Posted in Casperkill on Jun 9th, 2010 No Comments »
Patsy Cicala, an environmental educator, prepares to test the dissolved oxygen content at Sunset Lake during the 1997 sewage spill. The test yielded a zero reading, meaning that no fish could have survived in the water. After speaking with Vassar alumni about the changes in Sunset Lake I became curious about the history of fish […]
Posted in Casperkill on Jun 7th, 2010 No Comments »
A view of the outdoor ampitheatre in the 1930s. Sunset Lake can be seen in the background, through the Canadian hemlocks and Norway spruces that form the backdrop to the theatre space. While talking with alumnae this weekend it was always fascinating to hear how much Sunset Lake has changed over time, but it was […]
Posted in Casperkill, Fonteynkill on Jun 7th, 2010 No Comments »
On May 16, 1928, the Miscellany News, Vassar’s student-run newspaper, featured on its cover an 1880’s print of Vassar Lake, then known as Mill Cove Lake. The print had been found in a bookshop in New York City and submitted to the newspaper for its historical value. Subtitled “Old Print Recalls Former Balmy Days When […]
Posted in Casperkill on Jun 4th, 2010 1 Comment »
Daffodils on Sunset Hill, sometimes referred to as “Daffodil Hill” This weekend is reunion weekend at Vassar College so the Oral History Team has been using this opportunity to talk to alumnae and alumni about the Casperkill Watershed. Not surprisingly, Vassar graduates are most familiar with the sections of the Casperkill and Fonteynkill that flow […]
Posted in Casperkill on Jun 3rd, 2010 No Comments »
This 1867 map shows two brickyard sites to the west of the Casperkill At the beginning of the 20th century, brickmaking was the dominant industry along the Hudson River. The extraordinary growth of New York City between 1880 and 1920 guaranteed a steady demand for Hudson Valley bricks, while the uniform clay banks running from […]
Posted in Casperkill, Fonteynkill on Jun 3rd, 2010 No Comments »
The following passages are from the glossary of the 1924 book Poughkeepsie: The Origin and Meaning of the Word by Helen Wilkinson Reynolds: Kil “In the Netherlands in the seventeenth century the word kil was used to designate narrow connecting water-channels. In the Dutch settlements in America it was applied to running streams and was […]
Posted in Casperkill, Fonteynkill on Jun 3rd, 2010 No Comments »
In 1876, a Historical Sketch of Vassar College was prepared “in compliance with an invitation from the Commission of the Bureau of Education, representing the Department of the Interior in matters relating to the National Centennial.” This early document highlights the centrality of the Casperkill Creek to the value (and landscape design) of the land […]
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