Washington County, New York, 1791

Click here to see a 1791 boundary map of Washington Co.

   "In 1791, Vermont was admitted to the Union as a State, thus putting the seal of Federal authority on the settlement arrived at this year. Washington county thus became permanently a border county along all of its enormous length. In this year also the counties of Rensselaer and Saratoga were formed from Albany. By the same act the town of Cambridge, comprising also the present towns of Jackson and White Creek, was transferred to Washington county, and that part of the towns of Saratoga and Stillwater lying east of the Hudson was formed into a new town, by the name of Easton, and also annexed to Washington. We do not know, but we imagine very strongly, that these transfers were managed by General John Williams, of Salem, then an influential member of the State Senate, so as to strengthen the south end of the county, and get the county-seat permanently fixed at Salem."

Text taken from "History of Washington County, New York" by Crisfield Johnson, originally published in 1878.

The attached map has been provided by The Gold Bug. Visit their site for a variety of useful maps.


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