by Bill Batson The building in Haverstraw that was the subject of Edward Hopper’s 1925 painting “House by the Railroad” still stands proud.  The haunting depiction of the three story house by Hopper came to […]

by Bill Batson The man who built this house, with labor coerced from slaves, laid the foundation for the village we occupy. Since his death in 1842, John Green’s house has had many owners and […]

by Bill Batson Not every beautiful old house in Nyack merits its own historic marker. For other properties, the traditional historic marker is not a loud enough shout out. Clearly, there are many addresses that […]

by Bill Batson This is the house where Martin Luther King would have slept. Were it not for an assassin in Memphis in 1968, our nation’s Nobel Peace Prize winning champion of nonviolence would have […]

by Bill Batson Until recently, painters in Nyack were second-class artisans. Nyack’s musicians could fine-tune their instruments at Long Island Drum Center. Local writers could always haunt the stacks at Pickwick Book Shop. Our thespians […]

by Bill Batson In 1884, Nyack, NY was a bustling river community and the commercial heart of Rockland County. This sketch is from a widely circulated map made by L. R Burleigh in that year […]

December 28, 2011 by Bill Batson Nyack will inaugurate its 37th mayor on Saturday, December 31 at 12n. The smooth transition of government, from  Nyack’s current mayor, Richard Kavesh, to new mayor Jen Laird White, is […]

December 20, 2011 by Bill Batson San Francisco has City Lights, New York City has the Strand and Nyack has the Pickwick Book Shop. The experience of shopping at Pickwick has changed little since it […]

December 13, 2011 by Bill Batson At the end of this month, Grace Episcopal Church will conclude the celebration of 150 years of worship. A building that survives nearly 150 years had to be expertly […]

December 6, 2011 by Bill Batson Nyack Center operates from the oldest surviving house of worship in our village, the First Presbyterian Church. The original sand stone building that stood on this spot was erected […]