Wassaic, the town that gets robbed of daylight

Wassaic, New York, is situated between two mountains - one on the East, and one on the West.  Wassaic is actually a hamlet, and is part of the town of Amenia.   This cozy little place nestled in this valley apparently gets the least amount of sunlight of any place in the lower 48 states.  The sun rose about 5:20 the day I took this photo, which was taken about 7:10 am.  The sun was just poking over the mountain and you can see that most things in town are still in shadow.  That will be repeated in the afternoon.  Probably not a good place to be if you are afflicted with SAD.  I like to visit Wassaic with my camera(s), and every time I have been there, the light has been different.  An Amtrak line runs through the town and you can pick up the train nearby and be in New York City in about 2 hours.  Wassaic is also the place where condensed milk was first manufactured, and the former Borden plant still stands, now converted to other uses.  The remains of lime kilns are on a hillside overlooking the town, and they were used long ago in a nascent iron industry.

June 24, 2016, Svema FN-64, Nikon FG

June 24, 2016, Svema FN-64, Nikon FG

 One cannot drive through here without being impressed by the mill-like structure next to the RR tracks. Formerly the Maxon Mill, it has been renovated into an arts center by the Wassaic Project. The Wassaic Project is quite the progressive change for an old mill, and it is a hub of art activity in the area. Visit The Wassaic Project for more information.

June 24, 2016, expired Plus-X, Nikon FM2N

June 24, 2016, expired Plus-X, Nikon FM2N

June 24, 2016 - Svema FN-64, Nikon FG

October, 2015, Ilford HP-5+, Leica M2.

October, 2015 - Lime Kiln, Ilford HP-5+, Leica M2.

October, 2014, Wittner Chrome

October 2015, WittnerChrome

October, 2015,  Wittner Chrome

October, 2015, Wittner Chrome

October, 2015, Wittner Chrome

March, 2014, The Borden factory.  Arista Ultra 100

Built in 1861, this was the first condensed milk plant, located in Wassaic, NY.  Noah Gridley, convinced Gail Borden to build his plant in Wassaic.  The building is now owned by the Pawling Corp., and they maintain a visitor's center there.

March, 2014. Inside the Lime Kiln. Arista Ultra 100.

March, 2014. Arista Ultra 100.   Scan of a print. 

The old Maxon Mill is quite photogenic, and is now a functioning art center, thanks to the Wassaic project.

As you can see, this is more of a photo essay than my usual ramblings on cameras.  I have been on quite a few photo trips lately, and am trying to produce more posts like these.   Why Wassaic, since I live in Michigan?  My wife Adrienne is from Amenia, NY, so whenever we visit family, I try and spend a bit of time photographing the area.  It was not until the spring of 2014 that I realized Wassaic was so interesting, so I have no older images from way back. I wish I had been doing this kind of photography 38 years ago!

Wassaic, NY

Earlier this month, Adrienne and I went out East to visit family as well as my visit to Yale for a conference. It was a bit warmer there than in Ann Arbor, so I was eager to go out and do some exploration and shooting. We drove over to the "hamlet of Wassaic", which is about 5 miles from the farm house where Adrienne's mother still lives.  I forget how beautiful and wonderful it is to have mountains and valleys, having lived in Michigan for 33 years.  Dutchess County, NY  is filled with small communities and is quite rural over much of the county.  However, its only a couple of hours by train from New York, and Wassaic is the N terminus for the commuter line that goes into the big city.  Located in a valley surrounded by mountains, it is said that the community has the least amount of sunlight as the mountains flank it on the East and West.    Despite its small size, it once housed the first evaporated milk plant, built by Borden in 1861.  That building still stands, and is owned by the Pawling Corporation, which has a visitor's center there.  Wassaic has a vibrant arts scene, as evidenced by the former Maxon Mill, which has been concerted to an amazing artists' space with galleries and studios.  The Wassaic Project looks to be a pretty cool thing, and if I lived nearby, I would certainly look into it.
It was a thawing March day, which was a relief from Michigan's weather.  We drove around and Adrienne also enjoyed seeing things she overlooked while growing up so close by.  It is true that we take so many things for granted when we are young, and going back to a place much later is like seeing it for the first time. I shot with my Nikon F100 mostly using my 24-120 Nikkor AF zoom with Tri-X and Arista Ultra 100 (perhaps Fomapan?).  The film was developed in D76 and scanned.   I am pretty happy with what I got there in such a short time.  It would be nice to go back when things are green and see more.

Gridley Chapel

The Mill

The Mill

yes, a train runs through it.

Outside the old lime kilns

the Mill

Inside the lime kiln

this place just wants to be photographed

inside the lime kiln.

outside the lime kiln

the old Borden evaporated milk plant.