The New World, and especially New York, meant unparalleled opportunity
for people in the 1600s with visions of expansion, colonization, and
profit. Buying land from the Mohican tribe, the Dutch took control of
much of the modern Empire State in the early part of this country's
development. Under the patroonship of Kilian van Rensselaer, many
pioneer farmers settled in the fertile land along the Hudson River. With
each passing year, the number of Upstate settlers increased, and two
villages emerged: Lansingburgh and Vanderheyden, soon to become Troy.
Troy:
A Collar City History chronicles the transformation of the city from an
untamed wilderness inhabited by the early Mohican tribe into a vibrant,
modern industrial metropolis. Troy's story is truly a complex drama,
supported by a host of entrepreneurs, inventors, immigrant workers,
labor leaders, scientists, athletes, and artists, against a changing
backdrop of war, depression, industrial revolution, and prosperity. The
city's most significant characters come alive within these pages, such
as "Uncle Sam" Wilson, an early-nineteenth-century meat packager who
served as the model for this nation's patriotic icon; Amos Eaton, the
"father of geology" and founder of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute;
Emma Willard, a pioneer in the field of female education; and Kate
Mullaney, a leader in local female unionization. This unique volume
explores the old cobblestone streets, the historic downtown district,
and the many factories producing iron, stoves, paper boats, bells, and
of course, detachable shirt collars.
