1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Hudson

HUDSON, a city and the county-seat of Columbia county, New York, U.S.A., on the E. side of the Hudson river, about 114 m. N. of New York City and about 28 m. S. of Albany. Pop. (1890) 9970; (1900) 9528, of whom 1155 were foreign-born; (1910 census) 11,417. It is served by the Boston & Albany, the New York Central & Hudson River and the (electric) Albany & Hudson railways, by river steamboats, and by a steam ferry to Athens and Catskill across the river. The city is picturesquely situated on the slope of Prospect Hill; and Promenade Park, on a bluff above the steamboat landing, commands a fine view of the river and of the Catskill Mountains. Among the public buildings and institutions are a fine city hall, the Columbia County Court House, a public library, a Federal building, a State Training School for Girls, a State Firemen’s Home, an Orphan Asylum, a Home for the Aged and a hospital. The city’s manufactures include hosiery and knit goods, Portland cement (one of the largest manufactories of that product in the United States being here), foundry and machine shop products, car wheels, ice tools and machinery, ale, beer, bricks and tiles and furniture. The value of the factory products in 1905 was $4,115,525, an increase of 58.1% over that in 1900. The municipality owns and operates the water-works. Hudson, which was originally known as Claverack Landing, was for many years merely a landing with two rude wharfs and two small storehouses, to which farmers in the neighbourhood brought their produce for shipment on the river. Late in 1783 the place was settled by an association of merchants and fishermen from Rhode Island, Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard. The present name was adopted in 1784, and the city was chartered in 1785. For many years Hudson had a considerable foreign commerce and whaling interests, but these were practically destroyed by the war of 1812.