Nelsonville

Nelsonville is a tiny but attractive all residential hamlet in Philipstown, NY that often gets overshadowed by its very popular brother hamlet of Cold Spring, NY. It becomes sort of a quickie pass-through for the tourists who flock to the historical Cold Spring commercial district or, for that matter, to Garrison’s famous Boscobel Restoration where the yearly Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival is held.

That being said, Nelsonville is beautiful in its own right with broad winding streets and really pretty historical Victorian homes. It is also slightly cheaper to live there than in Cold Spring, yet close enough to reap Cold Spring and Garrison benefits.

There are definitely some pretty good restaurants in the area including Bird & Bottle Inn and Chalet on the Hudson in parent town of Philipstown, Bill Brown’s Restaurant and Bar located at the Garrison Golf & Country Club, The Stadium and Papa Johns in Garrison, as well, and the Cold Spring Depot, Plumbush Inn & Restaurant, Riverview Restaurant, Silver Spoon Restaurant & Bar, Whistling Whillie’s American Grill, Angelina’s Restaurant & Pizza, Cold Spring Pizza, Brasserie Le Bouchon, Cathryn’s Tuscan Grill, East Side Kitchen, Foundry Café, Hudson House Inn, Main Course, Main Moon, Nick and Angie’s in Cold Spring.

Cold Spring also has abundantly adorable shopping interesting and eclectic boutiques and shops such as The Beeswax Shop, Back in Ireland, The Country Touch, The Garden Studio, Romeo and Juliet, Silver Lady, Stationery Objects, Touch of Nostalgia, Shug, Momminia, Merritt Bookstore Volume II, Outdoor Sports, St. Claire Boutique and Knittingsmith, Indigo Chic, to name but some. It makes for a really pleasant afternoon. It’s the type of place you can walk your dog, sit on a bench with an ice cream cone, chat with familiar faces on the street. It has a very Americana friendly and wholesome feeling and vibe.

As far as local grocery shopping, Cold Spring has a Food Town, Philiptown Farm Market, Pete’s Hometown Grocery, D P Mart and Maison Glass Delicacies. Garrison is home to the Maple Lawn Farm Market.

Boscobel in Garrison is a stunning and elegant example of a neo-classical Georgian mansion. Visitors can tour the house, view the exhibitions and stroll through the lovely gardens. Events are often held there such as the incomparable Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival which is a divine theatre experience with the Hudson River as a backdrop. They also hold the Taste of Boscobel, Yoga with a View on summer Monday’s, an annual Snapping Turtle Walk, the Great American Concert & Picnic, an upcoming presentation on historic cocktails aka “How to Get Tipsy in the 1800’s.”

For an art fix, The Philipstown Depot Theatre in Garrison Landing is a terrific performing arts center which hosts plays, festivals, films and has classes for kids and adults.

Philipstown has a pretty well-developed parks and recreation program which offers a slew of quality activities and classes for little ones through seniors. Some examples of their programs, services and resources include an indoor tot park, Little Sluggers, Junior Nature Explorers, t-ball, Fairytale Theatre, Beading Bonanaza, Nature Scouts, Junior Fire Academy (running ten years strong), day camps, Foot in Mouth Players for teens, a Youth Employment service for teens, teen travel camps, floral design and ballet classes for adults, family bingo and pasta nights, classes in cooking and clayworks, mah jongg open play for seniors, a senior spring lunch, senior bus trips and several dog obedience classes for canine town residents.

Hudson Highlands State Park is right nearby and is a wonderful natural resource. It is a glorious 6,000- acre preserve that is mostly undisturbed and is home to the infamous Breakneck Ridge, a 5.5 mile hiking trail which has even been rated by Newsweek as one of the top ten day hikes in the country. The park in general has absolutely stunning views of the region, including of West Point and the Hudson River. The 14,000-acre Clarence Fahnestock State Park is also a relatively short drive away and this stunning park has a beach, hiking trails, picnic areas, a pretty campground and also allows for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing in the winter months. And of course one can just sit and reflect at the waterfront at the bottom of the Cold Spring main street.

Both Cold Spring and Garrison have a boat club. Also, the wonderful Hudson Valley Outfitters are located in Cold Spring and they can get you all set up for a canoe or kayak trip on the majestic Hudson River. Garrison is also home to the Highland Country Club which has a golf course and the terrific Tavern Restaurant. It is a popular place for weddings and parties. The Garrison is equally beautiful and has a lovely 18-hole golf course, two fine dining establishments, a four-room Inn, a yoga studio and a salon.

Nelsonville students are a part of the Haldane Central School District which is considered to be quite good.

Nelsonville is quite safe and the crime rate is relatively low.

The median household income is roughly $60,000.

The population of Nelsonville is about 565 people.

It's incredibly easy to drive straight through the tiny town of Nelsonville and totally miss it. Measuring in at only one square mile the town passes by quickly and is greatly overshadowed by it's neighboring Cold Spring. Nelsonville is mostly residential and is, despite it's size, full of charming colonial-style houses with a tight sense of community. There are sidewalks leading down the main street that is shared with Cold Spring but there isn't much to walk to apart from the usual local delis and small shops. The village is surrounded by the natural beauty of Clarence Fahnestock State Park and the many hiking trails of the Hudson Highlands. While Nelsonville doesn't get as much attention as Cold Spring, that also translates to less traffic and fighting for parking. It also means that residents of Nelsonville can enjoy Cold Spring while paying less and having a more quiet neighborhood life.

Nelsonville does suffer from some of the inaccessibility of Cold Spring, with the only major roads serving it being route 301 and 9D. The Cold Spring train station is also conveniently close for commuters and, since there is very little commercial activity in Nelsonville, more people have to commute for work. Travel will also be necessary for entertainment and shopping.

The village of Nelsonville would be a pleasant place to live and raise a family in peace and quiet. However, for people looking for a more exciting place with any nightlife at all, Nelsonville probably isn't the place.

Nelsonville is the one-square-mile residential hamlet adjoining Cold Spring, a short walk up the hill from Main Street. Although it may seem as if it is just a small extension of Cold Spring, Nelsonville has its own Mayor and Trustees, as well as its own Planning and Zoning boards. However, it has the same old-time feel, with many small, historic houses and elegant, carefully maintained Victorians. There is a well-defined sense of community, with houses lining the main street displaying Christmas lights during the holidays, American flags at Fourth of July, and lovely front-porch gardens through the spring and summer.

The heart of Nelsonville, on Route 301, sports a deli, a hairdresser, and several nice stores. It’s a quick, easy and enjoyable walk from there down into Cold Spring, past an old blacksmith building, the Village Hall, the Nelsonville Green, and Hudson Rogue, a great shop which sells an array of antique prints, posters, and images of all kinds (the owner also does beautiful custom framing.) There is easy access to hiking, from the Nelsonville Nature Preserve to the trails of Bull Hill (also known as Mt. Taurus.)

Within walking distance is Bounous Montessori pre-school, as well as Haldane, the local public school (k-12). Residents can shop for necessities in Cold Spring, although for larger supermarkets and chain stories they normally travel to Fishkill, less than twenty minutes north.

Although Cold Spring is a tourist destination, especially during the spring through fall season, fewer tourists venture up the hill into Nelsonville, so there is less bustle and more parking. Less than a fifteen-minute drive brings you to Canopus Lake, the heart of the 14,000-acre Fahnestock State Park. This gorgeous area has hiking trails, picnic and camping areas, a beach, and, in the winter, trails for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. The nearby Taconic Outdoor Center provides great environmental programs for both children and adults.

Nelsonville may not be the best place for young people looking for action, but for those looking for a quiet place with Hudson Valley charm, it’s definitely worth a look.

Nelsonville is a tiny enclave located within the town of Phillipstown and directly adjacent to the village of Cold Spring. It falls into the “if you blink, you’ll miss it” category because of its small size. Many visitors en route to Cold Spring likely take little notice of Nelsonville, unless they observe the small sign announcing the village as they pass through. The section of Main Street it occupies is primarily residential and lacks Cold Spring’s commercial appeal. However, this also means it lacks traffic snafus and herds of tourists.

The area has many older homes and a definite historic feel. The town’s northern borders are located within Hudson Highlands State Park, a 6,000 acre preserve of mostly undeveloped land. Hudson Highlands is home to Breakneck Ridge, a 5.5 mile hiking trail, rated by Newsweek magazine as one of the top ten day hikes in America. Once you travel off the main road, there are a few long, winding residential roads, but not much else.

Nelsonville is also small from a population standpoint, with only 565 people. The Haldane Central School District enrolls students from both Nelsonville and Cold Spring, and is the second-smallest in the county with a total enrollment of 875 students. According to the district profile, class sizes are small, falling between 15 and 25 students, a factor that likely makes the district very appealing for parents. New York City is a managable commute, via the Cold Spring Metro North Station or the nearby Taconic Parkway.

The small size means house-hunters with their hearts set on living in Nelsonville may find their choices minimal. However the larger area, which includes Cold Spring and Phillipstown, seems to have a good range of inventory.

Nelsonville reminds me of the less expensive version of the Village of Cold Spring. To me it's still prime real estate but it's set farther up in the Hudson Highlands away from the river. It's a small, residential community with less than 1,000 people and about 225 households. If you're looking for a quieter Cold Spring with less tourists on the weekend, Nelsonville is more likely to suit your style. It's location also makes it ideal, with outlets to Fishkill in Dutchess County via Route 9 westward and Garrison via Route 9 eastward. It's an easy walk into Cold Spring if you want to visit the many cafes, restaurants and thrift shops that line Main Street.

Like most of western Putnam County, Nelsonville is enveloped in Clarence Fahnestock State Park. Rocky terrain has made it nearly impossible to develop the land so the village is excellent for those who appreciate a more natural setting- it's easy to access necessities in neighboring Fishkill, however. For those looking for a little more hustle and bustle Nelsonville may not be the place for you. Of course Cold Spring is nearby but the small-town atmosphere and quiet sensibility still lingers in the air. There is reprieve, however, in the fact that you'll experience much less tourism on the weekends and the sense of local community associated with these small residential communities is well worth for families, retirees, and country lovers.

Like most of its Putnam County counterparts, it's not a place for young professionals, singles or students due to its lack of nightlife and variety of fun things to do. As a 23-year-old, it could be somewhere I look to settle when I'm older. Nelsonville is great for little kids because it's generally flat and only one main road (Route 301) runs through the village.