Fishkill is an affluent suburban town in the southwest part of Dutchess County, New York, USA. It lies approximately 60 miles north of centralManhattan, New York City. The population was 20,258 at the 2000 census, however, current estimates put the town's population at over 22,100. Fishkill partly surrounds the city of Beacon.
The town of Fishkill contains a village, which is also named Fishkill. The name means derives from the Dutch "vis kill," meaning "fish creek."
The location of Fishkill was known as Tioranda by the Native American peoples. The name means "The place where two waters meet"
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History
In 1683 New York City merchants Frances Rombout and Gulian Verplanck purchased 85,000 acres (340 km2) in Dutchess County from the Wappinger Indians for a quantity of goods including rum, powder, and tobacco. Neither ever lived on the land, intending to use it only for fur trading. The first white settlers were Rombout's daughter, Catharyna and her husband, Roger Brett, who built a mill at the mouth of the Fishkill Creek as it flows into theHudson River.
Fishkill played an important role in the American Revolutionary War when a huge military encampment was established one mile (1.6 km) below the village to guard the mountain pass to the south. Signal fires lay in readiness on tops of the surrounding mountains. The Fishkill encampment became the main supply depot for the northern division of the Continental Army. The first copies of the New York State Constitution were printed at Fishkill in 1777.
In the 19th century mills and factories sprang up in Glenham and Matteawan brought an influx of skilled weavers from the British Isles. The healthy economy came to an end in the post-Civil War depression and the once thriving factories fell into decay. In 1931, Texaco purchased the old woolen mill site and established a research center there. Today, the town's industry is mostly technology based.[3]
In 1996, the animal rights group PETA suggested the town change its name to something less suggestive of violence toward fish. The town declined.[4]
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 32.0 square miles (82.8 km²), of which, 27.4 square miles (71.0 km²) of it is land and 4.6 square miles (11.8 km²) of it (14.26%) is water. The elevation of the town varies from sea level (Fishkill Waterfront, Fishkill Landing, Dutchess Junction) to 2,000 feet (610 m) above sea level (Mission Peak, Mount Beacon).
The southern town line is the county line between Dutchess and Putnam Counties. The western town line is defined by the Hudson River and the City of Beacon. To the north is the town of Wappinger.
Fishkill Creek gives the town its name and empties into the Hudson River. Interstate 84 passes through the town, and US 9 passes through both the town and Village of Fishkill.
Dutchess Stadium, home of the Class A Minor League Baseball Team, the Hudson Valley Renegades is in the Town.
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