Where History Continues to be Written

Online Exhibits

NEW! Education in a Valley Fair

The early American education system began with the small quaint interior of a local church and later flourished to include large institutions that prepared young adults for the world ahead. New Paltz experienced a similar development in its education system.  It began in 1689, inthe modest log Walloon Church, when the small French-speaking community hired schoolmaster Jean Cottin. What followed was the New Paltz Academy, the Normal School, our Central School District and the State University of New York at New Paltz -- an institution that sits high on its hill to show stature of a great college that came about through these extraordinary changes in education.

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NEW! The Civil War Collection of James T. Thitchner

James T. Thitchner grew up in a small hamlet in the town of Plattekill, which is just south of New Paltz.  He was born in 1835 to Quaker parents.  Despite the Quakers' pacifist beliefs, he enlisted to serve for the Union in the Civil War at the age of 27.  This collection focuses on the letters written by Thitchner during his service.  Unlike the glorious, lofty letters written by wealthy, learned officers and later used to craft period novels, Thitchner's writings represent a rarer and perhaps more interesting glimpse into the realities of the War from the perspective of a poor soldier.  From his letters, we learn of the actual woes of combat and the fears of war from the front lines, where frequently not an officer was to be found.

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A Notion to Sew: The 19th Century Needlework of Hylah Hasbrouck and Her Daughters at Locust Lawn

A Notion to Sew came out of a two year project to inventory the furnishings and household items of the Hasbrouck family at Locust Lawn, a striking Jeffersonian manse and farm complex built in 1814 by Josiah Hasbrouck.  In 1885, the family locked away all their personal effects and furnishings in part of the house.  The house was rented to tenant farmers for almost 75 years before it was given to Historic Huguenot Street in 1958.  The exhibit showcases the handiwork of four Hasbrouck women and puts their work into context with the social movements of their time.  For more information about Locust Lawn, which is open to the public, click here.

Exhibit currently open in the Grimm Gallery at Historic Huguenot Street.  Click on image at right to view online exhibit

The Missing Chapter: Untold Stories of the African-American Presence in the Mid-Hudson Valley 

Based largely on documents found the Archives at Historic Huguenot Street, Archives Specialist Susan-Stessin Cohn has brought to life an important of the area's local history that more people need to know about.  Presented in cooperation with Hudson River Valley Heritage, a project of the Southeastern New York Library Resources Council.

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Hidden Heritage: The Story of Reverend James Murphy

In the course of routine work in the Archives at Historic Huguenot Street, Archives Specialist Susan Stessin-Cohn and then intern Brandon Pendergast stumbled upon an intriguing document from the early 1800s, Letter to Rev. Particular, Synod of Albany, concerning "The Memorial of Ann Bevier and Rachel Westbrook, members of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church of Rochester."  Thinking it was a memorial testament, they read on.  It turned out to be nothing like what they thought.  This well-composed letter revealed a sad and forgotten tale involving a charismatic and loved minister, slavery, race and a lie.  The stage was rural Ulster and Dutchess Counties.  This exhibit illustrates the reality of race in early New York state and the lengths a man had to go to in order to live out his chosen destiny.

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Josiah DuBois: Huguenot Descendant A Catalyst in Response to Holocaust

Josiah DuBois was a prosperous attorney in Camden, New Jersey and a former employee at the U.S. Treasury Department when fate took him down an unexpected path.  He was summoned to Washington to assist with the job of seizing Nazi assets as part of the war effort during World War II.  In the course of doing this, the full extent of the Nazi's "final solution" for the Jews was revealed to him.  He wrote a blistering 18-page missive, "Report to the Secretary on the Acquiesence of This Government in the Murder of the Jews."  This report, when presented to President Roosevelt, forced his hand and led the creation of the War Refugee Board.  Josiah was also pivotal in bringing 10,000 European Jews to abandoned Fort Ontario in Oswego, New York, a move that surely saved their lives.

Online Exhibit Coming Soon