ALBANY HILLTOWNS website

"The Hilltowns" is a colloquial term for the four Towns in western Albany County, New York above the Helderberg Escarpment. The four Towns are Berne, Knox, Westerlo, and Rensselaerville. They are called Hilltowns because they are in the "hills" above the Hudson Valley in eastern Albany County.

About two weeks ago I joined Facebook and started Albany County Hilltowns History and Genealogy group where members can post and exchange information on the history of the hilltowns of western Albany County and the genealogy of the people who lived there. We already have fifty members. Right off we decided to work on two big projects:

• A series of books on the history of each of the hilltowns and the families that lived there.
• A web site focused on the history of the four hilltowns and the families that lived. The idea is to have detailed information about the families, their farms, and their homes. It will also have information on the history of the schools, churches, cemeteries and businesses.
  

The web site is already up at Albanyhilltowns.com. It is a Wiki site. That means anyone can add information on their ancestors. There are web pages for individual farms, houses, and families. Under families there are pages for biographies, family stories, family history, and genealogical charts. All of these pages are to be created and edited by family researchers.

Here are some sample pages:

• Farm on Berne Lot 510.
• Historic home The Joannes Fisher House.
• Biography of Corporal Harold C. Mattice.
• Dutch barn Jacob Post Barn. Follow links from that page to other Dutch barns.
• A business Warner's Sawmill