Part 20 (2/2)
_Frederica Davis Hatfield._
The burning of Kingston seemed unnecessarily cruel, and it is said that Vaughan was wide of the truth when, to justify the same, he claimed that he had been fired upon from dwellings in the village.
General Sharpe in his address before the Holland Society says: ”The history of this county begins to be interesting at the earliest stages of American history: Visited by Dutchmen in 1614, and again in 1620, it was in the very earliest Colonial history, one of the strong places of the Province of New York. The British museum contains the report of the Rev. John Miller, written in the year 1695, who, after 'having been nearly three years resident in the Province of New York, in America, as chaplain of His Majesty's forces there, and constantly attending the Governor, had opportunity of observing many things of considerable consequence in relation to the Christians and Indians, and had also taken the drafts of all the cities, towns, forts and churches of any note within the same.' These are his own words, and he adds that in the Province of New York 'the places of strength are chiefly three, the city of New York, the city of Albany, and the town of Kingstone, in Ulster.' The east, north and west fronts ran along elevations overlooking the lowlands and having a varying alt.i.tude of from twenty to thirty feet. The enclosure comprehended about twenty-five acres of land. There were salients, or horn works at each end of the four angles, with a circular projection at the middle of the westerly side, where the elevation was less than upon the northerly and easterly sides. The church standing upon the ground where we now are, was enclosed with a separate stockade, to be used as the last resort in case of disaster, and, projecting from this separate fortification, a strong block-house commanded and enfiladed the approaches to the southerly side, which was a plain. The local history is of continued and dramatic interest. The Indian wars were signalized by a great uprising and attack here, which was known as the war of 1663, when a considerable number of the inhabitants were killed, a still larger number were taken prisoners, and about one-fourth of the houses were burned to the ground. Reinforcements were sent by the governor-general from New Amsterdam, followed by his personal presence, when the Indians were driven back to the mountains, and, after a tedious campaign, their fields destroyed and the prisoners recaptured. When the next great crisis in our history came Kingston bore a conspicuous part. It was the scene of the formation of the State Government. The Const.i.tution was here discussed and adopted. George Clinton was called from the Highlands, where, as a brigadier-general of the Continental army, he was commanding all the forces upon the Hudson River, which were opposing the attempts of Sir Henry Clinton to reach the northern part of the State and relieve Burgoyne, hemmed in by Gates at Saratoga. He was the ideal war governor--unbuckling his sword in the court room, that he might take the oath of office, and returning, immediately after the simple form of his inauguration, to his command upon the Hudson River.
A paradise of beauty in the light Poured by the sinking sun, the mountain glows In the soft summer evening.
_Alfred B. Street._
”The court house, standing opposite to us, and rebuilt upon its old foundations, and occupying, substantially, the same superficies of ground with its predecessors, recalls the dramatic scene where, surrounded by the council of safety, and in a square formed by two companies of soldiers, he was proclaimed Governor by Egbert Dumond, the sheriff of the county, reading his proclamation from the top of a barrel, and closing it with the words 'G.o.d save the people,' for the first time taking the place of 'G.o.d save the King.' The only building in any way connected with the civil foundation of this great State is still standing, and presents the same appearance that it did at the time of its erection, prior to the year 1690. It was subsequently occupied by General Armstrong, who, while residing here for the better education of his children, in Kingston Academy, was appointed minister to France. Aaron Burr, then in attendance upon court, spent an evening with General Armstrong, at his house, and, having observed the merit of sundry sketches, made inquiry with regard to, and interested himself in the fate of John Vanderlyn, who afterwards painted the Landing of Columbus in the Capitol, and Marius upon the Ruins of Carthage--which attracted the attention of the elder Napoleon, and established Vanderlyn's fame. There are more than forty blue limestone houses of the general type found in Holland, still standing to-day, which were built before the revolutionary period, and many of them before the year 1700.”
Are there no scenes to touch the poet's soul, No deeds of arms to wake the lordly stream, Shall Hudson's billows unregarded roll?
_Joseph Rodman Drake._
River, oh river! upon thy tide Gaily the freighted vessels glide.
Would that thou thus couldst bear away The thoughts that burthen my weary day.
_Charles Fenno Hoffman._
Coal, cement and blue-stone are the prominent industries of the city.
The cement works yield several million dollars annually and employ about two thousand men. A million tons of coal enter the Hudson _via_ the Port of Rondout from the Wyoming Valley of Pennsylvania every year. Blue-stone also meets tide-water at this point, brought in from quarries throughout the country by rail or by truck. The city of Kingston, the largest station on the _West Sh.o.r.e_ between Weehawken and Albany, has admirable railroad facilities connecting with the _Erie Railway_ at Goshen _via_ the _Wallkill Valley_, and the Catskills _via_ the _Ulster & Delaware_. All roads centre at the Union Station and the _Ulster & Delaware_ connects at Kingston Point with the Hudson River Day Line, also with the _New York Central_ by ferry from Rhinebeck.
=To the Catskills.=--The two princ.i.p.al routes to the Catskills are _via_ Kingston and the _Ulster & Delaware Railroad_, and _via_ Catskill Landing, the _Catskill Mountain Railway_ and _Otis Elevating Railway_ to the summit of the mountains. It has occurred to the writer to divide the mountain section in two parts:
=The Southern Catskills.=--Kingston Point, where the steamer lands is indeed a _picturesque portal to a picturesque journey_. The beautiful park at the landing presents the most beautiful frontage of any pleasure ground along the river. Artistic paG.o.das located at effective points add greatly to the natural landscape effect, and excursionists _via_ Day Line from Albany have a delightful spot for lunch and recreation while waiting for the return steamer. In the busy months of mountain travel it is interesting to note the rush and hurry between the landing of the steamer and the departure of the train. The ”all aboard” is given, and as we stand on the rear platform a friend points north to a bluff near Kingston Point and says the Indian name is ”Ponckhockie”--signifying a burial ground. The old redoubts of Kingston, on the left, were defenses used in early days against the Indians.
After leaving Kingston Union Depot, the most important station on the _West Sh.o.r.e Railroad_, and the terminus of the _Wallkill Valley Railroad_, we pa.s.s through Stony Hollow, eight miles from Rondout, where the traveler will note the stone tracks in the turnpike below, on the right side of the car, used by quarry wagons. Crossing the Stony Hollow ravine, we reach West Hurley, nine miles from Rondout and 540 feet above the sea.
=The Overlook= commands an extensive view,--with an area of 30,000 square miles, from the peaks of New Hamps.h.i.+re and the Green Mountains of Vermont to the hills of New Jersey and Pennsylvania. To the east the valley reaches away with its towns and villages to the blue hills of Ma.s.sachusetts and Connecticut, and, through this beautiful valley, the Hudson for a hundred miles is reduced to a mere ribbon of light.
Woodstock, at the foot of the Overlook, is popular with summer visitors, and is a good starting point for the mountain outlook.
Let me forget the cares I leave behind, And with an humble spirit bow before The Maker of these everlasting hills.
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