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    Around the Town of Saratoga
    Around the Town of Saratoga
    Around the Town of Saratoga
    Ebook169 pages36 minutes

    Around the Town of Saratoga

    By Thomas N. Wood III

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    As the American struggle for independence intensified, Saratoga became a focal point of warring activities. Both colonists and loyalists maintained forts, camps, and officer headquarters within town. In 1777, after the two Battles of Saratoga, American forces gained the surrender of British
    Gen. John Burgoyne, thus turning the tide of the Revolutionary War. The name Saratoga comes from the Mohawk word meaning either place of the swift water or hillside country of the great river. True to its name, the town spreads across rolling hills along the western side of the Hudson River. The river itself, together with two early main roads and a canal, brought prosperity to the area. Saratoga became a major shipping terminal. The town boundaries changed several times throughout the years, but the rural character of the town and the spirit of its residents remained constant.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateSep 15, 1999
    ISBN9781439610206
    Around the Town of Saratoga
    Author

    Thomas N. Wood III

    Thomas N. Wood III is a lifelong resident of Saratoga and a retired schoolteacher and administrator. He has served as the town historian for 18 years and currently serves as town supervisor. His hope is that the collection of vintage postcards found in Saratoga will expand and promote the knowledge of the history and development of the town.

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      Book preview

      Around the Town of Saratoga - Thomas N. Wood III

      book.

      INTRODUCTION

      Archaeological evidence reveals that the Mohawk branch of the Iroquois inhabited the Saratoga area more than 1,200 years ago. Here, the Native Americans enjoyed excellent fishing and hunting grounds, easily accessed by a network of natural waterways. They were able to travel north and south on the Hudson River, east on the Battenkill River, and west on Fish Creek.

      The name Saratoga comes from a Mohawk word: either Se-rach-ta-gue, meaning the hillside country of the quiet river or place of the swift water, referring to the rapids and falls that break the stillness of the stream; or Sa-ra-ta-ke, meaning a place where the track of the heel may be seen, referring to nearby rocks that contain footprint-shaped depressions. Either way, Dutch settlers gave the name to the gently rolling land within a region of indefinite boundaries. The region extended roughly from present-day Waterford to the state dam in Northumberland and included land that stretched 6 miles along both sides of the Hudson River.

      As early as 1684, a group that included Peter Schuyler obtained the Saratoga Patent, the first title to the land. Bartel Vroman became the first pioneer settler in 1688. Officials at a convention held in Albany on September 4, 1689, resolved that a fort be made about the house of Bartel Vroman at Sarachtoge. In the summer of 1690, Schuyler, who was then mayor of Albany, cleared a spot in the forest, built a blockhouse for his military stores, and named the place Saratoga. In 1702, Johannes Schuyler settled on lands along Fish Creek, near the present village of Schuylerville. He established farms and erected mills and other buildings as early as 1709. As a way of drawing new people to the area, Schuyler built a garrison house for protection from raids of the French and Indian Wars. Together, Schuyler and the farmers and others who leased or bought land from him formed the town’s first major settlement, Fort Saratoga.

      In spite of frequent raids, the settlement grew. By the mid-1700s, it included some 30 dwellings with granaries, pens, flour mills, stores, and blacksmith shops, as well as the garrison. On November 17, 1745, a fierce attack destroyed Fort Saratoga. Capt. Peter Schuyler was killed in his own house. Many others were also massacred or taken prisoner. The settlement, including the garrison house, was burned. Fort Saratoga was rebuilt, but attacks continued sporadically during the years of the French and Indian Wars. In 1763, France and England made peace, trouble subsided, and the settlement revived. In 1767, Philip Schuyler erected a flax mill, the first in the American Colonies. In 1770, the Saratoga Reformed Church was organized.

      As the country struggled for independence from the British, Saratoga became a focal point of warring activities. Both colonists and loyalists maintained forts, camps, and headquarters within the town. Philip Schuyler, the general in command, used his forces to delay the advance of the British, led by Gen. John Burgoyne. Hostilities intensified in the summer of 1777. On September 10, 1777, Burgoyne’s army crossed the Hudson River, halted for a short time, and then headed south. There, the army, one of the mightiest in the world, was defeated in the two battles at Saratoga on September 19 and October 7. Burgoyne retreated back to the village, where he surrendered to Gen. Horatio Gates on October 17. This surrender of British soldiers marked the turning point of the American Revolutionary War. It provided the impetus that caused France to join the American cause against the British.

      Saratoga suffered throughout the war. Many of the settlers who chose to stay in the village lost their lives. Others lost their property. Gradually, in the years following the war, the town began to grow and prosper. Flour mills, linen mills, paper mills, and sawmills were constructed. Schools, churches, and businesses were established. The two highways that passed through town, the old Montreal and Albany Military Road and the

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