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‘Bush Island’ moves a step closer to reality

By Colin DeVries

CATSKILL — After an extensive initiative to title an unnamed island resting on the edge of Embought Bay in the Hudson River, it has now taken one more step toward honoring conservationist and angler Douglas Bush.

The Catskill Town Board supported the U.S. Board on Geographic Names in the naming of “Bush Island,” which technically lies in both Greene and Columbia counties, surrounded by both Catskill and Germantown waters on either side.

“I’m very pleased that the town board is recognizing one of their locals in memoriam of this island,” said Village President Vincent Seeley, who has been a strong advocate of the island’s naming.

“This isn’t the last step. This is just the next step in the process,” he said. “We hope to keep forging ahead to make this happen.”

There was some resistance behind the naming of the island, however, by Catskill Town Supervisor Peter Markou. Markou was the only member of the board to vote ‘no’ in support of the name.

“I think that that island belongs to the United States of America,” said Markou, “and therefore, I believe that the Army Corps of Engineers should have some say in this thing. In my past experience, even puddles have been referred to by the Army Corps of Engineers as waters of the United States of America, and we are participating in the naming of an island that, if any place is to name it, it should be the federal government. That’s just my feeling.”

Since a portion of the island sits within Germantown lines, additional support by the Germantown Town Board must be given for the Board of Geographic Names to move forward with the official declaration.

Douglas Bush, a lifelong resident of Catskill and an avid outdoorsman, devoted much of his life to preserving the condition of the island. To this day, it continues to serve as the home to many forms of animal life, including American Bald Eagles and other rare winged species. He took it upon himself to protect the ecology of the island and its inhabitants.

After returning from the Vietnam War in 1975, Bush worked as a postal worker while taking six weeks off each year to take advantage of peak fishing seasons.

He later decided to give up his career at the U.S. Postal Service and devote his life to fishing, satisfying one of his passions. He found it to be a fruitful, enjoyable path and something for which he had a natural affinity.

His expertise and talents were later acquired by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to breed sturgeon for fisheries and aquariums throughout the nation.

During the time he spent on the shore of Embought Bay, in the shadow of the unnamed, man-made island, he assisted the state Department of Environmental Conservation in identifying local fauna and their habitats.

Bush passed away on Dec. 2, 2001 from cancer at the age of 50. He is survived by his mother, two children, stepchildren and many other family members.

Childhood friend Jeff Seeley took the task of preserving Bush’s legacy several years ago when he first proposed the name before the Catskill Town Board. Since then he has been working hard to honor Bush by merging his friend’s moniker with that of the island, forever linking them.

The island was originally created by Hudson River dredging operations in the 1950s. The most recent attempt to name it failed because the proposed “Schoener Island” had been claimed by an island in the St. Lawrence River in the North Country.

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