Tag Archives: Hudson River

Albany County 330th Anniversary Celebration Planned


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Tivoli StreetIn recognition of Archives Month and in celebration of Albany County’s 330th Anniversary there will be an Open House at the Albany County Hall of Records to see an exhibit of Albany’s earliest records on Thursday, October 31, 2013, from 10AM to 12 noon.

The highlight of the exhibits on display will be the Dongan Charter, the original charter that made Albany a city in 1686.  Although the charter is faded, the signature of Governor Thomas Dongan is still visible at the bottom of the last page, as is Dongan’s seal which is attached to the page with red wax and a tan and blue cord.

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Hudson River Valley Ramble Begins This Weekend


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RambleLogo(1)The Hudson River Valley Ramble, now in its 14th year, brings people outside on four weekends – September 7-8, 14-15, 21-22 and 28-29 – to enjoy the Hudson Valley’s cultural heritage and scenic beauty.

More than 200 Hudson River Valley Ramble events include guided hikes, cycling and kayaking tours, historic site walks, festivals and river explorations. Some of the suggested events are below, add your own favorite in the comments below, or find more on the Ramble website. Continue reading →

35 Boats Confirmed at the Waterford Tugboat Roundup


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front121_9G_RALLYThis weekend, nearly three dozen boats are expected along the Waterford wall, in front of the Visitor’s Center, for three days as the town relives its canal heyday for its annual tugboat round-up. Now in its 14th year, the Waterford tugboat Roundup and has become one of the four premier waterfront festivals in New York State and the largest maritime festival north of New York City.

Family-friendly music plays from Friday afternoon through Sunday afternoon, tugs will be open for tours, kid’s games and activities, tour boat rides, line-tossing, tours of the tugs and more. Shuttle busses will run from remote parking. There is no charge for the event (other than a nominal charge for the tour boats). Continue reading →

Historic ‘Albany Ale’ Project Launches New Website


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Dunlap and Sons Albany Ale BrewersThe Albany Ale Project has launched a new website, albanyaleproject.com. The site revolves around the extensive history of brewing and beer making in the City of Albany, and the research into re-discovering the 19th century phenomenon of Albany Ale, a double XX strength ale brewed across the city and exported around the world.

The new website has biographies of key players in the research of Albany Ale; a history of brewing in Albany from the 17th century to today; images from the collections of the Albany Institute of History and Art; and more. It’s hoped the website will serve as a hub for information on Albany Ale. Continue reading →

Paddling Through History: Renewing the Two Row Wampum


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Leaders w Anrust_b“We need a global solution. We need to set aside our differences. Our leaders are not paying attention. Washington is filled with millionaires. What the hell do they care? They are out of touch. We are losing time. Now is the time for people to come together and act to protect and heal our environment. If we do not act now no matter what we do it will be too late.” said Oren Lyons, a member of the National Council of Chiefs and the Faith Keeper of the Onondaga, standing on the shores of the Hudson River on a overcast Sunday morning to the hundreds of people gathered.

Four hundred years ago the Dutch and the Iroquois, the Haunensaunee or the “People of the Long House”, the league of five nations of indigenous people known as the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga and Seneca, made an agreement to live and trade in harmony, and to respect and care for the natural environment, an agreement symbolized by a two row wampum belt. Continue reading →

Judge OKs Tower Over Hudson River Palisades


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SavePalisades1In a lawsuit filed by two public interest groups and four individuals, Judge Alexander Carver of the New Jersey Superior Court yesterday upheld the grant of a variance to LG Electronics that would allow it to construct a 143-foot tower atop the Hudson River Palisades, four times higher than the 35-foot height limit respected for decades by all other companies.

The variance, approved by the Borough of Englewood Cliffs in February 2012, authorizes construction of a building that would rise 80 feet above the tree line, ending an unbroken natural sweep of the Palisades north of Fort Lee. Despite this, the court ruled that the Englewood Cliffs Planning Board had not abused its authority in granting the variance that exempted the LG tower. Continue reading →

Rehabilitated Mount Beacon Fire Tower Re-Opens


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Beacon Fire Tower Before RenovationWhat follows is a guest essay by William Keating about the opening of the rehabilitated Mount Beacon Fire Tower in June.

The colonials used the 1,400 foot north peak of Mount Beacon along the Hudson River during the Revolutionary War to set warning fires to alert General Washington at his headquarters on the western side of the river of any British presence in the valley below.  From this activity, the City of Beacon got its name.  Continue reading →

Hudson Greenway Announces Trail Grant Program


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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThe Hudson River Valley Greenway is pleased to announce that applications are now available for the 2013 Greenway Conservancy Small Grant Program.  A total of $50,000 is available for matching grants in this year’s program.

The Greenway Conservancy Small Grant Program is an annual competitive grant funding opportunity available to communities and not-for-profit organizations within the designated Hudson River Valley Greenway area, which extends from Saratoga and Washington counties to Battery Park, Manhattan.  The program offers funding for trail planning and design, construction and rehabilitation, and education and interpretation. Continue reading →

Place-Based Learning And Common Core Summer Institute


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Arnold WiltzAshokanDam1930CompressedEducators throughout the Hudson Valley are being invited to discover new and innovative ways to incorporate the region’s special places into their curriculum at Teaching the Hudson Valley’s 2013 institute, Place-Based Learning & Common Core. Registration is now open. The program will be held July 30-August 1 at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Home and Presidential Library in Hyde Park.

In a variety of workshops, field experiences, and talks, the institute will explore whether place-based learning techniques can help educators meet the demands of Common Core while continuing to focus on kids. Sessions will be led by local experts from throughout the Hudson Valley. Continue reading →

Chris Pryslopski: Working On The Weekends, For History


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DSC_6283One of my favorite things about working at The Hudson River Valley Institute is the wide variety of random (though usually regional) questions that we receive by phone and email. (The answer to the most frequently asked question is still “Bannerman’s Island.”

Recently, the random question came from within Marist College: “Can you get us a boat for graduation?” This had first occurred serendipitously in 2009 when The Half Moon was sailing past during the ceremony as part of the Quadricentennial events. Last year, the college worked with the Beacon Sloop Club to bring the Woody Guthrie for the day.

This year, I reached out to Engineer Jessica DuLong and our friends aboard the historic fireboat John J. Harvey; the stars aligned, even though the rain clouds never cleared, and the Class of 2013 was treated to a full salute of the ship’s water cannons as they were dismissed. Continue reading →

‘Three Parlors’ Exhibit Features Art History At Lyndhurst


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Herter suite and Courbet“Three Parlors,” a new exhibition using three Victorian parlor suites to track the development of a new American identity during the 19th century, will open at Lyndhurst on June 20th and will remain open through the end of 2013.

Lyndhurst is fortunate to retain the furnishings of the three families who occupied the estate over the past 175 years. The three suites of parlor furniture at Lyndhurst were installed in 1838-42, 1865 and 1882 and were created during a century in which the United States struggled to establish its national identity. Continue reading →

Albany Institute Event Featuring Hudson Valley Hops


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Albany BrewerThe Albany Institute of History & Art will be hosting its second event featuring Hudson Valley Hops on Saturday, April 20, 2013 from 4-7pm.

The event will be a celebration of the history of brewing in Albany and today’s craft beer industry in and around the Hudson Valley. Guests can sample the finest local craft beers, engage with experts in the field, enjoy an assortment of food and tour the museum galleries. Continue reading →

Boscobel House Appoints New Executive Director


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Steven MillerFollowing a national search, the board of directors of Boscobel House & Garden in Putnam County has selected Steven Miller of Morristown, New Jersey to be the historic site’s new executive director. Miller has forty-two years of museum experience with distinguished institutions throughout the northeast. In addition, he has been a museum consultant, writer, trustee and educator.

Situated on a bluff on the east bank of the Hudson River, Boscobel House & Gardens offers its visitors views of the Hudson River and the Hudson Highlands. Completed in 1808 by the States Dyckman family, Boscobel is regarded as a fine example of Federal architecture. Continue reading →

Mohican, Algonquin Peoples Seminar Seeks Presentations


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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 & A period. Sessions will be held in the morning and afternoon (between 9:30 AM and 4:00 PM, with a break for lunch). Continue reading →

Palisades Region’s River Parks Master Plan Meeting


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South_end_of_Rockland_Lake_c19090The NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) Palisades Region and the Palisades Interstate Park Commission (PIPC) will hold a public hearing regarding the preparation of a Draft Master Plan and Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for Rockland Lake, Hook Mountain, Nyack Beach, and Haverstraw Beach State Parks (The Park Complex). OPRHP and PIPC encourage the public to participate in the planning efforts for The Park Complex and welcome all comments related to the DRAFT MASTER PLAN and Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). Continue reading →

The Immigrant Thomas Cole and NY State Tourism


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View of Fort Putnam (Thomas Cole)Thomas Cole (1801-1848) , English immigrant, is regarded as a father of the Hudson River School, the first national art expression of the American identity in the post-War of 1812 period. It was a time when we no longer had to look over our shoulder at what England was doing and could begin to think of ourselves as having a manifest destiny. Cole also was very much part of the birth of tourism which occurred in the Hudson Valley and points north and west. Continue reading →

Elijah Hunter: Revolutionary War Spy


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first baptist church ossiningSpying was a major component of the strategy and the tactics of the American Revolution. However it’s only recently that historians have focused on the intrigues, subterfuges and skullduggery that were used by all sides. Except for the spying of British Major John Andre, his collaboration with Benedict Arnold, and of the failed spying of Nathan Hale, undercover intelligence gathering operations during the Revolution is a mostly forgotten aspect of that conflict.

Nonetheless, spying was quite common in that era and George Washington was its chief proponent.  Washington made full use of the 1700s tools of the spy trade including invisible ink, hiding messages in feather quills, and small silver balls for hiding messages that could be swallowed in the event of capture. He also encouraged forging documents and making sure they fell into British hands. Continue reading →

An Ossining Castle: David Abercrombie’s ‘Elda’


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Elda in 1928 Photo by Douglas LeenSince the days of the Dutch to more recent times, Ossining and its neighboring areas has been the site of magnificent homes, estates and other properties that are or once were owned by prominent New Yorkers. Many of these people were attracted to Ossining for the relatively inexpensive cost of land, the commanding views of the Hudson River and the easy commute to nearby to New York City. However, because of reduced personal circumstances, as well as changing tastes and life styles, many of these homes and estates are just memories. Continue reading →

Peter Feinman: A Fork In The Path Through History


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PathThroughHistoryOn January 25, I attended the Mid-Hudson regional meeting of the Path through History project. What follows is my report on the meeting which may, or may not, be the experience and take-away of others who attended (or what is happening in other regions). The Mid-Hudson Valley region includes the Hudson River counties of Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess, Ulster, Orange, and Rockland, along with Sullivan County in the Catskills. Continue reading →