Town of Hunter Tidbits: The festival at Hunter — Sept. 5, 1875

This week’s story is about a summer event taking place in Hunter Village (20 years before it had village status), an annual August festival, to give aid to a little village church. (It is difficult to say whether it was the Presbyterian Church, which was built in 1828, or the Catholic Church, which was built in 1837).

All of those who would attend the festival were to receive a combination of peaches, ice cream and moonlight – with peaches and ice cream a real luxury, and from the sounds of the article, the moonlight was expected.

“The drive from the Cauterskill Falls (just one of the 16 different spellings of Kaaterskill) to Hunter is always a charming one, with more than two miles of the way High Peak and Round Top, the two great central elevations of the range, towering majestically on our left. As we rode along the effects produced by vast masses of clouds rolling about their lofty summits, and through which here and there the soft afternoon sunlight was streaming, were wonderfully beautiful.”

After arriving at the Clove road in Palenville the festival goers turned west and were in awe of the wild and picturesque Plauterskill (Plattekill) peaks on one side, and on the other the vast great Blackhead range. Directly in front, they told, but several miles distant, lay Hunter Mountain, the highest of all the Catskills. Before arriving at Hunter, they talked of the passing of the entrances to Mink Hollow and the famous Stony Clove. (Until late in the 19th century it was thought Hunter Mt. was the highest mountain in the Catskills. It was then found that Slide Mountain in Ulster County had an elevation of 30 – 40 feet higher than Hunter.)

“At the foot of Hunter Mountain, or rather that bold and imposing portion of it known as the “Colonel’s Chair” lies the village of the same name, which is strung out for a distance along the bank of the Schoharie.”

They told how it had one street ornamented by fine old elms, which afforded great shelter from the noonday sun. They arrived at Hunter just as the sun was sinking toward the Westkill Mountains. They quickly were drawn to the grounds of the parsonage, where the festival was taking place. The grounds were illuminated by long rows of Chinese lanterns, with tables filled with delightful refreshments. Among the large crowd of visitors, the native mingled shyly with the city folk.

“To the rustic swains present the post office, which was presided over by a most bewitching little mistress, and the lemonade well, whence refreshing draughts of coolness were drawn by a no less charming Rebecca, seemed to be the chief points of attraction.”

One amusing discussion held each year was about watching a farmer tasting ice cream for the very first time!

The visitors headed for home, and they told it was a glorious ride home. “The air was soft and balmy, and the fair moon, now high in the heavens, was flooding with dreamy splendor of the huge and majestic shapes of the mountains as they peacefully slumbered in the misty summer night.”

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Until next week, take care. Be thankful and be kind. You never know how your act of kindness may change someone’s life.

Have a good week.