Footprints of the Red Men: Indian Geographical Names
Land Papers, 99), from Assin, "stone"; Napa, "lake, pond," or place of water, and -ink, locative, literally, "Place of water at or on the stone." The current interpretation, "Water from the solid rock," is not specially inappropriate, as the lake is at the foot of the rocks of Bare Mountain. At a certain place in the course of the stream a legal description reads: "A whitewood tree standing near the southerly side of a ridge of rocks, lying on the south side of a brook there called by the Indians Sickbosten Kill, and by the Christians Stony Brook." ^ The Indians never called the stream Sickbosten, unless they learned that word from the Dutch, for corrupted Dutch it is. The derivative is Boos, "Wicked, evil, angry"; Zich Boos Maken, "To ingrow the stream angry," referring particularly to the character of freshets.
Prince's Falls, so called in description of survey of patent to Samuel Staats, 1712: "Beginning at ye mouth of a small rivulet called by the Indians Assin-napa-ink, then up the river (Hudson) as it runs, two hundred chains, which is about four chains north of Prince's Falls, including a small rocky isle and a small piece of boggy meadow called John Cantton Huck ; also a small slip of land on each side of a fall of water just below ye meadow at ye said John Oantonhuck." (Cal. N. Y. Land Papers, 99.) Long known as Buttermilk Falls and more recently as Highland Falls. In early days the falls were one of the most noted features on the lower Hudson. They were formed by the discharge over a precipice of the outlet waters of Bog-meadow Brook. They were called Prince's Falls in honor of Prince Maurice of Holland. The name was extended to the creek in the Staats surs'ey -- Prince's Kill.