The John Green Preservation Coalition recently announced receipt of a new grant of $150,000 from an anonymous private foundation to support completion of the restoration of the exterior sandstone walls of Nyack’s historic John Green House, built in 1819, built by local steamship pioneer, Captain John Green. This new grant comes in addition to a similar one from the same foundation and will allow the group to continue its dramatic transformation of one of Rockland County’s most significant historic sites from an eyesore to a public asset.

The Coalition expressed enormous gratitude for these awards. “Along with support from generous individual donors, the first grant made it possible to complete the restoration of the west wall of the house by master stone mason Steve Morris, and now this new grant will allow us to finish rebuilding and restoring the remaining two walls,” Coalition President  Winston Perry recently remarked.  The 2023 Restoration of the north façade, erasing a long blight on the Nyack village landscape, was made possible by grants from New York State, the Shatemuc Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, and by the donations of many individual supporters.    

The Green House is also among a list of projects recently recommended by Nyack’s “Local Planning Committee” to share in a $4.5 million NY Forward grant. “We are so very grateful the Village has included us in this grant proposal,” Coalition Trustee Chris Sorenson said. “It shows us that village leaders recognize the importance our project has, and that by restoring and celebrating Nyack’s history, especially its maritime history, we will certainly boost their efforts to improve the village for residents and attract visitors and businesses.” Decisions on the NY Forward grant will be announced this Spring.  

Captain John Green is credited as being one of the founders of modern Rockland County, funding and building the Nyack Turnpike (now Rt 59) from Suffern to Nyack. Green’s also built and operated Rockland’s first steamship so that goods produced in the county could be quickly and economically transported to market in New York City and beyond. “It’s hard to overstate just how important John Green was in jumpstarting Rockland County’s economy in its earliest days,” Coalition Trustee, John Gromada said.

The Coalition, a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation of local citizens who owns the 1819 house, says it looks forward to the complete rehabilitation of the unique Dutch sandstone structure in the not-so-distant future, when they envision it will be open to the public as a space celebrating and exhibiting the history, art and environment of Nyack and its connection to the Hudson River.  “We are thrilled by the progress made in recent months and look forward to finishing the house so it can be a beautiful and inspiring place that connects Nyack and Rockland’s future to its fascinating past,” Coalition Trustee Janet Hamlin commented. More information about the project can be found at www.johngreenhouse.org