In April of 1865, the funeral train of assassinated President Abraham Lincoln moved through the Hudson Valley. Woodstock Town Historian Richard Heppner will offer an account of how the news of the assassination was greeted locally as well as detailed descriptions of the train as it traveled up the Hudson River. He will explore the ceremonies and emotions that awaited the train’s passing on both sides of the Hudson at the Historical Society of Woodstock on Sunday, August 23, at 3 pm.
Heppner will also examine the seeds of transformation that were sewn during that fateful journey from Washington to Springfield, Illinois; a transformation that elevated the slain President’s legacy far beyond what it was in life and secured for the 16th president the honored place he holds in our collective memory.
Richard Heppner has served as Town Historian since 2021 and, in addition to his many talks on local history, has written extensively on the history of Woodstock and our region.
His most recent book, Woodstock—From World War to Culture Wars was the recipient of the Bronze Medal from the Indies Book of the Year Award in Popular Culture. In addition, he is the author of Woodstock’s Infamous Murder Trial exploring racial injustice in upstate New York.
This event will take place on Sunday, August 23 at 3:00 pm at the Historical Society of Woodstock. Admission is free.
The Historical Society of Woodstock is located at 20 Comeau Drive in Woodstock, NY. For those who are able, parking is also available in the Lower Comeau parking lot where you can take the path up to the Society at the end of the lot.
The Historical Society was founded in 1929 by a group of artists, writers, academics, and local citizens. In addition to the exhibition space, the Historical Society has an extensive archive consisting of paintings, prints, drawings, sculpture, textiles, photographs, books, manuscripts, correspondence, documents, film/sound recordings, and antique tools. The archive serves as a resource for a wide range of exhibitions, public programming, and research.
Read more about Abraham Lincoln and New York
Photo: The Lincoln funeral train, 1864.
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