By Shannon Butler When one drives down Hooker Avenue between Whittier Boulevard and Cedar Avenue, you pass by buildings that were mostly built well after the turn of the 20th century. What many people don’t know is that there was once a massive park on this land that saw all of the various forms of transportation racing and was an early home for the Dutchess County Fair. Nothing remains of that era, and today the land is made up of single family homes, but if one digs deep, you can find some very interesting[...]

By Shannon Butler If you walk down Academy Street, you will see some lovely houses that represent the Victorian era. Among the people who lived in these homes were the big names of Poughkeepsie business and culture, such as Adriance, Smith, and Hull. Another name comes to mind that might not be as familiar, though it's quite likely that you have played the game he invented; that name is Butts. The family had been in Dutchess County since the mid-18th century and moved to Poughkeepsie when the city was booming with life and opportunity. That[...]