Albany Pump Station

Last updated
Quackenbush Pumping Station,
Albany Water Works
Albany Pump Station Panorama.jpg
East (front) elevation, 2011
Location Albany, NY
Coordinates 42°39′15″N73°44′53″W / 42.65417°N 73.74806°W / 42.65417; -73.74806 Coordinates: 42°39′15″N73°44′53″W / 42.65417°N 73.74806°W / 42.65417; -73.74806
Built1873 [1]
ArchitectEdward Ogden
NRHP reference No. 83001634
Added to NRHPJune 30, 1983

The Albany Pump Station, originally the Quackenbush Pumping Station of the Albany Water Works, is located in Quackenbush Square on Broadway in the city of Albany, New York, United States. It is a large brick building constructed in the 1870s and expanded later in the century.

Contents

It was built to pump municipal water from the nearby Hudson River, and continued in that use for 60 years. In 1983 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Today it has been partly converted into a popular local restaurant and brewpub, a reuse that drew an award from the Preservation League of New York State. [2] The beers have also received awards at the World Beer Cup and at the Great American Beer Festival. Another area of the building serves as the city of Albany's visitor center. [3]

Building

The pumphouse building complex is part of Quackenbush Square, a small pedestrian mall area named for the nearby Quackenbush House, one of the oldest buildings in Albany. It is located just off Broadway, on the east side of the street just north of, and visible from, the offramp that carries northbound traffic on US 9 from the Dunn Memorial Bridge and Interstate 787 to Clinton Avenue in the city.

Its main block is a two-story four-by-four-bay brick building with a hipped roof shingled in slate. Large elliptically-arched windows, doubled on the second story, fill the west (front) facade. They are trimmed with brick lintels, keystones and stone sills, separated by broad pilasters. [1] A large red sign saying "Albany Pump Station" is at the top of the facade, with "Brewpub and Restaurant" in smaller letters beneath.

A later northern extension is similar. To the south is a two-story brick building used as stables when originally constructed, with rounded windows in that section. A narrow extension protrudes from the north. [1]

Inside, little remains of the original use or equipment. [1] Renovations to create the restaurant, on the east side of the building, retained its industrial character but opened the interior space to create 40-foot (12 m) ceilings. Two 20-ton (18-tonne) cranes were retained and used to hoist the brewery's serving tanks to their current location. [4] The Albany Heritage Area Visitors Center, a gift shop and the Henry Hudson Planetarium are located along the south facade, on Quackenbush Square. [3]

History

Pumping station

Albany's water supply system had grown from wells at the current site of the state capitol in 1670 to several small reservoirs created by damming local creeks by the mid-19th century. The city's explosive growth around the time of the Civil War began to test and strain that network. Eventually the city's water commission decided it could meet present and future demand only by tapping the Hudson directly instead of relying on distant tributaries. [1]

In 1873 it bought land at the corner of Montgomery and Quackenbush streets. Local architect Edward Ogden designed the main block of the current building, and it was built later in the year. It had room for two steam-driven pumps that could move river water to Bleecker Reservoir (now Bleecker Stadium) west of the city. A neighboring house was demolished and a boiler house built on its site. [1]

Five years later, in 1878, it was supplemented by Prospect Hill Reservoir and another pumping station in the west of the city, to serve new neighborhoods growing there. The pump station was expanded in 1895, and again two years later, with the present wings added and another nearby house taken over for office use. Three more pumps were put in service, and the building complex had assumed its current form. [1]

The station continued to draw river water for the city for the next three decades. In 1935, Alcove Reservoir was built in the countryside south of the city, and Albany's water needs were finally satisfied for the long term. The station pumped its last water in 1937. [1]

Brewpub and restaurant

The station remained in city hands, and was used by the city's water department primarily as a storage facility after it was taken offline. Four decades after that, in 1977, it was extensively renovated. It continued to be used for storage, and suffered structural neglect and decline. [1]

In 1999, a local man named Neil Evans decided to resurrect the brewery his family had run downriver in Hudson, from 1786 to Prohibition. He started the C.H. Evans Brewing Company [4] and bought the building. When he renovated the space he insisted on retaining its industrial ambiance. It has become a popular spot due to its location just northeast of downtown. The following year the Preservation League of New York recognized it with an award for Project Excellence. [2]

Beer writer Lew Bryson has joined in, praising not only the brews on tap but the building, calling it "a great setting for a brewpub". He compares it to similar establishments in other cities located in former industrial buildings: "They're so solid, and so overengineered, that they seem to be the work of giants." [4] C.H. Evans Brewing Company at the Albany Pump Station's original brewmaster, George de Piro, twice won awards at the World Beer Cup:Munich Dunkel took a silver in 2008 in the European-Style Dark category, [5] and Kick-Ass Brown received a 2004 bronze in the American-Style Brown Ale category. [6] His Kick-Ass Brown also won the Gold Medal in the American-style Brown Ale category at the 2000, 2002 and 2008 Great American Beer Festival.

See also

Related Research Articles

Brewing in Oregon

The U.S. state of Oregon is home to more than 200 breweries and brew pubs that produce a large variety of beer.

Upland Brewing Company

Upland Brewing Company, founded in 1997, is a brewery in Bloomington, Indiana, United States. It is currently the third largest brewery in Indiana with a total of six locations across Central Indiana. Upland currently makes over 80 beers per year which include ales, lagers, and sour beers.

Triumph Brewing Company Regional brewpub operator

Triumph Brewing Company is a regional brewpub operator with locations in Princeton, New Jersey; Red Bank, New Jersey; New Hope, Pennsylvania; and formerly Philadelphia.

Rohrbach Brewing Company

Rohrbach Brewing Company (Rohrbach's) is a craft brewery in Rochester, New York, USA. Founded in 1991 by John and Patty Urlaub, Rohrbach Brewing Co. is Rochester's first craft brewery. The brewing company takes its name from Rohrbach, Germany, a small town that inspired its founder to bring craft beer to Rochester. The company first originated in the German House on Gregory Street, then grew into the two locations existing today–the production brewery on Railroad St. and Buffalo Rd. brewpub. Though the company has grown over the past 25 years, Rohrbachs has stayed true to its roots. You can only find Rohrbach beer in Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse, and their surrounding Upstate NY areas.

Quackenbush House United States historic place

Quackenbush House is a historic building in Albany, New York. It is a house with a double-pitched gable roof that was built in about 1736. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.

National Register of Historic Places listings in Albany, New York Wikimedia list article

There are 72 properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Albany, New York, United States. Six are additionally designated as National Historic Landmarks (NHLs), the most of any city in the state after New York City. Another 14 are historic districts, for which 20 of the listings are also contributing properties. Two properties, both buildings, that had been listed in the past but have since been demolished have been delisted; one building that is also no longer extant remains listed.

Moon River Brewing Company

Moon River Brewing Company is a brew pub, restaurant, bar and brewing facility located at 21 West Bay Street in Savannah, Georgia, United States.

Hook and Ladder No. 4 United States historic place

Hook and Ladder No. 4, originally Truck No. 4, is a firehouse located at Delaware Avenue in Albany, New York, United States. It is an elaborate brick structure in the Dutch Colonial Revival architectural style, designed by Albany architect Marcus T. Reynolds, and completed in 1912. In 2001 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

William Ulmer Brewery Landmarked buildings in Brooklyn, New York

The William Ulmer Brewery is a brewery complex in Bushwick, Brooklyn, New York City. It consists of four buildings—an office, a brew house, an engine–machine house, and a stable–storage house—all constructed between 1872 and 1890 in the German round-arch style. The site is bounded by Belvidere Street to the southeast, Beaver Street to the northeast, and Locust Street to the northwest, with the address 31 Belvidere Street. The main brew house, the engine–machine house, and the office building were designed by Brooklyn architect Theobald Engelhardt, while the stable–storage house was designed by Frederick Wunder.

The Mink Building is a five-story German-American style red brick structure at 1361-1369 Amsterdam Avenue between 126th and 128th Streets, in the Manhattanville neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, originally part of a large brewery complex. It is one of a few buildings that remain of a vast beer brewing industry in this area in the late 19th century, beer brewing was an industry as big as finance or real estate in the 21st century New York City. The site of the complex at 1361 Amsterdam Avenue in Manhattan - predating residential development in Harlem - was chosen due to its relative isolation at the time.

The production of beer in New Jersey has been in a state of recovery since Prohibition (1919-1933) and the Great Depression (1929-1945). Currently, the state has 123 licensed breweries: a large production brewery owned by an international beverage company, Anheuser-Busch InBev, and 122 independent microbreweries and 19 brewpubs. The growth of the microbreweries and brewpubs since the 1990s has been aided by the loosening of the state's licensing restrictions and strict alcohol control laws, many of which were a legacy of Prohibition.

Artisans Brewery

Artisan's Brewery is a brewpub in Toms River in Ocean County, New Jersey. The brewery opened to the public in 1997, and was originally known as Basil T's Brew Pub, being a second location for Basil T's Brewery in Red Bank. Artisan's was purchased by new owners in 2001, and assumed its current name in 2010. The brewery produces 300 barrels of beer per year.

Basil Ts Brewery

Basil T's Brewery was a brewpub in Red Bank in Monmouth County, New Jersey. In 1987 Victor Rallo Jr., his brother and late father opened and Italian restaurant, then converted into a brewpub 1996. The brewery opened a second location in Toms River in 1997, which was later sold and renamed Artisan's Brewery. The brewery produces 650 barrels of beer per year. In 2014 the owners re-opened as Birravino.

Tun Tavern Restaurant & Brewery is a brewpub in Atlantic City in Atlantic County, New Jersey. The brewery opened to the public in 1998 and was named for the historical Tun Tavern, a colonial establishment located in Philadelphia from 1685–1781. The brewery produced 550 barrels of beer in 2006.

Columbus Pump House

The Columbus Pump House, which is also known as the Columbus Power House and the Senior Center, was designed by the architect Harrison Albright and completed in 1903. It stands on the banks of the East Fork of the White River at the foot of Second Street in Columbus, Indiana, USA. In 2016, it was renovated to become a restaurant for the Upland Brewing Company. From 1903 to 1951, ws the city's water works and pumped water from the river for domestic use. It also produced electricity for the city's street lighting. The city sold the property in 1952 and it was renovated to become Southern Machine Company. With a 1976 renovation it became the "Senior Center", which used the building until 2011 when that group moved into the newly built Mill Race Center. It is currently a brewpub operated by Upland Brewing Company.

Beer in San Diego County, California Beer in San Diego, California

San Diego County, California, has been called "the Craft Beer Capital of America". As of 2018, the county was home to 155 licensed craft breweries – the most of any county in the United States. Based on 2016 sales volume, three San Diego County breweries – Stone, Green Flash, and Karl Strauss – rank among the 50 largest craft brewers in the United States. San Diego County brewers pioneered the specialty beer style known as Double India Pale Ale, sometimes called San Diego Pale Ale. Its beer culture is a draw for tourism, particularly during major festivals such as San Diego Beer Week and the San Diego International Beer Competition. San Diego County breweries including Stone Brewing Co., AleSmith Brewing Company and Ballast Point Brewing Company are consistently rated among the top breweries in the world.

Erie Brewing Company

The Erie Brewery Company is an American brewery in Erie, Pennsylvania. Founded as a brewpub in 1993, Erie Brewing transitioned to a full-time brewery in 1999. The brewery has won three medals from the Great American Beer Festival.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Larson, Neil (April 1983). "National Register of Historic Places nomination, Quackenush Pumping Station, Albany Water Works". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Archived from the original on December 10, 2011. Retrieved June 29, 2009.
  2. 1 2 "Preservation League of New York State Award Recipients 2000". Preservation League of New York State. Archived from the original on August 14, 2009. Retrieved June 30, 2009.
  3. 1 2 "Albany Heritage Area Visitors Center". City of Albany. 2008. Archived from the original on 2009-04-04. Retrieved June 30, 2009.
  4. 1 2 3 Bryson, Lew (2003). New York Breweries . Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. pp.  104–06. ISBN   978-0-8117-2817-1 . Retrieved June 30, 2009. Albany Pump Station.
  5. ↑ "2008 Brewers Association World Beer Cup Winners". World Beer Cup. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
  6. ↑ "World Beer Cup - 2004 Winners List". World Beer Cup. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.