In the 1600's and 1700's the wealthy built stone homes, many of which can still be seen throughout the Saugerties Area, historical landmarks. The Saugerties Historical Society located in the Kiersted House build in 1727, is a prime example of such stone masonry construction, it is open to the public, with a museum worth visiting.

As late as 1811 the hamlet of Saugerties contained only twenty-one houses, but in the 1820's Henry Barclay sparked the expansion of the community by establishing the Ulster Iron Works and a paper mill. Barclay planned a industrial community on the Esopus Creek, his dam powered the largest collection of water-powered machinery in the world.

The Saugerties Lighthouse is a venerable red-brick lighthouse built in 1869 at the mouth of the Esopus Creek. The Saugerties Lighthouse Conservancy maintains the lighthouse and adjacent lands for the enjoyment of the public.

Opus 40 - Artist/sculptor Harvey Fite built an environmental sculpture of native bluestone over the course of thirty-seven years (1939-1976). His work is one of the most impressive and vast sculptures ever created by a single person.