Near Cropseyville in Rensselaer County, New York — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Welcome to Boehme Legacy Forest
Bienvenidos a Boehme Legacy Forest
Photographed by Steve Stoessel, May 31, 2026
1. Welcome to Boehme Legacy Forest Marker
Open daily, dawn to dusk/Please enter this forest with respect and care for the plants and animals that call it home.
Early Mohican History
12,500-10,000BP Paleo Period: Currently, the earliest archeological evidence in Muhheacannituck (Hudson River) Valley territory.
10,000-3,000BP Archaic Period
3,000BP-1609 Woodland Period: Mohicans living around Muhheacannituck; Central fire at Schodack Island; Close relatives with Lenape (Delaware) to the south.
Mohicans rescue Delawares from Cherokees and Nanticokes. Mohicans rescue Shawnees from surrounding tribes and sign convenant with them.
1609 Dutch Colonization: Henry Hudson sails up Muhheacannituck to Castleton, NY. Mohicans practice their songs, dances, and way of life, including the Green corn, New Year, and Strawberry ceremonies.
1620-1700 The Beaver
this page online
BP= Before Present
This land's Indigenous Stewards
It is with gratitude and humility that we acknowledge that we are working, learning, speaking, and gathering on the ancestral homelands of the Mohican people, who are the indigenous peoples of this land.
Despite tremendous hardship in being forced from here, today their community resides in Wisconsin and is known as the Stockbridge-Munsee Community. We pay honor and respect to their ancestors past and present as we commit to building a more inclusive and equitable space for all.
In conversation with tribal representatives, we are continually learning how our conservation projects and community engagement intersect with the needs and desires of the original stewards of this land. You can learn more about the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians at Mohican.com.
About this Land
Boehme Legacy Forest (209 acres) offers miles of trails through a beautiful mixed forest, along the cascading Quacken Kill, under a rocky cliff, and up to the Bunker Hill summit.
This land is part of a large, intact
Photographed by Steve Stoessel, May 31, 2026
2. Welcome to Boehme Legacy Forest Marker
This wild and rugged property supports wildlife, clean water, and flood resilience. Birds and other wildlife find food and shelter in a blueberry field along Jay Hakes Road.
About the Rensselaer Plateau
The Rensselaer Plateau is one of the largest intact forests in New York State. Its high elevation and thin soils support ecological communities that you might expect to see in New Englands Northern Forest. Spruce-fir forests, bogs, lakes, and other features provide habitat for rare plants and animals. The geological makeup of the plateau consists of greywacke, an erosion-resistant sandstone that is mined for use in highway construction.
Conserving the plateau is a major focus area of Hudson Taconic Lands (HTL), as we seek to connect conserved areas, protect larger forest blocks, and create trail systems for long-distance hiking and mountain biking.
About Hudson Taconic Lands
At Hudson Taconic Lands (HTL), we work with the community to conserve the lands and waters of Rensselaer County, nurturing connections with nature for the people who live, work, and play here.
HTL formed in 2024 through a merger of two local grassroots organizations, the Rensselaer Plateau Alliance and Rensselaer Land Trust, each with a rich history of conservation and community engagement.
At HTL, we follow a community conservation model. This means community is at the heart of all we do-from managing forests to building trails to holding programs on the land.
If you'd like to be part of this work, we'd love to hear from you! Learn how you can get involved as a volunteer, attend an event, and more by scanning the QR code.
Thanks to generous supporters
Boehme Legacy Forest was donated to the Rensselaer Plateau Alliance (now Hudson Taconic Lands) in 2023 by Betsy Boehme Howe and William Boehme who grew up on this land, playing, climbing, swimming, and discovering.
Support also came from the New York State Conservation Partnership Program (NYSCPP) & the Environmental Protection Fund,* The Nature Conservancy, and Forests Forever Campaign donors. *The NYSCPP is administered by the Land Trust Alliance, in coordination with the state Department of Environmental Conservation.
Read the Boehme Legacy Forest conservation story on our blog:
Make a difference today with a gift to conservation! HTL members and supporters make this work possible year-round. There are many ways to show your love for the land, from sustaining this work as a monthly donor to putting Hudson Taconic Lands in your will or donating stock
[ The Activities, Stay Healthy, and Hudson Taconic Lands insets, as well as the map, were not transcribed. ]
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Environment • Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Parks & Recreational Areas. A significant historical year for this entry is 1609.
Location. 42° 45.205′ N, 73° 30.52′ W. Marker is near Cropseyville, New York, in Rensselaer County. It can be reached from Jay Hakes Road 0.4 miles south of New York State Route 2. Marker is off the road at the end the parking area for the forest. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Cropseyville NY 12052, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Upstate New York, in the Capital District, and in the Albany Metropolitan Area. It is also in the American Northeast and in the Mid-Atlantic. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Netherland and also one of the original Thirteen Colonies.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 6 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Town of Grafton War Memorials (approx. 3.2 miles away); District No. 6 (approx. 3.3 miles away); Grafton Inn (approx. 4 miles away); Gilead Church (approx. 4.1 miles away); In Honor of Those (approx. 4.3 miles away); Dist. 2 School (approx. 4.9 miles away); Home of Philip P. Dater (approx. 5 miles away); Poestenkill War Memorial (approx. 5.2 miles away).
Credits. This page was last revised on June 1, 2026. It was originally submitted on June 1, 2026, by Steve Stoessel of Niskayuna, New York. This page has been viewed 9 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on June 1, 2026, by Steve Stoessel of Niskayuna, New York.
