Kirkside and Gould Memorial Church, Roxbury, N.Y.
The congregation of Jay Gould Memorial Reformed Church in Roxbury, New York originally formed in 1802. The congregation was first known as The Church of Beaverdam, after the former name of the village. Two of the early churches were destroyed by high winds, and a third church building burned down in 1891. This beautiful stone church was constructed by 1894 in memory of Jay Gould (1836-892), an infamous railroads and finance ‘robber baron’ who had grown up in Roxbury. It was designed by famous architect Henry J. Hardenburgh (1847-1918). The church is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Roxbury Historic District.
As for its architectural design, the building is described as an “early English Gothic style church with ashlar rough cut stone facing and slate roof; square bell tower with paired gothic-arched windows, trefoil tracery, and stained glass on each tower face and louvered vents above at crossing of transept with nave; apse with gothic arched windows at north end of church with stair tower in northeast corner; nave retains square-headed windows with clear leaded glass; street entrance through east transept; retains oak doors with wrought-iron hinges in stylized plant motifs.” (LaFrank, Kathleen. Roxbury Historic District, National Register of Historic Places. Waterford, New York: National Park Service, 2003.)
Kirkside Park is an 11-acre idyllic oasis that straddles the East Branch of the Delaware River in Roxbury. The park is replete with walking paths, rustic bridges, picnic facilities, ball fields and more. The land that is now the park was originally owned as part of the Kirkside estate of Helen Gould Sheppard (1870-1938), daughter of Roxbury native and wealthy financier Jay Gould (1836-1892). The property was laid out in the 1890s and was fully developed in the early 1900s, having been designed by Ferdinand Mangold, a noted landscape designer. After Helen Gould Sheppard’s passing, the property was eventually sold to the General Synod Church of America (GSCA), who used it from 1949 to 1980 as a retirement home for ministers, missionaries and other church workers. In 1981, after the retirement community closed, the park was transferred to the township to be forever used as a public park.
The postcard was published by M. H. Fanning in Roxbury, New York. The postmark shows that it was mailed in 1936.
