Photo: Donna Lou Morgan, U.S. Navy, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Pete Seeger was born in New York City in 1919. He became one of the best-known American folk singers through the Weavers and his solo career. He was blacklisted during the McCarthy era after refusing to answer questions from the House Un-American Activities Committee.
In 1949 he and his wife, Toshi, built a log cabin on a hillside above Beacon, in Dutchess County. They lived there for the rest of their lives.
The Clearwater
In the 1960s the Hudson was badly polluted with sewage and industrial waste. Seeger had the idea of building a replica of the old Hudson River sloops to draw attention to the river. The sloop Clearwater was launched in 1969 and has sailed the river ever since as a floating classroom.
The Clearwater festival, held for years in Croton-on-Hudson, raised money and awareness.
Local life
Seeger stayed involved in Beacon, helping found Beacon Sloop Club and riverfront festivals and supporting the cleanup of the city’s waterfront. He was often seen at local protests and events well into his 90s.
He died in 2014 at 94. Beacon has a riverfront park area named in his memory, and the river is far cleaner than when the Clearwater first sailed.
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