Fulton anniversary

Starting last year, Clermont State Historic Site has been celebrating the 200th anniversary of Chancellor Robert R. Livingston and Robert Fulton’s development of the first practical steamboat. The Fulton anniversary is connected to the Hudson River's history and has been woven into the Quadricentennial commemoration. As the historic site writes on its Web page: "(The steamboat's) first official trip along the Hudson on August 17th and 18th, 1807 changed forever the way Americans understood travel and distance. The record-breaking speeds first altered travel along the Hudson River and later Westward Expansion and Trans-Atlantic immigration”

Clermont, which is the Livingston ancestral home, has more info on its Web site about the Clermont-Livingston-Fulton connection as well as how it marked the past year. Be sure to look at the "home" page for a new announcement of special events planned for later this month.

The historic site is owned by New York state and administered by the state Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation. In addition to the historic home and exhibition building, it has a small park with exceptional views of the Hudson River and is located off Route 9G just north of Tivoli and the Dutchess-Columbia county line.