This is a brief history of Irish construction employment in NYS and along the Hudson River corridor, which may direct you to the 1830 and 1840 US Census records. Erie Canal construction, 1817-1825, beginning in Rome, NY, employed Irish immigrant muscle, usually by subcontractors, which makes documenting your ancestor improbable. In addition, farmers along the route were responsible for creating sections of the canal. The majesty of this project was connecting goods from NYC to Buffalo, NY, and then out West. The original, masonry Croton Dam was constructed 1837-1842, to bring clean water into NYC. Our Irish, as physical donkeys, were often employed by subcontractors. The brickyards and some coal mines, were located in Westchester County, from north to south: Peekskill, Verplanck's Point, Buchanan, Montrose, Crugers, Croton and Ossining [formerly Sing Sing]. Employees lived in local boarding houses, small hotels, homes, and sometimes, as with Fleischmann's Distillery in Peekskill, NY (began 1870), employees lived on company grounds, which Fleischmann's did into the 1950s. I've researched in Westchester County for clients. Verplanck/Verplanck's Point and Buchanan, NY, border each other. Westchester County in on the northern border of NYC...Bronx County today. Verplanck is shaped like a protruding nose, from the east side of the Hudson River. It had several competitively owned brickmaking yards, and less coal mines. I found hand-drying brick ovens and decrepit pier posts, deep into the brush, along the Hudson. Directly across the Hudson River in Rockland County, NY, Haverstraw & Stony Point are historically known for brickmaking. Haverstraw now has a Brick Museum. There were personal and business interactions between Haverstraw and Verplanck's Point, via boats. If you can't locate an ancestor in one county, check out the other. Bricks from both sides of the Hudson River were shipped by barge into NYC to create many edifices in NYC, besides homes near the brickyards. We're talking as early as the 1840 US census. We are also talking also about documented "Save Ireland" fund raising meetings, along both sides of the Hudson, via the then Hudson River Railroad (then under construction) from NYC up Newburgh, NY, in the latter 1840s. Representatives from NYC were welcomed by local politicians, intentionally to raise funds from Irish workers. Contributors were sought on pay days. Often their names were published in NYC newspapers. This fund raising effort involved New York, Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess, Rockland, and Orange counties. Interesting how our Irish stayed attached on both sides of the Atlantic. Barb Metro NYC Researcher @7-31-2012

Would this construction along the Hudson River have gone as far north as Columbia County? I have Irish ancestors there and have no idea what they did for a living, although I know that one son died by being run over by a cart in the mid-1800's. Sounds like it could have been a construction accident. Bill C. -------------------------------------------------- From: <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, July 31, 2012 3:27 PM To: <[email protected]>; <[email protected]>; <[email protected]>; <[email protected]> Subject: [NYWESTCH] YES, IRISH DID APPLY! > This is a brief history of Irish construction employment in NYS and along > the Hudson River corridor, which may direct you to the 1830 and 1840 US > Census records. > > Erie Canal construction, 1817-1825, beginning in Rome, NY, employed Irish > immigrant muscle, usually by subcontractors, which makes documenting your > ancestor improbable. In addition, farmers along the route were > responsible for > creating sections of the canal. The majesty of this project was connecting > goods from NYC to Buffalo, NY, and then out West. > > The original, masonry Croton Dam was constructed 1837-1842, to bring clean > water into NYC. Our Irish, as physical donkeys, were often employed by > subcontractors. > > The brickyards and some coal mines, were located in Westchester County, > from north to south: Peekskill, Verplanck's Point, Buchanan, Montrose, > Crugers, > Croton and Ossining [formerly Sing Sing]. > > Employees lived in local boarding houses, small hotels, homes, and > sometimes, as with Fleischmann's Distillery in Peekskill, NY (began 1870), > employees > lived on company grounds, which Fleischmann's did into the 1950s. > > I've researched in Westchester County for clients. Verplanck/Verplanck's > Point and Buchanan, NY, border each other. Westchester County in on the > northern border of NYC...Bronx County today. > > Verplanck is shaped like a protruding nose, from the east side of the > Hudson River. > It had several competitively owned brickmaking yards, and less coal mines. > I found hand-drying brick ovens and decrepit pier posts, deep into the > brush, along the Hudson. > > Directly across the Hudson River in Rockland County, NY, Haverstraw & > Stony > Point are historically known for brickmaking. Haverstraw now has a Brick > Museum. There were personal and business interactions between Haverstraw > and > Verplanck's Point, via boats. If you can't locate an ancestor in one > county, > check out the other. > > Bricks from both sides of the Hudson River were shipped by barge into NYC > to create many edifices in NYC, besides homes near the brickyards. We're > talking as early as the 1840 US census. > > We are also talking also about documented "Save Ireland" fund raising > meetings, along both sides of the Hudson, via the then Hudson River > Railroad > (then under construction) from NYC up Newburgh, NY, in the latter 1840s. > Representatives from NYC were welcomed by local politicians, intentionally > to raise > funds from Irish workers. Contributors were sought on pay days. Often > their > names were published in NYC newspapers. > > This fund raising effort involved New York, Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess, > Rockland, and Orange counties. > > Interesting how our Irish stayed attached on both sides of the Atlantic. > > Barb > Metro NYC Researcher > @7-31-2012 > *************************************** > Have you checked out the Westchester County GenWeb site yet? > http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nywestch/ > *************************************** > Browse or Search the Mailing List Archives of postings sent to this list > over the years. Visit > http://lists.rootsweb.ancestry.com/index/usa/NY/westchester.html#NYWESTCH > *************************************** > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >