Two of Troy's mot endangered buildings are both nationally significant - the Albany Iron Works and the Rensselaer Iron Works.

You may remember the fiasco a few months back when the U.S. Navy was recovering the turret of the Civil War ironclad U.S.S. Monitor. While they were bringing up the turret, the city had given approval for the semi demolition of the Albany Iron Works, which made the hull plates. Most people know the aging old foundry building in South Troy, near the Menands Bridge, as the old Portec place. Making railroad joints was the last product that came off the assembly, until it closed in 1989, marking more than 150 years in operation. Most Civil War buffs around the country know it is one of the most important historic sites in the nation for making the iron skins for the ironclad that turned the war in favor of the North.

Five years ago, Dan Wolfe and his Troy Transfer Company obtained a 20-year lease on the property from Portec. Dan and his 25 employees use the property as a waste transfer station. Contractors bring demolition debris to the site, pay a fee, and Troy Transfer takes it to the landfill. Unfortunately, since the foundry and surrounding buildings were in disrepair, Dan began to dismantle some of the foundry. Today, a good portion of the foundry is gone - the sides and interior - and some adjacent buildings. The main foundry is still there but its ultimate fate is still unknown. Of course if the city had any visionaries it would have purchased the site from Portec, promote my idea of rebuilding the Monitor as a tourist attraction to the Feds, and park it right next to the new Troy museum. That's right, the mill could have been rehabbed into a large Civil War museum along with the Rensselaer Iron Works and the current Burden Iron Museum. It could have attracted thousands and put in millions of dollars in heritage tourism dollars in the city's coffers.

The Rensselaer Iron Works is located a few yards south of the Poestenkill and owned by the city. Unless the city does something soon, it will probably collapse from neglect. Part of the eastern roof has already fallen in. The last real use of the mill was by Ludlow Valve, one of the area's largest valve makers. There were two buildings originally as part of this complex but the actual rolling mill burned in 1969. The Mill made rivets for the Monitor construction.

The Rensselaer Iron Works eventually became one of the largest in America. Owned by John A. Griswold, Erastus Corning Jr., and Chester Griswold, it consolidated with the Albany Iron Works in 1868, owned by Corning and company. The same year, the Bessemer Steel Works, not far from the mill, also became part of the Rensselaer Iron Works. It was owned by John Winslow, Griswold, and Alexander Holley. Holley is recognized as the Father of modern American steel manufacture. The new firm incorporated in 1875 as the Albany & Rensselaer Iron & Steel Company and was a mammoth complex. In 1885, the company was reorganized as the Troy Iron & Steel Company. John Griswold was Mayor of Troy in 1850, raised many troops for the war, and in 1862 was elected to the House of Representatives. He also served as a trustee of RPI. He was the nephew of General Wool, the commander of Fort Monroe during the famous Monitor/Merrimac combat.

In 1897, Ludlow purchased the mills on the Poestenkill and used them until they went out of business. It was owned recently by Scolite, but in a deal with the city, sold it. It's currently being rented by a firm that cuts cordwood for fireplaces, etc.

Unfortunately, those in local government see these buildings as eyesores and not the potential revenue generating resources they can become. If you have read this column in the past, I have given numerous examples of communities around the country that are raking in millions of heritage tourism dollars by saving and promoting their local history. It is beyond reason and logic that this city does not have a director of heritage tourism. There are few cities in the entire country that has the quantity of historic resources Troy has - and that's after a 30-year demolition derby, which has already removed so much. Citizens should insist, no mandate, that before the next election ALL candidates for office must visit half a dozen cities in the east that have successfully promoted their local history and then come back and tell YOU what they will do to preserve Troy's great history. We deserve no less.