Cooksborough: A Forgotten Hamlet at the Edge of Two Towns

The Lansingburgh Historical Society maintains an archival website dedicated to the history of Lansingburgh and its surrounding area, and among its most interesting entries is a page devoted to Cooksborough — a hamlet in Pittstown that occupied a fascinating boundary position in the region's historical geography.

Cooksborough is described as a hamlet in the southwestern corner of the Town of Pittstown, lying just outside what was the northeastern boundary of the Town of Lansingburgh from 1819 to 1901. The name has also been spelled as Cooksboro and Cooksburgh. This geographical proximity to Lansingburgh explains why the Lansingburgh Historical Society takes a particular interest in the hamlet — it was, in effect, a near-neighbour for most of the 19th century. Lansingburghhistoricalsocietyarchives

The founding story of Cooksborough is rooted in the colonial era. Michael Vandercook (1715–1786), of Holland descent and born in what is now New Jersey, purchased Cook's Patent in 1762 and developed Cooksborough in 1770. He married Cornelia Van Ness in 1742, who was a direct descendant of Anake Jantz, whose estate included the present site of Trinity Church in New York City. Vandercook died in 1786 and was buried in the cemetery at Cooksborough.

The page also draws on historical newspaper clippings to bring the hamlet's later community life into view. A notice from the Troy Times of May 8, 1900 records a meeting at the Cooksboro Methodist Church to discuss repairs to the church and parsonage, and lists newly elected officers of the Cooksboro Sunday School. Another item records that the old Cooksboro church, by then more than a century old, was eventually moved to a new site at Speigletown and rebuilt. Lansingburghhistoricalsocietyarchives

The page is a fine example of how local historical societies preserve the memory of places that have otherwise faded from the map.