Editing Washington, New York (section)

==History==
Prior to the arrival of European settlers, the area was the abode of the sedentary [[Wappinger]] Indians.<ref name="Bookman-1972">{{Cite magazine|last1=Bookman |first1=Janet |last2=Bookman |first2=George |year=1972 |title=Three Centuries on the Canoe Hills |magazine=Dutchess County Historical Society Yearbook |volume=57 |pages=88–99, page 89 |url=https://issuu.com/dchsny/docs/dchs_yb_v057_1972_masterfile/s/15285388 }}</ref>

Although some Dutch had settled in the area, it was the [[Province of New York|British]] grant of the [[Great Nine Partners Patent]] in 1697 that spurred growth.<ref name="Bookman-1972" /> Lt. Col. Henry Filkins was the largest landowner and his family continued in leadership until forced to flee at the start of the [[American Revolution]].<ref name="Bookman-1972" />

When Dutchess County was first organized in 1683, it was subdivided into twelve precincts.  What is now the towns of Stanford, Clinton, Pleasant Valley, and Washington constituted Charlotte Precinct, later named after 
[[Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Lyall |first=John Edward |year=1909 |chapter=The Town of Washington |editor-last=Hasbrouck |editor-first=Frank |title=The History of Dutchess County New York |location=Poughkeepsie, New York |publisher=S. A. Matthieu |pages=476–497, page 476 |url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924028853327 |access-date=November 6, 2022}}</ref> The town was formed as part of the county reorganization in 1788 as one of the original twelve towns, with the towns of Poughkeepsie and Clinton to the west.<ref name="Lyall-1909-477">{{harvnb|Lyall|1909|p=477}}</ref> The town lost territory in 1793 to form the new town of [[Stanford, New York|Stanford]].<ref name="Lyall-1909-477" />

The [[Newburgh, Dutchess and Connecticut Railroad]] (formerly the Dutchess and Columbia Railroad<ref name="Beers-1867" />) came through in 1869 cutting north-south across the town,<ref>{{harvnb|Lyall|1909|p=478}}</ref> with a station between Mechanic and Hart's Village.<ref name="Millbrook-HS">{{Cite web | title=A Brief History of Millbrook |publisher=Millbrook Historical Society | url=https://www.millbrookhistoricalsociety.org/history }}</ref>