Alplaus is a

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

located in Schenectady County, New York, United States. Its name is derived from the Dutch ''Aal Plaats'', or "Place of the Eels." Alplaus is in the southeast corner of the town of Glenville. Some consider it part of the hamlet of East Glenville; however, it is generally recognized as a separate community. Alplaus is, however, part of the East Glenville

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

. Census data for the ZIP Code Tabulation Area (ZCTA) associated with Alplaus for the 2000 census had a total population of 431 people in 175 households. Alplaus has a Residents Association (ARA) which helps coordinate activities within the hamlet and manage relationships with town, county, and state government.

Geography

Since Alplaus is not an incorporated area, its borders are not specific. Some consider the ZIP Code 12008 to define Alplaus, while others may say it is the Alplaus volunteer fire department (officially known as Glenville Fire District #2). Alplaus is located at . It has an elevation of approximately at the

Mohawk River The Mohawk River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 river in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is the largest tributary of the Hudson R ...

. Rexford, a hamlet in the town of Clifton Park in Saratoga County, borders Alplaus to the east. The Mohawk River borders on the south. Generally, the Glenridge and Schenectady County Airport represents the western border. The major natural feature of the hamlet is the Alplaus Kill (creek), which is a tributary to the Mohawk River. There is one main road (Alplaus Avenue), with several streets branching from it. On this road in the center of the hamlet are two important community facilities: the

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

and the

fire station __NOTOC__ A fire station (also called a fire house, fire hall, firemen's hall, or engine house) is a structure or other area for storing firefighting apparatuses such as fire apparatus, fire engines and related vehicles, personal protective equ ...

Airports

The Schenectady County Airport ( FAA code KSCH) lies partially within Alplaus. The Stratton

Air National Guard The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a Reserve components of the United States Armed Forces, federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia (United States), militia of each U.S. ...

Base is located on this airport. The 109th Airlift Wing, based at Stratton, supports Arctic and Antarctic operations using C-130 aircraft. The Wells Seaplane Base (FAA id 94D) is located at the Mohawk Marina near the mouth of the Alplaus Kill.

History

In 1690, 114 Frenchmen and 96 Sault and Algonquin Indians encamped at the mouth of Alplaus Kill, prior to the

Schenectady massacre The Schenectady massacre was an attack against the colonial settlement of Schenectady in the English Province of New York on February 8, 1690. A raiding party of 114 French soldiers and militiamen, accompanied by 96 allied Mohawk and Algonqui ...

. From 1902 to 1941, the "longest trolley bridge in the world" crossed the Mohawk River at Alplaus. The trolley brought visitors from Schenectady to the fairgrounds in Rexford. The Alplaus

United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant Christian denomination, denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was ...

was organized in 1914. The Alplaus fire department was founded in 1930. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

Company tested jet engines and electronic surveillance equipment at the Schenectady County Airport.

Kurt Vonnegut Kurt Vonnegut ( ; November 11, 1922 – April 11, 2007) was an American author known for his Satire, satirical and darkly humorous novels. His published work includes fourteen novels, three short-story collections, five plays, and five nonfict ...

lived in Alplaus when he worked for General Electric in Schenectady, in the late 1940s. He was a member of the Alplaus Volunteer Fire Department. His recollections of the fire department's extra-loud siren can be found in his novel, ''

God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater ''God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, or Pearls Before Swine'', Kurt Vonnegut's fifth novel, was published on April5, 1965, by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. A piece of Postmodern literature, postmodern satire, it gave context to Vonnegut's following nov ...

''.

References

Alplaus, a Brief History. Thi
pamphlet
was written and distributed on the occasion of the USA Bicentennial and the first annual Fourth of July parade and celebration in Alplaus. {{authority control Hamlets in New York (state) Hamlets in Schenectady County, New York Populated places on the Mohawk River