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Preservationists and
Conservationists
Onesquethaw Creek Historic District
On January 17, 1974 the Onesquethaw Creek
Historic District covering some 3,410 acres in the southern section of the
Town of New Scotland, Albany County was entered on the National Register.
This District contains a unique number of historic buildings
including eight 18th century stone houses, ranging from the large Van
Rensselaer ‘‘Fort’’ to a typical colonial saltbox. Included in registered
houses are eighteen Greek Revival and two unusual three storied Victorian
houses.
Along the Onesquethaw Creek which flows through this Historic
District are fertile farmlands, early mill sites, kilns and evidence of
pre-historic Indian usage. Lumber, potash, pearlash and wheat were shipped
out of this thriving community for the New England and European trades in
the 18th century.
The purpose of The Preservationists and Conservationists of the Onesquethaw
Creek Historic District is to discover, preserve and disseminate knowledge
of this particular area’s development.
The District was first settled by Tennis (Antoni) Slingerland
from Governor Dongan on March 30,.1685. In concert with his son-in-law
Johannis Appel, this17th century entrepreneur also purchased his10,000 acre
tract from eight Indians of the Bear, Wolf and Turtle clans. Indians
continued to set up summer tepees here into the early 1900’s. The first
record of sale of a part of this tract was to a Wouter Vandersee in 1706.
A 1719 survey by Nicholas Schuyler shows four houses occupied by Dirck
Haggadorn, Woute Vanderzee, Johannis Appel and Courlins Slingerland,
withiin the original grant of almost 10,000 acres.
The maps of the 1750’s and 1760’s show a marked increase in the
habitations in the Slingerland and surrounding patents which had been
leased and/or sold to hardy settlers. Mills, potash house and kilns abounded
in this productive valley.
In 1768 the Van Rensselaers sold their ‘‘Fort’’ to Gerrit van
Sante, an Albany merchant who maintained a residence in Albany. His papers
indicate production in sawmill, gristmill, iron foundry and potash house
located on the then “Mighty Niscothaw”. Barter took the place of hard money
which was often in ‘‘short supply’’.
Descendants of Tennis Slingerland still actively farming in this
area are Slingerlands, La Granges and Winnes.
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