This issue starts with an article by Mark Sullivan. You might remember that Magpie’s Greg Artzner wrote a song about Will, a Civil War soldier yearning to return home in the last weeks of the war but never made it. With Will as a subject, Mark filled in the details of his tragic death. In our fall issue, Chloe Snyder told us of her great-grandfather who was instrumental in establishing the taxable basis for the Gilboa Reservoir; in this issue, Mark has “the other side of the story”—this one about the great-great-grandfather of Samuel Bliss, Jr., who fought in the American Revolution!
LaVerne Hubbard is still finding new additions to the the Honor Roll, including 2 additional American Revolution patriots and more names for the generally well-documented list of Civil War veterans. We’re pleased with each additional name, but you can’t help but wonder how many more service people are out there that we have missed! Please, check the list and see if you can find family or friends that should be included.
We have a new Historian for the Town of Gilboa: Janette Reynolds, and she has already started to make her presence felt in the new History Center as well as introducing herself through the Quarterly. Speaking of the new History Center, Kristen Wyckoff has a report on the most recent activity on that front.
Lee Hudson has a new article on the infrastructure of the old village with a report on the water systems that operated in Gilboa. Amy Sternstein found information on the sale of the equipment used in the Gilboa Creamery and has added that to the Quarterly.
We have information about the Gilboa Reservoir from 1927 until the present. The reservoir attracted people to the area to take in the view, to paddle on the water, and to fish the Schoharie. We cover this, but Wilma Jones provided an intimate article on the reservoir, from its condemnation of her great-grandfather’s house and grandfather’s farmland to her husband’s getting a job “on the city” and her realizing that what goes around, comes around. In the fall, the DEP made a presentation to the Dam Concerned Citizens reporting on the recent construction at the dam and projected work that will be undertaken in the next 10 years. It is a fascinating insight into the work done, the potential for the future, and the very positive and collegial interaction between the DEP and DCC.
An audio file of this presentation is available by clicking on this audio bar.
Download the Quarterly GHS 17-4 for Winter 2015