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Please add profiles for those who were born, lived or died in Essex County, New York.
Official Website
When counties were established in the state of New York in 1683, the present Essex County was part of Albany County. On March 12, 1772, what was left of Albany County was split into three parts, one remaining under the name Albany County. One of the other pieces, Charlotte County, contained the eastern portion. In 1784, the name "Charlotte County" was changed to Washington County. In 1788, Clinton County was split off from Washington County. Essex County was split from Clinton County in 1799 and was named after the county of Essex in England.
The 1777 Siege of Fort Ticonderoga occurred between 2 and 6 July 1777 at Fort Ticonderoga, near the southern end of Lake Champlain.
During the time of the American Civil War, Essex County became part of the Underground Railroad, helping runaway slaves from the South find freedom in the northern states and Canada. North Elba, Essex County, was also home to abolitionist John Brown, who was hanged for leading a raid on Harper's Ferry, Virginia. His home and farm are now part of the John Brown history tour in North Elba, a major tourist attraction.
Lake Placid was the site of the 1980 Winter Olympic Games.
Adjacent Counties
- Clinton County
- Chittenden County, Vermont
- Addison County, Vermont
- Washington County
- Warren County
- Hamilton County
- Franklin County
Towns & Villages
- Chesterfield
- Crown Point
- Elizabethtown (County Seat)
- Essex
- Jay
- Keene
- Lake Placid
- Lewis
- Minerva
- Moriah
- Newcomb
- North Elba
- North Hudson
- Saranac Lake (part)
- Schroon
- St. Armand
- Ticonderoga
- Westport
- Willsboro
- Wilmington
Other Communities: Bloomingdale, Keeseville (part), Mineville, North Pole, Olmstedville, Port Henry, Port Kent, Schroon Lake, Willsboro Point and Witherbee
Links
National Register of Historic Places
Genealogy Buffs - marriages
