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NEWBURGH — TD Banknorth is the first major business sponsor of Newburgh’s hopes for a huge celebration honoring Henry Hudson’s 1609 discovery of his namesake river.
Promising $5,000, TD Banknorth’s vice president of government banking, Ryan G. Fohl, said his bank, which operates 61 locations in New York, is “excited” about the specific event the bank’s contributing to — the city-planned docking in Newburgh of the 85-foot-long replica of Hudson’s ship, the Half Moon, on Nov. 2.
It’s happening in November, Newburgh City Mayor Nick Valentine said, in order to kick-start next year’s festivities.
City event organizers said they expect to cover the non-profit ship’s docking fee of $20,000 for seven days of visits by schools and the general public with $10,000 expected from a source they wouldn’t identify.
School PTAs, the organizers said, have already raised $5,000 for classes from Newburgh, Cornwall, Walden, Mount Saint Mary College and Marlboro to soak up life on Hudson’s three-masted ship, a noted beauty among authentic replicas.
Half Moon master Chip Reynolds confirmed he’s blocked out his Nov. 2 arrival in Newburgh.
“I fully expect we’ll all meet our goals and we’ll be there,” he said.
The ship, which costs $3,500 a day to run, sails with 17th-century period gear, including 2,757 square feet of sails.
Visitors will also learn about the small ship’s harrowing journey across the Atlantic and its trip up the Hudson.
“TD Banknorth’s the first (big business) we’ve got to contribute, so were definitely on the right track,” Valentine said.
He predicted a “ripple effect” in the local business community, which was echoed by Orange County Chamber of Commerce President John D’Ambrosio.
D’Ambrosio said the quadricentennial — marking the discoveries of the Hudson and Lake Champlain 1609, and Robert Fulton’s 1807 steamboat cruise — “is an opportunity to brand the Hudson, a place that’s stable and has historic value.”

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