Ride the rails, for free!

Oct 23, 2012 | news archive

Join the crew from the Delaware & Ulster Railroad and members of the Historical Society of the Town of Middletown this Saturday, October 27 at 10:30 for the unveiling of the historic marker commemorating the significance of the railroad in the development of the region. In recognition of the most precious commodity ever carried on the rails of the Up & Down, the D&U will offer complimentary passage on the 11AM train to all who attend this monumental event.

The historic marker was made by Catskill Castings of Bloomville

The historic marker is partially funded by the Historical Society of the Town of Middletown (HSM), which has initiated placement of three other markers at historically significant sites in the town. Members and community volunteers working with HSM, a non-profit organization, preserve and promote local history through programs, exhibits and projects. For information and to find out how to get involved, visit www.mtownhistory.org.

The Delaware & Ulster Railroad is located in Arkville, NY. For more information call 845-586-2929 or visit us the web at durr.org

Doug Kadow, president of the Ulster & Delaware RR Historical Society, shared some history of the former U&D at the dedication of the Arkville historic marker which HSM helped erect.

HSM’s Lucci Kelly, left, joined Doug Kadow, president of the Ulster & Delaware Railroad Historical Society; Vic Stevens, Chief Mechanical Officer of the Delaware & Ulster Railroad; and Dave Riordan, president of the Catskill Revitalization Corp. which runs the DURR, in unveiling the new marker at the Arkville Station.

More News is good news!

Oct 17, 2012 | Tin Horn

Several hundred more pages of the Catskill Mountain News, 1967-73, have been added to the commons! This batch of digitized microfilm will be the last for awhile, the end of a five-year effort to make the News, 1902-1973, readable and searchable on line.The only years that are missing are 1920, 1925 and 1968.

The Historical Society is so pleased to have been able to accomplish this, with the help of several major donors. We are grateful for contributions from the late Ed Scheider and Herman Gottfried; from CMN Publisher Dick Sanford; from the O’Connor Foundation, and from a generous anonymous donor. Our thanks go to Dick and the News for allowing the microfilming and scanning of bound newspapers from 1902-37; to the NYS Library for loaning microfilm of issues from 1938-73; to Hudson Microimaging of Port Ewen for the great job they did in reformatting this treasure trove of local history.

And we so appreciate the work of the Northern NY Library Network in hosting this collection on their site: http://history.catskill.net. Check it out!

Here’s to George . . .

Oct 5, 2012 | Tin Horn

The Historical Society has lost a good and faithful friend with the passing of George Hendricks. A trustee on the board since 2008, George was always ready to help. He was a prime mover in getting our historic marker program started with the installation of the first one in Highmount, at the boulder that held an 1840s Anti-Rent War flag. He worked tirelessly for two summers with Brian Wheaton and others to restore the Arkville Cemetery, where some of his ancestors are buried.

It’s because of George, and a chance conversation he had with New Kingston Valley Grange members at church one Sunday, that HSM was gifted our home on Cemetery Road. He looked forward to mowing the grass there, and looking out for the place.

George was so very proud of his ancestry, and the fact that his sons are the 9th generation of the Hendricks clan in Middletown. He loved to share his genealogy research with others, always looking for those elusive bits of information that would flesh out the lives of people from the past.

His passion for local history and genealogy was such that even when his illness left him tired and weak, he would not bow out of the Living History Tour of Margaretville Cemetery, in which he portrayed his great-great-grandfather, George Hendricks.

Just a few weeks ago, his body failing but his memory sharp, he provided details on owners of New Kingston barns for our farm documentation project, which captured the interest and enthusiasm of hundreds of visitors at the Cauliflower Festival.

We wish he could have been there. But in a very real sense, he was.

Thank you, George, for breathing life into history, and prompting us, always, to remember.

GEORGE HENDRICKS PHOTO GALLERY
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Cemetery Tour video to be screened Oct. 6

Sep 30, 2012 | news archive

Those who missed the Living History Tour of Margaretville Cemetery on June 30 will have a chance to see it this Saturday, Oct. 6 when a one-hour video produced by Nick Bibbo will be screened twice at the Historical Society of Middletown (HSM) hall, 778 Cemetery Rd., Margaretville.

Screenings are at 4 and 7 p.m. Admission is $4, which includes free popcorn!

The hall will open at 3 p.m. Come early to enjoy the autumn color at the pond, and to view “Barn Yesterday,” the exhibit based on the photographic survey of Middletown area barns. The exhibit was unveiled at the Cauliflower Festival Sept. 29 to enthusiastic response.

At the June 30 cemetery tour, 10 area residents portrayed people from Middletown’s past. Groups of visitors were led by costumed docents through the historic burial ground, which dates back to 1850.

They met Undertaker Charles Gorsch (played by John Hartner); J. Francis and Adah Murphy, founders of the Pakatakan Artists Colony in Arkville (played by Fred Margulies and Elizabeth Sherr); farmer George Hendricks (played by George Hendricks, Jr.); doctor, legislator, editor and anti-war advocate Orson Allaben (portrayed by John Bernhardt); and famed outdoorsman and animal trainer Niles Fairbairn (portrayed by Michael Fairbairn).

Also, legendary log raft steersman Erastus Clute (played by Joe Hewitt); beloved Margaretville Hospital founder Dr. Gordon Maurer (portrayed by Kent Brown); and attorney Ward DeSilva and his milliner wife Margaret, (portrayed by Ken and Amy Taylor).

The final HSM event of the year will be the Annual Meeting and Luncheon on October 20, when historian Frank Waterman will present a program on “Jay Gould’s Map.” To reserve a place ($15), call Lucci Kelly, 607-326-4734.

Barns take a bow at Cauliflower Fest

Sep 24, 2012 | news archive

Barns, those icons of rural life that have long defined the landscape of the Catskills, will be the focus of the History Tent at the Ninth Annual Margaretville Cauliflower Festival to be held rain or shine Saturday, Sept. 29 from 10 to 4 in the Village Park, Margaretville.

The Historical Society of the Town of Middletown will present the results of a three-year photographic survey of 210 standing barns in Middletown and contiguous areas of Roxbury, Hardenburgh, Andes and Halcott.

In “Barn Yesterday,” visitors can view an exhibit, peruse binders containing photos and historic documentation of the barns, and watch a stunning continuous slide show featuring Middletown’s amazing agricultural legacy in all its homespun glory. Tribute will be made to those still farming, and homage will be paid to barns that have disappeared.

Learn about types of barns and their functional elements. See how some have been adapted to new uses. Enjoy the art and geometry of these common but remarkable buildings. And try your hand at timber framing, the traditional method of building a barn.

Denver builder Wayne Ford will demonstrate this specialized type of post and beam construction using mortise and tenon joinery, held in place with wooden pegs. Engaging willing audience volunteers throughout the day, he will construct two 8×14 “bents” – posts and cross beams in an H shape – and tie them together with girders, top plates and sills to create a rectangular frame.

Timber framing was common until the late 1800s before sawmills started producing dimensional lumber, which was much easier to transport, cut and erect than large posts and beams. Factory-made nails rather than wooden pins were used to assemble these “sticks” into structures in which the walls — rather than a heavy frame — supported the weight of the building. Known as balloon framing, the technique required much more skill and time than working with enormous timbers.

Other home-made attractions

In keeping with the farm theme, a Tractor Parade will roll around the festival grounds at 11:30, and Lauren Davis and crew will provide a hay baling demonstration on his adjoining farm at 2:30.

Seth and Alisha Finch will bring their mammoth Percheron draft horses to give afternoon wagon rides to festival goers. The Finchs and their children, Wyatt and Emma, use the horses to do traditional farm tasks, from spreading manure to working in the hay fields to logging.

Bushels of cauliflower will be offered for sale, and kids of all ages will have a chance to be photographed as the Watershed Agricultural Council’s “Cauliflower Lady.”

Elsewhere on the festival grounds, 36 artisans, vendors and exhibitors will greet visitors. Festival fare will range from cauliflower soup to barbecue chicken to pickles right out of the barrel! Containers of Chobani yogurt will be given away.

Highlighting the entertainment offerings this year will be the popular Catskill Mountain Boys at noon and 2 p.m., and the Blue Ribbon Cloggers at 1 and 3 p.m. Garden experts will offer mini-workshops on a variety of topics at 12:30, 1:15, 2 and 2:45.

Kids will enjoy Strich’s Petting Zoo and pony rides, Catskill Outback Adventures’ zipline across the East Branch, and a ride around the grounds in Papa’s Little Hillbilly Barrel Train.

The festival is sponsored by the Central Catskills Chamber of Commerce and supported by Freshtown Marketplace; Kids in the Catskills, Coldwell/Banker Timberland Properties; MTC; Directive, Inc., and HealthAlliance of the Hudson Valley.

BARNS AT CAULIFLOWER FESTIVAL PHOTO GALLERY
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Visitors view barn slide show, also visible on monitor, foreground

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Tom Kaufman and his father, Smith Clark Kaufman try the cauliflower planter on for size. The elder Kaufman picked cauliflower growing up on his father, Claude’s farm in Canada Hollow.

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Wayne Ford (on knee) enlists the help of visitors in erecting a timber frame at the Cauliflower Festival.

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