Posted on Nov 20, 2005

Edwin D. Reilly Jr., vice president of the Schenectady County Historical Society, lives in Niskayuna and is a regular contributor to the Sunday Gazette opinion pages.

Could the name Eliphalet once have been as common as Kevin and Scott are now? The reason I wonder is that while most of us know that Nott Street, Terrace, and Memorial are named for Union's first president, Eliphalet Nott, it is also the case that Balltown Road (Ball's town road) is named for a certain Eliphalet Ball. Ball came to this area in 1771, and once he got his bearings, headed north to Saratoga County to found Ball's town, a name that soon thereafter elided to Ballston.

The corner of Balltown Road and State Street was once the center of a very large tract of land that was farmed by its first non-Native American owner, John Duncan, in about 1760. He called the home he built on it the Hermitage. Through subdivision over the next 210 years, the farm was reduced to just a few acres, the rest being used for such things as the Stanford Golf Course, which became Mohawk Mall in 1970 and Mohawk Commons quite recently, the O.D. Heck campus, and many, many homes.

In a meticulously researched paper written in 1984, local historian (and former Niskayuna High School Principal) Frank Taormina traced ownership of what remains of the farm through ten transactions from 1760 to July 2, 1923, when the mansion built upon it became the Ingersoll Home for Aged Men.

Along the way, a fascinating cast of characters either lived on that site or had something to do with it. Included are two distantly related Vroomans, both of whom became Niskayuna town supervisors, and an owner-occupant named Harmanus P. Schuyler, who bought the property in 1814 and served as town supervisor from 1817 to 1821. Other familiar names that appear in Frank's narrative are those of Glen, Schuyler, Bradt, Yates and Stanford.

In 1839, the heirs of Harmanus Schuyler sold the property to Lemuel P. Hand. Another helping Hand, the aptly named Learned Hand (1872-1961), born in Albany and almost certainly a direct or parallel descendant, became the most famous judge of his era.

The first of three Stanfords to own the property, Josiah, bought it from John I. Vrooman in 1859 and called it Locust Grove. Josiah's son Leland became president of the Central Pacific Railroad, governor and later senator from California, and founded Stanford University in his spare time.

What is now the Ingersoll Home was, along with all of Niskayuna, part of Albany County until Schenectady County was spun off in 1809. Thus in a scant four years, Niskayuna will celebrate its bicentennial. But there is great risk that it will do so without its most historic remaining edifice, the Ingersoll. We must not let that happen.

The risk stems from the fact that the trustees of the Ingersoll, for good and sufficient economic reasons I'm sure, want to sell the property and move to a site on Consaul Road near O.D. Heck. And since the parcel is zoned commercial, a new owner might want to demolish the mansion, history and all. Another humongous drug store we do not need.

URGENT REQUEST

Frank, as I am, is a trustee of the Schenectady County Historical Society (SCHS). At our monthly meeting of November 16, the board of SCHS passed a unanimous resolution that will result in an urgent request to the Town Board and Planning Board of the Town of Niskayuna and to the trustees of the Ingersoll that they take immediate cooperative steps to protect the property and its parklike setting. How?

One possibility is that the Ingersoll will agree to sell the property only to a developer who will agree not to change the facade of the mansion or to pave over an inordinate amount of its green space.

As a multiple-residence facility that antedates town zoning laws, the mansion has legal though nonconforming usage with respect to a commercial zone, a right that could be passed to someone who would convert its interior to some very nice apartments.

On the town's part, it could, if it acts very, very quickly, rezone the property to a historic district with limited usages permitted, only those that preserve the ambience and architecture of the site.

Our county, and the city in particular, does not have a good track record with regard to preservation of historic buildings. Literally. The tracks of our classic union station may still be there, but the stately union station that they once served has been replaced by a black box. (Albany, in contrast, converted its even more majestic union station to a bank). And all that remains of Nott Terrace High School is a plaque in front of Friendly's that tells us that it was demolished in 1974 while we were distracted by Watergate.

Of course, our most tragic historic loss was that of the stately residence of Charles Proteus Steinmetz, which once stood near Groot's Kill on Wendell Avenue. Despite the fact that engineer Herbert Hoover, before he became president, had raised the then princely sum of $25,000 for its preservation, the house was demolished in the 1930s, a victim of deferred maintenance during the Depression.

Chris Hunter, archivist of the Schenectady Museum and another of our SCHS trustees, tells me that the bricks from the Steinmetz house were carted to Niskayuna and used to build the apartments behind the Co-Op. If the apartments are ever demolished, we should re-salvage the bricks and use them to rebuild the Steinmetz home on its original site.

One building that didn't get away from us is the stately home of Steinmetz's colleague Ernst Berg, chairman of the Union College Electrical Engineering department for 30 years in the early 1900s. See h t t p : / / m e l . s i m m o n s . o r g / realtyplot/ chap10.html for a description of his home at 1336 Lowell Road. Very appropriately, the house is now home to a trustee of the Schenectady Museum.

CARRIAGE HOUSE

Not surprisingly, a great num ber of large American companies or major components thereof began life in a garage or, if old enough, in their precursor, a carriage house. Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, and Apple are examples of the former, and the GE Research Laboratory of the latter. That carriage house can be seen as it was in 1905 at www.businessweek.com/ innovation/po pup/6.html. Sadly, it is long gone, replaced by a gourmet restaurant.

In its heyday at that site, Ernst Berg worked long hours alongside his mentor, Steinmetz. There should be a historic marker there, at Erie Boulevard and Liberty, but there isn't. So I'm going to ask the owner of the restaurant to change its name, ever so slightly, to Berger King. 

Posted on Nov 16, 2005

Darts, a pub game sometimes played with beverage in hand, might look simple enough.

But try building a robot that can hit a bulls-eye. Or the dartboard, for that matter.

Welcome to Prof. Bill Keat's “Dynamics and Kinematics,” a mechanical engineering class in which students designed, built and operated dart-throwing robots for their final projects.

Keat asked the students to design a machine that can outperform an opponent (human or other) in a game of darts. Three teams of students built machines that competed against each other, and against Stan Gorksi, technology coordinator, who was asked to throw left-handed.

The machines, perhaps not much of a threat to accomplished players, were exciting to watch as long arms lofted darts to the front of the room. Nearly every dart hit the board, but advancing in a game of “Around the Clock” proved difficult. Nonetheless, enthusiasm ran high in Robodarts, and teams erupted in loud cheers whenever they nailed a small slice of the board.

“In darts, it's all about accuracy,” said Keat. “This forces the students to think about how the errors accumulate.”

For one team captain, Bridget Austin '07, an ME major from Skaneateles, N.Y., it was a good learning experience. “No matter how hard you try, there's always something that can go wrong.”

A team led by Mark Angeloni '07, an ME from Belchertown, Mass., had a futile first round but regrouped to get to three in the second. The secret? The springs needed stretching after the machine overthrew in the first round. “We overcame a lot of obstacles,” Angeloni said.

Posted on Nov 16, 2005

It was not just the remarkable weather during Stephen C. Ainlay's recent trips to campus that drew him to the presidency of Union College.

It was the fact that the College is “giving new meaning to the word 'union.'

“Union has, throughout its history, been a remarkable innovator in higher education,” he said. “That fact is well known out there among all of us who to pay attention to higher education.

“Union has masterfully combined a commitment to the liberal arts and a commitment to innovation.”

With the sun streaming in behind him in Memorial Chapel, hundreds gathered in pews before him and the portraits of past presidents looking on, Union's president-elect greeted members of the Union College community on Wednesday morning, Nov. 16. It was the first public opportunity for faculty, staff and students to meet the man who will assume the presidency in June.

Ainlay comes to Union from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass., where he is vice president for academic affairs and professor of sociology and anthropology. He holds a distinguished record as a teacher, scholar and administrator.

“From the first time we met Stephen Ainlay, we knew we had someone special,” said Frank Messa '73, chair of the Presidential Search Committee, who introduced the College's 18th president. “We have a leader who is going to join us at a very exciting and critical time in our school's history.”

Eschewing the lectern and microphone to speak informally from the front of the stage, Ainlay joked about upstate winters, his mother's reaction to Union's glowing press accounts of him (“Who are they talking about?”) and being surrounded by stern presidential portraiture that seemed to whisper, “Don't mess up.”

He thanked James Underwood, interim president and professor emeritus of political science, for his service to the College and his help throughout the transition.

“I feel very fortunate to be here,” Ainlay said. “A lot of people ask, 'Why Union?' Union has for its entire history been a remarkable innovator in higher education. You've combined a commitment to liberal arts while finding ways of making that liberal education pertinent to the world that faculty, staff, administrators and most of all, students, live in.

“One of the biggest problems we have as a culture and as a society is the problem of integration,” he said, noting that in our increasingly fragmented society, “institutions like Union have the opportunity to provide integration in the face of that fragmentation.”

Ainlay cited the College's hallmarks – Undergraduate Research, Converging Technologies, International Studies, Minervas and Community Service – as ways that the College is fostering integration.

“What you are screaming to the outside world is that 'union' is possible in the modern world,” he said. “You have retained the spirit of the best of liberal education and are giving new meaning to these pillars.” For example, the Minervas demonstrate that “the social and intellectual truly can occupy the same space.”

Ainlay said the College's $200 million “You are Union” campaign is about more than bringing in important resources. “It's an opportunity to unite with constituencies outside the campus – alumni, friends and benefactors who care deeply about the College.”

He also cited the College's efforts to promote diversity. “Union has the opportunity to share this wonderful education with an even broader spectrum of individuals and thereby enrich the campus culture here in important ways.”

And he spoke of using continuing education to keep alumni connected with the College's intellectual life.

“In the end, it's not just about the reputation of this institution,” he said. “It's about providing leadership to higher education. From where I stand today, it's clear we have the opportunity to make Union more meaningful, to continue the rich tradition of innovation that has made a mark on the past.”

Following his talk, Ainlay spoke with individual audience members before meeting with other members of the Union community on campus.

A native of Indiana, Ainlay earned his bachelor's degree in sociology from Goshen College and both his master's and Ph.D. from Rutgers University. He is married to Judith Gardner Ainlay, and they have two sons, Jesse, a 2005 graduate of Holy Cross, and Jonathan, a University of Arizona student.

For the announcement about Ainlay's appointment, visit: http://www.union.edu/newpresident/

Posted on Nov 16, 2005

President-Elect Stephen Ainlay will address Union students, faculty and staff on Wednesday, Nov. 16, at 10:30 a.m. in Memorial Chapel during his first day-long visit to the College.

Alumni, parents and friends of the College are invited to tune in for a live webcast of his talk. Please visit http://www.union.edu/ainlaywebcast/ at 10:30, this Wednesday. This is an exciting time for Union, and I hope you have an opportunity to listen in.

For more information about Stephen Ainlay, please visit the Union website at http://www.union.edu/newpresident/.

Posted on Nov 15, 2005

Along with the Coaching Staff and Offensive Player awards, Union's football team had five first team selections, six second team honorees, and two players named to the Honorable Mention team for the Liberty League.

Audino led Union to the Liberty League Championship with a perfect 10-0 record,  including a 7-0 mark in league play. The undefeated regular season is the first for Union since 1993 and ninth in the program's illustrious history. Audino is assisted by Gary Reynolds, Peter Brown, Erv Chambliss, Larry Cottrell, Alan Fiore Dan Iozzia, John Knapp, Jon Kralovic, Bill Nowak, T.R. Perna, and Daryl Steverson. The Dutchmen are in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2000, and host Ithaca November 19 at 12 p.m. Union enters the game ranked #14 in the Football Gazette poll, #17 in the AFCA (coaches) poll and #19 in the D3football.com poll.

The Liberty League leader in rushing, Arcidiacono ran for a school record 1,616 yards and 14 touchdowns in Union's perfect 10-0 regular season. He ranked fourth in the nation in rushing yards per game in the latest NCAA Division III statistics. Arcidicano was a two-time selection as Liberty League Offensive Performer of the Week and was also twice named to the D3football.com National Team of the Week. He led the nation in rushing for two weeks in October, and has had four 200+ yard rushing games in 2005.

Joining Arcidiacono on the First Team were three Union teammates on offense and three on defense. WR Steve Angiletta (Plantsville, CT/Southington) has 1,277 yards on 79 catches with eight touchdowns, and is the first receiver in Union history to post 1,000 receiving yards in a season. Jim Masso (Pontre Verde Beach, FL/Episcopal) and Elliot Silverstein (Ft. Lauderdale, FL/Peddie) were both named to the First Team on the offensive line. Union allowed only six sacks through 10 games and the team ranked 30th in total offense and 48th in passing offense. Both players were key contributors to  Arcidiacono's record breaking season. The defense featured DL Dylan Walton-Yedlin (Seattle, WA/Lakeside), LB Vito Pellerito (Pompano Beach, FL/St. Thomas Aquinas) and DB Chris Nappi (Scotia, NY/Niskayuna). Walton-Yedlin had 12 of the team's 61 tackles for losses, and has 42 tackles and six sacks. He was named to D3football.com National Team of the Week and won back-to-back Liberty League Defensive Performer of the Week honors in October. Pellerito leads the team in tackles with 64 and solo tackles with 50. He is a two-time Liberty League Defensive Player of the Week and two-time D3football National Team of the Week. Nappi, who was also selected as the second team return specialist, has 50 tackles and 40 primary, and leads the Dutchmen with five interceptions (for 24 yards) and eight pass deflections.

Second team honors went to QB Anthony Marotti (River Edge, NJ/River Dell), TE Ryan Perry (East Greenbush, NY/Columbia), and OL Patrick Hatch (Meriden, CT/Maloney) on offense and DL Brendan Crumlish (East Amherst, NY/Clarence), LB Kevin Flike (Stillwater, NY/LaSalle) and return specialist Nappi. Honorable mention honors went to DB Pat Sheridan (Short Hill, NJ/Avon) and WR Ryan Twitchell (Fayetteville, NY/Fayetteville-Manlius).