State History

This article originally appeared in a Rhinebeck Historical Society press release.

On Saturday, May 28, at 10:00 AM, the Town of Rhinebeck will celebrate the installation of an historical marker at Quitman House. The location is 7015 Route 9 in Rhinebeck, about ¼ mile north of the intersection of Routes 9 and 9G.  The marker is the result of a grant from the William G. Pomeroy Foundation to the Rhinebeck Historical Society.

The marker will be installed at the site of the building that had served as the Parsonage for the minister serving St. Peter’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, better known as the Stone Church, located next door. The parsonage is known today as Quitman House and was built in 1798 to house the minister, Reverend Frederick H. Quitman, D. D. He had come to Rhinebeck to serve congregations here and in neighboring communities in the Hudson Valley, and earlier in the Schoharie Valley. It was no less a figure than George Washington who had encouraged him to move to the United States from his earlier posting in the West Indies. An indication of Rev Quitman’s prominence is his election by fellow ministers to head the New York Ministerium, the organization overseeing all Lutheran churches in the New York region.

The marker replaces one removed two years ago, at the urging of local citizens and the Rhinebeck Historical Society, with the approval by the Rhinebeck Town Board and consent of the NY State Education Department. The earlier marker, dating to 1932, did recognize someone born at the site, John A. Quitman, son of the minister to be honored in the new marker. The earlier marker accurately recognized the site as the son’s birthplace and his role as a hero of the Mexican War and as Governor of Mississippi. What the earlier marker failed to mention was the son’s role as one of the largest slaveholders in Mississippi and as one of the most strident and effective advocates for secession from the United States in the years before the Civil War.

Quitman House today houses not only the Quitman Resource Center for Preservation but also the Museum of Rhinebeck History and the offices of Hudson River Heritage. The preservation and promotion of information about local history is a focus of all three organizations.  

Quitman board member Carole DeSaram will open the ceremony; Rhinebeck Historical Society board member Michael Frazier will briefly discuss the important role Reverend Quitman played in the lives of citizens of the Hudson and Schoharie Valleys; Rhinebeck Town Supervisor Elizabeth Spinzia will conduct the unveiling of the new marker; Dutchess County Historian Will Tatum will share some remarks; to close the ceremony, Ms. DeSaram will invite visitors to visit inside Quitman House itself.

Everyone is welcome. Parking is available on the north side of Quitman House. We urge caution in turning in off Route 9, since the posted speed limit on Route 9 is 55 mph.

Questions about the event should be directed to Rhinebeck Historical Society board member Michael Frazier via cell/text to 845-464-2015 or to michaelfrazier@earthlink.net.