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Saratoga

1849 Christmas In Burnt Hills’ New Gothic Church

December 24, 2021 by Guest Contributor 1 Comment

Carpenter gothic Calvary Episcopal Church in Burnt Hills, Saratoga County, New YorkChristmas is a time for great celebration, but 1849 was a year of a very special celebration for the new members of the congregation of Calvary Episcopal Church in Burnt Hills, Saratoga County, NY.

December 25, 1849 was the first time they were all able to meet together in their own church building, a carpenter gothic style edifice which had just been constructed at a cost of $2,500 The building was located right in the heart of Burnt Hills and situated on Lakehill Road, a street that in later years was renowned for its overarching trees that formed a canopy above the street. [Read more…] about 1849 Christmas In Burnt Hills’ New Gothic Church

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Architecture, Burnt Hills, Christmas, Historic Preservation, Religious History, Saratoga, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Center, Saratoga County History Roundtable

Harry James Carman: Farm Boy to Columbia University Dean

December 16, 2021 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Harry James Carman courtesy New York Herald Tribune December 27, 1964“Here is a good dirt farmer gone wrong” is how Harry James Carman described himself.

He started out as a farm-raised country boy in Saratoga County, NY and rose to the position of Dean of Columbia University in New York City. [Read more…] about Harry James Carman: Farm Boy to Columbia University Dean

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History, New York City Tagged With: Columbia University, Corinth, Education, New York City, Saratoga, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Center, Saratoga County History Roundtable, Schuylerville

Saratoga’s ‘Fanny the Flower Girl,’ Gotham Book Mart Founder

December 14, 2021 by Jaap Harskamp 1 Comment

Congress Spring, Saratoga, 1849Frances Steloff was the daughter of a Russian immigrant and itinerant rabbi who, in an age of rising anti-Semitism, was one of the early Jewish settlers in Saratoga Springs. The large family lived in dire poverty.

After the death of her mother, Frances was “informally” adopted by a wealthy Boston couple. Having run away from her foster parents, she made her way to New York, worked in a Brooklyn department store selling corsets, before establishing a tiny bookshop in Midtown Manhattan. On her death, after eighty-one years in the business, she was revered as one of America’s most influential booksellers and bibliophiles. Founder of the Gotham Book Mart, she turned her establishment into a center for avant-garde literature. [Read more…] about Saratoga’s ‘Fanny the Flower Girl,’ Gotham Book Mart Founder

Filed Under: Arts, Capital-Saratoga, History, New York City Tagged With: Immigration, Jewish History, Literature, Manhattan, Medical History, New York City, Publishing, Saratoga, Saratoga Springs

A Tale Of A Headless Rooster

December 2, 2021 by Guest Contributor 2 Comments

Dr. John MacElroy in his Jonesville office, c. 1950Dr. John R. MacElroy was a country doctor who served the residents of the Jonesville area in Clifton Park, Saratoga County for over 60 years. He began his medical practice in Jonesville at age 22 in 1894, and continued to care for his patients until he died in 1954 at age 81. He was known to generations of Jonesville patients, hundreds of whom he brought into life.

Dr. MacElroy was also very interested in farm animals. He ran a large dairy farm of 140 acres on the road now named for him in Jonesville, and was also fond of animal breeding. [Read more…] about A Tale Of A Headless Rooster

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

When WW1 Gold Star Mothers Pilgrimaged To European Cemeteries

October 26, 2021 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Meuse-Argonne American CemeteryOn May 13th, 1930, two Saratoga County women set out on an all-expense paid trip. Sailing from New York Harbor on the S.S. Republic, they would be welcomed in Paris by French and American officials and put up in one of the most expensive hotels in the city. After visiting the sites in and around Paris, they would stop in London on the way home where they received the same first class treatment.

It should have been one of the finest times of their lives, but it wasn’t. [Read more…] about When WW1 Gold Star Mothers Pilgrimaged To European Cemeteries

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Greenfield, Military, Saratoga, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Center, Saratoga County History Roundtable, womens history, World War One

Galway’s Gristmill: A Short History

October 18, 2021 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Parkis Mills prior to demolition 1979Galway in Saratoga County, NY had more than a half dozen churches in the early 1800s, but very little industry. It was first settled by immigrants from Scotland in 1774.

A lack of large rivers or a railroad connection stifled the growth of the town, although by 1855 it had six sawmills, two grist mills, two broom handle factories, and eight blacksmiths within the village of Galway. [Read more…] about Galway’s Gristmill: A Short History

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Galway, Genealogy, Industrial History, Saratoga, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Center, Saratoga County History Roundtable

National Park Service to Manage Saratoga Surrender Site

October 5, 2021 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Saratoga Surrender Site (National Park Service Photo)The Saratoga Surrender Site, where the British Army surrendered during the 1777 Battles of Saratoga, will now be managed by the National Park Service as part of the Saratoga National Park. [Read more…] about National Park Service to Manage Saratoga Surrender Site

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: American Revolution, Battle of Saratoga, Military History, National Park Service, Saratoga, Saratoga National Historical Park

Ballston Community Library: A Short History

September 29, 2021 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Drawing of original library building 1952On September 23rd, 1952, the Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Rotary and the Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Women’s Club met at a combined meeting to establish the Library Association which would spearhead fund raisers and begin the process of building a library from the bottom up.

Among other fundraising, the Library Association went door to door soliciting people to come to their homes for breakfast on a particular day — and the invited guests would then be charged for their breakfast. [Read more…] about Ballston Community Library: A Short History

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Ballston Lake, Libraries, Saratoga, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Center, Saratoga County History Roundtable

Donald Stewart: The Man Who Founded The First Stewart’s Shop

September 16, 2021 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

Early Stewarts AdvertisementThis summer Brookside Museum in Ballston Spa, NY, opened an exhibit: “Century of Ice Cream! The Dake Family and Stewart’s.”

One might wonder why this successful business, with almost 350 convenience stores is named “Stewart’s” and not “Dake’s.”

Actually, the original founder of Stewart’s had a strong reputation for high-quality dairy products, long before the Dake family purchased the business. [Read more…] about Donald Stewart: The Man Who Founded The First Stewart’s Shop

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, Food, History Tagged With: Ballston Spa, Culinary History, Dairy, local farms, Saratoga, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Center, Saratoga County History Roundtable, Stewart's Shops

The Saratoga Racecourse Backstretch Backstory

August 27, 2021 by Guest Contributor 1 Comment

Saratoga Backstretch Fred BrennerThe saga of thoroughbred racing at Saratoga has largely been told by and about the horse owners, tycoons, the rich and famous of their era.

The people who actually care for the horses, the backstretch (barn area) workers, grooms and hot walkers often receive little attention. [Read more…] about The Saratoga Racecourse Backstretch Backstory

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Black History, Hispanic History, Horses, Immigration, Labor History, Latino History, Saratoga, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Center, Saratoga County History Roundtable, Saratoga Race Track, Saratoga Springs

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