The Brothers Glen

Thanks to volunteer Diane Leone for research assistance.

The Glen surname is attached to a couple different places around New York. Glenville in Schenectady County is named after Alexander Lindsay Glen and Scotia was named by Alexander after his home country Scotland. The Glen Sanders Mansion in Scotia was originally built by Alexander, and expanded by his son John Glen. Its name comes from the marriage of Alexander’s great-granddaughter Debra Glen to John Sanders. Glens Falls is named after John Glen Jr., confusingly not the son of John Glen, but of John's son Jacob. Like many of the Glens before them, John Jr. and his brother Henry were quite prominent throughout Schenectady. The brothers were also held in high esteem with many with many people of national historic significance and were acquainted with the likes of William Johnson, Governor George Clinton of New York, Alexander Hamilton and George Washington.

Furniture from the Glen Sanders Mansion is on display at the Schenectady County Historical Society. Courtesy of the Grems-Doolittle Library photo collection.

The brothers Glen were born in Albany to Jacob Glen and Elizabeth Cuyler, John was born in 1735 and Henry in 1739. Their father Jacob was a merchant and trader who owned a house on Steuben Street in Albany. He was also closely affiliated with Albany city government as he was elected assistant alderman to the second ward in 1734 and 1735 and appointed firemaster in 1741. Their mother Elizabeth Cuyler was also well connected in Albany. Her father was Johannes Cuyler who served as assistant alderman, and eventually alderman for Albany’s second ward in the early 1700s. Johannes was also elected as a representative to the New York General Assembly and a number of other public offices, including mayor of Albany in 1725. After Jacob died in 1746, Elizabeth continued to raise their children at the “Glen House” till her death in 1785.

Both Henry and John started off as merchants in Albany. According to the website “The People of Colonial Albany,” John may have been a business partner with the venerable fur trader Hendrick Bleecker as he was identified with Glen as the occupants of a second ward house in a 1767 tax list. Starting in the 1760s, John started buying land in Schenectady, Fort Edward, and what would become Glens Falls. The acquisition of this land by John Glen is suspect to local legend and he acquired it either through a debt that was owed to him, by a card game, or in exchange for hosting a party for mutual friends. Henry also became interested in real estate and owned houses in Albany and Schenectady.

The brothers were also heavily involved in military affairs and the family’s affiliation with William Johnson during the French and Indian War resulted in John being appointed quartermaster general with Henry as his assistant. John was also the captain of the Second Battalion of Militia of Schenectady which included Jacob Schermerhorn as 1^st Lieutenant, John’s brother Henry as 2^nd Lieutenant, and other prominent Schenectady residents.

Letter to Henry Glen from Jonathan Mix, telling of suspending any further preparations for transporting garrisons & stores to western posts from Gen. Washington. Courtesy of the Grems-Doolittle Library Collection

During the American Revolution, Henry continued to serve in the army as Assistant Deputy Quartermaster for the northern department of the army where his role was to gather and facilitate the distribution of military supplies for northeastern New York. He supplied provisions and transportation for the five forts in the Mohawk Valley and also managed the construction of new barracks in Schenectady, where he was stationed. Often funding these projects and buying supplies with his own money as was the case in the spring of 1781. The frontier towns were desperately in need of supplies, troops were deserting, and it was feared that Schenectady might be attacked. Boats were being built in Schenectady to transport materiel to Fort Stanwix and Henry Glen used his own credit to build 16 bateaux for the military. Henry was extremely devoted to the cause of the Revolution, but disheartened that his fellow countrymen did not feel similarly in a letter to Colonel Hugh Hughes Henry Glen writes that “…no man longs more to make an end of the War than I do by carrying it on with Vigour, I am and always was willing to pledge my Life and little Property for the support of the war but am sorry to find the Virtue and Exertions of the People are lost throughout the whole Country.” In addition to his duties as quartermaster, Henry was the captain of the local militia.



Partial letter from Henry Glen to New York's Board of Treasury from 1788 regarding
his payment as Commissioner of Indian Affairs. This letter is an example of
some of the financial woes that Henry encountered after the Revolution.
Courtesy of the Grems-Doolittle Library Collection

There wasn’t much mentioned about John Glen during or after the Revolutionary War. Some sources mention that he was also a quartermaster during the Revolution, but I haven’t been able to accurately verify this. He was a friend of George Washington and may have even hosted Washington at his house at 58 Washington Avenue in Schenectady’s Stockade on Washington’s first visit to Schenectady in 1775. John Glen was listed on the roster of the 2^nd Albany Militia, and on July 25, 1778 he was also called to appear before the Commissioners of Conspiracies on July 25, 1778 and signed an oath of allegiance four years later in 1782. Unfortunately, significant debt forced John from his home in 1810 and he was supported by friends until his death in 1828 at the age of ninety-three.



John Glen Jr.'s house at 58 Washington in Schenectady. A New York State historic marker was placed in front of this house, but has since deteriorated to the point where only the signpost remains. Courtesy of the Grems-Doolittle photograph collection.

For Henry Glen, the end of the Revolutionary War brought about a continuation of the public service that he started as clerk of Schenectady County in 1767. He served as a state assembly member from 1786-1787, then as a representative in the U.S. Congress from 1793-1801. He also continued his position as deputy quartermaster and was involved with the movement of supplies and troops throughout New York State. Shortly after the war Henry fell into debt which was caused partially by his personal expense during the war. This debt stayed with him for most of his life and he was met with much difficulty in trying to recover payment from the government for the multiple positions he served in during and after the war. Henry’s fortunes were never completely recovered, and as Chris Hunter states in his paper A Slave to the Army: Henry Glen and Public Service in the Early Republic, “he died January 6 1814, ending his adulthood as he had begun it, in the service of the government.”

The Grems-Doolittle Library at the Schenectady County Historical Society holds the Glen Family Letters follow this link for an index to the letters: http://schenectadyhistorical.org/admin/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Historic-Manuscripts-Collection-Glen-Letters.pdf. 


The Marquis de Lafayette in Schenectady

Thanks to library volunteer Diane Leone who helped research this post.

Portrait of the Marquis de Lafayette by Charles Willson Peale in 1779-1780.
 Courtesy of Washington and Lee University

Silk Ribbon with an
engraving of Lafayette
by Myron King of
Troy, NY. Courtesy
of the Grems-Doolittle
Library Collections

In the excellent new-ish musical Hamilton, a hip-hop musical based on the life of Alexander Hamilton (which sounds crazy, but it works), the Marquis de Lafayette is referred to as “America’s favorite fighting Frenchman." He certainly was one of Schenectady’s favorites and similar to other towns and cities in the United States, Lafayette made a deep impression on the residents of Old Dorp.

Lafayette first visited Schenectady in 1778 during the American Revolution to investigate a conspiracy that supposedly involved some residents of Schenectady. He concluded that the suspicions of a conspiracy were “very far from groundless” in a March 3^rd report to the Albany Committee of Safety.  He personally questioned a suspected soldier about the conspiracy and while he could not retrieve a confession, Lafayette was sure that there was a treasonous plot forming in Schenectady.  The suspicion was based on a report that British Major Christopher Carleton, nephew of Canada’s Governor Guy Carleton, was seen in Schenectady making preparations and gathering information. An attempt was made to capture Major Carleton and Lafayette even offered a reward of fifty guineas for his arrest. Lafayette’s suspicion was correct and Major Carleton went on to run a very successful raid along the shores of Lake Champlain in the fall of 1778.
 
Lafayette’s second visit to Schenectady occurred on his momentous tour of the United States which began on August 15, 1824. According to Larry Hart, Schenectady’s Common Council created a committee in 1824 to convince Lafayette to visit Schenectady. The committee was made up of some of Schenectady’s most prominent citizens including Union College President Eliphalet Nott, James Duane and John Vrooman among others. This committee met Lafayette on his way from New York City to Albany and while Lafayette couldn’t make the visit right away, he promised to visit the next year.  The newspaper, The Schenectady Cabinet had been dedicating a page per issue to Lafayette’s visit to America. The Cabinet was so sure that Lafayette would visit Schenectady after his trip to Albany that in their September 7^th, 1824 issue they stated that “La Fayette, it is understood, may be expected in this city within a few days.” The proclamation was a bit premature, as Lafayette was not able to make his visit until June 11, 1825 on his way back from Little Falls.
 

Certificate from Schenectady Mayor Issac Schermerhorn stating that Major Joseph Sunsaul (sp?)
 helped escort General Lafayette to Governor Joseph Yates' Stafford House in Albany,
dated September 26th, 1825. Courtesy of the Grems-Doolittle Library Collection.

Schenectady was more than ready for his scheduled arrival. As Lafayette was traveling down the partially constructed Erie Canal from Little Falls on the day before his Schenectady arrival, members from an arrangements committee traveled up the canal to meet the esteemed general and his party. When the committee reached Lafayette, a messenger was sent back to Schenectady to tell everyone what time he would be arriving. At 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 11, cannons and heavy artillery that were set up on the canal bridge near Water Street shook Schenectady, notifying its inhabitants of Lafayette’s arrival.  According to a September 26, 1933 recollection of the visit from the Schenectady Union-Star, “All was bustle and suppressed excitement. The people crowded the canal bridges and assembled on both banks of the canal all the way from the flats to the City Hall.” The continuous shout of “Welcome Lafayette” rang along the streets. The packet boat that carried Lafayette and his party eventually reached City Hall where they were greeted by Mayor Isaac Schermerhorn. He was then introduced to the Common Council and surviving Revolutionary War heroes. Over forty years after the end of the American Revolutionary War, General Lafayette still recognized James Lighthall, one of the veterans who served with Lafayette during the war. Lafayette went on to express his appreciation to Schenectady at a dinner in the Givens Hotel by saying that “Schenectady had been most kind in times of danger to a young commander who now comes here after a lapse of 47 years, to offer his affectionate devotion, good wishes and the tribute of his old and new feelings of respect and gratitude.” Lafayette's visit to Schenectady only lasted three hours, but his legacy resonated with its residents.



Part of Governor Joseph Yates' farewell address to General Lafayette. Yates writes that
Lafayette's heart "beat with the throb of patriotism and now ours beat with gratitude for him."
 Courtesy of the Grems-Doolittle Library Collection.



Copy of Lafayette's response to Governor Yates' farewell address, written by Lafayette's secretary Auguste Levasseur.
Courtesy of the Grems-Doolittle Library Collection.  

Lafayette Street is one of the most prominent examples of the Marquis' influence here. When a new street was to be opened in the early-1800s citizens of Schenectady suggested naming it Lafayette Street instead of Division Street.  The Common Council agreed and unanimously voted to name it Lafayette Street. Lafayette’s visit influenced the arts in Schenectady as was witnessed in a play called The Pageant of Schenectady by Constance D’Arcy Mackay. The Pageant of Schenectady was produced in 1912 and featured Lafayette’s highly esteemed visit. It was a five-part play commemorating the 250^th anniversary of the founding of Schenectady. Performed on May 30^th through June 1^st in 1912, it follows Schenectady’s history from the early Native Americans to “The Intellectual and Industrial Forces of the City of Today.” Lafayette’s visit to Schenectady apparently stuck out in the mind of the playwright who dedicated an entire episode of the play to Lafayette’s arrival. Titled “The Welcome to Lafayette”, this episode follows Mrs. Van Epps, Elsbett Van Epps, Barent Sanders, and a group of children as they organize a reception for Lafayette. Mrs. Van Epps remarks that “To think of him is to remember the cause of American Liberty.”

Excerpt from Harold A. Larrabee's "Lafayette at Schenectady."
Courtesy of the Grems-Doolittle Library Collection.

Lafayette’s death also had a lasting impact on several Schenectadians including Union College philosophy professor Harold A. Larrabee who wrote a poem in 1934 titled "Lafayette at Schenectady." The poem was presented at Union college in 1934 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Lafayette’s death and is a moving and interesting recollection of Lafayette’s life and his visit to Schenectady.  It is steeped in history and in the foreword Mr. Larrabee states that the poem is “based on authentic records, and sources could be cited for nearly every line.” 27 years after Larrabee’s poem was recited, Mayor Malcom E. Ellis proclaimed May 20, 1961 as Lafayette Day in Schenectady. In his proclamation, Mayor Ellis said that he “enjoins all of our citizens to pay grateful homage to the memory of Marquis de Lafayette by appropriate civic ceremonials.” While “appropriate civic ceremonials” doesn’t sounds all too exciting, Ellis’ proclamation shows that even over 100 years after his death, the people of Schenectady were still thinking of Lafayette and wanted to honor his memory.


Taverns and Inns of Schenectady, Part II: Tapsters in a Time of Crisis

This post was written by library volunteer Victoria Bohm

As the 18^th century came and progressed, the ever increasing rules, regulations, and taxes imposed on the British Colonies by King George II and III, including those on tapsters and liquor, incited the revolutionary spirit. Taverns and inns were more than pre-Motel 6 accommodations for travelers, they were meeting places and conference centers for business, economics, and politics. As the fateful decade of the 1770s rolled around, various taverns took center stage in Schenectady.

Engraving of "Washington's Farewell to His Officers" by Alonzo Chappel. After the British evacuated New York, Fraunces Tavern in New York City hosted a dinner where General George Washington bade farewell to his officers of the Continental Army.  

Though laws had been passed from the mid-17^th century on forbidding the sale of trade of liquor to the Native Americans, such statutes were not always followed or enforced. With the French and Indian Wars a memory very much alive, the Committee of Correspondence feted the Oneida Tribe at the William White Tavern in Schenectady in order to curry favor and keep the Oneida from joining or aiding the British. The party favors must have worked because most of the Oneida with the Colonists while other Indian Nations sided with the British. After the War, two treaties were signed by Chief Shenendoah in 1794: the Veteran’s Treaty which acknowledged the Oneida as fighting allies of the Americans, and the Canandaigua Treaty which recognized sovereignty, land rights, and tax freedoms of the Oneida.

Schenectady tavern owner Robert Clench came to America to work under British General Braddock. During the French and Indian War, Clench got to know a certain soldier well during the French and Indian Wars, one George Washington. After the War, Clench married Hannah Vernor in Pennsylvania, had six children, moved to Schenectady in the late 1760’s, bought a tavern named the “Sign of the Crossed Keys”, became a church warden for St. George’s Episcopal Church, and made himself a prominent and respected citizen. Clench’s tavern hosted town meetings, assembly meetings, and saw the St. George Lodge of the Masonic Order formed there in 1774. But all was not well or properly patriotic in the Clench family. In 1776, Robert Clench was reported to the Committee of Safety for statements unbecoming a truly patriotic American. In 1777, he was branded a “dangerous person,” though he declared himself ready to fight in the face of an invasion. When he failed to show up to take the Oath of Allegiance, the Commissioner of Conspiracies went after him. The Committee of Correspondence and the Masons of St. George Lodge decided to move their meetings out of Clench’s Tavern. Finally, in mid-1778, Robert Clench took the Oath. Robert’s son Robert’s son, Ralph, on the other hand, joined the British forces, seeing action under General Burgoyne and with Butler’s Rangers.

New York State Historic Marker showing the location of Clench's Tavern. Courtesy of the Grems-Doolittle photo collection.

Robert Clench died in 1781. His widow Hannah ran the business for a while, then his son Thomas Barton Clench took over. George Washington even visited the tavern in 1782 and 1783, and the Masons thought the tavern once again patriotically respectable enough to resume their meetings there in 1782. After the tavern burned in 1819, Thomas Clench ran a tavern out of the old Arendt Bradt House.

The Revolutionary War did not curtail the tavern/inn business. Records of the Schenectady Committee of Safety from 1777 show a list of those called upon to make sure their licenses were valid and to pay their excise taxes. Reuben Simonds was among those names. Simonds took over the tavern on Church Street from Jonathan Odgen in 1762, already known as a gathering place for patriots. Simonds duly answered the Committee’s summons and paid for his license. The Simonds Tavern continued to be partial to patriots. Reuben himself enlisted and served in the 2^nd Albany County Militia. When a fire in 1807 burned Simonds tavern, Theodore Burr’s Mohawk Engineers each gave a day’s work in order to rebuild Simonds’ tavern, allowing Simonds to move back in the day after the fire.

List of Schenectady residents allowed to keep a tavern. From the "Minutes of the Schenectady Committee, 1775-1779." Courtesy of the Grems-Doolittle Library Collection.

Between 1762 and 1772, Charles Doyle ran a tavern on Union Street frequented by those known to have Loyalist sympathies. The tavern was next to the Colonial Barracks which housed English Militia men. By the time the Revolutionary War began in earnest, the place had been bought by John Duncan. John and his son Richard Duncan were known to have Loyalist sympathies. Richard was a captain under Sir John Johnson, and after the War both John and Richard managed to remain in Schenectady and hold on to their property. When Duncan’s tavern was demolished, it was discovered to be riddled with secret doors, stairways, and partitions which made it perfect for the comings and goings spies and couriers.

Though most taverns in Schenectady and its surrounding area boast no documented historic even or person during the Revolutionary War, some may simply and proudly boast of their historic standing by standing the test of time. Built in colonial times, surviving the tumult of the Revolution, and still standing through the change of hands and purpose into the 20^th century, two are well worth mentioning, the Swart and the Vedder taverns.

Painting of Swart House and Tavern in Glenville. Courtesy of the Schenectady History Museum.

Josias Swart obtained a land grant in 1713 near the Mohawk River in Glenville and proceeded to build a large brick structure which was to be both home and tavern in 1735. One entrance served the tavern, another served the private home. Teunis Swart served as an ensign in the 2^nd Regiment of the Albany County Militia, with a great many more family members serving as enlisted men. Swart’s tavern survived the war and into the 20^th century as one of the oldest remaining structures of the region. The name-dropping event for the Swart Tavern was the visit by Dewitt Clinton in 1810 on an inspection trip prior to the building of the Erie Canal.

Wine Barrel found in the cellar of the Swart Tavern. Courtesy of the Grems-Doolittle Photo Collection.

Clinton would also visit a nearby tavern owned by the Vedder family. The long-standing tavern run by the long-standing Schenectady family Vedder stood on the Amsterdam-Schenectady Road a few miles outside of Schenectady.  Even older than the Swart Tavern, the original structure, built of brick in Dutch fashion, saw at least two additions and a stucco overlay.  The tavern was also known to quarter slaves in two large rooms in the cellar. Many of Schenectady’s first (and second) families owned slaves well into the 1800s. The Vedder family supplied the American troops with many soldiers, their names in the New York State Militia Rolls as enlisted men and with Lieutenants A.S. Vedder, Philip Vedder, Albert Vedder, and Francis Vedder. Revolutionary War hero Albert A. Vedder is buried in the Vedder burial site on the former family homestead.

Photo of the Vedder Tavern in Glenville, NY. Courtesy of the Grems-Doolittle Photo Collection.

Whether slaking the thirst of the British or the Americans, the taverns of Schenectady and its environs provided food, drink, shelter, rest, and company for centuries in war time as well as peace time. More information about the taverns, inns, brews, and breweries of the Schenectady region, as well as the families involved with all such activities, may be found in Grems-Doolittle Library at the Schenectady County Historical Society

Stay tuned for our next installment of the taverns and inns of Schenectady where we cover some of Schenectady’s popular taverns during the 1800s.

Pulaski Day in Schenectady

Monument to Revolutionary War Hero Polish Count Casimir Pulaski, friend of America in the Revolutionary War. The monument can be found near the intersection of State Street and Nott Terrace in Schenectady. Photograph from the private collection of Phyllis Zych Budka.  

This blog entry is written by SCHS Member Phyllis Zych Budka.

Driving past Pulaski Plaza at the intersection of Nott Terrace with State and Albany Streets in Schenectady, my thoughts do not turn to the military exploits of Revolutionary War hero Kazimierz Pulaski honored in a granite monument, but rather to a lost era in my own cultural heritage, Schenectady’s citizens of Polish descent. The monument, erected in the fall of 1953, was the location of annual October ceremonies honoring this Polish hero who fought for freedom in both Europe and the fledgling America, ceremonies that my family and I participated in as I was growing up.

Pulaski Day Essay Contest Winners, October 1955: Phyllis Zych (Budka), 8th grade, St. Adalbert’s School, and Lawrence Ott, 8th grade, St. Mary’s School. Left to Right: Rev. John Harzynski, Assistant Pastor, St. Adalbert’s Church; Lawrence Ott; Schenectady Mayor Archibald Wemple; Phyllis Zych; Unknown; Rev. Ladislaus Guzielek, Pastor, St. Adalbert’s Church; Unknown. The photograph was published in the Schenectady Gazette. Photograph from the private collection of Phyllis Zych Budka.

The discovery among my mother’s keepsakes of the photo of the Pulaski Day Essay Contest I won in the fall of 1955 brought a flood of memories. Luckily, the Schenectady Gazette caption reminded me of the long-forgotten contest topic, the poetry of Adam Mickiewicz. My sister, Elizabeth Zych Kislinger, provided another, slightly later, photo of ceremonies at Pulaski Plaza.

These photos gave me a sense of loss for my cultural heritage that cannot be shared with my children and grandchildren. They also made me curious about the history behind the Schenectady Polish American community’s efforts to commemorate Casimir Pulaski in such a prominent place in the city.

Pulaski Day Celebration, ca. 1956. Pictured are Schenectady city and Polish community dignitaries as well as my sister (first row, far right), my cousin Marjorie Norris Brophy (2nd from left) and my grandmother Victoria Korycinski (back row, right, between flags). Photograph from the private collection of Elizabeth Zych Kislinger. 

In researching the origins of Schenectady's Pulaski Day celebrations on the historical newspaper website www.fultonhistory.com, I was surprised to find a Gazette entry from 1929:

Anniversary of Pulaski’s Death Celebrated in School Auditorium, Large Crowd Attends Exercises Honoring Polish Patriot

A fitting climax to the exercises commemorating the 150 anniversary of the death of Count Casimir Pulaski, which have been in progress here since Thursday when Schenectadians filled the big Schenectady High School Auditorium to capacity to pay tribute to the Revolutionary War hero. (Gazette 10/14/1929, p. 11)

According to a 11/16/53 Gazette article, the Polish Welfare Council petition to the Schenectady City Council to erect the Pulaski monument was adopted on November 15, 1948. The city of Schenectady donated $2,000 toward the nearly $15,000 cost of the monument. The monument is 34 feet long and 14 feet 6 inches high at the center. The General’s statue is 7 feet high.

The Pulaski monument was dedicated on November 18, 1953, complete with a parade from the Polish National Alliance Home on Crane Street to the Pulaski Plaza. Representatives from Syracuse, Utica, Amsterdam, Watervliet, Cohoes, Troy, Albany and Poughkeepsie participated in the festivities, which also included a banquet.

Below are the words inscribed on the monument, words which ring true even today:

Pulaski
Union makes valor stronger

Count Casimir Pulaski, friend of America in the Revolutionary War, distinguished himself on General George Washington’s staff in the Battle of Brandywine, commissioned Brigadier General. Fought at Germantown and other battles in winter 1777-78. By resolution of Congress was authorized to form the Pulaski Legion. Mortally wounded at Savannah, Georgia, and died October 11, 1779.

To the memory of an immortal hero who gave his life in the cause of freedom and thereby left a living message to all Americans. May God grant that the liberty of mankind, which only brave souls win and only vigilance can guard, shall live on with greater vitality. Dedicated by the people of Schenectady.

This memorial made possible by Americans of Polish descent.

The Liberty Flag in Schenectady

Photograph of Liberty flag. From collection of Schenectady County Historical Society.

This blog entry was written by Frank Taormina, one of the Society's trustees and a frequent researcher here in the library.

Well over 200 years ago the Liberty Flag you see pictured above gained the attention of people living in this locality. The symbol of the “Sons of Liberty”, the flag was duplicated many times by American colonists from Georgia to Massachusetts expressing their disagreement with the treatment they were receiving at the hands of the King and Parliament of Great Britain.

Colonel Barré, c. 1765,
by Douglas Hamilton.
Image found online.

The “Sons of Liberty” became a focal point of American resistance to British rule early in 1765 when the British government instituted the Stamp Act. This part of American history began when Isaac Barré, a veteran of the French and Indian War and, at this time, a member of Parliament protested against the passage of this act, referring to the colonists whom he had gotten to know as a result of his service in the war as “Sons of Liberty” and pointed out to his audience:
"They planted by your care! No, your oppressions planted them in America. They fled from your tyranny to a then uncultivated, inhospitable country, where they exposed themselves to almost all the hardships to which human nature is liable, and among others to the cruelties of a savage foe and actuated by principles of true English liberties, they met all hardships with pleasure compared with those they suffered in their own country from the hands of those who should be their friends."

When the language used by Barre made its way to America, it resulted almost immediately in the creation of a host of “semi-secret societies of colonial resistance” to what an overwhelming number of people felt was unfair taxation.

One of the “semi-secret societies” which literally sprang into existence was the Albany Sons of Liberty responding with alacrity to an invitation from the Sons of Liberty in New York City. Albany’s newly created chapter immediately extended an invitation to Schenectady and Schenectady, so we are informed by two notable local historians, John Warren Joyce and William Efner, simply ignored the invitation!
The protest on the part of the Sons of Liberty was so great that the British repealed the Stamp Act, replacing it, as historians tell us, with a host of other forms of equally objectionable taxation whose ultimate effect was the American Revolution and American Independence.

In the meantime, the Liberty Flag did not make its appearance in Schenectady until January 26, 1771, when, so we are informed in a letter written by John Sanders and John Baptist Van Eps to Sir William Johnson, “The inhabitants and freeholders have also put up a Liberty pole well bound with iron bars, twenty foot above the ground in about the center of our town and spiked it with a great many iron nails with the flag at the top.”  The location of this pole was at Ferry Street at the approximate junction of what is now Ferry Street and Liberty Street, near the tavern of a “Major Snell”.  The letter in addressing thanks to Sir William also refers to “this weighty dispute of our unlucky town”. We should notice as well that the reference to people putting up the flag is to “inhabitants and freeholders”.  In a publication called “Pathways of Time,” in a chapter written by William Efner, we learn that it was customary to refer to the more recently arrived English speakers as “inhabitants” and to the earlier and original Dutch settlers as “descendants”. In Efner’s discourse we learn about “the bitter struggle between the descendants of the original Dutch pioneers and the Yankee and 'English' newcomers for control of the common lands”, an argument which apparently went on for over 100 years, from 1684 until its settlement in 1798. The point as part of this discussion is that the people raising the “Liberty Flag” on their newly erected “Liberty Pole” in 1771 were protesting not taxation without representation, but rather the insistence of the “Descendants” that the “Inhabitants” did not have the right to property within the bounds of the Schenectady Patent! That was the “weighty dispute of our unlucky town” referred to by Sanders and Van Eps.

A second “Liberty Pole” was erected in Schenectady on January 12, 1774 near the southwest corner of Church and what was to become Union Street. On this occasion, the flag raising stimulated a gathering of fifty men whose names are listed for us, in their own handwriting, in the records about this event at the Schenectady County Historical Society. There was some suggestion made at the time this event occurred that local authorities were going to charge the participants with “rioting”, but there were no acts of violence and no damage was done, so the charge was never carried out against the participants.

Nicholas Veeder of Glenville poses with the Liberty flag.
Photograph from Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection.

Now as we look back at the flag we recognize it, apparently, as the same one in the possession of Nicholas Veeder, Schenectady’s longest lived veteran of the Revolutionary. In the photograph posted here, we see him seated in front of his hone in Glenville, in uniform, beneath the Liberty Flag which was then in his possession. Veeder, who lived until he was 101 years old, was supposed to have carried this flag at the Battle of Saratoga. We know for sure that he did carry it for years afterward in the Fourth of July parades in Schenectady of which he, after his friends have given him his annual bath, was a regular participant. When Veeder made his way to his ultimate reward, the flag came into the possession of the Sanders family who kept it for twenty years, making a gift of it, at last, to the Historical Society where it rests today.

Besides the flag to remind us of the glories of the past, we have one other constant reminder which I learned of recently. Liberty Street came into existence in 1802, running from west to east and beginning at Ferry Street, at that time, and was given its name to commemorate the Liberty Pole which once stood where it began.