Photolearningism

I've continued to research the Livingston family, as they have a long, intricate history within the US. Unfortunately, outside of Locust Grove and the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery, it seems that a good bit of driving would be necessary to visit any remaining locations pertaining to the "Lords of the Livingston Manor", as they were so deemed when settling here in America. Some day, I'll venture further out (The next closest location I could visit is Clermont in Germantown, NY), but for now, I'm doing my best to keep trips within twenty minutes, to ensure my adventures don't get in the way of seeing my family. Almost a Hospital I changed venues and decided upon Vassar College this morning. I researched the school history to get my bearings and began to learn of Matthew Vassar, a self-taught gentleman who made a fortune as a brewer. I learned that as he advanced in years, he wished to leave a legacy behind. He never married, and had no heirs to leave his fortun...

I returned to the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery today, focused on searching for former Chief Justice Smith Thompson's residence. To learn the known background, please refer to my previous post ( Life Around the Livingstons ). Same as last weekend, I found a parking space around the mausoleum and worked my way across the grounds, searching for clues (I even pulled up the Google satellite view on my iPhone to locate streams). Oddly, nothing obvious appeared. Undeterred, I pressed on through snow and ice until I reached a corner, right up against the railway system and the Hudson River. I continued forward, surmising that I should stumble on it, as the cemetery is largely elevated, indicating that a stream would have to cross under the train tracks into the Hudson. Before too long, the sound of running water became clear, and I found a very likely candidate for the Thompson residence. Interestingly, it appears that it is still an occupied home, on cemetery grounds (Smoke was puffing for...

Next to the Farm My previous adventure covered the history of Locust Grove ( Once a Farm ), and I was curious to explore just how far back the story stemmed. Even before the sale of the Livingston farm into plots, another partial owner comes into play by the name of Smith Thompson (1768-1843), who had purchased 133 acres from the Mitchell family, who later married into the Livingstons (Hence, "Livingston Farm" as it is remembered). Smith was a Associate Justice, Chief Justice (Under President Monroe), and husband of Sarah Livingston (Of the same Livingston Farm). His land eventually became part of the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery, after his passing (Ref -  http://www.henrylivingston.com/bios/smiththompson.htm ). Based on this, my new quest has begun! Smith Thompson I visited the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery today, despite the rain, in the hopes of beginning to search for any remains of his estate. I know that he was buried on the same land, which would indicate tha...

The Elusive Trail I've been alluding to the Dutchess Rail Trail again and again, hoping to dig into what it was. It's oddly a subject minimally documented, and almost avoided. A bit of research revealed that the trail is also referred to as the Hudson Valley Rail Trail (HVRT), with intentions of local government and groups to continually expand it's length in the years to come. A very brief history is provided on the HVRT web site, noting that at least part of the current trail was in fact, a railroad line for a time. It fell out of use in the 1970's, due to a fire on a the Poughkeepsie Bridge (Ref -  http://hudsonvalleyrailtrail.net/about.php ). As I like to do, I cross checked the information and came upon a Wikipedia article, corroborating this information, but also adding some interesting details, which I haven't been able to to locate elsewhere. Here's a quote (Ref -  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hudson_Valley_Rail_Trail ): "The Hudson Valley Rail ...