September 15, 2019
Van Rensselaer Cemetery

​Chris White will give a presentation on the restoration of the Van Rensselaer  cemetery  located between route 9J and Amtrak Boston Railway in East Greenbush.  Chris  White  is a local cemetery conservator and genealogist  who restores local graveyards and on the early German-American immigrants of this area.

October 6, 2019
​Swing Music in the Capital District 

Michael Catoggio and Bill Schilling will share the story of the swing time scene in the greater Albany area.  Learn about the top local bands and the variety of venues in which they played.  It is a colorful and rich look into a lost corner of our local history.  

November 11, 2019
Major General Ellis Wool

Jim Cochran will present a program on Ellis Wood. Although Wood was born in Newburgh, NY, he had very strong ties to Troy.  His military career spanned 51 years and he served in three consecutive wars, The War of 1812, the Mexican War, and the Civil War.  At the time of his forced retirement in 1863, he was the oldest officer to execute active command.  The program will explore his illustrious military career and his connections to Troy. 

January 12, 2020
​Winter Life in Early America

Shelby Mattice, curator of the Bronck Museum in Greene County, will present this program.  The combined difficulties posed to early settlers by lack of adequate heat, light, food, and difficult travel meant winter life could be a threat to both physical survival and psychological wellbeing. Learn how the early settlers survived the monumental task of managing daily life under such unhospitable conditions. 

February 9, 2020
To Serve in a Free Country: Slavery & Freedom in New Netherlands

​Sam Huntington, Interpretive Programs Assistant, Crailo State Historic Site, will explore the origins of slavery in New York’s Hudson River Valley during the settlement of the Dutch colony of New Netherland in the 17th century.  This presentation highlights both the early history of slavery as an institution in New Netherland and also focuses on the many ways the enslaved community tried to maintain their cultural identity and traditions in bondage. 

March 15, 2020
Transcontinental Rail Road​

​Michael Barrett will present the program on the transcontinental rail road.  The 1869 completion of what was then the largest infrastructure project in American history turned the United States into a true continental power and opened the development of our “Wild West.” Many of the personalities who were prime movers in the project had ties to the Capital District, and our local industrial base provided a number of the necessary parts that made the project possible.

April 19, 2020
History of Beer Making in
​Rensselaer County

​Kathryn Sheehan, Rensselaer County & Troy City Historian will present an illustrated talk on the history of beer making and breweries in Rensselaer County. Since the late 18th centuries, breweries have been an integral part to the agriculture and social life of the residents of Rensselaer County. We will look at the breweries from the 19th and 20th centuries, the impact prohibition had on brewing and the resurgence of the craft beer movement in recent years will be discussed.

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