{"id":2408,"date":"2005-11-21T17:00:00","date_gmt":"2005-11-21T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/capitalregionliving\/2005\/11\/rensselaer-county.html"},"modified":"2019-09-16T14:07:33","modified_gmt":"2019-09-16T18:07:33","slug":"rensselaer-county-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/capitalregionliving\/2005\/11\/rensselaer-county-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Rensselaer County"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dear Friends,
\nI can think of no better way to introduce Rensselaer County to you then to mention our extensive fields, woods and parks that surround our many lakes and mountains, rich with wonder, as their charm magnifies throughout the year to create spectacular views over our vast landscapes. This natural beauty serves as an exquisite backdrop for our fourteen towns, six villages and two cities, and blends with our refreshing rural and hi- tech influences to make our County a truly appealing place to live, raise a family, work, and start a business.
\nThanks for taking the time to read about beautiful Rensselaer County, and special thanks to Capital Region Living for bringing us to your attention. We hope you enjoy this November edition, and for those of you who don\u2019t currently live in our County, I am confident that this glimpse of our vast tourism attractions, activities, and just good old\u2013fashioned opportunities to sit back and enjoy nature, will capture your fancy and appeal to you to come visit us….who knows, you might even decide to stay!
\nI look forward to seeing you\u2014I hope that you make your visit a long one!
\nSincerely,
\nKathleen M. Jimino
\nRensselaer County Executive<\/em><\/p>\n

Rensselaer County is filled with wonderful contradictions and juxtapositions. It\u2019s a special place where rural charm meets urban delights, where cultural opportunities and pastoral pastimes happily coexist, and where American heritage meets cutting-edge technology. Stretching 30-miles along the Hudson River, it offers thousands of acres of parks, miles of trails, and more than 500 lakes, ponds, and even championship golf courses. Year-round activity abounds, whether it be swimming, boating, hiking, biking, skiing, snowmobiling, ice fishing, or maybe even dog sledding. During the growing season, the county offers an array of locally produced fruits, vegetables, herbs, meats, baked goods, arts, crafts, and even a buffalo hide or two!
\nA magnificently grand territory, Rensselaer County began playing a key role in American history back in 1630. It was then part of the Van Rensselaer patroon holdings, an important part of the great Dutch West Indies Company. Van Rensselaer\u2019s stand as a patroon ended with the Anti-Rent wars of the 1840\u2019s, when local farmers refused to pay rent to the sheriff\u2019s deputies \u2014then proceeded to tar and feather them for even trying to collect!<\/p>\n

Before that happened however, in 1824 Stephen Van Rensselaer founded the oldest degree granting engineering school in the English-speaking world. At the same time, the county\u2019s proximity to waterpower and markets forged the growth of the region\u2019s iron industries, which quickly became legend for the production of such items as the iron plates for the Civil War battleship \u2018Monitor\u2019 and most of the horseshoes for the Union Army. And, in 1876, the 13,000-pound replacement for the cracked Liberty Bell was cast here.<\/p>\n

Congress long ago designated Troy as the home of \u201cUncle Sam\u201d \u2014Samuel B. Wilson, a meat packer who stamped his barrels bound for U.S. Army troops with \u201cU.S.\u201d Local troops soon recognized their meat deliveries as coming from \u201cUncle Sam.\u201d The label stuck\u2014and the rest is history! Sam Wilson is buried in Troy\u2019s beautiful Oakwood Cemetery, along with a host of Civil War generals, industry powerhouses, inventors, and community leaders. The nation\u2019s first female labor union, the Collar Laundry Union, was founded in Troy in 1864 by Kate Mullaney and Ester Keegan. Another classic American icon\u2014this one of a musical sort\u2014 was created at the old van Rensselaer manor house, Fort Crailo, where \u2018Yankee Doodle\u2019 is rumored to have been written.<\/p>\n

The region also boasts many other impressive cultural contributions. It was here that Herman Melville found inspiration to write his first two novels, and Washington Irving penned \u201cFather Knickerbocker\u201d tales while residing at the Knickerbocker Mansion in Schaghticoke. The \u2018Troy Sentinel\u2019 was the first to publish \u201cThe Night Before Christmas\u201d in 1823, and art collector Louis Caldor discovered Grandma Moses\u2019 art on display in a Hoosick Falls drugstore. Living just over the county\u2019s border, the beloved folk artist immortalized Rensselaer County\u2019s lush hills and charming communities in her paintings.<\/p>\n

As befits a county seat, the streets of Troy undeniably feature some of the finest 19th century architecture in the country. Blessed with what one expert calls the mother lode of Tiffany windows, Troy also houses such world-renowned treasures as the acoustically superb Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. Norman Rockwell was so taken with the area that he painted scenes featuring the streets of Troy, and Hollywood directors have used numerous county locations when making both period films and contemporary blockbusters.<\/p>\n

Established in 1954, the acclaimed Junior Museum was at the forefront of the nation\u2019s children\u2019s museum movement, and it is presently the only place in the Northeast where guests can visit a Digistar II planetarium. Another active cultural mecca, The Arts Center of the Capital Region annually welcomes over 70,000 artists, patrons, students, and performers at its new 36,000-square-foot facility. And Troy\u2019s RiverSpark Visitor Center extends a warm welcome with exhibits, maps, tours, and other useful information designed to share with guests the many wonderful secrets of Troy and Rensselaer County.<\/p>\n

Troy is considered the official gateway to the New York Canal System and boasts a picturesque waterfront park, a dock, and marina. The city itself is acclaimed for events like its Riverfront Arts Festival, the nation\u2019s largest Flag Day parade, and the wintertime favorite, the Victorian Stroll.<\/p>\n

The entire region practically pops at the seams for popular events like the Schaghticoke Fair, the Grafton Lakes Winter Fest and the annual Apple Festival and Crafts Show, which are enjoyed by thousands of residents and visitors annually. And for those moments you want to get far from the madding crowd, the county offers many solitary activities and pursuits.
\nCome…Take a closer look…And discover the many wonderful secrets of Rensselaer County.
\nReprinted with permission from Rensselaer County; www.rensco.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Events
\nThrough March
\nRPI Men\u2019s Ice Hockey. Exciting NCAA Division I Men\u2019s Hockey team competes against the top colleges in the country. For more info: www.rpi.edu\/dept\/athletics
\nNovember 6-March 26
\nTroy Winter Farmers\u2019 Market\u2014Free special events continue during the winter months with children\u2019s activities, musicians, local chefs, community organizations and a variety of entertainers. Every Saturday 10am-2pm. Atrium, downtown Troy. For more info: www.troymarket.org<\/a>.
\nNovember 1
\nMaking Scrapbook Pages together\u2014Supplies and tools available, but bring you can also bring your own. For all ages. Brunswick Community Library. 6pm. For more info: 279.4023; www.brunswicklibrary.org<\/a>.
\nNovember 5
\nRoast Pork Dinner and Mini-Bazaar\u2014Take-outs available. Dinner 4pm-6:30pm; Bazaar 3:30pm-7pm. The First Reformed Church of Wynantskill. For more info: 283.4420.
\nNovember 6
\nAll-you-can-eat Pancake breakfast\u2014Adults $5.50; children $3, under 5 free. Raffle and sale of DFD commemorative Christmas ornaments. 8am-noon. Defreestville Fire Department.
\nNovember 6
\nHarvest Brunch\u2014Adults $6; children $2. Lansingburgh Boy\u2019s & Girls\u2019 Club. 10am-1pm. For more info: 235.4143.
\nNovember 19
\nHoliday Craft Fair\u20149am-4pm. 665 Brunswick Road, Troy.
\nNovember 24
\nTurkey Trot, City of Troy\u2014For more info: www.troyny.gov\/turkeytrot.html.
\nDecember 4
\nTroy Victorian Stroll\u2014Enjoy the Victorian splendor of historic downtown Troy offering over 100 attractions throughout the day. Live music, dancing, storytelling, theatre, costumed performers and more set against a backdrop of unique shops, storefronts and restaurants, will bring the streets alive with Victorian holiday magic. Concludes with the lighting of the City of Troy Holiday Tree. 11am-5pm. For more info: 274.7020; www.troyvictorianstroll.com<\/a>.
\nJanuary
\nWinterFest at Grafton Lakes State Park\u2014Featuring indoor and outdoor exhibits, the festival will feature environmental and recreational workshops and outings, including snow sculpture and snowball- throwing contests for the kids, an ice fishing tournament, horse-drawn sleigh rides and dog sled rides. For more info: www.nysparks.state.ny.us<\/a>.
\nFor more events visit www.rensco.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Attractions
\nRensselaer County Historical Society
\n59 Second Street, Troy , 732.7232; www.rchsonline.org<\/a>
\n2005 Exhibitions:
\nThrough December 23: Doodles, Drafts and Designs: Industrial Drawings from the Smithsonian<\/p>\n

New York State Theater Institute
\nSchacht Fine Arts Center, Russell Sage College
\nCorner of Division & River Street, Troy
\n274.3256; www.nysti.org<\/a>
\nNYSTI stands as an internationally acclaimed professional and educational regional theatre geared toward family productions.<\/p>\n

The Arts Center of the Capital Region
\n265 River Street, Troy
\n273.0552; www.artscenteronline.org<\/a>
\nThe Arts Center of the Capital Region is a state-of-the-art multi-arts center located in downtown Troy, in New York\u2019s Capital Region. Exhibits, classes and camps offered.<\/p>\n

Hudson-Mohawk Industrial Gateway Burden Iron Works Museum
\nPolk Street, Troy
\n274.5267, www.rpi.edu\/~carroll\/gateway1.html
\nTours, school programs at the primary, secondary and college levels, provides consulting on historic preservation issues and on regional history of technology in this area, and manages a regional technology museum.<\/p>\n

Troy Savings Bank Music Hall
\nSecond Street, Troy, 273.0038; www.troymusichall.org<\/a>
\nWorld-renowned acoustical hall with an eclectic concert schedule featuring classical, jazz, world music and popular artists.<\/p>\n

Knickerbocker Historical Society
\nSchaghticoke
\nA non-profit organization that is restoring the Knickerbocker Family Mansion which dates from about 1770. The Society also hosts the annual Knickerbocker Family Reunion, as well as other fund-raisers at the mansion during the year.<\/p>\n

Crailo State Historic Site
\n9 1\/2 Riverside Avenue, Rensselaer, 463.8738
\nCrailo State Historic Site is a museum of the Dutch in the upper Hudson Valley. Crailo today tells the story of the early Dutch inhabitants of the upper Hudson Valley through exhibits highlighting archeological finds from the Albany Fort Orange excavations, special programs, and guided tours of the museum.<\/p>\n

Hoosick Township Historical Society
\nLouis Miller Museum,, 166 Main Street, Hoosick Falls
\n686.4682<\/p>\n

Children\u2019s Museum of Science & Technology
\n250 Jordan Road, Troy
\n235.2120; www.cmost.org<\/a>
\nThe Museum is dedicated to introducing children of all ages to a wide spectrum of science and technology topics, integrated with history and the arts, in a fun and friendly environment.<\/p>\n

Pineridge Cross Country Ski Area
\nEast Poestenkill, 283.3652; www.pineridgexc.com<\/a>
\n35km groomed trails, 15km ungroomed trails for snowshoeing & skiing, 4km lighted trails for night skiing, 20km skating trails, PSIA lessons offered daily, complete ski rentals, special group programs available.<\/p>\n

Sand Lake Center for the Arts
\n2880 NY 43, Averill Park , 674.2007
\nHome of the Circle Theater Players, the Center provides theater, performing arts and visual arts.
\nNovember 4, 5, 6
\nCircle Theatre Players presents the comedy classic Harvey by Mary Chase. $14.
\nNovember 12
\nHoliday Art Fair\u2014Featuring 19 local artists in photography, pottery, watercolors, unique jewelry, glass blowing, onyx and teak products, weaving, ceramics, letterpress, wood engraving, mixed media painting and etchings, designer scarves, and Chinese brush painting. 10am-3pm.
\nNovember 26
\nARTWORKS!\u2014Rick Salazar, in time period Iroquois clothing, will be sharing songs, tales and myths of the Iroquois Native Americans, with audience participation. 9am-10pm.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dear Friends,I can think of no better way to introduce Rensselaer County to you then to mention our extensive fields, woods and parks that surround our many lakes and mountains, rich with wonder, as their charm magnifies throughout the year…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":138,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2408","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\r\nRensselaer County - Capital Region Living Magazine On Albany.com - Your Source For Albany & Capital Region News<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/capitalregionliving\/2005\/11\/rensselaer-county-2\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Rensselaer County - 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