Month: December 2010

Lecture: Albany County on Staffordshire Plates

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The Historical Society of the Town of Colonie will be hosting a program about commemorative Staffordshire plates featuring various scenes from 19th Century Albany, this Friday, December 3, 2010 at the Colonie Pruyn House (207 Old Niskayuna Road, Colonie).

Potters in the Staffordshire region of England used the transfer technique of printing on earthenware to distribute historical American views and commemorative pieces to the middle-class American market.

Deep blue transferware dominated in the 1820s but methodological improvements in printing occurred in the 1830s and 1840s which led to cleaner, sharper images, and a broader variety of colors. Because they were moderately priced, Staffordshire transfer earthenware was an affordable but attractive alternative to more expensive porcelains.

Following the lifting of embargoes in British goods after the War of 1812, Liverpool and Staffordshire potters resumed their high volume commerce with the United States. In the 1840s, earthenware from Staffordshire ranked fifth (behind textiles and metalwork) in importance among English export products. Among the products Staffordshire potters provided the American market was pottery that offered views of the America’s natural wonders and historic events that would appeal to a growing American civic pride.

For additional information about Friday’s program contact either the Pruyn House at 783-1435 or the Colonie Historian’s Office at 782-2593.

Photo: Albany, N.Y. souvenir nine inch plate manufactured in Staffordshire, England. An error in the transfer likely caused the word &#8216-Albany’ to be spelled &#8216-Alany’. Scenes on the plate include the state capitol, Washington Park’s King’s Fountain, the steamer Robert Fulton, the Post Office, and the NYS Senate Chamber.

A Change of Leadership at the Adirondack Museum

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The Board of Directors of the Adirondack Historical Association announced today that Caroline M. Welsh, the Director of the Adirondack Museum since 2007, has been replaced by Michael Lombardi, the current Director of Finance and Operations. Lombardi is being named Interim Director, and Welsh, who has been with the museum since 1987, will become Senior Art Historian and Director Emerita.

Welsh served the Adirondack Museum for over two decades, first as a Curator and then as Director. Just two months after her ascension to the top spot in February 2007, the museum unveiled its ill-fated and sometimes controversial plan to build a museum extension in Lake Placid. Those plans were later abandoned, and the former Adirondack Church of the Nazarene that had been located on the site was demolished.

This past fall, the museum also closed their Lake Placid storefront operation. &#8220The subsequent and continuing economic downturn have forced a strategic re-thinking of the museum’s plans,&#8221 Adirondack Museum spokesperson Katherine Moore told the press at the time. &#8220It is no longer feasible to operate two retail operations and maintain a growing online sales presence.&#8221 Moore said the museum will concentrate its efforts and financial resources on the Blue Mountain Lake campus.

Welsh’s tenure also saw a number of new initiatives designed to bring the museum into the 21st century including launching a museum online photostream, a campus WiFi system, and offering virtual exhibits. She also oversaw the museum during the acquisition of the Clarence Petty and Richard Lawrence collections, and receipt of a $1.3 million bequest from the estate of the Mr. and Mrs. Horace N. Holbrook of Schenectady.

Today spokesperson Moore said &#8220Ms. Welsh will continue her relationship with the museum with respect to art projects including the upcoming Arthur Fitzwilliam Tait exhibit opening in the summer, 2011, along with producing the catalogue for the exhibit.&#8221 Welsh will also collaborate with the museum on other upcoming projects, she said.

Caroline Welsh is the wife of former Adirondack Museum Curator Peter C. Welsh, once also editor of the Journal of History and director of the New York State Historical Association, who held the primary responsibility for the Adirondack Museum’s logging exhibit. He was also the author of Jacks, Jobbers, and Kings: Logging in the Adirondacks, 1850-1950. Peter Welsh died in February, 2010.

Photo: Photo caption: Caroline M. Welsh, Director of the Adirondack Museum and U.S. Senator Charles Schumer at the Adirondack Museum in August 27.