Rensselaerswyck

By 1844, the [[Anti-Rent War|anti-rent movement]] had grown from a localized struggle against the van Rensselaer family to a full-fledged revolt against leasehold tenure throughout eastern New York, where other major manors existed. Virtual [[guerrilla]] warfare broke out. Riders disguised as Indians and wearing calico gowns ranged through the countryside, terrorizing the agents of the landlords. In late 1844, Governor [[William Bouck]] sent three companies of militia to [[Hudson, New York|Hudson]], where anti-renters threatened to storm the jail and release their leader, Big Thunder (Smith A. Boughton, in private life). The following year Governor [[Silas Wright]] was forced to declare [[Delaware County, New York|Delaware County]] in a state of [[insurrection]] after an armed rider had killed undersheriff Osman N. Steele August 7, 1845 at an eviction sale.

By 1844, the [[Anti-Rent War|anti-rent movement]] had grown from a localized struggle against the van Rensselaer family to a full-fledged revolt against leasehold tenure throughout eastern New York, where other major manors existed. Virtual [[guerrilla]] warfare broke out. Riders disguised as Indians and wearing calico gowns ranged through the countryside, terrorizing the agents of the landlords. In late 1844, Governor [[William Bouck]] sent three companies of militia to [[Hudson, New York|Hudson]], where anti-renters threatened to storm the jail and release their leader, Big Thunder (Smith A. Boughton, in private life). The following year Governor [[Silas Wright]] was forced to declare [[Delaware County, New York|Delaware County]] in a state of [[insurrection]] after an armed rider had killed undersheriff Osman N. Steele August 7, 1845 at an eviction sale.

The anti-renters organized town, county, and state committees, published their own newspapers, held conventions, and elected their own spokesmen to the [[New York Legislature|legislature]]. The success of candidates endorsed by anti-renters in 1845 caused politicians in both parties to show a "wonderful anxiety" to "give the Anti-renters all they ask." The legislature abolished the right of the landlord to seize the goods of a defaulting tenant and taxed the income which landlords derived from their rent. Shortly thereafter, the [[New York State Constitutional Convention#Constitutional Convention 1846|Constitutional Convention of 1846]] prohibited any future lease of agricultural land which claimed rent or service for a period longer than twelve years. Yet neither the convention nor the legislature was willing to disturb existing leases.

The anti-renters organized town, county, and state committees, published their own newspapers, held conventions, and elected their own spokesmen to the [[New York Legislature|legislature]]. The success of candidates endorsed by anti-renters in 1845 caused politicians in both parties to show a "wonderful anxiety" to "give the Anti-renters all they ask." The legislature abolished the right of the landlord to seize the goods of a defaulting tenant and taxed the income that landlords derived from their rent. Shortly thereafter, the [[New York State Constitutional Convention#Constitutional Convention 1846|Constitutional Convention of 1846]] prohibited any future lease of agricultural land that claimed rent or service for a period longer than twelve years. Yet neither the convention nor the legislature was willing to disturb existing leases.

The anti-renters played politics with remarkable success in the years between 1846 and 1851. They elected friendly sheriffs and local officials who virtually paralyzed the efforts of the landlords to collect rents. They threw their weight to the candidates of either major party who would support their cause. The bitter rivalries between and within the [[United States Whig Party|Whig]] and [[United States Democratic Party|Democratic]] parties enabled the anti-renters to exert more influence than their numbers warranted. As a result, they had a small but determined bloc of anti-rent champions in the [[New York State Assembly|Assembly]] and the [[New York State Senate|Senate]] who kept landlords uneasy by threatening to pass laws challenging land titles.

The anti-renters played politics with remarkable success in the years between 1846 and 1851. They elected friendly sheriffs and local officials who virtually paralyzed the efforts of the landlords to collect rents. They threw their weight to the candidates of either major party who would support their cause. The bitter rivalries between and within the [[United States Whig Party|Whig]] and [[United States Democratic Party|Democratic]] parties enabled the anti-renters to exert more influence than their numbers warranted. As a result, they had a small but determined bloc of anti-rent champions in the [[New York State Assembly|Assembly]] and the [[New York State Senate|Senate]] who kept landlords uneasy by threatening to pass laws challenging land titles.