Around St. Augustine’s

Written By Howard Dale

Incorporated as a parish in 1878, St. Augustine was forced to relocate and rebuild at its current location at Eagle Park in 1978 because of New York State’s plans to widen Route 9. I walked around the outside, took a look inside, checked out the statuary and the views. Of particular interest were the stations of the cross. After that I went to take a look at some nearby sights of interest.

Exterior Shots

The final picture above shows the original church The crucifix overlooking the river in the first picture was relocated from its original site and refurbished.

Interior Shots

When I take pictures of churches I’m usually restricted to exterior shots because the churches are invariably closed. On this occasion, however, I was pleased to discover that the church was open, and I could take some photographs of the interior.

Statuary

The church grounds featured a lot of statutes. What is seen here is by no means all of them.

Views

The church has some magnificent views of the Hudson River. The only problem is that in Summer (which is when I took these pictures) you can hardly see them because of the leaves on the trees.

The first picture shows a view of the west side of the Hudson with the river in the foreground.

The second picture shows a view over Croton Bay (the water in foreground) and Croton Point. The hills in the background are the same as in the preceding picture, but from this angle you can’t see the Hudson at all.

Stations of the Cross

“The outdoor Stations of the Cross at St. Augustine parish, Ossining, offer a profound Lenten meditation on Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection.

The stations, overlooking the Hudson River, were conceived and designed by the Italian artist Nino Di Simone.

The scenes in the 15 stations were sculpted in terra cotta, cut into smaller tiles, and then glazed and fired.

Cardinal John O’Connor, then-Archbishop of New York, blessed the garden, dedicated to “our mothers,” on March 21, 1997.” (“A Contemplative Treasure at Ossining Parish”. Catholic New York, April 12, 2017).

I found this to be really impressive. However, some friends I’ve spoken to find the depictions to be scary.

Nearby Sights

Grace Hall Chapel (above). Grace Hall Chapel is the sole intact example of late 19th century Tudorbethan architecture in Ossining (Crotonville). It is also significant for its association with the Potters, a family who played an important role in the development of the Crotonville hamlet within Ossining. During its early years, Grace Hall Chapel had ties to Grace Church in New York City, and the Church’s congregation offered support for the operations of the Chapel. Well known architect James L. Aspinwall (1854-1936) designed this and a number of other public, religious, and institutional buildings. It once served as a meeting hall for the Fraternal Order of the Eagles, a nonprofit charity. As I passed by, I spotted an open door and went inside to take a look. I was surprised to find a couple of people (one of them British) seated around a bar.

It seems that nowadays it’s a private club. By this point in my walk I was tired and thirsty. They took pity on me, and even though I was not a member they allowed me to have a soft drink, which was very much appreciated. Grace Hall Chapel is the sole intact example of late 19th century Tudorbethan architecture in Ossining (Crotonville). It is also significant for its association with the Potters, a family who played an important role in the development of the Crotonville hamlet within Ossining. During its early years, Grace Hall Chapel had ties to Grace Church in New York City, and the Church’s congregation offered support for the operations of the Chapel. Well known architect James L. Aspinwall (1854-1936) designed this and a number of other public, religious, and institutional buildings. It once served as a meeting hall for the Fraternal Order of the Eagles, a nonprofit charity. As I passed by, I spotted an open door and went inside to take a look. I was surprised to find a couple of people (one of them British) seated around a bar. It seems that nowadays it’s a private club. By this point in my walk I was tired and thirsty. They took pity on me, and even though I was not a member they allowed me to have a soft drink, which was very much appreciated.

Crotonville School. Despite what the sign says this was originally The Crotonville School. It’s significant as a well-preserved example of a schoolhouse built in the Italianate style. It is also historically significant as the second oldest school building still standing in Ossining. The oldest is the Lincoln School building, built in 1858.

The school was built around 1860 to serve as a public primary school for the Crotonville neighborhood. It was a branch school known as School Number 5 and had a student body of approximately 40 students. It had a single room inside in which all students were taught together, and it operated until 1931. Since then, the structure has been known as the Parker Bale American Legion Post, serving Post #1590. It’s situated pretty much right next to Grace Hall Chapel described in the previous post.

Tree Sculptures. I noticed these interesting sculptures during an earlier visit (See Wooden Head with Owl). At that time, they were carved into the surface of trees. It appears that the trees have now gone, but at least the sculptures (or what’s left of them) have been saved…for now

I was now pretty hot and tired, so I staggered to a retirement home that wasn’t too far away because I thought that I could, at least, sit there while I waited for my Uber. This worked out nicely and I was soon on my way home.

Howard Dale
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