USA > New York > A geographical history of the state of New York: embracing its history, government, physical features, climate, geology, mineralogy, botany, zoology, education, internal improvements, &c., with a separate map of each county > Part 23
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10. Whitehall, 1788.
11. Hartford, 1788.
12. Greenwich, 1803.
13. Putnam, 1806.
14. White Creek, 1815.
15. Jackson, 1815.
16. Fort Edward, 1818.
17. Dresden, 1822.
Mountains. U. Taghkanic range. Y. Peterborough range, 1. French, or Luzerne mountains. Rivers, &c. C. Hudson river. a. Wood creek. b. Pawlet river. c. Poultney, or Fair Haven riv- er. d. Batten kill. f. Black creek. g. White creek. k. Hoosick river. i. Moses kill. Falls. Baker's falls. Great falls, Lakes. W. Lake Champlain. X. Lake George. j. Big Pond. Forts. Fort Edward. Fort Ann. Battle Fields. Kingsbury. Fort Ann. Whitehall.
Villages. SALEM, SANDY HILL, Fort Edward, Whitehall, Union village, White Creek.
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BOUNDARIES. North by Essex county and the state of Ver- mont ; East by Vermont ; South by Rensselaer county ; West by Saratoga and Warren counties, and Lake George.
SURFACE. Three distinct ranges of mountains are found in
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this county ; viz. the Taghkanic, extending along its castern boundary, with an average width of about five miles ; the Peter- borough, with a variable height, running from north to south, through the centre of the county, broken through by the Hoo- sick, Pawlet, and Poultney rivers, and the Batten kill, and maintaining a breadth of from six to eight miles; spurs of this ridge extend toward the river in Greenwich and Easton; and lastly, the Palmertown range, here taking the name of French, or Luzerne mountains, and occupying the narrow peninsula which separates Lake George from Lake Champlain.
These ranges, interspersed with occasional valleys, render the face of the county diversified and picturesque.
RIVERS, &c. The county is abundantly watered. Beside the Hudson, the principal streams are, the Hoosick, Pawlet, and Poultney, or Fair Haven rivers, Batten kill, Wood creek, Moses kill, White and Owl crecks.
FALLS. Baker's falls, on the Hudson, have an almost per- pendicular descent of fifty feet, at the village of Sandy Hill. Great falls, on the Batten kill, have a total descent of sixty feet, in the towns of Easton and Greenwich.
LAKES. Lakes George and Champlain form portions of the boundary of this county. Long Lake, in Argyle, is three or four miles in length.
CANALS. The Champlain canal crosses the Hudson at Green- wich, and connects with Lake Champlain at Whitehall, fur- nishing 32 miles of navigation in this county.
CLIMATE. Cold, but healthful. The spring opens some two weeks later than in Orange, Dutchess, and the lower counties on the Hudson.
GEOLOGY AND MINERALS. The northern part of the county is primitive, and the underlying rock chiefly granite. On the shores of the lakes there is an admixture, and apparent confu- sion of all the formations, probably the result of some convul- sion of nature. In the southern part of the county, the rocks are principally transition, intermixed with occasional patches of primitive. Limestone, graywacke, and slate, alternate upon the surface in this section.
Magnetic and hematitic iron ore, marl, lime, marble, water lime, graphite, lam- ellar pyroxene, massive feldspar, and epidote, are the principal minerals of the county.
SOIL AND VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS. The soil is generally good, and produces fine crops of wheat, but is better adapted to grazing than the culture of grain. The principal timber is oak, hickory, chestnut, maple, butternut, pine, and hemlock.
PURSUITS. The people are, for the most part, engaged in ag- ricultural pursuits. Oats, corn, flax, and potatoes are largely 10
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raised, and considerable quantities of wheat, rye, and barley. Butter, cheese, wool, and pork are produced in great abundance. In the quantity of wool grown, it was, in 1845, the second county in the state.
Manufactures are increasing in importance. Flour, lumber, cotton and woollen goods, leather, and iron, are the principal articles manufactured.
Commerce. The Champlain and Hudson canal affords a con- venient mode of transportation to the produce of the county, which is well improved. The tolls received on produce pass- ing through this county in 1845, were about $70,000.
STAPLE PRODUCTIONS. The staples of the county are pota- toes, oats, corn, flax, butter, cheese, wool, and pork.
SCHOOLS. The county contained, in 1846, 246 district school- houses, in which were taught 13,414 children, at an expense of $16,950 for tuition. The schools were maintained, on an aver- age, eight months each. Number of volumes in the district libraries, 27,656.
It had also twenty-two select schools, with 327 scholars, and five academies, with 345 pupils.
RELIGIOUS DENOMINATIONS. Presbyterians, Methodists, Bap- tists, Congregationalists, Episcopalians, Roman Catholics, and Universalists. Churches, eighty-eight. Clergymen, seventy- two.
HISTORY. The first settlement in the county was made at Argyle, in 1742, by eighty-three families of Highlanders, who emigrated from Scotland, under the direction of Capt. Laughlin Campbell, who had obtained a grant of 30,000 acres from Gov- ernor Clarke. These emigrants were intended to serve as defenders of the frontier, from incursions of the French and Indians.
As they were scantily provided with food and clothing, appli- cation was made to the colonial legislature for aid, till they should be able to sustain themselves. This the house of assem- bly refused to grant, on the ground, it is said, that they had discovered that the Governor and Surveyor General insisted upon their fees and a share of the lands.
Captain Campbell sought redress, but in vain, and with the remnant of his fortune, purchased a small farm in the province. His unfortunate followers were rescued from starvation, by en- listing in an expedition against Carthagena.
In 1755, Fort Edward was erected, by Generals Lyman and Johnson, and in 1756, Fort Ann.
Salem was settled the same year, by two companies of emi- grants, one from Scotland and Ireland, the other from New
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England. In 1764, Alexander Turner and others, who had re- ceived a grant in 1761, settled in the town of Salem. Not far . from the same period, settlements were made in Kingsbury.
In 1758, an obstinate and bloody battle occurred, between a body of 500 American troops, under the command of Major (afterwards General, ) Putnam and Major Rogers, and a party of French and Indians, under the command of a French officer, by the name of Molaire. The battle ground was two miles north of the village of Kingsbury.
The French commander had stationed a part of his troops in ambuscade for the Americans, and hoped to surprise them ; but Putnam, with the coolness which always characterized him, maintained his position, and a fearful conflict ensued. Putnam was taken captive by the Indians, but the bravery of the Ameri- can troops prevailed, and they finally routed the enemy, who left ninety dead behind them. The Indians bore off Putnam as a prisoner, to Canada, inflicting on him the most cruel tortures ; and but for the interposition of the French commander, would have burned him at the stake.
In May, 1775, Whitehall, then called Skenesborough, from its first settler, Major Skene, was seized by a detachment of volunteers from Connecticut. In 1777, the American force sta- tioned there, not being sufficient to protect it against Burgoyne, the fort, stores, and a large number of batteaux loaded with provisions, were burned by the Americans, to prevent their fall- ing into his hands.
In July, 1777, a severe skirmish took place at Fort Ann, bc- tween the 8th British regiment and a body of 400 or 500 invalid American troops, under the command of Colonel Long. The British suffered severely, and would have been taken or de- stroyed but for the want of ammunition on the part of the Americans.
On the 27th of July, 1777, Miss Jane Mc Crea was murdered by the Indians near Fort Edward .*
* The following version of this tragical affair is compiled from Neilson's " Bur- goyne's Campaign," and is professedly derived from the most authentic sources. It will be seen that it differs materially from the accounts heretofore published.
Miss McCrea was the daughter of a New Jersey clergyman, and had come. some years before, to reside with her brother on the west bank of the Hudson, five or six miles below Fort Edward. David Jones, her suitor, resided about five miles above, on the same side of the river. He had embraced the royal cause, and was in the army of Burgoyne. On the 26th of July, 1777, Miss McCrea came from her brother's to the house of Peter Freel, who lived close under the walls of Fort Ed- ward, on a visit. She remained there over night, and the next morning went to the house of Mrs. McNeil, afterwards Mrs. Campbell, a cousin of General Frazer, who was at that time in Burgoyne's army. This house was at a distance of about - eighty rods from the fort. While at the house of Mrs. McNeil, the commander of the fort sent out a party of fifty men, to reconnoitre the position of the enemy. When about a mile fiom the fort, this party fell into an ambuscade of Indians, about
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VILLAGES. SANDY HILL, in the town of Kingsbury, is a half shire village of this county. It was incorporated in 1810. The village is well laid out, the streets enclosing a triangular area in the centre of the village, which was once the scene of Indian barbarities. The Hudson furnishes an immense water power which is but partially improved. Population 1200.
SALEM, the other half shire village, was incorporated in 1803. It is situated in the midst of a fertile agricultural region, and is celebrated as a mart for wool. The Washington Academy is an old institution, and has sent out a considerable number of eminent scholars. Population 800.
Whitehall, in the town of the same name, is eligibly situated at the foot of Lake Champlain, of which it is one of the princi- pal ports. It is connected with the Hudson river by means of the Champlain canal, as well as by several lines of stages run- ning to Troy, Albany, and Saratoga; and with Montreal by steamers which ply daily upon the lake. Thus favorably situ- ated for commerce, its growth has been rapid and healthful. Population about 25 10.
Union Village, situated in the towns of Greenwich and Eas- ton, is a thriving and pleasant manufacturing village, with a flourishing academy, and a number of large manufactories. Population 1400.
North White Creek is a pleasant village, in the town of White Creek, in the midst of an agricultural region. It is a great mart for wool. Population 750.
Cambridge, in the town of the same name, is the seat of Washington Academy, a flourishing and highly popular insti- tution.
Fort Edward and Fort Ann are small villages, worthy of no- tice principally on account of their historic interest.
200 in number, and fled towards the fort. The Indians pursued and killed eight- een of their number. As they passed the house of Mrs. McNeil, six of the In- dians rushed in and seized Mrs. McNeil and Miss McCrea, and hurried with them to the main body of the Indians. Both of the ladies were placed upon horses, which they had probably stolen from the vicinity.
As they ascended a hill about a mile from the fort, Miss McCrea was shot by one of the Indians, and fell from her horse. The savage who shot her, scalped her, and having secured the most valuable articles of her clothing, rolled her body down the declivity of the hill. On the ensuing day her body, and that of a young American officer who had also been killed by the Indians, were found and buried near a small creek about three miles from Fort Edward, by the Americans from the fort. Mrs. McNeil was not killed, but plundered of most of her clothing, and brought to the British camp. Jones, Miss McCrea's suitor, had never sent for her, nor is it certain that he knew that she was in the vicinity of the fort. He is re- ported to have been killed at the battle of Bemis' Heights, on the 19th of Septem- ber following.
XIII. COLUMBIA COUNTY.
Square miles, 624. Organized, 1786.
Population, 41,416. Valuation, 1845, $8,925,423.
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STATE OF NEW YORK.
TOWNS.
1. Hudson, 1785.
11. Taghkanic, 1803.
2. Canaan, 17SS.
12. Austerlitz, 1818.
3. Claverack, 178S.
13. Ghent, 1813.
4. Clermont, 1788.
14. New Lebanon, 1818.
5. Germantown, 17SS.
15. Stuyvesant, 1823.
6. Hillsdale, 1788.
16. Copake, 1824.
7. Kinderkook, 17SS.
17. Gallatin, 1530.
8. Livingston, 1788.
18. Stockport, 1833.
9. Chatham, 1795.
19. Greenport, 1839.
10. Ancram, 1803.
Mountains. U. Taghkanic range.
Rivers and Creeks. C. Hudson river. b. Claverack creek. c. Co- pake. d. Ancram. g. Roeliff Jansen's. h. Vallitje. i. Kinder- hook.
Falls. Kinderhook falls.
Lakes and Ponds. k. Copake lake. 1. Charlotte. m. Fish.
j. Whiting's pond.
Villages. HUDSON. Kinderhook. - New Lebanon. Valatie, or Vallitje. Columbiaville.
BOUNDARIES. North by Rensselaer county ; East by the state of Massachusetts and Dutchess county ; South by Dutchess county ; and West by the Hudson river.
SURFACE. The surface of Columbia county is greatly varied, but may be regarded as composed of two long and broken val- leys, on the east of which the Taghkanic range forms a natural boundary between the county and the state of Massachusetts ; the high banks of the Hudson form the western boundary, and the Peterborough mountains constitute the dividing ridge through the centre of the county.
The western valley rises on t e north and sou h, causing its waters to flow towards the centre; while the eastern, being highest in the centre, sends its streams north and south. The western valley being much the broadest, gives the county the form of a basin, retaining all the waters that rise in it, and dis- charging them into the Hudson, through the Kinderhook and Roeliff Jansen's creeks.
RIVERS. The Hudson is the principal river; the other streams of the county are Kinderhook, Claverack, Copake, Roeliff Jansen's and Vallitje creeks.
LAKES. Fish, Whiting's pond, Copake and Charlotte, are the only lakes worthy of notice.
RAILROADS. The Hudson and Berkshire, and the Great Western railroad pass t rough the county ; and the route of the Harlaem railroad is laid out through it.
CLIMATE. The climate varies with the surface. In the val- leys it is mild and pleasant, with early seasons; on the moun-
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tains, it is colder and more backward. The county is regarded as very healthy.
GEOLOGY AND MINERALS. The Taghkanic mountains, in the eastern part of the county, are primitive, and composed mainly of granite, and granular limestone. The remainder of the county is transition, and its principal rocks are graywacke and blue limestone, below which, for the most part, lies a bed of slate.
The minerals are, iron ore of superior quality, lead ore, sulphuret of copper, oxide of manganese, sulphuret of zinc, heavy spar, peat, marl and marble. There are several mineral springs, both sulphurous and chalybeate, in the county. Those at Lebanon are much frequented, and considered as possessing valuable medicinal properties .* The sulphur springs in the town of Stockport are attract- ing considerable attention.
SOIL-AND VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS. Portions of the county are highly fertile, while others are less productive. The marl and lime which abound in the county, furnish ample means for enriching it, to the highest degree of productiveness. The timber of the county is principally pitch pine, hickory, oak, ma- ple, elm and chestnut.
PURSUITS. Agriculture is the leading pursuit. Much atten- tion is given to the culture of grain and the rearing of cattle. The growth of wool is very large.
Manufactures are also an important pursuit in the county. The principal articles are cotton and woollen fabrics, including prints, flour, iron and brass ware.
Commerce. An active trade is carried on from Hudson and the other river towns of the county, with New York and other home ports, employing a number of steamers, sloops and barges. The produce of the inland towns finds its way to a market by the railroads.
Mines. There are some iron mines in the county.
STAPLE PRODUCTIONS. Oats, potatoes, corn, rye, butter, cheese and wool.
SCHOOLS. In 1846, there were in the county, 184 district school-houses, in which schools were taught, an average period of nine months. 11,275 scholars received instruction, at an ex- pense for tuition, of about $22,038. The district libraries num- bered.22,540 volumes.
There were, the same year, in the county, twenty-six select schools, with 435 pupils, and four academies with 238 students.
" The following is the late Dr. Meade's analysis of the waters of the New Lebanon spring.
Two quarts of water contain grs.
Muriate of lime, 1
Of gases. Nitrogen gas, 13 cubic inches.
Muriate of soda, (common salt,) 1 3-4
Sulphate of lime, 1 1-2 Atmospheric air, 8
Carbonate of lime, 3-4
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RELIGIOUS DENOMINATIONS. Methodists, Dutch Reformed, Baptists, Presbyterians, Friends, Episcopalians, Jews, Luther- ans, Shakers, Universalists, Congregationalists, Unitarians, and Roman Catholics. The whole number of churches is sev- enty-four ; of clergymen, sixty.
HISTORY. This county was originally a portion of two man- ors. The manor of Rensselaerwyck included all except the seven southernmost towns, which constituted the manor of Liv- ingston, granted in 1684, 1685, and 1686, and confirmed to the proprietor in 1714.
In 1710, a company of seventy German families, part of those sent over by Queen Anne, settled in the present town of Ger- mantown, which they called East Camp. In 1725, an arrange- ment having been made between George I. and the proprietor of the Livingston manor, a tract of 6000 acres was secured to them, of which forty acres were to be reserved for the use of a church and school, and the remainder divided equally among the inhabitants.
The other six towns, Clermont, Livingston, Taghkanic, Gal- latin, Copake, and Ancram, still constitute the Livingston manor. The leases are generally long, and ents payable in produce. The northern towns, mostly belong to the manor of Rensselaerwyck.
Difficulties have frequently occurred between the proprietors of these manors and their tenants. In 1766, the military forces were called out to quell the disturbances in the town of Clav- erack, in the Rensselaer manor, and a conflict ensued in which several lives were lost. Similar occurrences have taken place within a year or two past.
The county was mostly settled by Swedish and Dutch emi- grants, with the exception of Germantown, already mentioned, and Hudson, which was founded in 1783, by enterprising citizens of Rhode Island and Nantucket.
The manorial system has perhaps prevented, in some degree, the full development of the capabilities of the county ; yet it has, with slight exceptions, uniformly enjoyed a high degree of pros- perity.
VILLAGES. HUDSON city, the capital of the county, is pleas- antly situated on the banks of the Hudson, here about fifty feet above the level of the river. It was formerly largely en- gaged in commerce, but the interests of this, as well as all our other commercial ports, were greatly injured by the action of the French and English, relative to neutral vessels, and the course necessarily adopted by our government in return, prior to the late war with Great Britain.
After recovering from the severe losses occasioned by these events, the citizens of hudson engaged in the whale fishery,
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but with indifferent success. The coasting trade is prosecuted to some extent.
There are some manufactories here, principally of sperm oil and candles, malt liquors, iron, and carriages. The Hudson Academy is an old chartered institution, and the Hudson Female Seminary, is a new and flourishing school. The Hudson Luna- tic Asylum is a private institution. but well conducted, and en- joying a large amount of patronage.
The city is supplied with excellent water, by means of an aqueduct. The Hudson and Berkshire railroad adds materially to the business facilities of the city. Population, 5,657.
Valatie is an important manufacturing village, in the town of Kinderhook, situated at the junction of the Valatie (a corruption of Vallitje) and Kinderhook creeks; here are four large cotton mills, two iron foundries, and several other manufactories. Population, 1600.
Kinderhook village, in the town of the same name, is delight- fully situated on a plain, five miles east of the Hudson. It has several manufactories, and a flourishing incorporated academy. It is the birth place of ex-President Van Buren, and his beauti- ful country seat, Lindenwald, is about two miles south of the village. Population, 1500.
Columbiaville, in the town of Stockport, is a manufacturing village of some importance. Its manufactures consist mainly of cotton sheetings. The Hudson River Seminary, a manual labor institution, is located here. There are in the town of Stockport, several other manufacturing villages. The principal are Glencadia, Springville, Hudson Print Works, and Chitten- den's Falls.
New Lebanon Shaker Village, in the town of New Lebanon, called by the inhabitants the " Village of the Millennial Church," is situated on the west side of the Taghkanic mountains. This is one of the largest settlements of this singular people. . They have here a very large church, arched over throughout its en- tire extent; ten dwelling houses for their families, or commu- nities, which consist of from 60 to 150 persons each, and nu- merous workshops and manufactories. Their grounds are highly cultivated, and their society prosperous and wealthy. This settlement was founded a few years after that at Neskayu- na, noticed under Albany county. Population about 600.
Two and a half miles from this village, are the New Lebanon springs, which are a fashionable resort for invalids and pleasure seekers, during the summer ; the scenery here is very delightful.
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XIV. CLINTON COUNTY.
Square miles, 933. Organized, 1788.
Population, 31,278. Valuation, 1845, $1,666,140.
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TOWNS.
1. Plattsburgh, 1795.
2. Champlain, 1788.
3. Peru, 1792.
4. Chazy, 1804.
5. Mooers, 1804.
6. Beekmantown, 1820.
7. Ellenburgh, 1830.
8. Saranac, 1834.
9. Au Sable, 1837.
10. Blackbrook, 1837.
11. Clinton, 1842.
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Mountains. JJ. Au Sable range. GG. Chateaugay. 1. Lyon. m. Rand Hill.
Rivers. a. Great Chazy. b. Little Chazy. c. English. d. Sal- mon. c. Little Au Sable. i. Au Sable. j. Saranac.
Falls. Sheffield.
Lakes. W. Lake Champlain. g. Chateaugay. h. Chazy.
Battle Fields. Plattsburgh. Lake Champlain.
Villages. PLATTSBURGH. Chazy. Redford. Clinton. Peru.
BOUNDARIES. North by Canada East; East by Lake Cham- plain ; South by Essex county ; and West by Franklin county.
SURFACE. A plain, about eight miles in width, extends along the eastern border of this county, inclining gently to Lake Champlain. West of this, the surface becomes hilly and broken, giving rise to the Au Sable range of mountains ; still farther west, the Chateaugay, which have their origin in Can- ada, rear their lofty and wooded ridges. Their course is from north-east to south-west.
RIVERS. The principal rivers in the county are the Au Sa- ble, Saranac, Great Chazy, Little Chazy, English, Salmon, and Little Au Sable.
FALLS. The Au Sable has a number of falls within a few miles of its mouth. At Birmingham, the water plunges over a precipice eighty feet in height, and then flows through a ravine of two miles in length, and an average width of fifty feet, with perpendicular walls of granite from seventy-five to 150 feet high. The Saranac has also a number of falls, three of them exceeding in perpendicular descent, forty feet each.
LAKES. Lake Champlain washes the eastern border of the county. The other principal lakes are Chateaugay and Chazy.
CLIMATE. In common with the northern counties generally, it has a rigorous climate. The winters are long, and snow falls to a great depth.
GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. The county is wholly of primi- tive formation, except a narrow strip of limestone, along the shore of the lake. Hypersthene, granite and gneiss, are the prevailing rocks.
Iron is the most abundant and valuable mineral. Both bog and magnetic ores occur in large quantities. Black marble is found near Plattsburgh, of excellent quality. Peat is very plentiful. In Beekmantown, is a sulphur spring, and also one of carbonated water.
SOIL AND VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS. In the level section upon the lake, the soil is principally a clayey loam, and is very pro- ductive. As the country rises, it becomes less fertile.
The summer crops are best adapted to the soil.
The forests are covered with a dense growth of timber, of oak, pine, maple, hemlock, &c. Large quantities of sugar are produced from the maple.
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STATE OF NEW YORK.
PURSUITS. The inhabitants are for the most part engaged in agricultural pursuits. Some grain is raised, but the rearing of cattle and sheep is a more favorite and profitable business. The preparation of lumber for market also furnishes employ- ment to many of the citizens.
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