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The Pink Flamingo on Harrison Street Whether it is a dead mill or tannery, a car will always be sitting in a discrete corner. Gloversville, New York, earned its name for a reason. For decades, it was the undisputed glove capital of the world. But today, the massive tanneries, dressers, stitching factories, and dyers that built this city are quietly disappearing. One of the most fascinating casualties was the former Cayadutta Tanning Company Inc. Locals called it the Pink Flamingo. Before that, it was E.S. Parkhurst & Company, a place workers simply knew as the Hair Mill. Sitting at the southwest corner of Harrison Street and NY-30A, the property spanned two parcels. A private owner held one piece of the land, while the city owned the other. Visiting the abandoned site felt like stepping into a forgotten tannery that just needed a bit of TLC and elbow grease to restart operations sans a pocketed overhead roof. Just outside the main tanning building, a junked Mercedes sa...
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Doorway on the Passaic River
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In the realm of industrial history along the Passaic River in Northern New Jersey lies a captivating tale of an oil company's struggle for survival against the evolving landscape of progress.
Amidst the modernization of Route 21 in the 1950s, the Riverbank Petroleum Company later renamed to Northern New Jersey Oil Company stood as a fierce opponent to the development. Their existence pivoted on the river's access, a lifeline for their business. Relinquishing it meant demise, so they fiercely contested the eminent domain battles. Ultimately, a compromise was reached: a tunnel beneath McCarter Highway, enabling oil transportation without disrupting the flow of the newly expanded route. Riverbank Petroleum Company Wharf had its last recorded shipment of under 2,000 tons of fuel oils in 1997.
Time has seen the oil company fade into history, leaving behind an abandoned, flooded tunnel. However, a peculiar sight remains – a doorway, a relic from the past, etched onto the side of Route 21. Presently, the property hosts a new enterprise – an Enterprise Rent-A-Car parking lot. The intriguing question arises whether this modern business sealed off the flooded entrance, now irrelevant to their operations. Similarly, an aggregate construction material business cohabits the site, yet neither seems to harness any advantage from this Passaic River wharf door.
Thick wild vegetation blocked any view of the doorway.
Reflecting on my previous explorations, the intricate network of pipelines hidden beneath the McCarter Highway was a revelation. It slipped my attention then, failing to connect the dots on the river access crucial to the oil company's operations. Despite multiple visits (2016, 2017) and even a winter venture, the river infrastructure escaped my notice. I navigated cautiously, avoiding the highway's busy lanes, unaware of the historical significance concealed within the property's bounds.
It was a serendipitous encounter with Wheeler Antabanez's documentary, "Walking The Newark Branch - The Movie," that unveiled the enigmatic wharf entrance. Seeing another explorer's discovery underscored the magnitude of what I had overlooked in my past revisits to explore the property. Regret and a sense of loss washed over me. I realized how such a pivotal part of the oil company's operations eluded my scrutiny, despite scrutinizing Google Maps during its abandoned phase when exploration was more accessible.
In the grand mosaic of life, sometimes the smallest yet pivotal details evade our vision. Such is the nature of exploration, where even amidst scrutiny, certain aspects elude us, leaving us awash with missed revelations.
š¢️ Did You Work at Riverbank Petroleum?
Were you employed at the Riverbank Petroleum Company or Northern New Jersey Oil Company before the wharf's last shipment in 1997? Do you remember the tunnel beneath McCarter Highway, or have photos of the Passaic River dock when it was still operational? Share your memories of this hidden piece of NJ industrial infrastructure.
Drop a comment below or contact me directly. Full credit given to all contributors.
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