Bringing Communities Together with a Common Heritage

The goal of the northerncatskillshistory.com web site is to promote interest, documentation, and publication of local history in the Northern Catskills, in cooperation with individuals, genealogical and historical societies, area museums, and local and county historians.
   Success of the web site will be measured by increased activities pertaining to local history in the Northern Catskills; improved attendance at talks and programs on local history; increased membership in local historical societies; and a broader cadre of people documenting local history.

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The Newsletter is a quarterly publication mailed the first of March, June, September, and December presenting local history of the Western Catskills of New York. It is mailed to members of the Gilboa Historical Society and to those who request to be placed on our mailing list . We also offer a free electronic subscription to the Newsletter. Click on this link, fill in your email address, and you will shortly receive an email to confirm you want to subscribe. Respond to that email and it's done.

By clicking on the links below, you can read or download a .pdf of current and past issues of our Newsletter. You can also access newsletters from the historical associations of Carlisle and Colchester, and the Newsletter of the Woodchuck Lodge Inc.

Volume 14.3 Fall 2012 Economically, we cannot afford to mail the newsletter as a full-color publication, so the physical version is simply black and white.
      Not so the electronic version — you can see the more modern photographs in glorious color (see especially the two articles on kayaking (and fishing) in the Schoharie Reservoir). Rose Miller Mace has two articles on how her father bought the farm, and his detailed instruction on how to build a large, post and beam barn. We have a really special tribute to the victims of Hurricane Irene; LaVerne Hubbard's tribute to the Stryker Road Learning Center (a.k.a. the Gilboa Museum); Susan Ciacci's tribute to the importance of music in her life; and Gershom Stevens' efforts in the Revolution constructing the chain across the Hudson at West Point and his service at Valley Forge. Socrates Hubbard gives us his first-hand impression of a Horning; Karen Cuccinello relates the resurgence of the Historical Room at the Stamford Village Library, and information on the construction of the berm at the Gilboa Dam.

Volume 14.2 Spring 2012 The Mackey Picnic has sparked a lot of interest, ca. Mildred Bouck in 1936, Franklin Clapper in the 1940s, Bee Mattice in 1954, and the ladies of the Thimble Club. There are two stories on the Gilboa Fossils — Robert and Johanna Titus on the discoveries of the 21st century, and Bob Fox on the way science works and evolves. There is also the Board of Water Supply developing the sand pits and quarries necessary for the constructon of the reservoir, and the last chapter in the life of Alphonse Rocco.
Color photographs of Mt. Gilboa and the Gilboa Iris.
Lethal Camera ,an account of the penultimate chapter in Alphonse Rocco's story.

Volume 14.1 Spring 2012 Franklin Clapper's recollections of the people around Mackey has stoked the memory of others: Terri Scutt Lahti's " My Old House " on Maybie Road, Franklin's further recollections on "The Mackey General Store," Andy Buell's experience with the farms of Bruce Buell and David Ellerson, and Chauncey Dent's program from the Farmer ’s Picnic of 1949. We also offer Joan Hess Mullen thoughts in "Remember When?" and Helen Krieger ’ s Scrapbook from around World War II. In response to Bee Mattice's research on the Irrish coming to Gilboa in the last issue, Ed McCabe tells of "Thomas and Bridget McCabe of South Gilboa." "They Lived in These Hills" talks of Charlie Case, “Wild Bill ” Schermerhorn, and Clifton Hubbard; and we have 2 articles on John Burroughs: Diane Galusha's "The Comfort of Home: John Burroughs of Roxbury" and Linda VanAller Herenick's "My Association with John Burroughs." Our series of articles on the Gilboa Reservoir continues with "Additional Shandaken Tunnel Pictures, from Karen Murphy and the DEP Archives" and "Selection and Preparation of the Dam Site " from the DEP Annual Reports. This link is to a number of free searchable .pdf volumes of interest to the Gilboa-Conesville area, including The Bureau of Water Supply's Annual Reports from 1907 through 1927; Warner's Military Records of Schoharie County Veterans of Four Wars, Simm's History of Schoharie County and Border Wars of New York (1845); Roscoe's History of Schoharie County, NY 1713-1882; and White's The Catskill Water Supply of New York City (1913).

Volume 13.4 Winter 2011 has a historic review of floods in the Schoharie valley and articles on the Blenheim bridge and museum. The issue continues our coverage of the construction of the Schoharie reservoir focussing on the Gate-House of the Shandaken Tunnel. We also have Franklin Clapper's recollections of the people and time of Mackey in the late 1930s and early 1940s. NOTE: The interviews from which this article was drawn is online as well. Finally, we have Beatrice Mattice's information on the 19th century immigration of the Irish to South Gilboa; the display of Timothy Murphy's rifle at the Stone Fort; and some information on sheep and goats in the area.
This link is to a number of free searchable .pdf volumes of interest to the Gilboa-Conesville area, including The Bureau of Water Supply's Annual Reports from 1907 through 1927; Warner's Military Records of Schoharie County Veterans of Four Wars, Simm's History of Schoharie County and Border Wars of New York (1845); Roscoe's History of Schoharie County, NY 1713-1882; and White's The Catskill Water Supply of New York City (1913).

Volume 13.3 Fall 2011 continues our coverage of the original construction of the northernmost reservoir serving the city of New York. In this issue, we focus on the Shandaken Tunnel with photos from the DEP annual reports of 1920-1923. We also have the story of how Art VanAken joined the Red Ball Express (the transportation unit assigned the task of keeping George Patton's tanks supplied with gasoline after D-Day); Beatrice Mattice's interview with Paul Stryker on the early history of West Conesville; the Carlisle experience of having co-historians for the town; and an overview of two memorial rocks tied to the history of Maham Pond. This on-line PDF has been bookmarked, so you can click on the title of a story and go directly to it. To return to the table of contents on page 1, click on the red radio button on the top of each page. This link is to a number of free searchable .pdf volumes of interest to the Gilboa-Conesville area, including The Bureau of Water Supply's Annual Reports from 1907 through 1927; Warner's Military Records of Schoharie County Veterans of Four Wars, Simm's History of Schoharie County and Border Wars of New York (1845); Roscoe's History of Schoharie County, NY 1713-1882; and White's The Catskill Water Supply of New York City (1913).

Volume 13.2 Summer 2011 has the history of early construction of the Gilboa Dam and Reservoir; and we will have future pictorials on the Shandaken Tunnel (fall issue), Gate House (winter issue) and the dam itself starting in Spring 2012. Bee Mattice has contributed two articles on the Civil War — the background of conflicted opinions in Gilboa and Conesville, and then the individual stories of local people who were in the war. Chuck and Trish D'Imperio have a contribution on the collection, organizing, and presentation of local facts for collection into a book, a walking tour, or oral presentation (this couple is responsible for the wonderful walking tours in Cooperstown, and Chuck has a number of books on upstate history, including Upstate New York: History Happened Here! and Great Graves of Upstate New York). There are several articles on the museum's summer theme: old time music , including articles on Hilton Kelly and the Sidekicks, Marv Simonson, Hop Dances and the New Deal art in the Middleburgh Post Office.
        And finally, there is an article on the Internet availability of a further 19th century book on the history of Schoharie County: Military Records of Schoharie County Veterans of Four Wars, compiled by George H. Warner, Late Co. C, 134th N. Y. Vol. Inf., Albany, N. Y.; Weed, Parsons and Company, Printers, 1891 The on-line PDF has been bookmarked, so you can click on the title of a story and go directly to it. To return to the table of contents on page 1, click on the red radio button on the top of each page.

Volume 13.1 Spring 2011 has an article on George Decker by Kevin Berner, who then goes on to tell how he obtained the genealogical details. Many came from the Historical Room in the Middleburgh Public Library, a resource that is then described by Steve LaMont. There are 3 related stories on the blacksmiths of Gilboa and Conesville in 1850 with illustrations by Eric Sloane, and "They Lived in These Hills" has anecdotal histories of the Nickersons and Newell and Goldie Miller. Janette Reynolds tells of the area's flirting with silent movies; Jeremiah Reed ’ s Letters from the Civil War are continued; and Emily Schultes has converted her PowerPoint school project on Churchill Hall to a fascinating essay.
   And finally, there is an article on the Internet availability of two 19th century books on the history of Schoharie County: Roscoe: History of Schoharie County and Simms: History of Schoharie County and Border Wars. Searchable PDF files of these two books are freely available.    The on-line PDF has been bookmarked, so you can click on the title of a story and go directly to it. To return to the table of contents on page 1, click on the red radio button on the top of each page.

Volume 12.4 Winter 2010 is the fourth issue of the Gilboa Historical Society Newsletter — a break with the tradition of publishing three issues per year. This issue is groundbreaking i n another way as well — it is written entirely by students from Conesville and Gilboa. This is a pilot program with students attending Gilboa-Conesville Central School and additional articles by Gilboans attending Stamford Central School and a part-time resident attending Oceanside High School on Long Island. These studen ts have a common love for the area and its history, and have brought their talents to bear on documenting it for us. While we have had occasional articles from students in the past, our future goal is to have student involvement in all issues of the Newsletter and to promote student involvement in local history throughout the el-hi curriculum. Please work with the historical society and our children ’ s teachers to make this goal a reality.

Volume 12.3 Fall 2010 is oriented to the people of Gilboa and Conesville, with an article by Joan Mullen on the people of the Pinochle Club; the recollections of the Coast Guard in World War II by Ed Bilinski; and a new regular feature: They Lived in these Hills(a series of vignettes on people, couples, families, and [yes] even a pet cemetery). The letters of the Reed family are continuing thanks to Bob Morrissey, and it has been greatly expanded by the family documents of Scott Reed. Holiday celebrations are also in abundance, with the history of Flat Creek's July Fourth celebration and Carlton Lewis's recollections of turkey shoot festivities of past and present. For outdoor activities, there is an article on building a hiking trail on your own property by Clarence Putman (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, and the Long Path Hiking Trail); and a final follow-up on the Minekill Bridge from the perspective of the Overlook.

Volume 12.2 Summer 2010 has articles on Nick Juried's recollections of his family buying a farm in Gilboa in the early 1940s; four articles on the importance of cauliflower to the agriculture of the area by the 1850 Farmer's Every-day Book, Diane Galusha, Bill Snyder, and a reprinted "obituary " for cauliflower from the 1978 Mirror Recorder; the yet-to-be-named trails on the mountaintops of Gilboa, Jefferson, Stamford, and Harpersfield by Velga Kundzins-Tan; Maude Haskin's recollections from the 50s; another of the letters that Jeremiah and David Reed wrote home from the Civil War [ Note: we have heard from the family and hope to have more on the families of these Union soldiers in future newsletters]); folklore and folknames of Gilboa and Conesville; copyright issues for people dealing in local issues; a celebration of the new Juried Memorial Barn (an addition to our Gilboa Museum to house agricultural history); and an overview of the archeological digs conducted by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection.

Volume 12.1 Spring 2010   has articles on The Great Flood (ghosts and hauntings from the building of the reservoir); War Letters from the Front; The Three P's of Genealogy (Persistence, Patience and Pennies); Sugaring in the Northern Catskills; Construction of the New Bridge over Minekill Falls; Volunteers on the Long Path Hiking Trail; Wartime on the Home Front; Spinning and Weaving in our Hills; The Days of Burlap; Resources Available in Local History; and the first chapter from The Hill Folk of Schoharie County from 1912, by Emelyn Elizabeth Gardner.

Volume 11.3 Fall 2009 Hops Farming in the Schoharie Valley in the pre-Prohibition age is described by Mary Bowers (the historian of the Town of Seward), recounting the life and times of hop farming at its height; and a reprint from the Knickerbocker News describes the music played at the end of hop harvests at that same period of time. The topic of hops farming came to mind because of Mark Simonson's article in Oneonta's Daily Star covers hops in Middleburgh after the end of Prohibition and until the 1950s, and we have a pdf of William Pindar's article “ Hops in Schoharie County ” from the Schoharie County Historical Review on gilboahome. Old Gilboa's lead story shows Gilboa as it was in 1870, before the encroachments of the twentieth century, and was written in 1964 by the town historian, Katherine Harrington. We also have the second article in the series on the DEP's excavation of sites around the Gilboa Reservoir: "Various [smoking] Pipes Found at the J. Reed Site" by Richard A. Kastl; and a letter from Kristen Wyckoff of the Museum Committee in correction to an earlier DEP article on the "Archeology of the Village of Gilboa." Letters from the Front is a new multi-part series from Bob Morrissey, who has shared a number of letters that Jeremiah and David Reed, wrote home from the war starting on November 28, 1862. (Note: the transcriptions maintain the spelling of the original letters but have added punctuation for clarity.) The full four pages of this letter are on the gilboahome.com web site. Over the next several months, we will be "sending " these letters to you so that you can look forward to them much as Mother, Father, and Daniel Reed did. Genealogically speaking, Teena Schroeder covers the wide variety of reports and charts that a genealogy program can offer (a few are included as examples in the Newsletter, but over 20 more report formats are also available as a .pdf for your review; Hiking for this issue is on the Huntersfield Mountain portion of the long trail and has spectacular views. We will be adding full color panoramas this fall at the gilboahome.com web site, so keep in touch; and Maude Haskin's Recollections continues with the 1940s — as women went to work outside of the home and little girls grew up (her recollections of the war years will be covered in a separate issue). Weather or not: George Wilson's thoughts on this year's hay and corn crops in light of the wettest July in history.

Volume 11.2 Summer 2009 This summer's issue features the first of three articles on the archaeological exploration of the village of old Gilboa, conducted by the Public Archaeology Facility of SUNY Binghamton — a fascinating look into our past. Other articles include three articles on music in the nineteenth-century churches and hamlets of our town; an introduction to genealogical software (Family Tree Maker and others); and two articles on farming using loose hay. Bee Matice introduces us to the early nineteenth-century Shoemaker Rake and Handle Factory, and we are continuing articles from Maude Haskin (this story on living in the Gilboa of the 1930s) and on hiking trails in the area (an easy trail for the observation of the bluebird, the state avian of New York). We also bring you up to date with Society activities, including a hoped-for expansion of the museum and a cost-cutting plan for this Newsletter. And, as part of that plan, please look at the links to the icons above: a registry of individual articles from past and future issues of the Newsletter, podcast interviews, and pictures and information on the residences and shops of the village.

Volume 11.1 Spring 2009 This spring issue is a bit longer than usual and the content is a bit broader. It covers historical lifestyles — including three articles on airplanes in early Gilboa and first-person accounts of mundane activities like walking to school, playing on the Gilboa-Conesville baseball team, or being a teenager in the 1920s. Historical technology is represented by a small cannon used for splitting logs ( click for additional pictures of the splitting gun in action), and there is a detailed analysis of the changes in a community (Cornell Hollow) in the nineteenth century. In addition, there are tips on using Internet Web sites for genealogical research; and scrapbooking as a way of making genealogical dissemination easier. We have two articles on hiking (history and trails of the Long Path, and a very easy trail just north of NYPA). The headline story on this issue is by Diane Galusha and covers the overwhelming need for water in the New York City of 1800 – 1920. This article will be a keystone for the next few issues that will feature articles on the history of the lands around and under the reservoir.

Volume 10.3 Fall 2008 Power in the area in the early nineteenth century: the early commercial generation of electricity in the village of Gilboa (and sale of electricity to Prattsville, Stamford, and Grand Gorge); the use of hit-and-miss engines in rural areas; the use of acetylene gas and Delco glass batteries for lighting of farmhouses; and the coming of electricity with the Rural Electrification Act. There is also a recollection of the life of a teacher from a one-room schoolhouse, and the history of ice-cream socials in Gilboa (complete with tried-and-true ice cream recipes).

Volume 10.2 Summer 2008 The vacation economy in mid-nineteenth-century Gilboa, with an overview by Flora Del Hubbard leading to stories on the area railroads (both the Delaware and Ulster, and the stillborn Delaware and Northern), the dayline Hudson River steamships, and stories on the maintenance and use of early roads in town.

10.1 Spring 2008 More on preservation techniques for books and papers, the final report on the archaeological day school, and stories of trucking in the twentieth-century northern Catskills.

Volume 9.3 Fall 2007 A general interest overview of preservation techniques, plus stories on baseball, the Broome Center store, an archaeological day school, plus artifacts from early twentieth-century schools — including the New York State tests for students in grades 5 – 7 in reading, spelling, and arithmetic.

Volume 9.2 Summer 2007 Farming: the Decker-Starheim barn, two articles on farms that have been operational for generations, how farming has changed over the years, and new insights into the Gilboa fossils. This issue also ran a preliminary version of the Gilboa Tourism Map, and the updated version is available on-line.

Volume 9.1 Spring 2007 The Owlsville and Forks-in-the-Road schoolhouses, reports on school districts from the early nineteenth century, and the demise of the one-room schoolhouse.

Volume 8.2 Fall 2006 Attending the Shew Hollow Schoolhouse.

The Newsletter is published by the first of each March, June, and September and presents local history of the Western Catskills in the State of New York. It is automatically mailed to members of the Gilboa Historical Society and on request to residents and property owners in the towns of Gilboa and Conesville. We would love to have you join our society and receive the physical Newsletter in this way — please click here for a membership application.

An electronic subscription to the Newsletter is free (please send your email address); and electronic downloads of our materials on this web site is free provided it is for non-commercial use and for your personal enjoyment only.

Copyright © 2008 gilboahome.com August 30, 2012