The Clinton House is an 18th-century Georgian stone building in the city of

Poughkeepsie Poughkeepsie ( ), officially the City of Poughkeepsie, separate from the Town of Poughkeepsie around it) is a city in the U.S. state of New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsie ...

Dutchess County Dutchess County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 295,911. The county seat is the city of Poughkeepsie. The county was created in 1683, one of New York's first twelve counties, and later or ...

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. It is a

New York State Historic Site The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (NYS OPRHP) is a state agency within the New York State Executive Department Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Law § 3.03. "The office of parks, recreation an ...

and has been listed in the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

as a historic place of local significance since 1982. The house was named for George Clinton, who served as the first

Governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor h ...

and fourth

Vice-President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice pr ...

. He was believed to have lived there after the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, but it is now known that it was never his residence. The house probably served as a meeting place for legislators during the time Poughkeepsie was

capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...

of New York in 1777. Clinton House was built around 1765 by Clear Everitt, who was sheriff of the county from 1754 to 1761, on land that had belonged to Hugh van Kleeck (born about 1745, died after 1810) who owned about 20

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100- metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre i ...

s of land south of Main Street where the house stands. (The Van Kleeck House built in 1702 was demolished in 1836.)''Historical and Genealogical Record Dutchess and Putnam Counties New York'', Press of the A. V. Haight Co., Poughkeepsie, New York, 1912
/ref> In 1780, the house was purchased by

Udney Hay Udney Hay (also spelled Udny) (1739 – September 6, 1806) was an American deputy quartermaster general during the American Revolutionary War. He was later a politician in Vermont. He was born in Scotland in 1739. In 1775–76, before his war s ...

, who belonged to Quartermaster Corp of the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...

. In 1783, the house was destroyed by fire and Hay rented the nearby Glebe House. When his house was damaged by fire, Hay petitioned

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

for craftsmen from the army to assist in its repair. However, Hay lost the house in 1786 when it was seized for debt. In 1900, the house had fallen into disrepair and it was purchased by the

Daughters of the American Revolution The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in the United States' efforts towards independence. A non-profit group, they promote ...

, who presented it to the then

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

for the citizens of the State of New York. It was listed on the

in 1982. Today, the Clinton house is used for the offices and library of the

Dutchess County Historical Society Dutchess County Historical Society, located in Poughkeepsie, New York, was formed in Pleasant Valley, New York May 26, 1914 and received its Charter from the Regents of the University of the State of New York in 1918. Its mission is to discover, ...

, with one room still set aside for use by the Mahwenawasigh Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Clinton House Poughkeepsie c 1906.jpg, Clinton House Poughkeepsie c 1906 Clinton House Poughkeepsie c 1908.jpg, Clinton House Poughkeepsie c 1908

References

External links

* * * {{Protected areas of New York New York (state) historic sites Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) Houses in Poughkeepsie, New York National Register of Historic Places in Poughkeepsie, New York Poughkeepsie, New York

See also

References

External links