The Wappinger were a confederacy of Native Americans whose territory, in the 17th century, was spread along the eastern shore of theHudson River. Primarily based in what is now Dutchess County, their territory borderedManhattan Island to the south, theMahican territory bounded by theRoeliff Jansen Kill to the north,[4] and extended east into parts ofConnecticut.[5]
They spoke an eastern-Algonkian language. Culturally they were closely related to theLenape people (Delaware Indians) to the west and south of Wappinger lands, and also related to the Mahican people to their immediate north and to theMetoac peoples ofLong Island.Wappinger means "easterner" in most Algonkian languages.[6]
The town of Wappinger, originally a part of the town ofFishkill, was formed on May 20, 1875, and lies wholly within the limits of the historicRombout Patent, granted in 1685. The geographical area of Wappinger was first illegally settled in 1659 by members of theMassachusetts Bay Colony. Seeking religious freedom, they settled near the mouth of theWappinger Creek until Dutch Authorities removed them months later.[citation needed] It wasn't until 1685 when Francis Rombout and Gulian Verplanck were the first to legally purchase 85,000 acres from the Wappinger This would later be known as the Rombout Patent. The patent covered the towns ofFishkill,East Fishkill, Wappinger, theCity of Beacon, and parts ofLaGrange andPoughkeepsie, these municipalities were once all a part of theTown of Fishkill. Following the Rombout Patent, the first legal land purchase within the Town of Wappinger was in 1714 when Elias Van Benschoten purchased land and settled in the hamlet of New Hackensack. Following him were other families fromHackensack, New Jersey.[7] The Town of Wappinger is made up of many small hamlets and communities and was primarily agricultural, while mills lined the creek in the Village ofWappingers Falls. Once the Town of Wappinger was officially created from the Town of Fishkill on May 20, 1875, it took another year to elect officials. The first meeting was held at the Brower Brother's Wagon Shop on Mill Street. The meetings of Town officials took place in the homes of the elected officials, whose jobs were mostly to maintain roadways and bridges.
Wheeler Hill Historic District includes 49 contributing buildings, 15 contributing sites, and four contributing structures. It encompasses the estates of Obercreek, Elmhurst, Edge Hill, the former estates of Henry Suydam and William Crosby, andCarnwath Farms that were developed between 1740 and 1940. Also included are two 18th century riverfront commercial structures, the Lent / Waldron Store, and Stone House at Farmer's Landing. Within this district, Wheeler Hill Road was once known as Rives Avenue or Hill, after Francis Rives who purchased the former Willis estate (Carnwath Farms) in 1870.[8]
Village of Wappingers Falls Downtown Historic District
TheWappingers Falls Historic District is in the center of the village ofWappingers Falls, and was added to theNational Register of Historic Places in 1984. It is roughly centered along South Avenue, West Main Street andWappinger Creek. It includes Mesier Park and many adjacent residential neighborhoods, roughly bounded by Elm, Park, Walker, Market and McKinley streets. Much of the district was built in the wake of the industrialization ofWappingers Falls in the 19th century, and its styles represent a cross-section of that century. The east and west sides of the village are connected by an 1884 stone arch bridge over the falls that replaced earlier wooden structures.
Chelsea – A hamlet in the southwestern part of the town near theHudson River, primarily residential. A marina is located on the river. In the northern section of the hamlet, there is a large pumping station used by theDelaware AqueductNew York City water supply system during droughts to take water directly from the river. Chelsea was originally known as Low Point and derived its name from a low point of land extending into the river. It also served to distinguish it from the next hamlet north on the east bank of the river, once known as High Point, nowNew Hamburg. The hamlet was called Low Point until the completion of theHudson River Railroad. At that time it was named Carthage. However, as mail was being misdirected to anotherCarthage in Jefferson County, it was renamed Carthage Landing. In 1901, when the railroad built a new station, the name became Chelsea. The hamlet's post office was established in 1840 as Low Point. The current post office was the former 1875 district school.
Hughsonville – A hamlet situated one mile south ofWappingers Falls and which derives its name from William Hughson, one of four brothers who emigrated fromEngland. Dr. Walter Hughson was born in Hughsonville on October 31, 1816. He became a successful surgeon in the county and died of consumption on December 9, 1857.[10] The Presbyterian Church of Hughsonville was erected in 1840. A post office was established there in 1847.[11] The Hughsonville Fire Company traces its date of establishment to 1912.
Middlebush, situated approximately one mile south-east ofWappingers Falls, was an early business center. A post office was located there in 1824 that also served residents of Chelsea. The first Baptist church in the town was organized there in 1782. Abm. Van Wyck deeded the Society a piece of land for a site for a church and burying ground. The old cemetery remains, southeast of the intersection of Middlebush Road and Sgt. Palmateer Way (Old Route 9). In 1830, that meeting house became the property of the Methodist church, and was used by them as a house of worship until the present Methodist church in Wappingers Falls was erected in 1869, when it was taken down and the material used in the construction of the barn and sheds connected with that church.[11] During the mid to late 19th century, Middlebush was known as Fowler House, named after Dr. Orson Fowler'soctagon house that once stood onRoute 9. This hamlet has two schools, businesses, housing, and the Wappinger Town Hall.
New Hackensack – Johannes Schurrie was an early settler in the town. He came fromHackensack, New Jersey,circa 1740, from which the hamlet derives its name.[7] Most of the early settlers were of Dutch and German descent.[12] A portion ofNYS route 376 is known locally as New Hackensack Road. The Main Street was present dayN.Y.S. Route 376 and had a post office and several stores until the widening of theHudson Valley Regional Airport in the early-mid-1900s.
Swartwoutville is located at the southeastern section of town. Named afterGeneral Jacobus Swartwout.[9] Historically important meeting place during the American Revolution. In 1760, Swartwout purchased 3,000 acres of land from Madam Brett and built his first home after his wedding to Aaltje Brinkerhoff, of Brinkerhoff, New York.[11] GeneralGeorge Washington was staying in Fishkill in October 1778. The headquarters of the commander-in-chief was then in the home of Captain John Brinkerhoff, father-in-law to Jacobus Swartwout, in a low stone home about midway on the highway between the settlement of Brinkerhoff and Swartwoutville. During this period Prussian-American General, Baron Frederick William Augustus de Steuben, had his headquarters at the neighboring homestead of Colonel Jacobus Swartwout, standing immediately south of his later residence at Swartwoutville. Others who visited and quartered at Jacobus Swartwout's homestead along with General Washington andBaron Von Stueben were,Marquis de Lafayette and,Israel Putnam.
All Angels' Hill – originally known as Mount Hope and then Underhill Road. In the 1850s, farmer William Marvin owned about 200 acres (81 ha) between the present Pye Lane and Myers Corners. His daughter Charlotte married New York doctor Anthony Underhill.[9] In the mid-1800s, the Underhill family built a house on her father's land. Dr. Underhill died September 5, 1889.[13] In 1903 the property was purchased byAll Angels Episcopal Church inManhattan as part of its ministry to the poor. The church maintained All Angels' Farm, a forerunner of theFresh Air Fund.[14]
Wappinger Town Hall, located in the Middlebush hamlet
Wappinger is the second largest populated town inDutchess County and is governed by a five-member Town Board. The Town of Wappinger has an elected Town Supervisor, who presides over Town Board meetings and is the chief financial and operating officer of the Town. The town is structured as a ward system with Town Council-members representing each of four wards.
Ward 2 consists ofChelsea hamlet, Swartwoutville hamlet, and the southern part of theU.S. 9 corridor.
Ward 3 includes the middle of the town, including part of Myers Corners hamlet, Rockingham Farms, Quiet Acres, Wildwood, and Shamrock Hills subdivisions.
Ward 4, which consists of New Hackensack hamlet, Myers Corners hamlet,Hudson Valley Regional Airport, and Edgehill Manor subdivision.
The Town of Wappinger has an elected Town Clerk, tasked with maintaining town records and taking minutes of Town Board meetings. The Highway Department is overseen by the elected Superintendent of Highways. The town has two Town Justices.
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 28.5 square miles (73.9 km2), of which 27.1 square miles (70.1 km2) is land and 1.5 square miles (3.8 km2), or 5.18%, is water.[3] Part of the western town line is located at theHudson River and bordersOrange County.
The highest point in Wappinger is 545 feet (166 m) above sea level on a hilltop between Smithtown Road and Cedar Hill Road in the southern part of the town, and the lowest point issea level, along the Hudson River.[15]
As of the census[17] of 2000, there were 26,274 people, 9,793 households, and 6,992 families residing in the town. The population density was 963.3 inhabitants per square mile (371.9/km2). There were 10,144 housing units at an average density of 371.9 per square mile (143.6/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 86.18%White, 4.96%African American, 0.24%Native American, 4.29%Asian, 0.02%Pacific Islander, 2.44% fromother races, and 1.88% from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 7.87% of the population.
There were 9,793 households, out of which 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.1% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.6% were non-families. 23.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.17.
In the town 25.4% of the population was under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 32.5% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.2 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $58,079, and the median income for a family was $66,273. Males had a median income of $49,007 versus $31,444 for females. The per capita income for the town was $25,817. About 3.2% of families and 4.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.1% of those under age 18 and 4.9% of those age 65 or over.
TheWappingers Central School District was formed in 1937 and is the second largest school district in the state. It was decided to close all of the one room school houses in the area and condense them into one centralized school. The first school in theWappingers Central School District was the Wappingers Falls Junior High School, which was a K-12 school with students from the towns of Wappinger,Fishkill,Philipstown,Kent,East Fishkill,Lagrange, andPoughkeepsie. There are now 14 schools under the district's control: 9 primary, 2 junior high, and 3 high schools. Within Wappinger there areMyers Corners Elementary School, James S. Evans Elementary School, Wappingers Falls Junior High School, andRoy C. Ketcham Senior High School. The Randolph School is a private school and educates children grades K-6.
