Barrytown, New York

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Former post office and general store at Barrytown Old Barrytown train station.jpg
Former post office and general store at Barrytown

Barrytown is a hamlet (and census-designated place) [1] within the town of Red Hook in Dutchess County, New York, United States. It is within the Hudson River Historic District, a National Historic Landmark, and contains four notable Hudson River Valley estates: Edgewater, Massena, Rokeby, and Sylvania.

Contents

History

Massena House Massena House.jpg
Massena House
Rokeby Estate, also known as La Bergerie, River Road, Barrytown, Dutchess County SOUTHWEST (FRONT) FACADE, LOOKING NORTH - La Bergerie, River Road, Barrytown, Dutchess County, NY HABS NY,14-BARTO.V,2-8.tif
Rokeby Estate, also known as La Bergerie, River Road, Barrytown, Dutchess County
Edgewater West Facade (Front) at Edgewater in Barrytown New York (2018).jpg
Edgewater

In 1791, Peter and Eleanor Contine kept store at what would later be called Barrytown Landing.

Barrytown was named in honor of President Andrew Jackson's Postmaster General, William Taylor Barry, who served in that capacity from 1829 to 1835. Barrytown is about 109 miles (175 km) from New York City. [2]

The majority of the houses in Barrytown were built in the mid to late nineteenth century, often to house workers at the local estates and accompanying farms.

Estates

David Johnson, of the Hudson River School, painted his View of the Hudson from Barrytown, New York in 1872. [12]

Churches

The Episcopal Church of St. John the Evangelist was founded in 1874 by Jane Moore Breck Aspinwall in memory of her husband, John. The church was designed by William Appleton Potter. [13]

The Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church was established to serve the Irish Catholic population employed on the railroads and large estates. Prior to the building, they attended services across the river in Rondout and Saugerties, walking across the frozen river in winter or crossing by boat, weather permitting. On one occasion, a boat and its occupants narrowly missed a very tragic incident. Apparently, some members of the Donaldson family of Edgewater were on that boat. The Donaldson family donated the land for the church and cemetery at Barrytown. [14] The cornerstone of the church was laid by Rev. Thomas S. Preston on October 17, 1875. Barrytown was a mission attended from St. Joseph's in Rhinecliff, by pastor James Fitzsimmons, until 1886 when Archbishop Corrigan appointed Rev. William J. McClure resident rector. The first burial in the Cemetery was November 23, 1886. The rectory was built in 1887. [15]

In 1886, St. Sylvia's in Tivoli became a mission of Barrytown. As travelling to Barrytown proved hazardous in winter, in 1910, St. Christopher's in Red Hook was founded as a mission of Sacred Heart Parish. Sacred Heart once stood amid the bustle of rivercommerce, but over time, the population center shifted to Red Hook. Sacred Heart remained in use until 1969; it was suppressed as a parish in 1975. The building is now a private home.

Horseback riders in Barrytown in 1902, including FDR Franklin D. Roosevelt,in an informal shot horsebackriding in Barrytown, New York - NARA - 196943.tif
Horseback riders in Barrytown in 1902, including FDR

Notable people associated with Barrytown

References

  1. "State of New York Census Designated Places - Current/BAS20 - Data as of January 1, 2019". tigerweb.geo.census.gov. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
  2. Lyttle, Bethany (October 14, 2010). "House Tour: Barrytown, N.Y." The New York Times . Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  3. "Historic District of New York", Brothers of the Christian Schools (DENA)
  4. UTS History Archived January 31, 2012, at the Wayback Machine UTS Website. Accessed February 14, 2012
  5. Smart, Paul. "Not exactly a fixer-upper: Unification Seminary in Barrytown up for sale", hv1, August 28, 2018
  6. ohtadmin (September 15, 2023). "Bard College Announces $14 Million Purchase of Former Unification Church Compound After Months of Rumors - The Daily Catch". The Daily Catch -. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  7. "Frequently Asked Questions". simons-rock.edu. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  8. ""Edgewater", Classical American Homes Preservation Trust". Archived from the original on October 24, 2019. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  9. John Poppeliers (1973) "La Bergerie/Rokeby, River Road, Barrytown Vicinity, Dutchess County, New York: Photographs, Historical & Descriptive Data; Historic American Buildings Survey, National Park Service, Department of the Interior, Washington, D. C.
  10. Estersohn, Pieter; Aldrich, John Winthrop (September 18, 2018). Life Along the Hudson: The Historic country estates of the Livingston family. Rizzoli. pp. 188–197. ISBN   978-0-8478-6323-5 . Retrieved February 27, 2019.
  11. ""Rooms With a View", The National, Amtrak, August/September 2018". Archived from the original on October 25, 2019. Retrieved October 26, 2019.
  12. ""View of the Hudson from Barrytown, New York", Questroyal Fine Art". Archived from the original on October 24, 2019. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  13. "History of St. John's", St. John the Evangelist, Barrytown
  14. Egbert Benson Historical Society
  15. Hasbrouck, Frank, ed. The History of Dutchess County New York, p. 646, S.A. Mathieu, Poughkeepsie, NY 1909 PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  16. LYRICS of PRETZEL LOGIC (1974) Archived 2006-11-11 at the Wayback Machine Steely Dan Website. Accessed February 14, 2012
  17. Songfacts. "Barrytown by Steely Dan - Songfacts". www.songfacts.com. Archived from the original on October 12, 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2025.