In 1801, Samuel F. Jones was given the task of finding a route for the Newburgh and Cochecton Turnpike to connect The Hudson and Delaware Rivers. While he marked the path through what was then Orange and Ulster counties he saw an opportunity to build a village on the turnpike. Samuel convinced his younger brother, John Patterson Jones, to buy a 1861 acre tract of land that would be bisected by the turnpike so they could build this new village. In 1803, John and 11 other men started work on a sawmill, and other infrastructure to help them build the village. The group left the area during the winter but would return in the early months of 1804 to continue their work. In spring of the same year the route for the turnpike was finalized and the two brothers started to plan the village. After the plan was completed, the first tree was chopped down by John September 4, 1804 on the property that would later become his house. The village grew from there having 20 houses by 1813 and being officially incorporated on April 20, 1830.
