The Vedder Research Library

Greenville Free Academy, pre-1906

Imparters of “local lore and wisdom”, the Sunday morning 8:40 a.m. shift graces the Freehold Country Store porch. Every 10-30 minutes will find a new cast on such mornings. Left to right are Mike Maxwell, Horst Krueger, Don Teator, “Skip” Noirot, Doug Palmer, John Hoch, Wally Koelmel, and Andy Macko. Store owner Jim Valentine is visible through the left window.

The northwest corner of Freehold’s four corners has been anchored by the Freehold Store for over a hundred years. Claimed by Beers’ 1884 History as “the largest store in the county, outside of the river towns, with one exception,” the store has been operated by: John and Curtis R. Lacy, followed by Curtis’ son Roscoe Lacy (1863-1913); C.P. Wood and sons, Leon Howard, along with partner Leon Hall (1914-1946); Robert & Marjorie Harr (1947-1970); Paul & Anita Nugent (1971-1987); and Jim & Jeannette Valentine (1987-present).

The advent of the paved road made automobile travel much easier, but the making of such a road was backbreaking work. These men are pounding creek rock endwise into the dirt, thus making for a solid base in the later 1920s. The road from Cairo-Freehold-Greenville, pictured here at Freehold’s four corners, would eventually eclipse the east-west road, today’s County Route 67, as Freehold’s main road. The building on the right was Park’s Inn, today the Freehold Country Inn. The house to the left was the Lacy house and is still owned by Janet Lacy Halstead.

Built in 1989 as a thank you by the Greenville Central School band for the community’s fundraising that enabled the band to go to France, the gazebo celebrated its tenth birthday and has become one of Greenville’s identifying landmark.

Ten years ago, a new, national bicycle race, the Tour de Trump, found itself in the Greenville area in the summers of 1989 and 1990. This picture shows the peloton approaching Freehold’s four corners from east on County Route 67 ready to race up Route 32

Accommodating guests and travelers along the Schoharie Turnpike once again, the renovated Freehold Country Inn serves as a tribute to the efforts of Ben Buel. He began renovation in October 1998, and the building open for business in March 1999 as a fine dining restaurant. The carriage house (left) was renovated for gatherings (banquets, weddings, private parties, etc.) of up to 150 guests. Shown are owners Ben & Terry Buell, Max Suhner, and in the inset, Salah Alygad.

West Street (today’s Rt 81) curves over the horizon on its way to West Greenville and Norton Hill. On the right is today’s Cunningham Funeral Home, the Avery/Schwartz/Nobis residence/office building, and the Botsford/Clark/Angle house in the distance. On the left is the home of Dr. Charles McCabe, now the Lee Cunningham residence. This photo comes from a color postcard, the type that often derives from the 1910-1925 era.

The preservation/conservation of our town’s historic structures continues. In 2006, Diane (proprietor of The Cutting Corner) and Mark Martinez bought the Lacy House and renovated the interior and exterior structure, reinvigorating one of Freehold’s landmarks. The Lacy House has anchored Freehold’s northeast corner for over 150 years. The Lacy family, a century and more ago, owned the store that anchors the northwest corner; the same Lacy family is associated with the Catskill car dealership.