The Hudson: Three Centuries of History, Romance and InventionBruce, Wallace
History
The Hudson: Three Centuries of History, Romance and Invention
Bruce, Wallace
Hudson River (N.Y. and N.J.) -- Guidebooks
=The Clover Reach.=--We are now in what is known as The Clover Reach
of the Hudson which extends to the Backerack near Athens. One mile
above Germantown Dock stood Nine Mile Tree, a landmark among old river
pilots so named on account of its marking a point nine miles from
Hudson. Above this the Roeliffe Jansen's Kill flows into the river,
known by the Indians as Saupenak, rising in Hillsdale within a few
feet of Greenriver Creek, immortal in Bryant's verse. The Greenriver
flows east into the Housatonic, the Jansen south into Dutchess County,
whence it takes a northerly course until it joins the Hudson. The
Burden iron furnaces above the mouth of the stream form an ugly
feature in the landscape. This is the southern boundary of the Herman
Livingston estate, whose house is one mile and a half further up the
river, near Livingston Dock, beneath Oak Hill. Greenville station is
now seen on the east bank, directly opposite Catskill Landing, which
the steamer is now approaching.
* * *
The fields and waters seem to us this Sabbath morning
from the summit of the Catskills, no more truly
property than the skies that shine upon them.
_Harriet Martineau._
* * *
=Catskill=, 111 miles from New York, was founded in 1678 by the
purchase of several square miles from the Indians. The landing is
immediately above the mouth of the Catskill or Kaaterskill Creek. It
is said that the creek and mountains derive their name as follows: It
is known that each tribe had a _totemic_ emblem, or rude banner; the
Mahicans had the wolf as their emblem, and some say that the word
Mahican means an enchanted wolf. (The Lenni Lenapes, or Delawares, had
the turkey as their totem.) Catskill was the southern boundary of the
Mahicans on the west bank, and here they set up their emblem. It is
said from this fact the stream took the name of Kaaterskill. The
large cat or wolf, similar in appearance, forms the mark of King
Aepgin on his deed to Van Rensselaer. Perhaps, however, the mountains
at one time abounded in these animals, and the name may be only a
coincidence. The old village, with its main street, lies along the
valley of the Catskill Creek, not quite a mile from the Catskill
Landing, and preserves some of the features of the days when
_Knickerbocker_ was accustomed to pay it an annual visit. The location
seems to have been chosen as a place of security--out of sight to one
voyaging up the river. The northern slope now reveals fine residences,
all of which command extensive views. Just out of the village proper,
on a beautiful outlook, stands the charming Prospect Park Hotel. The
drives and pedestrian routes in the vicinity of Catskill are well
condensed by Walton Van Loan, a resident of the village, whose guide
to the Catskills is the best on this region and will be of great
service to all who would like to understand thoroughly the mountain
district.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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