Thank you Powerhouse

or Coming Full Circle

This year in September I will be living in the U.S. for 10 years. It is weird to think that it has already been that long.

When I started to check out Jersey City, I discovered one building in particularly that stole my heart. The Powerhouse. A colossal thick red brick building with a beautiful cornice and tall arched windows boarded up with colorful boards was speaking to me, saying “I am here, I am rough and I am beautiful”

It was one of the first subjects I took inspiration from and painted on canvas in my new home in Jersey City. The painting now long gone to Austin, Texas with friends who used to live here and who were equally in love with the building. It makes me happy that somewhere down south, someone may look at the painting.

Yes Austin, we were weird before it even was a thing.

The Powerhouse or also known as The Hudson and Manhattan Railroad Powerhouse, has many reasons to stand proud downtown near the waterfront of Jersey City. From 1908 to 1929 it provided constant power to the tunnel lines (what is nowadays the PATH), trolleys and terminals on both sides of the Hudson River as well as to the Hudson Terminal in New York City. The Hudson Terminal was at the time the largest office and train terminal complex in the world. It is long gone, razed for the World Trade Center in the 60s. The plans to build a tunnel underneath the Hudson River and to provide a physical connection for transportation between New York City and New Jersey began taking shape in 1860 but it took almost another 50 years to get it done.

The fascinating thing about The Powerhouse besides that the architecture and history of it is quite enthralling, is also in the story of who envisioned it. John Oakman, architect at Robins & Oakman was handed the task to design The Powerhouse. A surprising move given that he and his office had previously only designed brick- and brownstone mansions in Manhattan and Massachusetts. But Oakman took the commission and ran with it, creating this Industrial Romanesque Revival style building on a scale rarely seen before.

By the time I moved to Jersey City the magnificent building had already been abandoned and it still is, now for 90 years. I started digging into the history of the building to find out why it wasn’t reused, if it was protected, what the heck was going on with it.

It didn’t take long and I stumbled across the Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy. The non-profit organization was founded in 1999 to preserve, promote, and protect Jersey City’s historic buildings and landscapes. It adopted The Powerhouse as their flagship campaign, saved it from demolition and incorporated it into it’s logo as well. I always admired the organization and their mission.

Last year I decided to sign up for a Historic Preservation Certificate Programme at NYU and to get actively involved with the Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy.

And so this year I find myself on the board of directors of the Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy, combining my love for history, old buildings, preservation and community outreach with what I have always done, research and painting. It is very interesting and it brings me together with many like minded people from all sorts of live as well as with people of the city.

Last week in my course at NYU, I had to present a building on the National Register of Historic Places and talk about why it was entered into the Register, and of course I chose The Powerhouse. Reading the designation report, I was utterly in awe when I realized that it was submitted by the Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy.

And one sentence by John Gomez, the founder of the organization, stood out to me and catapulted me right back to the very first time I caught a glimpse of the building and the emotion that accompanied me then:

 “The citizens of Jersey City regarded the Powerhouse as highly as other “City Beautiful” monuments being built on their land during the same period: the Hudson County Court House, the new High School, the United States Post Office, the City Hospital, and All Saint’s Church, among many others. Yet the Powerhouse, although on the same ornamental scale, was intentionally different; it unapologetically lacked rows of thick Corinthian columns, winged flagstones, or colossal statuary. Facing the Hudson River, it made its own architectural statement. Its irregular shape and large soldiered windows suggested that of a church. It’s crowned smokestacks were its spires; its curved tower its steeple.”

I felt all that ten years ago and a bit of love for this new to me city, so different and raw, without frills and yet magnificent and unashamed. Always in the shadow of the big city across the Hudson but loudly and proudly saying “Whatcha looking at, asshole?”.

The Powerhouse is a symbol for me, it had me come full circle this year and is sending me out yet again, to paint it once again and with a renewed eye and energy.

Thank you Powerhouse!

Nat