Phase 3 Archeological Data Retrieval, Champlain Hudson Power Express, CHPE Site 4 - Gansevoort, 09114.000064, WA048, CP Rail- Segments 4 & 5, Package 3, Gansevoort, Town of Northumberland, Saratoga County, New York. HAA 4268-PH3, SHPO 09PR03910

Summary

The Phase 3 Archeological Data Retrieval for the CHPE Site 4 (09114.000064) was accomplished at the end of July 2023. The archeological work at CHPE Site 4 documented traces of the 1870 construction of a passenger depot for the Rensselaer & Saratoga Railroad, along with objects related to the use of the passenger depot, its remodeling in 1880, and its removal in 1937.

The presence of a buried cistern feature attached to the depot indicates that the railroad had an interest in providing drinking water for the people working at the depot, and for horses carrying passengers to and from the depot. The depot also originally included a platform between the station and the tracks that was removed during the 1880 remodeling, or when the second track was built (1890).

In the artifact assemblage recovered from the site there is evidence of meals from the hotel across the street, and of leisure time spent smoking tobacco. The archeological work showed the integration of the passenger depot with the village of Gansevoort was strong. The railroad and its depots in Gansevoort were an important part of the community's identity.

Keywords

Temporal Coverage

Calendar Date: 1870 to 1937 (CE)

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Walter Wheeler

Contributor(s): Brian Knight; Eiryn Sheades; David Arbogast

Principal Investigator(s): Matthew Kirk

Project Director(s): Matthew Lesniak

Record Identifiers

New York Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation Project Review Number(s): 09114.000064

Notes

General Note: The CHPE Site 4 Phase 3 Archeological Data Retrieval report is filed in tDar as part of the NYSHPO-approved, Public Education plan for the data retrieval.

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