Archives Month 2007 is being celebrated the entire month of October. The Northern New York
Library Network’s Documentary Heritage Program is proud to announce the following activities throughout its
region:
Essex County
The Sherman Free Library, 20 Church Street, Port Henry, will sponsor "Researching Your Family Genealogy."
During this lecture, Kevin O’Brien will present a program on using Internet sites to do genealogical research.
Mr. O’Brien has done extensive research on his family and will share his expertise in finding your family
routes. The event will be held at 6:00 p.m. on October 11, 2007. For more information, contact Jackie Viestenz
at 518-546-7461.
The Wilmington Historical Society will be sponsoring an "Introduction to Genealogy---Getting Started" at
the Wilmington Community Center, 7 Community Center Circle (off Springfield Road), Wilmington. Join them for a
presentation by Karen and Bob Peters on how to begin the process of searching for your family roots. Karen and
Bob, both former teachers in Capital District schools, have extensive experience in researching their own
family genealogies, and will present a step-by-step process for beginning the recording of your family
history. An overview of "Family Tree Maker," a popular genealogy software, will also be reviewed. Refreshments
will be served. The event will be held at 10:00 a.m. on October 13, 2007. For more information, contact
518-946-7586.
The Adirondack History Center Museum, 7590 Court Street, Elizabethtown will sponsor "Supernatural Tour of
Elizabethtown" on October 27, 2007, with a time to be announced. This tour will include an afternoon of tale
telling and stories culled from the museum’s archives, a graveyard tour, and music. For more information, call
518-873-6466.
Jefferson County
The Town of Champion Historian will sponsor "Carthage Fire of 1884" at the Town of Champion Office, 10
North Broad Street, West Carthage. This will be a display showing old photos of industries involved in the
fire, maps showing the extent of the fire, copies of primary and secondary source information pertaining to
the fire, and a guide to a walking tour that will show residents sites that had been affected by the fire. The
walking tour will be with Champion Town Clerk Christina Vargulick. The display will be available from 9:00
a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, throughout the entire month of October 2007. For more information,
contact Lynn Thornton at 315-493-3213.
The Jefferson County Historical Society, 228 Washington Street, Watertown, will sponsor "Why Archives
Matter." The answer is both fascinating and fun to learn. This exhibit will be held Tuesday - Friday: 10:00
a.m. - 5:00 p.m., and Saturday: 12:00-5:00 p.m., October 1 - November 25, 2007. For more information, contact
Christine Lamendola at 315-782-3491.
Jefferson Community College’s Melvil Dewey Library, Watertown, will showcase a display in the lobby outside
of the library. The focus of the display will be to illustrate the materials and methods used to preserve
archival materials, and the education needed to pursue a career in archival work. The event will be held
October 8-12, 2007. For more information, contact Jackie Young at 315-786-2413.
Lewis County
The Town of Croghan Municipal Offices, 9882 St. Rt. 126, Beaver Falls, will sponsor the "Pictorial History
of the Town of Croghan." During this open house there will be and overview of what a historian does and what
can be found in the historian’s office. There will be an exhibit of pictures, along with a computer slide
show. The event will be held from 1:00-6:00 p.m. on October 26, 2007, and from 1:00-4:00 p.m. on October 27,
2007. For more information, contact Jack and Mary Sweeney at 315-346-6201.
Oswego County
The Friends of History in Fulton, N.Y., Inc., John Wells Pratt House Museum, 177 South First Street,
Fulton, will sponsor "City with a Future." This exhibit will feature the recently released documentary film,
"City with a Future" about the City of Fulton and the closing of the Nestle' chocolate factory in 2003.
Photographs and documents from the film will be displayed, as well as materials from a recently acquired
Nestle' collection being processed throughout the coming year with support from a Documentary Heritage Program
grant. The event will be held from 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. on October 1-31, 2007. For more information, contact
Julie R. Yankowsky at 315-598-4616.
St. Lawrence County
The Norfolk Historical Museum, Main Street, Norfolk, will sponsor "Wedded Bliss." This exhibit consists of
a collection of early 1900s wedding dresses/accessories, including photos, marriage invitations, certificates,
and newspaper wedding announcements. The event will be held Tuesday & Thursday, 12:00-5:00 p.m. or by
appointment (museum hours) from October 1 - December 15, 2007. For more information, contact Leon Burnap at
315-384-4575, or Ann Todd at 384-3120.
The Town of DeKalb Historical Association and Town Historian’s Office, 696 East DeKalb Road, DeKalb
Juntion, will sponsor "Finding Your Roots in DeKalb." During this open house there will be individually guided
tours of the town archives with personal assistance for attendees’ searches. There will be extended evening
hours. The event will be held from 12:30-4:00 p.m. and 7:00-9:00 p.m. on October 3, 10, 17, 24 & 31, 2007. For
more information, contact Bryan Thompson at 315-347-1900 (office) or 347-2178 (home).
SUNY Potsdam College Archives and Special Collections, Pierrepont Avenue, Potsdam, will sponsor "The Mary
E. English Commons: The Process of Documenting a College's History in an Exhibit." This presentation will tell
the story from the viewpoint of several members of the exhibit's core committee, telling the story behind the
newly dedicated Mary E. English Commons. The celebration will take place in the Mary E. English Commons,
located on the first floor of Satterlee Hall. The presentation portion of the event is expected to last
approximately a half hour, followed by the chance to view the permanent exhibit on SUNY Potsdam's history,
view photographs taken throughout the process of creating the exhibit, and ask questions about the Commons or
the college's history. Refreshments will be served. How many people does it take to put in the lightbulbs in
an exhibit? Yes, details involved are large and small, and researching history is many times far more complex
than it appears. The event will be held at 3:00 p.m. on October 12, 2007. For more information, contact
College Archivist Jane Subramanian at 315-267-3326.
The St. Lawrence County Historical Association, 3 East Main Street, Canton, will sponsor two programs.
"Caring for Your Family’s History" will be presented on October 18, 2007. Documentary Heritage Program
Consultant and retired SUNY Plattsburgh Archivist Joe Swinyer will speak on the care and handling of your
family’s photographs, documents and heirlooms. On October 25, 2007 author Bonny Barry Sanders will speak about
her book, Kiss Me Good-bye. Though it is historical fiction, the book follows the actual history of the 60th
Regiment of Civil War soldiers in St. Lawrence County, and features Sanders's real-life ancestor, James
McCormick of Potsdam. Copies of the book will be available for sale. Cookies and beverages will be provided
for these Brown Bag Lunch programs. Both events will begin at 12:00 p.m. For more information, contact Trent
Trulock or Betsy Baker at 315-386-8133.
The Potsdam Public Museum, Civic Center, corner of Park and Elm streets, Potsdam, will sponsor "Morbid
Curiosity." This will be an exhibition of oddities from the archives that includes a casket basket c.1880,
Victorian mourning fashion, photographs of funerals, obituaries, medical artifacts, and unusual objects. The
event will be held from 6:00-8:00 p.m. on October 25, 2007. For more information, contact Mimi Van Deusen at
315-265-6910.
For a complete listing of Archives Month activities, check out the NYS Archives website at
www.archives.nysed.gov