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and Sinnemahoning Creeks. Surface elevated,
containing coal and iron ; soil loam.
Potter, N. Y., Yates co. Flint Creek waters
this town, the surface of which is hilly, and the
soil fertile. 8 miles N. from Penn-Yan, and 200
W. from Albany.
Potter, Pa., Centre co. The surface of this
town is mountainous, its soil calcareous loam.
10 miles S. E. from Bellefonte, and 7 L N. W. from
Harrisburg.
Potsdam, N. Y., St. Lawrence co. Watered by
Racket and Grass Rivers. Surface undulating;
soil fertile. 8 miles N. E. from Canton, and 206
N. W. from Albany.
Potts Grove, Pa., Montgomery co. Bounded
S. by the Schuylkill River, and drained by Man-
atawny Creek and Sprogels's Run. Surface hilly;
soil red shale.
Pottstown, Pa., Montgomery co., lies at the
junction of Manatawny Creek and Schuylkill
River. 71 miles E. from Harrisburg, and 37 N.
from Philadelphia. The Schuylkill Canal passes
through it.
Pottsville, Pa., Schuylkill co. 99 miles N.
W. from Philadelphia, and 62 E. from Har-
risburg. It is at the termination of the Schuyl-
kill Canal, and of the Philadelphia, Reading,
and Pottsville Railroad, in the midst of the an-
thracite coal region of Pennsylvania. It is situ-
ated just above the gorge where the Schuylkill
breaks through Sharp Mountain, and is the largest
town in the county. The immense coal trade
has given it a rapid growth. The borough, as in-
corporated February 19, 1828, embraces, besides
Pottsville proper, what were once the separate
neighborhoods of Morrisville, Greenwood, Mount
Carbon, Bath, Salem, and Allenville. Mount
Carbon comprises the southern part of Potts-
ville, lying in the valley, between Sharp Moun-
tain and Second Mountain. The surrounding
scenery here is very romantic. The place, as a
whole, contains many large warehouses and fine
ranges of stores, and is now a compact, bustling
place. Its trade has settled into a steady chan-
nel, well understood and well managed by capi-
talists, merchants, and miners. The place con-
tains 5 or 6 churches, some of which have fine
Gothic edifices, an academy, a town hall, a splen-
did hotel, called Pennsylvania Hall, and several
other spacious hotels and handsome public build-
ings. Here are iron furnaces, forges, founderies,
and rolling mills, in which the anthracite coal is
successfully used. Steam engines and machinery
are manufactured, and many boats are built for
the river navigation.
Pottoivattomie County, Io., c. h. at Kanesville. In
the S. W. angle of the state, oh the Missouri. |
Poughkeepsie, N. Y., shire town of Dutchess co.
Situated on the E. side of the Hudson River. 70
miles S. from Albany, and 75 N. from New York.
It was first settled by the Dutch, in 1735, and is
one of the handsomest places in the state. The
population, in 1840, was 7500; in 1850, 13,944.
No place on the Hudson, perhaps, exceeds this
for the beauty of its location. The ground on
which the principal part of the village is built is
elevated about 200 feet above the river, and ex-
tends into it by two bold promontories on the N.
and S., so as almost to cover the landing, which
lies between them, from the view of the boats ap-
proaching, especially from below. Main Street,
extending from the landing to the plain above,
has been conveniently graded and paved. Many
of the buildings on this street are of the finest
description, for the various purposes of their erec-
tion ; and in every part of the village, which em-
braces about 40 streets, there are many beautiful
mansions, affording evidence of the wealth, taste,
and refinements of the inhabitants. There are
churches in Poughkeepsie of the Dutch Reformed,
Presbyterian, Episcopal, Congregational, Bap-
tist, Methodist, Universalist, Quaker, and Roman
Catholic denominations. Besides the court house,
and other county buildings, there are banks,
newspaper offices, and a great variety of manu-
facturing and mechanical establishments. A
large water power is furnished by the Fall Kill, a
stream which, winding through the village, de-
scends by a ravine into the Hudson, over a fall,
in the whole, of about 170 feet. There is here
an incorporated company for the growth and
manufacture of silk, which has erected an exten-
sive establishment; another for the manufacture
of locomotive engines, and other railroad ma-
chinery, with buildings not surpassed by any in
the state ; and another still, called the Dutchess
Whaling Company, which owns a number of
ships engaged in the whale fishery. One of the
breweries in this place is perhaps the largest in
the state, capable of making 30,000 barrels of ale
annually. Some of the other manufacturing
operations, of principal importance, are flouring
mills, brass and iron founderies, tanneries, manu-
factories of carpets, guns, pins, sperm oil and
candles, ploughs, carriages, &c.
The Poughkeepsie Collegiate School, a fine in-
stitution, opened in 1836, for fitting young men
for college, or for teachers, or any of the active
pursuits of life, is beautifully located upon a hill,
about a mile from the Hudson, and half a mile
northward from the business part of the village.
The prospect from this spot extends through a
compass of nearly 50 miles, and is one of surpass-
ing beauty. The building is a handsome struc-
ture, 137 feet long, modelled after the Parthenon
at Athens, with the colonnade carried entirely
round, erected at a cost of about $40,000. The
Dutchess County Academy is also located here,
and has a building in the S. E. part of the vil-
lage, which cost about $14,000. Proportionate
attention is likewise given to the interests of fe-1
male education, for which a number of schools
exist, which are of high reputation.
Poughkeepsie was incorporated as a village in
1801, and is a part of a township of the same
name. Its name is said to be a modification of
the Indian word Apokeepsing, meaning a safe har-
tbor. Being situated about half way between
New York and Albany, this place was occasional-
ly resorted to, in the earlier periods of its history,
for popular deliberations, and here, in 1788, the
state convention met to deliberate upon the fed-
eral constitution, and voted for its adoption.
Poultney, Vt., Rutland co. This township is
watered by Poultney River and its nnmerous
tributaries, which afford a number of valuable
mill sites. The soil is generally warm and pro-
ductive, and the surface pleasantly diversified.
Along Poultney River the alluvial fiats are
extensive and very productive. The forest trees
are mostly deciduous, there being but few ever-
greens. A violent freshet, in July, I8ll, swept
off a number of mills. There are two pleasant
villages, called East and West Poultney: both
are very flourishing. The settlement wras com-
menced in 1771, by Thomas Ashley and Eben- |
