The 4th Annual Community Reading of Rip Van Winkle.
Get to know the “true” story behind sleepy Rip, his dog Wolf and the mysterious ninepin bowling Dutchmen. Vintage and antique Rip Van Winkle books, films and art will be on display. Rip Van Winkle himself just might make an appearance too–bring your cameras!
*READERS WANTED!* Sign up by e-mailing mthsdirector@mths.org or call 518-589-6657
This event is a collaboration between Mountain Top Arboretum and Mountain Top Historical Society.
Join native plant nursery owner Chris Nilan as we learn the ins and outs of growing native plants from wild-collected seeds. Chris will cover the ethics and benefits of seed collection, how to determine seed ripeness and viability, seed harvesting, processing, and storage, as well as the various methods of achieving germination, from winter sowing to artificial stratification. This will be a hands-on workshop where participants will receive native wildflower seeds from Chris’s seed plots to try growing at home.
Chris Nilan is the owner and grower at Barkaboom Native Plants, a native plant nursery in Margaretville, NY. At Barkaboom, Chris grows over 125 species of perennial plants native to the Catskills, entirely from seed and with a strong focus on local ecotypes. This emphasis on locally adapted seeds means that at certain times of the year, Chris spends more time in forests, swamps, beaver meadows, bogs and floodplains than in the nursery. Prior to his total infatuation with growing native plants, Chris worked for a near-decade on a number of organic vegetable farms in the Hudson Valley, Maine, and Connecticut.
Join us for a fun day, as part of the larger Catskills “Lark in the Park”. Hikes/Walks to several destinations. Please email mthsdirector@mths.org or call 518-589-6657 to register. Group Capacity will be limited.
Hike #1 The Hudson River School artists at Kaaterskill Falls with hike leader Robert Titus.
Much of the early work done by Hudson River School artists was done at Kaaterskill Falls. It is easy to search for and find exactly where they sketched. This hike will visit many of these sites. It is Dr. Titus’s contention that it was the Ice Age processes of erosion that created the scenic beauty that was painted. Dr. Titus and his wife Johanne are preparing a book about this. This hike will be a preview of that book.
Meet at the Laurel House parking lot at 8:30 AM. An easy to moderate hike of about three to four hours. Bring snacks and water.
Hike #2 Kaaterskill Junction with hike leaders Pete Senterman, Paul LaPierre, Gary Dufel, and Mike Kudish.
Explore the area around Kaaterskill Junction on State Route 214. Step back in time to the days when the Kaaterskill and Stoney Clove Railroad came up to the Junction from Phoenicia and then split to the west on the Hunter Branch and headed east on the Tannersville Branch toward the Hotel Kaaterskill. Host Gary Dufel, along with Senterman and LaPierre will also be joined by Mike Kudish, author of Where Did the Tracks Go in the Catskills? to give the story from 4 points of view. A side excursion to the new Hunter Branch Rail Trail pedestrian bridge over a tributary of the Schoharie Creek will be added after returning to our start at the Junction site.
Park on the U-shaped driveway at 4282 route 214 at 9:00 AM. There is a sign planted in the grass marking the Junction. This is a moderate hike about 4 miles long. Bring snacks and water.
Hike #3 Vistas of the Kaaterskill Clove with hike leader Pete Preston.
This is a fast moving, moderately challenging loop hike that features spectacular views from high above Kaaterskill Clove. Follow the up-and-down cliff-top Escarpment Trail passing Layman’s Monument into Kaaterskill Clove to the famous Sunset Rock and Inspiration Point, followed by the not-to-be-missed views over Palenville and the Hudson Valley. Tour the site of the Kaaterskill Hotel and then return to Scutt Rd via South Mt. Pausing throughout the hike along the way when history beckons. In Bob Gildersleeve’s book, Catskill Mountain House Trail Guide, most of his Hike 4 covers this hike.
Meet at the Scutt Rd parking lot 9:00 AM, which is on North Lake Rd, right before the campground entrance. Total estimated time: about four hours. The trail can be muddy in places if the days prior to the hike have been rainy, so think about footwear. No dogs please. Bring snacks and water.
Join us for the 11th Annual Postcard Show at the Ulster & Delaware Train Station on the MTHS campus.
The MTHS will also be selling ephemera from its attic in a special sale. A $3 entry fee will be charged at the door.
Vendors contact John Duda at johnalmathduda@gmail.com
Elaine Warfield will present a slideshow on the Fenwick Lumber Company at the Mountain Top Historical Society’s 1913 Ulster and Delaware Train Station, 5132 Route 23A, Haines Falls, NY.
Elaine’s new book, “The Fenwick Lumber Company. Edgewood: Almost Forgotten 1906-1917″ will be available at the event, before its official September release date.
Elaine has lived on the mountain top for over 40 years and enjoys creating projects pertaining to the rich mountain top history, past and present, in book and photographic formats.
The book can also be purchased from Elaine at 518-965-8601, www.ElaineWarfieldBooks and will be available on Amazon.
Please pre-register for the event with the Mountain Top Historical Society by calling (518)-589-6657, email mthsdirector@mths.org or RSVP at mths.org/events
At the Twilight Park Clubhouse, Twilight historian Joanne Ainsworth and Town of Hunter Historian Dede Terns-Thorpe will present the tragic story of the Twilight Inn fire that occurred on July 14, 1926. Registration required.
Please email mthsdirector@mths.org or call 518-589-6657 to register.
Mountain Top Historical Society Annual Members Meeting and Justine Hommel Memorial Lecture. It is election time, and all members are invited to vote for the Board of Directors at 10am followed by Carl Fowler’s presentation, “200 Years of Beauty: Tourism and the Catskills” at 11 am.
At the historic U & D Train Station, join us to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the construction of the Catskill Mountain House. Carl Fowler will show historic images along with modern day photos of legendary sites such as the Mountain House, and other grand hotels and access routes to those sites by rail, river, and road. Mr. Fowler will also tell the story of the Laurel House Depot sign, and other depot signs of the area. Public is welcome. Registration required. Please email mthsdirector@mths.org or call 518-589-6657.
At the historic U & D Train Station, join us for a fun-filled afternoon for train enthusiasts of all ages. Ron Gabriele will speak about the history of Lionel Model Trains and will demonstrate his working model train. There will be book-signings by local authors, and an exhibit of railroad photos and memorabilia from the MTHS archives. $5 donation suggested for adults. Registration required. Please email mthsdirector@mths.org or call 518-589-6657
The Mountain Top Historical Society of Greene County will tour the Hunter Synagogue, led by local historian and president of the board of directors of the Hunter Synagogue Carol Slutzky-Tenerowicz. Learn the story of this beautiful building, built in the Queen Anne style. The synagogue was constructed between 1909 and 1914 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1999. The Jewish community has a long and rooted history in the Catskill Mountain Top area beginning at the turn of the 20th century. The Mountain Top Historical Society presents this program for Jewish Heritage Month. The tour will begin at 1pm. The Hunter Synagogue is located at 7879 Main Street, Hunter, New York. Please pre-register as there is limited capacity in the building. Please email mthsdirector@mths.org or call 518-589-6657
Diane Galusha, author of Another Day, Another Dollar: The Civilian Conservation Corps in the Catskills, will give an illustrated talk on that subject for the Mountaintop Historical Society via Zoom.
The presentation will provide background on the Depression-era program for unemployed young men and will offer details on the operation and accomplishments of the four principal camps that housed them in the Catskills region: Boiceville, Tannersville, Margaretville and Breakabeen.
The CCC’s aims were to provide jobs to young men and veterans, assist their struggling families and at the same time conduct conservation projects to reverse decades of environmental degradation, improve public lands and develop parks, trails and campgrounds for public enjoyment.
Projects ranged from trail building and tree planting to erosion control and insect eradication. North Lake, Devil’s Tombstone, Woodland Valley and Beaverkill State Campgrounds in the Catskill Park were developed with Corps labor.
Area CCC camps operated from six months to several years between 1933 and 1941.
Diane Galusha is the author of several books of local and regional history and is the president of the Historical Society of the Town of Middletown in Delaware County.
A Women’s History month celebration by Johanna Titus. Era Zistel Posselt was a spunky mid-western gal, who fell in love with the Catskills. She was a long-time librarian of Haines Falls, prolific author, and profound lover of animals. Along with Posselt, Johanna Titus will tell us of the women who were instrumental in carving out what the mountain top community is today. Register to obtain a link to the program. To register email mthsdirector@mths.org or call 518-589-6657.