ABOUT ROOT CELLARS

There was a time when there was no refrigeration. This was true of farms as well as homes in towns and villages. "Root Cellars" were places where,not just roots, but fruits and vegetables of all kinds could be stored and kept fresh for long periods of time. This "Root Cellar" here at Mt. St. Alphounsus (The Mount) probably comes from the time when Robert Livingston Pell owned this land. It is right behind some apple orchards that are still producing good apples, but of course they are not as famous as the "Esopus Pippins" that Pell sold both here in the States but in England as well. I am pretty sure that our now deceased Bro. Malachy cared for this cellar. And we are pretty sure that some of the recent masonry inside from the 60ties was down by our own Bro. Raphael Rock who has a project now in Baltimore called "Beans and Bread". Our old barn which was just below this cellar going towards the Hudson was torn down last year and will "rise again" somewhere in Montana.