'Douglas City Days' highlights Long Eddy's past

IAN PUGH
Posted 7/12/17

LONG EDDY, NY — The town of Long Eddy is planning a weekend-long celebration of its history under another name. “Douglas City Days” will be held Friday, July 14 through Sunday, July …

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'Douglas City Days' highlights Long Eddy's past

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LONG EDDY, NY — The town of Long Eddy is planning a weekend-long celebration of its history under another name. “Douglas City Days” will be held Friday, July 14 through Sunday, July 16 as a town-wide event to honor the 150th anniversary of Douglas City, a name the community adopted for 11 years as an incorporated city.

Details about that short-lived city can be found on a webpage for the Town of Fremont (littletexasranch.com/town/historypg6.html): when Long Eddy was a thriving hub of activity in 1867, special companies were developed with plans to build a dam at the Delaware River and establish a power plant. However, in the following years, floods and freshets washed away two individual attempts to build that dam, resulting in a severe financial loss and, ultimately, the formal dissolution of the incorporation in 1878.

“One hundred and fifty years ago, Long Eddy was incorporated as Douglas City, so it was a period of time where Long Eddy was at its zenith, really,” says Shaun Sensiba of the Basket Historical Society. “The railroad had come through—it was a very prosperous and enterprising, ambitious place. The dreams of a lot of the local residents and business owners were to make it a powerhouse, an industrial center. They had lots of plans, and they enacted a number of their plans. Some didn’t work out, but it’s a point of pride of people from Long Eddy about just how ambitious it was, and what those dreams are. If we think about it… everybody shares those dreams that are part of our history.”

That sense of pride is what prompts this event, which Sensiba calls a “celebration of all things Long Eddy.” Indeed, Douglas City Days is not merely a reflection on that fascinating story, but also the surrounding history and the entire 150 years since.

Events throughout the town will include literary readings of authors and novelists who are connected to the area, Saturday at 3 p.m. at the Historical Society museum; a parade on Route 97, featuring antique cars and Civil War re-enactors, Saturday from 12 noon to 1 p.m.; and on Saturday at 6 p.m., the Chestnut Café hosts a dinner featuring a screening of the Hedy Lamarr film “White Cargo.” The film was adapted from Leon Gordon’s play of the same name, which was itself adapted from “Hell’s Playground,” a novel by Ida Vera Simonton (1870-1931), who often visited Long Eddy.

Other activities include “Treasures in the Attic,” an antique appraisal event at the Long Eddy Firehouse, Saturday from 2 to 5 p.m., suggested donation $5 per item; rubber duck races at Hoolihan Creek, 12 noon to 1 p.m. on Sunday; and a number of crafts, art exhibits and bake sales.

The festivities kick off on Friday at 7 p.m. with a square dance on Depot Street. For more information about Douglas City and a full list of events, visit the Historical Society’s website at https://baskethistsociety.wixsite.com/baskethistsociety, and its Facebook page at tinyurl.com/ybczchj6.

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