The
Towns -
A
Timeline
A description of the establishment of the Towns can be very confusing,
however it is absolutely crucial for the researcher to understand in which town their ancestor lived and in what year, in as the boundaries of the
towns changed many times as new towns were created in the first half of
the 19th century. A brief description follows:
- Prior to 1800 settlement was virtually restricted to the towns along the
Hudson River, with scattered homesteads in the interior. The west side of
the Hudson River from Sawyer's Creek (now Saugerties Creek) north to
Saratoga was under the jurisdiction of Albany County until 1772
- On March 24th,1772 the nucleus of present day Greene County was divided
into two districts:
"That all that part of the said county of Albany, which lays to the
south of Rensselaerwick District, and the United Districts of Duanesburgh
and Schoharie and to the north of a West Line drawn from the South Bank of
the Mouth of the Kat's-Kill, to the West Bounds of this Colony, and to the
Westward of Hudson's River, shall be one separate and distinct District, and
be henceforth called and known by the name of Coxsackie District."
"That all of that Part of the said County of Albany, which lays on the
West Side of Hudson's River, and on the South of Coxsackie District, shall
be one separate and distinct District, and be henceforth called and known by
the Name of the Great Imbocht District."
- In 1788 the boundary line between Albany County and Ulster County was
established, "beginning at the most northerly End or Part of
Wanton-Island, in Hudson's River, and running from thence to the Head of
Kaater's-Creek or Kill, where the same issues out of the southerly side or
end of a certain Lake or Pond, lying in the Blue Mountains; from thence to a
small Lake called Utsayantho."
- March 7th, 1788 Town of Coxsackie and Catskill established
- March 8th, 1790, Town of Freehold was established. The land was previously
situated in the Town of Coxsackie
- March 23rd, 1798, Town of Windham established. The land was previously
situated within the borders of the Town of Woodstock in Ulster County
- April 5th, 1798, the Town of Catskill was annexed to Ulster County
from Albany County
- March 25th, 1800 Greene County established, comprised of the Towns of
Coxsackie, Freehold, Windham and Catskill
- March 26th, 1803 the Town of Canton was established, comprised of
lands from the Towns of Catskill, Coxsackie, and Freehold
- March 26th, 1803 the Town of Greenfield was established, comprised of
lands from Coxsackie and Freehold towns
- March 26th, 1803 all those parts of the Towns of Catskill and Freehold
lying west and southerly of the summit of the Catskill Mountain were annexed
to the Town of Windham
- March 28th, 1805 the name of Freehold was changed to Durham
- April 6th, 1808 the name of Canton was changed to Cairo
- April 6th, 1808 the name Greenfield was changed to Freehold
- March 17th, 1809 the name Freehold was changed to Greenville
- March 15th, 1811 the Town of New Baltimore was established, comprised
of lands from the northern part of Coxsackie Town
- June 6th, 1812 the dividing line between Catskill and Saugerties in Ulster
County was changed
- January 27th, 1813 the Town of Windham was divided into Greenland,
Windham and New Goshen
- March 19th, 1813 the name of New Goshen was changed to Lexington
- April 15th, 1814 the name of Greenland was changed to Hunter
- February 25th, 1815 the Town of Athens was established, comprised of
lands from Catskill and Coxsackie Towns
- In 1816 land was taken from the Town of Hunter and transferred to
the Town of Saugerties in Ulster County
- April 17th, 1822 a part of Saugerties was annexed to Catskill
- April 23rd, 1823 three islands in the Hudson River were annexed to New
Baltimore from Kinderhook, Columbia County
- March 8th, 1833 the Town of Prattsville was established, comprised of
lands from the Town of Windham Township
- March 23rd, 1848 the Town of Ashland was established, comprised of
lands from the Town of Prattsville
- March 25th, 1848 part of the Town of Hunter was annexed to the Town of Lexington
- November 16th, 1849 the Town of Jewett was established, comprised of
lands from Hunter and Lexington Towns
- November 19th, 1851 the Towns of Halcott was established, comprised of
lands from the Town of Lexington
- November 17th, 1851 a small part of the Town of Jewett was annexed to the
Town of Lexington
- November 25th, 1865 the line between Jewett and Lexington Towns was
altered
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