An 1867 map of the town of North East. The boundaries of North East changed drastically in 1823 after Pine Plains left to form its own town.
MILLERTON — In a November lecture at the NorthEast-Millerton Library Annex, William Tatum III, emeritus of the Dutchess County Historical Society, described how the map lines of the Town of North East were drawn, redrawn, and redrawn again.
“2023 is a big year for Dutchess because it is the 200th anniversary of a major change,” began Tatum. “It is the 200th anniversary of Pine Plains being established as an independent town.”
Tatum said he likes to give the “other side of the story. What about the old town? What about communities from which these new towns came?”
He gave a timeline:
— In 1683, Dutchess County was established as a “paper entity.” It was one of New York’s original 12 counties, 10 of which survive. Two were “bartered away” said Tatum, to get another territory in 1731.
— 1737: North East is established as a precinct.
— 1788: North East is incorporated as a town.
— 1818: Milan splits from North East.
— 1823: Pine Plains becomes an independent town.
Precincts — a Colonial term used instead of “towns”— were formed in New York when a group of partners “formed a patent,” and then would seek out Indigenous tribal leaders to “buy” land from them.
Tatum said they would buy “a vaguely defined amount” of land. He gave an example of how what would become Rumbout (Rombout) was purchased: from the top of Mount Beacon, the partners declared, “We are purchasing all that we can see.”
After the purchase, this patent would have to be approved. First, the paperwork was sent to Manhattan, where it was looked over and approved or rejected by authorities there.
If approved, it went on to London (a six-week to three-month trip depending on “the time of year and prevailing winds”), where it needed approval from the Board of Trade.
Then it would go to the crown, where it needed to approved by the king’s ministers, and then finally to the king or queen.
If approved, it then went through all these steps in reverse, until it got back to the Colonies, where the land claimed in the patent became a precinct.
In 1706, eight investors plus one silent partner, all men “well placed and influential” in society, formed Little Nine Partners Patent for the area of North East; their patent was officially approved by Queen Anne in 1708.
In 1731, “The Oblong” was added to the territory by the Treaty of Dover. This is when two counties were “bartered” to Connecticut for the Oblong, and North East gained its panhandle.
In 1744, after 40 years, the Little Nine Partners Patent (consisting of Dutchess County) was finally divided into seven precincts (South, Rumbout, Beekman, Poughkeepsie, Crum Elbow, Rhinebeck and North East). “Lots were assigned by lottery with two young boys under the age of 16 drawing the assignments” said Tatum. “I like to imagine it was out of a hat, but out of some kind of container.”
Once the patent was divided, it could be sold or rented to the colonists.
To form a new town, colonists had to advocate with petitions and letters to the State Assembly, so that the state would pass a law establishing a town.
Milan split from North East in 1818 to form a new town, and North East lost one-third of its territory. Due to a fire at the state capital in 1911, many of the records of how and why Milan split from North East were lost.
Then in 1823, Pine Plains decided to form an independent town. This was a problem since it left North East with “a whole new series of boundaries, because to keep that community viable, you had to take roughly the northern third of Amenia,” said Tatum.
Tatum added, “And some people are still not OK with that secession of territory from one town to the next.”
Tatum continued, “To divide town A and B was somewhat simpler” but what “North East of 1823 faced was as complicated as it could be.”
The center of North East’s government had to be moved from its seat in what had become Pine Plains. Accounts and paperwork had to be divided between North East and Pine Plains, and then this had to be done again with the new territory gained from Amenia. New officials had to be appointed and elected.
After 1823, “Little was left of the old North East” and it had a “brand new civic identity,” concluded Tatum.
Graham Corrigan
MILLBROOK — The town of Washington is rolling out its summer programming this month, and there’s something on offer for everyone.
The town’s major attraction, the park and pool located at 3774 Route 44, will be open daily starting on June 27, when the pool opens from 12 to 6 p.m. on weekdays and from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekends. Attendees can access basketball, pickleball, shuffleboard, and volleyball courts, as well as baseball and soccer fields, fishing access, and picnic areas. There are also pavilions available to rent for gatherings of up to 75 people.
Poolside concerts return this year as well. Music from Long Steel Rail, Big Ang, and Johnny Walkers will soundtrack the pool parties on Sunday afternoon throughout the summer.
There’s one major change to the summer offerings: the summer camp program, a popular option for kids and working parents alike, has been extended to include an all-day option. Previous camp sessions were limited to three hours a day — now, camp hours are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., with early drop-off and late pick-up available as well. Campers can participate in group activities like swimming, athletics, and arts & crafts.
The first of three two-week camp sessions starts on June 29. Registration is open until June 22, or when full capacity is reached.
Millerton News
The following excerpts from The Millerton News were compiled by Kathleen Spahn and Rhiannon Leo-Jameson of the North East-Millerton Library.
Millerton High School Commencement Marked By Large Attendance
A large attendance marked the thirty-sixth commencement of Millerton High School which was held in the school auditorium on Monday night. Diplomas were awarded to ten graduates by Elmer W. Simmons, president of the Board of Education. They were Marion Winifred Agnew, Dorothy Louise Barth, George Herbert Brewer, Ruth Elizabeth Conklin, Edna Mae Francis, Edythe Marion Guptill, Margaret Mary Lilley, James Tripp Miller, Frances Heneritta Wooding and Anthony Arthur Yakubowski.
Ruth Conklin, valedictorian, was presented the Alumni Scholarship by Miss Blanche Bates, president of the Alumni Association, just before the presentation of diplomas.
‘Wing’ In Wingdale:
Anne Wing Levings: 105 And Still Going Strong
It is often said that the pity of growing really old is that you outlive your friends. That statement is only partially true for Anne Wing Levings, who celebrated her 105th birthday at the Lovely Hill Nursing home in Pawling on Sunday, June 13. Nearly 75 visitors and friends were there helping her to celebrate. She has outlived many of her dear friends, but because she remains so dear herself, she keeps acquiring new ones along the way, including a reporter doing a routine story.
Millerton Free Library Fund Drive Takes Off
The Millerton Free Library Fund Drive got under way this week. In a letter sent to all Millerton residents, the library campaign committee solicited support to achieve its $30,000 goal. The mailing included a brochure outlining the needs and the plans for the new Library building on Main Street.
Millerton Crime Wave Investigated
MILLERTON — Three separate incidents of burglary in the past three months have become the subject of local talk concerning the safety of local businesses and residences.
Millerton Postmaster Retiring After 12 Years
MILLERTON —After 12 years as Millerton’s postmaster, Martin Cavally has decided it’s time to hang up the mail bag. Mr. Cavally, who was raised in Dutchess County, joined the U.S. Postal Service in 1968.
“Northern Dutchess is my home.” explained Mr. Cavally, who has lived here most of his life. Although born in Manhattan, Mr. Cavally attended school in Poughkeepsie and earned his associate’s degree from Dutchess Community College.
Mr. Cavally served two years in the Army and was stationed in New York City and then in Dutchess County. He also served a brief stint in Vietnam. He married Claudette Wyant in 1966. The couple has a daughter Kelly and a granddaughter Chiara, living in Rensselaer.
Why did Mr. Cavally choose a career with the post office? “The retirement [benefits],” he admitted. After working part time for IBM and the state of New York, he was offered a position with the post office.
James Speyer
This year’s NBA Finals, in which the New York Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs to end a 53-year championship drought, was tense and tight throughout. Game Four, in which the Knicks overcame a 29-point second half deficit to win 107-106, is universally acknowledged to be the masterpiece of the series. But it was more than that: it was the greatest game ever played in the history of American team sports.
That’s a bold statement, for sure. But I don’t believe I’m suffering from recency bias. Nor am I saying this because I’m a 66-year-old lifelong Knicks fan who was wrapping up junior high school when they last won the title. Hear me out:
A truly great game requires the coming together of several elements. First, the stakes must be high, which eliminates games played during the regular season no matter how extraordinary they are. Playoff games are a must, preferably in the championship round.
Second, the drama must be of the highest order, which usually involves overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds in the form of a massive comeback. High drama certainly can come in other forms, such as Don Larsen’s perfect game in the 1956 World Series or Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game in 1962, but those are superlative individual achievements. What most sports fans consider a great game usually involves a thrilling team comeback.
Third, a great game should have an iconic, signature play, such as Bobby Thomson’s bottom-of-the-ninth home run to beat the Dodgers and advance to the 1951 World Series, or LeBron James’s full-court rundown to block Andre Iguodala’s layup to win the 2016 NBA Finals.
Game Four had it all. The stakes were massive. A Knicks win would put them up 3-1 in the series and in the catbird seat, given that only one team had ever come back from a 3-1 deficit to win the Finals. A Spurs win would, after their Game Three win, even the series at 2-2 and return the momentum and home-court advantage to them. To be sure, it was not an elimination game for either team. But it was critically important.
The comeback was insane. The Knicks were getting demolished. The Spurs were unstoppable. They made fourteen threes in the first half, a Finals record for any half. They led 76-49 at the half, the most first-half points ever scored by a road team in a Finals game. They led by 29 at the 9:40 mark of the third quarter. During the entire 2025-26 regular season and playoffs, no team had overcome a 29-point deficit, at any point in the game. At that point, the Knicks had a 0.4% shot at winning.
And then it happened, slowly at first, with the Knicks chipping away — hitting singles, as Jalen Brunson said after the game. By 9:33 of the fourth quarter they had cut nine points off the lead— but they were still down by 20, and still had only a 0.4% chance to win. In the last thirty years of playoff basketball, teams other than the Knicks were 3-751 when down by 20 or more in the fourth quarter.
In the next nine minutes the Knicks erased all but a point off the lead. And with two seconds remaining, OG Anunoby capped it all off with the greatest single play in Knicks history. In an astonishing display of athleticism and grace under pressure, OG swooped in from beyond the three-point line, soared over two Spurs defenders, and tipped in Jalen Brunson’s missed three-pointer for the win. The degree of difficulty was off the charts.
In that moment millions of hyperventilating Knicks fans lost their minds.
The Tip, as the play will forever be known, was, in Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s eloquent words, “as beautiful an encapsulation of the majesty of sports as anything you’re ever likely to see. The seemingly impossible happened.”
The Tip completed the greatest comeback in NBA Finals history and the second greatest comeback in NBA playoff history (after the Clippers’ 31-point third-quarter comeback in the first round of the 2019 playoffs).
So there you have it: super-high stakes, an unprecedented comeback, and the most unforgettable of game-winning plays. Can any other game match that?
I don’t think so. Let’s look at some of the usual contenders.
The 1951 Giants game ending with Bobby Thomson’s home run — “the shot heard round the world” — was perhaps the most famous baseball game ever played. But that was not a World Series game (it was a playoff game to decide the National League championship), he hit it with one out, not two, and it helped the Giants overcome a three-run ninth-inning deficit — impressive but not in the same league as surmounting a 29-point disadvantage. What’s more, it was a pop fly that traveled just 315 feet — dramatic for sure, but not comparable to the stunning magnificence of OG’s play.
Tom Brady’s Patriots overcame a second-half 28-3 deficit to win the 2017 Super Bowl: the greatest comeback ever to win the championship. But it lacked an iconic last second, score-flipping, game-winning moment.
The helmet catch — David Tyree’s unbelievable grab of Eli Manning’s desperation pass to sustain the drive that allowed the New York Giants to beat the hitherto-undefeated Patriots in the 2008 Super Bowl — was amazing, but that game involved nothing like the Knicks’ comeback.
Game Six of the 1986 World Series is also a good contender, since it was an elimination game for the Mets and they came back in the bottom of the tenth with two outs, no one on base and losing 5-3. But they won that game on a wild pitch and the famous Bill Buckner error, and it’s hard to say that a game ending on miscues should be considered the greatest game ever.
Sports fans are a disputatious lot, and I’m certain good arguments can and will be put forth for other worthy contenders that I haven’t even mentioned. But right now nothing else comes to mind. So I’m just going to say it (again): the greatest game ever played in the history of American team sports took place in New York City at Madison Square Garden, the Mecca of hoops, on June 10, 2026.
James Speyer lives in Sharon. He is very happy.
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Millerton News
Summer is here, bringing long days, local events, gardens, lake time, family visits and, for some, a chance to slow down.
What are you looking forward to this summer? Is there a place you plan to visit, a restaurant you want to try, a show or concert you hope to see, a trail you want to explore or a summer tradition you never miss?
Send your responses to social@lakevillejournal.com by Monday, June 29 at 10 a.m. or comment on Facebook or Instagram.
We’ll publish a selection in next week’s paper.
Should communities hold on to fireworks, embrace drone shows or find room for both?
“We vote drone show, but we might be a little biased.”
— Millerton’s 175th Anniversay Team
“Silent fireworks!”
— Kimberley Travis, Amenia
“I love the drones. I have pets and the noise from the fireworks scares them to where one has seizures and that’s not a pretty site to see. Also, think of the people the suffer from PTSD.”
— Jo Little, Pine Plains
“Drones also allow people to demonstrate their skills and personalize the content of the show. Less air pollution, no risk of fire or accidental injuries from fireworks. My dogs have never been comfortable with the noise of fireworks either. That’s a vote for Drones here. Happy, safe 4th everyone.”
— Trina Rosas
“There’s nothing like fireworks. Maybe Gen Z likes drones more because technology is all they’ve known.”
— Joanna Zammiello, Poughkeepsie
Olivia Montoya
MILLERTON — Marilyn Josephine Kay (Masterson), 93, whose life was characterized by a quiet strength, graceful and cheerful presence, enduring athleticism and an abiding community spirit, passed away peacefully on June 11, 2026, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A long-time resident of Millerton, New York with her late husband and local veterinarian Kent Kay, DVM, Marilyn spent her final years surrounded by the love and care of her Minnesota family.
Born Feb.19, 1933, in New York City, Marilyn was the youngest of four daughters. Raised by a single mother, Marilyn learned early on the values of independence and determination—traits that would define her entire life. She excelled academically and athletically, attending Hunter College and channeling her passion for movement into work as a physical education teacher.
Marilyn’s life took a beautiful turn when she married her husband, Kent Kay, DVM, a young man she had grown up with in New York City. Together, they made the bold choice to leave the city for a quieter life in upstate New York. Settling in the small town of Millerton, they built a vibrant, full life together, including a successful small town veterinary practice serving the surrounding dairy farms. Kent attended to the animals while Marilyn served as office manager and ran the business, all while balancing raising four sons. The boys worked in the clinic at an early age, growing up in a lively household surrounded by animals, both large (Sweetheart, a St. Bernard) and small (Charlie, a stray chihuahua), that became fast friends.
Marilyn also believed in showing up for her community. She and Kent were pillars of their historic local church, St. John in the Wilderness in Copake Falls, New York. Whether she was lending her voice to the choir, serving on the vestry, or helping with church operations, Marilyn’s faith was always paired with action.
A PE teacher at heart until the very end, Marilyn was happiest when she was moving. She shared her love of the water by teaching swimming and lifesaving. She was an accomplished skier, an avid walker in her later years, and a fierce, competitive tennis player who could still command a court in her 80s. Additionally, according to family lore, she was a champion napper and could catch a few winks when needed, anytime and anywhere, including the New York subway where she never missed her stop.
Marilyn was predeceased by her husband of 68 years, Kent, and her son Timothy. She is survived by sons Christopher Kay of New York, New York, Eugene (Jane) Kay of Plymouth, Minnesota, and Clinton Kay of Boulder, Colorado; daughter-in-law Melanie Kay of Millerton, wife of her late son Timothy. Grandchildren include Emily, Jessie, Alexander, Alycia, Gabrielle and Genevieve Kay, and a great-grandson, Atlas.
Arrangements are being made by Peck & Peck, Copake, N.Y. A memorial service is planned for the fall in Copake Falls, N.Y. Memorials may be given to Church of St. John in the Wilderness, P.O. Box 180, Copake Falls, N.Y. 12517, or to the Animal Humane Society.
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