Mileage between sites is bracketed, in bold and given in miles and tenths of miles, e.g. (2.6) for two and six tenths, or (0.1) for one tenth of a mile. The exception to this rule is the mileage for the full extent of SIDE TRIPS, which is neither bracketed nor bolded.

Municipalities are listed by letters in the guide and on markers; sites and historic areas are identified by numbers.

Sites visible from the Routes are in caps within the text.

Side Trips and other Off Route attractions are suggested at points marked by an asterisk (*) and italics. Directions to these sites are at the end of each tour. Because basic tours take several hours each, we suggest return visits to explore these additional sites. Dutchess County Farm Produce Maps and winery brochures are available at Tourism Information Centers county-wide.

Telephone numbers in Dutchess County are primarily in the 845 area code, with the exception of Millerton and Pine Plains, where some numbers are in the 518 area. Check the telephone directory for assistance.

Where the map indicates "Start" set your trip meter at "0" and begin. (Note that individual trip meters may vary slightly from mileage indicated.)

<---------------- TOUR 5 BEGINS HERE ---------------->

(45 Miles, 2.5 Hours) Start
Tour 5 begins on Rt. 9, north of City of Poughkeepsie at the Main Gate of Marist College, (I) of Rt. 9 and Fulton St. Head south on Rt. 9.

1 MARIST COLLEGE (Main gate). Visitors welcome to grounds, galleries, and public programs. The main campus entrance is near the LOWELL THOMAS COMMUNICATIONS CENTER (R) (1987) and is dedicated to broadcasting pioneer Lowell Thomas. Two tiny VICTORIAN BRACKETED STONE AND BRICK GATEHOUSES (R) from the early 20th c. nestle among newer buildings (R). Students pursue business and liberal arts studies. Marist’s growing reputation in NCAA Division I college sports is evidenced in the modern MC CANN RECREATION CENTER (R) (1977) overlooking the Hudson, beyond the football field. Call 845/575-3000 for (?).

COSIMO’S TRATTORIA & RESTAURANT POUGHKEEPSIE, www.CosimosRestaurantGroup.com, 845/485-7172. Take time from the tour and enjoy new world Italian cuisine, wood-fired pizza, signature pastas, delicious meats, and fresh fish. Over 130 choices of wines. Desserts made on premise.

Drive 0.6 mile and turn right on Water St. Drive 0.2 mile and go straight at stop sign. Turn right across bridge and make left. Drive 0.2 mile to Mid-Hudson Children’s Museum.

2 POUGHKEEPSIE RAILROAD BRIDGE (straight ahead). Proposed by entrepreneur Harvey Eastman to connect Pennsylvania coal with New England, it was the first bridge to span the Hudson between NYC and Albany. Measuring more than 1 mile long and 212 feet high, it is no longer in use since a fire in 1974.

3 MID-HUDSON CHILDREN’S MUSEUM (R). Provides hands-on experience with permanent and rotating exhibits that combine science and art for children up to age 12. Call 845/471-0589 for (?).

4 OLD PIANO FACTORY (L) (NR). A historic wedge-shaped brick building with panoramic views of the Hudson River. The building is one of Poughkeepsie’s few remaining examples of 19th c. industrial architecture.

Drive 0.1 mile.

5 SCENIC VIEWS OF THE HUDSON RIVER AND WARYAS PARK (R). This was formerly a neighborhood of 19th c. immigrant, blue-collar workers and shopkeepers, from England, Ireland and Germany. WARYAS PARK (R) is named for the late Victor C. Waryas, a popular city mayor. Playground, picnic area, boat launching. Kaal Rock Park, under the FDR MID-HUDSON BRIDGE, comes from the Dutch, “Caul Rugh,” the name of a high lookout point near the bridge where traders once watched for sloops. Riverside parking, trails, picnic benches.

6 FDR MID-HUDSON BRIDGE (R). A steel suspension bridge built during the administration of Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt. Opened August 1930, it marked the end of ferries and the beginning of the NYS Bridge Authority.

7 POUGHKEEPSIE RAILROAD STATION (L) (NR). Erected in 1918 and modeled after NYC’s Grand Central Station, it had fallen into disrepair and disuse in the 1960s. Carefully restored, it provides a thriving mode of transportation for Metro-North RR and Amtrak.

Drive 0.1 mile to Main St. Turn left and drive 0.4 mile to Cunneen-Hackett Cultural Center

8 CUNNEEN-HACKETT CULTURAL CENTER (L). Victorian buildings host dance, music, drama and lectures; art gallery promotes local artists. Call 845/486-4571 for (?).

Drive 0.3 mile to Academy St. Turn right on Academy St. and drive 0.1 mile to Cannon St. Turn right on Cannon St. Park your car and walk this part of the tour.

PARKING FOR CITY SITES WALKING TOUR (L) or (R) of the commercial district: shops, restaurant, hotel and sites in bold or caps below.

9 BARDAVON 1869 OPERA HOUSE (R). The oldest operating theater in New York State and the 12th-oldest in the country showcases performances by the Hudson Valley Philharmonic as well as a spectrum of main stage shows that entertain families and young people.

From the Bardavon cross Market St. and 1 block north is the DUTCHESS COUNTY COURTHOUSE. From the DUTCHESS COUNTY COURTHOUSE, continue north to the UNITED STATES POST OFFICE. Roosevelt personally laid the cornerstone on October 13, 1937. This National Historic Landmark has five distinctive murals of historic occasions in local, state and national history, including the Ratification of the United States Constitution by New York. Diagonally across the street on the east side of Market St. is the POUGHKEEPSIE JOURNAL, the third oldest newspaper in the nation, founded 1785. The building that currently houses the newspaper was built in 1943 after much consultation with Franklin D. Roosevelt on the Dutch fieldstone architecture.

10 UNION STREET HISTORIC DISTRICT. To visit this area, turn left from the Courthouse and walk down Main St. to the crossing light with Rts. 44/55 West. Cross at the light and turn left, walking south one block to Union St. This was formerly a neighborhood of 19th c. immigrant, blue-collar workers and shopkeepers from Europe. Carefully restored, vernacular residences date from the late 18th to mid-19th c.

Return to car. Drive 0.2 mile to Market St. Turn right on Market St. Drive 0.1 mile to Main St. Turn left on Main St. and drive 0.5 mile to Rt. 9 entrance ramp. Turn left on ramp to Rt. 9 South. Drive 1.2 mile to South Ave. exit. Exit at South Ave. Drive 0.1 mile to stop sign. Continue straight at stop sign and drive 0.4 mile to (Y) with Rt. 9. Drive 0.7 mile to Locust Grove.

11 POUGHKEEPSIE RURAL CEMETERY (R). In 1852, Matthew Vassar and a select committee chose the former Smith Thompson farm “Rust Plaets” (Dutch for resting place), near the old Livingston family plot, as a cemetery site. Beautiful landscaped grounds and outbuildings reflect rural cemetery movement aesthetics that were dedicated November 2, 1853. Tradition holds the marshy area east of the cemetery to be “the little resting place” that named Poughkeepsie. Grounds open daily. Please respect cemetery rules.

12 LOCUST GROVE, SAMUEL MORSE HISTORIC SITE (R) (NR). In 1847 Samuel F. B. Morse, portrait painter and inventor of the telegraph, purchased the Henry Livingston Jr. estate. Architect Alexander Jackson Davis remodeled the house as a Tuscan Villa while Morse developed the gardens in Andrew Downing’s style. In 1975 owner Annette Young left the estate as a public historic site and nature sanctuary. Art, furniture, Morse/Young memorabilia collections, special programs. Tours. Call 845/454-4500 for (?).

Drive 1.5 miles to IBM Rd., CR 48. Turn right on CR 48 at light.

13 FORMER KASPARUS WESTERVELT HOUSE, NOW CAPPUCINO’S BY COPPOLA’S (L). Built ca. 1744 as a Dutch farmhouse, it has served as a residence, inn and restaurant at the busy intersection of the former Post Rd. and former Milton ferry path.

Drive 0.2 mile to light; turn right and follow curve as road becomes NY 113, Spackenkill Rd. Drive 2.6 miles to Boardman Rd.

14 POUGHKEEPSIE IBM PLANT BUILDING 002 (L). Shortly before WWII, Frederick Hart began negotiating with Thomas Watson, future CEO of IBM, to locate property for a factory. In 1941, IBM forerunner, the Munitions Manufacturing Co., settled into the former Delapenha “pickle factory.” In 1942, came a merger with IBM. In 1947, when constructed, Building 002 was the area’s largest manufacturing plant.

15 OAKWOOD SCHOOL (R) is a co-educational secondary school run by the New York Yearly Meeting of Friends. Begun as a Quaker school in Millbrook in 1796, it was incorporated as Oakwood Seminary in 1876 and has been at this site since 1920.

16 JOSEPH WESTERVELT HOUSE (R) (PVT). The other Westervelt home, a Pre-Revolutionary Dutch stone farmhouse, was built by Kasparus’ cousin Josephus here in the Spackenkill area. An Indian called by the Dutch “Speck” gave the place its name. “Speck zyn Kill” translates to Speck’s creek.

Turn left on Boardman Rd. Drive 1.7 miles to Rt. 376.

17 POUGHKEEPSIE DAY SCHOOL (R). New York City attorney Andrew Boardman formed the estate ca. 1870 from 14 farms. Brooklyn manufacturer Clarence Kenyon purchased it in 1909 and in 1913 hired Percival M. Lloyd to design the Mediterranean style mansion. It is now the Poughkeepsie Day School, founded in 1934 as a private day school with philosophical ties to Vassar College.

18 OUR LADY OF LOURDES HIGH SCHOOL (L). This parochial school is housed in former IBM plant buildings.

Turn left on Rt. 376. Drive 0.2 mile and follow signs to Rt. 44/55, bearing right on Raymond Ave.

19 VASSAR COLLEGE (R) (NR). Founded by Poughkeepsie brewer Matthew Vassar in the 1850s. PUBLIC PARKING is on right. BELLE SKINNER HALL OF MUSIC, built 1932, was inspired by a medieval French village. MAIN GATE, built 1905, connects FREDERICK THOMPSON MEMORIAL LIBRARY with TAYLOR HALL and the FRANCES LEHMAN LOEB ART CENTER. On the campus grounds are the CHAPEL, with Tiffany stained glass windows, and POWERHOUSE THEATRE. Visitors welcome to campus, public programs. Maps and program information available from the Press and Information Office. Call 845/437-7000 for (?).

20 ARLINGTON. During the American Revolution, Bull’s Head Tavern gave the area east of the city its first name. Considered undignified, the name was changed ca. 1900 to Arlington.

Drive 1.0 mile. Turn right on Rt. 44/55 east. Stay in right lane after turn and continue east on Rt. 55. Rt. 55 is one of the oldest east-west roads in the county. Drive 2.4 miles to Noxon Rd., CR 21. Turn right on Noxon Rd. Drive 5.1 miles.

Records showing the Noxons as officials and property owners before the American Revolution list Bartholomew Noxon as refusing to sign the “Revolutionary Pledge of Association” circulated in 1775. Noxon St. in Poughkeepsie also bears the name. THE TITUSVILLE AREA was named for Elias Titus who built a woolen mill nearby in 1828 on the site of the Phelps grist mill on the Wappinger Creek. ROCK CUT (both sides) illustrates for geology students the process of folding that took place 400 million years ago. Red and green coloration indicates the presence of oxygen when sediments were collecting.

Turn left at intersection of CR 33 and CR 21 and continue on CR 21. Drive 2.0 miles to Rt. 82.

21 FORMER J.W. STORM HOME (L) (PVT). Rambling 19th c. frame structures that grew with families were often home to prosperous farmers. Huge old sycamores stand near the banks of the Jackson Creek in the pasture (R).

22 FORMER SWADE FARM COMPLEX (R) (PVT). Remaining outbuildings express farm work. Barn shape shows Dutch influence in low-pitched roof. CORNCRIB (near house) design allowed air circulation and protected grain from dampness. Lagrangeville was developed mid-19th c. around the Central New England RR.

Turn left on Rt. 82. Drive 1.5 miles to Rt. 55. Cross Rt. 55 and drive 1.6 miles to Barmore Rd.

Rt. 82 roughly parallels the trail along which Gen. Gates marched Burgoyne’s defeated British troops to the Hudson after the Battle of Saratoga in 1777. The hamlet of Billings grew up around the intersections of Rts. 55 and 82. During the heyday of the Dutchess & Columbia RR, the Locust Farm Company bottling plant and milk stop was here.

Turn left on Barmore Rd. Drive 1.7 miles to Skidmore Rd.

23 THE TAYLOR HOUSE (R) is identified with William Moore who settled here ca. 1749. Moore’s Mills bears the name.

Barmore Rd. is a winding 18th c. farm lane, bordered by fences, orchards and pastures of former farms, now private homes. BARMORE FARM (R) began as a leashold from the Beekmans prior to the American Revolution.

24 SCENIC VIEWS. The view from Guernsey Hill includes Prospect Hill. Magnificent barns, stone fences and hug locusts are still intact. A bridge crosses Sprout Creek, a tributary of the Fishkill.

Turn left at stop sign on Skidmore Rd. Drive 0.7 mile. Turn left on Velie Rd. Drive 0.5 mile to Rt. 55 (unmarked). Turn right and drive 0.3 to Taconic Parkway north. Turn right on Taconic Parkway. Drive 1.1 miles to James Baird State Park.

Turn left into James Baird State Park. Follow internal road system through intersections to parking area, restaurant and turnaround.

25 JAMES BAIRD STATE PARK. James Baird, construction engineer who built the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. gave the lands to the State for a park in 1939. Beautiful grounds open year round; picnic areas, shelters, trails, restaurant (seasonal). Fees for golf course. Call 845/452-1489 for (?).

Return to tour route via Taconic southbound. Drive 1.1 miles to Rt. 55 west. Turn right on Rt. 55. Drive 0.8 mile to Freedom Rd., CR 47.

FREEDOM PLAINS, built ca. 1826, included blacksmith shops, tavern, general store, and post office. It was designated as town center in the 1970s.

26 FREEDOM PLAINS PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH (L) The congregation, formed in 1827, met in a barn until the lumber for the church arrived by sloop from Albany in 1828.

Turn right on Freedom Rd., CR 47. Bear right and continue on Freedom Rd., CR 47. Drive 1.7 miles to Mountain Rd.

Freedom, the original name of the town in 1821, was also given to the old road to Oswego. Farms along the route date from the 18th c. Working farms today include orchards, dairies, vegetable and feed growers.

Bear left on curve to Mountain Rd. Drive 0.4 mile to Overlook Rd. CR 46. Turn left on Overlook Rd., CR 46. Drive 2.9 miles to DeGarmo Rd., CR 43.

27 FORMER SLEIGHT (SLEGHT) FARM (R) (PVT). A house on the site of this stone and brick one and a half story house, built ca. 1765, was replaced in 1798. Victorian touches were added a c. later by a Dutch family from Kingston who settled here before the American Revolution.

28 THE FORMER AYRAULT FARM (R). Now LEWIS COUNTRY FARMS, this farm specialized in cattle breeding in the 19th c. when in 1870 it produced the 4 largest beef cattle ever raised on an American farm.

Turn right on DeGarmo Rd., CR 43. Drive 0.8 mile to Rt. 44.

THE WAPPINGER CREEK, named for the Wappinger Indians, divides LaGrange from Poughkeepsie at the crossing. In the 1960s the farm land (L) became Arlington American Legion Post #1302, the former Palen/Platt home.

Turn left on Rt. 44.

Rt. 44 began as Filkintown Rd., a path from Poughkeepsie to the Connecticut border. In 1806 it was improved as a log paved toll road. ADAMS FAIRACRE FARMS is on right.

Drive 2.5 miles to N. White St. Turn left on N. White St. Drive 0.1 mile to Main St. Turn left on Main St. Drive 0.5 mile to Innis Ave.

29 CLINTON HOUSE (R), at the (I) with Main St., is a Dutch Colonial/Georgian stone house, known formerly as the Clear/Everitt house and home to the Dutchess County Historical Society. Built in 1765, it burned and was rebuilt in 1783 by army masons. Tradition holds it to have been George Clinton’s headquarters during the American Revolution. Exhibits. Research library by appt. Call 845/471-1630 for (?).

30 GLEBE HOUSE (L). A small brick house museum, built 1767, as a farm/rectory (or Glebe) for Christ Episcopal Church. Open by appt. Call 845/471-1630 for (?).

Turn left on Innis Ave. Drive 1.2 miles to light. Turn left on Salt Point Tnpk. and drive 0.3 mile. Turn right and follow to stop sign. Turn right on Creek Rd. Drive 1.2 miles to Cottage Rd.

31 DUTCHESS COMMUNITY COLLEGE (L). Visitors welcome to Main Campus, public programs and the art gallery. In 1957 Samuel W. Bowne Memorial Hospital on the former Pendell farm became the campus for the 2-year college offering associate degrees in liberal arts and technical fields. As part of the state university system, the college is supported in part by Dutchess County. Call 845/431-8000 for (?).

Turn left on Cottage Rd. and drive 0.6 mile to Violet Ave. Turn left on Violet Ave.

32 VIOLET AVENUE SCHOOL (R). One of 3 native fieldstone schools built during FDR’s presidency, influenced by his interest in Hudson Valley architecture. 19th c. violet greenhouses for New York City markets gave the road its name.

Drive 0.6 mile to Fulton St. Turn right on Fulton St.

33 CHILDREN’S HOME (R). Founded 1847 as a private charity, this institution now provides shelter and services to dependent children of distressed families.

Drive 1.1 miles to Marist College.

<---------------- TOUR 5 ENDS HERE ---------------->