Curtis Falls
Location: On the border of the village of Corinth, town of Corinth, Saratoga County and the town of Lake Luzerne, Warren County, New York.
Maps: Google Map; Topographic; Interactive map.
GPS Coordinates:
- Curtis Falls: (N 43.24726 / W 73.82810)
- Nearby Palmer Falls: (N 43.24930 / W 73.82048)
Directions: From Saratoga Springs, take NY-9N north for 14 miles to the village of Corinth.
Turn right onto W Mechanic St and follow it for about a half mile to Main St.
Make a right onto Main St and an immediate left onto Palmer Ave.
After a fifth of a mile make a left onto River St. Parking will be on your right after a tenth of a mile.
Parking: There is a small dirt lot at a park on Palmer Ave on the side towards the river and near the hydroelectric plant. It’s surrounded by large rocks and you can see power lines running above and a walking path heading from the lot to the river. There’s room for a few cars here.
Alternative parking is further down the road in a large gravel lot on the river side where there is a sign for Curtis Park.
Parking for Pagenstecher Park, which is farther away, provides a nice head-on view of the falls. It has an entrance on Palmer Ave, between the intersection with River St and a beautiful red brick house. Follow the road toward the river and park in any open area.
Weather
Information / Accessibility / Accommodations
Number of falls: 1 natural waterfall topped by a man-made dam.
Size/Types: About 20 ft in total height. A man-made dam of about 6-8 ft tall tops the rocky and irregular natural waterfall. The dam is segmented into 4 parts, forming a U-shape across the river. The northern-most segment is a bit lower serving to curb flooding and this tends to be the only area running in low flow. On this side there is a gradual cascade down the remaining length of the natural falls. The middle two segments lead to a rocky shelf that serves to split the river into the northern and southern falls. On the southern side there’s a direct plunge of about 15 ft in height pointed south, but obscured by the hydro plant.
Best time to visit: In spring or fall.
Flow: Moderate. It’s always flowing, but in dry summers the little water that does pass through here is channeled into a few hidden fissures.
Waterway: The Hudson River. The Hudson originates in the Adirondacks at Lake Tear of the Clouds, and flows 315 miles south to New York City and the Atlantic Ocean. Just south of Rockwell Falls at Lake Luzerne, one of the Hudson’s largest tributaries, the Sacandaga River, merges with the Hudson. The river continues south 5 miles to Curtis Falls and then shortly after Palmer Falls. The Hudson continues south to New York City and empties into the Atlantic Ocean.
Time: A few minutes.
Seasons/Hours: Year-round, daytime hours.
Admission: Free.
Handicap Accessibility: There is a brick walking path from the gravel parking area to the chain-link fence near the power facility. The brick is uneven. The views from anything lower than standing height aren’t that great.
Pets: No rules are posted, but pets need to be on a leash in public.
Accommodations: There is a small walking trail from the parking lot to the river. At Curtis Park (north) there’s a viewing platform that has a nice view of the river looking north. There are ball fields across the street. There’s an emergency center office just north of here and a few restaurants and shops on Main St, within walking distance. Pagenstecher Park, while small, has picnic tables, a pavilion, a playground, and a view of the falls.
You can swim in the river, but not at the falls. There’s a beach park upstream to the north of here off of Main St. Parking for the beach is across the street.
Description
AKA: Jessup’s Falls, Curtis Mills, Curtis Mills Dam, Curtis Dam.
Like many of the waterfalls on the Hudson, Curtis Falls has been industrialized since settlement here, and now is home to a small hydroelectric dam and plant that supplies power to the village of Corinth. At about 20 ft tall, about 6-8 of which are a 4-segmented U-shaped concrete dam, the irregular shaped step cascade falls rarely sees full flow these days. In early spring and snow melt, or after heavy rain, the dam will spill over and this is the time to catch it. Usually most of the fair weather flow bypasses the falls and flows through the plant. What remains, pours through difficult-to-see narrow channels at the north and south corners of the falls.
Getting a full view of the falls is possible from the riverside Pagenstecher Park to the east, although it is the furthest viewpoint and blocked by a chain-link fence. Another viewpoint can be had from alongside the hydro plant on River Street, but unfortunately the south end, which has a nice rectangular plunge that usually flows, is obstructed at this angle. To the north where a large parking lot for Palmer Park is located, is another partial view from the side, but does offer a view of the northern segment of the falls, often flowing in moderate to high flow.
Just downstream and still within the village, is Palmer Falls, which is nearly 70 ft tall. While one could walk that distance in a short time, there are sadly no views from this side of the river and one must head over to the East River Dr bridge into Warren County and follow a wooded trail to catch a glimpse of that one. It’s still a pretty quick and enjoyable side-trek and it’s recommended if you are visiting Curtis Falls.
History
Following the French and Indian War, Edward Jessup (1735-1816) who served under the British, received a 500,000 acre land grant from the Crown. In 1764, he and his brother Ebenezer Jessup (1739-1818) sold those land holdings and eventually acquired land along the Hudson at Warren County. Despite being one of the largest landowners in New York at the time, they purchased an additional 1,150,000 acres in the area of Hamilton County from the native Mohawk people in 1771. They settled for a time at Luzerne and built a gristmill at the falls there.
From their home and base of operations in Albany, they later ran a fruitful logging enterprise on the fringe of the Adirondacks, which shipped goods down the Hudson to Albany and New York City. Waterfalls, for obvious reasons, inhibited this process. To bypass Curtis and Palmer Falls, rafts stopped at Jessup’s Landing (the location of present day Corinth’s public beach) and used wagons to transport the logs around the falls. As loyalists, they fought on the side of the British during the Revolutionary War and were taken prisoner during the Saratoga Campaign (1777) and were removed to Quebec.
The portage at the landing brought business interests to the area, with settlers arriving at Jessup’s Landing likely prior to the Revolution, but records start around 1790. A gristmill and sawmill have been documented at the falls in the early 1800s, but exact records are spotty. A ferry operated at the landing, taking passengers to the forests in the uplands across the river.
The town of Corinth was formed from the town of Hadley in 1818 and was named by Mrs. Washington Chapman, who opened her Bible randomly to the Epistle to the Corinthians and proclaimed “There it is. It shall be called Corinth.”
While the town’s name changed, the fledgling portage settlement stayed as Jessup’s Landing well into the 1800s. A gristmill and sawmill were built alongside the falls. The community grew, prospering from the Hudson River Pulp and Paper Company (mill at Palmer Falls). It was incorporated as the Village of Corinth in 1886.
Warren Curtis, Sr., of Jessup’s Landing, supervised operations at the Hudson River Pulp Company’s mill at Palmer Falls, founded by the Pagenstechers who built a pulp mill upstream at Lake Luzerne near Rockwell Falls. Warren Curtis, Jr. continued in the family business, working under his father as an engineer for a number of years, and eventually becoming the district engineer for the International Paper Company when it was formed in 1898. He founded the Curtis manufacturing company and was president and treasurer of the Corinth Electric Light and Power Company, which were built along the falls in 1913. He relocated to Niagara Falls and was instrumental in forming and operating the Tonawanda Paper Company and Ontario Paper Company, while remaining a prominent shareholder in his former Corinth, NY interests, which were commonly referred to as Curtis Mills. It’s likely the falls is named after either of these gentlemen.
An iron bridge once spanned the river just above the falls. Built in 1896, it can be seen in some old postcards. I couldn’t find a date for when it was removed.
The original Jessup’s Landing on the river stood undeveloped until a public swimming beach was created in 1930.
Hiking / Walking Trails
Difficulty: Easy.
Markings: Brick walkway. Paved walkway to the river view platform.
Distance: 50 feet or more, depending on how many views you’d like to take in.
Description: From the small parking area near the hydro plant head north on the brick walkway towards the river, following the electric cables above. Turn right at the chain link fence. The falls will come into view from behind the hydro plant. The hydro plant will block the south end of the falls, but you can get a decent view of the north end from there.
From the parking lot on River Street, you can see the crest of the falls and a bit of the north end (if it’s flowing) from the chain link fence. Head into the park to the north and follow the paved walkway to a small viewing platform on the river.
Head back south towards Palmer Ave and make a left into a gravel loop on the left, across from a white house and brick church. Head east on the gravel road on the right to Pagenstecher Park following the road, keeping left to the river. A head-on view of the falls should come into view through the chain-link fence.
Map: Interactive.
Curtis and Palmer Falls Interactive Map
Curtis Falls Media
Videos
Coming soon…
Contributor Photos & Art
At this time I have not been able to get out to this site and photograph yet. In the meantime, those with suitable photos or original works of art, who would like to be featured here, please contact me. Photos, paintings, and illustrations would be subject to quality review, and not all will be accepted. Your work can be accompanied by a link to your site/store/insta.
Who to Contact
Village of Corinth
244 Main St
Corinth, NY 12822
Phone: (518) 654-2012
