Madison/Cherry Crest article by Karen
The Madison/Carlton/Scotch Mist Hotel and Cherry Crest Cottage
By Karen Cuccinello
The Madison boarding house, at 31 Lake Street, was erected about 1889-90 as an 1891 advertisement stated it was newly opened for business. The property was in what became the Southern end of Granthurst Park and was built and conducted by Avery C. VanDyke. There were numerous owners following the originator.
Avery was born to Patrick and Rosetta A. (Cole) VanDyke September 1852 probably in Roxbury, NY. He had at least eight siblings. On June 3, 1874 he married Elizabeth Cronk. They lived with his parents in Roxbury 1875, Stamford in 1880, leased L. A. Woodworth’s boarding-house in Hunter, NY for one year starting March 1886 then back to Stamford for good when he bought 150 ares of land. He and Elizabeth had one adopted daughter Sarah and a biological daughter, 10 years younger, Rosetta/Etta. Avery was also a farmer while running the Madison. Some of the produce was for sale and some was for fresh meals at the Madison.
In 1901 the VanDyke’s sold some land to Dr. E.L.M. Bristol (owner of Chataeu de Navarre and numerous other cottages) and auctioned some more lots off in Granthurst Park and moved into their new house on Harper Street along with a billiard table. The next year they moved into the Madison for the summer season.
In 1907 Avery hired the Govern Bros. to build him a house next to the Madison at 29 Lake Street. He called it Cherry Crest, and rented it out for the season in 1908 (it was often rented out for the summer).
A sad event too place in 1912, I believe in the Madison.
November 6, 1912 (Delaware Gazette, Delhi, NY)- John Fulton of Brooklyn, one of the head officials of the Cunard Line Steamship Company, fell from the second to the first floor in the residence of Avery C. VanDyke, following an apoplectic stroke and died as a result of the injuries sustained. Mr. Fulton, who was 67 years of age, had been a guest of Mr. VanDyke every season for the past 21 years and was well known in Stamford as was Mrs. Fulton, who was making her annual visit to the Gem of the Catskills in company with her husband. Mr. Fulton had not been considered in ill health and his death comes as a great surprise to the residents of Stamford. He was returning to his sleeping apartment from the bathroom on the second floor of the house and when near the banister at the top of the stairs was seized with the attack and fell to the floor below, sustaining injuries from which he died an hour and a half later.
On March 13, 1913 Archibald Walling “A.W.” Billings, age 23, a druggist married Rosetta VanDyke, age 29, and they worked in the Madison then bought it in 1918.
On February 12, 1922 Avery C. Vandyke passed away, at his home in Stamford, after an illness of ten days with flu, which developed into bronchial pneumonia. Funeral was held at the Presbyterian church and burial in the Stamford cemetery. He leaves a wife (who died 1923) and daughter and two grandchildren.
Avery was nominated to run for Stamford Village supervisor by the Democratic party, but declined; was a village sewer commissioner and officer of the Stamford Water Company.
In September 1926 the Cherry Crest was badly damaged by fire while being occupied by the Courtade family.
In April 1946 Billings sold the Madison and three acres around it to Mrs. Brigitte C. Nichols of NYC. The Billings kept the Cherry Crest and 46 acres of land.
In 1951 the Loris Realty Corp. sold the Madison to Rosemary Kremnitzer. When she owned it the name was the Carlton House.
January 1964 brought about a new name for the Madison/Carlton, the “Scotch Mist Inn”. A group of persons headed by Mr. and Mrs. Stanley W. Mase purchased it and it was under the management of Mrs. Helen G. Neissler.
From 1967-68 it was called The College Inn at Stamford. SUNY Delhi gave hotel and restaurant management classes to students who operated the inn. Then Miss Susan Mase, third generation of the famed hotel family, assumed the management of the Scotch Mist Inn again.
In 1971 the hotel, that had been in operation for about 80 years, shut down and the contents were auctioned off .
Then it became an office building for : Prospect Dairy/Nycrest, formerly Prospect Dairy 1972-1975; Milbrands. Inc. in 1976; Wordex, Inc. and Michael A. Jacobs Licensed Insurance Broker had offices in 1982 and finally Jacobs & Jacobs Attorneys At Law 1983 until 2013 when Michael Jacobs passed away. It is now owned by Della Corte Ventures Corp. The Cherry Crest is owned by Phyllis Graves.