schuyler’s city

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Throughout its history, many travelers have visited the city of Albany, and have left written descriptions of their impressions. The city that was known to Schuyler in 1765 was visited that same year by Lord Adam Gordon, a somewhat biased Englishman who was not very impressed with what he saw:

"There is an old Stone Fort at Albany and a Stockade, also a large Hospital, Barracks and Store houses for a considerable Number of Men, but being built of Wood, and in a hurry, they are like every other Publick Work in America, - going fast to ruin ... The Town itself is dull and ill built, having the Gavel (gable) end of their houses all to the Streets, which are dirty and crooked, and confined by the rising grounds, close behind the Town."

For generations of residents, however, the city contained all the necessary requirements for civic, commercial, religious, and social life. Besides the military structures mentioned above by Lord Gordon (built by British soldiers garrisoned in the city), there were many public buildings erected by the citizens, built with care and from durable stone: a three-story Stadt Huys (city hall), an Anglican and large Reformed Dutch Church located in the middle of the main intersection, and a courthouse. Houses were small, one or two-storied structures, with shaded stoeps(porches) for sitting, and surrounded by trees and kitchen gardens. Most necessities required for a comfortable life would have been accessible within a few streets.

Walking about, Schuyler would have strolled along the two busy main roads (being careful to avoid livestock and horse waste), passing the active market, numerous artisan shops, and the stepped-gabled homes of his friends. Perhaps he would have paused at one of the many public houses or taverns available throughout the city. Had he continued north for a mile beyond what remained of the stockade, he would have passed through a thinly populated, bucolic landscape until reaching the Patroon's new manor house.

But the "ill built" and provincial nature of the city was slowly changing. During 1765, Schuyler would have witnessed the beginning of a transformation - expansion, improved roads, new buildings, riverfront development and, perhaps even more importantly, an influx of newcomers who altered Albany's Dutch culture and character. For adaptable young men of the time, future possibilities must have seemed boundless.

Today, many of Albany's streets still reflect the original settlement pattern of 1765, but little else from the mid-18th- century remains. As with all cities, pasture has been overtaken by development, roads enlarged and paved to accommodate modern transportation, and multi-story buildings rest on the foundations of the old Dutch-style houses. It's difficult to imagine hunting wild geese along the river banks, racing sledges across the frozen Hudson, worshipping in Dutch, or even hearing a cock crow on State Street, yet this is the city that once existed and was known intimately by Schuyler. To evoke a small sense of that past, you are invited to place yourself on the streets of modern Albany, listen closely, and imagine what once was.

audio files

#5 Schuyler’s City

#6 English Influence on the City

#7 Old Schuyler House

#8 Dutch Reformed Church

#9 The Marketplace

#10 Friendship