In celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day, the local history department of Albert Wisner Public Library in Warwick has prepared a web exhibit about some of the community actions of the past that have helped preserve the environment. [Read more…] about New Web Exhibit Explores Orange Co Environmental Activism History
Orange County
Everyone Knows Elsie: A Short Borden Company History
When you enter the hamlet of Wallkill, you are greeted by the happy face of the Borden Company’s mascot, Elsie the Cow. The company’s website states that this mascot dates to the 1930s.
Underneath Elsie is a sign stating that the Hamlet of Wallkill was the location the “Home Farm” of John G. Borden. Thus, many commonly believe that Borden Condensed Milk was in fact invented in the Hamlet of Wallkill; however, its origins can be traced to Burrville, Connecticut and Gail Borden, Jr. Actually, the business was not originally called Borden at all – that title would come later. [Read more…] about Everyone Knows Elsie: A Short Borden Company History
Phebe Reynolds Thwarts The Tories
James Eldridge Quinlan’s History of Sullivan County is generally regarded as one of the most thorough and entertainingly written local histories. Published in 1873, Quinlan’s history is the undisputed bible of Sullivan County’s past, and yet it is not without its shortcomings. Some have criticized what they view as his selective exclusion of material – he does not, for instance, write much about the Civil War, and it has been said that this was because he was a Copperhead, or a southern sympathizer. And each year in March, Women’s History Month, we are reminded that he afforded minimal space in his writings to the women of the era.
That makes the few women he does write about stand out even more than they might otherwise, and no woman receives greater praise from Quinlan than Phebe Reynolds Drake. [Read more…] about Phebe Reynolds Thwarts The Tories
New Barn in Goshen Preserves Horse Racing Tradition
A little more than two years after a devastating fire Goshen Historic Track has added a new page to its history. Considered among the world’s oldest active harness racing tracks, the Orange County facility recently hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate a newly constructed barn and horse stalls on the site of the old BOCES Barn that was partially destroyed by the fire on August 23, 2017. [Read more…] about New Barn in Goshen Preserves Horse Racing Tradition
Hudson River Chain, Anthony’s Nose, and the American Revolution
General George Washington, Governor George Clinton and Lord Stirling all knew about Anthony’s Nose. Not because it was part of someone’s anatomy, but because it was a prominent feature along the Hudson River, the highest place in Westchester County. Anthony’s Nose resembles a person’s nose when viewed in profile from the Hudson River, and so was a well known landmark.
Anthony’s Nose was also strategically important. [Read more…] about Hudson River Chain, Anthony’s Nose, and the American Revolution
Russell Shorto Speaking In Orange County Nov 7th
The Albert Wisner Library in Warwick is set to host national bestselling author Russell Shorto to discuss his recent book, Revolution Song, on Wednesday, November 7 at 7 pm.
This narrative history looks back to the nation’s founding to see that people from different backgrounds had vastly different experiences of the Revolution years. Drawing on diaries, letters and autobiographies of both well known and obscure lives, Shorto resurrects their contrasting voices as they struggle through the social chaos of their day. [Read more…] about Russell Shorto Speaking In Orange County Nov 7th
The Continental Commissary at Warwick, Orange County
Sometimes the past changes. For the Friends of Hathorn House research team, a chance remark led to discovery of a lost chapter in Warwick’s history — the Continental Army’s supply depot here.
In 1780-81, the Army kept a large and active post near the Village of Warwick, NY which stored and shipped supplies to the troops. The depot was not without controversy, however. The citizens of Warwick proved to be challenging partners. [Read more…] about The Continental Commissary at Warwick, Orange County
New Yorkers At The Hindenburg Line in 1918
Walter Allison, a graduate of Newburgh Free Academy probably did not know what hit him when wounded in the stomach on September 29, 1918. He lay in a shallow shell hole, bleeding, not far from where his commander lay mortally wounded. Two lieutenants urged the men of E Company of the 107th Infantry Regiment on, but they too were cut down, as bullets ripped through the air, shells exploded all about them wiping out an entire squad and Allison’s classmate Everett Baker. Smoke and chemical gas drifted through the air as the few remaining sergeants, corporals and privates carried on the fight, and the brutal battle to break the Hindenburg Line continued. [Read more…] about New Yorkers At The Hindenburg Line in 1918
Some Early Settlers Near Chester, Orange County
On New York State Route 94, just north of the village of Chester, Orange County, cars and their occupants whiz past the homestead site of a once-famous pioneer and author, the site of a once locally renowned public house, and a resting place for local residents probably known only to loved ones.
The first two sites have only their historical markers to indicate what once was there, while the last has, I suppose one could say, historical markers of a sort, but also continued presence that evokes an image of past community and that gives poignant testimony to the way we have layered our world on top of it. [Read more…] about Some Early Settlers Near Chester, Orange County
Brutalist Architecture Still Controversial After 50 Years
When I began my term as Orange County Historian, Ted Sly was kind enough to go over some of his most memorable moments in the post.
On one occasion around 2010, he explained, he met with members of the Paul Rudolph Foundation and toured them through the Government Center where they encountered hecklers, one of which shouted out from the office, “Tear it down! Tear it down!”
It wasn’t my first inkling of the animosity that has persisted in the community regarding the Orange County Government Center since it was dedicated in 1970 but I appreciated his warning. [Read more…] about Brutalist Architecture Still Controversial After 50 Years