News & Upcoming Events in
Orange County History & Heritage
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Documenting the Affects of the Covid-19 Pandemic in Orange County
In an effort to record the experiences of our local community during this transformative period we are asking that the public contribute their personal accounts, observations and creative thoughts to our archive.
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Cemetery Workshops for Summer 2020
The cemetery care workshop that was originally scheduled for May has been postponed to July 18, 2020 from 11AM to 1PM. It will take place at the Rossville Cemetery in partnership with Town of Newburgh Historian Alan Crawford.
We are waiting on capacity guidance and will share details in a future newsletter. Email NNazzaro@orangecountygov.com to RSVP or if you have any questions.
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Great News for Mastodon Enthusiasts!
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This 14,000-year-old mastodon skeleton is the centerpiece of Smithsonian American Art Museum’s exhibition "Alexander von Humboldt and the United States: Art, Nature, and Culture." On loan from the Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt in Germany, the mastodon, which was excavated in upstate (Newburgh/Montgomery) New York and on view at Charles Willson Peale’s museum in Philadelphia in the early 19th century, is making its first return to the U.S. since 1847.
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THE STORY OF CHARLES WILLSON PEALE’S MASSIVE MASTODON
When a European intellectual snubbed the U.S., the well-known artist excavated the fierce fossil as evidence of the new Republic’s strength and power
SMITHSONIANMAG.COM | May 6, 2020
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By the second half of the 18th century, there were several reports of large bones and teeth from the Hudson Valley of New York State that closely resembled the mastodon remains from the Ohio Valley. The most noteworthy was the discovery in 1799 of large bones on a farm in Newburgh, Orange County. Workers had uncovered a huge thighbone while digging up calcium-rich marl for fertilizer on the farm of one John Masten. This led to a more concerted search that yielded more bones and teeth. Masten stored these finds on the floor of his granary for public viewing.
News of this discovery spread fast. Jefferson immediately tried to buy the excavated remains but was unsuccessful. In 1801, Charles Willson Peale, a Philadelphia artist and naturalist, succeeded in buying Masten’s bones and teeth, paying the farmer $200 (about $4,000 in
today’s dollars
)
and tossing in new gowns for his wife and daughters, along with a gun for the farmer’s son. With an additional $100, Peale secured the right to further excavate the marl pit.
To remove water from the site, a millwright constructed a large wheel, so that three or four men walking abreast could provide the power to move a chain of buckets that bailed out the pit using a trough leading to a low-lying area of the farm. Once the water level had dropped sufficiently, a crew of workers recovered additional bones in the pit. In his quest to get as many bones and teeth of the mastodon as possible, Peale acquired additional remains from marl pits on two neighboring properties before shipping everything to Philadelphia. One of these sites, the Barber Farm in Montgomery, is today listed as “Peale’s Barber Farm Mastodon Exhumation Site” in the National Register of Historic Places."
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Many Museums Won't Survive the Virus. How Do You Close One Down?
Institutions will face ethical and sometimes legal obligations to transfer their collections elsewhere. The process can be costly and time-consuming, experts say.
All but about 5 to 7 percent of the world’s museums are currently shuttered because of the coronavirus pandemic, said Peter Keller, the general director of the International Council of Museums. According to the council’s research, one in 10 may not reopen, he added.
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Reinvesting in Older Housing— A Key Component of Post COVID-19 Resiliency
In this proposal, we argue for a series of principles that future stimulus funding should meet. In order to get the highest use out of necessary relief spending, that money should have multiple impacts: recovery from COVID-19 impacts, stimulate the economy, address the affordable housing crisis, build resilient systems, and invest in long term assets. Investing in older housing meets these tests.
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Virtually Tour the Hudson Valley’s Hottest Historic Sites Right Here
What’s the best part of living in the Hudson Valley?
For some, it’s the awe-inspiring panoramas that greet them every time they step outdoors. For others, it’s the rich culinary scene that delights the senses with farm-to-table flavors in every bite. And then there’s the history of the region, a saga of adventure, exploration, and new beginnings. From Albany to Westchester, history greets Hudson Valleyites at every turn. It whispers tales of the past inside resplendent estates and echoes back to the earliest settlements from cemeteries and historic sites.
Yet because of the
COVID-19 crisis
, that history is on lock inside the area’s temporarily closed libraries, museums, and landmark houses.
Lucky for you, we found a loophole.
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***The Goshen and Newburgh Offices of the Orange County Historian Remain Closed Due to Covid-19 until further notice.***
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Email if you have an inquiry!
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We are working remotely during this time of the global pandemic. We are available by email. Contact Nicole nnazzaro@orangecountygov.com or Johanna jyaun@orangecountygov.com phone or Zoom Video Conference!
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Office of the Orange County Historian 101 Main Street Goshen NY 10924 845-360-6978
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