Interesting Facts

New Paltz, New York hides some genuinely unexpected stories beneath its well-worn hiking boots.

• Oldest surviving street in the U.S.: Huguenot Street in New Paltz contains a row of stone houses dating to the early 1700s and is widely recognized as the oldest street in America with its original houses still standing — older than many landmarks far more famous.
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• Refugee roots: The town was founded in 1678 by Huguenots — French Protestants who fled religious persecution in Europe — making New Paltz one of the earliest refugee communities to establish a permanent settlement in what would become the United States.
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• Same-sex marriage pioneer: In 2004, New Paltz Mayor Jason West performed same-sex marriages before it was legal in New York State, making the village a flashpoint in the national debate nearly a decade before marriage equality became federal law.
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• Shawangunk geology is rare: The Shawangunk Ridge bordering the town is composed of a particularly hard, erosion-resistant quartzite conglomerate that geologists consider among the purest quartz rock formations on the East Coast, which is why it produces the dramatic white cliffs beloved by rock climbers.
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• Underground Railroad waypoint: Several homes in the New Paltz area served as documented stops on the Underground Railroad, with local Quaker and abolitionist communities actively sheltering freedom seekers moving north toward Canada in the antebellum period.

Joke Of The Day

A tourist asked a New Paltz local, "How do you pronounce the name of this place — is it 'New Paltz' or 'New Palts'?"

The local shrugged and said, "Honestly, we're too busy arguing about whether the new coffee shop is gentrification to have figured that out yet."

Augusta Savage, the celebrated Harlem Renaissance sculptor, spent her final fifteen years in Saugerties, New York — and a new exhibition is honoring that local chapter of her remarkable life.

"A Monumental Influence" pairs Savage's own work, including pieces created for local families, with art by seven contemporary artists she mentored, among them Romare Bearden and Peter Bradley.

Savage is perhaps best remembered for her iconic 1939 World's Fair sculpture "Lift Every Voice and Sing," now lost to history. Curators Carol Griffin and Randall Harris have also organized an artist talk featuring four of the exhibition's contributors.

Secret Little Hack

Skip the Trailhead Crowds by Starting from the Village Cemetery

Most hikers heading to the Shawangunk Ridge drive straight to the Mohonk Preserve trailheads and pay the day-use fee, but locals know you can access the ridge for free by starting a walk from the old New Paltz Rural Cemetery on Huguenot Street. A quiet footpath at the back edge of the grounds connects to a network of carriage roads that skirt the preserve boundary, giving you stunning ridge views and almost zero foot traffic — especially on weekend mornings when the main lots are already gridlocked by 9 a.m.

The real insider move: arrive before 8 a.m. and you'll often share the path with nothing but red-tailed hawks hunting the meadow below the escarpment. Bring a paper map of the Shawangunk trail network since cell service drops the moment you dip below the treeline, and pack out everything — this access point stays secret precisely because the people who use it treat it with respect.