Monticello

A Catskills Copperhead Strikes Against Lincoln & Abolition

March 5, 2023 by John Conway 1 Comment

One of Sullivan County, NY’s first historians and most noted newspaper publishers, James Eldridge Quinlan, was a Copperhead, a pro-slavery Southern sympathizer, during the Civil War.

Anyone with any doubts about Quinlan’s leanings on the subjects of slavery, the abolitionists, and Abraham Lincoln need only peruse the pages of the Republican Watchman newspaper during the years leading up to the Civil War and during the war itself, to be convinced. [Read more…] about A Catskills Copperhead Strikes Against Lincoln & Abolition

Alfred Billings Street: Albany’s 19th Century State Poet

August 7, 2022 by Peter Hess 1 Comment

Alfred Billings Street was born in Poughkeepsie on December 18th, 1811. He was descended from an Englishman, the Reverend Nicholas Smith, who immigrated to Connecticut around 1659.

His father, Randall Sandal Street, was a general in the New York Militia and served in the War of 1812. A practicing lawyer, Randall Street was also active in politics; he was a two-term district attorney and a Democratic congressman from 1819 until 1821. His wife, Cornelia, was the daughter of Revolutionary War veteran, Andrew Billings. [Read more…] about Alfred Billings Street: Albany’s 19th Century State Poet

The 1962 Catskills High View House Fire

July 25, 2022 by John Conway Leave a Comment

Early in the morning on Friday, July 13th, 1962 fire was discovered in one of the buildings at Hankin’s High View House, just outside Liberty, Sullivan County, NY in the Catskills. Firefighters were on the scene within minutes and were able to contain the blaze, while hotel staff and ambulance personnel attended to the injured, but before it was over five people would be dead and one of the heroes of the tragedy would be in jail, charged with multiple counts of first degree murder.

In the aftermath, local officials would try in vain to tighten the fire laws governing small hotels. [Read more…] about The 1962 Catskills High View House Fire

Killing Time in the Catskills: Serial Killer Lizzie Halliday

July 13, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Killing Time in the Catskills: The Twisted Tale of the Catskill Ripper Elizabeth “Lizzie” McNally Halliday (Self Published, 2019) by Kevin Owen is the true account of serial killer Lizzie Halliday (c. 1859 – 1918), who was responsible for several deaths in the Catskills area during the late nineteenth century.

In her late twenties, Halliday left behind a trail of failed marriages, bigamy, horse theft, arson, insurance fraud and multiple murders. She killed a nurse while institutionalized and is speculated to have killed her first two husbands. After her sensational trial in Monticello in Sullivan County, NY, Halliday became the first woman in the world sentenced to die in the electric chair. Although eventually locked behind bars for life, she managed to continue her crimes. [Read more…] about Killing Time in the Catskills: Serial Killer Lizzie Halliday

Company H: Catskills Soldiers At Cedar Mountain

June 13, 2022 by John Conway Leave a Comment

On Friday, August 8th, 1902, the surviving members of the 28th New York Volunteer Regiment held their annual reunion at the National Cemetery in Culpeper, Virginia.

Among those attending that day were two men from the Sullivan County, NY: John H. Waller of Monticello and William McIntyre of Mongaup Valley. [Read more…] about Company H: Catskills Soldiers At Cedar Mountain

Monticello Amusement Park: Some History

April 3, 2022 by John Conway 1 Comment

For myriad reasons — perhaps most importantly the influence of the fortress hotels — the amusement park was never a big part of Sullivan County’s tourism industry.

There have been numerous attempts in the county over the years to capitalize on America’s love affair with places like Coney Island’s Luna Park, Disneyland, and Palisades Park, but none that succeeded for more than a few years. [Read more…] about Monticello Amusement Park: Some History