Founded | 1974 (1981 charter) |
---|---|
Type | Historical society |
Focus | Local history |
Location |
|
Area served | Town of Brunswick |
Method | Collecting, preserving, and displaying historically significant aspects of Brunswick |
Key people | President Tracy Broderick |
Website | bhs-ny.org |
Member of Upstate History Alliance, American Association of State and Local History, and Hudson-Mohawk Industrial Gateway |
Brunswick Historical Society (BHS) is the local historical society serving the town of Brunswick, New York, United States. It was organized in 1974 and officially chartered in 1981. It moved into its first and current home, the Garfield School in Eagle Mills, in 1988. After sharing the Garfield School with the Brunswick Community Library (originally the Garfield Reading Center) for more than twenty years, the Library moved to a different location in 2009 and in 2010, BHS expanded into both halves of the former two-room schoolhouse.
In 1974, a group of interested Brunswick residents invited other townspeople to a meeting to discuss the possibility of organizing a society aimed at studying and collecting items related to local history since there appeared to be a great interest around town in forming such a group. Meetings were scheduled and in the fall of that year, charter memberships were issued. On May 22, 1981, BHS was granted its absolute charter by the New York State Board of Regents, making BHS a recognized and official local historical society. [1]
The purpose of BHS was to bring together people interested in history, and especially in the history of the town of Brunswick and of Rensselaer County. Also, the society collects, preserves, displays, and makes available for study any material that will establish or illustrate the history of the area. BHS encourages the preservation and accessibility of records and archives of the area and encourages and promotes the preservation of historical buildings, monuments, and markers of local importance. [1]
In 1978, Brunswick... A Pictorial History was published care of editor Warren Broderick. Old Brunswick photographs were loaned for inclusion in the book. Thus began the extensive collection of photographs and slides now in its archives. These media have been used for exhibits, programs at BHS meetings, and educational programs for Brunswick school children. [1]
In 1981, BHS was officially recognized by the New York State Board of Regents and New York State Education Department with an absolute charter. The society has continued to collect artifacts, memorabilia, family records, scrapbooks, and diaries kept by town residents. [1]
In 1988, BHS moved into its current home, the Garfield School on the corner of Brunswick Road (New York State Route 2) and Moonlawn Road. Extensive renovations were made to the building to bring it to a suitable standard for visiting researchers and other parties interested in what BHS had to offer. The school was originally the District No. 2 Schoolhouse, which serviced Eagle Mills from its construction in 1881 until the consolidation of the Brunswick (Brittonkill) Central School District in 1956. The school had been used occasionally by the school district after consolidation, but it had effectively been abandoned until the district transferred it to the Town of Brunswick in 1986. In 1988, the Garfield School became the first building to be added to the National Register of Historical Places in the town of Brunswick. [2] In 2009, after more than 20 years sharing the building, the Brunswick Community Library moved to a new location east of the Garfield Library. [3] In response, BHS expanded its operation into the entire Garfield School. In 2010, an extensive renovation was performed, including refinishing the wood floors and installing new cabinets and display cases.[ citation needed ]
BHS is overseen by a 13-member board of trustees. As required by its charter, BHS "continually meets the requirements of the Board of Regents, including research, collections management, and providing programs and interpretive activities for the educational benefit of the public." It is a non-profit 501(c)(3) educational organization and is a member of the Upstate History Alliance, the American Association of State and Local History, and the Hudson-Mohawk Industrial Gateway. [4]
BHS has a number of committees meant to consolidate work efforts and involve participants. Its Collections Committee keeps track of all the items collected since the society's inception. The Exhibits Committee develops new display ideas for much of its collections. The Genealogy Committee was worked to consolidate family history information for interested researchers. Other committees include the Historic Building Marker Committee, the History Committee, the Junior Historian Society, the Hospitality Committee, the Membership Committee, the Newsletter Committee, the Programs Committee, the Publicity Committee, the Volunteer Committee, and the Website Committee. [4]
Rensselaer County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 161,130. Its county seat is Troy. The county is named in honor of the family of Kiliaen van Rensselaer, the original Dutch owner of the land in the area.
Brunswick is a town in Rensselaer County, New York, United States. The municipality was originally settled in the early 18th century. During its history, it had been part of Albany County, Rensselaerswyck, and Troy, before its incorporation in 1807. It is bordered on the west by the city of Troy; on the north by Schaghticoke and Pittstown; on the east by Grafton; and on the south by Poestenkill and North Greenbush. The population was 12,581 at the 2020 census. The source of the town's name is not certain, though some claim it comes from the source of its first inhabitants from the province of Brunswick-Lüneburg in Germany.
Rensselaer is a city in Rensselaer County, New York, United States, and is located on the east side of the Hudson River, directly opposite of Albany. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 9,210. Rensselaer is on the western border of Rensselaer County. The area now known as the City of Rensselaer was settled by the Dutch in the 17th century, who called it t'Greyn Bos, which became Greenbush in English. The city has a rich industrial history stretching back to the 19th century, when it became a major railroad hub; in 2020, Albany-Rensselaer was the ninth busiest Amtrak station in the country and the second busiest in New York State. Rensselaer was one of the earliest locations of the dye industry in the United States, and was the first American location for the production of aspirin.
Poestenkill is a town in Rensselaer County, New York, United States. The population was 4,322 at the 2020 census. The town is southeast of Troy and is centrally located in the county.
The Connecticut Western Reserve was a portion of land claimed by the Colony of Connecticut and later by the state of Connecticut in what is now mostly the northeastern region of Ohio. The Reserve had been granted to the Colony under the terms of its charter by King Charles II.
The Western Reserve Historical Society (WRHS) is a historical society in Cleveland, Ohio. The society operates the Cleveland History Center, a collection of museums in University Circle.
Rensselaerswyck was the name of Dutch colonial patroonship and later an English manor owned by the van Rensselaer family located in the present-day Capital District of New York in the United States.
The Fenimore Art Museum is a museum located in Cooperstown, New York on the west side of Otsego Lake. Collection strengths include the Eugene and Clare Thaw Collection of American Indian Art, American fine and folk art, 19th and early 20th century photography, as well as rare books and manuscripts. The museum's mission is to connect its audience to American and New York State cultural heritage by organizing exhibits and public programs that "engage, delight and inspire."
This list is intended to be a complete compilation of properties and districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Rensselaer County, New York, United States. Seven of the properties are further designated National Historic Landmarks.
The Center for Brooklyn History is a museum, library, and educational center founded in 1863 that preserves and encourages the study of Brooklyn's 400-year history. The center's Romanesque Revival building, located at Pierrepont and Clinton Streets in Brooklyn Heights, was designed by George B. Post and built in 1878–1881 by David H. King Jr., is a National Historic Landmark and part of New York City's Brooklyn Heights Historic District. The CBH houses materials relating to the history of Brooklyn and its people, and hosts exhibitions which draw over 9,000 members a year. In addition to general programming, the CBH serves over 70,000 public school students and teachers annually by providing exhibit tours, educational programs and curricula, and making its professional staff available for instruction and consultation.
Andrew Haswell Green was a lawyer, New York City planner, and civic leader. He is considered "the Father of Greater New York," and is responsible for Central Park, the New York Public Library, the Bronx Zoo, the American Museum of Natural History, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He also participated in or led significant projects, such as Riverside Drive, Morningside Park, Fort Washington Park, and protecting the Hudson River Palisades from destruction. His last project was the consolidation of the "Imperial City" or City of Greater New York; he chaired the 1897 committee that drew up the plan of amalgamation.
The Albany Institute of History & Art (AIHA) is a museum in Albany, New York, United States, "dedicated to collecting, preserving, interpreting and promoting interest in the history, art, and culture of Albany and the Upper Hudson Valley region". It is located on Washington Avenue in downtown Albany. Founded in 1791, it is among the oldest museums in the United States.
A historical society is an organization dedicated to preserving, collecting, researching, and interpreting historical information or items. Originally, these societies were created as a way to help future generations understand their heritage.
Local history is the study of history in a geographically local context, often concentrating on a relatively small local community. It incorporates cultural and social aspects of history. Local history is not merely national history writ small but a study of past events in a given geographical area which is based on a wide variety of documentary evidence and placed in a comparative context that is both regional and national. Historic plaques are one form of documentation of significant occurrences in the past and oral histories are another.
Historic preservation in New York is activity undertaken to conserve forests, buildings, ships, sacred burial grounds, water purity and other objects of cultural importance in New York in ways that allow them to communicate meaningfully about past practices, events, and people.
Clums Corners is a hamlet in the town of Brunswick in Rensselaer County, New York, United States. It is located at the intersection of New York Route 2, New York Route 278, and Tamarac Road. Tamarac Secondary and Elementary Schools are located nearby. The site is so named for the Clum family—specifically James Clum and later his son Orlin—who ran a blacksmith shop during the late 19th century and early 20th century.
Brunswick (Brittonkill) Central School District (BCSD) is a rural fringe central school district located east of the city of Troy whose main campus resides in the town of Brunswick in Rensselaer County, New York, United States. The district has two operating school buildings: Tamarac Elementary School and Tamarac Secondary School. The district is a member of the Rensselaer-Columbia-Greene Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), known as Questar III.
The District #6 Schoolhouse, also known locally as the Little Red Schoolhouse located in Brunswick, New York, United States, is a one-room schoolhouse built c. 1830 or 1837 that was home to grades one through eight until the consolidation of Brunswick (Brittonkill) Central School District in 1952. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on July 3, 2008 and a dedication ceremony for the accomplishment was held on June 12, 2009.
The District #2 Schoolhouse, known locally as the Garfield School and also known as Brunswick District No. 2 School, located in Brunswick, New York, United States, is a two-room schoolhouse built and opened in 1881. It hosted local students until the consolidation of Brunswick (Brittonkill) Central School District in the mid-1950s. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1988, becoming the first building in the Town of Brunswick to be added to the Register. It is the current home of the Brunswick Historical Society.
The Rensselaer County Historical Society (RCHS) is a non-profit, historical society and museum, to promote the study of the history of the Rensselaer County, NY. RCHS was founded in 1927, and originally operated out of a single room in the Troy Public Library, collecting manuscripts and published materials related to the county's history. It is located in the Central Troy Historic District, in Troy, NY. The Rensselaer County Historical Society operates a museum, and offers public programs from its location at 57 Second Street, Troy, NY.