The ScotlandShop American Dream: Why New York State?

If there is one thing that we have learnt as we explored New York State is that although it might not be one of the largest states, it is certainly one of the most diverse, dominated by farms, forests, rivers, mountains, and lakes, as well as of course the vibrant, bustling New York City that it is so well known for. Bordering the state is Canada, another good reason for us to choose NY as we have lots of customers and Scottish connections there and have enjoyed the Fergus, Glengarry and Montreal Highland Games in years gone by. If you know Emily and I then you will know that we love a bit of water so the fact that New York is bordered by two of the nation's Great Lakes as well as the Atlantic Ocean is another plus. We will feel right at home as the Atlantic is probably quite similar to the North Sea we are used to, never very warm, but great for surfing!

The Hudson River is an important part of the State's geography, industrial history and a key component of the story of many Scots and Scots-Irish who travelled to the states in the 16th century. Glasgow in Scotland (there are a few Glasgow's in the US too!) was where all the steamships were built and those that ran from Philadelphia to Liverpool, and New York and Glasgow all received their engines at the City of Glasgow, on the River Clyde. To make it possible for the Clyde to cope with these vessels they had to increase the depth; in 1750 there were only three feet of water in the channel of the river Clyde but by 1850 there were 17 feet of water. James Watt, from Greenock, a civil engineer and inventor of the Watt steam engine which sparked the industrial revolution, was behind the systematic improvement. A similar suggestion was made for the Hudson where it reached Albany, and when the Erie Canal opened in 1823, the Hudson River here became the waterway from the southern part of the state that helped unlock the way the Middle West.

Now on to some other important cities in New York state which we have been exploring. Buffalo is high on my list because I love snow and Buffalo receives more snow than Anchorage, Alaska, due to the effect of Lake Erie, but we aren't allowed to choose our base purely on my leisure pursuits let's explore the Scottish heritage of this city. The Scottish American Society of the Southern Tier of NY State sums it up quite well. George Cunningham emigrated to the US in 1953 courtesy of his engineeering skills and Dresser Industries, and was the inspiration behind the society pulling together a group of people with Scots heritage in 1975. Described as "a Scot through and through and a charismatic individual. George was a piper, singer, dramatic enactor of the Toast to the Haggis and a superb organizer." George was determined that Scottish heritage be perpetuated in the USA and I think it's safe to say the SAS has done just that.

One of the most celebrated dates around the world, records tell us that in 1849, on the 90th anniversary of Robert Burns, a gentleman called Douglass was invited to address a ‘gathering of the sons and daughters of Old Scotia’ in Rochester, New York. The event was reported by Edinburgh-born John Dick, printer of the North Star, a newspaper set up by Douglass. Dick reported that:

two thirds of the three hundred present, he estimated, had been born in Scotland. ‘I could almost have believed,’ he continued, ‘when I heard the Scotch voices, and saw the Scotch faces, and listened to the wild notes of the pibroch, which was played at intervals during the evening, that I was in the “auld toon of Ayr” itself.’

We can't talk about Rochester's Scottish links without mentioning the Scottish Heritage Society of the Rochester Area, with their impressive list of events and projects. One being the Scottish Memorial Stone project where the Society purchased and installed a beautiful Vermont granite stone engraved with the names of 84 Scottish souls interred in the Old Scottish Burial Plot. Found on the corner of Evergreen and Forest Streets the plot was purchased on behalf of the Rochester Scottish Society in 1888 by John Stewart, with funds provided by Angus MacDonald. Slightly less serious, Rochester is also home to Scotland Yard Pub, a traditional British style pub with specialty dishes like the Sherlock Holmes burger and traditional comfort food like fish and chips. Did you know Sherlock Holmes even has his own tartan?

When we delved into the history of Yonkers one man stood out. Leslie Sutherland; could the name be more Scottish, combining two ancient Scottish clans, the Leslies and the Sutherlands? Born in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, in 1866, Sutherland was the dominant political leader of the city of Yonkers for twenty years, and is its foremost citizen. With an impressive list of political representations including being elected mayor in 1897, he was also a member of many social and fraternal organizations including the New York Burns Society, Order of Scottish Clans and Patriotic Order Sons of America. Other notable Scots influences in the area of a less serious nature include Scottish-born John Reid who founded the first golf course in the United States in 1888, Saint Andrew's Golf Club, in Yonkers.

Long Branch Park bordering Lake Onondaga in Syracuse is home to The Central New York Scottish Games and Celtic Festival which have been celebrating Scottish culture for 78 years. The city is also home to the Syracuse Scottish Pipe Band, founded in 1973 and with a fantastic reputation for their musical abilities they participate in many local parades, charity functions, and private parties. Competing against other pipe bands at Highland Games in Ontario, Pennsylvania and in Central New York, you might have also come across them at home in Scotland at the World Championships in Glasgow in 1996 and 1999.

The capital of New York State is Albany, named after the Duke of York's Scottish title, "Duke of Albany" in 1664 when the English took control of the area. Add to this that "Albany" is an English word for "Alba," the Scottish Gaelic word for Scotland. A non-Scottish fact but interesting all the same given the story of our rather more recent Scottish Parliament building, construction on the New York State Capitol building began in 1867 and took over 30 years to complete at a cost of more than $25 million. The New York State Capitol has 17 steps approaching its western entrance and 77 steps approaching its eastern entrance in honor of the year 1777, when New York replaced its colonial government with the current state government. Returning to the Scottish links, "Scotia" is latin for Scotland. And "Nova Scotia" means "New Scotland," which is the town just outside Albany and not too far from Altamont Fairgrounds where the annual Capital District Scottish Games are held.

So now we have gathered a few more facts, which city or town will we choose? Stay with us and all will be revealed on 31st August. The New York State motto, Excelsior, means "Ever Upward," which resonates with us, as many times as we considered whether we should stop and wait until the world returned to normal post Covid before pushing this project forward. However we feel strongly it is the right thing to have a base closer to our customers so we will continue Excelsior!