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Milton

George West: Saratoga County’s Paper Bag King

April 12, 2023 by Maury Thompson Leave a Comment

Paper Bag King George West from (History of Saratoga County, New York with historical notes of its various towns)“The Paper Bag King” developed his paper-making skills as an apprentice in England and his business acumen as a 19th century entrepreneur in Saratoga County. George West earned the nickname from being on the cutting edge of offering flour companies a choice between cotton and paper sacks, the latter of which was cheaper and, hence, became more common.

West’s mill at Rock City Falls in the town of Milton was among the first in the United State to make bags from paper. It was one of about a dozen 19th century paper mills in Saratoga County that West would come to own. [Read more…] about George West: Saratoga County’s Paper Bag King

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Ballston Spa, Immigration, Industrial History, Milton, Rock City Falls, Saratoga County

361 Votes: Saratoga County’s 1898 Leadership Battle

April 2, 2023 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Saratoga County Supervisors 1898The recent battle for Speaker of the United States House of Representatives left many astounded that it took so many votes to reach a conclusion. However, Saratoga County once went through a situation that makes the House of Representatives battle look like very small potatoes. [Read more…] about 361 Votes: Saratoga County’s 1898 Leadership Battle

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Ballston, Charlton, Edinburg, Galway, Halfmoon, Malta, Mechanicville, Milton, Political History, Providence, Saratoga, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Center, Saratoga County History Roundtable, Saratoga Springs, Stillwater, Waterford

A Special Christmas At Saratoga County’s Poorhouse

December 25, 2022 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Saratoga County PoorhouseThe end of 1873 ushered in change at the Saratoga County Poorhouse in the form of a brand-new building, along with a novelty the residents had never before enjoyed – a Christmas tree. [Read more…] about A Special Christmas At Saratoga County’s Poorhouse

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Christmas, Milton, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Center, Saratoga County History Roundtable

Simeon DeWitt: America’s Surveyor General

April 25, 2022 by Peter Hess 2 Comments

The Roemer map of Albany 1698 showing fort orange and BeverwyckTjerck Claeszen DeWitt immigrated to New Amsterdam (now New York City) from Grootholt in Zunterlant in 1656. Grootholt means Great Wood and Zunterland was probably located on the southern border of East Friesland, a German territory on the North Sea only ten miles from the most northerly province of the Netherlands.

By 1657, Tjerck DeWitt married Barber (Barbara) Andrieszen (also Andriessen) in the New Amsterdam Dutch Church and moved to Beverwyck (now Albany). While in Beverwyck, he purchased a house. At this time Albany contained 342 houses and about 1,000 residents, about 600 of whom were members of the Dutch Church. [Read more…] about Simeon DeWitt: America’s Surveyor General

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: Albany, Albany County, Albany Rural Cemetery, American Revolution, Aurelius, Brutus, Camillus, Cato, Cayuga County, Cicero, Cincinnatus, Dryden, Fabius, Galen, Geography, George Washington, Greece, Hannibal, Hector, Homer, Ithaca, Junius, Kingston, Locke, Lysander, Manlius, Maps, Marcellus, Military History, Milton, New Amsterdam, New Netherland, New York City, Onondaga County, Ovid, Pompey, Rome, Romulus, Schenectady County, Scipio, Sempronius, Seneca County, Simeon DeWitt, Solon, Stirling, surveying, Syracuse, Thompkins County, Tully, Ulster County, Ulysses, Virgil, West Point, Yorktown

Camp Boyhaven Property Added To Middle Grove State Forest

March 30, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

DEC LogoThe New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has announced the addition of 219 acres of land formally belonging to Camp Boyhaven to the Middle Grove State Forest in the town of Milton, Saratoga County.

Camp Boyhaven was established in 1924 as one of the longest operating Boy Scout camps in New York State, serving scouts from Schenectady County and the greater Capital District. [Read more…] about Camp Boyhaven Property Added To Middle Grove State Forest

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, Nature, Recreation Tagged With: Boy Scouts, DEC, Forestry, hiking, Logging, Middle Grove State Forest, Milton, nature, Saratoga County, Wildlife

The Disappearance of Civil War Veteran Dudley Goodwin

March 20, 2022 by David Fiske Leave a Comment

Dudley Goodwin Missing Person Notice courtesy Ballston JournalOne hundred years ago a long-standing citizen of Ballston Spa went missing.

Usually known as Dudley Goodwin, his name was sometimes given as M. Dudley Goodwin (which is what appears on his tombstone). According to information on Find-A-Grave, his first name was Madison. He was born in Fulton County, on the second day of April, 1844. A sister was also born in Fulton County, about 1841, but Dudley’s other siblings were born in Saratoga County. [Read more…] about The Disappearance of Civil War Veteran Dudley Goodwin

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Ballston Spa, Civil War, Kayderossearas Creek, Malta, Milton, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Center, Saratoga County History Roundtable

A Saratoga County Cemetery Mystery

January 13, 2022 by Dave Waite 3 Comments

Mann Monuments - Powell-Wiswall and Ballston Spa Village CemeteriesAlong Plummer Road in the town of Milton in Saratoga County sits the Powell-Wiswall Cemetery, a peaceful rural cemetery where local residents have been laid to rest since the early 1800s.

Standing like a sentinel over it all is a large statue of Christ. On two sides are engraved the names Ella Frances Wood-Mann and her husband Enos Rogers Mann. This monument sits adjacent to Wood family plots, where over the years Ella’s parents and other family members have been laid to rest. [Read more…] about A Saratoga County Cemetery Mystery

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Ballston Spa, Cemeteries, Genealogy, Milton, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Center, Saratoga County History Roundtable

Murder Trials Of Note In 19th Century Saratoga County

December 31, 2020 by Editorial Staff 4 Comments

Saratoga County NY Map 1856The following record of nineteenth century murder trials in Saratoga County was provided by a Mechanicville correspondent to the Troy Daily Times in 1891:

There have been many noted murder trials in Saratoga county since the first court was held in the town of Stillwater May 10, 1791 – 100 years ago. The court now in session at Ballston Spa meets about five miles from where the first court was held, at the residence of Samuel Clark, near East Line, Judge John Thompson of Stillwater [then] presiding, he having received the appointment as the first judge of Saratoga county from Governor Clinton. [Read more…] about Murder Trials Of Note In 19th Century Saratoga County

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Anti-Rent War, Ballston Spa, Clifton Park, Corinth, Crime and Justice, Judical History, Mechanicville, Milton, Round Lake, Saratoga County, Saratoga Springs, Schuylerville, Town of Day, Wilton

A Tannery Fire Transformed Kaydeross Valley Communities

December 20, 2020 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Bulls Head Tannery Employees in Ballston SpaToday the crossing of Middle Line Road and Geyser Road in Saratoga County contains a few houses and a small parking lot to access the Kayaderosseras Creek. But in the mid-1800s, it was the site of a thriving hamlet of several hundred inhabitants called Milton Center.

Locally renowned Revolutionary War Lt. Colonel James Gordon became an early entrepreneur after the war. He built one of Milton’s earliest gristmills on the creek by 1800 as well as other small mills to the south in the Town of Ballston. [Read more…] about A Tannery Fire Transformed Kaydeross Valley Communities

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Ballston Spa, Fires, Industrial History, Milton, Saratoga, Saratoga County, Saratoga Springs

Kesselring Atomic Power Labratory: A Short History

May 15, 2020 by Guest Contributor 12 Comments

Kenneth A Kesselring Site in the 1950s courtesy Town of Milton Historians Office CollectionIt was 71 years ago in May that the land for the Kenneth A. Kesselring Site began to be purchased to create the Atomic Energy Commission’s $20 million plant located in West Milton, Saratoga County, NY.

The Kesselring Site was built by the United States Government for the purpose of training nuclear officers and enlisted sailors to operate the United States Navy’s nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and submarines. [Read more…] about Kesselring Atomic Power Labratory: A Short History

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: energy, Engineering History, Galway, General Electric, Maritime History, Military History, Milton, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Roundtable

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