My hometown is a down-at-the-heels and very old place, having been claimed for the Dutch by Henry Hudson in 1609. Of course, the Mohawk ruled the area for centuries before that. In the 1700 and 1800s, it was a center for export - beaver pelts, published works, lumber, beer, ironworks and beer.* But as the oldest continuously chartered city in the United States, Albany also lays claim to some historical events and literary talent too. Ben Franklin’s Albany Plan of Union, in 1754, for example, was the first effort at unified government in the American colonies and a forerunner of the Constitution of the United States. Literary lights include Pulitzer Prize winner William Kennedy and Andy Rooney of 60 Minutes fame. But there’s one Albany man of letters you may not have heard of, a guy who was immensely popular in 19th Century.
© 2024 John Oliver
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