New York State’s First Heritage Weekend Approaching
During a year filled with celebratory events, the 2009 Hudson-Fulton-Champlain Quadricentennial Commission has partnered with the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area and the Historic House Trust of New York City to inaugurate the state’s first ever New York Heritage Weekend, September 12 and 13. Visitors are welcomed free, or at a reduced rate, to many museums, historical societies, and heritage areas; to architecturally significant buildings; and to battlefields, parks and historic districts in the Hudson River Valley, the Champlain Valley, and New York City. In addition, communities throughout the region are planning tours, special events and concerts that will highlight this first-ever celebration of New York’s unique cultural heritage. Participating counties include: Albany, Bronx, Columbia, Dutchess, Essex, Greene, Orange, New York, Putnam, Queens, Rensselaer, Richmond, Rockland, Saratoga, Kings, Ulster, Warren and Westchester.
Modeled after France’s popular annual event, “Les Journées du Patrimoine,” the inaugural New York Heritage Weekend will focus on the history and culture of the Champlain and Hudson River Valleys and showcasing these regions to residents and visitors alike. For further information on Heritage Weekend sites, visit the New York Heritage Weekend website www.heritageweekend.org.
New Amsterdam: The Island at the Center of the World Exhibit
Another exhibit will mark the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s arrival in New York harbor, this one running September 13, 2009 – January 3, 2010. This exhibit, however, is a once-in-a-lifetime event. Many, if not most, of the documents included in the exhibition have never been shown publicly in this country. Some have never been exhibited at all. At the close of the exhibition, most will be returned to archival storage and will not be seen again. [Read more…] about New Amsterdam: The Island at the Center of the World Exhibit
America’s First River: The Hudson A Conference
America’s First River: The Hudson A Conference Celebrating the 400th Anniversary of Henry Hudson’s Voyage in 1609 will be held on September 25-26, 2009 at the FDR Presidential Library and Marist College. The Conference is sponsored by The Hudson River Valley Institute, the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute, the Hudson River Valley Greenway, the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area, the National Park Service, and the New York State Hudson-Fulton-Champlain Quadricentennial Commission.
For information, a schedule of speakers and events, and reservations email hrvi@marist.edu or call 845-575-3052 or visit www.hudsonrivervalley.org
Senate House State Historic Site Celebrates Heritage Weekend
Senate House State Historic Site will celebrate New York State’s first annual Heritage Weekend by offering free admission to the site, free tours of Senate House, and demonstrations of 18th-century crafts and amusements on Saturday and Sunday, September 12 and 13. Visitors will be able to tour the first meeting place of New York’s elected Senate, which is also among the earliest homes built in Kingston’s historic Stockade district. The site’s museum collections include art and objects reflecting three centuries of mid-Hudson Valley history, including paintings by John Vanderlyn and other early American artists. Site staff will demonstrate 18th-century crafts, and introduce children to the toys of the past. The site’s special exhibition, Archives Alive!!, features highlights from the site’s extensive collection of documents.
On Sunday, September 13, at 2:00 pm, a free author’s talk and book signing by A. J. Schenkman will feature his recent book, Washington’s Headquarters in Newburgh: Home to a Revolution
, published by The History Press. Senate House State Historic Site is open 10:00 to 5:00 pm on Saturday, and 1:00 to 5:00 pm on Sunday. It is located at 296 Fair Street, Kingston, NY 12401. For more information call (845) 338-2786, or visit www.nysparks.state.ny.us.
150 Thomas Cole Images Now Online
The Thomas Cole Historic Site is substantially increasing its online presence with the launch of a new interactive website where visitors can see Thomas Cole’s paintings in a new way, enabling a greatly enhanced understanding of the artist and his work.
The most ambitious feature of the new website is the learning portal. Five years in the making, it offers 150 of Thomas Cole’s best-known artworks all in one place. Written by some of the top scholars in the field of American art, it gives you the experience of seeing Cole’s artwork with a team of experts by your side. [Read more…] about 150 Thomas Cole Images Now Online
Russell Shorto To Guest Host NY Harbor Walking Tour
Island at the Center of the World author Russell Shorto will guest host a special edition of The New Amsterdam Trail walking tour of the National Parks of New York Harbor Conservancy, to celebrate the culmination a week-long celebration of the 400th Anniversary of Henry Hudson’s discovery of New York Harbor. Urban historian and National Park Ranger Steve Laise will lead the event which will also include an exclusive curator’s tour of New Amsterdam: The Island at the Center of the World, a new exhibit opening at the South Street Seaport. The tour takes place on September 13th at 9:30 a.m. Tickets are limited and must be purchased in advance by visiting www.nyharborparks.org.
Throughout the 90-minute tour of lower Manhattan, Laise and Shorto will share entertaining and insightful stories about the famous and infamous characters that helped make New Amsterdam a bustling seaport, an international melting pot and a center of commerce. They will also discuss how the Dutch colony still impacts our culture today. The curator’s tour at South Street Seaport follows, with an insider’s peak at rare documents, maps, plans and watercolors connected to New Amsterdam — including “the best real estate deal of all time”—the 1626 letter of purchase of Manhattan for goods worth 60 guilders. Many of these items have never been seen in the United States.
The audio and map for this tour are available for free at: www.nyharborparks.org.
Actiёn Handel: Early Dutch Finance Exhibit Opens
On Tuesday, September 8, the Museum of American Finance will open “Actiёn Handel: Early Dutch Finance and the Founding of America,” an exhibit showcasing the relationship between early Dutch finance and the United States. On display will be financial documents from Amsterdam, including the oldest known share certificate, which was issued by the Dutch East India Company in 1606.
The exhibit will tie in with the city-wide celebration of the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s exploration of the area that became New Amsterdam (and later New York), and will focus on the financial aspects of the area’s first 200 years. The exhibit is a collaboration among the Museum of American Finance, NYSE Euronext, Amsterdam City Archives and the Dutch Exchange Heritage Foundation (Stichting VvdE), and features exceptional documents from these organizations. In addition to the oldest share certificate (which was featured in the 2004 motion picture “Ocean’s Twelve”), the exhibit will include documents relating to early Dutch share trading, the bubbles of 1720, and John Adams’ successful bid to secure a loan from Dutch bankers on behalf of the Continental Congress, which was the first ever U.S. state loan.
The Museum will host a public opening reception for “Actiёn Handel” on Thursday, September 10, from 5:30 – 7:00 pm. To confirm attendance, or for more information, please contact Kristin Aguilera at 212-908-4695 or kaguilera@moaf.org.
“Actiёn Handel” will be on display through October 17, 2009.
The Museum of American Finance, an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, is the nation’s only public museum dedicated to finance, entrepreneurship and the open market system. With its extensive collection of financial documents and objects, its seminars and educational programming, its publication and oral history program, the
Museum portrays the breadth and richness of American financial history, achievement and practices. The Museum is located at 48 Wall Street, on the corner of William Street, and is open Tues-Sat, 10 am – 4 pm. For more information, visit www.moaf.org.