09/22/2022
First day of Autumn
Here's today's PHOTO OF THE DAY!!! It's the first official day of Autumn here in the North Country! And to welcome the new season, check out this amazing fall photo, captured by Kassidy Q. Elliott! It shows the "Memorial Chapel" on the former Plattsburgh Air Force Base, clad in some incredible Autumn color! Originally built during the U.S. Army's tenure at Plattsburgh, construction began on this picturesque structure back in 1932 and was completed the following year. The project was sponsored by the "Churchwoman's League of New York City," who sought to build a fitting memorial to the soldiers who were lost during the First World War. Much of the interior work was done by local craftsmen, including the Post Carpenter and Blacksmith, who created the wrought iron chandeliers which still hang inside. Local newspapers reported that the weathered, secondhand bricks used to build the chapel's walls and steeple were actually sourced from two different structures that were razed around the same time that the chapel was under construction: the "Old Albany Penitentiary" (1846 - 1933) and the "Plattsburgh Theatre and Opera House" (1893 - 1931). In 1936, the finishing touch was added in the form of the chapel's bell, salvaged from the decommissioned destroyer USS O'Brien. During the War, the O'Brien had served overseas in cooperation with the Royal Navy, safeguarding shipping lanes off the Irish coast. A highlight of its service came while on routine patrol, when the warship depth-charged and seriously damaged the German submarine U-16. The beautiful little chapel is still used regularly for weddings throughout the summer months. Experience more of the North Country's weird and haunting past on our lantern-lit guided ghost tours, returning THIS Friday and Saturday evening! Our tours of the historic (and haunted) Plattsburgh Air Force Base grounds, named one of the top ten "Haunted Boats, Bases, and Battlefields" in America by "Military Times," continue through Halloween!
