Upcoming History and Genealogy Programs

According to today's Rensselaer County Advertiser newspaper the following history and genealogy programs will be held soon by various historical societies.


Paul Raider to Speak on WWI
Paul Raider and others are giving an illustrated talk on World War I- On the Homefront, at the Stephentown Historical Society meeting on Sunday, November 11, at 2pm.

This special date is the 100th anniversary of the signing of the armistice ending the Great War. The event is at Stephentown Heritage Center, 4 Staples Road (corner of Garfield Road), Stephentown, New York.

The program is free, and the building is handicapped accessible. For directions, telephone 518.733.0010.

Veterans Day Event at Bennington Battlefield
Bennington Battlefield State Historic Site will host a Veterans Day observance, November 11th, at 11am. Speakers will highlight American service through the centuries, discussing the American experience in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and World War I. A musket salute will follow. This free event is open to the public, no RSVP required.

Anti Rent War Lecture
The Pittstown Historical Society has planned a lecture event. The Anti-Rent War of 1839 to 1869 will be the subject of a lecture by historian, Michael Barrett on November 15th, at 7:30pm, at the Pittstown Town Hall in Tomhannock. Barrett will talk about the turbulent pre-Civil War period in which armed resistance, terror, imprisonment and strife swept across 16 counties of upstate NY.

The Anti-Rent movement protested the leasehold property that the landed aristocracy refused to relinquish. Barrett, who is presently serving as the Executive Director of the Hudson Mohawk Industrial Gateway and the Burden Iron Works Museum in Troy, has lectured extensively and is a member of numerous local historical societies.

The meeting, which is sponsored by the Pittstown Historical Society, is free and open to the public. For further information, email: Pittstownhs@gmail.com or call Connie Kheel at 518.686.7514.

Holiday Pop-Up Tours at Oakwood Cemetery
Do you have relatives coming from out of town for Thanksgiving? Are you wondering how you'll amuse them after you've done all the turkey dinner and Black Friday stuff? Here's your chance to impress them with something completely different!

The Friends of Oakwood will offer guided tours of the Gardner Earl Chapel at 1pm and 2pm on Saturday, November 24th, for just $10 per person. Children under 12 are free. Registration is not required, but each tour will be limited to 40 people with priority going to registrants.

Please call 518.328.0090 with preferred tour time, name, phone, email, and number of people. The castle-like Earl Chapel is a National Historic Landmark boasting spectacular stained-glass windows, oak carvings and marble mosaics. It is popular venue for intimate weddings as well as memorial and funerals. For Googlemap directions, use 186 Oakwood Avenue, Troy.

Poestenkill Heritage Center Welcomes You
Situated on the outskirts of the Village of Poestenkill next to the Lutheran Church is a quaint home which we have transformed into a historical museum. During the three years we have been there, we have rotated various exhibits which we feel would be of interest to you.

During the Month of November, we are featuring an exhibit displaying various items from the Civil War, World War II, and the Korean War. We have many items of interest, including a greatcoat from the Civil War, a Marine, WAC, Army, and Navy uniforms, donated from various people in the community.

We hope you will visit our museum. We are open on Saturdays from 1-3. A volunteer will be there to greet you and share some of the stories surrounding our artifacts. Our Town Historian is also there on Mondays from 11-3.

Ancestry.com Tutorials at North Greenbush Public Library
Library Trustee and North Greenbush Town Historian, Jim Greenfield, is offering a free personal tutorials on the use of ancestry.com. Ancestry Library Edition is available at the library and provides access to 7,000 databases delivering an extraordinary online collection of genealogy information.

To set up your individual session, please call the library at 518.283.0303. The librarian will take your information, and Jim will call you to schedule an appointment. Don't miss this chance to learn how to use the most popular online genealogy resource.