Guilderland is a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

of the

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

of the same name in Albany County,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, United States.

History

The hamlet of Guilderland was begun as a glass factory in 1792, often referred to as the "

Glass House The Glass House, or Johnson house, is a historic house museum on Ponus Ridge Road in New Canaan, Connecticut built in 1948–49. It was designed by architect Philip Johnson as his own residence. It has been called his "signature work". The Glas ...

". This factory was in the middle of the wilderness of the Pine Bush pine barrens, in an area then called Dowesburgh. In 1796, with hopes of establishing a manufacturing village, streets and lots were laid out and sold, and 54 houses built for the factory workers. This little village was named Hamilton for Secretary of Treasury

Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first United States secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795. Born out of wedlock in Charlest ...

, an Albany native and a Founding Father of the United States. When the Great Western Turnpike was built through the hamlet in 1799 connecting Albany to the western frontier, Hamilton became the home to several taverns and other businesses catering to the pioneers. The glass works here folded in 1815, ending the hopes of this place becoming a major factory town. Hamilton would get its first

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...

in 1815 as well, the post office though would take the name Guilderland instead, and the community would come to be known locally as Sloan's, for the owner of the major hotel here. The Hamilton name continues to live on in the name of a Presbyterian church, the Hamilton Union Presbyterian Church that was founded in 1824.

Geography

As a hamlet, Guilderland has ill-defined boundaries, but is generally considered to be along

US Route 20 U.S. Route 20 or U.S. Highway 20 (US 20) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that stretches from the Pacific Northwest east to New England. The "0" in its route number indicates that US 20 is a major coast-to-coast route. ...

(Western Avenue) between

New York Route 155 New York State Route 155 (NY 155) is a state highway located entirely within Albany County in the Capital District of New York. The western terminus of the route is at NY 85A in Voorheesville. The eastern terminus is at NY 3 ...

(State Farm Road/New Karner Road) and New York Route 146 (south-leg to Altamont).

Location

Important locations

*Prospect Hill Cemetery *Guilderland Elementary School *Guilderland Public Library *Guilderland

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

*Western Turnpike Golf Course

References

{{authority control Guilderland, New York Hamlets in New York (state) Hamlets in Albany County, New York

History

Geography

Location

Important locations

See also

References