Schroeppel Historical Society

PHOTO BY EVERET D. REGAL, October 5, 4:34am

While I was out and about on this early morning I decided to make another attempt at photographing the Schroeppel Historical Society building in the Village of Phoenix, NY. The only other time I photographed this old church was the winter of 2013 in the snow. It was difficult then and almost impossible now, due to more poles, more wires and a really bright, white, lighted sign facing Main Street. I counted 14 wires crossing in front of the building, but with improved editing tools and the willingness to put in the time to remove them, I was able to create a clean image. I typically prefer not to remove things from photographs, but when it comes to buildings I hate wires and distractions that simply take away the beauty of the structure.

Back when I was a boy, this was the St. John's Episcopal Church with the old IGA across Main Street, a Gulf Station on Culvert and some houses diagonally across. We lived just two blocks down on Culvert. Our mom worked part time at the IGA to help dad support our family of 6 children and I would walk down to Hanson's Gulf Station to fill up my metal, gallon gas can for 25 cents, so I could mow lawns. If I was fortunate enough to have a dime, usually from the "train men" who would walk by our house from the train tracks to downtown where the papermill was, sometimes throwing us change if we were lucky enough to be out front of our house, I would stick the dime in the large, red Coke machine and pull out one of those thick, blue/green bottles of Coca-Cola. What a treat that was and I was always sure to stick it back in the hefty, wooden bottle holders when I finished my drink. That was back in the day when there were long, black rubber hoses that stretched across the pavement from each side of the gas pumps to alert the attendant with a ding, ding, ding, ding when a car drove up to the pumps. Back then garages were often owned and operated by one man, who fixed vehicles, as well as pumped your gas.

It was a quiet, sleepy little intersection compared to today. The widening of the streets, the addition of the turn signal conglomeration, the Circle K convenience store and expanded parking lots leaves it nothing like it was. Nevertheless, for better or for worse, modernization is perpetual and there lies the importance of history and those who dedicate themselves to preserving it.

Here are the 2025 Officers and Trustees: 

2025 Officers:

President – Gail Hammond

Vice President – Nancy Crombach

Secretary – Kim Ventura

Treasurer – Paula Tenney

2025 Trustees:

Keith Conroy – Website and IT

Jim Crombach – Building and Maintenance

Barb Dix Historian

Liz Johnson

Steve McMahon - Programming

Lynn Moyer

Janet Moyer – Hospitality and Membership

Barb Reyes – Advertising