Hotel Cup
Cup From Krouner's Hotel
In 1909, my great-great grandparents moved with their children from Bessarabia (now Moldova) to Rensselaer County in upstate New York to escape the religious persecution of Jews. Baron de Hirsch, a benefactor, helped relocate them and 199 other Jewish families to this area. These Jews used the land they were given to build farms and become farmers. My ancestor's farm was called Maple Tree Farm. The house on the farm in which my ancestors lived was large, and vacationers would rent rooms in their house to spend time in the country and get away from city life. Over time, my ancestors decided to convert the farm into a resort hotel called Krouner’s Hotel, because there was such a high demand for staying there. As the resort business declined in the 1950’s, my great-grandfather purchased the land from his family and opened a sleepaway camp for children called Camp Schodack. The cup in the photo was recently dug up during renovations on the camp dining hall. It was a cup from the hotel that was once used by guests. This cup will have great significance to our family because it represents the hard work my ancestors put in to make a living in their new country.
– ES
Relationship: Im/migrant Im/migrant