In 1613 what is believed to be the first permanent settler in
New Netherlands, now New York City, was put ashore from a Dutch
sailing ship. Jan Rodrigues, a free man of color from Santo
Domingo carried with him tools and provisions and was tasked
with establishing trade with the Indians for the Dutch. His
presence is documented because the following year legal problems
arose with fur traders. Rodrigues married a native and when the
Dutch returned for him he chose to stay and establish his own
trading post. In commemoration in 2012 Broadway between 158th
and 218th Streets was designated Juan Rodriguez Way. nycgo.com
From Native American, Dutch and African trading roots grew a
city, and eventually a state, populated with independent,
freethinking individuals from a wide variety of countries and
ethnicities. Their origins shaped policies on settlement,
enslavement, protest and abolition for the next 250-years and
beyond.
People of color always played a significant role in New York and
nowhere were they and their actions more important than on the
Adirondack Coast. The number of existing sites associated with
interactions with blacks there is overwhelming but with a little
effort and selectivity visitors can craft a journey into some
unique and, in some cases little known, aspects of the American
experience. visitadirondacks.com
Champlain claimed Plattsburgh, NY, originally settled by the
Mohawk and Mohican Indians, for France in 1609. Traders passed
through the area but it was not until the French ceded the land
to the British in 1763 that the region was fully explored and in
1785 Zephaniah Platt established a settlement. A Heritage Trail
and Birding Trail have been created and are available to
visitors. cityofplattsburgh-ny.gov
The Clinton County Historical Museum sets the tone for any visit
to the area. The museum provides an overview of regional history
from pre-colonial times. This small gem relates the big picture
through the telling of "small" stories brought to life through
artifacts, documents and paintings. Highlights of a visit
include information on the 80-100 slaves who accompanied the
original settlers, a diorama of the Battle of Plattsburgh and
tales of Plattsburgh's 1838 Stone Barracks and Hospital
Building, the nation's first hospital to treat shell shock
(PTSD). Clintoncountyhistorical.org and @CCHA_MUSEUM
The Federal Kent DeLord House was constructed in 1797 for
William Bailey. The house and 3-acres were purchased in 1811 by
Henry DeLord and remained in the family until 1913. The British
occupied the house during the Battle of Plattsburgh in 1814.
Guided tours of the house showcase furniture, priceless
portraits including a 15th-century Dutch painting and
140 pieces of Canton china. The house is the oldest structure in
the city. kentdelordhouse.org
A monument honoring Samuel de Champlain is located on the
shoreline across from the house. The 12-ft. statue is located in
a park and the Riverwalk Trail begins at the monument.
Babbie Rural & Farm Learning Museum is so filled with treasures
that you should be prepared to spend a few hours there. This
20-site complex interprets rural farm life in the 18th
to early 20th-centuries through demonstrations and interactive
experiences using original antiques. Festivals and educational
programs are regularly scheduled.
babbiemuseum.org
A chasm is a gap in a vertical canyon between steep walls and a
perfect and accessible example of this phenomenal formation is
Ausable Cavern. The Potsdam Sandstone, 2-mile chasm, first
viewed by Europeans in 1759, begins in the High Peaks region of
the Adirondacks. Outstanding features are the 70-ft. high
Rainbow Falls, 8-ft. Horseshoe Falls and Elephant's Head and
Split Rock formations. An
exciting menu of activities is available including Lantern
Tours, rappelling and an adventure trail that requires a
harness. A museum in the Welcome Center offers an orientation
film and an overview of the chasm in the form of a diorama.
Ausablechasm.com
The Underground Railroad has become one of America's iconic
institutions although much mystery continues to surround its
operation and operatives. We know that it existed from the first
days of the nation and at that time most enslaved individuals
ran south. There were "main lines" as well as numerous branches
and current research illuminates the role of both free and
enslaved blacks as both abolitionists and UGRR workers.
No museum better or more comprehensively documents the story of
one of the most important routes, New York's Champlain Line,
than the North Star Underground Railroad Museum. More than 5,000
freedom seekers passed through the state. Founded by historian
Don Papson, the museum is located a short walk from the chasm
and recounts the area's history through individual stories of
courage and poignancy. There are two outstanding films and a
display on religious denominations and their stance on slavery.
northcountryundergroundrailroad.com
In conjunction with a museum visit it is possible to take a tour
of the surrounding hamlets and sites that served as havens on
the UGRR. The trail consists of churches, homes and barns where
abolitionist meetings were held and escapees were hidden. This
tour gives visitors a real sense of distances traveled and the
dangers involved.
The Comfort Inn and Suites Plattsburgh is centrally located,
offers all the standard amenities plus WIFI, fitness center and
complimentary parking and breakfast.
plattsburghcomfortinn.com
Plattsburg Brewing Company is adjacent to the hotel. It features
handcrafted beers including the War of 1812 Plucky Rooster Ale,
made from 17th-century ingredients. Dinner and a
drink here is a perfect way to end this part of the trip.
plattsburghbrewingco.com
The Dutch West India Company (DWIC) was founded to monopolize
Dutch trade in 1621. They desired to control New Netherlands
(New York) and in that year they sent settlers to construct Fort
Orange in what is now Albany to establish a presence that would
keep other nations away. Labor was needed and by 1655 the DWIC,
who initially owned all the slaves in the colony held 150 slaves
and a number of freedmen. nycgo.com
Settlement north of NYC was slow and to spur growth
"patroonships" were offered. These huge land grants were given
to private individuals to rent land to tenant farmers. Under the
Dutch blacks had rights including land ownership. In 1664 the
British took over, actively promoted the slave trade and made NY
the North's largest slave state. Albany, the oldest chartered
city in the country, was at the heart of the colonial Dutch
world. #discoveralbany and Albany.org
Crailo State Historic Site is the only museum dedicated to the
presentation of 17th-century Upper Hudson Valley
Dutch culture. The farm was once part of the million-acre
Patroonship of Rensselaerswyck. The home was built in 1707 and
named after an estate in the Netherlands. Highlights of the
guided house tour are the defensive gun ports, the kitchen and
the main exhibition area that replicates the living space and
features everyday objects. It is believed that "Yankee Doodle"
was written here in 1755.
"A Dishonorable Trade: Human Trafficking in the Dutch Atlantic
World" is a temporary exhibit currently on view that is
spectacular, comprehensive and unique. Spread throughout a
number of galleries the exhibition takes visitors from Africa
into the 17th-century world of Dutch slavery.
Interpretive panels and artifacts advance our understanding of
this aspect of history.
In 1797 construction began on the Ten Broeck Mansion. The
Federal home was remodeled over the years with most of the
furnishings being in the Greek Revival-style. The largest number
of slaves ever held here was 19 and their stories are part of
the tour. The most interesting is that of Suzanne who was freed
but had to give one day's free labor weekly. Highlights include
the original Federal spiral staircase and a newly discovered
wine cellar.
The bricked up wine cellar was found when work was being done.
It is filled with bottles including an 1878 Rothschild. The
culmination of the tour is a peek inside where many of the
bottles are still in the packing straw casings.
tenbroeckmansion.org
and @TenBroeckACHA
Stephen And Harriet Meyers were prominent black figures in
Albany. Stephen, a former slave, and his wife were instrumental
in the abolitionist movement, the UGRR and the founding of
several newspapers from the 1830s to 1850s. Their 1850s
residence has been documented as a meeting place for the
Vigilance Committee and haven for more than 550 fugitives. Tours
of the 3-story home can be arranged while the home is being
restored. @URHPCR
From the moment individuals were enslaved in the New World they
began to find ways to escape and just as there were always
freedom seekers there was always some form of Underground
Railroad and always people willing to assist them. The people
who advocated the abolishment of slavery came to be known as
abolitionists and the earliest incarnations of the movement took
place in Philadelphia. In 1688 Germantown Quakers penned a
document denouncing slavery, the first in the nation, the first
step toward the banning of the institution by the Quakers in
1776 and the entire state in 1780. In 1775 Thomas Paine wrote
"African Slavery in America," the country's first publication
that promoted emancipating the slaves and outlawing the
practice. That same year "The
Society for the Relief of Free Negroes Unlawfully Held in
Bondage" was formed as the first American abolition
society.
During the early years of the 1800s abolitionists were a
microcosm of US society, whites, Native Americans, free and
enslaved blacks, women and congregants of all religions, working
both in tandem and at odds. Contrary to popular belief all
abolitionists did not have the same ideology and basically fell
into three categories. Emigrationists wanted blacks to be freed
and transported to Africa or other foreign ports, separatists
wanted blacks to live in their own region within the US and
Integrationists desired equal rights for blacks. These
abolitionists relied most heavily on the use of "moral suasion."
They believed that Americans, as essentially "good" people,
could be made to see that slavery was immoral and anti-religious
and thereby end it.
By the 1820s many abolitionists began to realize that moral
suasion was no match for the lucrative and deeply entrenched
system and a new, more aggressive, group of abolitionists came
to the forefront. They sought an immediate end to slavery and
the establishment of equal rights. These were individuals
willing to act, risk incarceration and even death for their
beliefs and there was an immediate backlash, riots and laws
governing the actions of abolition societies.
David Walker, a freeman, published the 76-page "An Appeal to the
Colored Citizens of the World in Boston, Massachusetts" in 1829
and is credited with being the match that lit the flame of
radical abolitionism. The appeal sanctions aggressive defense of
one's rights. He disavowed emigration and wrote, "America is
more our country than it is the whites—we have enriched it with
our blood and tears."
During this era abolitionists' ground zero migrated north from
Philadelphia to Upstate New York partially due to the passage of
the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 and the black exodus to Canada
for safety.
John Brown, from Elmira, NY, is the radical we are most familiar
with and he is often cited as being a dominant factor in the
start of the Civil War. Gerrit Smith's actions were equally if
not more significant and his story is fully interpreted in
Peterboro, NY at the Gerrit Smith Estate National Historic
Landmark.
Smith purchased his father's business at the age of 21. He was a
radical abolitionist and as a billionaire he used his funds
freely to support the cause. He financed Douglass' North Star
newspaper with a contribution of $100 monthly, backed Brown's
Harper's Ferry raid, funded Harriet Tubman, donated 20,000-acres
to Oberlin and established black colonies on 120,000-acres.
Additionally he operated an UGRR station of which it was said,
"There are yet two places where slaveholders cannot come, Heaven
and Peterboro." All of the noted abolitionists of the day
visited the estate as well as Elizabeth Cady Stanton, his first
cousin and a founder of the women's movement.
Visits to the estate
begin in the Visitors Center with an orientation film. Exterior
tours include several dependencies the most historic of which is
Smith's office. The site is original and was where he met with
important figures. Plaques are located around the grounds and
present a window on his life and times. gerritsmith.org
After being denied space for a meeting Smith invited the NY
State Anti-Slavery Society to meet in Peterboro. The building in
which the meeting was held is now The National Abolition Hall of
Fame and Museum. After meticulous research 1800's abolitionists
are inducted based on their commitment, actions and lasting
influence. An introductory video is available on the first floor
after which visitors proceed to the museum and Hall of Fame on
the second level. Highlights of the tour are the inductees' bios
and the abolition timeline.
Nationalabolitionhalloffameandmuseum.org
Recently the role of America's waterways in UGRR history has
begun to be explored. The construction of the Erie Canal changed
the history of NY and took on importance for African Americans
both enslaved and free.
The canal connects with the Hudson River in Albany and
was part of the UGRR route that Frederick Douglass used most
often. The Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor is 524-miles
long, includes 4 canals and is listed on the National Register.
Chittenango is a village within Madison County named after the
Oneida word meaning "river flowing north." The village owes its
initial growth to the development of the Erie Canal and
Chittenango Canal Boat Landing.
Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum offers visitors an
interactive look into life in a canal town and aboard a canal
boat. This was once a 3 bay dry dock facility where supplies
were taken on and boats were repaired. Tours begin with a
5-minute video and proceed to the exterior sites. The site is
listed on the Haunted History Trail of New York State.
African Americans worked on the boats, in the docks and settled
in the villages. There are documented cases of passengers
informing slaves on board boats that they are free under NY law
and urging them to flee. The most infamous incident aboard a
boat is that of the 1850 passage of the black Harris Family on
route to Canada, The family was so harassed that the wife jumped
overboard with her baby. She was rescued but the baby died. The
husband was put off the boat with a cut throat and walked beside
it for 20-miles prior to being rescued by an abolitionist.
Eventually the crew was arrested, tried and fined.
http://clcbm.org
"Dorothy lived in the
midst of the great Kansas prairies, with Uncle Henry, who was a
farmer, and Aunt Em, who was the farmer's wife." When Lyman
Frank Baum penned these words he could have had no idea the
impact his book, The
Wonderful Wizard of OZ. would have on generations to come.
While most people consider it a book for children it is also a
timely social commentary on events of the era and an indelible
part of popular culture. Are there adults that can't recite at
least two quotes or sing a few lines from "Somewhere Over the
Rainbow"? Baum was born in Chittenango, New York and it is there
that you can follow the yellow brick village sidewalk and take a
personal journey back to OZ in all its incarnations.
His mother-in-law inspired him to publish some of the stories he
had told over the years to his children and Mother Goose in
Prose was a
success when published in 1897. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was
published in 1900 and at $1.50 a copy it was an instant hit. He
would go on to write a total of 14 books in the Oz series and
numerous other works under pseudonyms. Baum died on May 6, 1919
and twenty-six Oz books have been written since his death. In
1939 a film version, based on the original, opened. The movie
does not closely adhere to the book, elements of the book are
left out, alterations were made and Dorothy's original silver
slippers were changed to ruby slippers to take advantage of the
new Technicolor technology.
The museum pays homage to all the film versions as well as
Broadway's The Wiz and there are displays of memorabilia,
costumes and collectibles including Andre de Shields unique red
production tee shirt. Baum's Bazaar gift shop is outstanding and
it really does offer "all things Oz."
http://allthingsoz.org/oz-stravaganza
Annually during the first weekend of June Oz-Stravaganza! Is
held in the village. The highlight of the weekend festival is a
parade that features stars from the films and Broadway.
oz-stravaganza.com
You can ease on down the road to another fantasy fulfilling
homage to The Wizard of Oz, the $20-million Yellow Brick Road
Casino. This boutique casino offers 14 table games, more than
200 slots, is completely non-smoking and is designed
thematically around The Wizard of Oz. Flying Monkeys in
various poses adorn the ceiling, there is a Baum book display
and a red poppy field is woven into the carpet. The Oz highlight
here is the Cyclone of Cash. A unique booth, with a sounds and
flashing lights, allows guests to step into a swirling tornado
and grab as much money and prizes as possible within a limited
time period complete with soundtrack and flashing lights. The
Yellow Brick Road Casino is an especially good choice if you
have a disability or mobility issues because it is on one level
and everything is totally accessible. ybrcasino.com
Don't leave the area without a stop at
Allie B's Cozy Kitchen,
the creation of Kizzy Williams. The Albany Soul Food restaurant
is named in honor of her South Carolina mother whose recipes are
menu staples. This restaurant is so popular that they regularly
sell out four days a week. alliebs.com and
@allie_bs_cozy_kitchen
Travel Tip:
Reading Don Papson's book,
Secret Lives of the Underground Railroad in New York City:
Sydney Howard Gay, Louis Napoleon and the Record of Fugitives,
is an
ideal way to maximize your trip. These previously unpublished
records provide insight into the times and lives of men like
Douglass, Garrison and Still.
American Roads and
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