Seward: Lincoln's Indispensable Man

Mark Your Calendar!
Walter Stahr, author of a new biography of William H. Seward entitled Seward: Lincoln's Indispensable Man, will give a talk and sign his book on October 14 in Florida, NY.

www.sewardhomestead.org

26th Annual Highlands Archaeological and Historical Conference

26TH ANNUAL

HIGHLANDS ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL CONFERENCE

PRESENTED BY

• INC. ORANGE COUNTY CHAPTER, NYSAA
• ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF NEW JERSEY
• NORTH JERSEY HIGHLANDS HISTORICAL SOCIETY
• FRIENDS OF STERLING FOREST

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2012

LAUTENBERG VISITORS CENTER, STERLING FOREST STATE PARK

115 OLD FORGE ROAD, TUXEDO, NY

MORNING HIKE: 9:30 AM TO 11:30 AM at SHEPHERD LAKE SECTION OF RINGWOOD STATE PARK, NJ.  Exploring the ruins of Windcap at Hilltop Farm.  Meet at 9:30 AM in the SHEPHERD LAKE parking lot, assembling near the foot of Mansion Road at the Chapel of St. Luke the Physician.  We will hike up Mansion Road to the ruins of Windcap and on our return look at ruins of various related buildings and the incursion of the Tennessee Gas pipeline, built in the mid 20^th century and now proposed for expansion.  Good Hiking shoes required.  Guided hike led by Nancy L. Gibbs, historian, NJHHS.

AFTERNOON PROGRAM: 1:00 TO 4:00pm at Sterling Forest State Park, Lautenberg Visitors Center, Lower Level Carol Siri Johnson, Ph. D., NJHHS, presiding

1:00 PM-1:25 PM: “An Analysis of Pigments from Wall Paintings in Dutchess Quarry Cave Number One.”  Kevin Olsen, Montclair State University, Eric Dratch and Edward J. Lenik, Inc. Orange Co. Chapter, NYSAA.

1:25 PM-1:50 PM “A Cluster of Stone Tools on the Lower Hudson.” John Phillips, Inc. L. A. Brennan Lower Hudson Chapter, NYSAA

1:50 PM-2:15 PM “Summer Indians: Native American Inspired Activities in U.S. Children's Camps.” Susan Scher, LCSW

2:15 PM-2:30 PM COFFEE BREAK

2:30 PM-2:55 PM “Iona Island: Native Americans, Dutch, Viticulture, Amusement Area, U.S. Navy Munitions Depot.” Donald (Doc) Bayne, President, F.S.F.

2:55 PM-3:20 PM “Nazis in the Highlands.”  Tom Riley, Retired Bloomingdale, NJ educator, Adjunct Professor, Sussex County College

3:20 PM-3:45 PM “Industrial Scenes Along the Hudson.” Charles G. Berkemeyer, NJHHS

1:00 PM-4:00 PM BOOK ROOM

Program Chair: Edward J. Lenik, R.P.A., Inc. O.C.C., NYSAA, ASNJ & NJHHS

Meeting Facilities courtesy of Sterling Forest State Park, Jeff Hutchinson, Park Manager.

Chapter member: Ed Lenik's RAMAPOUGH MOUNTAIN INDIANS takes First Prize!

Ed Lenik's  RAMAPOUGH MOUNTAIN INDIANS takes First Prize 

Ringwood, NJ.  The North Jersey Highlands Historical Society (NJHHS), a Ringwood Manor State Park Friends group, is pleased to announce that RAMAPOUGH MOUNTAIN INDIANS: PEOPLE, PLACES AND CULTURAL TRADITIONS, written by archaeologist Edward J. Lenik, was awarded First Prize in the book category of the 2011 Kevin M. Hale Annual Publications Awards from the League of Historical Societies of New Jersey. The criteria for the award are : 

• Significance of research
• Time and effort that went into work
• Quality of sources
• How much does this add to our knowledge of the subject?
• Clarity of presentation
• Quality of illustrations
• Editing

RAMAPOUGH MOUNTAIN INDIANS: PEOPLE, PLACES AND CULTURAL TRADITIONS, released in October 2011, is  a companion volume to INDIANS IN THE RAMAPOS: SURVIVAL, PERSISTENCE AND PRESENCE, written by Mr. Lenik and published in 1999 by NJHHS.  The new book was edited and designed by Nancy L. Gibbs, NJHHS secretary.  In this volume, Lenik draws on history and archaeology to discuss people, places legends, stories and objects that testify “We are Still Here.”

Edward J. Lenik is a regional archaeologist whose research interest firmly is placed on the human history of the northeastern United States and Atlantic Canada.  He is a past president of the Archaeological Society of New Jersey.  He is the author of many books including a series on Indian Rock Art in the northeast and the well-known IRON MINE TRAILS from the NY/NJ Trails Conference.

The North Jersey Highlands Historical Society, found in 1954, is dedicated to collecting and communicating the history of the North Jersey Highlands region from prehistoric Native America to the present.  

The League of Historical Societies of New Jersey, founded in 1966, is composed of over two hundred twenty organizations. Most of the organizations in the league are local historical societies, but it also includes statewide societies and related institutions, county agencies, museums, libraries and archival groups, historic preservation agencies, and a variety of other organizations.

We will not be digging this Sunday 9/2.

Hi everyone, just a quick reminder that we will not be digging this Sunday 9/2. Hope to see you out there next week! Thanks and enjoy the long weekend! -Steph

Gary Keeton presents a program on the various archaeological sites…

Friday, September 21, 2012. The Chapter meeting starts at 7:30 pm.

All are welcome - program is free, following the meeting - no charge to the public.

Mulbury House Senior Center

62-70 West Main Street in Middletown, NY 10940

Gary Keeton

presents a program on the various archaeological sites within six miles of the Great Yellow Springs and Glen Helen, Ohio. Including the grave of Techumseh, iconic folk hero in American, Indian and Canadian history. The site of the wigwams of Techumseh's mother and father and his birth place, the capital city of the Shawnee Nation. And the site of a Kentuckian's leap to freedom across a gorge while being pursued by Indians, the Willaimson's Mound, rock shelters and the mound in Glen Helen, where Simon Kenton survived running a fierce Indian gauntlet in 1778.

Gary Keeton has been recognized for his work as an interpretative naturalist by the Congress of the United States, by the State of New York Assembly, by Sullivan County, New York, by the Upper Delaware River Heritage Commission and by the Orange County Land Trust.

He has served as an interpretative guide for our public education tours of the Paleolithic environment at Dutchess Quarry and has also organized and led tours of other significant archaeological sites.

Gary’s knowledge of extinct and extant environments have made him in demand as a lecturer to public school groups as well as historical societies.

By serving as liaison between the New York State Museum and the landowner, Gary was instrumental in the successful in 2009 the recovery of the Tuckamoose mastodon tusks by the museum. The Tuckamoose mastodon tusks are the second largest tusks and the oldest, at 14,000 years old, found in New York State!

Florist site dig cancelled for Sunday August 11th!

Hello everyone,

Just wanted to let you all know that we will not be digging this Sunday, 8/11 as I will be out of town for the weekend. I am still hoping to have a day or two that will allow us to dig on a Saturday as opposed to Sunday for those of you who cannot make it out on Sundays. When I am able to work this out with the property owner I will let everyone know. See you in the field next week!

Stephanie

Blacksmithing Classes offered at the Hasbrouck Carriage House, Warwick, NY!

The following is the Warwick Historical Society's blacksmithing course offering for August 11 & 12. If you are interested please contact me as instructed below. Take a look at: historicwarwickny.blogspot.com for more details. Scroll through the site as there is a lot of content related to blacksmithing. I look forward to seeing you at the anvil at the Hasbrouck Carriage House, 105 Main St., Warwick, NY. 

Sincerely, 

Bob 

Robert Schmick, Ph.D.
Executive Director
The Historical Society
Town of Warwick
A.W. Buckbee Center
2 Colonial Avenue
P.O.Box 353
Warwick, New York 10990
845-781-3729

Blacksmithing Classes at the Hasbrouck Carriage House Behind Baird's Tavern on August 11 &12, 2012, additional classes available on August 13 & 14 for an additional $50 each day.

$325, includes use of tools and metal materials

This class will be taught by our returning Maine Blacksmith Adriaan Gerber who will be sharing his trade with Summer History Campers during the preceeding week. As a follow-up to our recent beginning blacksmithing class we are offering this weekend, 16 hour class, 8-hours each day, in the making of edge tools.

Adriaan makes high quality knives, swords, halberds and other edge tools in his Maine smithy and sells them around the world. Now he will be sharing his know-how with you in this class that will result in the completion of a tomahawk ( you can even make a handle for it if you would like to devote the time to it at a shaving horse), a knife, and another project depending on time. A draw knife or slick are two possibilities.

The course can continue on into the next week for those who are free to do so, and there will be an additional fee of $50 for each day beyond the 2-day course.

The class will involve safety, fire building (we use vintage coal burning forges), heating metal, shaping, cutting, and forge welding. We prefer that students have some blacksmithing experience although it is not mandatory. The class is limited to six so there will be personal attention given by Adriaan and his assistant Robert Schmick to each of the students.

Call: 845-781-3729 or 845-986-3236 or email: rpschmick1@aol.com for information and registration. Please act now if you are serious as the class is limited to six.