They're paving over Revolutionary War landmarks in Fishkill, NY
IT’S a beautiful thing to have a Revolutionary War site like the Fishkill Encampment and Supply Depot, a nationally registered landmark, in your town. But when the military camp — where thousands of George Washington’s troops were stationed to keep the British from moving past New York City and capturing the Hudson River — is also home to the heavily trafficked Route 9 corridor, pleading for its survival can sometimes feel like a never-ending battle.
You see, the problem is that in recent years, Route 9 has become a giant strip mall with big-box stores, gas stations and motels. In its wake, grand and historic Hudson Valley landmarks like the Rapalje House and Van der Voort estate, where Samuel Loudon printed the first edition of the New York State Constitution, have been razed, forests have been sheared and ancient stone walls turned into gray dust. The biggest growth stems from Fishkill and goes all the way up to Poughkeepsie.
A passer-by would hardly notice the Fishkill Encampment and Supply Depot. Aside from the Van Wyck Homestead, which served as a headquarters, there is no trace of the depot’s remains. And yet archaeological and scholarly research has revealed that the camp was a one-of-a-kind military city.
Read entire article at Mara Farrell, co-founder of Fishkill Historical Focus, a historic preservation group, in the NYT
You see, the problem is that in recent years, Route 9 has become a giant strip mall with big-box stores, gas stations and motels. In its wake, grand and historic Hudson Valley landmarks like the Rapalje House and Van der Voort estate, where Samuel Loudon printed the first edition of the New York State Constitution, have been razed, forests have been sheared and ancient stone walls turned into gray dust. The biggest growth stems from Fishkill and goes all the way up to Poughkeepsie.
A passer-by would hardly notice the Fishkill Encampment and Supply Depot. Aside from the Van Wyck Homestead, which served as a headquarters, there is no trace of the depot’s remains. And yet archaeological and scholarly research has revealed that the camp was a one-of-a-kind military city.