The town of New Paltz, New York is in Ulster County, which gets its name from the word "palz," which is the name of a region of southwestern Germany. It was founded by French Huguenots in 1678 and given a patent from the governor, though in addition, there was a price to be paid for the purchase of the land from the Esopus Indians. The founders were religious refugees who had fled France to escape religious persecution and come to New York by way of Mannheim in the German Palatinate where the name of New Paltz originated. In 1785, the Town of New Paltz was incorporated, and in 1810, the first post office was established. In 1868, the New Paltz Academy, which is now known as the State University of New York, College at New Paltz, was established. It was originally designated by the State of New York to teach common school teachers. The Village of New Paltz was incorporated in 1887.
Regular Blogs
The blogger, who moved to New Paltz from Manhattan maintains this weblog, which addresses many things, including how to buy a wheelbarrow, how local banks work as compared to national banks and how not to tow a car, as well as many other topics.
http://newpaltz.blogspot.com
After being called a "local gadfly" by a candidate for town council, the blogger discusses local politics, issues discussed by he school board and by the council, town elections, and an assortment of local politicians and representatives.
http://newpaltzgadfly.blogspot.com
The official site of the Town of New Platz hosts this weblog, which displays information about the history of the town, ordinances and initiatives, and an online, interactive map of the historic properties in town.
http://www.townofnewpaltz.org/blog
