 New York State Route 301 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Map of Putnam County in southeastern New York with NY 301 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained byNYSDOT | ||||
| Length | 19.04 mi[1] (30.64 km) | |||
| Existed | 1930[2]–present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| West end |  NY 9D inCold Spring | |||
| Major intersections |  US 9 inPhilipstown Taconic State Parkway inPutnam Valley | |||
| East end |  NY 52 inCarmel | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | New York | |||
| Counties | Putnam | |||
| Highway system | ||||
| ||||
New York State Route 301 (NY 301), also known as theHudson River Turnpike, is an intra-countystate highway stretching across three-quarters ofPutnam County, New York, in the United States. The western terminus of NY 301 is at an intersection withNY 9D inCold Spring. Its eastern terminus is at a junction withNY 52 inCarmel. Along the way, NY 301 meetsU.S. Route 9 (US 9) and theTaconic State Parkway and passes throughClarence Fahnestock State Park. The section of the route between NY 9D and US 9 is ceremonially designated as theSergeant Albert Ireland Memorial Highway.
NY 301 was assigned as part of the1930 renumbering of state highways in New York, but only to the portion of its modern alignment west of US 9. At the same time, the section of what is now NY 301 between Kent Cliffs and Carmel became part ofNew York State Route 130, an east–west route that continued southwest from Kent Cliffs toPeekskill. NY 301 was extended east to Kent Cliffs by 1932 via thePhilipstown Turnpike and to Carmelc. 1934 by way of NY 130.
The western terminus of NY 301 is at a four-way junction with NY 9D inCold Spring. At the intersection, Morris Avenue enters from the north, Chestnut Street comes in from the south, and Main Street enters from the west and leaves to the east on NY 301. The route climbs a hill into thePhilipstown village ofNelsonville, where it remains Main Street until transitioning into Cold Spring Carmel Road and passing near the southeast border of theHudson Highlands State Park. It crossesUS 9, locallyAlbany Post Road, at Mekeel Corners and continues northeast into the woods of theClarence Fahnestock State Park.[3]
The highway crosses over Clove Creek a few times and turns slightly towards the southeast; however, it soon resumes a northeasterly course as the Cold Spring Turnpike. Continuing through the state park, NY 301 skirts the southern bank ofLake Canopus before crossing theTaconic State Parkway inPutnam Valley. Roughly 3.5 miles (5.6 km) to the northeast at Mead Corners, NY 301 bears southeast towardCarmel. The road passes north of Sagamore Lake to hug the western shore ofBoyds Corner Reservoir—part of theCroton Watershed of theNew York City water supply system. Shortly thereafter, NY 301 follows the inside of the western fork of theWest Branch Reservoir (also NYC watershed) past the former colonial settlement ofColes Mills just south of the Nimham Mountain State Forest, before bisecting the body of water via acauseway.[3]
NY 301 ends atNY 52 (Gleneida Avenue) to the north ofLake Gleneida in the county seat of Carmel. Lake Gleneida is acontrolled lake, created when an original pond was dammed in 1870, once more part of the Croton Watershed.[4] At the far end of the junction is thePutnam County Courthouse,[3] aNational Register of Historic Places-listed structure that was first constructed in 1814.[5] The eastern terminus of NY 301 is just 0.25 miles (0.40 km) north of NY 52's eastern terminus atUS 6.[3]
The portion of modern-day NY 301 west of Meads Corners was originally part of thePhilipstown Turnpike. Initially, the county's proximity to theHudson River supplied cheap means of transporting goods toAlbany andNew York City, though in the winter months, the river froze over.[6]To resolve the issue, in 1815, the Philipstown Turnpike Company was organized to improve upon a toll road fromCold Spring to theConnecticut border.[7] On April 15, 1815, "an act to incorporate the Philipstown turnpike company in the county of Putnam" was passed.[8] East of the Connecticut border, the turnpike continued as theNew Milford and Sherman Turnpike.[9]
On the turnpike, wagons transported manufactures inland, and carried produce from the eastern part of the county.[6] Before the advent of therailroad, the road was a business center for much of the county.[10] One of the intentions of the turnpike was to "greatly promote the public good, as well contribute to their individual interest". However, the turnpike was eventually abandoned, because the tolls received were not sufficient to defray the expense of maintaining the road and associatedbridges.[9] The tolls were also inadequate for investors in the Philipstown Turnpike Company to make a profit.[6]
NY 301 was assigned as part of the1930 renumbering of state highways in New York to the portion of its modern alignment west ofUS 9. At the same time, the section of what is now NY 301 fromCounty Route 21 (CR 21) inKent Cliffs toNY 52 inCarmel was designated as part of NY 130, which continued southwest from Kent Cliffs toPeekskill via CR 21, Oregon Road, and Division Street.[2] By 1932, NY 301 was extended eastward to NY 130 in Kent Cliffs by way of its modern alignment.[11] NY 130 was replaced by an extended NY 301 from Kent Cliffs to Carmelc. 1934[12][13] and eliminated entirelyc. 1938.[14][15]
The section of NY 301 from the vicinity of Kittridge Drive, a local street southeast of Kent Cliffs, to NY 52 was initially county-maintained as CR 47.[16] On April 1, 1980, ownership and maintenance of this section of the route was transferred to the state of New York as part of a highway maintenance swap between the two levels of government.[17] Theconcurrent CR 47 designation was subsequently eliminated; however, the number was later reused for a 0.2-mile (0.3 km) former alignment of NY 301 in Kent Cliffs.[18]
On August 20, 2002, the portion of NY 301 between NY 9D and US 9 was designated as the "Sergeant Albert Ireland Memorial Highway".[19] The ceremonial designation honorsAlbert L. Ireland, aU.S. Marine Corps sergeant from Cold Spring who was awarded many citations, including ninePurple Hearts, for his service duringWorld War II and theKorean War.[20][21] In June 2012, the entire roadway was designated as the Hudson River Turnpike by Putnam County with the intent of reminding "drivers of the picturesque landscape and historic areas along its path".[22]
The entire route is inPutnam County.
| Location | mi[1] | km | Destinations | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cold Spring | 0.00 | 0.00 | NY 9D –Cold Spring Station | Western terminus | |
| Philipstown | 2.48 | 3.99 | US 9 –Fishkill,Peekskill | ||
| Putnam Valley | 8.63 | 13.89 | Taconic State Parkway | Exits 31A-B on Taconic State Parkway | |
| Carmel | 19.04 | 30.64 | NY 52 (Gleneida Avenue) | Eastern terminus;hamlet ofCarmel | |
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||
The New York City Department of Environmental Protection is in charge of Lake Gleneida, created in 1870 when the city built a dam to create a controlled lake.
