Photograph of Main Building — Photograph by Daniel Case, CC BY-SA 3.0. Via Wikimedia Commons.

Main Building, Vassar College

A National Historic Landmark. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. 14 historic topographic surveys show this location, the earliest from 1893.

From the record

“The Main Building of Vassar College is the oldest surviving building on its campus in Poughkeepsie, New York, and the center of academic life. It was built by James Renwick Jr. in the Second Empire style in 1861, the second building in the history of what was one of America's first women's colleges.”
Wikipedia article Main Building (Vassar College), CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 266 National Register listings published here for Dutchess County · listed in 1973 · category: Building · a National Historic Landmark.

Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

Address. Vassar College campus, Poughkeepsie, 12604
When was it listed? September 1973
Category. building
Town. Poughkeepsie town
Architectural style. Second Empire architecture in the United States and Canada
Architect. James Renwick Jr.
National Register reference number. 73001183 - the number the National Park Service assigned this property when it was listed, and the key its nomination file is catalogued under at the National Archives.

Then and now

1893 to 1995

The ground this property stands on, surveyed 102 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet covering Main Building, Vassar College, surveyed 1995

Topographic sheet covering Main Building, Vassar College, surveyed 1893

Fires near this property

610 since 2000

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 610 fires within 5 miles of Main Building, Vassar College between 2000 and 2020, burning about 448 acres in total. 46 started naturally. 77 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause	Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined	318
Arson/incendiarism	77
Smoking	73
Natural	46
Debris and open burning	36
Misuse of fire by a minor	23
Equipment and vehicle use	16
Power generation/transmission/distribution	9
Recreation and ceremony	6
Railroad operations and maintenance	4
Other causes	2

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

Date	Cause	Size	Reported by	Name on the report
9 September 2001	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Fire Department of New York	not named
8 September 2015	Smoking	under an acre	Fire Department of New York	N/A
8 September 2006	Recreation and ceremony	under an acre	Fire Department of New York	not named
7 September 2007	Smoking	under an acre	Fire Department of New York	not named
7 September 2005	Smoking	under an acre	Fire Department of New York	not named
7 September 2001	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Fire Department of New York	not named
4 September 2014	Debris and open burning	under an acre	Fire Department of New York	not named
4 September 2008	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Fire Department of New York	not named

Every fire recorded in Dutchess County

Mines and quarries near this property

10 of 24 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 24 workings within 5 miles of Main Building, Vassar College: 23 past producers, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Stone, Clay, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Stone, Crushed/Broken. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Site	Commodity	Status	Recorded
Probably Borrow Pits of Soft Rock Or Unconsolidated Material	Clay, Stone	Past Producer	Chert
Sandstone Rock Quarry No. Hj-010	Stone, Dimension	Past Producer	Sandstone
Granite Quarry	Granite	Past Producer
Granite Quarry	Granite	Past Producer
Limestone Rock Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Past Producer
Limestone Rock Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Past Producer
Limestone Rock Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Past Producer
Probably Borrow Pit of Soft Rock Or Unconsolidated Material	Stone, Clay	Past Producer	Chert
Probably Borrow Pit of Soft Rock Or Unconsolidated Material	Stone, Clay	Past Producer	Chert
Probably Borrow Pit of Soft Rock Or Unconsolidated Material	Stone, Clay	Past Producer	Chert

Every working recorded in Dutchess County

Storms near this property

42 since 1993

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Poughkeepsie, the town this property stands in, in 42 storm reports between 1993 and 2023: 29 thunderstorm wind, 6 hail, 3 flash flood, 2 flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

When	Event	Place named	Harm	What the report says
August 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$3,000,000	no account filed
May 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$250,000	no account filed
July 2023	Flood	Poughkeepsie	$100,000	A section of Metro-North's railroad tracks were washed out due to flood waters from Poughkeepsie southward.
May 2000	Tornado (F0)	Poughkeepsie	$70,000	no account filed
August 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$50,000	Severe thunderstorms resulted in damage across parts of eastern New York as they moved across the area during the afternoon of August 1st. In Binghamton numerous trees and a shed were knocked down by thunderstorm winds while lightning caused transformer fires knocking out power. In Corbett lightning struck a metal plant injuring two workers and damaging electrical equipment. In Poughkeepsie and Hopewell Junction thunderstorm winds downed numerous trees and powerlines and caused extensive damage at a local golf course.
June 1998	Lightning	Poughkeepsie	$40,000	no account filed
July 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$20,000	no account filed
June 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$19,000	no account filed
July 2001	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$12,000	no account filed
July 2002	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$10,000	no account filed
July 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$5,000	Severe thunderstorms moved across parts of the Susquehanna Region and Western Catskills and Mid-Hudson Valley on the afternoon of the 17th. There were many reports of downed trees and wires, but the majority of the storm damage occurred in Otsego and Delaware Counties.
May 1993	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$5,000	A strong cold front swept across eastern New York on the afternoon of May 11 resulting in severe thunderstorms across parts of the area. One of the areas hardest hit was in southern Washington County from three miles northwest of Salem to Rexleigh where a dry microburst destroyed a substantial portion of a large farm along Route 30. Damage at the farm included a two-car garage demolished, three grain silos damaged with one silo moved 18 inches off its foundation, a second garage damaged, the slate roof of the main residence partially removed along with the brick chimney. Other areas hard hit by the storms included sections of Ulster and Dutchess counties where trees, power lines and utility poles were downed leaving over 3,000 customers without power. Before the severe thunderstorms hit the Mid-Hudson Valley temperatures soared to record levels with Poughkeepsie reaching 92 degrees which broke the previous record of 91 which was set in 1953.
August 2000	Hail	Poughkeepsie	$5,000	no account filed
July 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$5,000	no account filed
May 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$4,000	no account filed
May 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$4,000	no account filed
July 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$3,000	no account filed
May 2002	Hail	Poughkeepsie	$2,000	no account filed
July 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$2,000	no account filed
June 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$2,000	no account filed
June 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$2,000	no account filed
July 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$2,000	no account filed
May 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$1,000	no account filed
August 1993	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$500	Severe thunderstorm winds downed several trees in Poughkeepsie on the afternoon of the 13th.
April 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	$500	no account filed
September 2023	Flash Flood	Poughkeepsie	-	Water was flowing over State Route 9 near Academy Street in Poughkeepsie.
December 2023	Flood	Poughkeepsie	-	The Hudson River flooded at the times of high tide which resulted in some minor flooding near Waryas Park including the patio at the former Ice House restaurant.
May 2022	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	-	A large tree branch was down near Market Street and Church Street in Poughkeepsie.
August 2021	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	-	A tree was downed across a road near the City of Poughkeepsie.
July 2014	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	-	Trees were downed and on houses due to thunderstorm winds on Academy Street in Poughkeepsie.
May 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	-	Thunderstorm winds downed trees and power lines near Poughkeepsie. The Red Oaks area was hardest hit, with numerous trees and power lines reported down, with some trees down on houses.
July 2007	Hail	Poughkeepsie	-	Penny size hail was reported in Poughkeepsie.
July 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	-	Law enforcement personnel reported that trees were blown down along Fairview Avenue, in Poughkeepsie.
December 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	-	Trees and wires were reported down in Lagrangeville due to thunderstorm winds.
July 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	-	Trees down
June 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	-	Trees were blown down throughout the county.
July 2004	Hail	Poughkeepsie	-	3/4 inch hail and trees and wires down on Northeast side of town.
May 1995	Hail	Poughkeepsie	-	A warm front and a strong cold front moved across eastern New York during the afternoon and evening hours of May 29th resulting in severe weather across parts of the area. A tornado touched down in Columbia County at 1740 EST just south of Hudson and the first significant damage occurred along Fingar Road in the Town of Greeport where numerous trees, including several 200 year old black walnut trees, were uprooted. Also five people sustained minor injuries when their home collapsed under the weight of fallen trees. As the tornado moved east it caused extensive damage to homes and trees in the towns of Greenport, Claverack, and Hillsdale. The hardest hit areas included Spook Rock Road, Stone Mill Road, Snydertown Road, Bates Road, the Taconic State Parkway, Palmer Road, and Texas Hill Road. The tornado ended along Collins Street in the town of Hillsdale. The tornado destroyed seven homes, with 13 others sustaining major damage and another 29 with minor damage. In addition 30 to 50 outbuildings were either damaged or destroyed. Total damage estimate for the tornado was $10 million. Other areas hard hit by the severe thunderstorms included Unadilla, Bainbridge, and Guilford where trees fell on homes and mobile homes. Also in Hopewell Junction thunderstorm winds downed numerous trees some of which fell on homes along Lake Walton Road and Zerner Boulevard.
August 2003	Flash Flood	Poughkeepsie	-	no account filed
August 2003	Flash Flood	Poughkeepsie	-	no account filed
August 2000	Hail	Poughkeepsie	-	no account filed
May 1996	Thunderstorm Wind	Poughkeepsie	-	no account filed

Every storm recorded in Dutchess County

Maps showing this location

14 surveys

United States Geological Survey topographic sheets whose coverage includes this point. Matched by taking the middle of the area the National Park Service maps for this listing, then testing that coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet.

1893 USGS Poughkeepsie quadrangle1:62500
1894 USGS Poughkeepsie quadrangle1:62500 - 3 printings
1903 USGS Poughkeepsie quadrangle1:62500 - 11 printings
1936 USGS Poughkeepsie quadrangle1:48000
1943 USGS Poughkeepsie quadrangle1:62500 - 3 printings
1947 USGS Hartford quadrangle1:250000 - 2 printings
1948 USGS Hartford quadrangle1:250000 - 2 printings
1957 USGS Poughkeepsie quadrangle1:24000 - 3 printings
1961 USGS Hartford quadrangle1:250000
1962 USGS Hartford quadrangle1:250000 - 3 printings
1965 USGS Hartford quadrangle1:250000 - 2 printings
1985 USGS Waterbury quadrangle1:100000
1993 USGS Waterbury quadrangle1:100000
1995 USGS Poughkeepsie quadrangle1:24000

Listed places nearby

6 within 8 miles

Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.

Property	Distance	Listed
Vassar College Observatory	0.1 miles	1991
Rombout House	0.5 miles	1982
Freer House	0.9 miles	1982
Clark House	1.0 miles	1982
Ethol House	1.1 miles	1982
Sague House	1.1 miles	1982

Sources for this property

National Archives record	The nomination case file for reference 73001183 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia article	Community-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Dutchess County	All 266 listed properties in this county.

Provenance

Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.