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Newsletter - October
September flew by us here at Pickens General Store, so quickly in fact we didn't even have time to write a newsletter as some of you may have noticed. As mentioned in the August newsletter Heuvelton hosts the Labor Day celebrations locally with a parade, fireworks and other fun activities for the whole family. This year Pickens made a big showing at the Parade winning first place in the commercial float competition for the second year in a row! Mr. Picken's handsome face graced the page as the subject of a blue ribbon photograph entered in the annual Labor Day Art show.
On the store front Pickens General received a Restore New York Grant for $490,000 towards the completion of our 3rd floor which brings the Pickens Hall project to roughly 1.5 million dollars raised towards our goal. The store also began the long journey into restoring the second floor starting with the permanent arrangement of electric and gas utilities. Heuvelton itself is experiencing the switch over from its old bridge to a new temporary one lane bridge which was moved into place in mid September. With summer behind us now autumn is looking very promising for Heuvelton and Pickens General.
Autumn is a beautiful time of year in northern New York. The landscape seems to spark to flame as leaves flare gold and orange and then descend to cover the ground. Even our lifestyles seem to bend and sway to the changing season. Clothes get heavier, meals get heartier, and our men get up earlier in hopes of bagging the mythically large buck of their dreams. In this time of harvest, hard work and shorter days lead into the rush of holiday seasons so remember to relax and enjoy the cool air before it gets down right cold.
Pickens General Store is starting its fall season with a wonderful gift of $490,000 from the Restore New York Grants. The grant was applied for by the village of Heuvelton and written by the St. Lawrence Housing Council. This money will fund the restoration of the third floor Opera House Auditorium and Heuvelton Historical Association Museum space. Pickens Hall and The Heuvelton Historical Association have been recipients of one other Restore New York grant as well as a Main Street Grant and a large award from The Environmental Protection Fund which is administrated by the Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation, The Department of Environmental Conservation, and the Department of Agriculture and Markets. The HHA will be pushing to reach their fund raising goal of 2 million dollars, which is the estimated cost of restoration of Pickens Hall. They have proposed upcoming campaigns which will allow for naming opportunities including The Early Riser Campaign which puts out the call for leaders in the push for completion. As visitors ascend the grand front stairs of Pickens hall each stair riser will denote the generosity of these first patrons to donate.
Winter is a good time for furniture building because there are no fields to tend and fewer chores to see to. Quilts and furniture are made in time honored tradition by hand without the aiding hand of electricity. While winter is sometimes frustrating to the English (us), the Amish can see winter differently as hard work never ends for them; winter is the "slow time." The Day the Bridge Moved There has been nothing slow about the momentum of the Heuvelton Bridge Project. The rush to beat cold weather finally paid off when the village was ascended upon by two massive truck cranes from Frankfort New York loaded up with two truck loads each of counter weights. Seasoned crews and operators dropped the steel bridge structure into place in a matter of minutes. This new temporary bridge will serve the community as passage over the Oswegatchie for the next year until the old bridge is removed and a new one is constructed in its place. As this momentous occasion drew near the street corners on either side of the bridge grew crowded. The Heuvelton Veneer Mills temporarily shut down so that it's crew could watch the temporary bridge move from its assembling point on the old bridge up and over the rail and down onto cement bases constructed for it.
The Pickens Hall second and third floor windows facing south over the river offered front row seats to the actions but the expensive seats were up on the roof. A small gathering of Pickens staff and family gathered on the rubber membrane roof under supervision of manager Mike Hebert and watched crane booms that seem to scratch the sky as they moved in a choreographed dance. It was all in a days work for these operators who move thousand pound objects everyday.
Mr. Pickens The Halloween Cat I, Mr. Pickens am the resident cat at Pickens General Store. As you all know Halloween has long since been a time for monsters and ghosts, jack-o-lanterns, candy, and the occasional witch on a broom. As a black cat I have come to embrace this ghoulish holiday. I am a trickster by nature and can be no other than a Halloween Cat. My joy is immense to slink slowly through furniture watching your every move, waiting for the right moment to jump out and give you the fright of you life. When you walk down Heuvelton’s main street in the evening hours do you feel eyes on your back, making the hairs on your neck stand up? Perhaps you have forgotten to check the windows at Pickens General Store for the golden-eyed Halloween cat. I love tricks and I love treats, this holiday and I were made for each other. So when all you little goblins and ghosties are out this October 31st remember to think like the Halloween cat because everyone knows Halloween cats have the most fun!
Talk To Us! Since we are so very new at this whole newsletter process we invite our readers so send in letters, suggestions, ideas, or questions. Pickens General Store is the central hub to a number of things all taking place in Heuvelton N.Y. including the Heuvelton Historical Association, beautification and rejuvenation of local community and finding the simple joys and rewards of small town living. So please share with us by mail at: *Or by Email at bhebert@pickensgeneral.org. |
