Group aims to restore historic pillars in Van Cortlandt Park

A community group says it wants to remove years of damage to some historic artifacts inside Van Cortlandt Park.  Thirteen test pillars were installed in the 1900s to help determine the best stone type

News 12 Staff

Nov 19, 2016, 3:45 AM

Updated 2,877 days ago

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A community group says it wants to remove years of damage to some historic artifacts inside Van Cortlandt Park. 
Thirteen test pillars were installed in the 1900s to help determine the best stone type to use in the construction of Grand Central Terminal, and they can now be found inside the John Kieran Nature Trail. For the past hundred years, the stones have been vandalized. 
According to the website Forgotten New York, the group Friends of Van Cortlandt Park is raising funds to clean up the damage that was done to these rocks. 
Christina Taylor, of Friends of Van Cortlandt Park, says the group plans to clean the artifacts down to their original stone so they can put a clear coating over them. She says that if there is future graffiti, it could then be easily removed with a power washer. 
The remaining money will be used to repair the forest around the stones, open access to the trail and on signage to educate the public on their value.