U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) spoke at the Adirondack Museum, Blue Mountain Lake, New York on Friday, August 27, 2010. The Senator discussed the Travel Regional Investment Partnership Act (TRIP)- a bill designed to support and grow tourism. Approximately 30 people gathered to hear the Senator and share concerns. Pictured left to right: Bill Farber, Chairman Hamilton County Board of Supervisors- Caroline M. Welsh, Director of the Adirondack Museum- and Senator Charles Schumer.
Public History
Brooklyn Museum Announces Major Change in Hours
Beginning Wednesday, October 6, the Brooklyn Museum will open to the public eight additional hours a week, including remaining open until 10 p.m. every Thursday and Friday. When the new schedule goes into effect, the Brooklyn Museum will have a greater number of evening hours than almost any other New York City museum. Despite the challenging economic climate, the enhanced public hours will be implemented following an exhaustive year-long analysis of how the Museum’s public hours might be reorganized to more effectively meet the current needs of its audience.
Chairman of the Museum Board of Trustees Norman M. Feinberg states, “The Board believes that the previous hours did not appropriately address the changing needs of its community. We are delighted, through this reorganization, to far better serve our visitors.”
In announcing the expanded hours, Brooklyn Museum Director Arnold L. Lehman comments, “This important and positive change is an institutional priority that will enable us to better serve a twenty-first century audience by providing greater access for visitors who work during the day, for families, as well as for those who prefer to visit weekday evenings.”
Under the new plan, the Brooklyn Museum will open each day at 11 a.m. On Wednesdays, it will remain open until 6 p.m. and on Thursdays and Fridays until 10 p.m. Weekend hours, from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m., remain the same. The Museum will continue to present Target First Saturdays, its popular free evening of art and entertainment, when it remains open until 11 p.m. the first Saturday of each month except September. School groups will continue to be admitted at 10 a.m. on weekdays for guided visits by reservation.
Admission during the new hours, with the exception of Target First Saturdays, will remain at a suggested admission price of $10 and $6 for older adults and students with valid I. D. Members and children under 12 continue to receive free admission.
Existing staff hours, particularly those of the security team, have been rescheduled. The Museum Cafe, which is managed by Restaurant Associates, will offer dinner options as well as light snacks and beverages, including wine and beer, in the Rubin Pavilion.
Adirondack Museum Receives Challenge Grant
The Adirondack Museum at Blue Mountain Lake, New York is the recipient of a challenge grant in the amount of $20,000 from the John Ben Snow Memorial Trust. The funds will be used in support of a major renovation that will make the museum’s Auditorium universally accessible.
Director of Institutional Advancement Sarah Lewin says that with the gratifying news of the award comes the hard work of raising a matching $20,000 by December 15, 2010.
The accessibility project will provide a wheel-chair entrance to the Auditorium – the site of lectures, films, and special programs such as the museum’s popular Cabin Fever Sunday series —- from the campus side of the building.
By re-designing one of the doors at the rear of the Auditorium and creating an attractive, covered, ramped entrance, the museum will eliminate the need for those with a disability to leave the grounds and enter the program space from the parking lot.
The renovation will allow the interior of the Auditorium to be easily accessed by wheelchair, enabling everyone, regardless of mobility, to present or enjoy museum programs.
Lewin says that every dollar toward meeting the challenge will help- no contribution is too small. For further information or to make a donation, contact Sarah Lewin at (518) 352-7311, ext. 125 or via email at [email protected]
The mission of the Syracuse-based John Ben Snow Memorial Trust is to make grants within specific focus areas to enhance the quality of life in many geographic regions.
Historically, the Memorial Trust has made grants in the program areas of arts and culture, community development, education, the environment, historic preservation, and journalism.
Illustration: Proposed renovation of the Adirondack Museum Auditorium.
@adkmuseum.org>
NY Council for the Humanities Grant Deadline
New York Council for the Humanities grants provide support for public programs presented by tax exempt organizations across New York State that bring humanities scholars and scholarship to a general public audience. The New York Council for the Humanities invites organizations from New York State to apply for a Council Major Grant (up to $20,000) by the September 15th post-marked deadline.
Applicants can apply for support of the implementation of a public project grounded in the humanities. Council grants have funded a variety of projects including the implementation of exhibitions, discussion programs, walking tours, and podcasts in communities across the state, from Buffalo to Fayetteville to Geneva to New York City.
For more information, visit nyhumanities.org/grants and review the list of past grantees along with brief descriptions of their awarded grant projects, or send an email to [email protected].
The Council also has several other programs available, including Reading Between the Lines an adult reading discussion group, and Speakers in the Humanities an affordable speakers bureau with a variety of topics. For more information visit their website at www.nyhumanities.org.
Albany Institute Awarded Big Grant For Website
The Albany Institute of History & Art has been selected to receive a 2010 Museums for America grant from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The grant is specifically designated to help fund a website redevelopment project entitled, Digital Renaissance, which will evaluate, design, and repurpose the museum’s website so that virtual visitors can experience the rich history and cultural heritage of Albany and the Hudson Valley through the museum’s collections, education programs, and exhibits. The IMLS grant award of $147,904 will provide approximately 40 percent of the total estimated project cost of $369,914.
“It is difficult to overstate the importance of this grant for our museum right now,” said Christine Miles, executive director of the Albany Institute. “In the Information Age, with electronic communication technologies advancing exponentially every day, websites have become an indispensible tool for nonprofit organizations who need to reach much wider and more diverse audiences. This grant will enable us to make the virtual Albany Institute experience as enjoyable and enriching as the on-site experience of visiting the galleries, classrooms, and shop. It will also enhance efforts already underway to digitize our vast collection.”
The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s 123,000 libraries and 17,500 museums. Museums for America is IMLS’s largest grant program for museums, providing more than $19 million to support the role of museums in sustaining cultural heritage, supporting lifelong learning- and serving as centers of community engagement. Museums for America grants strengthen a museum’s ability to serve the public more effectively by supporting high-priority activities that advance the institution’s mission and strategic goals.
“This year’s MFA grant recipients are truly an exciting and diverse group of museums, representing the remarkable ways that large and small institutions are serving communities,” said Marsha L. Semmel, IMLS’s acting director, in announcing the award. “Funded projects support digitization and collections management plans, enhanced accessibility, environmental literacy, and much more. The work of these institutions will educate and inspire citizens of all ages. IMLS is pleased to support museums as they engage their communities through programming tailored to their specific needs, and this round of MFA grants furthers this work.”
The Albany Institute’s Digital Renaissance project was one of 178 awards chosen from 510 applications to the 2010 Museums for America program. In total, the program awarded $19.5 million. To learn more about IMLS, visit www.imls.gov.
As part of Digital Renaissance’s evaluation process, the Albany Institute has partnered with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Department of Language, Literature, and Communication. RPI Professor Patricia Search is the principal investigator for the research project and, along with RPI student Natt Phenjati, began formative evaluation phase of the project earlier this year. Launch of the Albany Institute’s new website is scheduled for early 2012.
“This research will help the museum create a dynamic, interactive website that will extend and enrich the total museum experience, particularly in the areas of personal engagement and community involvement,” said Search. “Museums have an opportunity to reach a wide audience with creative, engaging websites. With digital technology it is possible to display additional artifacts from the museum collections that add to the overall understanding of special and permanent exhibits. However, in order to create an effective website, it is necessary to carefully evaluate the demographics, interests, and needs of the people who use the website. The research we’ll be doing at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will evaluate how diverse groups of people will use the new website design to access information about the Albany Institute, including their collections, exhibitions, and educational programs.”
One of America’s oldest museums, the Albany Institute of History & Art was founded in 1791, during the presidency of George Washington, making it older than the Louvre, the Smithsonian, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Vermont: New Calvin Coolidge Museum Opens
A new museum and education center at the childhood home of the only U.S. President born on the Fourth of July has been officially opened. The President Calvin Coolidge Museum & Education Center was dedicated by Vermont Governor Jim Douglas- members of Vermont’s congressional delegation- and descendents of the president nicknamed “Silent Cal” at a ceremony on Saturday.
“This museum is a fitting tribute to our nation’s 30th President, and a testament to how his early experiences in Plymouth Notch shaped John Calvin Coolidge,” Douglas said, noting that Coolidge’s quiet, reserved demeanor was fodder for humorists of his day.
“But it is his modesty and restraint in governing – virtues that came to be associated with his frugal, pragmatic Vermont upbringing – that are now the object of much discussion,” Douglas said, noting that Coolidge was undergoing a “renaissance” in historic and political circles.
The building will have new space for permanent and temporary exhibits- a new gift shop- a large special function room- a classroom- and offices in the lower level for the Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation and their small library.
The project cost just over $2 million, with roughly a third of that coming from the foundation and the rest from the state. Coolidge was the last president to serve before the practice of constructing federally-funded presidential libraries began.
The ceremony took place as part of Plymouth Old Home Day, a long-standing tradition in the tiny hamlet, which is preserved much as it was since Coolidge was vacationing here as vice president when he received word of the untimely death of President Warren Harding in August, 1923.
At approximately 2:47 a.m. on August 3, 1923, by the light of a kerosene lamp, notary public Colonel John Coolidge administered the oath of office to his son.
The Vermont Division for Historic Preservation, which owns and operates the Coolidge Site, has planned a number of other special events this season including the Plymouth Folk & Blues Concerts on September 4 and 5, and Plymouth Cheese & Harvest Festival on September 19.
Also returning this year are the popular Grace Coolidge Musicales, concerts set for August 8, September 12, and October 3 at the site.
A National Historic Landmark, Plymouth Notch is considered one of the best-preserved presidential sites in the country.
Twelve buildings are on the tour- the site is open through October 17, 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., daily.
For further information, contact the President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site, (802) 672-3773, or visit www.HistoricVermont.org/sites
Free Historical Records Security Programs
Theft of historical documents plagues records repositories. With careful planning, awareness of warning signs and proactive security solutions, organizations can reduce the window of opportunity for historical record theft. Archival security expert Mimi Bowling will provide a full day of interactive curriculum on archival security, preparing participants to take immediate action to strengthen their local security programs. Participants will receive a certificate upon completion. There is no cost.
Topics include risk awareness- insider theft- facility design and security technology- security of information systems- working with vendors and contractors- research room management and design- developing institutional security policies- procedures and post-theft response- additional topics as requested by participants.
Representatives of NY’s historical records community, including archives, governments, libraries, museums, historical societies, schools and non-profits will be given first priority. Additional seats are available for security personnel and law enforcement representatives working with these organizations. Others interested in the topic are also encouraged to register.
September 13, 2010 (Monday)
Ontario County Safety Training Center
Canandaigua, Ontario, NY
September 14, 2010 (Tuesday)
Erie 1 BOCES
West Seneca, Erie, NY
October 4, 2010 (Monday)
Utica Public Library
Utica, Oneida, NY
October 5, 2010 (Tuesday)
Roberson Museum and Science Center
Binghamton, Broome, NY
March 7, 2011 (Monday)
Historic Huguenot Street
New Paltz, Ulster, NY
April 11, 2011 (Monday)
Crandall Public Library
Glens Falls, Warren, NY
April 18, 2011 (Monday)
Town of Massena
Massena, St. Lawrence, NY
Metro NYC Region and Long Island Region
Spring 2011
TBA
To register, email [email protected] or call 518-473-0130. Early registration is encouraged and appreciated- only 25 seats available. Let them know you learned about this event at New York History online.
Workshops have been made possible by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, the New York State Historical Records Advisory Board, and the New York State Archives.
30,000 Rensselaer County Marriage Records Online
The Renssealer County Clerk’s office and the Troy Irish Genealogical Society (TIGS) have joined forces to put more than 30,000 early 20th century marriage records online. The Marriage Index Automation took five years to complete. The online records include a 10-volume set of indexes to marriages in Rensselaer County between 1908 and 1935. The records, which cover every person married in Rensselaer County, not just those with Irish surnames, are available online through the TIGS website.
Rennselaer County Clerk Frank J. Merola lauded the efforts of TIGS members in bringing the project to fruition, including former TIGS president Donna Vaughn, current president Kristin Cooney Ayotte, project coordinator Bill McGrath and webmaster and librarian Jeanne Keefe.
“I am very pleased to have been involved in this partnership with TIGS, and I commend them on taking the time and effort to open our historical records to the widest audience possible,” Merola told the Troy Record newspaper.
“We have made tremendous progress in restoring county naturalization records with the help of organizations like TIGS, and I am thrilled about our future projects and the future of genealogy in Rensselaer County,”
he was reported to have said.
New Board Members for Finger Lakes Museum
Two new members were elected to seats on the Finger Lakes Museum’s board of trustees at its July 21 st meeting. According to board president, John Adamski, New York City attorney William Gaske, who serves as the museum’s legal counsel, and Village of Aurora vice mayor George Farenthold, were both added to the board in unanimous votes.
The board of trustees now has 10 members seated. Former trustee, Don Naetzker, resigned in May to take a paid position as the museum’s Project Director and is now in charge of managing its design and construction.
In other motions, the board elected six members to sit on a newlycreated advisory board including Keuka College president Joseph Burke, former Kodak chairman and CEO Daniel Carp, Yates County Historian Frances Dumas, Fox Run Vineyard owner Scott Osborn, and former Rochester Institute of Technology president Dr. Albert Simone. Albany healthcare consultant Mary Anne Kowalski was elected to chair the advisory board.
Adamski also announced that the board approved a motion to retain Brakeley Briscoe, a Connecticut consulting firm, to develop strategies for a capital fundraising campaign in an effort to raise up to $40 million. In April, Keuka Lake State Park had been selected as the preferred site to build the museum.
In a parallel move, the board of trustees launched its own fundraising drive, which it calls its 2010 Founders’ Campaign and is intended to raise $1 million in startup funds to hire staff, purchase computers, office equipment, and set up shop at the museum’s operations center in the Branchport Elementary School.
Anyone can become a museum founder for as little as $100 by logging on to the museum’s website at www.fingerlakesmuseum.org. Founders will receive a Founder’s Certificate, vehicle decal, and their names will be permanently inscribed on a Founders’ Wall in the lobby of the museum. The school building was vacant because of district consolidation but has been recently purchased by the Finger Lakes Visitors Association for use by the museum.
The Finger Lakes Museum Project is an initiative to create a worldclass educational institution that will showcase the cultural heritage and ecological evolution of the 9,000squaremile Finger Lakes Region. Plans will call for a freshwater tunnel aquarium, a glacialgeological exhibit of the Finger Lakes, outdoor wildlife habitats, and an auditoriumtheater to be built at the Keuka Lake State Park site. Opening is scheduled for spring in 2014.
For more information see www.fingerlakesmuseum.org
VT Seeks Candidates For Native American Commission
A new law that sets up a process for state recognition of Native American tribes in Vermont has revised the makeup of the Vermont Commission on Native American Affairs and has that panel seeking nine new members.
The law, also known as S222, increased the number of members on the VCNAA from seven to nine, and also imposes a Vermont residency requirement for the first time.
“This law establishes a completely new Native American Commission with new responsibilities,” said Giovanna Peebles, State Historic Preservation Officer and director of the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation.
Governor Jim Douglas will be appointing 9 new members to the VCNAA by September 1, provided that a sufficient number of qualified candidates have submitted applications to the Governor.
The new law requires that eligible applicants must have lived in Vermont for a minimum of three years and that appointments should “reflect a diversity of affiliations and geographic locations in Vermont.”
The division will compile a list of candidates from recommendations from Native American communities residing in Vermont. Individuals may also apply to the Division.
All applications will be due at the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation by August 15, 2010.
The VCNAA will implement the new process, as set forth by the Vermont legislature, for recognizing Native American tribes in Vermont that includes review by the commission, an independent review committee of experts, and approval by the legislature.
Applications for appointment to the Vermont Commission on Native American Affairs will be available on-line July 22, 2010, at the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation website: www.historicvermont.org or the VCNAA website: http://vcnaa.vermont.gov/.
A full-text review of S222 can be found online [pdf].