I’m losing my mind with excitement. I don’t mind telling you.

Daniel Mackay of the Historical Preservation Department of the New York State Parks Division just told me about the Furgary Boat Club north of Hudson.

What is the Furgary Boat Club? Here’s William Shannon in Hudson River Zeitgeist:

The Furgary or Fugary Boat Club is also sometimes called the North Dock Tin Boat Association, Shantytown or just The Shacks. It’s a collection of seventeen small shacks—some of which likely date back to the late 1800s—right at the mouth of Hudson’s North Bay, where it meets the Hudson River. They are a long stone’s throw from the northern end of the Terrace Apartments, next to the new community garden, at the corner of Dock and Front streets. The shacks were primarily used as fishing and hunting getaways until the city of Hudson, through its police force, evicted the members in the summer of 2012. The city has not maintained the shacks in the three years since the eviction and the Hudson Common Council has been taking serious steps toward having the shacks demolished.

Tim Heffernan has a beautiful collection of photos of the shacks before the eviction in 2012.

The New York Times did a nifty 360 degree segment on the shacks.

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