A BRIEF HISTORY AND DESCRIPTION of Copake
COPAKE
The following information is from the Preface of the Town Code.
THE NAME "COPAKE" comes from the Indian word meaning "Snake Pond."
The original settlers were Indians who came into the area looking for the "two-way" river which we now call the Hudson River. They settled along both sides of the river, then branched out. Tom's hill, on upper Main Street, was named after an Indian.
There is very little written about the early white settlers, but history tells us that in 1753, a Dutch sailing vessel came to the New World and men by the names of Rhoda, Dinehart, Decker, Miller and Haner were among the first settlers in Copake.
Peter Rhoda settled in the area of Upper and Lower Rhoda Lakes, and the Dineharts took property west of the hamlet where his relatives, the Langdons, still work the family farm. A bridge near this farm on Route 7 is still known as the "Dinehart Bridge." The Robinsons settled at Robinson Pond at what is now Taconic Shores. Others settled in various areas of the town.
The Town of Copake contains the hamlets of Copake, Copake Falls, West Copake, Craryville and Copake Lake.
Originally called the "Town of Granger," it was split up in 1824 and the western half became the Town of Taghkanic and the eastern part became the Town of Copake.
The first town meeting was also held in 1824 in the inn of Catherine Williams on the corner which has been called "dead man's corner Folgers corner," and now is the residence of the Raycraft family. A marker has been dedicated and stands on this location. The original minute books from this meeting have been preserved and are now maintained by the Copake Town Board and kept in a safe deposit box in the Copake Key Bank.
At the time, with a population of 200 people, Copake hamlet consisted of two hotels, three stores, two saloons, three blacksmith shops, two shoe repair shops, two wagon shops and the Methodist Church with a congregation of eight members.
West Copake, which was known as "Anderson's Corners," had one store, two blacksmith shops and two wagon shops.
In 1870, Peter Crary obtained a large hotel from Peter Bain, thus the name became Craryville. In 1871, the railroad was constructed through that area.
Copake Falls, called "Copake Station," was known for its iron ore beds, and the first ore furnace was constructed in 1845. Their supplies were carried over land, by horses, to the Hudson River until the Harlem Railroad was built in 1852. Copake Falls is also well known for its Bash Bish Falls. The Taconic Wayside Inn was built in the mid-1800's after a former inn burned. St. John's in the Wilderness Episcopal Church was formed in 1850 with six members.
Copake Lake is well-known for its large lake and is mostly a summer community and recreation area where people from the city come to relax and spend their vacations or the whole summer in some cases.
We were mostly a farming community, in all areas, because of all of the open fertile land.
The town today has changed greatly from those days of the first settlers. We saw many beautiful farms, cars and trucks, gas stations and car repair shops, farm implement dealers, a theater, paved roads, many new and modern houses and more churches come into being. Today many of these things have vanished. With the railroad and many of the farms gone, other businesses have suffered greatly.
The Town of Copake has a governing body consisting of a Supervisor, four Councilmen and a Town Clerk. Also, a Highway Superintendent (and a road crew), three Assessors who determine the value of your land to be taxed (to build roads and run the town and the fire companies and finance the streetlights). A Planning and Zoning Board are also in place to help have a more balanced environment. The above people, with the exception of the road crew and the Planning and Zoning Boards, are elected by the town people at a public election.
Most historical records are kept at the home of the Town Historian, the modern records with the Town Clerk and some records at the museum, in a former Methodist Church, in Copake Falls.
Most any Board member, the Historian or the Clerk will be very glad to assist any student or teacher, but we have no designated speakers.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LOCATION AND SIZE
THE TOWN OF COPAKE is located in the southeastern corner of Columbia County, New York. It 's eastern side abuts the state line of Massachusetts. Copake has diverse topography ranging from the Berkshire Mountains on the east (most of which are part of the Taconic State Park) to the plateau southeast of Robinson Pond which includes the hamlet of Copake.
A major portion of the Taconic State Park contains slopes of over 15%. Steep slopes are also scattered throughout most other sections of the Town. A major exception is the formerly mentioned plateau southeast of Robinson Pond which includes the hamlet of Copake and also extends north to include the hamlet of Copake Falls. Another exception is located in the northwest corner of the Town. This area generally located between the Taghkanic Creek and Route 23 is of relatively gentle slopes. It contains the hamlet of Craryville.
The total area of the Town is 41.5 square miles of which approximately 11.7 square miles, or 7,500 acres, are devoted to agriculture. Dairy farming was once the primary type of agriculture in the Town and still may be but farming practices have changed over the last few years.
COPAKE IRON WORKS
COPAKE FALLS, NEW YORK
THE FURNACE at the Copake Iron Works, the ruins of which can be seen in the photograph to the right, was constructed in 1845 by Lemuel Pomeroy and his sons. Lemuel was from Pittsfield, Massachusetts. The remains of this furnace are now part of the Taconic State Park and can be found adjacent to the park managers home near the bottom of High Valley Road.
Four critical ingrediants were needed to establish an iron works in the mid eighteen-hundreds, all were abundantly available at this site in Copake Falls. Quality iron ore, limestone for flux, an abundant source of hardwood for charcoal, and sufficient water power to drive the bellows for the furnace. The Iron Works were located on the Bash Bish Creek, which supplied the power for the furnace, and later the forge that was developed. There were extensive beds of first quality iron ore surrounding it. Some of the best, but cold, swimming in the area is at the "Ore Pit' in the Taconic State Park. The limestone came from a quarry, not far distant, in what is now the hamlet of Copake. The hardwood was harvested in the mountains above the iron works at High Valley Farm and one can still see evidence of the "charcoal pits" where the wood was converted into charcoal.
The miners, who supplied the iron ore for the furnace, originally lived in crude dwellings, many of which were made of rough bark, and contained no more than one room. It is reported that the maximum wage was 70 cents a day at that time. It is also reported that the iron works manufactured about 2,500 tons of blast iron each year. The iron was used to manufacture car wheels. Later axles, gun barrels, plowshares and bar iron were made.
In 1862 the iron works was sold to Frederick Miles.
