Potsdam (New York) – More than 6000 kilometers away from Potsdam on the Havel is a second Potsdam. It can be found in the north of the state of New York, near the border with Canada. It is no coincidence that Potsdam, New York, and the German Potsdam have the same name. “Our city is named after your city,” says Fred Rollins from the City Museum in Potsdam, New York.
Living like in German Potsdam
The New York Potsdam was founded in May 1787 together with ten cities along the St. Lawrence River – but not by emigrated Potsdamers. It was the government that named these places after examples in Europe: In addition to Potsdam, for example, Stockholm, Madrid and Canton. It was a marketing ploy: the cities were named to attract settlers, move north and develop the country, explains Rollins: “The MPs wanted people to think, ‘Wow, I can like this in this Potsdam live in Potsdam, Germany. ‘”
This is confirmed by Trent Trulock, director of the St. Lawrence County Historical Society. “Although the cities have the same names, the first inhabitants did not come from Europe,” says the regional historian. “It is assumed that those responsible had international business relationships and therefore used names from all over the world.” With an international connection, so the idea, the area would be easier to sell.
New York’s Potsdam is not as big as the European model
The government was very interested in developing the country: as a new security zone between Canada and the United States. Potsdam, New York, was founded just a few years after the War of Independence ended, Trulock explains. New York was afraid of a British attack from Canada. The new settlers in the border area in the north could have issued a warning if the British attacked. So it came about that more than 400 years after Potsdam in the Brandenburg region received its town charter, the New York administration used the name to attract settlers and develop the wilderness.
Potsdam, New York, has not become as big as the model in distant Europe: In the last census in 2010 there were 9,428 inhabitants, including the surrounding communities 16,041. And Potsdam, New York, is not the only Potsdam in the USA: There are two more, albeit very small. Potsdam, Ohio has a population of 288. Potsdam, North Dakota, just 38.
A partnership began in the 1990s
Most residents of Potsdam, New York, know that there is also a Potsdam in Germany. But mostly not much more, as Trulock says. The Americans in Potsdam do not have an impression of Potsdam in Brandenburg.
But it wasn’t always like that. In the 1990s, a partnership between the two cities even emerged: in 1994, a group of 52 Potsdamers around the publisher Hermann Ehrengard visited Potsdam in New York, as can be read in the student newspaper of SUNY Potsdam College. At that time, they found accommodation with host families on site. “We are delighted that our friendship with our twin town is continuing and we look forward to meeting our German friends this summer,” Mayor Garner was quoted as saying before the visit.
Lack of interest
The University of Potsdam also made contacts at the time: According to the college newspaper, the literature professor Brigitte Krück and the exchange student Sylvia Hübner were the first academic guests from Potsdam in Potsdam. The parents of museum employee Fred Rollins were also involved in programs like this one. You belonged to a group of US Potsdamers who visited Potsdam on the occasion of the 1000th anniversary in 1993. The connections fell asleep at some point – due to a lack of interest, as Rollins suspects.
Rollins estimates that around ten German tourists come to the Potsdam Museum every year. “A few weeks ago, visitors from Potsdam, Germany, were here and were happy that I spoke German,” he says. According to the local Chamber of Commerce, the two universities are particularly attractive for guests: the small town has Clarkson University and State University New York (SUNY) Potsdam. It is said that between 12,000 and 15,000 guests visit Potsdam every year.
American Potsdam is known for red sandstone
Tourists also appreciate the wooded and hilly surroundings of Potsdam: outdoor activities such as camping, hiking, canoeing or fishing are popular. Most of the guests come from the east coast, from the US states of New York, Vermont, Massachusetts or Connecticut, but also from Canada. Tourists from Europe usually visit Potsdam as a stop on a major trip to the USA, says Rollins. It’s about a day’s journey from New York City.
In the USA, Potsdam is best known for its red sandstone: In the 19th century, churches, schools, train stations, sidewalks and houses were built from “Potsdam Sandstone”, as the material that is mined along the Racquette River is called. not just in Potsdam. The parliament building in Ottawa, Canada is also made of Potsdam Sandstone.
Foreign Minister Kellog born in Potsdam
One of the small town’s sons is even better known: the future US Secretary of State Frank Billings Kellogg was born on December 22, 1856 in Potsdam. He was honored with the Nobel Peace Prize in 1929 for the Briand-Kellogg Pact negotiated with his French colleague Aristide Briand, with which the signatory states refrained from war as a political instrument. The agreement, which 64 states had signed up to in 1929, is regarded as an early model for the United Nations.
In contrast, Wes Craven’s films are not very peaceful: the director, who was born in Potsdam in 1939, is known for horror films such as “A Nightmare on Elmstreet”, “Hill of Bloody Eyes” – and “Scream”.
Trulock almost never receives questions about the connection between the two Potsdams from the Historians’ Association today, as he says. Although the two cities used to have connections, to his knowledge there are now none. Today, German Potsdam is a twin city of seven cities – including one US city: Sioux Falls in North Dakota.
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