City of Saratoga Springs history

Putnam also built the Congress Hall, on land where our Arts Council is today. It was while building Congress Hall that he fell from scaffolding in 1811, and died a year later as a result of that fall.

The completion of the Champlain Canal in 1822 provided a great impetus to growth.

In 1826, it was incorporated as a village.

Martin McCarty leased Campbell's mill in 1850, and began improving access to the site by building a toll road.

In 1863, a racing meet for thoroughbreds marked the beginning of “the oldest race track in America.” Saratoga Race Course bears the additional distinction of being the oldest sports facility in the country.

The spring's chemical content was quite similar to that of Congress Spring at Saratoga Springs in New York, and in 1865 the town was officially named Saratoga.

John Morrissey’s Club House, the current Canfield Casino and museum in Congress Park, opened in 1870.

On December 28, 1871, our Town Hall, designed by architects Cummings & Burt Associates at a cost of $109,999.46, opened to the public.

In 1882 the Fitchburg Railroad passed through the town connecting Saratoga (Schuylerville) to Saratoga Springs and Mechanicville and Troy.

The first firehouse, an attractive brick building with graceful curved doorways, was built in 1883 and massive commercial buildings sprang up along Broadway.

In 1890, renowned winemaker Paul Masson opened his Mountain Winery in Saratoga, planting French champagne grapes in the rich California soil.

Convention Hall, overlooking Congress Park, was built in 1893 with a seating capacity of 5000 to accommodate conventions, activities and sporting events.

The Hudson Valley Railroad followed in 1899 providing electric trolley service connecting Schuylerville with Troy to the south and Glens Falls to the north.

Morrisey’s Club House, operating as the Congress Park Casino under the ownership of Richard Canfield, closed in 1907.

In 1909, 122 springs were acquired by the state (their use regulated by law) after commercial exploitation (pumping and bottling) had greatly diminished their flow.

In the absence of any interested buyers, the Casino property was purchased in 1911 by the village.

One of the most impressive of these is Villa Montalvo, established in 1912 by United States Senator James Phelan, and now a hub for Saratoga's art and music scene.

In 1913, the city bought the site, razed the building and added the property, with the previously purchased Casino property, to Congress Park, enlarging it to its current size.

In 1915 the Village and Town of Saratoga Springs were incorporated to form the City of Saratoga Springs.

Yaddo is a large private estate in the city used since 1926 as a retreat for authors, composers, and painters.

In 1951, the Kefauver Senate investigations shut down all the gambling casinos, and our lake houses began to disappear.

In 1956, wary of potential annexation plans from San Jose, the residents of Saratoga voted to incorporate and establish their own City government.

The 1960’s ushered in a series of major changes.

The Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC), the summer home of the New York City Ballet and the Philadelphia Orchestra, opened in 1966.

In 2008 the town purchased the old high school at 12 Spring Street in Schuylerville and conducts all town business from this office location.