Craig K. Streeter, a 73-year-old resident of Mahopac, NY, is currently the subject of an active multi-agency search after going missing while camping in the Moose River Plains in Hamilton County in the Adirondack Park. [Read more…] about Search Continues For Moose River Plains Missing Man
Putnam County
A Trip to Albany on the Steamboat James Kent, August 1823
Yesterday afternoon we had the pleasure of visiting the new and beautiful steam boat James Kent, now lying at the foot of Liberty street [in the City of New York].
Through the politeness of Capt. Wiswall and Mr. Rhind, we enjoyed an opportunity of examining her from stem to stern, above and below, and of obtaining such facts, as will enable us to give a pretty accurate description of this superb vessel, which in many respects surpasses any boat, that has ever floated upon our waters. [Read more…] about A Trip to Albany on the Steamboat James Kent, August 1823
Small & Scarce: Early New York Paper Making History
About 1768, New York’s first paper mill was established, but throughout the 1700s New Yorkers suffered from a lack of paper, no more so than during the American Revolution. The industry grew from the need for paper and owes its early history to the rise of printing in America. [Read more…] about Small & Scarce: Early New York Paper Making History
Dog Rescued After Fall Over Falls; Ill and Injured Hikers Rescued
New York State Forest Rangers had another busy week with dangerous rescue operations in the Adirondacks, Catskills, and elsewhere. Including a dog that went over the edge at Fawn’s Leap Falls; an unconscious hiker at Kaaterskill Falls; several hikers with lower leg injuries; and more. [Read more…] about Dog Rescued After Fall Over Falls; Ill and Injured Hikers Rescued
Peggy Shippen Arnold: Wife of the Famous Traitor
The latest episode of the Crossroads of Rockland History turns attention to the complex story of Margaret “Peggy” Shippen Arnold (1760–1804), the second wife of America’s most notorious traitor, Benedict Arnold. [Read more…] about Peggy Shippen Arnold: Wife of the Famous Traitor
Memories of Old Put: NY Central Railroad’s Putnam Division
Just after sunset on a toasty evening in May 1903, a two-year-old trotting horse named Princewell, startled by “a noisy automobile,” bolted for freedom in the Bronx.
Trainer Frank Ferris was leading the young colt across the tracks of the Putnam Division of the New York Central Railroad, turning onto the Boston Post Road at King’s Bridge, when the motorcar “rushed past,” according to a New York Times report. [Read more…] about Memories of Old Put: NY Central Railroad’s Putnam Division
Revolutionary, Military & Political Leader Nicholas Fish Focus of New Exhibit
In April 1775, when news of the Battle of Lexington and Concord reached New York, Nicholas Fish, born in Newtown, Long Island, was a 17-year old law student at King’s College (now Columbia University).
Together with his close friend, Alexander Hamilton, and other law colleagues who were members of the Sons of Liberty, Fish without hesitation joined a volunteer militia called the “Corsicans” – later named the “Hearts of Oak.”
The Hearts of Oak carried out one of the early actions of the war in August 1775 when they seized 21 royal cannons from New York’s Battery under fire from the British warship HMS Asia. [Read more…] about Revolutionary, Military & Political Leader Nicholas Fish Focus of New Exhibit
White Supremacist George Wallace & New York State
On January 14, 1963, after being overwhelmingly elected by white Alabama voters, George Wallace (1919-1998), the infamous segregationist and white supremacist, delivered his inaugural address and called for “Segregation now! Segregation tomorrow! Segregation forever!” Throughout his speech he condemned integration and criticized federal intervention in state affairs.
Running for office almost a decade after Brown v. Board of Education, Wallace’s 1962 campaign used the slogan “Stand up for Alabama,” and he vowed to fight integration at the University of Alabama. [Read more…] about White Supremacist George Wallace & New York State
Putnam County’s East Branch Reservoir History Collection Debuts
Water has always played a vital role in the history of Putnam County, NY. Now, Brewster High School senior and Eagle Scout candidate Connor O’Reilly has led a service project commemorating the construction of the East Branch Reservoir in the Town of Southeast, completed more than a century ago. [Read more…] about Putnam County’s East Branch Reservoir History Collection Debuts
The Ecological Impacts of 200 Years of Hudson River Dredging
The navigable portion of Hudson River provides a unique ecosystem with highly diverse habitats, despite being dramatically impacted by 200 years of dredging, retaining walls, and industrial development.
More than 85% of the river’s islands have been eliminated and most of the river’s side channels have been filled in. About half of the river shoreline between Troy and the Mario Cuomo Bridge (formally Tappan Zee) has been engineered. [Read more…] about The Ecological Impacts of 200 Years of Hudson River Dredging
‘A Storm of Flies’: Mayflies on the Hudson River
Mayflies are aquatic insects in the order Ephemeroptera (meaning short-lived). They are also known as shadflies, fishflies, or up-winged flies. Folks who live along rivers are more familiar with the “hatch” of mayflies which can number in the thousands or millions, when conditions are just right.
In the past rivers like the Hudson, Mohawk and Susquehanna could see hatches of mayflies so large they became international news. What follows are two stories reporting mayfly hatches of enormous proportions in September 4, 1880. [Read more…] about ‘A Storm of Flies’: Mayflies on the Hudson River
Cattle Drives in New York State: Some History
Cattle drives have had an enormous impact on popular culture. The cowboy is a uniquely American icon that came to be widely admired and imitated in sensational newspaper reports, cheaply produced books and later in motion pictures and television shows.
Driving cattle across great distances was not something found only in the western states however, up until the mid-1850s New Yorkers organized cattle drives too. [Read more…] about Cattle Drives in New York State: Some History
The Putnam County Trailway: Recreating on the Old Put
The nine-mile long Putnam County Trailway is a paved bicycle/pedestrian path located primarily on right-of-way lands of the former Putnam Division of the New York Central Railroad.
The “Old Put” as it was formerly referred to by commuters, provided freight and passenger service from 1881 to 1958 between the Bronx in New York City and Brewster in Putnam County. [Read more…] about The Putnam County Trailway: Recreating on the Old Put
Ruth McGinnis, the ‘Queen of Billiards’
In November 1939, Ruth McGinnis (1910-1974), the Women’s Pocket Billiard Champion of the World (1932-40) played at Frank’s Pool Parlor in Carmel, Putnam County, NY. McGinnis was left-handed and like many touring billiards professionals of the time, known as a trick shot artist. She typically shot Straight Pool.
McGinnis, nicknamed “Lefty,” started playing billiards at the age of seven at her father’s billiard parlor in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, where she was discovered by Ralph Greenleaf, professional pool and carom billiards player. [Read more…] about Ruth McGinnis, the ‘Queen of Billiards’
Bizarre Hiker Rescue Mission; Injured, Poorly Equipped Hikers Rescued
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Forest Rangers respond to search and rescue incidents throughout New York State locating and extracting lost, injured or distressed people and policing state lands.
This report of recent missions carried out by Forest Rangers was prepared by DEC: [Read more…] about Bizarre Hiker Rescue Mission; Injured, Poorly Equipped Hikers Rescued
Putnam County Takes Flight: National Air Mail Week, 1938
In 1938, the U.S. Post Office sponsored National Air Mail Week, held from May 15 to 21, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the inauguration of Air Mail service, first launched by the Post Office on May 15, 1918. Carmel NY Postmaster Thomas Townsend served as chairman of the National Air Mail Observance Committee for Putnam County.
He fully embraced the celebration, which was aimed at boosting postal revenue during a time when the nation was emerging from the Great Depression and still reeling from the airmail contract scandal earlier that decade. [Read more…] about Putnam County Takes Flight: National Air Mail Week, 1938
NY’s Frank Myers Of The 54th Massachusetts: Correcting The Historical Record
In the Milltown Rural Cemetery located in the Town of Southeast, Putnam County, NY, there is a small, well-weathered military headstone that offers a faint hint to a story of courage and glory.
There lies a hero from the Civil War, a Black veteran, who didn’t live long enough for post-war decoration or celebration, and one who has regularly been misreported in history books, until now. [Read more…] about NY’s Frank Myers Of The 54th Massachusetts: Correcting The Historical Record
11 Wildfires Burn in Eight Counties Across Upstate New York
Between April 28 and May 5, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Forest Rangers and local fire departments responded to wildfires in eight counties across New York State, including Chemung, Onondaga, Orange, Oswego, Otsego, Putnam, Sullivan, and Ulster Counties. [Read more…] about 11 Wildfires Burn in Eight Counties Across Upstate New York
Hiker Rescued After Being Hit By A Falling Tree
On May 3 at about 2:30 pm, NYS (DEC) Forest Rangers responded to assist staff from the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (State Parks) with an unconscious hiker a mile and a half up the Breakneck Ridge trail in Hudson Highlands State Park. The hiker was hit by a falling tree. [Read more…] about Hiker Rescued After Being Hit By A Falling Tree
Up the Hudson River: New York to Stillwater in 1783
What follows is an excerpt from the diary of Francisco de Miranda (1750-1816), who traveled through the United States between 1783 and 1784. A Venezuelan who fought in the American Revolutionary War, the French Revolution and the Spanish American wars of independence, his diary was later published as The New Democracy in America: Travels of Francisco de Miranda in the United States, 1783-84 (University of Oklahoma Press, 1963). It has been transcribed by Hudson River Maritime Museum Contributing Scholar George A. Thompson and annotated by John Warren.
Tired from the toil of the trip [from Philadelphia, through New Jersey] and having formed some acquaintances in New York, I thought I would visit Boston and then return to New York, whence I would embark for England. The harshness of the winter held me suspended for some time and finally made me change the plan. The sound and the rivers remained frozen for a long time, obstructing all navigation, and the roads, although covered with snow, became impassable with the frequent thaws — neither sledge nor wheels could attempt them. [Read more…] about Up the Hudson River: New York to Stillwater in 1783