HISTORY & MYSTERIES
Here’s a fine example of the medal produced for the Croton Water Celebration, when what we now call the Old Croton Aqueduct opened to public use on October 14, 1842. This is currently being offered by John Kraljevich, a leading expert in American historical medals, coins, paper money and related Americana, who has graciously allowed … Continue reading The 1842 Croton Water Celebration Medal
On October 11, 1842 former President John Quincy Adams realized he had neglected to respond—several times—to an invitation to be an honored guest at the Croton Water Celebration. In his diary he wrote, “. . . on turning over my letters recently received, to endorse and file them, I found one which I had totally … Continue reading John Quincy Adams Sends His Regrets
Today is the 172nd anniversary of the Croton Water Celebration, when what we now call the Old Croton Aqueduct opened to public use on October 14, 1842. The day-long celebration included a massive seven-mile-long parade, songs written and performed for the occasion, and culminated in jets of pure, sparkling water rising fifty feet in the … Continue reading Croton’s Waves in All Their Glory
This month is the 171st anniversary of the “greatest jubilee that New York or America has ever boasted—a jubilee in commemoration of the greatest blessing that a city like New York could receive—the introduction of an abundant supply of pure and wholesome water.” 1 The jubilee took place on October 14, 1842 and the quote is … Continue reading The Greatest Jubilee That New York . . . Has Ever Boasted
As we noted in a previous post, the poet and social activist Lydia Maria Child recorded the unbridled joy New Yorkers felt when the Croton Aqueduct opened in 1842. The arrival of the "clean, sweet, abundant water" also inspired her to write a poem, "The New-York Boy's Song," which was published in 1854 in her … Continue reading O, blessed be the Croton!
Of all the people who recorded the unbridled joy New Yorkers felt when the Croton Aqueduct opened in October 1842, few captured it as eloquently as Maria Lydia Child, whose poem Thanksgiving Day, was set to music and is known today as Over the River and Through the Woods. In her book Letters from New-York she … Continue reading Clean, Sweet, Abundant Water!
Post card of the Introduction of the Croton Water float in the 1909 Hudson-Fulton Celebration parade in New York City.
Croton Water Celebration 1842. Lithograph, 9 3/4 x 13 inches. New York: J.F. Atwill, 1842 . This copy is being auctioned at Swann Auction Galleries.
CROTON 