Rock Rift, New York

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Abandoned road leading to the former hamlet of Rock Rift Road leading to the former hamlet of Rock Rift NY.jpg
Abandoned road leading to the former hamlet of Rock Rift
Rock Rift, New York
USA New York location map.svg
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Rock Rift, New York
Location within the state of New York
Coordinates: 42°05′32″N75°11′31″W / 42.0923080°N 75.1918367°W / 42.0923080; -75.1918367 [1]
Country United States
State New York
County Delaware
Town Tompkins
Elevation
1,289 ft (393 m)
Time zone UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
  Summer (DST) UTC-4 (EDT)

Rock Rift was a hamlet in Delaware County, New York, United States. It was located southwest of Walton on the bank of the West Branch Delaware River.

Rock Rift was a hamlet taken by eminent domain by New York City to build the Cannonsville Reservoir. There is a hiking trail that passes through the former settlement, constructed and maintained by the Finger Lakes Trail Conference (FLTC). Crumbling pavement from portions of old NYS Route 10 descend into the waters of the reservoir. Some bluestone front steps to homes and businesses remain, as the heart of the village was mostly located above the current waterline of Cannonsville Reservoir. The reservoir dams a portion of the West Branch of the Delaware River and provides potable water for New York City. [2]

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Rock Rift Fire Observation Tower, also known as the Rock Rift Fire Tower, is a historic fire observation station located in the Town of Tompkins, Delaware County, New York. The tower stands at the summit of Tower Mountain at an elevation of 2,376 ft (724 m) and rises above the Cannonsville Reservoir, part of New York City’s extensive water supply system. It was built in 1934 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places # 100003231 in 2018. The Rock Rift Fire Tower is also listed on the National Historic Lookout Register of the Forest Fire Lookout Association. Its listing numbers are US 1183, NY 41. The tower was transferred to the Town of Tompkins from New York State Department of Environmental Conservation in 2017. The land that the tower rests on is owned by New York City as part of their West of Hudson Watershed. The tower was decommissioned from active use in 1989.

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References

  1. "Rock Rift". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior . Retrieved September 25, 2018.
  2. New York City Watershed-New York City's Need for Water http://users.mtcbroadband.net/cccd0817/programs/edu/csp/H20/Lesson4/lesson4.htm