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New Jersey

When The Yeggs Hit Upstate New York

February 13, 2023 by Dave Waite 4 Comments

Always remember !! Square meals Make round peopleIt was late on Wednesday, January 19th, 1910, and Police Chief W. R. Bronner was making his evening rounds through the quiet village of Mohawk, in the town of German Flatts, Herkimer County, NY, making sure all was safe for both business and residents.

Somewhere near the intersection of Main and Washington streets, he encountered four men who engaged him in conversation as they all walked along. Before he could resist, he was relieved of his pistol, gagged, and brought into the Masonic Hall billiard room that the Yeggs had broken into earlier in the evening. Once inside, Bronner was bound with wire taken from pictures on the wall. [Read more…] about When The Yeggs Hit Upstate New York

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, History, Mohawk Valley, New York City Tagged With: Bolton, Charlton, Crime and Justice, Fulton County, German Flatts, Gloversville, Herkimer COunty, Ilion, Lake George, Lake Luzerne, New Jersey, New York City, Northville, Postal Service, poverty, railroads, Saratoga County, Stillwater, Warren County, Winfield

December 25th: The Continental Army Crosses The Delaware River

December 24, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Washington Crossing the Delaware by Emanuel Leutze, MMA-NYC, 1851On December 25th, 1776, General George Washington led the Continental Army across the Delaware River in a late-night surprise attack on Hessian forces at Trenton, New Jersey.

A bold strike on Christmas night, Washington’s Crossing was a source of desperately needed momentum and a major morale boost for a Continental Army that had endured a brutal year and was on the brink of defeat. [Read more…] about December 25th: The Continental Army Crosses The Delaware River

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: American Revolution, Delaware River, George Washington, Military History, New Jersey

The Hudson River Steamboat Poughkeepsie; Later Known As The Westchester

December 13, 2022 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Steamboat Poughkeepsie at dock (courtesy Richard V. Elliott Collection, Hudson River Maritime Museum)This essay was written for the Kingston Daily Freeman in the 1930s, transcribed by Hudson River Maritime Museum volunteer Adam Kaplan and reproduced here in a slightly edited form.

The tale of the steamboat Poughkeepsie is the story of a vessel that is still in service [in the 1930s] – although today the name Westchester has replaced Poughkeepsie and she is no longer a familiar figure on the Hudson River. [Read more…] about The Hudson River Steamboat Poughkeepsie; Later Known As The Westchester

Filed Under: History, Hudson Valley - Catskills, New York City Tagged With: Dutchess County, Hudson Highlands, Hudson River, Kingston, Long Island, New Jersey, New York City, New York Harbor, Newburgh, Poughkeepsie, Rondout, Rye, Steamboating, Transportation History, Ulster County, Westchester County

Washington’s Revenge: The 1777 New Jersey Campaign

November 24, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

George Washington's RevengeIn late August 1776, a badly defeated Continental Army retreated from Long Island to Manhattan. By early November, George Washington’s inexperienced army withdrew further into New Jersey and, by the end of the year, into Pennsylvania. During this dark night of the American Revolution — “the times that try men’s souls” — Washington began developing the strategy that would win the war. [Read more…] about Washington’s Revenge: The 1777 New Jersey Campaign

Filed Under: Books, History Tagged With: American Revolution, George Washington, Military History, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

The Marquis de Lafayette: A Short Biography

November 17, 2022 by James S. Kaplan 1 Comment

George Washington and Lafayette at Mount Vernon, 1784 by Rossiter and Mignot, 18592024 will mark the 200th anniversary of the return of the Marquis de Lafayette (Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette) to America. In 1824, almost 50 years after the start of the American Revolution, the 68-year-old Lafayette was invited by President James Monroe, an old Revolutionary War comrade and lifelong friend, to tour the United States.

Lafayette’s visit was one the major events of the early 19th century. It had the effect of unifying a country sometime fractured by electoral discord and reminding Americans of their hard won democracy. [Read more…] about The Marquis de Lafayette: A Short Biography

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History, Mohawk Valley, New York City Tagged With: American Revolution, Battle of Brandywine, Foreign Policy, French History, French Revolution, Hermoine, James Monroe, Lafayette, Military History, Monroe Doctrine, New Jersey, Yorktown

Robert Yates, John Lansing & The Constitution

April 18, 2022 by Peter Hess 2 Comments

The Manner in which the American Colonies Declared Themselves Independent of the King of England, throughout the Different Provinces, on July 4, 1776, by Noble (engraver), after Hamilton (painter), for Edward Barnard’s The New, Comprehensive, Impartial and Complete History of England… (London, 1783).Robert Yates (1738-1801) was born in Schenectady. His parents were Joseph and Maria Yates. He received a classical education in the city of New York and later studied law in the Albany law firm of William Livingston, who was later a signer of the U.S. Constitution.

Yates was admitted to the New York bar in 1760 and thereafter resided in Albany. From 1771 to 1775, Yates was on the Albany Board of Aldermen and considered himself a member of the Radical Whigs, a party carried over from England that had a reputation for strong opposition to corruption and the protection of liberty. [Read more…] about Robert Yates, John Lansing & The Constitution

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Albany, Albany County, American Revolution, John Lansing, Lansingburgh, Legal History, New Jersey, New York City, Political History, Schenectady, Schenectady County

William Paterson & The Constitution of the United States

April 14, 2022 by Peter Hess Leave a Comment

Washington_Constitutional_Convention_1787William Paterson was born in County Antrim, Ireland, in 1745. His family immigrated to America when William was two years old. Arriving first at New Castle, Delaware, the family settled for a short time in New London, Connecticut. At first, his father traveled around the country selling tin ware, moving the family several times. He eventually settled in Princeton, New Jersey where he became a merchant and manufacturer of tin goods.

Paterson attended local private schools and eventually the College of New Jersey (Princeton) where he received a bachelor’s degree in 1763 and a master’s degree in 1766. Showing an interest in law, Paterson apprenticed with Richard Stockton, who later signed the Declaration of Independence. Paterson practiced law in New Bromley, South Branch. In 1779, he settled near New Brunswick at Raritan Estate, all in New Jersey. [Read more…] about William Paterson & The Constitution of the United States

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History, New York City Tagged With: Albany, American Revolution, Irish Immigrants, James Madison, Legal History, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Political History, Supreme Court

Saved at the Seawall: Stories from the September 11 Boat-Lift

April 8, 2022 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

seawallOn this episode of Empire State Engagements, a conversation with author, historian, and mariner Jessica DuLong about her book Saved at the Seawall: Stories from the September 11 Boatlift (Three Hills/Cornell University Press, 2021). [Read more…] about Saved at the Seawall: Stories from the September 11 Boat-Lift

Filed Under: Books, History, New York City Tagged With: 9-11, East River, Hudson River, Manhattan, Maritime History, New Jersey, New York City, New York Harbor, Podcasts, Search and Rescue, Transportation History

A Free Black Man’s Revolutionary World: Jacob Francis, 1754-1836

February 25, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

the revolutionary world bookWilliam L. Kidder’s book The Revolutionary World of a Free Black Man: Jacob Francis, 1754-1836 (Self-Published, 2021) tells the story of Jacob Francis of Amwell township, Hunterdon County, New Jersey who was indentured out by his free Black mother to the age of 21.

Five different men “owned his time” during his indenture and each provided a different experience for him. The last man lived in Salem, Massachusetts and Jacob lived there between 1768 and 1775 during the buildup to fighting in the American Revolution. [Read more…] about A Free Black Man’s Revolutionary World: Jacob Francis, 1754-1836

Filed Under: Books, Events, History, Mohawk Valley Tagged With: American Revolution, Black History, Fort Plain Museum, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Slavery

The Albany Congress of 1754: Native People, Colonists & the Monarchy

January 26, 2022 by Peter Hess 1 Comment

Dec 1754 Map of the English Colonies (LOC)William Shirley was the Royal Governor of Massachusetts, appointed by the King of England. Shirley had been a British official in England serving on negotiating committees with French officials determining boundaries. This had led Shirley to a thorough dislike of the French.

He was very aggressive and had been a stalwart advocate of invading Canada and driving the French out of North America. Shirley had written a strong criticism of the New York Congress for its resistance to an invasion of Canada in 1748. He was upset when New Jersey and Rhode Island refused to cooperate in the invasion because they were not threatened. [Read more…] about The Albany Congress of 1754: Native People, Colonists & the Monarchy

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History, Mohawk Valley, Western NY Tagged With: Albany, Albany Plan of Union, American Revolution, Benjamin Franklin, Canajoharie, Colonial History, Connecticut, French And Indian War, French History, George Clinton, Haudenosaunee, Hendrick Theyanoguin, Indigenous History, James DeLancey, Kayaderosseras Creek, Lenape, Maryland, Massachusetts, Military History, Mohawk, Mohawk Valley, Mohican, New France, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Northwest Territory, Oswego, Pennsylvania, Political History, Rhode Island, Saratoga County, Schaghticoke, Stockbridge Indians, Virginia, West Canada Creek, William Johnson

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