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A History of MiddleburghToday’s Business District Begins The Latter half of the 19th Century |
Changing TimesAs the United States increasingly shifted from a rural agrarian nation to the modern urban/suburban society, Middleburgh like most upstate New York towns and villages felt the effects. Also changes in technology were forcing changes to Main Street itself. The 1920’s and 30’s were a period on intensive road building of the highways leading in and out of Middleburgh for the new automobiles. The buildings of “the Dock” were torn down and replaced by a gas station during the 1920’s. The old White House Hotel was razed and replaced by the Middleburgh Garage at about the same time. The Middleburgh Garage sold both automobiles and gas. It also housed a movie theater, which showed the first talking pictures in Schoharie County. In 1929 it was destroyed by fire and replaced by a restaurant and gas station. The Valley Theater was constructed in 1938. The railroad went out of business in 1936, partly due to competition with the new trucking industry. The Hotel Baker was destroyed by fire in February 1942. That site would also become a gas station. Middleburgh Central School was built in 1933 and a new Post Office opened in 1940. A new Bank and Grand Union Supermarket replaced the Lutheran Parsonage and Roland Bouck residences in 1962. With the local economy moving away from the traditional agriculture, many of the businesses that supported the local farming community disappeared. During the 1970’s and 1980’s Malls and chain stores dealt a severe blow to what remained of the traditional Main Street Business District. A New BeginningIn the mid 1990’s, serious efforts were begun to revitalize downtown Middleburgh. A new public Library was constructed on the site of the old Hotel Baker. The Depression era River Street wall was reconstructed with Victorian lighting installed along the Schoharie Creek, the old Dock area and across the bridge. The Bridge itself has been rehabilitated with attractive side railings...There are current projects to construct a riverside park in the Dexter Avenue area and create a railroad exhibit centered around the old Depot. There are Main Street and Small cities grant/loan programs to rehabilitate building facades, create and improve apartments, and encourage and enable small businesses to use the old store fronts. The progress made so far is a first step into the future. |
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