History, Natural History & the Arts
The Saratoga County History Center will host noted local author Hollis Palmer for a look at life in the Gilded Age in Saratoga Springs on Thursday November 13 at 7 pm at Brookside Museum in Ballston Spa.
After retiring from a career in education, Palmer has devoted himself to writing and speaking on local history with a focus on Saratoga Springs at the height of its popularity among the nations rich and famous families. [Read more…] about Saratoga Springs in the Gilded Age
The photographers Seneca Ray Stoddard and Jesse Sumner Wooley were both born in Wilton in Saratoga County. Stoddard, through his catalogue of photographs, is often cited as a major influence in the formation of the Adirondack Park. He traveled extensively, photographing as he went.
Wooley too, almost 20 years younger, not only was well known locally as a portrait photographer, but also traveled widely through New York, across the United States and Europe, leaving behind an impressive collection of images from his travels. Both men were eager to embrace new photographic innovations of their time. [Read more…] about Seneca Ray Stoddard and Jesse Sumner Wooley: Kindred Spirits
The Saratoga County History Center at Brookside Museum in Ballston Spa, NY, is hosting a presentation on the archaeology and environmental history of the region led by Ph.D. candidate and Hartgen Archaeological Associates researcher John Garbellano. Garbellano will also discuss two projects completed in Malta and in Cambridge in Washington County, NY, that have given a fascinating insight into the local and larger regional archeological and historical contexts. [Read more…] about Pre-Contact Archaeology of New York State Presentation
The Board of Trustees of the Saratoga County History Center have announced the appointment of Suzanne Maloney as its new Executive Director. Maloney will assume her duties on April 1. The History Center has been rebuilding since the COVID-19 pandemic left the position vacant for the past five years. [Read more…] about Saratoga County History Center Names Executive Director
Saratoga’s Black Heritage: A Guidebook, a 64-page book that tells previously-unknown stories of Black achievers, is now available free of charge. Published by the Saratoga County History Center of Ballston Spa, it was researched and written by Field Horne.
The book contains thirty tales, each with an illustration, ranging from the 1702 construction of mills at the present Schuylerville by enslaved people to the lively Spuyten Duyvil nightclub that operated near Saratoga Race Course until 1986. [Read more…] about Saratoga’s Black Heritage: A Guidebook
In 1850, the Adirondack Mountain region of New York State was still largely a blank spot on the map, but by 1900 the Adirondacks hosted elaborate summer estates for the wealthiest families in America: Vanderbilts, Rockefellers, Carnegies, Whitneys and Morgans. [Read more…] about Great Camps & Adirondack Vacation History
The Saratoga County History Center at Brookside Museum will host “Cloaks and Greatcoats: 18th Century Outerwear” with Henry Cooke, an expert in 18th century clothing. This presentation will take place on Friday, January 3rd, at 7 pm at Brookside Museum in Ballston Spa, NY. [Read more…] about Cloaks and Greatcoats: 18th Century Outerwear
In August of 2017, an ambitious flautist emailed a highly recommended harpist, and inquired if she might want to play some duets together – and, thus, Stringwynde was born. The artists each hold graduate degrees in music and perform in a variety of musical genres. [Read more…] about Stringwynde at Brookside Museum in Ballston Spa
Fifty years ago, a dedicated group of local individuals opened the doors to Brookside Museum and Saratoga County History Center is still there, ready to celebrate this milestone. For half a century they have been dedicated to the mission of bettering Saratoga County and preserving its history, an endeavor made possible through perseverance, passion and the support of their community. [Read more…] about Celebrating 50 Years of Saratoga County’s Brookside Museum
As the Second World War was ending, the United States began a race with the Soviet Union to capture Germany’s war secrets. The most prized were the V-2 rockets that had caused so much destruction in England and the Channel Ports.
The Army selected engineers from the Schenectady General Electric plant to travel to Europe and interview the captured German scientists and select the papers, drawings and rocket parts to be shipped back to America. Another G.E. team was tasked with finding a secluded location convenient to the GE plant to build a test facility. [Read more…] about From Malta to the Moon: The Malta Rocket Test Site
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) began on March 31, 1933 as one of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s ee programs to relieve poverty and unemployment during the Great Depression.
Workers built trails, roads, campsites, dams, stocked fish, built and maintained fire tower observer cabins and telephone lines, fought fires, and planted millions of trees. The CCC disbanded in 1942 due to the need for men in World War Two. [Read more…] about Civilian Conservation Corps in Saratoga County and the Adirondacks
William Arkell, son of the prominent Canajoharie businessman James Arkell, will be portrayed by Ben Kemp, staff member of Grant’s Cottage on Tuesday October 8 at 7 pm at Brookside Museum in Ballston Spa. “President Ulysses S. Grant will always be associated with Mt. McGregor and rightfully so” says Mr. Kemp. “But there is also the larger context of the Gilded Age and how it transformed a mountain into a luxury resort.” [Read more…] about William Arkell’s Ambition: The Magic of Mt. McGregor
Hanging at the top of the main stairs at Brookside Museum in Ballston Spa, Saratoga County, NY, is a pair of portraits. With them is a framed brooch which contains locks of hair. These portraits are of Thomas McDonnell and his wife Frances Halsey McDonnell and were painted in 1852 and 1853 respectively by John G. Taggart, a New York trained artist with a studio in Saratoga Springs. In her portrait, Frances is wearing the brooch that now hangs beside her.
But who are they? That is the question their great-great-great-grandson and his wife, who gifted the paintings to the museum, wanted to know. [Read more…] about The McDonnell Portraits: A Saratoga Mystery
After the Revolutionary War, the new nation’s earliest resorts were spas, following the tradition of those in England.
Ballston Spa in Saratoga County, NY was one of the earliest and soon eclipsed its rivals in terms of springs, hotels and amenities. [Read more…] about The Rise and Fall of Ballston Spa as a Resort
During the Civil War, Colonel Simeon Sammons received authority to recruit a regiment in the counties of Fulton, Hamilton, Montgomery, and Saratoga, with headquarters at Fonda. On August 26, 1862, it mustered into the service of the United States for three years as the 115th New York Infantry Regiment, known as the “Iron-Hearted Regiment.” [Read more…] about The 115th New York: The Iron Hearted Regiment During The Civil War
Many citizens of Ballston Spa in Saratoga County will be aware that in the nineteenth century the east end of Front Street boasted a sumptuous hotel called the Sans Souci. Some of these residents may have mused upon the great events, including grand balls, which might have enlivened this hotel back in the day, even ones graced by the presence of European royalty on occasion. [Read more…] about Ballston Spa’s 19th Century Grand Balls in Competition
The History Center at Brookside Museum in Ballston Spa has released its tour schedule for 2023. Five Tours have been scheduled from mid- July through September. [Read more…] about Saratoga County History Tours Announced for 2023
The Saratoga County History Center will host the Saratoga Chips and Beer Festival on Saturday, November 12th, at the Brookside Museum, located at 21 Fairground Avenue, in Ballston Spa, NY. [Read more…] about Saratoga Chips and Beer Festival November 12th
To celebrate the Bicentennial of Ulysses S. Grant‘s Birthday, the Presidential Library at Mississippi State University has created a traveling exhibit about Grant’s life. Banners describe his life from his humble beginnings until his accession to the United States presidency.
The exhibition will be presented at the Brookside Museum at the Saratoga County History Center in Ballston Spa, Saratoga County, NY as part of an agreement between Friends of Grant Cottage. [Read more…] about Ulysses S Grant Exhibit at Brookside Museum
The Saratoga County History Center at Brookside Museum in Ballston Spa, Saratoga County, NY is seeking craft vendors for its 22nd Annual Artisan’s Market.
This juried market is to be held at the Saratoga County History Center at Brookside Museum (SCHC @ Brookside Museum) from November 26th through December 24th. [Read more…] about Brookside Museum Artisan Market Seeking Vendors
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