St. Paul’s Memorial Church and Rectory CLIENT: St. Paul's Memorial Church ARCHITECT: Edward T. Potter DATE: 1866-70 STYLE: High Victorian Gothic St. Paul’s Memorial Church and Rectory, begun in 1866 and designed by architect Edward T. Potter, are outstanding examples of High Victorian Gothic style. In their picturesque design and excellent use of local stone, the two buildings seem especially appropriate to the rural setting of Stapleton, one of the oldest sections of Staten Island.

St. Paul's Protestant Episcopal Church ca. 1954 A small, but a monumental example of the traditional English Gothic Style. The church has good fenestration, proportions, and elegant use of gray trap rock. St. Paul's was built by the Ward family, formerly of New York, but at the time of its building (1866) of Staten Island. It was dedicated as a memorial church to the family and is typical of the American gothic revival movement and style.

Located to the northwest of Harrison Street is the St. Paul’s Avenue–Stapleton Heights Historic District, which was designated by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 2004. This district encompasses several lovely churches and 92 freestanding houses, plus smaller ancillary structures, which were largely constructed for prominent local businessmen and politicians. Built as a more wealthy enclave than Harrison Street, the houses are more elaborate in their size, massing and architectural detail. The neighborhood has long been one of Staten Island’s most prestigious places to live. Running through the district is St. Paul’s Avenue, an impressive stretch of residences that links the historic villages of Tompkinsville and Stapleton. Development in the area began in 1826, when Caleb T. Ward purchased 250 acres, including the entirety of the historic district. Ward laid out streets and building lots in 1829. The two earliest houses in the district are 172 and 204 St. Paul’s Avenue, which date to the mid-1830s. The former was originally the rectory for the first St. Paul’s Church (demolished 1870) and the latter was a private home built by James Creighton. Both were designed in the Greek Revival style, which was very fashionable at that time.

While New York City is certainly best known for its towering skyscrapers and classy historic districts, its earliest monuments of stone are just that: stone. The geologic landscape of the city was formed between 20,000 and 18,000 years ago with the movement of the Wisconsin Ice Sheet down from Canada. The rock and debris deposited from the ice sheet, as well as the valleys it deepened, bedrock it smoothed and glacial grooves it left, formed the landscape of the city that began to grow in the colonial era. In some cases the rocks have been moved or crumbled in the name of urban development. But some of this geologic history can still be seen within the urban environment. This collection highlights some of the more well-known geologic features.

"Hero Park was dedicated in 1920 to the martyrs of the World War and a bronze tablet on Sugar Loaf Rock bears the names of Staten Islanders who died in the war, June 23, 1937."

In response to the movement of interest in cultural landmarks, the Historic Districts Council undertook an initiative to highlight such places as one of its Six to Celebrate in 2018. The culmination of that effort was a conference in October 2018 entitled “Beyond Bricks and Mortar: Rethinking Sites of Cultural History.” The conference convened preservationists, historians, artists, planners, place-makers and more to work together to clarify what cultural significance is and how it can work, how to document and create compelling narratives around cultural sites, and how to identify the specific challenges of cultural sites from a preservationist perspective. This tour provides just a sample of some of the city’s cultural landmarks. The list includes some sites that are legally protected — in some cases by more than one government body — and some that are unfortunately in danger of being lost. Preserving culturally significant sites that may not possess overtly aesthetic value often requires a particularly active and engaged form of advocacy to achieve protection from the wrecking ball. But, as long as there are interesting people making their mark on New York City and crucial events taking place here, that effort will never be in vain, since those stories are the lifeblood of this vibrant place.

364 Van Duzer Street CLIENT: Robert M. Hazard ARCHITECT: Unknown DATE: 1835 STYLE: Greek Revival This frame house, built in modified Greek Revival style, is one of the last remaining examples in the area. The most striking feature of this house is the stately tetrastyle portico with its Doric columns rising two stories to an entablature below an overhanging spring-eave. The use of a spring-eave on a Greek Revival house, rather than a triangular gable, is unusual and is more characteristic of the so-called Dutch Colonial style.

207 St. Paul’s Avenue, Staten Island 10 (1898, Otto P. Loeffler) NYC IL, NYC HD From 1972 to 1987, acclaimed African- American lesbian writer and activist Audre Lorde (1934-1992) lived in this neo-Classical house with her two children, Elizabeth and Jonathan, and her partner, Frances Clayton. Lorde accomplished a great deal while living here, including the publication of numerous influential books, poems, articles and essays that dealt with the issues of civil rights, feminism and lesbianism; held positions as professor of English at John Jay College and as the Thomas Hunter Chair of Literature at Hunter College; spoke at the 1979 National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights; co-founded Kitchen-Table: Women of Color Press and was bestowed with many honors, including the Borough of Manhattan President’s Award for Literary Excellence in 1987. From 1991 until her death from liver cancer the following year, Lorde was the New York State Poet Laureate. Photo by Sarah Moses, NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission.

Hero Park, Staten Island.