Frederic Church transformed a treeless hillside into
the wooded park you see across the lake. There, on 31
acres, he planted hundreds of trees and shrubs, singly
and in clumps, in a landscape design conceived in
the Picturesque Style (a 19th-century term meaning
informal and natural-appearing). He called these
plantings his "living landscape"or his "painting in
nature." Church laid out his roads to provide a series
of changing views and to tantalize visitors with
remote and fleeting glimpses
of the house as it was
approached.
The 10-acre lake was
created by removing
the muck and clay from
swampy ground that
formed a natural basin to the
west of Cosy Cottage. Church's
farmhands worked at this chore from 1860 to 1878, removing 40,000 cubic yards by hand. When viewed
from the top of the hill or from the house, the lake
mirrors Inbocht Bay, the lakelike expanse in the
Hudson River about six miles south of this property
In addition to its aesthetic importance, the spring-fed
lake provided for recreational and utilitarian needs.
A steam-operated engine, located in the nearby pump
house, supplied water through underground pipes to
the houses, vegetable gardens, and the barns. Canoeing, picnicking, and strolling its shores made
the lake a source of pleasure for the Churches and
their friends.
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