Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory
Also known as: Central Press
Why it's listed
Rising three and a half stories along North Cherry Street in Poughkeepsie, this brick factory dates to about 1874, when it opened as William S. Patten's Live Oak Leather Manufactury. By 1887 it belonged to the Dutchess Manufacturing Company, which roughly doubled its size. It later served as a cooperage before becoming the Poughkeepsie Underwear Company in 1902. The firm made women's and children's undergarments marketed as Queen Undermuslins. In 1906 it employed 175 people and produced more than 60,000 dozen garments a year, selling them from coast to coast and as far away as Australia. The building has an eight-bay facade with a molded projecting cornice, three-tier brick segmental arches and stone sills. Inside, period woodwork survives in the front offices and early-20th-century machinery remains on the upper floors. It is one of three surviving 19th-century industrial buildings in Poughkeepsie, alongside the Innis Dye Works and Pelton Carpet Mill, that reflect the city's era as a small factory town.
Significance in brief: The building housed a series of manufacturing concerns, most notably the Poughkeepsie Underwear Company, which made women's and children's undergarments sold across the country. It is described as a remarkably intact late-19th-century industrial building with period offices and early-20th-century machinery. It is one of three surviving 19th-century industrial buildings in Poughkeepsie considered worthy of listing, representing the city's heyday as a small factory town.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 82001160, listed November 26, 1982. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 6-1 N. Cherry St., Poughkeepsie |
|---|---|
| County | Dutchess County |
| Listed | November 26, 1982 |
| Reference number | 82001160 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architectural style | Late-19th-century industrial architecture |
| Areas of significance | Engineering |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed in good condition; used as factory and storage. The interior is described as intact with period woodwork and early 20th century machinery. An elevator shaft was added at the rear in the early 20th century. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 41.70171, -73.91793 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 82001160.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7235501
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.