Chronicles: Splashing Through Time in Jackson Corners

For the neighborhood kids, summertime in the 1950s and early ‘60s around Jackson Corners meant swimming in the Roeliff Jansen Kill. My three siblings and I lived two miles south of that hamlet, in Milan, and two swimming holes along the “Roe Jan” refreshed us during many carefree summers.

The place where I learned to swim at the age of 4 was near the bridge on Academy Hill Road that spanned the Roe Jan a half mile south of Jackson Corners. Once our chores were done, one, two, three or all four of us would walk or be driven by Mom to this place for a dip. It was a good spot for young swimmers because a rock outcropping in the stream created a small lagoon of peaceful water perfect for learning swimming basics. The stream’s currents deposited sand on the shoreline creating a tolerably good beach and made the footing under the lagoon sandy as well. 

Out beyond the lagoon where the stream’s current was fast flowing there were three large submerged boulders that were popular perches for older swimmers, where we would jump from when we were older. Releasing yourself into the current meant being swept through a narrow gap in the rocks into another peaceful swimming area that was less popular because the rocky stream bed made getting in and out of the water there a torturous task.

As we got older and outgrew the Academy Hill Road swimming place, a spot not far downstream became a favorite. Accessed at the bridge across the Roe Jan on Turkey Hill Road, just down the hill from the Jackson Corners General Store, this swimming hole became a favorite; not just for the swimming but also for the socializing my teenage sisters, in particular, looked forward to.

A steep slanting rock made getting to the water at this location quite challenging, but once at the water’s edge, the sloping rock made sliding into the water simple. I did suffer a deeply cut toe there once, but other than that it was a fun and exciting place to be. This swimming hole seems to have been abandoned once a guardrail was installed along the roadway many years ago.

At the Academy Hill Road site, jumping off the bridge was not advisable because of the many uneven rocks in the stream below. But at the Jackson Corners bridge, daredevils jumped from the bridge and even the top rail of the bridge with abandon because the landing spot was deep and free of rocks. If the summer was particularly dry, the water’s depth did not invite this practice. I think I jumped from the bridge once, but I might have chickened out.

A recent visit revealed that the path from the roadway down an embankment to the coarse sand beach area is still in use, even though a substantial guardrail made it harder to get to the water. The path is now well protected by a healthy crop of poison ivy.

The group that, decades ago, used to gather with my siblings and I to swim on any particular day was a revolving cast of about 15 kids, including locals and the city kids up for the summer. After swimming, we would all walk past the firehouse up to the general store where proprietors Peter Timm and, later, Myrtle Gaddis would sell us a soda and we would sit on the long bench on the store’s porch and get to know each other. Summer romances came and went, friendships were born. Memories of those idyllic days linger on.

Chronicles is the New Pine Plains Herald’s continuation of its My Pine Plains memoir series, chronicling life in and around Pine Plains, Ancram, Milan, Stanford and Gallatin. The Herald welcomes submissions from readers that highlight memories and lived experiences from all people of all backgrounds.