Places in New Jersey.

The 10 Most Endangered Historic Places program spotlights irreplaceable historic, architectural, cultural and archeological resources in New Jersey that are in imminent danger of being lost. Unique this year, the list includes 11 entries: 10 places, and one issue that endangers historic resources statewide. The act of listing these resources acknowledges their importance to the heritage of New Jersey and draws attention to the predicaments that endanger their survival and the survival of historic resources statewide. The list, generated from nominations by the public, aims to attract new perspectives and ideas to sites in desperate need of creative solutions.

  

10 Most Endangered Historic Places list are based on the likelihood that historic buildings and places can be brought back to useful and productive life. PNJ proudly points to many properties previously listed among the 10 Most Endangered that have now been saved and preserved or rehabilitated, and have once again become character-defining assets to New Jersey’s communities.

  

As always, selections to the 2013 10 Most Endangered list are based on three criteria:

• historic significance and architectural integrity,
• the critical nature of the threat identified, and
• the likelihood that inclusion on the list will have a positive impact on efforts to protect the resource

Founded in 1978, Preservation New Jersey is a nonprofit organization that helps homeowners, organizations, public officials and citizen advocates working to preserve the historic neighborhoods and sites that are important to our communities. Preservation New Jersey produces this annual list of New Jersey's 10 Most Endangered Historic Places in addition to other advocacy programs; provides educational workshops; publishes a monthly online newsletter, interactive website, and blog; serves as a resource for technical assistance and general advice for the public; and addresses legislation and public policies that impact New Jersey's historic places and communities.

  

Visit Preservation New Jersey’s websites at www.preservationnj.org and www.pnj10most.org for more information regarding the organization and the 10 Most Endangered program.

J. E. Jackson and his Pleasant Diarrhea Cure

Apparently the Green family wasn't the only ones in on the patent medicine trade in Woodbury, NJ. Although Lewis Green started his interest in the trade sometime before 1872, the earliest date I could uncover for Jackson was April 1st, 1884 when he patented his Dr. L. Burdick's Never-Failing Kidney Cure, after he secured rights to Dr. Burdick's formula. On October 5th 1886 J. E. Jackson filed for a U.S. Patent for his Pleasant Diarrhea Cure. He was also listed as having lived in Mullica Hill, but must have relocated to Woodbury at some point, and after that, Asbury Park, NJ. He also manufactured what appears to have been a fairly popular cough syrup called Magnum Bonum. It was reported that he ran his patent medicine business and laboratory out of the old Woodbury Town Hall, which was located on the SE corner of Broad and German (now Barber). His storefront was located along the Barber Avenue side. I can only speculate that he had his bottles made at Green's glass works, the source of Green's own patent medicine bottles. They do appear very similar in color and style.

The title "Doctor" is often associated with Jackson, the Green's, and in fact, most patent medicine vendors at the time, but most likely this was completely honorary. It is no wonder the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 was passed as it mandated proper labeling forcing companies to expose the many times secret ingredients that were previously not labeled in their formulas; ingredients such as alcohol, cocaine, heroin, morphine, and cannabis. In many cases these medicines were often some form of herbalized laudanum.

Mysteriously on February 25th, 1895, Dr. Jackson was reported missing. Perhaps he went on some sort of laudanum fueled bender having tasted a bit too much of his own medicine, we may never know. This is all I could find on the matter:

Eventually he popped back up however when and why he left his satchel and overcoat behind must remain a mystery. After his time in Woodbury, the Jackson family relocated to Asbury Park sometime prior to 1905 and purchased the brick block of three stores and apartments, 620 to 628 along Mattison Avenue.

On June 5th, 1918 Jackson's death was reported in the Woodbury Daily Times:

Gray Towers: Part Three

Welcome to Part Three of the story of Woodbury's palatial estate, Gray Towers. The ending to this veritable fairy tale is not a happy one. So let us first visit some of the more positive recollections pertaining to G. G. Green and his mansion of blue gray stone that once stood on Cooper Street.

Once upon a time, Green provided jobs to as many as 600 locals between his two glass factories and patent medicine laboratory alone (Pepper, 1971). In 1888, as president of the Board of Trade, Green successfully attempted to invite new industry to Woodbury by convincing Council to waive local taxes for five years for new industries (Woodbury, 1988). The general local impression of the Green family was one of favorable disposition judging from the many editorials published in the Woodbury Daily Times, Woodbury Constitution, and other local newspapers of the time. It was written in 1925 that his "success in business seemed to intensify his desire to advance the interests of the town of his choice. Very few men succeed as Col. Green has succeeded. Few would have remained to live in a town which was at that time only a little country village. But he had a vision of a great future for Woodbury and made that vision practical by casting his lot here permanently." Even down to Green's residence, the palace of Gray Towers itself was viewed as a source of pride to Woodbury and symbolically represented the "result of true merit;" G. G. Green's very words.

Like so many others in his position however, this self-made multimillionaire did not reclusively hideaway in his towering mansion. He contributed generously to the civic well-being of his home town and in addition, served on City Council, was Director of the First National Bank, was vice-president of the Woodbury Country Club, and was a Trustee to his alma mater, the Pennington Seminary, which he donated graciously to in his lifetime. These are just a few of his extracurricular activities. Some of the lighter memories of G. G., which help to paint a vivid picture of this Victorian businessman include his generous yearly opening of his lushly decorated private railcar to tour, his conservatory of fine plants which was periodically open to the public, and it is often told that he used to bring fresh candied apples down to the children ice skating on his lake. His grounds and lake were open to the public and welcomed. The following is a wonderful description of G. G.'s social impact on Woodbury taken from Carter and Carpenter's History of Woodbury from 1681 to 1936:

Colonel Green’s Tally-ho

Amid all the struggle to develop a growing city there was an occasional flash of color. One was when Dr. Green’s great coach and four, the Tally-ho, with driver on a high seat and horn pealing, drove through the streets and country side, and the other when his nineteen salesmen returned for their yearly conference. On at least one night they were entertained at the home of their employer and always observed the rule to be dressed in swallow tail suits adorned with tall silk hats. And what old resident does not remember Colonel Green’s “palace car” which stood on the siding at the railroad station preceding and following the winter migration of Colonel Green and his family to Pasadena?

Every year, G. G. and family hosted a grand fete champetre at Gray Towers for his employees and their families in honor of their hard work and dedication. Swallowtail suits and high silk hats were de rigueur for the party (Pepper, 1971). The first of these large scale events occurred on September 2nd, 1878 and featured a feast of food, a live band, fireworks over the lake, and what appears to be miniature hot air balloons! The house and grounds were festively decorated with Chinese lanterns, and judging from the illustration that appeared in the New York Daily Graphic paper (see below illustration), it appears to have been an absolutely beautiful affair.

At one point, G. G. owned 3 (excluding his other real estate holdings) extravagant residences: Gray Towers, Kil Kare Castle in Lake Hopatcong, NJ, and an Arts and Crafts style mansion in Altadena, CA; a town in which he helped build. However, it was Gray Towers in Woodbury that he truly called home and on February 21st, 1925 G. G. Green joined the heavenly choir and died within his blue stone mansion on Cooper Street. "Unlike many a man of wealth remembered only for profligate eccentricities or penny-pinching exploitation, Green was an innovator who transformed and benefitted communities and industries that came within his orbit." (Pepper, 1971)  He was buried at the Eglington Cemetery at nearby Clarksboro, NJ.


G.G. Green in Gray Towers Woodbury, NJ
photo credit: Lake Hopatcong Historical Museum

Kil Kare Castle on Mount Harry
Lake Hopatcong, NJ

G. G. Green Mansion Altadena, CA

G. G.'s widow, Angie Brown Green remained at the residence until her death in 1934. Afterwards, the mansion remained in the family in an uninhabited state until August 1943 when the St. Patrick's Parish under Rev. James McKeever purchased the building for potential use as a parochial grade school (which became the St. Patrick's School). Adaptive reuse was virtually unheard of in 1943 and we should applaud the parish at that time for an early attempt at reusing a grand Victorian mansion for a use other than what it was designed for. However, the historic preservationist in me can't help but feel shocked at what resulted architecturally in creating a parochial school out of a grand second empire mansion. But let's face it, they purchased a historic building that was not protected during a time when Victorian architecture was viewed as pompous and over-ornate. It seems that the 1940's were hard on Woodbury Victorians as that is when the city also lost the equally magnificent Lewis M. Green mansion (Woodbury's mayor 5 times over) on Broad Street. It wasn't until the 1970's when things nationally began to turn in favor of saving historic buildings and not until the 1980's when the protective historic districts were setup in Woodbury. I might add that still we must see historic structures torn down without much of a fight.

How I wish that someone in the city in 1943 had the forethought to recognize the massive potential for Woodbury in purchasing and restoring Gray Towers as a tourist attraction or museum in honor of the single most important family in Woodbury history, save the Woods themselves.

  

But that never happened. Instead, the third and fourth story ornate and rare S-curved mansard roof, towers, and wraparound porches were torn off, effectively changing Gray Towers into a gray stone box. Further architecturally bland box additions were added to the building in 1953 and 1961; a classic "remuddling." Mouse over the below image for a dramatic before and after of the West side entry. 


place your mouse over the image above to see
the dramatic "remuddling" of the West side of Gray Towers in the 1940s
or see below:



G. G. Green Jr. himself remarked that it was like, "going into another world" and on a return visit, Robert Luba with Blanche and Gay Green remarked that, "The mansion and grounds which were once beautiful are now in terrible shape. It was a shame to see how beautiful they were and how rundown they are now." But at least the core of the building still stood for a time, allowing for a hint at its former glory. That all changed however, on May 21st 1968, when a 3-hour blaze fought by over 100 firefighters left the mansion "in ruins."

Catholic Star Herald May 31, 1968

Gone but not forgotten

The memory of Gray Towers lives on with the many photographs and engravings that appeared throughout G. G. Green's Almanac publications and promotional materials dating from 1877 through to the 1920's. The stable house, which became the parish convent, remains as a sole reminder of the once beautiful estate that graced the corner of Cooper and Green. In 1984, a definitive resource for notable American architecture, the Field Guide to American Houses featured Gray Towers in their Second Empire section noting the unique cupola with metal cresting atop the rare S-curved mansard construction. There was only one Gray Towers on the planet and it is now gone forever; a brilliant flash in the pan during a time when Americans prided themselves in glorious architectural magnificence. Is there a lesson to be learned here? I hope so.

The End.

READ Part ONE: HERE

READ Part TWO: HERE

Carriage House and Coachmen's Residence w/Gray Towers in Background
This thankfully still stands and Holy Angels Parish is currently fixing the exterior!

*A very special thank you to Scott Drake, great great grandson of G. G. Green who has generously shared his collection of memorabilia and family memories. Without his help the information presented here could not have been so thorough. Even though he is currently far from Woodbury, he has not lost interest in the city, both in its history and its progress. Thank you, Scott!

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The below image is a 2012 aerial map image with a 1930 B&W aerial inset of Gray Towers showing approximate location of where the mansion sat. The Gray Towers' stable house (still standing) is shown just left of the inset box, the old Woodbury Station is shown upper left corner at the intersection of Cooper and Railroad.

1902 Sanborn map showing carriage house on left
and Gray Towers on right.

__________________________________

Carter, B. F., Carpenter, J. D., & Stewart, F. H. (1938). History of Woodbury, New Jersey, from 1681 to 1936. [Woodbury, N.J.: Gloucester County Pub. Co.]

Col. G. G. Green passes away. (1925, Feb 26). Gloucester county democrat

Green mansion purchased by St. Patrick's parish as site of parochial school. (1943, Sept 9). Gloucester county times

McAlester, V., & McAlester, L. (1984). A field guide to American houses. (p. 251). New York, NY: Knopf.

Pepper, A. (1971). The glass gaffers of New Jersey. (p. 194). New York, NY: Charles Scribner's Sons.

3-hr. blaze damages St. Patrick's school; all classes called off. (1968, May 22). Gloucester county times

Woodbury Multiple Resource Area: Partial Inventory of Historical and Architectural Resources, nomination document, 1988, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places, Washington, D.C.