The Forgotten Towns of Upstate New York, is the third photography documentary project in our series, “Life After the Pandemic. Our goal is to explore various areas of New York: capturing the culture around it, as well as examine the effects of the pandemic.

In our latest trip, we explored four areas of Upstate New York’s: Oneonta, Woodstock, and Saugerties, and New Paltz. Each of these towns is unique in its own way with stories and places waiting to be explored. Our first trip was to Oneonta, nicknamed “the city of hills.” Before Oneonta settled on its current name, the town was originally called McDonalds Mills. It was not until 1830 that the township began to go by Oneonta. Long before the city was established, the land was owned and inhabited by the Indigenous ancestors of Algonquin and Iroquoian-speaking Native Americans. It was around 1775 that European settlers would eventually conquer and colonize the land from the Native Americans.

When exploring Oneonta, one may come across historic buildings that have been indexed on the National Register of Historic Places. Some of these places include the Oneonta Theater, the Oneonta Armory, and Bresee Hall. It is, as well, home to prominent residents such as George Winthrop Fairchild, who would go on to become one of the founders of IBM.

Today, Oneonta has established its own relaxed and groovy identity. When traveling, you’ll find that the town offers a wide range of outdoor recreational activities, food options, and art, most of which can be found on Main Street.

Agriculture is a notable economic activity in Oneonta. The country roads are lined with farms in various states of debilitation. Many farms are thriving; yet, too many are run down, collapsed, and abandoned. These brutal realities are not exclusive to the countryside.

Main Street boasts many up-and-running small businesses, as well as vacant buildings and perpetually closed stores. Is this the result of the Covid-19 pandemic? Or did the pandemic expedite an already looming economic crisis? As we researched later, the poverty rate in Oneonta was 22.2% in 2019, much higher than the average of New York State.

That number does not take into consideration the pandemic’s impact. Is it possible that the people of Oneonta were left behind and forgotten about? ( https://www.city-data.com/poverty/poverty-Oneonta-New-York.html)