Month: July 2010

Vermont Adopts New Archeological Protection

admin

A new rule for protecting archeological and historical sites during development under Act 250 is in place after a legislative panel signed off the changes.

Officials from the Douglas administration said the new rule would maintain the protection of archeological sites while making it easier for applicants to comply with the state’s environmental protection and development control law.

“This new rule should make the process of applying for an Act 250 permit smoother and more predictable for an applicant under the ‘historic sites’ section of Criterion 8,” said Tayt Brooks, Commissioner of Economic, Housing and Community Development, including the Division for Historic Preservation.

Under Act 250, the division makes recommendations to the district environmental commissions on whether a proposed development would impact “historic sites,” including archeological sites.

The new rule clarifies that District Commissions, not the Division, have the final decision-making authority about such questions as whether to require additional field studies, and whether a site is historically significant enough to warrant protecting it.

“The division doesn’t issue permits,” Brooks said. “Our experts provide testimony to the District Commission about historic and archeological resources, and whether or not a project will adversely affect them.”

While the state recommends how much field study should be done to determine whether an area is historically significant and should be protected if a permit is issued, the District Commissions make those decisions

The new rule also clarifies that the definition of a “historic site” includes archeological sites that have not yet been discovered, and encourages applicants to work with the Division as early as possible in the planning process to identify and protect sites, even well before an Act 250 application is submitted.

“We can identify an area as historically significant and recommend to the District Commission that an archeological investigation be conducted by the applicant to ensure no undue adverse effect,” Brooks said. “The applicant can still present evidence to the commission disputing that.”

The new rule also sets additional time limits for reviews to make the process more predictable for permit applicants.

Brooks said the changes reflected the feedback received during five public meetings last summer around the state, and minor changes were made after a hearing before the Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules, which then recommended approval of the new rule.

Additional details and the final rule are available at www.HistoricVermont.org

Bar-B-Cayuga to Benefit Cayuga Museum

admin

Food catered by Balloon’s Restaurant and music by The Flying Column will be the main attractions for this 4th Annual Cayuga Museum of History and Art barbecue fundraiser to be held on Sunday, August 15th from 3 pm to 6 pm at the Deauville Island Shelter at Emerson Park in Auburn, NY. Tickets are only $25 per person for adults and $15 for children under 10 years. Tickets are available by advance sale only.

To purchase tickets, visit, call or send a check to the Cayuga Museum, 203 Genesee St., Auburn, NY. 13021. Tickets are also available at www.cayuganet.org/cayugamuseum. No ticket will be sold after August 9th. For more information, contact Museum staff at (315) 253-8051.

18th-Century Day at the Historic Schuyler House

admin

On Sunday, August 8 from noon to 5pm, the 1777 Schuyler House on Route 4 in Schuylerville, will be the setting for dozens of artisans demonstrating their crafts much as they were plied over 200 years ago when many things for the home were handcrafted. Visitors to the 32nd annual Eighteenth Century Day will be able to enjoy free tours of the Schuyler House, listen to music of the period, see Punch and Judy puppet shows, plus stroll around artisans demonstrating 18th century crafts and showing their wares. Tinsmithing, blacksmithing, broom-making, basket-making, rope-making, beer brewing, spinning, dyeing, weaving, rug-hooking, butter-making and carpentry are among some of the arts to be demonstrated. There will also be colonial-era farm life activities such as discussions of farming methods, medicinal treatments and leather-working.

This traditional event is organized by the Old Saratoga Historical Association, a non-profit educational organization that provides furnishings for the Schuyler House and promotes interest in the history of Old Saratoga, Schuylerville, Victory and the Town of Saratoga areas, from Native American occupation, through modern times.

Free light refreshments will be available. Visitors are advised to dress for the weather, and to wear insect repellent and sunscreen, and to bring water.

Saratoga National Historical Park presents special interpretive events and programs throughout the year. For further information about this and other programs, please call (518) 664-9821 ext. 224 or check their website.

Lois McClure at Champlain Canals Hudson Crossing

admin

On Wednesday July 28, from 10am to 5pm, the 90-foot canal schooner Lois McClure while will be docked at Hudson Crossing Park, located on Champlain Canal Lock 5 Island, off of Route 4 just north of Schuylerville, Saratoga County.

The schooner Lois McClure is a full-scale replica of an 1862 sailing canal boat. These unique vessels were designed to sail from lake cities to canal ports using wind power and then to lower their masts and sails when traveling along canals. The schooner staff will share stories about the boat and its role in New York State history.

Hudson Crossing President Marlene Bissell welcomes the Lois McClure back and says, “Seeing and boarding this exquisite replica of an authentic canal boat makes you feel like you’ve stepped back to another era. It’s an exciting way to experience the continuum of history that the Hudson River and Champlain Canal holds.”

Hudson Crossing is a bi-county educational park project centered on and near the Champlain Canal Lock 5 Island of the Hudson River. For more information about this event or to learn more about Hudson Crossing Bi-County Park, please call Marlene Bissell at 518.859.1462 or visit their website.

Event: Last Encampment of the Continental Army

admin

On Saturday August 14, from 7:00 to 9:00 PM visitors to the New Windsor Cantonment in Orange County can experience by candlelight the recreated dramatic last days of the encampment at New Windsor, before most of the Continental Army returned home after 8 years of war. Costumed historians will interact with visitors as if they were in 1783 at the re-created huts, owned by the Town of New Windsor and administered by the Last Encampment of the Continental Army, on the west side of Route 300 and on the north side of Causeway Road.

After 8 years of war, most of the army was finally allowed to go home, but some soldiers had to remain under arms until the British evacuated New York City. There was tension in the air. Knowing that their time was short, soldiers lashed out at their officers. One, they hung in effigy. Causing further resentment, the soldiers would not receive their long overdue pay, only certificates for three months pay, redeemable in six months.

Visitors will here tales of past glories, suffering, and share their hopes and aspirations for an uncertain future and tour the encampment grounds by the glow of tin lanterns and experience the tense days before the army left New Windsor, with the soldiers and civilians who once made their homes in the area.

The “residents” have no knowledge of any events past June 1783, like the fact that their beloved General Washington will one day be the President of the United States, with strong powers enumerated in the 1787 Constitution.

Visitors will meet few, if any, names that they recognize from history, but instead humble souls whose efforts combined with thousands of others, helped forge a nation. This type of presentation, called “first-person living history,” has developed into a very exciting way to make history more meaningful to visitors. This technique is used at Plimoth Plantation in Massachusetts and Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia.

The event is co-sponsored by the National Temple Hill Association and New Windsor Cantonment State Historic Site. The National Temple Hill Association administers the Last Encampment of the Continental Army for the Town of New Windsor and owns the historic Edmonston House.

Photo: Two Soldiers of the Massachusetts Line, in a Hut, at the Last Encampment of the Continental Army, New Windsor, New York

This Weeks New York History Web Highlights

admin

Niagara Falls State Park Celebrates 125 Years

admin

The nation’s oldest state park, Niagara Falls State Park, celebrated its 125th Anniversary this week with a concert by the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra on Goat Island and the dedication of a restored pocket park.

On July 15, 1885 then Governor David Hill dedicated the land and created Niagara Falls State Park. Created to protect its natural beauty from the continued industrialization of the river and to allow public access to its scenery, Niagara Falls became a blueprint for public parks across the country-both state and national parks. Eight million people now visit Niagara Falls each year, making it the most popular park in the New York State Park system.

Ancestors of Thomas V. Welch, the first superintendent of Niagara Falls State Park and a member of the Free Niagara Movement, were on hand to dedicate Heritage Park which is the site of a renovated pocket park just outside of Niagara Falls State Park. The park which serves as a connection for visitors between the city and the park is now the home of several plaques and markers from historical events and figures of Niagara Falls State Park. New pavers were also installed and landscaping was done by volunteers from the community.

Anniversary events continue through the reminder of the year including the &#8220History Comes Alive&#8221 program where historical figures including Annie Edson Taylor, Frederick Law Olmsted, Nikola Tesla, Father Louis Hennepin and others who spent time at Niagara Falls State Park share their stories of the park with visitors. See www.niagarafallsstatepark.com for a full listing of events.

NYS Military Museum Wins History Award

admin

An online project created by the New York State Military Museum and Veterans Research Center and the Saratoga Springs Public Library has won one of two First Prize awards in a contest sponsored by the History Channel.

Honoring Saratoga Veterans, a page available at the library website, features interviews with six Saratoga County residents who served in World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam and Iraq. The videos, recorded as part of the museum’s Veterans Oral History Program, help tell the story of Saratoga residents in America’s wars.

The History Channel prize, awarded in conjunction with the Institute for Museum and Library Services, recognizes libraries which created local programs, exhibits or media projects to tell about the role of their communities in the larger American story.

The contest was created in conjunction with the History Channel series: &#8220America: The Story of Us.&#8221 It was open to libraries around the country and recognized 13 winners, which shared $35,000 in prize money. The Grand Prize Winner-the Lower Macungie Library in Macungie, PA-received a $15,000 prize for an exhibit on the impact of the Apollo 13 flight, on the local community.

The Saratoga Springs Public Library will receive $5,000 in prize money which library director Issac Pulver says will be shared by the museum. The other First Prize Winner was the Erie Community Library of Erie, Colorado, with a project called &#8221 Erie: From Working Coal Town to Suburban Boom Town.&#8221

Ten second prize winning libraries received ten $1,000 prizes.

The New York State Military museum houses over 10,000 artifacts dating from the Revolutionary War to the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that relate to New York State’s military forces, the state’s military history and the contributions of New York’s veterans. The artifacts include uniforms, weapons, artillery pieces, and art. A significant portion of the museum’s collection is from the Civil War.

The museum also owns the largest collection of state battle flags in the country and the largest collection of Civil War flags in the world. Of the over 1700 flags in the collection, more than 60% are from the Civil War.

The library and archive holdings in the Veterans Research Center include a 2000 volume library of military and New York State history, over 6,000 photographs, unit history files, broadsides, scrapbooks, letters and maps.