Clermont was the home of Robert Livingston who helped draft the Declaration of Independence, was the first Secretary of State and gave the oath of office to George Washington. He was a land owner in Columbia County forcing many to work the farms and pay him taxes/rent. Rumor has it his "tax collectors" were held up at gun point by the tenants/landowners and we told they will not pay taxes any more. If you look around the county you will see rock walls where their sheep we kept and the farms were marked. The original house was burnt to the ground in 1777 when the British troups went up the Hudson and burnt Kingston (then the Capital.)

update 5-3-14: they are now charging for parking all the time, not just after 10am on weekends, you can't go early or late for a quiet walk for free, which is very disappointing. I hope other local parks aren't doing the same. We now live so close to it and can't afford to go as often due to this.

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