MILLERTON — The 250th anniversary of the American Revolution has sparked a renewed interest in the nation’s origins, reflected in a wave of cultural commentary, new books and films like the recently released Ken Burns documentary that examines how the United States began.
While popular historical narratives often glorify famous battlefields and political figures, visitors of the NorthEast-Millerton Library indulged in an exhibit last month that explored how the Revolution unfolded right here in North East among everyday people.
Curated and written by the North East Historical Society — including President Ed Downey and Meg Downey — the exhibit was on view in the library’s main building through November.
“Telling the story of how 250 years ago the American War of Independence affected the people who lived where we live now is very difficult,” the exhibit text began, adding that a devastating 1911 fire destroyed many documents and archives in the New York State Library in Albany. “This disaster incinerated many 18th-century records from Dutchess County.”
At the time of the American Revolution, local boundaries looked very different. Then known as the Northeast Precinct, which was created in 1737, North East was one of 11 precincts in Dutchess County and included what are now the towns of Pine Plains and Milan, along with the northern part of today’s Town of North East. The southern part of today’s town, with a dividing line roughly near North East Center by Downey Road, belonged to the Amenia Precinct. Photo By Aly Morrissey
Although the North East Historical Society is not in possession of any original documents or archives from the period, the exhibit drew on materials from the Dutchess County Historical Society, the History of Little Nine Partners, surviving 1778 meeting minutes discovered at the Huntington Library in California, and archived articles from The Lakeville Journal and The Millerton News, among other sources.
Everyday families felt the Revolution long before news of battles reached them. The exhibit described its impact as a “relentless stream that built up to a flood,” beginning with steep taxes, religious and political division, and eventually the forcible transfer of land and property. As local men left for battle, women managed farms and raised children alone, navigating fear, scarcity and a community split between Patriots and Loyalists.
A shadow government takes over North East
The miraculous discovery of 1778 meeting minutes from the “Committee on Safety” depicts a group of Patriots who became the de facto local government for what was then known as the Northeast Precinct, an area including the present-day towns of North East, Pine Plains and Milan.
Photographs of the meeting minutes were on display in the exhibit. The document was found in the Huntington Library of California and includes 64 clear, handwritten pages that span 17 meetings. The committee met regularly at the house of James Young in what is now Pine Plains.
“While the meetings begin in calm deliberation, grappling with problems in a seemingly orderly way, toward the end of the record book the pace becomes frenetic,” the introduction notes. The tone of the minutes become “increasingly filled with alarm” and civil unrest, and the meeting frequency increases “almost overnight.”
The committee’s work included collecting food for those in need, handling complaints such as unlicensed liquor sales, and arranging to deport families of Loyalists across enemy lines.
One prominent committee member was Samuel Eggleston IV, who lived in what is now the Town of North East. The exhibit showed his role in collecting and returning grain to support Continental troops. He is buried in Spencer’s Corners Cemetery just north of Millerton.
Local iron ore supported the Patriots
Although the region was “too sparsely settled and too dense with forests to be where armies would travel or territory worth capturing,” it had one critical resource that supported the American cause.
Pits of iron ore in nearby Ancram and surrounding areas helped “feed the blast furnace” in what is now Lakeville, Connecticut, and eventually supported the manufacturing of weaponry, including cannon and musket balls. “The Salisbury Association estimates that the approximately 850 cannons produced represented about three quarters of those made in the colonies,” the exhibit stated.
Places, faces and names
The exhibit was rich with stories, documents and local names — many of which are still recognizable in this region today. Visitors could view the full list of residents who signed, and those who refused to sign, the Patriot pledge — a commitment to reject British authority.
“Signing it would be a death warrant if their cause failed,” the exhibit noted. “But to refuse to sign could engender the hate and distrust of their fellow citizens.” Loyalty in the old Northeast Precinct was far from unanimous, with residents split over which side to support. 298 men signed while 146 declined.
Additionally, photos of local soldiers’ gravestones, records of supply collections and stories passed down through generations painted a picture of how the war shaped daily life in the region.
Ralph Fedele sits at a desk in the historic Irondale Schoolhouse, which he led the effort to relocate to downtown Millerton.
Fedele moved to Millerton from New York City 37 years ago, in 1988, and has since worn many hats — volunteer, historian, advocate, elected official — yet he still doesn’t believe he’s earned that title.
“I’m a transplant,” he said matter of factly. “I’m from the city.”
Before settling in Millerton, Fedele spent 25 years working in merchandising at JCPenney.
His roots, however, trace back to Rhinebeck, where he grew up on a 97-acre farm and enjoyed what he describes as an idyllic childhood.
“It was marvelous,” he said, with a twinkle of nostalgia in his eyes. As a boy, he climbed apple trees, spent hours in the family barn’s hayloft, played with neighbors until sunset, and helped his Sicilian grandmother — his nonna — in the garden. Today, Fedele wears her ring. “Any time I’m a little depressed or I want to remember,” he said, “I can talk to her.”
Growing up with an Italian grandmother sparked a lifelong love of history and culture. That curiosity eventually took Fedele to Italy, where he visited the church in which his grandmother was baptized. “Because I love history so much, I wanted to know where my grandmother was from, so I traveled to her village in Sicily.”
Along the way, he uncovered another piece of family history. His great-grandfather, Giovanni Nicolini, was a noted Italian sculptor whose work still stands outside Palermo’s Teatro Massimo, the largest opera house in Italy. Fedele later made a pilgrimage there and photographed his ancestor’s name on the bronze plaque outside of the theater.
Ralph Fedele sits at a table in the historic Irondale Schoolhouse in downtown Millerton. Fedele led the effort to renovate and relocate the schoolhouse to the center of the village.Photo by Aly Morrissey
The Irondale Schoolhouse
Years after settling in Millerton full time, Fedele was driving north on Route 22 when he spotted an old, classic building and couldn’t stop thinking about it.
“It was in dire straits,” he recalled. “Right on the road, but beautiful. I remember thinking, ‘Wouldn’t that be a great building to move into the village?’”
That moment would eventually turn into Fedele’s lasting legacy.
He left his post at the North East Historical Society to found Friends of the Irondale Schoolhouse, leading an eight-year effort to “move, restore, and repurpose the building.”
Supervisor Chris Kennan said the project remains inseparable from Fedele’s name. “Every time I pass by the Schoolhouse, I think of Ralph,” Kennan said. “It was his vision and persistence that enabled this dream to become a reality.”
Fedele joked that people may have thought he was crazy during the lengthy restoration. “I was a tyrant,” he said with a laugh. “I really made sure that we were able to get it done.” The effort required coordination with the state, the county, village and town officials, and his newly assembled nonprofit board.
As a self-proclaimed history buff, Fedele didn’t stop at the restoration. He found a list of students in old records and did what any determined historian would do. He opened the telephone book and started making calls.
Eventually, he tracked down one of the schoolhouse’s original students — Mary (Mechare) Leitch — who, at the age of 101, returned to the building after renovations were complete.
“It was a marvelous time,” smiled Fedele. “I was so happy to see her.”
‘Trust is earned’
Today, even though he won’t call himself a local, Fedele is a familiar fixture in town. You can find him each week enjoying conversation and a cup of coffee at Talk of the Town Deli, or getting stopped in town by neighbors and friends for a chat.
“I have gained the trust and confidence of a lot of people,” Fedele said. “It comes a little bit at a time. Trust is earned.”
Not only has Fedele served as a town board member, he has volunteered for Townscape and served as the president of the North East Historical Society. He was also one of the first advocates of preserving history by fixing toppled gravestones at the Spencer’s Corners Burying Ground.
His service was formally recognized at his final Town Board meeting through a resolution commending his three four-year terms as councilman, citing his “good humor, kindness to all and deep concern for the community’s senior citizens and for those living on fixed incomes.”
An emotional Fedele addressed the room with a mantra he often repeats. “When you leave, leave this place a little bit better than you found it,” he said. “That’s what I have always tried to do.”
Neighbors react
During the public comment, several residents stood to thank Fedele.
Claire Goodman, a member of the village Zoning Board of Appeals and Townscape volunteer, said Fedele was among the first to welcome her to Millerton.
“Whether we’re standing out in the cold, scrubbing tombstones at Spencer’s Corners, or ringing the bell at the schoolhouse, you always have such grace and you’re such a gentleman.” She added, “The way you laugh, it opens my heart.”
Kathy Chow, who serves on the Conservation Advisory Council and the Climate Smart Task Force, referred to Fedele as a “pitbull,” adding, “We all have hard things that we do, and we keep pushing at it, but you’re the one who makes me think I can keep going.”
Fedele describes his retirement from the town board as bittersweet. “I’m going to miss this,” he said. “I really am.”
