HISTORIC
A
Columbia County

Replica of Hendrick Hudson's Ship
The Half Moon
 

CELEBRATING 400 YEARS!

HENDRICK HUDSON 
1609 Discovery & Maiden  Voyage
 of the Hudson River
 

Landing of Hendrick Hudson
From an 1857 Engraving by R.W. Weir

    NuttennHookkStateeUniqueArea
    Columbia Land Conservation
Stuyvesant  
              

 Hudson moored his ship, the Half Moon
   near by at Kinderhook Landing, now
  Stuyvesant Landing and named this shore
  "Kinderhoek."

Hendrick Hudson & the Half Moon - Click Here

Hendrick Hudson was the first European explorer of the territory who sailed up the river. It was in the year 1609, eleven years before the Pilgrims landed at Provincetown. While moored at the river bank at Kinder-hook Landing, (the area is now Stuyvesant). Hudson saw Native American children playing on the shore. He is said to have named the place "Kinderhoek", Dutch meaning Children's corner. (Today the translation is play-pen.)

The original Half Moon (Halve Maen) was commissioned in March 1609 for the Dutch East India Company. The Half Moon was a ship of exploration, designed to take a crew of twenty into unknown and uncharted waters in search of new trade routes.

To celebrate the Dutch role in exploring and colonizing America, a replica of Hudson's Half Moon was built at the Snow Dock in Albany, New York, and launched in June 1989. The Half Moon sails as a living history exhibit. Her cabins and decks furnished authentically with sea chests, weapons, tools, navigational instruments, and trade goods, taking visitors back in time when European explorers competed to open new routes for trade with the East.

The river now bears Hudson's name. The native inhab-itants were the Mahikans Indians. A lively trade was established by 1612 and early settlers began to colonize various regions. The establishment of Fort Orange and New Amsterdam in 1624 allowed traders and travelers to frequently stopped along the shores of Columbia County. Small settlements sprang up to supply goods to these ships.

"It was in this early period that Dutch architecture was introduced into the Hudson Valley, a phenomenon that occurred nowhere else on in North American. The forms and construction methods of the buildings that appeared were based on Dutch precedents. In the compact urban settings of New Amsterdam and Fort Orange, these houses were visibly similar to the townhouses from home, though smaller in size and more economical in materials and decoration." --Hudson River Valley Institute

Fort Orange was eventually renamed Albany. By an act passed on March 24, 1772 the region now known as Columbia County was divided and formed into various districts from a portion of Albany county. The City of Hudson was incorporated April 22, 1785 to included territory within the boundaries of the Stockport Creek on the north, The Claverack Creek on the east, The north line of the manor of Livingston on the south,  the Hudson River on the west.

The Dutch, in the late 17th Century, were the first to settle Columbia County. This is evident today by the early area Dutch Reformed churches and Dutch names on various sites. The English followed in the early 18th Century. One can see this by Dutch-Anglo influence on architectural styles of the `17th & 18th Centuries in the area. 

The organization of Columbia County which was erected by act of legislature, passed April 4, 1786. Seven original towns consisting of Kinderhook, Canaan, Claverack, Hillsdale, Clermont, Germantown and Livingston were erected by an act passed March 7, 1788.

During the Revolutionary War, the Kinderhook area was the site of several historic events. In the winter of 1775-76 Colonel Henry Knox transported a vital shipment of artillery (44 cannons, 14 mortars and one howitzer) from the recently captured Fort Ticonderoga 300 miles to the beleaguered City of Boston. Having led his hardy band over the frozen Hudson River and countryside using ox and horse-
drawn sledges, Knox led his train into Kinderhook Village and east to Framingham. The route taken from Albany to Boston through Kinderhook was on what today is the proximity of US Route 9 from Rensselaer to what is now the Kinderhook Village Square down Hudson Street and across the Kinderhook Creek to Ghent. A NY State marker on the Village Square attests to this historic event.
(See Knox Trail below.)

Kinderhook was the overnight resting place of Colonel Benedict  Arnold in the spring of 1777 while he was convalescing from wounds received during the victory of Bemis Heights. When the redcoat army was captured by the Americans under
General Phillips in 1777, the English General Burgoyne was “entertained” in the Village.

Similarly, the American General Montgomery dined here while on his way to the ill-fated attack on Quebec.

The 8th President of the United States was born in
Kinderhook where his parents operated a pub. He grew up, went to school practiced law in Kinderhook. He retired here to Lindewald, his farm estate, which is now a museum maintained by the National Parks Service. President Van Buren's grave may be seen in the cemetery on the northerly side of Albany Avenue in the Village of Kinderhook.






          COLUMBIA COUNTY
                LINKS to HISTORY


A wealth of historic sites.
A list and links are provided below:

Map of Area - Click Here

National Register of Historic Places
in Columbia County New York  Click Here

Genealogy & History - Click Here

                          Shaker Museum
                             Old Chatham
 

                        
                           Shaker Museum
                                    Mount Lebanon 

         
  Lower Manor of Van Rensselaer Patroonship
      House built by Hendrick Van Rensselaer
                                  Livingston
         

                                            An Historic Dutch Colonial c.1728
                                          shows off its 19th Century Bay window
                                                    Located on the Knox Trail
                                                              Kinderhook

 

                    Columbia County
              Historical Society Museum
        5 Albany Avenue, Kinderhook Village
               Call 518-758-9265 for hours. 
 Changing exhibits interpreting the 400-years of
 Columbia  County history. Research library and
 Book shop on  premises. Open year-round.

     Knox Trail   Marker
           Kinderhook
Kinderhook Marker No. 26 Erected by the State of New York during the Sesquicentennial of the American Revolution and located on the Village Square.

 

      Martin Van Buren
            Grave Site
           Kinderhook 
 

           
         Blue Stores Inn
              Livingston

Austerlitz - Click Here

Austerlitz Village, Old  - Click Here
A living history museum of post-and-beam houses, a granary, and other historic buildings. These are currently
being reconstructed on a 20 acre field at Route 22 and Harvey Mountain Road.

General John Burgoyne House- General Burgoyne, a prisoner of war was entertained in this house on the night of October 22, 1777, while being taken from Saratoga to Boston. Route US  9, Broad Street, Kinderhook Village,
(Private Home with Historical Marker.)
Slave Cemetery – To the rear of the original “Burgoyne House Estate” is a small cemetery, which was used to bury one's resident’s slaves. This cemetery is located at the present village playground on Rothermel Avenue.

Canaan Historical Society - Click Here

Cedar Grove - Click Here
The Thomas Cole National Historic Site
A Hudson River School of Art painter &  founder 
218 Spring Street,  Catskill, NY 12414
518-943-7465

Chatham -   Click Here

Claverack - Click Here

Historic
Dutch Colonial c.1728
Village of Kinderhook Historic District
 

One of the oldest homes in the Village is 15 Hudson Street." (Ralph Duck)  "Traditionally, the original structure – now at the rear of the house – is said to date from 1721." (Times Union 8/16/1959) "The
late Henry C. Van Schack stated that "in Indian war-times the present widow Schnapper's place was 'a stockaded fort to which in times of alarm the women were wont to flee, the men being at work
in the fields far away." It was for many years the first known parsonage of the church." (Collier)
 
The front portion has a Hudson River Pink Brick facade and its authentic gambrel roof allows for two full stories. The Federal Period interior renovation, completed Post-Revolution when supplies became available. The east wing was added in the 19th Century as well as the dining room bay window.  19th Century photos show it with a gingerbread front porch and decoration was also seen along the front of the gambrel just above eaves. Porches and other 19th Century decoration were removed in the mid 20th Century, restoring the building to its original 18th Century Dutch Colonial appearance. (Private Residence)

                                                         

    The First Court House c.1788      
Claverack
Alexander Hamilton & Aaron Burr
Tried cases here
(Private Residence with Historic Marker)

                             
                           Dutch Reformed Church c.1727
                                                          Claverack
                                   The oldest religious body in the town
                                   and one of the oldest in the county.
                                   518-851-3811

Livingston Manor c.1739
Clermont State Historic Site
Brick Georgian in Style
Clermont NY

The Clermont estate, Livingston Manor, was
established in 1728 and remained in the family
for seven successive generations, 230 years.

Clermont – Livingston -  Click Here

Clermont - Click Here

Clermont Historic Site - Click Here     

Livingston Manor - Click  Here
Clermont State Historic Site   c.1732
518 537-4240 Off Route 9G, Germantown

Clermont was the Hudson River seat of the politically and socially prominent Livingston family of New York for more than 230 years, from 1728-1962. It is the oldest Hudson River Estate in the Mid Hudson Valley. This was the home of the Livingston family .Seven successive generations of the family left their imprint on the architecture, room interiors, and landscape at Clermont.
     Today the 500 acre historic site appears much as it did in the early twentieth century, when the estate was the home of the last two generations to occupy the property. Established in 1728 when Robert Livingston, Jr. (1688 - 1775) inherited a tract of 13,000 acres along the Hudson River from his father Robert Livingston (1654 - 1728), first Lord of Livingston Manor. The Manor of Livingston comprised the southern third of Columbia County and was the second largest private landholding in colonial New York. Robert of Clermont, as he was known, began construction of his brick Georgian-style country seat, perhaps incorporating an existing seventeenth-century house, between 1730 and 1750.  
     Visible across the Hudson River from the house are the high peaks of the Catskill Mountains that inspired the estate's name: Clermont means "clear mountain" in French. Because of the Livingston family's prominent role in support of independence, Clermont was burned by British troops commanded by General John Vaughan in the autumn of 1777. Margaret Beekman Livingston, who managed the estate during most of the war years, rebuilt the family home between 1779 and 1782.
     The grounds and historic gardens are open all year offering picnicking, hiking, cross country skiing, and magnificent views of the Hudson River.

Columbia County Historical Society & Museum - Click Here
The Society is a private, not-for-profit organization dedicated to the preservation
and promotion of the history of Columbia County, NY. The Society owns and
operates three historic properties, open to the public during the summer season,
and a museum, open year-round where books are on sale as well. All of the
properties are in Kinderhook: The Columbia County Museum, the James
Vanderpoel House, and the Luykas Van Alen House.
5 Albany Avenue, Kinderhook NY 12106 (Photo Above Right)
518 758-9265

Dutch Reformed Church & Cemetery c. 1750 - Click Here 
Route 9H, Claverack (See photo above right)

Farmhouses
By 1750, most of the region had been settled in a network of small local communities that still survives today. Communities were composed of a number of farms and associated industries and trades; farms were by far the fundamental component of rural life. Each community was its own distinct entity, essentially self-sufficient though interdependent with others around to it. The population was made up of people of all economic classes and cultural diversity was common. Virtually all the houses that survive from the 18th century represent the dwellings of the upper classes of rural communities. These were the houses that were constructed to last and carry farm families into ensuing generations. Continuity in rural life was tied to the land. The architecture of the three principal Dutch areas evolved and matured into what can be distinguished as a Hudson Valley architecture.
51851-                                     
Firefighting, Museum of - Click Here
117 Harry Howard Avenue
Hudson , NY 12534
877-347-3687

Historic Hudson - Click Here                           

Hudson Athens Lighthouse – Click Here
The northern-most lighthouse on the Hudson River the Hudson-Athens lighthouse rises from the river like a tiny gem. Visitors may view the lighthouse from the Hudson  Waterfront Park, Front Street, Hudson or take a regularly scheduled tour.
Contact the Hudson Athens Lighthouse Preservation Society at 518/828-5294

Hudson Opera House - Click Here
327 Warren Street, Hudson (See Photo Below)
518 822-1438
Built in 1855 as the City Hall for Hudson, in its early years, the first floor housed the Franklin Library, and the First National Bank of Hudson. Frederic Church and Sanford Gifford showed their paintings here, and Bret Harte read his poems. About 1880, at the height of the Gilded Age, and shortly after Paris built it’s new Opera House, many town halls and city halls in America changed their names to ‘Opera House’ which is how this building came to be known as the Hudson Opera House. On the first floor various public offices (Post Office, Police Station, Common Council, etc.) could be found. The auditorium upstairs was used for from traveling lecture presentations, musical and theatrical events and local functions such as dances, poultry shows and graduations. The League of Historic American Theatres sates that the Hudson Opera House is one of the oldest surviving theatres in America.  (See Photo Below) Left)

Hudson, Historic Walking Tour - Click Here
 

    
  Columbia County Farm House
                      c.1740


       2n Empire Home
                 Hudson

      Carriage House c. 1865
                   Hudson
            Now an art gallery

         Egyptian Revival
                 Hudson

Federal Houses c.1790
Hudson
The Federal house (1780–1820) is a simple two-story box, two rooms deep, with a side-gabled roof. There is often decorative molding, typically tooth-like dentils, on the cornice. The windows and doors are aligned horizontally and vertically in symmetrical rows, most often in five ranks, on the front facade. The windows have double-hung sashes with six panes, separated by very thin muntins, in each sash.

The entrance door, which is centered in the façade, may be capped by a decorative crown supported by pilasters. Often a row of small rectangular panes is just below the crown. Some have more elaborate door surrounds with a semi-circular or elliptical fanlight over the door and sidelights. The center window of the second story is often a three-part Palladian-style window.
(Private Residence with Historic Marker)

                       
                                 The Traverse House
                                      Colonial Revival
                                                          Hudson
The last house to be built on Hudson’s only private street is this two and one-half story house. It has a gambrel roof with three dormers. There are three-part Palladian style windows in the side gables. The cornice features modillions and a wide frieze with medallions and swags. Fluted pilasters define the corners of the house. The three bay façade is symmetrical. There is a triple bay window on the second-story over the entrance porch. The paired double sash windows on either side have dentiled crowns. There is a two-story tower at the southwest corner that would have provided a view of South Bay. The enclosure of the entrance porch is mid-20th century addition.
(Private Residence with Historic Marker)

The Hudson Opera House c.1855

Many people had abandoned any hope for this building; they said investment in Lower Warren Street was foolish. Now a few years later, and after a lot of hard work, everything looks different. Since opening our doors, the blocks around the Opera House have sprung to life as well. All of this is possible because of the hard work of our board, staff and volunteers, and because so many individuals have helped in every way they could. Working together, we can continue to make a difference in this community, and fully revive this remarkable and historic building.

                           
                                 The Cyrus Curtiss House
                                      Stately Greek Revival
                                                  Hudson
Built by the whaling magnate, Cyrus Curtiss, who later became the 20th mayor of Hudson.The high-ceilinged, 12-room home commands North & South views of the Hudson River from second floor rooms and porches, as well as 360-degree views from the cupola. This stately home is now considered among the handsomest properties in a town known as a virtual catalogue of American vernacular building styles.
(Private Residence with Historic Marker)

                         
                      Vanderpole House c.1818
                        "The House of History"
                   16 Broad Street - Village of Kinderhook
                            
This Federal period mansion is furnished with early 19th century furniture and decorative art. Open Memorial to Labor Day. Maintained by the Columbia County Historical Society.
Call for hours: 518-758-9265

Lukays Van Alen House c.1740
Route 9H, Kinderhook
Call for hours: 518-758-9265.

This steeply pitched roof, parapet gabled house is a rare surviving example of a type of rural house characteristic of the  upper Hudson Valley in he first  half of the eighteenth century. a  restored Dutch farmhouse representing 18th century rural Dutch farm life. Open Memorial to Labor Day.
 

Kinderhook Academy
(Old Columbia Academy)
29 Albany Avenue, Kinderhook Village
(Private Residence with Historic Marker)

Kinderhook Academy (Old Columbia Academy)
Albany Avenue, Kinderhook Village The Columbia Academy, an early Dutch school, was incorporated in 1824 and the present structure at No. 29 was built in 1836. The Academy Catalogue listed courses to prepare men for college or
employment in counting houses, and young ladies were offered a complete course of "solid and ornamental education." The building was sold in 1896 and was then used as a printing house for the Rough Notes, next as a knitting mill, and was purchased in 1909 by the Lindenwald Grange.
      Houses Nos. 27, 25, and 23 were at one time a single building called the Columbia Academy Boarding House. Built in 1847, burned and replaced about 1855, the Boarding House was sold in 1867 and had been divided by 1888. Nos. 25 and 27 were the front of the building and No. 23 was the rear extension where the Academy principal lived. Prior to the construction of the Boarding House, students boarded in private homes at $1.75 - $2.25 per week, washing included.
(Private Home, See Historical Marker)

Kinderhook Beginnings - Brief History - Click Here
It is said to have received its name from the famous Dutch explorer Hendrick Hudson. As Hudson traveled up the river, he observed Mohican (Native American) children playing on the riverbank, and gave Kinderhook (Kinderhoek), Dutch for "Children's Corner," its name. The Dutch were the first western Europeans to settle in the area and their influence is prominent today.

From its start in the 1660s, Kinderhook was a different place. Sandwiched between the feudal manors of the Van Rensselaers and Livingstons, it was the land of opportunity for freeholders interested in creating estates to pass on to their children. The Van Schaacks, Schermerhorns, Van Alens, and Van Alstynes, among others, created large farms and their children populated them with houses, which now form the Village of Kinderhook.

Cornelis Schermerhorn's home likely dates from the time of his marriage in 1713. At first it was a small structure of a room with a side hall and a separate kitchen house. Its great room, like most restored rooms, provides a look into the past as well as at present needs and comforts.

When Lukas Van Alen set out to build his one room family home in 1737 with a desire to have a substantial house in the old Netherlands style and shortly after added a hall and room. The house remained remarkably unchanged throughout its life. Until it was received by the Columbia County Historical Society in 1963, no utilities had been installed. Today it is one of the best surviving examples of this distinctively Dutch brick parapet-gable house and is an open museum.

Kinderhook Historic Points of Interest - Click Here

Kinderhook - James Vanderpoel House – Click Here
Broad Street, Kinderhook Village (See photo above)
518-758-9265
Circa 1820 Federal period mansion with early 19th century furnishings

Kinderhook Landing - Click Here                                                                                    
Kinderhook Landing (now called Stuyvesant Landing) was part of the town of Kinderhook until April 21, 1823, when it became Stuyvesant. Henry Hudson sailed up the River which bears his name in 1609. He put ashore at Stuyvesant Landing on September 18th of that year, where he was greeted by friendly Indians with many children. The area became known as Kinderhook meaning "children's corner". This area was called Kinderhook even before any settlement was established there, as it appeared on Block's map made in 1614. The Indians in this area were Mahikans.

Kinderhook - Luykas Van Alen House – Click Here
Route 9H, Kinderhook (See photo above)
518-758-9265
1737 Dutch farmhouse with mid-18th century furnishings; site used in Martin Scorsese’s film, “The Age of Innocence,” property includes the c.1920 Ichabod Crane Schoolhouse.
 

Knox Trail 1775-1776 - Click Here
"Through this place passed Gen. Henry Knox in the winter of 1775-1776 to deliver to Gen. George Washington at Cambridge, a train of artillery carried through snow          on ox-drawn sleds from Fort Ticonderoga and used to force the British Army to evacuate Boston."
-- Kinderhook Marker No. 26
 

"The Nobel Train of Artillery"
consisted of Col. Henry Knox and men
painted by Tom Lovell, currently on
exhibit at the Ticonderoga Museum.
 

                         General Henry Knox

Henry Knox, a Boston bookseller, supported the American cause, and as early as 1772, he became a member of the Boston Grenadier Corps. He was a volunteer in June 1775 at the Battle of Bunker Hill. In 1775, Washington arrived in Boston, taking command of the army. There he met and developed a friendship with Knox that would last a lifetime.

Washington needed artillery and found Knox to be well versed on the subject. Knox thought of using cannon from the captured Fort Ticonderoga. Thus, he was commissioned a colonel, placed in charge of artillery, and given the task to bring cannon from Ticonderoga to Boston. By way of ox sleds, over the frozen Hudson past Albany though Schodack on what is U.S. Highway 9 today, down into Kinderhook, making a left on Hudson Street to cross the Kinderhook Creek and onward to Ghent, Hillsdale and into Massachusetts.

In March 1776, Washington seized Dorchester Heights (the key to Boston) and Knox placed the cannon in position there. The British realizing the danger of an impending American bombardment, withdrew troops from the city. On March 17, they embarked the troops for Halifax. Boston was entered the following day by triumphant Americans.

After the capture of Boston, Knox helped place Connecticut and Rhode island in proper defense, in preparation for the return of the British. Washington took his forces to defend New York. Knox joined the army there, as the British fleet arrived in New York.

VIEW MORE DETAILS OF THE KNOX TRAIL:
Click on and subject below to view the chapter

The Knox Trail Map

The History of the Knox Cannon Expedition - 1776

General Henry Knox - A Brief Biographical Sketch

The Monument Designs - New York and Massachusetts

A Virtual Tour of the Knox Trail Monuments

Conservation and Restoration Projects  

The 1776/1976 Living History Reenactment

A Bibliography of Sources for Further Study




The 1976 Reenactment
In the winter of 1976, during
the American Bicentennial,
a group of living history interpreters and volunteers reenacted the trek of Colonel Henry Knox from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston in 1776.


 Photo: Ann Parker, Americana Magazine (American Heritage Society)

Lindenwald - Martin Van Buren National Historic Site - The home and farm of the eighth president of the United States
1013 Old Post Road (off Route 9H), Kinderhook   
518-758-9689

One of Kinderhook's leading citizens was Peter VanNess who had commanded a regiment in the defeat of Burgoyne in 1777 and went on to become Kinderhook's first judge. Judge Van Ness constructed the house which he called Kleinrood and which Martin VanBuren later occupied and renamed "Lindenwald". At this house, the Van Ness children were tutored by a young writer whose name was Washington Irving.

During his stay in Kinderhook, Irving wrote Rip Van Winkle and garnered material for the Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Although the latter story was set in Tarrytown (possibly because he was writing for a New York City audience), the principle characters were based on local Kinderhook folk. Letters subsequently written by Washington Irving attest to the fact that Ichabod Crane was patterned after Jesse Merwin who taught at the local schoolhouse.

 

 Lindendald National Historic Site c.1797
Kinderhook
Retirement Home of Martin Van Buren - Eighth president
of the United States. Born in 1782 in Kinderhook,
Van Buren signed off his documents with “OK,” referring to
“Old Kinderhook,” thus the legendary use of ”OK.


 

 Ichabod Crane School House
Route 9H, Kinderhook
Call for hours: 518-758-9265
A 19th century building that served as a school takes its name from Washington Irving, who lived in at Merwin Lake Kinderhook and based his character  in "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" on the schoolmaster of this school.
Open Memorial to Labor Day.  

  
  
    Lindenwald, Martin Van Buren National Historic Site
Set on 38.5 acres of former Van Buren farm land. Politics
before the Civil War was whirlwind of opposing interest
groups Martin Van Buren, 8th President of the USA, was able
to unite those groups becoming president in 1837, but he
was unable to gain a second term. As frustration and violence
over the extension of slavery grew in the 1840's, Van Buren ran
for the presidency twice more from this house. He hoped for
re-election but failed, ultimately, just as the union. Van Buren
is Founder of the Democratic Party.

 

Benedict Arnold House
Kinderhook

                                            In the spring of 1777 Colonel Benedict   Arnold stayed overnight while he wasx
convalescing from wounds received during
the victory of Bemis Heights. The house
now carries his name.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
 
 

                           
                    Ludlow-Van Rensselaer House c.1784
                                            Claverack
Built by the prominent Claverack merchant, it is now in the National Historic District. The large gambrel-roof Georgian brick structure with central hall is two rooms deep and has large, high ceilinged, rooms and 10 fireplaces. It is one of the best preserved substantial early house in the region and is Nominated by as a historic location by State Government based on Architecture/Engineering and its significance in Architecture.  (Private Home Home with Historical Marker)

Information is provided here as a PUBLIC SERVICE guide and is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
    It is suggested you call the source with any questions.

Specializing in Area
Historic & Period Homes

This Web Site is a
    Presentation of
        ALLEN SCHAEFER 

    ALLEN SCHAEFER
    Specializing in
    Area Period Homes
  518 758-1300 Ext 408  or 518 758-8337

If you would like to have a professional
    full-time Real Estate Salesperson on your team,
Give me a call  and  let's talk!

Livingston Family - Click Here
Livingston History Barn
County Route 19, Livingston
518-851-7637
Small Museum with artifacts from the beginning of the settlement of the Town of Livingston. Research Room for genealogical work is available.

Merwin Lake – This area is memorable as a frequent fishing spot of Washington Irving and Jesse Merwin.  Merwin’s house is not open to the public; therefore we ask that the owner’s request of privacy be upheld.  Take 9H to Fisher Road; follow Merwin Lake Road (left).  Lake on the right.

Millay (Edna St. Vincent) Colony - Click Here

Millay's Steepletop & Poetry Trail - 454 East Hill Road, Austerlitz - Museum/Home of Edna St. Vincent Millay - A 1/2 mile narrow country wood road for walking only is marked with a dozen favorite nature poems by Edna St. Vincent Millay. The trail ends at the final resting ground of the poet and her family. Open all year - please use caution during inclement weather.
 
Mills Mansion House – Click Here
Route 9, Statsburgh  -The country home of Ogden and Ruth Livingston Mills, built in 1895-96 and furnished in the styles of Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI.
Set on 900 acres with direct access to the Hudson River, the property offers plenty of room for strolling and river watching. It's a million-dollar view! And, of course, there is the house, renovated in the 19th century in Greek Revival style.
 
Mount Lebanon Shaker Village - Click Here
Darrow Road (off Route 20), New Lebanon (See Photo Above Right)
518-794-9100   

New Concord - Settled in the Berkshire foothills 1n the 1760’s in Chatham Township, the Hamlet of New Concord is rich with meticulously restored homes from as early as the 1770s and a historic Dutch Reformed church and landmark cemetery.  It’s private gardens range from formal to contemporary and are among the most lovingly cared for in the county.

Olana State Historic Site - Click Here
5720 Route 9G, Greenport (See photo Above Left)
518-828-0135
Home of Hudson River School  painter Frederic Edwin Church who studied under Thomas Cole.  The site is open year around from 8 AM to sunset. Olana offers programs and tours throughout the year, a system of carriage drives, gardens and 250 acres offer opportunities for hiking, picnicking, cross country skiing, as well as concerts and special events.  No house tours available during the 2006 season.  In December, a special holiday program with bonfire will be part of the site schedule. Olana is extraordinarily decorated inside and out. It is set on top of a hill commanding a magnificent view of the Hudson. Many of Church’s paintings are inside. The grounds are beautiful.
5720 Route 9G, Greenport, 518-828-0135

Parker O'Malley Air Museum - Click Here
435 County Route 20 (off Route 9H & Route 66)
518-392-7200
The museum displays 1920's - 1940's artifacts, including exhibits on local aviators, flying vintage aircraft, war memorabilia, wind tunnel, flight simulator, models, Youth Big Band performances; open by appointment only.

Philmont History - Click Here

Preservation League of NY - Click Here

Revolutionary War Day Road Trip - Click Here

Revolution & Indian Incursions-the French - Click Here

Riders Mills Historic District - Click Here
Route 66, Malden Bridge 518 794-7146
 
Riders Mills School House - Click Here
Route 66, Malden Bridge
518 794-7146
The Riders Mills Schoolhouse was built in the late 1790s, and it is one of our nation’s oldest public school buildings still in existence. It was also one of America’s last single-room schoolhouses in operation; classes were held every school year until its closing in 1953. It was acquired by the Riders Mills Historical Association in 1966 and is listed on both the State and National Registry of Historic Places.

Robert Jenkins House & Museum - Click Here
113 Warren St, Hudson;
518-828-9764
1811 Federal style home housing the City of Hudson's whaling lore, military artifacts and the Hendrick Hudson Chapter of the D.A.R
 
Shaker Museum & Library - Click Here
Shaker Museum Rd, off County Route 13, Old Chatham;
518-794-9100
Exhibitions featuring Shaker artifacts, orientation gallery, interpretive gallery; picnic area; museum shop, activity center for parent and child to create artwork and crafts together; self-guided tours.