Troy

The blank wall that faced south from the nine-story former Cluett, Peabody & Co. shirt factory downtown is blank no more.

Artist Kevin Clark, who previously painted downtown murals for Brown's Brewing Co. and the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, as well as the welcome to Troy mural in the city's south end, has covered the first six stories of what is now the Hedley Building with a mural that pays homage to Troy and its innovators.

On Friday, local officials gathered to officially unveil the mural, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute President Shirley Jackson even got the opportunity to add a few finishing dabs of paint to her wall portrait.

Others depicted include another RPI president, George Low, who also headed the Apollo space program; educator and women's rights activist Emma Willard; the late auto dealer John Hedley, who redeveloped the former home of the Arrow Shirt Co. into an office building that employs 1,200 people and even houses Troy's city hall; author and one-time local resident Herman Melville, author of Moby Dick; and Uncle Sam Wilson.

The mural highlights the River Street Market, a food hall that on the Hedley building's main floor developed by First Columbia, the building's owner.

At one time as many as 7,500 collar workers, mainly women, worked in the building, said city and county historian Kathy Sheehan. The production of detachable collars that could be laundered separately was the innovation of Hannah Lord Montague, also depicted in the mural.

The company grew into the Arrow shirt company, helping Troy become the "Collar City."

Downtown struggled in later years, and Hedley's proposal to redevelop the abandoned shirt factory into an office building drew plenty of skepticism.

It wouldn't today. With a thriving technology sector, and construction of new apartment buildings and renovation of old ones in full swing, downtown has seen a surge in economic activity.

Said First Columbia President and CEO Kevin Bette, who has played a role in that development: "My mentor, John Hedley, would be proud."