Sugarloaf Hill is a peak along the

Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...

in Putnam County,

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

, part of the

Hudson Highlands The Hudson Highlands are mountains on both sides of the Hudson River in New York (state), New York state lying primarily in Putnam County, New York, Putnam County on its east bank and Orange County, New York, Orange County on its west. They conti ...

. It was named by the

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

for its resemblance in outline to a

sugarloaf A sugarloaf was the usual form in which refined sugar was produced and sold until the late 19th century, when granulated and cube sugars were introduced. A tall cone with a rounded top was the end product of a process in which dark molasses, ...

when sailing up the river towards it.

Topography

Sugarloaf Hill is part of a ridge running northeast and southwest close to the east shore of the Hudson. The peak of Castle Rock lies off the northeast end of the ridge, while NY 9D runs along the west side. A small stream runs along the southeast side and flows into the Hudson, while to the northwest, the ground declines gently to the Hudson. The hill is high at its summit, towards the middle of the ridge. A red-blazed trail climbs its western side, and then runs along the ridge, across the summit, to end at a viewpoint over the Hudson of about elevation.

New York–New Jersey Trail Conference The New York – New Jersey Trail Conference (NYNJTC) is a volunteer-based federation of approximately 10,000 individual members and about 100 member organizations (mostly hiking clubs and environmental organizations). The conference coordin ...

Trail Map 101, East Hudson Trails:

Hudson Highlands State Park Hudson Highlands State Park is a non-contiguous state park in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, located on the east side of the Hudson River. The park runs from Peekskill, New York, Peekskill in Westchester County, New York, Westchest ...

7th ed., 2006

Flora

Somewhat unusually, ''

Opuntia humifusa ''Opuntia humifusa'', common name, commonly known as the devil's-tongue, eastern prickly pear or Indian fig, is a cactus of the genus ''Opuntia'' present in parts of the eastern United States and northeastern Mexico. Description As is the case ...

'', Eastern prickly-pear cactus, can be found growing on ledges atop Sugarloaf Hill. The oceanic warmth brought upstream by the

estuarine An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

Hudson and the sunny, exposed rock allows this cactus to grow on the hill, and elsewhere in the Hudson Highlands.

History

Beverley, the house of Col.

Beverley Robinson Beverley Robinson (11 January 1721 – 9 April 1792), was a Virginia-born soldier who became a wealthy colonist of the Province of New York and is best known as a Loyalist during the American Revolutionary War. Robinson married Susanna Philips ...

, was built at the foot of the peak in 1758. Robinson, a

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

, lost his house and estates there to confiscation in 1777. It was used as a headquarters by several American generals during the

Revolution In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elements ...

, and

Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold (#Brandt, Brandt (1994), p. 4June 14, 1801) was an American-born British military officer who served during the American Revolutionary War. He fought with distinction for the American Continental Army and rose to the rank of ...

chose to dwell there when he took command of

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

in 1780. It was at Beverley that Arnold learned of the capture of

John André Major John André (May 2, 1750 – October 2, 1780) was a British Army officer who served as the head of Britain's intelligence operations during the American War for Independence. In September 1780, he negotiated with Continental Army offic ...

and the failure of his treason, and fled thence to HMS ''Vulture''. Beverley later passed into the hands of

Hamilton Fish Hamilton Fish (August 3, 1808September 7, 1893) was an American statesman who served as the sixteenth governor of New York from 1849 to 1850, a United States senator from New York from 1851 to 1857, and the 26th U.S. secretary of state from ...

, and was destroyed by a fire in 1892. The hill was donated by the Osborn family to the Taconic State Park Commission in 1974, and now forms part of the Osborn Preserve of

References

{{Mountains of New York Hudson Highlands Mountains of Putnam County, New York Mountains of New York (state)