Soon after New York State designated Newburgh's Historic District in 1973, Libby Lyon appeared on the scene. Urban "Renewal" was still on the rampage of razing more of Newburgh's architectural treasures. She stepped in, purchased the first five surviving brick houses on Montgomery Street north of South Street- nicknamed "the 5 bricks"- for $1,000 each, and effectively stopped the bulldozers in their tracks. With that action, the modern preservation movement of Newburgh was born. Ms. Lyon died in 2000. Ironically she was known more for her social work with the homeless in New York City than the beginning of what some might consider the "gentrification" movement in Newburgh. Although there have been many heroes of preservation in Newburgh since, Libby Lyon was the matriarch.
