[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 26 (Thursday, March 10, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: March 10, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                    CELEBRATING THE TOWN OF CLARKSON

 Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise today to speak in 
celebration of the town of Clarkson on the occasion of it's 175th 
birthday. On April 2, 1994, the town of Clarkson will celebrate this 
landmark. I take pride in the anniversary of this great town and ask my 
colleagues to join me in celebrating its longevity and success. The 
entire town of Clarkson will celebrate this momentous occasion with 
appropriate fanfare and festivities.
  A monumental celebration of this nature provides a golden opportunity 
to look back on the protracted history of one of the many great towns 
in our country. As we look back through the decades at Clarkson we see 
that the area was originally referred to as Murray Corners. The 19th 
century was marked by the development of dirt roads and later, when 
traffic increased and the stagecoach began stopping in Clarkson, the 
``Plank Road'' was built by placing hemlock planks side by side. The 
War of 1812 was a very eventful period in Clarkson history, troops and 
a temporary depository for supplies and munitions of war were 
strategically placed here. The corners served as a stopping place where 
horses were exchanged and travelers could quench their thirst at the 
Wallbridge and Houston Tavern.
  Today, if you visit Clarkson you will be able to see some of the 
landmarks of its rich history. The Presbyterian Congregational 
Society's house of worship built in 1825 is now the Clarkson Community 
Church with Paul Davis as pastor. Many taverns and inns have remained 
along the old stagecoach route. The town hall which was built in 1899 
and remodeled in 1936 remains one of the most picturesque landmarks in 
the town. Some of the original planks from the ``Plank Road,'' now Lake 
Road, can still be found in Clarkson.
  Clarkson, NY, has bloomed, blossomed, and flowered into a viable 
community that has been shaped and reshaped by many individuals 
collectively contributing to many historical watersheds that have 
endowed Clarkson with much more than mere survival over the past 175 
years.
  Mr. President, I ask my colleagues in the Senate to join me in 
honoring the great history of Clarkson. As a Senator from New York, I 
am proud to represent this town and others like it. It is the good 
people of Clarkson who make up the very fabric of our American life and 
history. It is only right that we acknowledge the value of our history 
as exemplified by this American town. I salute the town of Clarkson and 
congratulate its citizenry on their special birthday.

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