Jefferson Historical Society to host a Celebration of Local History History Day on Saturday, June 8, from 10 4

JEFFERSON - Celebrating local history with displays from a dozen local historical societies and museums will be the order of the day, as Judd Hall opens its doors to anyone interested in learning more about the past of this area.  As we approach the 250th anniversary of our country’s beginnings, these groups will present the products of their research into the lives, customs, activities and influence of those who created the towns and landscapes that we know today.  Present will be representatives from Jefferson, Gilboa, Esperance, Sharon, Middleburgh, Harpersfield, Stamford, Carlisle, Schoharie County, the Schoharie County Colonial Heritage Association, and the Charlotteville Schoolhouse.  A representative from the Iroquois Museum will share information about the local indigenous people whose presence predated the colonial European peoples and the formation of the local towns.

Each group will have a table and displays set up in Judd Hall from 10 to 2 pm.  Also on the agenda is a walking tour at 11, led by Kevin Berner describing the evolution of the businesses in the buildings on Main Street that date back to the 19th century.  The Nicholas J. Juried Museum of Jefferson History on the second floor of Judd Hall will be open, featuring many new items and displays.  (A lift is available for easy access.)  The Fuller District One-Room Schoolhouse, which was first in use in the 1830’s, is located at 695 North Harpersfield Road, and will be open from 10am-2pm with a docent on hand to interpret the site.  

At 2:15, Keynote Speaker Dr. Charles Ver Straeten, Curator of Sedimentary Rocks at the New York State Museum, will talk about the much, much older history of this area -- the Fossil Forests of Gilboa and Cairo, talking about the rocks and fossils of the Catskills found here from long before the dinosaurs.  In 2009, scientists from the New York State Museum, including Dr. Ver Straeten, discovered what has turned out to be the oldest known forest site in the world.  The Cairo Fossil Forest, older than its sister in Gilboa, provides new views of these forests – root impressions of large trees, showing where each tree stood about 385 million years ago. 

Judd Hall is located at 163 Main St., Jefferson, NY, and will be open from 10 – 2.  Dr. Ver Straeten’s talk will be across the street from there at the Jefferson Methodist Church at 2:15. The Fuller District One-room Schoolhouse will be open from 10 - 2, and is located at 695 N. Harpersfield Rd. (an extension of Main St.) along with the adjacent Nature Trail and picnic area.  Breakfast is available until 1 pm at The Breakfast Club on Main St. and at Buck Hill Farm, 185 Fuller Rd. Dining is available at the Heartbreak Hotel on Main St. from noon to 11 pm; and Two Scoops Ice Cream shop on the Town Green will be open from 12 – 9 pm.

For more information call Kevin Berner:

518 294-7196 

historicalsocietyjefferson@gmail.com

https://www.facebook.com/juddhall163