Discover 9 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Middletown (United States). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Grace Episcopal Church, First Congregational Church of Middletown, and Paramount Theatre. Also, be sure to include Hillside Cemetery in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Middletown (New York).
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Grace Episcopal Church
Grace Episcopal Church is a historic Episcopal church located at Middletown in Orange County, New York. The original church was built between 1846 and 1847, then enlarged and aggrandized in the Gothic Revival style between 1866 and 1868. A Collegiate Gothic style parish house was added in 1913. The church features an off-set bell tower with stepped buttresses and Gothic arched windows.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2010.[1]
Address: 58 North St, 10940 Middletown
First Congregational Church of Middletown
Church in Middletown, New York. The First Congregational Church of Middletown, New York, United States is one of the most visible landmarks of that city's downtown skyline. Its spire rises higher than any other church or structure in the central neighborhoods of the city. Constructed in 1872, this is the third church built by this congregation.
The congregation was established in 1785, after the American Revolutionary War, by migrants who came from New England. The first church was built before residents had even named their settlement of houses and farms. It has been argued that the formation of the church at that time marks the beginning of Middletown's existence as a village. For 40 years it was the only church in the area. The current Gothic Revival building was designed by architect Isaac G. Perry and reflects the ambitions of the prosperous residents of the town of that period.[2]
Address: 35 E Main St, 10940 Middletown
Paramount Theatre
Movie theater in Middletown, New York. The Paramount Theatre is a Registered Historic Place located at 17 South Street in Middletown, New York, United States. It was built in 1930 in an Art Deco style, a twin to the Paramount Theater in Peekskill, across the Hudson River.
Paramount-Publix Corporation (now Paramount Pictures), the builder and original owner, opened the building on June 12 of that year with a celebration that included a parade at noon, a musical performance by the Paramount Symphony Orchestra, and the first movie, The Big Pond, starring Maurice Chevalier and Claudette Colbert at 6 p.m. It was preceded by a newsreel, a short film about Middletown and its citizens, and a welcome film starring Buddy Rogers.
Paramount-Publix had to sell the theater after the U.S. Supreme Court's 1948 United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc. decision, which required the movie studios to divest themselves of their theater chains. ABC, a successor corporation, owned the Paramount until 1973 when it sold it to Hallmark Releasing. After several other owners, it closed five years later. In 1979, the city took title when back taxes went unpaid.
Two years later, the Arts Council of Orange County bought it and renovated it into a performing arts center. An apron was added to the stage, and a pavilion on the back of the building provided dressing room space. It was reopened in 1985. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2002. The theatre hosts a variety acts and events, as well as art exhibits, lectures, civic fundraisers, dance recitals, business receptions, school theatre series, performing arts summer camp and some film features.
The New York Theater Organ Society installed the Wurlitzer organ from the Clairidge Theater in Montclair, New Jersey. The Paramount's organ's original keyboard is now part of the organ at the Orpheum Theater in Phoenix, Arizona.[3]
Address: 17 South St, 10940-5801 Middletown
Hillside Cemetery
Cemetery in Middletown, New York. Hillside Cemetery is located on Mulberry Street in Middletown, New York, United States. Opened in 1861, it was designed in the rural cemetery style by Calvert Vaux and Frederick Law Olmsted, later noted for their collaboration on Central Park. There are several thousand graves, some with excellent examples of 19th-century funerary art.
Many of Middletown's prominent citizens of the late 19th century were buried there, including three Civil War winners of the Medal of Honor and one former congressman. In 1994 it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.[4]
National Shrine of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
Church
Address: 70 Carmelite Dr, 10940 Middletown
Clemson Bros. Brewery
Nightlife, Dinner, Lunch, Restaurant, Eat and drink, Brewery, Beer
Address: 22 Cottage St, 10940 Middletown
Webb Horton House
Mansion in Middletown, New York. The Webb Horton House, is an ornate 40-room mansion in Middletown, New York, United States, designed by local architect Frank Lindsey. Built 1902-1906 as a private residence, since the late 1940s it has been part of the campus of SUNY Orange. This building is now known as Morrison Hall, after the last private owner, and houses the college's main administrative offices. A nearby service complex has also been kept and is used for classrooms and other college functions.
The mansion is an extravagant combination of styles and materials that has been altered very little during its ownership and use by the college. In 1990 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[5]
Middletown Thrall Library
Railroad station. Middletown was the main station along the Erie Railroad mainline in the city of Middletown, New York. Located on Depot Street, the station was first opened in 1843 with the construction of the New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad, which had originally terminated at Goshen. The station was located along the New York Division, which stretched from Pavonia Terminal in Jersey City, New Jersey, to the Sparrowbush station just north of Port Jervis.
The building was opened in 1896 to replace one that had been in use since 1843 when the New York and Erie began service to the city. The Romanesque Revival building was designed by George E. Archer, Chief Architect of the New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad, later the Erie Railroad. The station saw service for trains going from Chicago to Erie's terminal in Jersey City, and later, as part of Erie Lackawanna Railway, service to Hoboken Terminal. The long distance train along this route was the Atlantic Express and Pacific Express in 1965. The station also saw regular commuter service.
The building served as a railroad station until 1983, when rail service was taken over by MTA's Metro-North Railroad. Service on the route of Erie's original Main Line was discontinued in favor of the Graham Line, an Erie-built freight line now used by Norfolk Southern and the Port Jervis Line and was replaced by the Middletown Metro-North station.
The station depot was renovated and restored, becoming the Thrall Library in 1995.[6]
Address: Middletown, 11–19 Depot Street, Middletown, New York 10940
SUNY Orange
College in Middletown, New York. SUNY Orange is a public community college with two campuses, one in Middletown, New York and one in Newburgh, New York. The college is part of the State University of New York system and offers almost 40 associate degrees and certificate programs. SUNY Orange is accredited by Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. The college employs an open enrollment policy to all applicants who are graduates of an accredited high school or recipients of a state high school equivalency diploma.[7]