Troy is the sum of its parts — Part 2
Prior to his death in 1809, at age 50, Jacob D. Vanderheyden laid out a roughly rectangular area of lots beginning on the North side of present North Street, at that time the end of the village of Troy, and running north to around present day Smith Avenue.
The West line ran to the Hudson River and ran as far east as modern 6th Avenue. He called this the Village of Middleburgh.
Since the land encompassed much of the land around the Piscawen Kill, Jacob D. may have purchased a portion of his land from Jacob I. since Jacob I’s original land grant led up to the stream. This land south of the Piscawen Kill was known as Passquasick by the Native American who lived there prior to European settlement.
In John Woodworth’s “Reminiscences of Troy, from Its Settlement in 1790 to 1807: With Remarks on Its Commerce, Enterprise, Improvements, State of Political Parties, and Sketches of Individual Character; Written at the Request of Several Gentlemen of Troy,” published in 1860, he recalls that natives “still had wigwams a few Rods north of the house [Vanderheyden’s], at the Time it was built.”
Street names for this new village were Store Street (no longer exists; replaced by hydraulic canal) close to the River bank, and presumably for commercial buildings.
President Street followed which is still there. Canal Street is now Ingalls Avenue. Mount Street is now River Street. Rear Street became Vale Avenue and is now Sixth Avenue. North Fourth Street became 7th Avenue. Vanderheyden never lived to see his Middleburgh and local citizens did not always refer it to as Middleburgh.
The area around Middleburgh and north to Lansingburgh (to 109th Street) was known as Batestown. However the northern boundaries of Batestown seems to have moved several times as Troy and Lansingburgh claimed parts of it and Middleburgh was often referred to as Batestown so it is a bit nebulous on its original borders.
We know the boundaries went up as far as present day Oakwood Avenue since Titus Eddy who had his mansion there (now low income housing) was listed as living in Batestown. Eddy by the way invented the secret ink formula used in printing American currency.
Batestown had been part of the Town of Lansingburgh from 1807 to 1836 and often Batestown was described in documents as the northern half of Middleburgh. This was due to the fact that the southern boundary of the Lansingburgh Township came down as far as Mid
dleburgh Street. In 1838 changes in the bounds of the Town by the legislature gave a portion to the City of Troy.
Considering the animosity between citizens of Lansingburgh and Troy, Batestown acted as sort of a buffer state. It was often called North Troy (commonly after 1876), or as the unaffectionate “the Prairie.”
While Lansingburgh was often referred to as “the Garden.”
Batestown was sort of a wild west — no man’s land — anything goes area that separated Troy from the Burgh. However a number of important things happened there.
We all love the Schatigcoke Fair right? Well it started in Batestown in 1841 and was held there until 1859. The Agricultural Society took a seven year lease on five acres.
They erected buildings and fences beginning on the North side of present Glen Avenue extending east past 7th Avenue to the railroad tracks.
Batestown was mentioned by Horatio Gates Spafford in his Gazetteer of the State of New York published in 1824.
“I suppose I must also mention Batestown, for it has a tavern, and if I mistake not, a few shops, quite as near half way between Troy and Lansingburgh, as is the ‘Half-wayHouse,’ between Troy and Albany.”
Life in Batestown seems to revolve around the tavern known as the Bull’s Head Hotel built by Otis Bates. Batestown was named for him. Otis also owned an iron works on the riverbank at the end of Glen Avenue. Otis also owned a large nail factory on the same side of Glen Avenue near a brook that ran near there.
The Bull’s Head was located on 862 River Street, the Southeast corner of present River Street and Glen Avenue (then called Turner’s Lane). It had the tavern and three brick buildings south of it and horse sheds in the back. Through the years other owners kept the Bull’s Head alive. Barent Adams, or “Barney” ran the inn for many years and it was known as Barney’s Adams Place or “Stand.” In 1838 Simon Martindale petitioned the city excise committee for a license to run the “Barent Adams Stand.”
Barney put it up for sale or rent in 1842. Barney died in 1866. His funeral was held at the Bull’s Head owned then by his son-inlaw John A. Weir.
More on Batestown in the next column.