Rock City Falls | |
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Coordinates: 43°03′43″N73°55′01″W / 43.06194°N 73.91694°W Coordinates: 43°03′43″N73°55′01″W / 43.06194°N 73.91694°W | |
Country | United States |
State | New York |
County | Saratoga |
Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
ZIP codes | 12863 |
Area code | 518 |
GNIS feature ID | 962699 |
Rock City Falls is a hamlet in the town of Milton, Saratoga County, New York, United States. The principal roads are Route 29 and Rock City Falls Road. The hamlet achieved fame as the origins of Paper Bag King George West, who established his Empire Mill there in 1862. He went on to build the Excelsior Mill next door in 1866 and a mansion across the street. [1] The George West House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. [2]
There were saw and grist-mills in the upper part of Rock City before 1800, usually known then as the Hatch mills, though owned by Swan. This was the first use of the splendid water-power at that point. Not much later than that, however, another one was erected by Rathbone, the first settler at the hamlet of Rock City. There were two brothers Rathbone, one the pioneer merchant and landlord, the other the mill-owner. One of them afterwards removed to Greenfield. [3]
From 1898 to 1929, the hamlet was served by The Ballston Terminal Railroad, an electric trolley that hauled freight cars for the paper mills and carried passengers to Ballston Spa. [4]
Today Rock City Falls is largely residential, although the Cottrell Paper Company still operates much as it did one hundred years ago. The Empire Mill and Excelsior Mill of George West are part of a park, and the former trolley railroad bed is scheduled to become a walking trail called Boice Park.
Saratoga County is a county in the U.S. state of New York, and is the fastest-growing county in Upstate New York. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population was enumerated at 235,509, representing a 7.2% increase from the 2010 population of 219,607, representing one of the fastest growth rates in the northeastern United States. The county seat is Ballston Spa. Saratoga County is included in the Capital District, encompassing the Albany-Schenectady-Troy, New York Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Ballston is a town in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 11,831 at the 2020 census. The name is derived from an early settler, Eliphalet Ball, a Presbyterian minister who located there from Westchester County, New York in 1770.
Ballston Spa is a village and the county seat of Saratoga County, New York, United States, located southwest of Saratoga Springs. The population of the village, named after Rev. Eliphalet Ball, a Congregationalist clergyman and an early settler, was 5,111 at the 2020 census. Ballston Spa lies on the border of two towns, situated partly in the Town of Ballston and partly in the Town of Milton. The Ballston Spa School District encompassing most of the combined towns of Milton, Malta, and Ballston is often referred to locally as ‘Ballston Spa’ with the village proper being referred to as ‘The Village’ or 'Town'.
Clifton Park is a suburban town in Saratoga County, New York, United States. According to the United States Census Bureau, the 2020 population was 38,029. The name is derived from an early land patent. The town is in the southern part of Saratoga County, approximately 12 miles (19 km) north of Albany, 7 miles (11 km) northeast of Schenectady, and 10 miles (16 km) south of Saratoga Springs.
Malta is a town in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The town is in the central part of the county and is south of Saratoga Springs. The population was 17,130 as of the 2020 census.
Saratoga Springs is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area, which has made Saratoga a popular resort destination for over 200 years. It is home to the Saratoga Race Course, a thoroughbred horse racing track, and Saratoga Performing Arts Center, a music and dance venue. The city's official slogan is "Health, History, and Horses."
Milton is a town in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 17,103 at the 2000 census. Some believe that the town was named after the poet, John Milton, while other sources state that it is a shortening of "Mill-town" for the early mill activity.
In the United States, trolley parks, which started in the 19th century, were picnic and recreation areas along or at the ends of streetcar lines in most of the larger cities. These were precursors to amusement parks. Trolley parks were often created by the streetcar companies to give people a reason to use their services on weekends.
The Saratoga and Schenectady Railroad was incorporated on February 16, 1831. The founders were Henry Walton, John Clarke, William A. Langworthy, John H. Steele, Miles Beach, Gideon W. Davison, and Rockwell Putnam. The line was opened from Schenectady to Ballston Spa on July 12, 1832, and extended to Saratoga Springs in 1833 for a total of 20.8 miles (33.5 km). The Rensselaer and Saratoga Railroad leased the line on January 1, 1851, and the lease was reassigned to the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company on May 1, 1871.
The Rensselaer and Saratoga Railroad was chartered on April 14, 1832. It completed 25.2 miles (40.6 km) between Troy and Ballston Spa on March 19, 1836.
Area codes 518 and 838 are telephone area codes serving the northeasternmost part of Upstate New York in the United States. 518 was established as one of the original area codes during 1947. Area code 838 was added as an overlay during 2017. The two area codes cover 24 counties and 1,200 ZIP Codes. There are 493 landline exchanges and 100 wireless exchanges served by 47 carriers. The numbering plan area (NPA) it covers in New York State extends from the eastern Mohawk Valley to the Vermont border, and from the Canada–US border to south of Albany. The bulk of this NPA population is in the Capital District. Other cities in the NPA are Glens Falls, Plattsburgh, and Saratoga Springs. The area codes also cover the Upper Hudson Valley counties, Greene and Columbia counties, and some northern parts of Dutchess County.
New York State Route 50 (NY 50) is a 31.67-mile (50.97 km) state highway in the Capital District of New York in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at an intersection with NY 5 in Scotia. Its northern terminus is at a junction with NY 32 in the Saratoga County hamlet of Gansevoort.
George West was an industrialist and a U.S. Representative from New York.
James Merrill Cook was an American businessman, banker and politician.
The Kaydeross Railroad, earlier known as the Eastern New York Railroad and Ballston Terminal Railroad, was an electric-powered trolley line that served industries along the Kayaderosseras Creek in the town of Milton, Saratoga County, New York. It was a "terminal railroad", which means it had an interchange at one end but terminated without any other interchange.
The Kayaderosseras Creek, usually shortened to Kaydeross, is the largest river that lies completely within Saratoga County, New York State. It originates in the Kayaderosseras Range in the northern part of the county, passes through the towns of Corinth, Greenfield, and Milton, and serves as the boundary between the City of Saratoga Springs and the Town of Malta before emptying into Saratoga Lake.
Bloodville is a hamlet of Ballston Spa, Saratoga County, New York, United States.
Brookside Museum, sometimes known as the Aldridge House, is located on the western edge of downtown Ballston Spa, New York, United States. It is a wooden house built in 1792, one of the oldest in the village, but modified since then.
The Union Mill Complex,, is located at the junction of Milton Avenue and Prospect Street in Ballston Spa, New York, United States. It is a complex of three late 19th-century brick buildings on a 4-acre lot, and the ruins of a dam.
The Zim Smith Trail is the main multi-use trail of a network of trails in Saratoga County, New York. Extending twelve miles, it connects the cities and towns of Mechanicville, Halfmoon, Clifton Park, Round Lake Village, Malta and Ballston Spa. The trail is the route of the former Delaware & Hudson Railroad, originally the Rensselaer & Saratoga Railroad which was completed in 1836. It is the only trail in New York state to be designated a national recreation trail by the U.S. Department of Interior and National Park Service.