Ulster House Hotel
Encyclopedia
The Ulster House Hotel, formerly the Wellington Hotel, is located on Main Street in Pine Hill
, New York, United States. It is a large wooden Italianate
-style
building dating to the late 19th century, currently vacant and undergoing renovations.
It is one of the few remaining hotel buildings from the peak era of Catskill
resorts. In 2002 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
on the northeast of the intersection of Main and Academy streets, marking the west end of Pine Hill's small, quiet downtown. To the north and east are residential properties. The small Mosier Creek runs through the property, which slopes slightly downhill to the east.
The building itself is a three-story six-by-three-bay
frame
structure on a stone foundation
sided in clapboard
. It has a rear wing, with a similar two-story wing of later construction to the north. Both have gable
d roofs with similar treatments as the main roof's asphalt-shingled low hipped roof
, topped with a cupola
with three narrow round-arched windows and a similar hipped roof. The slope exposes the basement along the entire rear, providing for several entrances.
A wraparound porch with metal shed roof supported by round Colonial Revival
columns runs the length of the south (front) and all of the west elevations. A low spindlework rail connects them. At the roofline are broad overhanging eaves supported by brackets
on a molded
cornice
and simple frieze
.
The main entrance is in the center of the south facade
. It is a pair of wood and glass paneled doors in a simple wooden surround with a toplight. It opens into a central hall with flanking parlors spanning the full depth of the main block. The moldings, wall finishes and parquet floor are original.
At the rear a door provides access to the rear wing. It has a central hall of its own and many original finishes. The second and third floors also have central halls. Like the simply decorated guest rooms, they, too, retain their original finishes.
was completed through past the village. The hotel, known then as the Wellington, was built ten years later. A 1905 railroad travel guide describes it as having 152 rooms, making it the second largest hotel on the railroad's route.
Later it fell into disuse when the Catskill resort industry declined in the mid-20th century with the rise of the automobile. It remains vacant today but intact and preserved. In 2001 a local entrepreneur bought it with the intention of reopening it as a restaurant.
Pine Hill, New York
Pine Hill is a hamlet in the western part of the town of Shandaken in Ulster County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the CDP had a total population of 308.- History :...
, New York, United States. It is a large wooden Italianate
Italianate architecture
The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. In the Italianate style, the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian Renaissance architecture, which had served as inspiration for both Palladianism and...
-style
Architectural style
Architectural styles classify architecture in terms of the use of form, techniques, materials, time period, region and other stylistic influences. It overlaps with, and emerges from the study of the evolution and history of architecture...
building dating to the late 19th century, currently vacant and undergoing renovations.
It is one of the few remaining hotel buildings from the peak era of Catskill
Catskill Mountains
The Catskill Mountains, an area in New York State northwest of New York City and southwest of Albany, are a mature dissected plateau, an uplifted region that was subsequently eroded into sharp relief. They are an eastward continuation, and the highest representation, of the Allegheny Plateau...
resorts. In 2002 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
Building
The hotel is on a corner lotLot (real estate)
In real estate, a lot or plot is a tract or parcel of land owned or meant to be owned by some owner. A lot is essentially considered a parcel of real property in some countries or immovable property in other countries...
on the northeast of the intersection of Main and Academy streets, marking the west end of Pine Hill's small, quiet downtown. To the north and east are residential properties. The small Mosier Creek runs through the property, which slopes slightly downhill to the east.
The building itself is a three-story six-by-three-bay
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
frame
Framing (construction)
Framing, in construction known as light-frame construction, is a building technique based around structural members, usually called studs, which provide a stable frame to which interior and exterior wall coverings are attached, and covered by a roof comprising horizontal ceiling joists and sloping...
structure on a stone foundation
Foundation (architecture)
A foundation is the lowest and supporting layer of a structure. Foundations are generally divided into two categories: shallow foundations and deep foundations.-Shallow foundations:...
sided in clapboard
Clapboard (architecture)
Clapboard, also known as bevel siding or lap siding or weather-board , is a board used typically for exterior horizontal siding that has one edge thicker than the other and where the board above laps over the one below...
. It has a rear wing, with a similar two-story wing of later construction to the north. Both have gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
d roofs with similar treatments as the main roof's asphalt-shingled low hipped roof
Hip roof
A hip roof, or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. Thus it is a house with no gables or other vertical sides to the roof. A square hip roof is shaped like a pyramid. Hip roofs on the houses could have two triangular side...
, topped with a cupola
Cupola
In architecture, a cupola is a small, most-often dome-like, structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome....
with three narrow round-arched windows and a similar hipped roof. The slope exposes the basement along the entire rear, providing for several entrances.
A wraparound porch with metal shed roof supported by round Colonial Revival
Colonial Revival architecture
The Colonial Revival was a nationalistic architectural style, garden design, and interior design movement in the United States which sought to revive elements of Georgian architecture, part of a broader Colonial Revival Movement in the arts. In the early 1890s Americans began to value their own...
columns runs the length of the south (front) and all of the west elevations. A low spindlework rail connects them. At the roofline are broad overhanging eaves supported by brackets
Bracket (architecture)
A bracket is an architectural member made of wood, stone, or metal that overhangs a wall to support or carry weight. It may also support a statue, the spring of an arch, a beam, or a shelf. Brackets are often in the form of scrolls, and can be carved, cast, or molded. They can be entirely...
on a molded
Molding (decorative)
Molding or moulding is a strip of material with various profiles used to cover transitions between surfaces or for decoration. It is traditionally made from solid milled wood or plaster but may be made from plastic or reformed wood...
cornice
Cornice
Cornice molding is generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns any building or furniture element: the cornice over a door or window, for instance, or the cornice around the edge of a pedestal. A simple cornice may be formed just with a crown molding.The function of the projecting...
and simple frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
.
The main entrance is in the center of the south facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
. It is a pair of wood and glass paneled doors in a simple wooden surround with a toplight. It opens into a central hall with flanking parlors spanning the full depth of the main block. The moldings, wall finishes and parquet floor are original.
At the rear a door provides access to the rear wing. It has a central hall of its own and many original finishes. The second and third floors also have central halls. Like the simply decorated guest rooms, they, too, retain their original finishes.
History
The small mountain town of Pine Hill became a destination for vacationers seeking the Catskills' fresh mountain air and scenic views in 1872, when the Ulster and Delaware RailroadUlster and Delaware Railroad
The Ulster and Delaware Railroad Company was a Class I railroad located in New York State, headquartered in Rondout and founded in 1866. It was often advertised as "The Only All-Rail Route To the Catskill Mountains." At its greatest extent, the U&D ran from Kingston Point, on the Hudson River,...
was completed through past the village. The hotel, known then as the Wellington, was built ten years later. A 1905 railroad travel guide describes it as having 152 rooms, making it the second largest hotel on the railroad's route.
Later it fell into disuse when the Catskill resort industry declined in the mid-20th century with the rise of the automobile. It remains vacant today but intact and preserved. In 2001 a local entrepreneur bought it with the intention of reopening it as a restaurant.