Esopus Wars

The Kingston Stockade District is an eight-block area in the western section of Kingston, New York, United States, commonly referred to as Uptown Kingston. It is the original site of the mid-17th century Dutch settlement of Wiltwyck, which was later renamed Kingston when it passed to English control. It is the only one of three original Dutch settlements in New York surrounded by stockades where the outline of the stockade is still evident due to the raised ground. Within the area are many historic buildings from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, including the original Ulster County courthouse, the Senate House where the state of New York was established in 1777, and the Old Dutch Church designed by Minard Lafever, a National Historic Landmark. Some survived the burning of Kingston by British forces during the Revolutionary War. The intersection of Crown and John streets has Colonial-era Dutch stone houses on all four corners, the only intersection in the country where this is so. In 1970 the area in the vicinity of the Senate House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Clinton Avenue Historic District. Five years later, as the historic value of the entire uptown area became apparent, the larger Stockade District was created, subsuming the original one. The formal recognition of its historic importance has led to contentious battles in local government over proposals to redevelop the area.

The Senate House State Historic Site is located on Fair Street in Kingston, New York, United States. During the Revolutionary War, New York's First Constitutional Convention met there and on April 20, 1777, adopted the first New York State Constitution. After one month, the Senate fled the British troops who were advancing from Manhattan. The Senate House and much of Kingston was burned in retribution. It has served as a museum from the late 19th century. Currently it is owned and operated by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. In 1971 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the first building in Kingston listed. At that time it was a contributing property to the small Clinton Avenue Historic District. Four years later, in 1975, the original district was replaced with the larger Kingston Stockade District, which retained the Senate House and all the other properties of the original district. The house first belonged to Wessel Wesselse Ten Broeck, born about 1636, who emigrated to New Amsterdam from Wessen, in Westphalia in 1659. It is generally described as having been built in 1676, but can be certainly dated to some time before his death in 1704. The ground floor of the house consists of three rooms, lined up along the street, with an entrance hallway between two of the rooms. As is typical of early Dutch houses in the Hudson Valley, the house is of stone, with the exception of the rear wall which is brick, laid in Flemish bond. At the back is a kitchen wing, added early, but somewhat later than the original construction.

The Cornelius Tappen House, also known as the Vandenburgh-Hasbrouck House is located in the Kingston Stockade District in Kingston, New York. Designed and built as a salt-box style house, the Tappen building was constructed with uncut stones, an example of a "rubble" house. It was built sometime before the American Revolution, burned in 1777, and rebuilt later.In 1777, during the American Revolutionary War, the Tappen was home to many of Kingston's oldest records. When the British came and tragically burned the city to the ground, Kingston was lucky to have Major Christopher Tappen, the State and county clerk, who put his own safety aside and rescued the town records from the fire.Following the 1777 fire the house was rebuilt and became Kingston's first post office. Throughout the years the Tappen house was passed through many families until the 1970s. Slated for demolition as part of uptown urban development, the house was rescued by Heritage Savings bank who restored the building for use as a banking facility.

Second Reformed Dutch Church of Kingston is a historic Dutch Reformed church located at Kingston, Ulster County, New York. It was built in 1850, and is a meeting house form church building constructed of native limestone blocks in the Gothic Revival style. It features a monumental, buttressed central entry / bell tower rising several stories to a pyramidal roof.It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.

Old Dutch Church Parsonage (also known as Cornelius Masten Stone House; Julia Dillon House) is a historic home located at 109 Pearl Street in Kingston, Ulster County, New York. It was built in 1725, in the Colonial and Dutch Colonial Revival architectural styles. It is a 1+1⁄2-story rubblestone dwelling with frame wings added in 1919.It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.

The Kirkland Hotel is located at the corner of Main Street and Clinton Avenue in Kingston, New York, United States. It is a Tudor-style building dating to the end of the 19th century. It is a rare surviving example of a wood-frame urban hotel. From the middle of the 20th century to the early 1970s it was also a popular local restaurant. After it closed, redevelopment efforts stalled for several decades and it was almost demolished at one point. Today it is used as office space and apartments after being redeveloped. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on November 15, 2002, also becoming recognized as a contributing property to the Kingston Stockade District. After its redevelopment, it was recognized with a statewide preservation award.

The Catskill Mountain Railroad (reporting mark CMRR) is a heritage tourist railroad based in Kingston, New York, that began operations in 1982. The railroad leases a 4.7-mile portion (MP 3.6 to MP 8.3) of the former New York Central Railroad Catskill Mountain branch from Kingston to Stony Hollow, New York. The tracks are owned by Ulster County, New York, which bought them in 1979 from the bankruptcy estate of the Penn Central Railroad. The railroad's current permit with Ulster County expires on December 31, 2028.

The James and Mary Forsyth House is located on Albany Avenue near uptown Kingston, New York, United States. It is a brick Italian villa-style house designed by Richard Upjohn in the mid-19th century. When it was finished it was celebrated locally for its lavish decor. James Forsyth, as well as another later resident, left the house after being accused of financial wrongdoing. It has been modified slightly since its original construction with trim in the Colonial Revival style. Along with the Old Dutch Church by Minard Lafever, it is the only extant pre-Civil War building, and the only house from that period, in Kingston designed by a nationally prominent architect. In the 20th century it was used as a Masonic Lodge. Since 1986 it has been the offices of a local construction company that has restored some of Kingston's other historic buildings. In 2003 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Frank A. Palen House is a historic home located at Kingston in Ulster County, New York. It is a Queen Anne style residence built in 1892. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.

The Chichester House is located on Fair Street in Kingston, New York, United States. It is a brick house in the Second Empire style built around 1870. In 2001 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) along with the similar nearby Boice House. It has a three-story three-by-three-bay main block on a stone and brick foundation with a slightly recessed north wing. On top is a concave mansard roof shingled in patterned slate, pierced by round-arched dormers with decorative trim. At the roofline is an ornate overhanging eave.A front porch, rounded at the two southern bays, in the Classical Revival style covers all three bays of the main block and two in the north wing at the first story. Its posts are supported on stone piers. Behind it the main entrance leads into a narrow vestibule and then a wide side hallway with detailed ceiling moldings. Similar detail is evident in the carved balusters and newel on the main staircase. The two parlors to the south have modillioned ceilings and fireplaces with finely crafted architraves and surrounds. The north rooms are similarly treated.Behind the house is its original carriage house, now used for storage. It is intact and thus considered a contributing resource to the NRHP listing.It was built around 1870. The minimal records from that time, when it was one of the city's most affluent residential neighborhoods, show that it was home to a "Mrs. Chichester". It has remained a private home, relatively intact, ever since.

The Boice House is located on Fair Street in Kingston, New York, United States. It was first built around 1850 in the Greek Revival architectural style. Twenty years later, it was bought by Hewett Boice, a local quarry operator. He had the house refurbished in the then-popular Second Empire style. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.

The William Kenyon House is located on Fair Street in Kingston, New York, United States. It was built by William Kenyon, a member of Congress from the area, in the mid-19th century. It is an intact example of the center-gable Italian villa-style house popular at the time. In 2001 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.