Academy Green holds a distinguished place in Kingston’s history. Governor Peter Stuyvesant negotiated a peace treaty here in 1660 between early settlers and the local Esopus Indians. Ulster County troops drilled on the site prior to entering the Civil War. From 1830 to 1916, Academy Green was the site of the Kingston Academy, the oldest preparatory school in New York State, which instructed students on mathematics, science, the arts and languages. After the Kingston Academy’s demolition in 1916, with students moving to a new location at the Kingston High School, Academy Green became a park in 1918. 

Academy Green is home to three 11-foot bronze sculptures of Peter Stuyvesant, George Clinton and Henry Hudson, each of whom left a lasting impact on the Kingston region. The 1898 monuments are the work of noted sculptor John Massey Rhind (1860-1936) and were produced by the Gorham Manufacturing Company in New York. The statues were originally located Exchange Court building in Manhattan. When that building was being remodeled in the late 1940s, the sculptures, unbelievably, wound up in a junkyard as scrap. Fortunately, after seeing a newspaper article about the building remodeling, Emily Crane Chadbourne, president of Kingston’s Senate House Association, tracked down the junkyard and sought to rescue the statues. She purchased and donated the statues to the city of Kingston. The statues were installed on large pedestals of local bluestone at Academy Green, and a dedication ceremony led my Kingston Mayor Oscar Newkirk took place in June 1950. 

George Clinton (1739-1812) led a remarkable career and left a lasting legacy on both his home state of New York and his country. He was the first Governor of New York and served for 21 years, the longest serving governor in state history. He was a delegate to the 2nd Continental Congress, served honorably as a Brigadier General in the Continental Army during the American Revolution and is considered by many to be one of the Founding Fathers of the country. Clinton served as Vice President of the United States under two different presidents, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, one of only two men to hold that distinction. He is buried at the Old Dutch Church in the Stockade District of Kingston.

Peter Stuyvesant (1612-1672) was the Director General (i.e. Governor) of New Netherlands, a Dutch colony, from 1647 until 1664. In 1664, the English gained control of New Amsterdam, and thus all of the New Netherlands colony, and it was renamed New York. Stuyvesant left a lasting legacy on the colony with the introduction of strict new laws, establishment of a municipal government and the expansion of the colony beyond Manhattan.

Henry Hudson (c. 1570-1611) was an English sea explorer. In 1609, working on behalf of the Dutch East India Company, Hudson was the first European to sail up the Hudson River (obviously named in his honor). His explorations led to the Dutch colonization of the region, the establishment of New Netherland and the settlement of Kingston (then known as Wiltwyck).

George Clinton

George ClintonAcademy Green, Kingston, Ulster County

Academy Green holds a distinguished place in Kingston’s history. Governor Peter Stuyvesant negotiated a peace treaty here in 1660 between early settlers and the local Esopus Indians. Ulster County troops drilled on the site prior to entering the Civil War. From 1830 to 1916, Academy Green was the site of the Kingston Academy, the oldest preparatory school in New York State, which instructed students on mathematics, science, the arts and languages. After the Kingston Academy’s demolition in 1916, with students moving to a new location at the Kingston High School, Academy Green became a park in 1918.

Academy Green is home to three 11-foot bronze sculptures of Peter Stuyvesant, George Clinton and Henry Hudson, each of whom left a lasting impact on the Kingston region. The 1898 monuments are the work of noted sculptor John Massey Rhind (1860-1936) and were produced by the Gorham Manufacturing Company in New York. The statues were originally located Exchange Court building in Manhattan. When that building was being remodeled in the late 1940s, the sculptures, unbelievably, wound up in a junkyard as scrap. Fortunately, after seeing a newspaper article about the building remodeling, Emily Crane Chadbourne, president of Kingston’s Senate House Association, tracked down the junkyard and sought to rescue the statues. She purchased and donated the statues to the city of Kingston. The statues were installed on large pedestals of local bluestone at Academy Green, and a dedication ceremony led my Kingston Mayor Oscar Newkirk took place in June 1950.

George Clinton (1739-1812), pictured here, led a remarkable career and left a lasting legacy on both his home state of New York and his country. He was the first Governor of New York and served for 21 years, the longest serving governor in state history. He was a delegate to the 2nd Continental Congress, served honorably as a Brigadier General in the Continental Army during the American Revolution and is considered by many to be one of the Founding Fathers of the country. Clinton served as Vice President of the United States under two different presidents, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, one of only two men to hold that distinction. He is buried at the Old Dutch Church in the Stockade District of Kingston.

Peter Stuyvesant

Peter StuyvesantAcademy Green, Kingston, Ulster County

Academy Green holds a distinguished place in Kingston’s history. Governor Peter Stuyvesant negotiated a peace treaty here in 1660 between early settlers and the local Esopus Indians. Ulster County troops drilled on the site prior to entering the Civil War. From 1830 to 1916, Academy Green was the site of the Kingston Academy, the oldest preparatory school in New York State, which instructed students on mathematics, science, the arts and languages. After the Kingston Academy’s demolition in 1916, with students moving to a new location at the Kingston High School, Academy Green became a park in 1918.

Academy Green is home to three 11-foot bronze sculptures of Peter Stuyvesant, George Clinton and Henry Hudson, each of whom left a lasting impact on the Kingston region. The 1898 monuments are the work of noted sculptor John Massey Rhind (1860-1936) and were produced by the Gorham Manufacturing Company in New York. The statues were originally located Exchange Court building in Manhattan. When that building was being remodeled in the late 1940s, the sculptures, unbelievably, wound up in a junkyard as scrap. Fortunately, after seeing a newspaper article about the building remodeling, Emily Crane Chadbourne, president of Kingston’s Senate House Association, tracked down the junkyard and sought to rescue the statues. She purchased and donated the statues to the city of Kingston. The statues were installed on large pedestals of local bluestone at Academy Green, and a dedication ceremony led my Kingston Mayor Oscar Newkirk took place in June 1950.

Peter Stuyvesant (1612-1672), pictured here, was the Director General (i.e. Governor) of New Netherlands, a Dutch colony, from 1647 until 1664. In 1664, the English gained control of New Amsterdam, and thus all of the New Netherlands colony, and it was renamed New York. Stuyvesant left a lasting legacy on the colony with the introduction of strict new laws, establishment of a municipal government and the expansion of the colony beyond Manhattan.

Henry Hudson

Henry HudsonAcademy Green, Kingston, Ulster County

Academy Green holds a distinguished place in Kingston’s history. Governor Peter Stuyvesant negotiated a peace treaty here in 1660 between early settlers and the local Esopus Indians. Ulster County troops drilled on the site prior to entering the Civil War. From 1830 to 1916, Academy Green was the site of the Kingston Academy, the oldest preparatory school in New York State, which instructed students on mathematics, science, the arts and languages. After the Kingston Academy’s demolition in 1916, with students moving to a new location at the Kingston High School, Academy Green became a park in 1918.

Academy Green is home to three 11-foot bronze sculptures of Peter Stuyvesant, George Clinton and Henry Hudson, each of whom left a lasting impact on the Kingston region. The 1898 monuments are the work of noted sculptor John Massey Rhind (1860-1936) and were produced by the Gorham Manufacturing Company in New York. The statues were originally located Exchange Court building in Manhattan. When that building was being remodeled in the late 1940s, the sculptures, unbelievably, wound up in a junkyard as scrap. Fortunately, after seeing a newspaper article about the building remodeling, Emily Crane Chadbourne, president of Kingston’s Senate House Association, tracked down the junkyard and sought to rescue the statues. She purchased and donated the statues to the city of Kingston. The statues were installed on large pedestals of local bluestone at Academy Green, and a dedication ceremony led my Kingston Mayor Oscar Newkirk took place in June 1950.

Henry Hudson (c. 1570-1611), pictured here, was an English sea explorer. In 1609, working on behalf of the Dutch East India Company, Hudson was the first European to sail up the Hudson River (obviously named in his honor). His explorations led to the Dutch colonization of the region, the establishment of New Netherland and the settlement of Kingston (then known as Wiltwyck).