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Town of Clifton Park

Historic Preservation Commission

New Historic Marker for Vischer Ferry Historic District

Updated: August 23, 2023

The Vischer Ferry Historic District was placed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places in 1975, and to honor this important event a new historic marker was placed at the intersection of Riverview and Vischer Ferry Roads. The marker was acquired via a grant from the William G. Pomeroy Foundation, that makes historic markers available to communities through competitive grants. The Vischer Ferry Historic District contains six hundred acres comprising the historic hamlet and the Vischer Ferry Nature and Historic Preserve containing the remains of the Erie Canal including Lock 19, Clute’s Dry Dock, Hegeman’s and Winnie’s Dry Docks and the site of Fort’s Ferry, Clifton Park’s first settlement.

The Vischer Ferry Historic District is a fine example of a mid-nineteenth century Erie Canal hamlet retaining a high concentration of Greek Revival and Victorian architecture, as well as the remains of the Erie Canal. Many of the period homes were constructed by boat builders or ship carpenters who worked at the various canal dry docks.

Town Historian, John Scherer, lead a walking tour of the Historic District on August 19 at 10 AM for Heritage Hunters of Saratoga County. The tour proceeded from Ferry Drive to the Amity Reformed Church where Chris Nafis spoke about his effort of restore the Amity Church Cemetery and the new historic marker was dedicated.