“Poughkeepsie” derives its name from a spring where Native Americans once gathered to weave lodges from the cattail reeds. These Native Americans called their meeting place “Uppuqui” (oo-poo-kee) meaning “lodge-covered”, plus “ipis” meaning “little water”, plus “ing” meaning “place”, all of which translated to “the reed-covered lodge by the little water place”, or “Uppuqui-ipis-ing”. This later evolved into “Apokeepsing”, then into “Poughkeepsing” and finally, “Poughkeepsie”.

Additional resources:

Main & Market: Sights and Sounds of Poughkeepsie

Poughkeepsie “Scrapbook” by the Dutchess County Historical Society features an “assortment of items related to a topic, rather than a formal exhibition. Items featured here might be pulled together or “curated” like the available maps of Poughkeepsie over the centuries, they might be a recent Collections gift or “discovery,” or generated through conversations in social media such as DCHS Facebook and DCHS Instagram.”