History of the Village

In 1684, Colonel Peter Schuyler, great-uncle of General Schuyler, and six partners, obtained title to the Schuyler Patent, an area of over 168,000 acres that extended roughly 6 miles each side of the Hudson River.  The Battle of Saratoga (The Turning Point of the Revolutionary War) was fought on the lands presently occupied by the Village of Victory and the Village of Schuylerville. In the years following the war, flour mills, linen mills, paper mills and sawmills were constructed as well as schools, churches and businesses.  The Saratoga Battle Monument occupies a prominent place in the northwest portion of the village.

The Village of Victory was incorporated in 1849 and the Victory Mills Post Office opened in 1852.  At that time, the village population was listed as 637 in the 1860 census.  There was one church, built in 1854, and one school house, erected in 1872.  The school house building is now owned by the Village and serves as the fire station and the Village Meeting Room with a new addition housing the mayor’s and clerk’s offices.

The Victory Mill, which began operating in 1846, made 1.8 million yards of cotton cloth per year. In 1850, it employed 160 men and 209 women. Several companies owned and operated the facility over the years and unfortunately ended up closing its doors in 2000.