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During the American Revolutionary War, in 1777, Jane McCrea was a 17 year old Loyalist living at the farm of her older brother, Col. John McCrea at Fort Edward, NY to be close to her fiancé, Lt. David Jones, a loyalist serving with British General Burgoyne's army. On July 27th of that year, while she was visiting the home of Mrs. McNeil, the two women were captured by Indians allied to the British. Since both women were under the protection of General Burgoyne, they were reasonably sure nothing would happen to them. Their captors separated into two bands, each with one of the women. When Mrs. McNeil, a cousin of General Simon Fraser's, arrived with her captors at the British camp, she wondered where Jane was, since she had departed ahead of Mrs. McNeil. Shortly thereafter, the first party of Indians returned to the camp with a fresh scalp lock. It seems an argument had ensued over Jane McCrea, and to settle the argument, she had been killed. Other reports however state she was accidentally killed by friendly fire as the Indians made off with her. She was buried three miles south of Fort Edward. Though a Tory sympathizer, her death, and those of others in similar raids, inspired some of the resistance to Burgoyne's invasion leading to his defeat at the Battle of Saratoga. But the effect expanded later as reports of the incident were used, almost as propaganda, to excite rebel sympathies during the war, especially before the Sullivan Expedition in 1779. The story had become a part of American folklore when James Fennimore Cooper described some similar events in his novel "The Last of the Mohicans". Later on, 1852, McCrea's remains were removed and re-interred at the Union Cemetery in the Town of Fort Edward. McCrea's remains were exhumed in 2003 and researchers were surprised to find that McCrea's skull was missing, and her bones were commingled with those of another Revolutionary-era woman, Sara McNeil, a landowner and a cousin of British Gen. Simon Fraser. The bodies were exhumed again in 2005 in order to provide separate graves for both women.
This Marker is posted outside the Broadway (Route 4) entrance to the Union Cemetery in Fort Edward.
Tags:
Jane
McCrea
Fort
Edward
Added: 9th September 2007
Views: 386
Rating: 
Posted By: Ohlhous |
 
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The area west of the Genesee River (which flows from Pennsylvania generally northward across New York State to Lake Ontario at Rochester) was then the 3.3 million acre tract known as the "Holland Land Purchase" (HLP). It's headquarters was housed in a building that's only a few hundred feet from this sign in downtown Batavia, NY (keyword "holland")
Tags:
Genesee
county
holland
land
purchase
Added: 14th September 2007
Views: 72
Rating: 
Posted By: MarkHoward |
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3 Duanesburg Markers
These three markers are located in front of the Christ Episcopal Church at the intersection of Duanesburg Churches Road and the Great Western Turnpike (US Route 20) in Duanesburg, New York.
WILLIAM NORTH
Born 1755 Buried Here 1836
Aide to Steuben in 1779
General in U.S. Army
Son In Law of James Duane
Assemblyman and Speaker
State Education
Department 1932
William North (1755 - January 3, 1836) was a United States Senator representing the state of New York. North was born in Fort Frederick, Pemaquid (part of Bristol, Maine), in 1755, where he attended the common schools. He moved with his mother to Boston, Massachusetts and served in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. After the war he settled in Duanesburg, New York. He married Mary Duane, daughter of James Duane, on October 14, 1787 and had six children. He was elected to the New York State Assembly several times. North was appointed as a Federalist to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of John Sloss Hobart and served from May 5, 1798 to August 17, 1798, when a successor was elected and qualified. He was appointed adjutant general of the Army with the rank of Brigadier General 1798-1800. He was a member and speaker of the State assembly in 1810. He died in Duanesburg, New York and is interred in the crypt under Christ Episcopal Church.
JAMES DUANE
Born 1732 Buried Here 1797
In Continental Congress
Provincial Convention
Mayor of New York, State
Senator, Federal Judge
State Education
Department 1932
After his parents died, young James Duane (b Feb. 6, 1733 [date does not match that on the marker]; d Feb 1, 1797) became the ward of Robert Livingston, who was known as the 3rd Lord of the Manor. He completed his early education at Livingston Manor, then read law in the offices of James Alexander. He was admitted to the bar in 1754. Then in 1759, James married Maria Livingston, the eldest daughter of his former guardian Robert. He was Clerk of the Chancery Court of New York in 1762, State Attorney General in 1767 and Indian commissioner for the Colony of New York in 1774. During the American Revolution When the British occupied New York City in 1776, he was forced from his home. He withdrew his wife and family to the relative safety of her father's home at Livingston Manor on the Hudson. Duane served in the New York state Senate from 1783 to 1790. He first became the Mayor of New York City by appointment in 1784, serving until 1789. He was a delegate to the New York convention that ratified the Federal Constitution. In 1789, President Washington named him the first judge of the United States District Court for New York.
As Duane established an extensive and profitable law practice he acquired by purchase and inheritance the 50,000 acres of wilderness that is his namesake, the Town of Duanesburg (NY). Duane's early attempts to settle these lands were thwarted by agents of Sir William Johnson who circulated unfavorable reports about the land, as they were attempting to develop Johnson's holdings. Later Duane succeeded in contracting with 16 German families to begin farming/renting the land. Duane had plans to make Duanesburg the capitol of New York, but the citizens of Albany had other and more compelling ideas. Duane never lived in Duanesburg where he had already built the Christ Episcopal Church and had just begun to build a home on his estate when he died in Schenectady, New York. He is buried in the crypt beneath the Christ Episcopal Church in Duanesburg.
CHRIST
EPISCOPAL CHURCH
Built 1732 Consecrated 1793
By Bishop Samuel Provoost
A Glebe of 80 Acres Presented
By James Duane for Rectory
State Education
Department 1932
After the retirement of Judge James Duane, one of his first thoughts was for a church, "Cemetery Lot" or "Square", having failed to become the head of Duanesburg village, he dedicated it to the uses of the church, and in its center he built the present house of worship. At a meeting of the rector and inhabitants of the town of Duanesburg on Tuesday, September 22, 1783, Judge James Duane, conveyed the church and the ground on which it is erected for the public worship of Almighty God according to the rites and sacraments of the Protestant Episcopal Church. The church was admitted to the Diocese of New York in 1789. The parish had a difficult existence for some years previous to 1795. In 1811 a tower and spire was added to the building and a few changes were made in the interior.
The Christ Episcopal Church has been documented in the Historic American Building Survey
Christ Episcopal Church
Duanesbsurg, New York
Tags:
Duanesburg
James
Duane
William
North
Christ
Church
Episcopal
Historic
Marker
Added: 23rd October 2007
Views: 249
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Posted By: Ohlhous |
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Swarts Tavern
The "Old Stone House" Was built about 1772 and used for many years as a tavern. During Sir John Johnson’s second raid on the Schoharie and Mohawk Valleys the building was set on fire by Indians on October 17, 1780 while the family was in the safety of the Old Stone Fort located a short way away. Patriot Soldiers put out the fire. Building later owned 1803 by Peter P. Snyder and in 1833 by Lodowich Fries
Here was the scene of Schoharie County’s only duel, fought between Philip Schuyler 2nd (who was the grandson of Revolutionary War General Philip J. Schuyler) and his neighbor Josiah Clark. In the bar room, a quarrel ended in Clark's challenge and Schuyler named rifles and demanded immediate satisfaction on the flats in the rear of the Tavern. Seconds (trusted representatives from each party of the duel) were chosen, rifles carefully examined and loaded for their deadly work and the party repaired to the flats. It is said both were in an alcoholic haze but upon the order to fire, both rifles blazed forth and Clark fell to earth and his friends rushed to his side. Badly frightened by the sight, Schuyler fled to the Tavern but Clark soon revived, not a mark could be found upon him and it appears that he had collapsed from fright. In later years it leaked out that the seconds had carefully refrained from loading the rifles with anything other than plenty of powder and well rammed hornet's nest wadding.
Swarts Tavern is now a private residence located along Route 30 in the Village of Schoharie, NY.
Swarts Tavern - Schoharie, NY
Tags:
Swarts
Tavern
Schoharie
Guy
Johnson
Philip
Schuyler
Added: 3rd November 2007
Views: 132
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Posted By: Ohlhous |
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The BL&R Trolley - 1908-1931
Electricity had made its debut; and light-rail lines like the BL&R began to spring up to challenge the dominance of steam railroads. Electric powered trolleys provided a cleaner and quicker ride than steam trains; but the price of a ticket was about the same either way. The BL&R ran its 54 mile high-speed line from Lockport to Rochester. The trolleys were equipped with 75hp at first, and later with 125hp motors on each "truck" (four trucks per car). The cars came geared for speeds up to 80mph; but 60mph was the practical limit. In places where the BL&R and NYCRR tracks ran next to each other, races between the two competitors were not unheard of. (Rochester, Lockport and Buffalo R.R., Wm R. Gordon, 1963)
The years before WWI were the glory days for electric interurban trolleys: In 1915 the BL&R logged 1,474,750 miles carrying 2,033,749 passengers. A Sunday excursion to Niagara Falls from Rochester cost $1.60, and to Toronto cost $2.75 plus the boat fare (see below). After the war America began a massive program of highway expansion, which eventualy spelled the end of the interurban railroads.
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A Beginning and an End
The Buffalo, Lockport and Rochester Railway opened on September 2, 1908 at Albion, NY (Albion was midway on the 54 mile run from Rochester to Lockport). The Buffalo, Lockport and Rochester Railway (1908-1919) was reorganized to become the Rochester, Lockport and Buffalo Railroad Corp (April 1919 - April 30, 1931) The Rochester, Lockport and Buffalo Railroad Corp. sent its last car down the tracks - the local from Rochester to Albion - on April 30, 1931.
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Toronto Specials
A brisk tourist industry developed on the back of the BL&R and its cohort the International Railway (seen here). International owned the tracks from Lockport to three destinations: Buffalo, Niagara Falls and Olcott on Lake Ontario to the north. Steam excursion boats met passengers at Olcott and carried them across the Great Lake to Toronto. Passengers who caught the early morning BL&R at Rochester could go to Toronto and be back in Rochester that same evening.
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AC vs DC
DC was all that was available when trollies were new; but DC was expensive and not practical to transmit over long distances. Early trollies were therefore limited to use in urban areas near to their generating stations. High-voltage AC could be transmitted long distances, but it was dangerous to use near people - especially where motors and connections could become wet with rain (eg. in trolley cars). By placing a series of substations in which "rotary converters" like the one shown here changed AC to DC, interurban trollies like the BL&R became practical.
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Freight Cars
The BL&R was able to supplement its passenger income with both local and express freight business, as well. The rates were in line with those charged by the competing NYCRR; and from the first, the BL&R did a considerable business hauling the fruit, vegetables and milk for which the region had become famous. Freight traffic was generally scheduled for nights, when regular passenger service did not run.
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Tags:
BL&R
trolley
Buffalo
Lockport
Rochester
railroad
albion
Erie
Canal
trr
Added: 10th November 2007
Views: 830
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Posted By: railclick07 |
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To The
MARQUIS DE LA FAYETTE
Born September 6, 1757
Died May 20, 1834
A True Friend of Liberty, who Served as
A Major General in the Continental Army with
"All Possible Zeal, Without any Special Pay
Or Allowances" until the American Colonists
Secured their Freedom, and Whose Frequent
Visits to this State. As Aide to Washington.
As Liaison Officer with Supporting French
Troops, and in the Pursuit of Freedom, are
Gratefully Remembered.
This Plaque is Dedicated by the
Connecticut La Fayette Bicentennial Committee
In the Bicentennial Year of
The Birth of this Great Frenchman
September 21, 1957
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Lafayette Sculpture
“The sculpture is a replica of the Lafayette sculpture outside the Louvre, in Paris. After completion of the Paris sculpture, the artist, Paul Wayland Hartlett, gave
the plaster model to the State of Connecticut, where it was placed in the State Capitol. In 1930, Frances B. Storrs donated $20,000 to make a bronze cast for the City of Hartford. The casting and dedication took
place in 1932.”
From the Art Inventories Catalog of the
Smithsonian Institution Research Information System
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The Plaque and the Statue are Located at the Major Intersection of Captiol Avenue, Washington Street, and Lafayette Streets in Hartford, Connecticut
Tags:
Marker
Monument
Statue
French
Major
General
MARQUIS
DE
LA
FAYETTE
Lafayette
Continental
Army
Washington
Hartford
Connecticut
Added: 1st December 2007
Views: 104
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Posted By: Ohlhous |
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Enlarged Erie Canal Lock 23 in Rotterdam, NY
History: Enlarged Double Lock No. 23, "Alexander's Lock", was constructed to replace nearby Lock 26, one of 83 "first generation" locks originally built as part of Clinton's Ditch. The overnight success of the Erie Canal proved a mixed blessing. By the end of the first decade of operation the heavy volume of canal traffic was taxing the original system beyond its designed capacity. Single chamber locks quickly proved inadequate as lines of boats waiting to pass formed in both directions. Beginning in 1836 the Canal Commissioners of the State of New York initiated a comprehensive program of system improvements, carried out in stages between 1836 and 1862, which reduced the number of lock from 83 to 72 and doubled their capacity by adding a second chamber at each site in order to allow two-way traffic.
Lock No. 23 was constructed in a double-chamber configuration during this period of the First Enlargement in 1840-1841 and opening to traffic in 1842. Rather than expand the existing Lock 26, as was done at several other locations, a completely new double-chambered lock was built immediately adjacent to the original lock and right-of-way. Lock chambers were built wider and longer, at 18 feet wide by 110 feet in length. Previously they were 15 feet wide by 90 feet long.
Built entirely of large cut limestone blocks laid in a regular ashlar pattern and mortared using hydraulic cement, Lock No.23 raised or lowered boats by 7.89 feet; from a level of 231 feet at the south end to 239 feet at the north end. This lock was of importance to the Erie Canal, and Schenectady, N.Y. in particular, because it was the first lock west of Schenectady, a.k.a., "Gateway to the West", a major transfer point at the west end of the 17-mile portage from Albany around the Cohoes Falls. Many passengers left the Erie Canal to travel overland between Albany and Schenectady; goods stayed on barges for the trip which could take more than a day. During its busiest seasons, the lock was operating with a lockage every 5 minutes. (Approximately 47,000 lockages per season).
By the last quarter of the nineteenth century, the Canal Commissioners recognized that the Erie Canal would require substantial further modification if it was to remain competitive with expanding rail transportation. During the early 1880s steam motive power introduced on the Eric Canal led to the introduction of larger vessels that could be towed or pushed in combination along the waterway. To accommodate this traffic, a program to lengthen the locks was begun in 1884. Lock No 23 was one of six locks lengthened during 1889. The southwest chamber was extended south to a total of 220 feet along the berm side; the width of the added portion of the lock chamber was 20 feet. With its southwest chamber nearly doubled in size, Lock No. 23 could raise or lower "double-header" vessels towed by steam barges without interrupting though traffic.
With the opening of the current Barge Canal the Enlarged Canal was abandoned in 1918, and this section of the canal was purchased by the General Electric Company (GE). GE kept water in the canal from their main plant in Schenectady to Lock 23 until the late 1950's. It functioned as a test bed for GE products including the Electric Mules used to pull ships through the locks in the Panama Canal. In the 1950s the lock property was donated to the Town of Rotterdam which was in the midst of building its new water pumping station on the nearby well field; the town ran its new main directly through the lock chambers. Portions of the limestone walls were partially collapsed to make way for the pipe. In the north chamber the pipe was covered with debris and dirt blocking off that chamber. In the south chamber the cement replaced the removed limestone blocks and a concrete walkway was installed above the waterway crossing the chamber, however the water main is no longer in use.
After a long period of neglect the lock had become completely overgrown. Beginning in 1999, students and staff of the Department of Civil Engineering at Union College had undertaken an effort to keep the lock free from small trees and brush and at one time had an ambitious plan to rehabilitate the lock and bring it back to working condition. Between 2000 and 2003 they built a replica board-and-batten Lock Tender's Hut and a Wooden Pier. Volunteers from Union College History Department were joined by volunteers from the Schenectady County Historical Society, the Rotterdam Sunrise Rotary Club and Friends of the Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail in subsequent years to maintain the lock and continue promoting its preservation and sought official recognition as a historic site.
On December 28, 2007 the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation listed the Lock No. 23 property on New York’s registry as an important engineering landmark in Schenectady County. On March 6, 2008 Lock No. 23 had been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Plans are in the works to apply for grant monies and the installation of permanent interpretive signs about the lock.
Lock No. 23 remains the focus of continuing preservation efforts and a distinguished example of masonry engineering design and construction associated with the transportation history of the Old Erie Canal.
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Lock 23 in 1941
Lock 23 in 1941 showing the east end of the south chamber. In this photo the water is still in the canal as it is being used by Schenectady's General Electric for testing. The wooden pier is still quite evident in the water at the foot of the lock.
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Lock 23 in 2007
Same view as first photo; East end of South lock chamber which had been lengthened.
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Lock 23 in 2007
Detail of the locks stonework under a blanket of fresh snow.
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Clean Up Day at Lock 23
Professor Andrew Morris of the Union College Department of History organized the Clean Up Day on May 27, 2006. Here we see Union College students as well as other volenteers cutting back brush and removing debries from the lock. At this location the Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail is built on the old tow path and passes right beside the lock, on the left, in this view.
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Lock 23 After Clean Up
After clean up Saturday, May 12, 2007.
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Lock Tender's Hut
Closer view of the Lock Tender's Hut which sits on the pier between the two lock chambers on April 2, 2005
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Lock 23 in 2007
Winter Time Again, February 17, 2007.
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Lock 23 in 2008 - Interpretive Sign Added!
This interpretive sign was installed on the side of the Locktender's hut in the late spring of 2008. The text on the sign points out that the Lock 23 site
has been recognized by its listing on the New York State and National Historic Registers in 2008.
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Old Lock 23 is located beside the Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail, near the intersection of Rice Road and Schermerhorn Road in Rotterdam, New York.
Google Maps Satellite image of Lock 23, Here.
(Other Old Erie Canal Lock Photos Here)
Tags:
Erie
Canal
Lock
23
Locktender
Pier
Rotterdam
GE
Added: 9th December 2007
Views: 850
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Posted By: Ohlhous |
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Historic New York
The Timothy Murphy Trail
Timothy Murphy was Schoharie County's Revolutionary hero. Owner of
one of the first double-barreled rifles, he was a sharpshooter known to the
Indians as the magic man whose gun would shoot without reloading. As
a member of the Morgan's Rifles, Murphy fired the shot which killed British
General Simon Fraser at the Battle of Saratoga on October 7, 1777. This
deprived the English of leadership during the crucial battle which was the
turning point of the Revolution.
In 1780, while Murphy was stationed at the Middle Fort, the Tories and
Indians swept down the Schoharie Valley plundering and killing. Major
Woolsey, the commander, was ready to surrender, but Murphy, in the face
of a threat to shoot him for insubordination, fired at the enemy and drove
them off. He saved the day and the valley and won himself a place in the
heart of every Schoharian.
This Marker is at a rest area along Route 30 two miles south of Fultonham in Schoharie County, NY.
Timothy Murphy
died in 1818 at the age of 67 in Fultonham where he was buried next to his wife. In 1872, he was reinterred at Middleburgh cemetery.
Tags:
Timothy
Murphy
Schoharie
Valley
Middleburgh
British
General
Simon
Fraser
Saratoga
1777
Middle
Fort
Woolsey
Added: 17th December 2007
Views: 116
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Posted By: Ohlhous |
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