Cole Tavern 1800 - Colesville, NY
Posted by: 
ripraff
N 42° 08.974 W 075° 39.900
18T E 445055 N 4666597
This sign is by the Coles Hill Cemetery.
Waymark Code: WMWJ4A
Location: New York, United States
Date Posted: 09/10/2017
Views: 1
text: "Cole Tavern 1800 Nathaniel Cole, Sr. 1795 Early settler built 1st Inn along Bing. Albany Rd. In 1806 Cole established first post office Founding Pioneer 1747-1832 Town of Colesville historian"
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visit link)
"On the hilltop "where the sun shines in every direction", Nathaniel Cole, Sr. stopped his caravan of migrant New Englanders and said, "This is home". Acreage was apportioned among families of Nathaniel and Sylvanus Cole...By 1800, Nathaniel Cole's original house was enlarged to become the first tavern in the area known as "Cambridge Settlement". It served as a stop on the Chenengo Point-Albany frontier route, as well as a meeting hall and social center for the growing number of local families...Even by 1800 standards, the tavern was impressive. Two stories in height, painted red with hipped roofs and 5 large windows across the upper front and each side of the clapboard structure, it stood out in the settlement at its highest crest. The tavern had two front entrances and two large chimneys at either side housed large interior fireplaces. Ground level access was into a large entry hall that featured fine carpentry hewn from local red pine, with planking 36 inches wide. A bar was at the right of the hall and a sitting parlor on the left. A broad staircase led up to the second level. The ballroom at the top of the stairs spanned the full front of the building and had a raised bandstand. Wax mannequins of celebrities graced the wall spaces and created a party-like atmosphere for occupants. Guest bedrooms occupied the back of the second level."
"When no longer under family ownership, the buildng deteriorated and was razed in 1926. Only the foundation and the cemetery are evidence of what was once "Cambridge Settlement"."