September is here, marking the last days of summer and the beginning of fall. It was around this time in 1777 — 244 years ago — that Kingston would play a key role in the bloody and complicated ordeal of declaring and realizing America’s independence from Great Britain.

In 1776, when the Continental Congress officially declared independence, it recommended that each state create its own constitution. The acting government of New York at the time, the New York Provincial Congress, set about this work with a committee of 13 men designated to draft the document.

The leading authors are familiar names of powerful men in New York; John Jay, Robert R. Livingston, and Gouverneur Morris (not the actual governor, Gouverneur was his first name, taken from his mother’s maiden name).

During the drafting of this important document, the government had agreed to shift itself to Kingston after scouting out the area and determining the city had sufficient space at a good enough price to house them. After much wrangling, the Constitution was ratified on April 20, 1777, making Kingston New York’s first capital.

The form of our first state government is familiar to us now, but for the time it made several new innovations inspired by revolutionary ideas while maintaining some of the previous familiar pillars from the British system. The government consisted of a State Assembly and a State Senate, a judiciary branch headed by a chancellor, and a popularly elected, but powerful, governor. This new constitution would expand the electorate and enshrine the notion of popular sovereignty (government power deriving from the people). But it also took pains to limit more direct democracy, or what some at the time referred to as “mob rule.”

Voting was still limited to men that met a specific property threshold. That threshold increased when voting for senators and for governor. The franchise was not extended to women, the enslaved, or those who did not have the requisite wealth, ensuring a relatively small sample size at the polls.

The document also did not touch the institution of slavery, under which most Black New Yorkers suffered at the time.

Once the New York State Constitution was ratified, representatives elected and offices filled, they needed a place to meet. The Senate chose to rent a room in the home of a relatively prominent Kingstonian, Abraham Van Gaasbeek. He had served as a town supervisor, helped to establish the Kingston Academy and captained a sloop that ran to and from New York City to supply a store he managed.

Van Gaasbeek had signed on to the revolutionary cause from the beginning, solidified by his decision to house the new Senate. His son Peter too was a part of the revolutionary cause and was currently away serving as a militia captain. Abraham’s wife Sarah had recently passed away due to illness, so by the time the Senate came to Kingston in 1777, he likely occupied his home with one or more enslaved Africans through the course of his life.

The senators began that September by working through some of the business of government, including making decisions about the balance of power, the war effort and their response to the new governor’s recent address. Their visit to Kingston and the Van Gaasbeek home was short-lived. Word soon came of the British advance up the Hudson River and the fall of Forts Clinton and Montgomery further south. Still a government on the run, the British advance meant that the senators and the rest of the representatives had to flee. They would depart in early October of 1777, just over a week before the British would land at Kingston and put the entire city to the torch.

While most of the residents had evacuated, the damage was significant. The British retreated back down the Hudson, having learned of their major defeat at Saratoga, which left their plans to conquer New York in tatters.

The Continental Army and the citizens of Kingston would rebuild starting the following year. Fortunately, a good number of the structures that were damaged in the burning survived, including Abraham Van Gaasbeek’s home on Fair Street, known today as the Senate House.

So as September turns to October, take some time to reflect on the role Kingston played in the cause of American independence, and how the effects of some of the major decisions made during that time are still with us today.

The History Alliance of Kingston is working to bring local history to life for people of all ages through events and activities that reflect and promote a deeper understanding of the diverse social and cultural history of the Hudson Valley.

Members: Taylor Bruck; Troy Ellen Dixon; Christina Ferwerda; Laurie Hancock; Bill Knowles; Sarah Litvin; Henry Lowengard; Courtney McNamara; Bill Merchant; and Sarah Wassberg Johnson.

Member Organizations: A.J. Williams-Myers African Roots Center; Century House Historical Society; D&H Canal Historical Society; Friends of Historic Kingston; Hudson River Maritime Museum; Reher Center for Immigrant Culture and History; Senate House State Historic Site; Theatre on the Road; Ulster County Clerk’s Office; Ulster County Historical Society; and the Volunteer Fireman’s Hall and Museum of Kingston.

Visit our website for more information about HAK, our member organizations, and our work.

If you are interested in participating in our work, complete the contact form here.