Guided Hike Of Historic VT Military Road

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Did you know that in 1776-77 there was a Revolutionary War military road between Mount Independence in Orwell, Vermont, and Hubbardton, Vermont? On Sunday, September 12, from 2:00 to 5:00 pm, you can explore part of this little known military road by going on a guided hike at the Hubbardton Battlefield State Historic Site with long-time site interpreter Carl Fuller.

Fuller will lead a vigorous hike, starting from the museum and following traces of the old military road that led from Mount Independence to the Hubbardton Battlefield.

Hikers will see the area where the first shots of the battle were fired on July 7, 1777, and get a taste of what it might have been like for the soldiers traveling over this varied terrain. The event is one of many being held during September’s Vermont Archaeology Month.

Be prepared for hills. Dress for the weather, wear sturdy shoes or boots, and bring water. Admission is $2.00 for adults and free for children under 15, and includes visiting the museum.

The Hubbardton Battlefield State Historic Site preserves the location of the only Revolutionary War battle in Vermont. Soldiers from Vermont, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire fought in a savage rear guard action to halt General John Burgoyne’s British army and allow the main American army under Arthur St. Clair to withdraw southward to safety from Fort Ticonderoga and Mount Independence.

While the battle ended with the British holding the field, they were too battered to continue their pursuit and the rest of the colonial army escaped, paving the way for later victories at Bennington and Saratoga that turned the tide of the war.

The site is on Monument Hill Road six miles off VT Route 30 in Hubbardton or seven miles off exit 5 on US Route 4 in Castleton.

The site is open Thursday through Sunday, 9:30 to 5:00 p.m., and on Monday holidays, and Columbus Day, October 12, the last day of the season.

For more information about the program, call (802) 273-2282 or visit www.historicvermont.org/sites.

Vandals Carve Swastika in Victory Woods Panel

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Officials from Saratoga National Historical Park promised quick action in the wake of Labor Day weekend vandalism in the Victory Woods section of the park. Vandals etched a swastika into an interpretive panel which featured a story about early Native Americans who once occupied the site. The recently installed panel is valued at $750.

Since the Victory Woods site was opened in June, park law enforcement rangers have encountered other minor acts of vandalism. Park Superintendent Joe Finan directed park law enforcement staff to increase patrols of the area. “This is not acceptable behavior in a national park—or any public place,” Finan said. We will take swift and sweeping action to prevent the area from future vandalism.”

The Friends of Saratoga Battlefield have put up a $300 reward for information leading to the arrest of the individual responsible for the act. To provide information about the vandalism, call Chief Ranger Greg Wozniak at 664.9821 ext. 214 or Superintendent Joe Finan at 664.9821 ext. 207.

Headquarters for Saratoga National Historical Park is located at 648 Route 32 in Stillwater, NY and the park’s website is www.nps.gov/sara

VT Names Native American Commission Members

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Governor Jim Douglas has appointed nine new members of the Vermont Commission on Native American Affairs, the first step in establishing a program for state recognition of Native American tribes in Vermont.

A new law that set up the recognition process revised the makeup of the panel and increased the number of members on the commission from seven to nine, and also imposed a Vermont residency requirement for the first time.

“These new members of the Native American Commission represent a broad cross-section of Native American communities and geography, and will bring a fresh perspective to the task at hand,” said Giovanna Peebles, State Historic Preservation Officer and director of the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation.

The new law, passed this spring by the Legislature, requires that eligible applicants must have lived in Vermont for a minimum of three years and said that appointments should “reflect a diversity of affiliations and geographic locations in Vermont.”

Governor Douglas appointed the following members:

* Melody Walker Brook, Jeffersonville
* Shirly Hook-Therrien, Braintree
* Dawn Macie, Rutland
* David Vanslette, Swanton
* Takara Matthews, Richmond
* Fred W. Wiseman, Newport
* Charlene McManis, Worcester
* Luke Willard, Brownington
* Nathan Pero, West Fairlee

The VCNAA will implement the new process for recognizing Native American tribes in Vermont that includes review by the commission, an independent review committee of experts, and approval by the legislature.

“In addition to acknowledging their heritage, state recognition will allow Native Americans in Vermont who make and sell traditional crafts to be labeled as Indian- or Native American-made, an important distinction for those who purchase such items,” Peebles said.

Under the new law, creation of the Commission, “helps recognize the historic and cultural contributions of Native Americans to Vermont, to protect and strengthen their heritage, and to address their needs in state policy, programs, and actions.”

To learn more, please visit the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation website at www.historicvermont.org or the VCNAA website at http://vcnaa.vermont.gov/

Market Basket Class at Adirondack Museum

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Learn the basics of basket making or refine your weaving skills in a one-day class at the Adirondack Museum, in Blue Mountain Lake, New York on Saturday, October 2, 2010. Shea Farrell Carr will lead a market basket class.

The market-style basket has a variety of household uses. It can be carried in the garden to gather flowers, but is also handy for storing towels and blankets. The base of the basket is 10&#8243- by 15&#8243- and finished dimensions are 21&#8243- long, 10&#8243- wide, and 14&#8243- tall. Participants will select material colors to create their own unique basket.

The cost will be $55 per participant, and includes all materials and instruction. The class will begin at 10:00 a.m. Pre-registration is required, space is limited. To register, call (518) 352-7311, ext. 115 or email [email protected] .

Born and raised in Long Lake, N.Y., Shea Farrell Carr has been making baskets since 1992. She took ownership of &#8220Adirondack Basket Case&#8221 from her mother, basket maker Patty Farrell, in 2009. She lives in Troy, N.Y. with her husband and two young children.

The Adirondack Museum tells stories of the people &#8211 past and present &#8212- who have lived, worked, and played in the unique place that is the Adirondack Park. History is in our nature. The museum is supported in part by public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency. For information about all that the museum has to offer, please call (518) 352-7311, or visit www.adirondackmuseum.org.

Photo courtesy Shea Farrell Carr.

@adkmuseum.org>

Fort Montgomery Fall Lecture Series

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Fort Montgomery State Historic Site is offering an evening lecture series sponsored by the Fort Montgomery Battle Site Association. All lectures will be held at the Fort Montgomery State Historic Site Visitor’s Center, located at 690 Route 9W in Fort Montgomery, NY. For more information, please call (845) 446-2134.

Fort Montgomery State Historic Site is part of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission, which administers 28 parks, parkways, and historic sites for the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation in New York as well as the Palisades Interstate Park and parkway in New Jersey.

Thursday, September 16th , 7PM &#8211 Claudius Smith: Revolutionary Rogue or Robin Hood?

Claudius Smith was a controversial figure during the American Revolution, hailed by some as a champion of charity, but eventually hung by others as a thief and a profiteer. Come to your own verdict after author Patricia Edwards Clyne’s, evening lecture “Claudius Smith: Revolutionary Rogue or Robin Hood”- Patricia Edwards Clyne is the author of Hudson Valley Faces and Places- Hudson Valley Tales and Trails- and Caves For Kids in Historic New York. Book sale and signing to follow lecture.

Thursday, September 30th ,7 PM &#8211 The Hudson Valley’s Provincial Corps: Loyalist Troops in Sir Henry Clinton’s 1777 Highlands Expedition

Our Patriot forefathers are often remembered, but what about the day’s conservatives, the loyalists? Learn more about those that decided not to rebel and their military campaign against Forts Montgomery and Clinton. Evening Lecture by Todd Braistead, loyalist scholar, and member of the 4th battalion, New Jersey Volunteers.

Thursday, October 28th , 7PM – Haunted Hudson Valley

Join Linda Zimmerman, author and ghost hunter, on a tour of some the valley’s most haunted historic places! In addition to hearing about Linda’s latest investigations, find out what Linda discovered during her investigation of Fort Montgomery! Book sale and signing to follow lecture.

Thursday, November 4th, 7 PM &#8211 A British Soldier’s Story

Roger Lamb was one of over 50,000 British soldiers who served in the American Revolution. During his eight years in America he served in two major campaigns, was captured twice, and twice escaped captivity to rejoin the British Army. This is his story as told by Historian, Don Hagist. Slide Presentation followed by book sale and signing.

De Nieu Nederlanse Marcurius Now Online

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The September issue of De Nieu Nederlanse Marcurius, the quarterly publication of the New Netherland Institute, is available on the Institute’s website. The issue can be browsed for easy on-screen viewing or downloaded as a PDF. This issue features the upcoming New Netherland Seminar &#8216-The Company Strikes Back: 1673 Recovery of New Netherland&#8221 on September 25, 2010 in Albany, NY, notices of new books, upcoming lecture, a short biographical sketch of Cornelis Evertsen by Peter A. Douglas, and a lot more.

The New Netherland Institute, first organized in 1986 as Friends of the New Netherland Project and subsequently as Friends of New Netherland, supports the work of the New Netherland Project and the functions and activities of the New Netherland Institute.

Fall Events at Senate House Historic Site

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Fall brings a diverse lineup of programs at Senate House State Historic Site, in historic uptown Kingston, NY at 296 Fair Street. Senate House is part of a system of parks, recreation areas and historic sites operated by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, and the site is one of 28 facilities administered by the Palisades Interstate Park Commission in New York and New Jersey. For further information about thess and other upcoming events call the site at (845) 338-2786 or visit the State Parks website at www.nysparks.com.


Saturday, October 2, 1:00 – 7:00 PM

African American History & Culture Festival: Music as the Pulse of Life

Some of the best regional talent performing music of different genres, from freedom songs to hip hop. Featured artists include Kim and Reggie Harris, Rednex Poetry, POOK, the Ulster County Community Choir, and more. Also, hands-on activities for kids, lectures, food and more. This event is free, for all ages, and occurs rain or shine.

Saturday, October 9, 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Living History Encampment by the Third Ulster Militia

Re-enactors demonstrate the realities of 18th-century life during wartime, as well as domestic activities and trades. Free- occurs in light rain or shine. Please call for details.

Saturday, October 23, 10:00 AM – 4:30 PM

Arts Forum: Appraising Art / Re-appraising Vanderlyn

Tickets $10.00

Join arts expert and television personality Leigh Keno and renowned regional art experts for a day of talks and object evaluations to learn about Hudson Valley art and history, the Vanderlyn family of painters—particularly its most famous member, John Vanderlyn—and strategies for evaluating objects to understand their significance and value. Tickets for the public program are $10.

Saturday, October 23, 5:00 – 7:00 PM

Evening Reception with Leigh Keno

Tickets $50.00

Join Leigh Keno and other arts experts in the Senate House Museum’s Vanderlyn Gallery for wine, food, 19th-century chamber music and artful conviviality.

Through October 31:

Currier & Ives: “Cheap and Popular Pictures” a free exhibition of 40 prints by the best-known printmakers of the 19th Century, with images offering fascinating glimpses of the Hudson Valley’s past.

Barry Hopkins Run at Olana

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On Sunday, September 12 at 9:30 a.m. the Barry Hopkins Run will take place at Olana State Historic Site. This Onteora Runners Club Grand Prix event also offers a free children’s run that precedes the adult event at 9:00 a.m. Runners will spend the morning on this 3.8 mile course traversing primarily unpaved carriage roads in the designed landscape of Hudson River School artist Frederic Church.

Registration is $10 per person- $9 for members of The Olana Partnership or the Onteora Runner’s Club. Email [email protected] or call (518) 828-0135 to receive a registration form. Unique awards will follow the race.

Olana, the home and studio of Hudson River School artist Frederic E. Church, is a New York State Historic Site and a National Historic Landmark. It is located at 5720 Route 9G in Hudson. Olana is one of seven historic sites and 15 parks administered by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, Taconic Region. The Olana Partnership is a private not-for-profit organization which works cooperatively with New York State to support the preservation, restoration, development, and improvement of Olana State Historic Site.

This Weeks Top New York History News

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Each Friday morning New York History compiles for readers the previous week’s top history related news from around New York State. You can find all our weekly news round-ups here.

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