JEFFERSON – A Frenchman visiting America in the mid-eighteenth century noted that “in America, everyone travels”. Nearly every village and hamlet in upstate New York had at least one “public house”. It was fifty miles from Albany to Cherry Valley on the old Great Western Turnpike and there was a tavern for every mile. Taverns were built near virtually every crossroads, bridge, and canal lock, or wherever else travelers might pass through. A good tavern was essential to a village’s growth and to regional development. Many still stand today as private residences.
Schoharie County Historian Ted Shuart will discuss some of the best-known inns, taverns, and hotels, and some of the stories about them on Sunday, March 23 , 3pm, Judd Hall 163 Main St. Jefferson.
Ted is a twelfth generation New Yorker who grew up in Grosvenor’s Corners, a hamlet in Schoharie County. An active Civil War reenactor for more than forty years, he has been giving hands-on presentations on the war to schoolchildren in an eight-county area since 1994. He worked for the Farmers’ Museum, in Cooperstown for twenty-two years, spending four years as a docent and museum teacher before becoming Master Printer in the historic village. In 2002, as Cobleskill Town and Village Historian, he wrote I Remember When…A History of Cobleskill: the first 250 Years and has contributed to various local publications since then. At present, Shuart serves as director of the Palatine House Museum in Schoharie and is a member of the board of the Schoharie County Historical Society.
The photo is of the United States Hotel on Main Street in Cobleskill. burned and was torn down 15 or 20 years ago. It was across the street from what is now Chieftains Restaurant and was the second oldest building on Main Street, built 1820. The people in the sleigh are Mr. & Mrs. Hodge, Mrs. VanSchaick, and Mrs. Ryan.
This program is free to the public and refreshments will be served.
The meeting will be available on Zoom. If you’d like to receive the link to participate, email your request to historicalsocietyjefferson@gmail.com and we’ll send it to you.
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