The City of Kingston, NY

    Welcome to the City of Kingston, NY

    Kingston, dating to the arrival of the Dutch in 1652, is a vibrant city with rich history and architecture, was the state's first capital, and a thriving arts community. City Hall is in the heart of the community at 420 Broadway, and is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., except July & August (9 a.m. to 4 p.m.).  Come tour our historic City, with restaurants that are among the region's finest, and local shopping that promises unique finds.

    Historic Churches

    Kingston is home to many historic churches. The oldest church still standing is the First Reformed Protestant Dutch Church of Kingston which was organized in 1659. Referred to as The Old Dutch Church, it is located in Uptown Kingston. Many of the city's historic churches populate Wurts street (6 in one block) among them Hudson Valley Wedding Chapel is a recently restored church built in 1867 and now a chapel hosting weddings. Another church in the Rondout is located at 72 Spring Street. Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church was founded in 1849. The original church building at the corner of Hunter Street and Ravine Street burned to the ground in the late 1850s. The current church on Spring Street was built in 1874.

    Kingston, NY

    Kingston became New York's first capital in 1777, and was burned by the British on October 13, 1777, after the Battles of Saratoga. In the 19th century, the city became an important transport hub after the discovery of natural cement in the region, and had both railroad and canal connections.

    Kingston, NY

    The town of Rondout, New York, now a part of the city of Kingston, became an important freight hub for the transportation of coal from Honesdale, Pennsylvania to New York City through the Delaware and Hudson Canal. This hub was later used to transport other goods, including bluestone. Kingston shaped and shipped most of the bluestone made to create the sidewalks of New York City.

     

    Contact Us

    City Hall Address:
    420 Broadway
    Kingston, New York
    12401

    Phone:
    (845) 331-0080
    Email:
    [email protected]

    Kingston News

    2/20/2018 - Records Management and Preservation Project: Scanning of Birth and Death Certificates (1991-2017) to begin on April 23rd

    Update!

    April 19, 2018

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

     

    Records Management and Preservation Project Continues

    Scanning of Birth and Death Certificates (1991-2017) to begin on April 23rd

    KINGSTON, N.Y.  In 2017, the City of Kingston was awarded a Local Government Records Management Improvement Fund grant through the NYS Archives to scan and preserve the City’s vital records, including Birth, Death, and Marriage Certificates. The first phase of the project is focused on the most recent 50 years of documents.

    Due to the extensive records set to be scanned, the records have been split into two batches to be completed during this phase. The first batch, which included Birth Records from 1968–1989 and death certificates from 1968-1990, has been scanned and it is expected that these files will be availability electronically in the coming weeks. The second batch, which will include all Birth Records from 1990–2017 and Death Certificates from 1991–2017, will be sent out for scanning beginning on April 23, 2018. Scanning is expected to take approximately 6 weeks.

    During this processing time, the records will be offsite and unavailable at City Hall. Individuals in need of accessing these records should submit their requests to the NYS Department of Health at 800 North Pearl Street 2nd Floor - Room 200, Menands, NY 12204 or https://www.health.ny.gov/vital_records.

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    Original Announcement

    February 20, 2018

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

    City of Kingston Announces Digital Conversion of Vital Records

    KINGSTON, N.Y. Mayor Steve Noble is pleased to announce the launch of the City’s efforts to scan and preserve vital records, including Birth, Death, and Marriage Certificates.

    In 2017, the City was awarded a Local Government Records Management Improvement Fund grant through the NYS Archives to scan the City’s Vital Records. The first phase of the project will focus on the most recent 50 years of documents.

    Due to the extensive records set to be scanned, this phase will take up to three months to complete. The records will be split into two batches to be completed during this phase. The first batch will include Marriage records from 1960 – 2009 and death certificates from 1967-2017. The second batch will include birth certificates from 1967-2017. During this processing time, the records will be offsite and unavailable at City Hall. Individuals in need of accessing these records should submit their requests to the NYS Department of Health at 800 North Pearl Street 2nd Floor - Room 200, Menands, NY 12204 or https://www.health.ny.gov/vital_records.

    “We have applied for this grant opportunity a number of times over the past few years and were very happy to learn that this year’s proposal was successful,” said Carly Winnie, City Clerk and Registrar. “While this digital conversion will present a short term inconvenience for community members and will temporary interrupt the immediate access for these records, this is a wonderful, long-term investment in preserving these records for generations to come.”

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