Women in the Legal System

Schenectady County, located in NY’s Capital Region, was first settled by white colonists in the 1660s and had previously been under the purview of the Haudenosaunee. During the colonial and Early American periods, it was an agricultural area inhabited by a mix of Dutch, Scottish, French, German, African, and Haudenosaunee (primarily Mohawk) people, and served as the eastern terminus of transportation along the Mohawk River. In the nineteenth century, the development of the Erie Canal, railroads, and manufacturing changed Schenectady into a significant hub for industrial innovation, leading to population growth and the establishment of American Locomotive and General Electric. While Schenectady became an English colonial village after 1664 and an American city in 1798, communities in the area maintained connections to Dutch heritage and culture up through the early 1900s. The court and judiciary systems in Schenectady developed concurrently with governmental systems in New York – from appointed officials primarily serving as keepers of the peace to judges and practicing attorneys arbitrating all disputes to separate courts and proceedings designated for specific purposes. The status and rights of women changed significantly over time. Under Dutch colonial rule, women owned property and conducted business as heads of families. In Schenectady, this practice did not entirely disappear during New York’s shift to English rule.