" in downtown Canajoharie, New York. It was removed from the intersection in November 2021. in Canajoharie is listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The current village is located east of the historic
Canajoharie, and was originally home of the Mahican, an Algonquin tribe that migrated between 1500 and 1600. The Mahican later became known as the Mohawk. Canajoharie was one of two major towns of the Mohawk nation in the late 17th and 18th centuries. The area was settled by Palatinate Germans in 1723 and called “Roof’s Village” . It was after the Revolutionary war that the area was renamed to Canajoharie, referring to a geological feature in the Canajoharie Creek. The
Mohawk Upper Castle Historic District in the former area contains the Upper Castle Church (1769) and archeological sites related to Mohawk and Iroquois history; it is a
National Historic Landmark.
Palatine German settlers, Protestant refugees from religious wars in Europe, were allowed to establish a community in this area in the 1730s. They had earlier lived in work camps along the Hudson River in Dutchess County, to pay off their passage from England, which was paid by Queen Anne's government. Their community was called "Roofville" (according to anglicized spelling) after early inhabitant Johannes Rueff. The village was incorporated in 1829. During the middle of the 19th century, three fires almost destroyed the village. Because of the losses due to the fires, the village passed an ordinance prohibiting houses to be constructed of wood. Many of the older houses in the town are made of brick or locally quarried stone. After the
Revolutionary War,
George Washington visited Canajoharie. He had been in the region to survey damage done to nearby
Cherry Valley from a destructive raid by
Joseph Brant, a noted Mohawk chief allied with the British, and his forces. Washington stayed the night at
Van Alstyne Homestead (sometimes referred to as Fort Rensselaer), a common meeting place. ==Geography==