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Original use: Hop House
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Map views courtesy Google Maps. Street level view not available. Address is Google Earth confirmed; 42°53'39.69"N 75°46'22.73"W. Current owner of record, Stearns Living Trust as of date (YMD) 190419.
Town of Nelson and Madison County Maps
A reconstructed hop house stands on a wooded hillside at 3568 Stearns Road, Erieville. This structure was originally located on the south side of Route 20, just east of the village of Madison. It belonged to G.T. Forward, one of the principal hop growers in the Madison-Bouckville area. (The Forward name is stenciled on a post.) Owner and preservation architect Carl Stearns carefully relocated the structure in the mid-1990s. The cobblestones were numbered and relocated accordingly. [All Wooden components were numbered, removed and reassembled with treenails in the original holes with dust on top. As to "dust on top", old roadside buildings with dry interiors gather dust on all top surfaces, even the exposed portions of pegs. In other words, the pegs were re-installed in their original orientation, not rotated. This is especially good where they are draw-bored. The quoins were reused as required and most of the cobbles were replaced, obtained from a nearby gravel pit. ¹ ] This structure features a cobblestone kiln and a timber frame processing space. For many years Stearn presented a program entitled "The Evolution of a Hop House," at the annual Madison County Hop Fest. Stearns was crowned the fifth King of the Annual Hop Fest in 2000 for his hop preservation efforts. He was further honored by the New York State Barn Coalition for his rural preservation efforts. Richard Palmer blog.
¹ Revision of struck out text from information courtesy of owner Carl Sterns APR2019. Also on the property are a Greek Revival house, an 1830s sheep barn and an 1840s horse barn.
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¹ Photography courtesy Richard Palmer.
