Sullivan County 701 



The part of this county south of the south bounds of Callicoon 

 and Bethel is comprised in the Neversink or Minisiuk Patent 

 conveyed to Mat hew Ling and others in 1704. The remainder 



of the county was a part of the great tract granted to Johannes 

 Hardenbergh and his associates in 1708. Much of the Harden- 

 bergh Patent was settled under long time leases, which led to the 

 anti-rent difficulties that prevailed throughout several counties in 

 this section. 



The first impulse to prosperity was given by the - Newburgh and 

 Cochecton Turnpike, which was opened in 1808, thus making the 

 county accessible to settlers. Immigrants continued to arrive from 

 Xew England and the older sections of the state until the com- 

 pletion of the Erie Canal, when the trend of emigration was 

 diverted to the new and fertile lands of the West. Three years 

 later the Delaware and Hudson Canal was completed, which was 

 of great importance to early settlers. This, with the Erie Rail- 

 road along the valley of the Delaware, formed the two great works 

 of internal improvement within the county. Previous to the 

 construction of the railway, products reached market only at great 

 expense over mountain roads or were floated down the Delaware 

 to Philadelphia. 



DEVELOPMENT OF INDUSTRY 



The hemlock forests early led to an extensive industry in tan- 

 ning sole leather. In 1855 there were about forty tanneries pro- 

 ducing over $2,000,000 worth of leather annually, and employing 

 about 750 laborers. At present no tanning is done in the county, 

 but considerable hemlock bark is shipped out for that purpose. 



The acid factories, which are located chiefly in the northern 

 part of the county, are doing a large business in manufacturing 

 charcoal, wood alcohol, and acetate of lime. 



In some portions of the county reforestation is being practiced. 

 There are many game preserves, and fishing is good in nearly 

 every town in the county. On account of its natural scenic beauty 

 and its numerous lakes, the county has many attractions for 

 vacationists. 



The chief live stock industry is dairying. The stock is of a 

 much higher grade than that kept in former years, and pure-bred 

 sires are to l>e found in nearly every community. Holsteins and 

 Jerseys are most numerous. Sheep are not so widely kept as they 



