What’s in a Name?: Oblong Books & Music

The name of Oblong Books & Music in Millerton and Rhinebeck, New York, is based on an obscure bit of geographical history, according to store founder Dick Hermans: the Oblong Dispute, which spanned two centuries and created an outlaw district between two states.

Hermans, who co-owns Oblong with his daughter, Suzanna, said the name came to him while he was looking at an old map.

“When we were planning the store in 1975, we came across a railroad map calling the stream through Millerton the Oblong River,” said Hermans. “The word ‘oblong’ hadn’t been used much in the area for some time, [since the area] became known as the Harlem Valley once the railroads arrived in the mid-1800s.”

As the Hermans explain it on the store website, in the late 1600s the colonies of New York and Connecticut each conducted territorial surveys to establish a border 20 miles from the Hudson River. However, the final results differed by nearly two miles, leaving both states to lay claim to a long, narrow strip of land that extended through Dutchess County to Westchester County. Because of its shape, the stretch of land was nicknamed The Oblong. For decades, this district existed as an outlaw territory, where neither colony had actual legal jurisdiction, and none paid taxes.

A sketch of Oblong Books & Music's Millerton location

“The Oblong had a reputation as an area where neither state had firm control, and nefarious activities were carried out around here for many years,” said Hermans. “Some of that was still evident in the village 40 years ago.”

The disputed territory was finally apportioned in 1731 when a treaty was signed giving The Oblong to New York; in return Connecticut received an equal amount of land from New York’s southeast corner. It took until 1857, however, for both states to officially ratify the border agreement.

Hermans said Oblong customers often ask him to explain the origin of the store’s name, which he does gladly, but in past years others noted another reason why the name “Oblong” seemed to fit: the Millerton store’s physical shape.

Oblong Books & Music, Rhinebeck location

“Our original store in Millerton was that shape — 10 feet by 40 feet,” said Hermans. “We didn’t actually plan on that connection, but other people have mentioned it.”

Oblong’s name also bears a connection to one of the store’s early music distributors, he added. “As soon as we got into the record business, we discovered Rounder Records,” Hermans said. “When we opened, they were a distributor for 200 small indie labels and a great supplier of LPs that were popular with our audience who loved bluegrass and folk, so I thought that [Oblong had] a nice symmetry with their name as well.”