An Innovative 3D, Augmented Reality Shaker Village Project

virtual-geShaker Heritage Society recently completed a dynamic on-line resource called Virtual Watervliet (VWV).  Virtual Watervliet provides a high quality experience via a website or mobile application that helps users better understand the significance and development of America’s first Shaker settlement.

At the core of VWV, is the digital reconstruction of all known Shaker structures built in the publically accessible areas of the Watervliet Shaker National Historic District since the late 18th century.  The digital reconstruction allows users to fly through the historic site and to rotate 3D models of historic Shaker architecture. Read more

Mohican, Algonquin Peoples Seminar Seeks Presentations

algonquin peoplesThe Native American Institute of the Hudson River Valley and the New York State Museum invite you to submit a paper or other presentation to be given at the 13th Mohican/Algonquian Peoples Seminar held at the New York State Museum in Albany on Saturday, September 28, 2013.

Topics can involve any aspect of Northeastern Native American culture from prehistory to the present. The seminar attracts attendees from Native American enthusiasts, local historians, as well as from academia. In general presentations are allotted 20 minutes speaking time followed by a brief Q &amp- A period. Sessions will be held in the morning and afternoon (between 9:30 AM and 4:00 PM, with a break for lunch). Read more

Celebrating 30 Yrs of Albanys Public History Program

PH30 Registration PktThe University at Albany’s Public History Program will be hosting &#8220History Lives!&#8221, a conference celebrating 30 years of the University at Albany’s Public History Program on Saturday, April 27, 2013 at the New York State Museum from 9:30 a.m. – 4:45 p.m.

This one day conference / celebration will commemorate the 30th Anniversary of the Public History Program with networking and a wide variety of session presentations by the program’s outstanding alumni. Read more

West Troy Potters Subject of Upcoming talk

West_troy1866The Historical Society of the Town of Colonie is hosting a special presentation by Timothy Myers on West Troy (now Watervliet) Pottery, on Sunday, March 10, 2013 &#8211 2:00 pm at Town of Colonie Library, 629 Albany Shaker Road, Colonie (Albany County). Pottery from West Troy was shipped west and north on the Erie and Champlain Canals and may be found in many areas of the country. Read more

Richard Whitby: Notable Upstate Musician

Richard Whitby’s career in music had blossomed, and after years of hard work, he was offered Second Chair Trombone in John Philip Sousa’s band, and First Chair upon the lead trombonist’s imminent retirement. It was a tremendous honor, and highly regarded confirmation of his great talent, but there was a problem: Richard was still under contract to Carl Edouarde, who had no intentions of releasing him from a prominent run at New York’s Palace Theater. Read more

A History of the Albany County Hall of Records

The following essay by Albany County Clerk Thomas Clingan is reprinted with permission from the Tivoli Times, the newsletter of the Albany County Hall of Records (ACHOR). ACHOR celebrated its 30th Anniversary in October.

Albany County can trace its records management program to a 1978 National Historical Publications and Records Commission (“NHRPC”) grant of $9235 to inventory Albany County Clerk records, accepted by the Albany County Legislature in Resolution 99 of 1978. This first modern inventory was completed and printed in 1979. The theft and quick recovery of County Clerk’s oldest Dutch record book in May 1980 increased public awareness of the need to safeguard these documents, and in January 1981, Resolution 10 of that year accepted a further $20,000 NHPRC grant to study the possibility of a joint city and county archives and records management system.

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Albany Institute Launches New Lecture Series

Beginning this month the Albany Institute of History &amp- Art will launch a new monthly lecture series entitled Making It American. The series will take a broad look at what art and material culture can teach us about the development of American history, culture, the arts, politics, and our identity as a nation.

In this series, invited scholars will analyze American values and ideals to enhance our experience and understanding of our world. A painting or school of painters, or a spinning wheel or farm kitchen tools will serve as touchstones for the series. Read more

Lincoln Scholar to Speak at NYS Museum

Abraham Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer will present a lecture during the evening of Nov. 9 as part of an event highlighting a two-day exhibition of Lincoln’s preliminary Emancipation Proclamation at the New York State Museum.

Holzer will speak at 8 p.m. in the Clark Auditorium about “Lincoln and Liberty: Re-assessing the Preliminary Proclamation in the Age of Spielberg.” Author of the new book “Emancipating Lincoln,” Holzer will explore the ever-changing reputation of Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation from controversial and revolutionary order, to talismanic trophy, to maligned and misunderstood fraud — and back again to icon. The talk will come at the moment of the release of Steven Spielberg’s movie, “Lincoln,” which explores Lincoln’s concurrent roles as politician, peacemaker, and liberator. Read more

Leeches and Laudanum: 18th Century Medicine

The Colonie (Albany County) Historical Society will host a program entitled &#8220Leeches &amp- Laudanum: Medicine in 18th Century New York,&#8221 presented by museum educator and re-enactor Stuart W. Lehman.

Bloodletting and purges were standard treatments in eighteenth century medicine. Operations were performed without benefit of anesthesia or sterilized equipment, however many remedies available in Colonial New York did help and some are still used today. Read more

Tour Highlights Infamous 1827 Albany Murder

This Friday, October 26th and Saturday, October 27th, Historic Cherry Hill will present a special tour, &#8220Murder at the Mansion: A Dramatic Walk through a Murderous Evening&#8221 as the third and last program in the series “Murder at Cherry Hill: A Window into Changing Times.”

The public is invited to step into the experiences of the Cherry Hill household on the evening of May 7, 1827 when a hired hand murdered a household member. Read more