USA > New York > Schenectady County > Gazetteer and business directory of Albany & Schenectady Co., N.Y., for 1870-71 > Part 12
USA > New York > Albany County > Gazetteer and business directory of Albany & Schenectady Co., N.Y., for 1870-71 > Part 12
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A narrow interval of low land lies along the course of the river, bounded by steep banks from 150 to 250 feet high, where a barren region commences, rising towards the west and broken by numerous sand hills and ridges. The banks which form the declivities of this tract are separated into several distinct ridges by the deep gulleys worn in the clay by the streams which flow through them. The soil, except near the river, is a light sand, producing very little without the aid of costly fertilizers.
The Erie Canal terminates at this place, opening into a large basin and thence into the river. The eastern termini of the N. Y. Central, Rensselaer & Saratoga and Albany & Susquehan- na Railroads are in this City. The Boston & Albany, Hudson River, Harlem and Troy & Greenbush Railroads are connected with the City by a substantial bridge.
Albany is the largest barley market in the United States, im- mense quantities of this grain being manufactured into malt and beer. It is an extensive lumber market, a vast amount of which is transported hither from the north and west.
" The Lumber District" is along the canal, above the Little Basin, where extensive wharves and slips have been constructed to facilitate the transfer of lumber from canal boats to vessels, upon which it is transported down the river. The manufac- tures of the City are varied and extensive, embracing agricul- tural implements, steam engines, carriage and car factories, iron foundries, machine shops, breweries, type and stereotype foun- dries, lithographs, picture frames, pianos, and almost everything to be found in any city of the size in the United States. The stove foundries and breweries are very extensive. Bricks are also extensively manufactured.
The City is supplied with water from works erected at public expense, the water being obtained from several creeks west and north of the City. The main reservoir, Rensselaer Lake, is tive miles west of the City Hall and has an elevation of 202 fret above the river. It covers thirty-nine acres and has a capacity of 180,000,000 gallons. A brick aqueduct conveys the water to Bleeker Reservoir, on Patroon Street, where it is distributed to the portion of the City west of Pearl Street. This Reservoir has a capacity of 30,000,000 gallons. The lower portion of the City is supplied from Tivoli Reservoir, on Patroon Creek, cov- tring twenty acres and having a capacity of 30,000,000. These works are under the control of a Board of Water Commissioners,
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and the rents are charged to property owners and collected with the taxes. The receipts from the Water Works for the year ending Nov. 1, 1869, were $127,427.59. The original cost of the Works was $350,000.
The State buildings at Albany are the Capital, State Hall, State Library, Geological and Agricultural Hall, Normal School and State Arsenal.
The Capitol was commenced in 1803 and finished in 1807 at the joint expense of the City and County of Albany and the State of New York. The original cost was over $120,000, of which $34,200 was paid by the City and $3,000 by the County of Albany. It was used for County, City and State offices until 1832, when it was fitted up for legislative and other public pur- poses. It stands at the head of State Street, 130 feet above the Hudson, and has in front a park of three acres, enclosed by an iron fence. It is built of stone, faced with Nyock Red Freestone. The building contains the Assembly Chamber, the Senate Chamber, Court of Appeals, and various other rooms for the Executive and Legislative Departments of the Government.
The State Library is a fire-proof building in the rear of the Capitol, and connected with it by a corridor. It is constructed of brick and iron, and faced on its two fronts with brownstone. It was erected in 1853-4 and cost nearly $100,000. It was opened to the public, Jan. 2, 1855. The first story is devoted to the Law Library, and the second to the General Library. The lat- ter contains a large number of costly presents from other Gov- ernments, a valuable series of manuscripts and parchments re- lating to our Colonial and early State history, and an extensive collection of coins and medals, both ancient and modern. The General Library embraces about 50,000 volumes, and the Law Library about 20,000. The Library is open from 9 A. M. to 5 P. M., when any person is permitted to consult any work con- tained therein, but is not allowed to take books from the room.
The State Hall, located upon Eagle Street, fronting the Acad- emy Park, is built of cut stone, with a colonnade in front, sup- ported by six Ionic columns, and is surmounted by a dome. The building is 138 by 88 feet, and 65 feet high. The ceilings of the basement and two principal stories are grained arches, and all the rooms except the attic story are fire-proof. The base- ment and attic are each nineteen feet, and the other stories each twenty-two feet high. The building cost about $350,000. It contains the offices of the Secretary of State, Comptroller, Treasurer, Auditor of Canal Department, Canal Commissioners, State Engineer and Surveyor, Division Engineers, Clerk of Court of Appeals, Superintendent of Public Instruction, Super-
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intendent of Bank Department, Attorney General, State Sealer of Weights and Measures and Insurance Department.
The State Geological and Agricultural Hall, corner of State and Lodge Streets, was erected in 1855. It is constructed of brick, and is four stories high besides the basement. The Agricul- tural Rooms were dedicated Feb. 12, 1857, and the Cabinet was opened to the public Feb. 22, 1858. The building contains a lecture room, the Geological Cabinet, the Museum of Natural History, and rooms for the officers of the various departments connected with the building. The Cabinet originated in the Geological Survey, and in extent and value ranks among the first in America. The Museum is designed to embrace a com- plete representation of the geological formations of the State, with their accompanying minerals and fossils, and of its entire native flora and fauna. The birds and quadrupeds are preserved by a skillful taxidermist, with the attitudes and appearance of life, and the reptiles and fishes are principally preserved in al- cohol. Connected with this Cabinet is an historical and antiqua- rian department, embracing numerous aboriginal antiquities and specimens of modern Indian art, relics of battle-fields and other objects of historical interest. The whole is under the charge of a curator appointed by the Regents. The Museum of the State Agricultural Society, in a separate apartment of the building, contains a large collection of obsolete and modern im- plements of husbandry, specimens of agricultural and mechan- ical products, models of fruits, samples of grains and soils, and drawings illustrating subjects connected with the useful arts. These collections are open to the public every week day except holidays.
The State Normal School is located at the corner of Howard and Lodge Streets. The present building was erected in 1848 at a cost of $25,000. The school was established for the in- struction and practice of teachers in the common schools of the State. The school is supported by an annual appropriation from the Literature Fund, and is under the immediate charge of an executive committee appointed by the Regents of the University.
The State Arsenal is a fine brick building situated on Eagle Street, corner of Hudson.
The City Hall is situated on Eagle Street, fronting the east end of Washington Avenue. It is a fine building, faced with Sing Sing marble, built at the joint expense of the City and County, and containing most of the City and County offices.
The City Building is a fine brick structure on South Pearl Street, corner of Howard. It is a new building and contains
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the office of the Capital Police Commissioners and several of the city offices. It is three stories high, with a Mansard roof, and cost about ₴150,000.
The Albany Exchange is a granite building situated on Broad- way, at the foot of State Street. It contains the Post Office, the general office of the N. Y. C. R. R., and various other offices.
The Albany Academy is a fine brown stone structure fronting on Eagle Street. The main building is 70 by 80 feet, and three stories high including the basement. There are two wings 30 by 45 feet each. The building has a fine park in front, sur- rounded by a substantial iron fence, and is finely ornamented with trees and shrubbery. It cost about 8100,000. The insti- tution was incorporated by the Regents, March 4, 1813. The corner stone of th'e edifice was laid July 29, 1815, by Philip S. Van Rensselaer. The copper plate deposited on this occasion contained the following inscription : "Erected for an academy anno. 1815, by the corporation of the City of Albany; Philip S. Van Rensselaer, Mavor; John Van Ness Yates, Recorder; building committee, Philip S. Van Rensselaer, John Brinker- hoff, Chauncey Humphrey, James Warren and Killian K. Van Rensselaer. Seth Geer, architect; H. W. Snyder, sculpt." The Academy was completed in 1817, and opened Sept. 1 of the same year. T. Romeyn Beck was elected Principal, and con- tinued to hold the office for thirty-one years.
The Albany Female Academy was established in 1814, under the designation of the Union School, which was located on Montgomery Street. The present edifice on North Pearl Street 'was erected in 1834. The building is in the Grecian style, with an Ionic portico. It has sustained a high reputation and is patronized by the best citizens of the City.
The Albany Medical College was incorporated Feb. 16, 1839 .- It is located on Eagle Street. It had its origin in the efforts of Drs. March and Armsby . to instruct the people in anatomy and physiology. Dr. March came from Massachusetts in 1820, and the next year commenced a course of lectures on anatomy to a class of fourteen. The prejudice against dissections was so great that he was compelled to bring his subjects from Boston, sometimes in his own private carriage. In 1825 he was ap- pointed Professor in the Vermont Medical College at Castleton, and in 1830 he delivered a lecture on the propriety of establish- ing a medical college at Albany. In 1831 Dr. Armsby came to Albany as a student of Dr. March. He subsequently delivered lectures on anatomy, and aroused such an interest on the part of some of the citizens, that the building erected for a Lan- casterian school was procured for the use of the Professors.
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The first Professors were Alden March, J. H. Armsby, Amos Dean, E. Emmons, Henry Greene and D. M. McLochlin. The first class after the incorporation of the College, numbered 57. During the late war, 243 graduates of the College and five of the Faculty were volunteer surgeons in the service. . For the purpose of establishing this institution, fifty citizens of Albany gave $1,000 each; fifty others 8500 each, and fifty ladies $100 each. It has an extensive medical museum and a choice library of several thousand volumes. Two courses of lectures are delivered annually.
The Albany Law School was established in 1851. Two courses of lectures are delivered annually, in rooms attached to the Medical College. Graduates of this institution are admitted to practice in all the courts of the State.
The Young Men's Association was organized in 1833, and in- corporated March 12, 1835. It supports a lecture course dur- ing the winter, and has a library of about 12,000 volumes. The Reading Room is supplied with the leading daily papers from all parts of the country, as well as a large number of weekly papers, periodicals and reviews, numbering in all about 100. The rooms are very pleasantly situated on State street, near Broadway, and are fitted up for comfort and convenience.
The Albany Institute, a society for the promotion of science and art, was incorporated Feb. 27, 1829, by the union of the Society of Arts and the Albany Lyceum of Natural History. It has three departments. The first is devoted to Physical Science and the Arts, the second to. Natural History, and the third to History and General Literature. From October to May the Society meet semi-monthly at the Albany Academy. It has a valuable library and an extensive collection of minerals, and specimens of natural history. Prof. Henry, of the Smith- sonian Institute, read his first scientific papers before this asso- ciation, while a student in the Albany Academy.
The Albany City Hospital, situated on Eagle Street, corner of Howard, was incorporated April 11, 1849. It was founded by private subscription, and the present building was opened for the reception of patients August 8, 1834. This building was originally erected by the City for a jail.
St. Peter's Hospital, located on the corner of Broadway and North Ferry Streets, was founded by Mrs. Peter Cagger and daughter, in 1869. It has accommodations for 36 patients, and is under the charge of the Sisters of Mercy.
The Albany Orphan Asylum, located on Robin Street, between Washington Avenue and Great Western Turnpike, was incor-
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porated March 30, 1831, though it had previously been in operation about two years. It was commenced as a private en- terprise, and the building was erected by subscription and the product of several ladies' fairs. It is now supported by appro- priations from the State, the interest on its endowment and the proceeds of an annual fair.
St. Vincent's Orphan Asylum was incorporated in 1849. The male department is situated on Western Avenue and is under the care of the Christian Brothers. The female department is on North Pearl Street, and is under the care of the Sisters of Mercy.
The Dudley Observatory, located on an eminence in the north part of the City, was named in honor of Mrs. Blandina Dudley, who contributed liberally towards its establishment and endow- ment. It was incorporated April 2, 1852, and its management intrusted to fifteen trustees. The ground plan of the building is in the form of a cross, 84 feet in front and 72 feet deep. The center room is 28 feet square; the east and west wings are 26 feet square, and the north wing 40 feet square, divided into li- brary and computing rooms. The Equatorial Room, which is in the second story, is of a circular form, 24 feet in diameter, the tower revolving upon iron balls. The main pier for the support of the equatorial was commenced six feet below the bottom of the cellar, with its base, fifteen feet square, resting on a bed of concrete and rubble sixteen inches in thickness. The size of the pier was gradually reduced to ten feet square at the level of the cellar, and continued upward without further varia- tion. The whole is built in the most substantial manner, of large stone, well bedded. The piers in the transit rooms are six feet by eight, and each is furnished with clock piers of similar construction. The building is admirably arranged and fur- nished with some of the best instruments to be found in this country. It was dedicated Aug. 28, 1836, and placed under the charge of a scientific council to be employed by the coast sur- vey. Hon. Edward Everett delivered an oration on the occasion. Mrs. Dudley contributed $76,500 towards the erection and en- dowment of the institution, and other citizens of Albany con- tributed liberally.
The Albany Alms House is located in the south-west part of the City. It includes the necessary buildings for the poor and the insane. The County as well as the City poor are supported at this place.
The Albany Industrial School for vagrant children was estab- lished in 1857. It was located near the Alms House. The building was subsequently used as a Soldiers' Home, but is at present unoccupied.
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The New Capitol, the foundation of which is already laid, will stand in the rear of the old one and Congress Hall, between State Street and Washington Avenue, fronting the Park. Its extent north and south is 290 feet, and east and west 390 feet. There will be a carriage entrance under the portico of the east front. The main entrance floor will be reached by a flight of steps on the east front, leading to the entrance hall, which occu- pies an area of 60 by 74 feet, and a hight of 25 feet. There will also be entrances to this floor from State Street and from Wash- ington Avenue. Communicating directly with the main hall are two grand stairways, forming the principal means of com- munication with the second story. On the left of the main hall will be a suit of rooms for the Governor, his Secretary and Military Staff; on the right will be rooms for the Secretary of State and Attorney General, with a corridor leading to the Court of Appeals. On the second floor will be the Assembly Chamber, 75 by 92 feet, with a gallery on three sides, twenty feet in width. The Senate Chamber, upon the same floor, will be 55 by 75 feet, with a gallery similar to that of the Assembly. The State Li- brary will occupy the east front of these two stories, and will be 283 by 54 feet. This will be the finest room in the whole build- ing, and will doubtless be a place of resort for the.Literati of the City and State. The main tower will be sixty-six feet square and 320 feet high. In the center of the building will be an open court, 137 by 92 feet. The foundation is laid on con- crete, and is of large closely cut limestone, from two to six tons in weight, laid in regular courses. The entire weight of the structure will be about 150,000 tons. When completed accord- ing to the present plans it will be one of the finest public build- ings in the United States, and far superior to any other State Capitol. The Commissioners for its erection are Hamilton Har- ris, J. V. L. Pruyn, O. B. Latham, J. S. Thayer, A. B. Cornell, W. A. Rice and James Terwilliger. Its cost is variously esti- mated at from 84,000,000 to $10,000,000.
The Hudson River Bridge at Albany, is a magnificent struc- ture, and was formally opened for traffic on the first of March, 1866, two years having been occupied in its construction. The total length of the bridge and the approaches is 4,009 feet. Some idea of the magnitude of the work may be obtained from the following statement of its cost and the materials used in its construction :-
Lineal feet of piles, .. 165,000
Feet of timber, board measure, 2,500,000
Tons of iron,. 430
Cubic yards of concrete,. 4,000
Cubic yards of loose stone,
14,000
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Cubic yards of masonry, 13,000 The total cost including real estate, right of way,
etc., was. . $1,150,000
It is the design to replace the present wood superstructure with iron, and have a double track. A new railroad bridge is to be built across the river near the old railroad ferry, the new bridge to be used for passenger trains and the present one for freight exclusively.
The Public Schools are under the control of a Board of Edu- cation, consisting of a president, secretary and twelve com- missioners, four of whom are elected annually for three years. In 1:95 an act passed the Legislature appropriating £20,000 annually for the term of five years, for school purposes. The proportion allotted to Albany County was £1,590 or $3,975. This was a long step towards our free school system.
In May 1785, a school was opened by Elihu Goodrich and John Ely. The Latin and Greek languages were taught, and the most useful branches of mathematics and the elementary branches. The hours of study were from 6 to 8, 9 to 12, 2 to 5 and 6 to 8. The terms were for Greek, Latin and Mathematics, 20 shillings; writing and ciphering, 16 shillings; reading and spelling, 12 shillings, to all of which, singing, "by the latest and most approved method," was added for 12 shillings.
For many years after the first settlement, the inhabitants were Dutch, and that was the language of the town. It was not until 1665 that an English school was taught. The follow- ing is a copy of a license by the Governor :-
" WHEREAS the teaching of the English Tongue is necessary in this Gov- ernment, I have therefore thought fitt to give license to John Shutte to be the English Schoolmaster at Albany. And upon condition that the said John Shutte shall not demand any more wages from each Scholar than is given by the Dutch to their Dutch Schoolmasters, I have further granted to the said John Shutte that he shall be the only English Schoolmaster at Albany. Given under my hand at Fort James in New York, the 12th day of October, 1665." " RICHARD NICOLS."
Albany was at first a mere trading post, but under the patron- age of the Patroon quite a hamlet sprung up in the vicinity of the Fort, erected near the present steamboat landing, and called Fort Orange. It was a stockade, and for several years served the purposes for which it was designed. A larger fort was after- wards erected on the hill, near the site of St. Peter's Church, in State Street. A line of palisades extended from the Fort as far north as Steuben Street, and south to Hudson, extending on the east to the river. A more extended line of palisades was after- wards constructed, reaching to Hamilton Street on the south, and north to Orange Street. The following description of Albany in 1695 will give a good idea of its appearance :
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ALMANY AND SCHENECTADY COUNTY DIRECTORY.
EUREKA
FRENCH TONE SHIRTS!
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..........
Mark.
WHOLESALE AND RETAIL.
Copyright Secured.) MADE TO "ORDER" & WARRANTED TO FIT. Collars, Cuffs, Undershirts & Drawers made to Order. ILLUSTRATED CIRCULARS! - Self Measurement, Furnished upon Application. Gents' Furnishing Goods in Great Variety,
.
TROY, N. Y., & LAWRENCE, KANSAS.
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ALBANY AND SCHENECTADY COUNTY DIRECTORY.
SPRING Se tur .
BED LOUNGE
For Comfort & Convenience. or economy', it has no equal : adapted to meet the wants of all Classes : containing
SPRING BED And Mattress Complete.
OPEN.
in Tins then to another apartiaest. ON Birde . dy for use as soo!
To- LOUNGE makes a nice. :: hit- of amitier. appropriate Hr Drawing Room or Parler.
SIIL'T. ALSO MADE IN SOFA FORM.
what age. very co-dy admm-tot. with orly two moves, ready for use Al. Ve im Ped to examine its merits for themselves.
MANUFACTURED AND FOR SALE BY J. M. CRAPSER 117, 119 & 121 Broadway, Albany, N. Y. Sole Manufacturer for the State of New York. COUNTY RIGHTS FOR SALE. ALSO THE ATTENTION OF THE TRADE IS CALLED TO THE
. ..
1
Forty Styles in all, and Matrresses of all Kinds.
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GAZETTEEP OF TOWNS.
" As the city of New York is the chief place of strength belonging to this ; rovince for its defense against those enemies who come by sea, so Albany .. the principal consideration against those who come by land, the French and Indians of Canada. If is distant from New York 150 miles and lies up Hudson's River on the west side, on the descent of a hill from the west to w the eastward. It is in circumference about six furlongs and hath there- in about 200 houses, a fourh part of what there is reckoned to be in New York. The form of it is septangular, and the longest line, that which buts upon the river, running from the north to the south. On the west angle is the fort, quadrangular, stongly stockaded and ditched round, having in it twenty-one pieces of ordnance mounted. On the north-west side are two Mock-houses, and on the south-west as many; in the south-east angle stands one block-house; in the middle of the line from thence northward is A horned work, and on the south-east angle a mount. The whole city is well stockaded round, aand in the several fortifications named are about thirty guns."
From a plan of Albany at that time there appears to have heen six gates, two upon the Handlaers street, now Broadway, one upon North Pearl, one near the Fort, and two upon the east side, giving access to the river. There was also a church at the junction of Broadway and State Streets, and another upon the present site of the new City Building.
The first church organized in Albany was the Reformed Pro- testant Dutch. It was organized at a very early day. but the pre- cise time is not known. In 1642 Rev. Johannes Megapolensis came out under the patronage of the Patroon, as pastor of this society. The conditions upon which he accepted the call to Rensselaerwyck were a free passage for himself and family; an outfit of 300 guilders ($120) and an annual salary of $440, twenty-two and a half bushels of wheat and two firkins of but- ter for the first three years; and if the Patroon was satisfied with his services he was to receive an additional sum of 880 per annum for another term of three years. His family con- sisted of a wife and four children. A house had been contract- ed for but was not completed on his arrival, though one was af- ferwards purchased for $120. The first church edifice was erected in 1643, it was 34 by 19 feet, and stood near Fort Orange, near the present site of the Albany & Susquehanna R. IL. Depot. The furniture of the church consisted of a pulpit ornamented with a canopy, pews for the magistrates and the deacons, and nine benches for the congregation, the entire cost of which was 832. This house continued to accommodate the congregation until 1056, when a new one was erected in State Ntrent, corner of Broadway. In 1652 Rev. Gideon Schaets came over to supply the pulpit at Albany, receiving a salary of 8320, which was afterwards increased to $400, and again to 8520. He retired in 1683. Rev. Mr. Niewenhuysen was a colleague of Mr. Schaets as early as 1671. In 1675 Rev. Nicholas Van Rens- ¿ laer arrived here and set up a claim, not only to the pulpit,
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