State and local conservations groups, officials, staff and stakeholders gathered for an announcement in Amenia last week that the 260-acre Rattlesnake Ridge in Amenia, visible in background, will be protected by a $350,000 grant from the State Department of Environmental Conservation for the purchase of a conservation easement through the Dutchess County Land Conservancy.
AMENIA — The Dutchess Land Conservancy has received a $350,000 grant from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to purchase a 260-acre conservation easement on Rattlesnake Ridge, located within the Taconic Ridge/Harlem Valley.
The Amenia property, comprised of upland conifer and hardwood forests, has been identified in the New York State Open Space Plan as a “priority for protection” and will add to more than 1,100 contiguous acres of adjacent protected land, including farmland, and provide important habitat for threatened timber rattlesnakes and endangered Indiana bat.
“We’re really excited. It’s really a big effort,” said Erin Hoagland, DLC’s director of conservation.
She referred to the Rattlesnake Ridge easement as “crucial for connectivity and habitat, and some farmland protection is at play as well.”
Conservation department interim Commissioner Sean Mahar announced more than $1.26 million in grants for four land trusts, including to Dutchess Land Conservancy, to support five projects aimed at safeguarding local forests.
The grants, administered by the Land Trust Alliance in partnership with the conservation department, were made available through the Forest Conservation Easements for Land Trusts grant program.
“New York’s natural landscapes are vital to our quality of life and our economy,” Mahar said in making the announcement on Thursday, Oct. 24.
“This $1.26 million in funding for land trusts will empower communities to protect cherished open spaces and contribute to the State’s 30 by 30 initiative — conserving 30% of our lands and waters by 2030.”
State officials said the land trusts will use the funding to create new conservation easements aimed at protecting water quality, building wildlife corridors, preserving old growth forest, increasing climate resilience, strengthening biodiversity and expanding recreation opportunities for New York.
Kelly Turturro, regional director for the Department of Environmental Conservation’s Hudson Valley office, which covers Northern Dutchess County, said the state works closely with New York land trusts, private landowners and stakeholders in the community “to preserve and grow our forest resources for the benefit of future generations”
The Forest Conservation Easement Program, she said, “is just one example of our ongoing support for New York’s land trusts. Through our partnership with the Land Trust Alliance, the program provides grant funding to land trusts around the state to purchase high-priority conservation easements.”
At last week’s grants announcement in Amenia, with Rattlesnake Ridge as a backdrop, Katie Petronis, conservation department deputy commissioner for natural resources, explained that since the program was formed three years ago, “we have now protected 2,800 acres of land, like we’re here standing on today, using under $4 million.”
This year, she said, response to the project more than doubled the amount of award funding available.
“That really tells us there is a need statewide, and not just here, but elsewhere.”
The grants are funded through the state’s Environmental Protection Fund.
In addition to the Dutchess Land Conservancy’s $350,000 grant for Amenia’s Rattlesnake Ridge, other grants included: $199,950 to the Genesee Valley Conservancy in Livingston County; $350,000 to the Cazenovia Preservation Foundation, Inc. in Madison County; and two separate grants totaling $361,800 to the Tug Hill Tomorrow Land Trust for conservation easements in Oswego County and Herkimer County.
“Our forest lands play critical roles in terms of providing jobs, wildlife habitat, and helping to mitigate climate change,” said Jamie Brown, New York senior program manager for the Land Trust Alliance.
“New York’s nearly 95 land trusts are working to protect these important lands, as well as other open state that is important to all New Yorkers. We are grateful to the state’s support and leadership in protecting our natural resources and important places.”
Long-term town employees were recognized at the Town Board meeting on Thursday, June 12. Honorees pictured with Town Supervisor Leo Blackman, were Judy Carlson, Office Manager at the Town Garage, center, for her 35 years of service to the town and Megan Chamberlin, current Highway Superintendent, for 20 years.
AMENIA — Acknowledging the many years of service accumulated by town employees, the Town Board paused to honor that service at its meeting on Thursday, June 12.
“Thank you for making a difference,” said Town Supervisor Leo Blackman in recognizing Judy Carlson, Office Manager at the town garage, for her 35 years of service.
“Megan’s job is not an easy one,” Blackman said, honoring Megan Chamberlin, current Highway Superintendent who has served the town for 20 years.
Also among those honored was Town Clerk Dawn Marie Klingner for 20 years of service as Court Clerk.
Maureen Moore, Court Clerk, was also honored in absentia for her 20 years of town service.
In anticipation of the celebration of the 250th anniversary of the start of the American Revolution in 2026, new historic markers are appearing at each of the local cemeteries where Revolutionary War veterans are buried. Unveiling the new marker at Amenia Union Cemetery on Saturday, June 21, were left to right, Town Historian Betsy Strauss, Jim Middlebrook representing the regional chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution, and Gail Seymour, President of the Union Cemetery Association.
AMENIA — One by one, new historic markers are appearing at local cemeteries where Revolutionary War dead are buried. On Saturday, June 21, community members gathered to see a new marker unveiled at Amenia Union Cemetery on Leedsville Road.
A tent provided welcome shade for the attendees and refreshments as about 30 residents gathered for the unveiling and to share stories of local history with one another.
As with the first historic market installation at the Old Amenia Burying Ground, held in April, Amenia Union Cemetery graves of Revolutionary War veterans had been marked with American flags in advance.
Jim Middlebrook, representing the Columbia Mid-Hudson chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution, attended along with other members of his chapter. Speaking before the unveiling, Middlebrook said that the historic marker project had begun in August 2024, and included a detailed process to certify the names on the graves.
Middlebrook described the work of the William C. Pomeroy Foundation of Syracuse whose mission is to promote “pride of place” by providing grants in support of installing historic markers and plaques nationwide to honor patriots for their service. Active now in seven or eight states, Middlebrook said, the foundation will soon add Connecticut and Massachusetts to the list.
The new Amenia Union marker honors “at least five veterans of the American Revolution interred between 1787 and 1810,” although Town Historian Betsy Strauss lists six veterans buried in the cemetery. The sixth, Gerhard Winegar, whose burial had been in 1781 could not fully satisfy the certification standards.
Strauss provided the following listing of six names:
Col. Colbe Chamberlain, 1739-1796
Capt. William Chamberlain, 1745-1810
Lieut. Samuel Snyder, 1712-1808
Gerhard Winegar, 1750-1781
Ensign Henry Winegar, 1723-1787
Capt. William Young, 1747-1806
Bee Bee the clown, face painters and a community wide scavenger hunt are among the activities planned for the Millerton Street Fair in Downtown Millerton on Saturday, June 28.
MILLERTON — The Millerton News, in partnership with the North East Community Center (NECC) and the Millerton Business Alliance, is hosting its first Street Fair on Saturday in a celebration of the town.
Rain or shine from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m, the fair will bring together local nonprofits and businesses, with live music, entertainment, kids’ activities, local eats, and family fun in Veterans Park, in front of the Millerton Inn, and beyond.
“The Millerton Street Fair will celebrate everything we love about this community — its spirit, its dedication to service and its creative energy,” said James Clark, publisher and CEO of The Millerton News.
Local nonprofits will showcase their work and impact, including Climate Smart Millerton, Eddie Collins Memorial Park, North East Historical Society, Townscape, Tri-Corner FEED, Village of Millerton, and the Webutuck Elementary School.Participating businesses include Bes, Little Red Bird Studio, NBT, The Elephant’s Tusk, and many more.Local retail and dining establishments will be open with special promotions. NECC’s Farmer’s Market will run during the event.
Among the planned festivities are live music from John Stey and the Resilience Brass Band, performances from Bee Bee the Clown, face painting by students from Webutuck High School, and a community-wide scavenger hunt for kids.Other kids’ activities include egg and spoon races, and a “touch-a-truck” open house at the firehouse.The Irondale Schoolhouse will be hosting a special exhibit, and the North East-Millerton Library will be offering signups for the Summer Reading Program, a science show from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m., lawn games, and a cookie cook-off.
For more information, go to millertonnews.com/street-fair.
The Nine Partners Road Quaker Meetinghouse, built in 1780, will be the site of two summer lectures sponsored by the Millbrook Historical Society.
MILLBROOK — Long in the planning, the Millbrook Historical Society has announced that it is sponsoring two lectures in observance of the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. Both lectures relating to Quaker history are to be held in the historic Quaker Meeting House on Nine Partners Road.
For the first talk, scheduled for Sunday, June 29, at 2 p.m., the historical society has invited Sarah Gronningsater, Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania, to talk on “Quakers, Anti-slavery, and the American Revolution.” The topic will explore the role that New York’s Quakers, especially in the Hudson Valley, played in the rise of the anti-slavery movement that followed the American Revolution.
The second talk, scheduled for Sunday, July 27, at 2 p.m., invites Carl Lounsbury of the College of William and Mary and Colonial Williamsburg to speak on the architecture of the Nine Partners Meetinghouse. His talk is titled, “Nine Partners Meetinghouse Plan: A New Form in the Hudson Valley.” Expert in early American architecture, Lounsbury’s talk will compare Nine Partners with other later houses of worship in New York and New England.
Both lecture events will be held at the 1780 brick Nine Partners Quaker Meetinghouse in Millbrook. An earlier meetinghouse on the site had burned. The building has remained largely unchanged since the 18th century.
Given the age of the structure, handicapped access is limited and there are no rest room facilities.
Visitors should enter through the cemetery gate entrance.
The lectures are free and open to all, supported by a grant from the county and offered as part of Dutchess County’s participation in the nation’s 250th anniversary commemoration.
