Rensselaer’s “North End” includes these five historic neighborhoods along upper Washington Ave. Originally part of the East Manor of Rensselaerswyck, this land was in high demand during the building boom of the early 1900’s. Our “park district” is enclosed by the wooded ravine of the Black Creek to the north, the Quackendary Kill hollow to the south, the ridge at the Rock Cut to the east, and I-90 to the west.
Prior to the turn of the last century, this area was part of North Greenbush. The city of Rensselaer had not yet been formed from Bath-on-the-Hudson, East Albany, and Greenbush. The
colonial-era turnpike that is now Washington Ave. brought farm wagons and stage coaches through farmlands, pine forests, and the park-like setting of the East Manor grounds.
I've been researching the history of these neighborhoods, so the next few weeks of posts will be more or less as follows:
This will be a multi-week series of posts. Don't want to wait? You can be an early proof-reader, and
download a free brochure here. I live in this neighborhood, but I didn't grow up in Rensselaer, so I've compiled this information mostly from old maps and property titles in the County Clerk's office, as well as vintage books and newspapers online. If you have any corrections to my information, please email me at
bathonhudson@gmail.com, so I can update the booklet. If you have any additional stories to share about these neighborhoods, please post a comment.
Antique photos of Rensselaer's neighborhoods are welcome at the
Rensselaer NY Facebook Page.
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