Happy Birthday Putnam County! Celebrate Putnam County’s History June 12th

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CARMEL, NEW YORK, May 10 — Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell and County Historian Sarah Johnson, Ph.D., invite the public to celebrate Putnam County’s 206th birthday on Tuesday, June 12, 2018, at the Historic Courthouse, 44 Gleneida Avenue, Carmel, NY, from         10 – 11:30 am.  During the annual birthday ceremony, the County Historian will debut highlights from the Historian’s Collection and discuss the importance of contributions of records, letters, photographs, and other ephemera from local families, politicians and organizations.

This year the Putnam County Historian’s Office will honor residents and organizations for their outstanding contributions to local history including:

Exemplary Public History in Schools:  Haldane High School History Club

Innovative Interpretation:  Ed Illiano & The Master Gardeners, “Hike Putnam”

Digital History Award:  Putnam History Museum

Preserving Local History: Peter Bruenn – “Putnam County Playhouse”; Dan Birmingham, Heather Reid & Bonnie Groat – Moses Fowler Family Papers 1765-1927

Local History Publication:  Dolores Beal Stephens, “Water for the Troops”

Lifetime Achievement – Local History:  Louise Andres, The Milltown Association

In Memoriam:  Dr. Samuel Ross, Jr., Green Chimneys

Following the ceremony, attendees are invited to join the County Historian and honorees in the lobby of the David D. Bruen County Office Building for the traditional County birthday cake and refreshments.  The public is welcome, no RSVP required. For more information about the event, please contact the Historian’s Office at 845-808-1420 or historian@putnamcountyny.gov

 

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About The Historian’s Office

The Historian’s Office preserves, interprets, and promotes the history of Putnam County as a local government office.  New York’s Town and Village Historians began serving public history since 1919, in part to document World War I Veterans back into civilian life.  The New York State Legislature authorized the appointment of county historians in 1933.  County Historians are appointed by the Putnam County Executive and confirmed by the Putnam County Legislature.  New York State defines the work of County Historians in four broad categories: research and writing, teaching and public presentations, historic preservation, and organization, advocacy and tourism promotion. To support these efforts, the Putnam County Historian’s Office has been collecting historical records, maps, books, photographs, and periodicals since 1953.  In 1992, the Putnam County Archives was established in the Historian’s Office to preserve, arrange, describe, and make accessible the governmental records of Putnam County.  The Archives and Historian’s Collection are used as a resource for people in Putnam County and elsewhere.  Finding aids are available at www.putnamcountyny.com/countyhistorian and are also linked to OCLC’s Archives Grid.  The Historian’s Office is a consortia member of SENYLRC’s Hudson River Valley Heritage digital initiative www.hrvh.org/putnamcounty and can be found on Facebook at Putnam Historian and historic sites on History Pin.

Help Putnam County Secure Veteran Stories with Vet Scan

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Help Putnam County Secure Veteran Stories with Vet Scan – An initiative of the Putnam County Veterans Service Agency, Historian’s Office, and the Southeast Museum

Putnam County Veteran’s and their families are invited to participate in a free digital scanning initiative to secure military memories of the past for future generations.
Local families with military memorabilia are invited to make appointments through the County Historian’s Office to have old letters, documents, photographs and assorted military memorabilia scanned and recorded on a memory device such as a USB or burned to a disk, free of charge.

Qualifying materials include:
▪ Photographs ▪ Slides
▪News clippings ▪ Service Records
▪Commemorative Programs and souvenirs, etc…

Don’t lose your loved one’s story of service, participate in Vet Scan today!
HELP PUTNAM COUNTY SECURE MILITARY STORIES WITH
VET sCAN
An initiative of the Putnam County Veterans Service Agency, Historian’s Office, and the Southeast Museum
Thank you for your service and story.
For more information on Vet Scan, please contact the Putnam County Historian’s Office 845-808-1420
email historian@putnamcountyny.gov

You’re Invited to Celebrate Putnam County Day Friday, June 9, 2017, 10:00 a.m.

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1917-2017 Commemorating the Centennials:

  • The United States entry into World War I…
  • Women’s Suffrage in New York State…
  • Putnam County comes together…

Please join Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell and County Historian Sarah Johnson, Ph.D., to celebrate Putnam County’s 205th birthday and to honor local residents and their outstanding contributions to local history Including:

  • Exemplary Public History: Kelley Howard, former Executive Director, Putnam Valley Historical Society
  • Digital History Award: Southeastern New York Library Resources Council’s Hudson River Valley Heritage
  • Preserving Local History Awards: Brewster Public Library, Brewster Standard Archives, 1869-1982 Mahopac Public Library, The Putnam County Courier, 1849-1930 Alice Curtis Desmond & Hamilton Fish Library’s Livingston-Svirsky Archive
  • Innovative Interpretation and Preservation Award: Scenic Hudson

Putnam County Day

Friday, June 9, 2017, 10:00 am
Historic Courthouse 44 Gleneida Avenue, Carmel, NY

Join us for the county’s traditional birthday cake to be cut and served in the lobby of the David D. Bruen County Office Building following the ceremony. The public is welcome, no RSVP required. For more information on the event, please contact the Historian’s Office at 845-808-1420 or historian@putnamcountyny.gov
Poster Art: “Sunrise or Sunset Own a Liberty Bond” by Eugenie DeLand, 1917
You’re Invited to Celebrate Putnam County Day

PUTNAM VETERANS MUSEUM HOSTS WORLD WAR II VETERAN, 97, FORMER CARMEL RESIDENT Lt. Richard G. Hopkins, USN Ret. and Daughter Donate Treasures of Storied Military Service

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PUTNAM VETERANS MUSEUM HOSTS WORLD WAR II VETERAN, 97, FORMER CARMEL RESIDENT

Lt. Richard G. Hopkins, USN Ret. and Daughter Donate Treasures of Storied Military Service

Carmel, NY, November 1, 2016 — Veterans and volunteers at the Putnam Veterans Museum recently hosted some very special guests.  World War II veteran Lt. Richard G. Hopkins, USN Ret., and his daughter Susan Hopkins came to Veterans Memorial Park in Carmel to present the museum with artifacts from his service and Putnam County’s past.

Hopkins, 97, was born on Oak Street in Brewster, and his family moved to Carmel when he was young. Now residing in Westchester, Lt. Hopkins likes to visit the museum that exhibits ship models he donated in honor of his late brother, T/5 Reed Hopkins, member of the 1257 Combat Engineers Battalion, U.S. Army.  Reed, also a Carmel native, died in France during World War II.

The ship models include the USS Decatur and USS Porter, two vessels on which Lt. Hopkins served during his 28 years of active duty with the U.S. Navy and an additional 2 years of service in the Reserves. The museum also displays a model of the USS Dahlgren, yet another model that Lt. Hopkins can detail from bow to stern.  The USS Decatur and USS Dahlgren models were made in Sweden by a master ship model-maker; the USS Porter was made in Eastham, Mass., by a master ship model-maker.

The Hopkins family has deep roots in Putnam County’s history, so deep that they precede the Revolutionary War.  Lt. Richard Hopkins is the sixth-generation descendent of Lt. Solomon Hopkins of the 6th Dutchess County Regiment with the New York Militia during the Revolutionary War.  Solomon’s wife, Elizabeth Crosby, was the sister of Enoch Crosby, the famed Revolutionary War soldier and spy.

Susan Hopkins was pleased to present a framed drawing of the Enoch Crosby house in Brewster to complement the historical display that commemorates the soldier/spy story.   “A member of the Daughters of the American Revolution Enoch Crosby Chapter gave it to me; and when I first saw the display here, I thought it would be perfect to donate it,” said Susan.

“We are so grateful to Lt. Hopkins for his service and the generosity of his family,” said County Executive MaryEllen Odell. “Adding this beautiful drawing of the Enoch Crosby house to our Veterans Memorial Museum is rare a gift. This historic treasure will be appreciated by many visitors for years to come.”

Putnam County residents and veteran-volunteers were on hand that day to host the Hopkins’. They included Jim McCarthy, Michael Tiren, and Jerry Imbo, all U.S. Army veterans.  A representative from the Putnam County Historian’s Office was on hand to record this very special visit.

“I really enjoyed hearing Richard’s fascinating account of being part of the rescue of the USS Kearney (DD-432) off Iceland after it was torpedoed by U-boats,” said Jim McCarthy, “and the stories of his incredible world-wide adventures spanning the China Sea, Casablanca and Barcelona – when as an engineer he actually met and shook hands with Generalissimo Franco while onboard the USS Coral Sea.”

Not all of Lt. Hopkins years were spent at war on the high seas. There was a time when he was stationed at the Brooklyn Army Terminal, and for two years he was in charge of the heartrending job of bringing home the war dead.  After 32 years in the service through wars and conflicts, Lt. Hopkins found it was time for a change.  “I was up for Lieutenant Commander and they said I had to do three years more and I said, ‘You can have it!’, said Hopkins with a hearty laugh. “I got a chance to work for IBM up in Fishkill so I took it.”

On this sunny fall day, Lt. Hopkins donated his display case of service medals, ribbons and awards which include two World War II campaign medals, the World War II Victory medal, combat action ribbons and an impressive number of good conduct medals.  The case will be prominently exhibited along with his service portrait, his brother’s portrait and the beloved ship models – a special and collective display of sacrifice.

Before leaving the museum, Lt. Hopkins stopped to admire another special exhibit.

“That’s the New York!” he exclaimed, pointing to the ship model of the USS New York LPD-21. This post-9-11 United States Navy warship’s bow was forged from the steel of the World Trade Center and its official motto is “Strength forged through sacrifice. Never Forget.”

Lt. Hopkins smiled and commended the veteran volunteers saying, “That’s good that you got that model!”

The Putnam County Veteran Memorial Park is located at 201 Gipsy Trail Road in Carmel. The Putnam Veterans’ Museum is open on Wednesdays from 10 am – 1 pm and is administered by the Putnam County Veterans Service Agency.

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Putnam County Makes History Accessible Online Treasures of Putnam’s past to be published online with Hudson River Valley Heritage

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Putnam County Makes History Accessible Online

Treasures of Putnam’s past to be published online with Hudson River Valley Heritage

April 13, 2016, CARMEL, NY – Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell and County Historian Sarah Johnson, Ph.D., have announced the County’s participation in the New York State regional scanning initiative called Hudson River Valley Heritage or HRVH (http://www.hrvh.org), sponsored by the Southeastern New York Library Resources Council (SENYLRC) to bring images and records that document Putnam County’s history online and make them easily accessible and free to the public at www.hrvh.org/putnamcountyny.

“This collaboration is an exciting step in developing a digital library that celebrates the County’s commercial, agricultural, recreational and cultural history,” says Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell, “It is a virtual way to open the doors of the County Archives and share some unique treasures of Putnam’s past.”

Johnson says that the increased demand for digital resources underscored the need for the Historian’s Office to digitize, “We are contributing scans and metadata of our amazing heritage by making primary source material more accessible online to all researchers–from genealogists to educators and students.”

Initial contributions of local business and architecture images were made to the site by volunteers of the Patterson Historical Society and its president Ron Taylor. Recent additions from the Historian’s Office and Archives include images of the factory workers of the Borden Condensed Milk factory in Brewster, gorgeous tourist photos from the late 1800s of Lake Mahopac hotels, pictures of the “Old Put” New York railroad line, snapshots of the Oscawana Lake community in Putnam Valley and images from the 1895 Aqueduct  Commission’s Construction of Croton Watershed reservoirs, channels and dams.

The County’s collection will continue to grow with unique exhibits showcasing content from the Archives that will include naturalization records from the 1800s, World War I commemorative articles, and samples of the extensive map collection that help define present-day land boundaries, just to name a few.

In 2016, the HRVH membership will expand to the Consortia level and the Historian’s Office will work with local historical societies and museums throughout the County. “Our goal is to work our way around the county, helping all cultural organizations to work on their collections and management procedures so they are ready to digitize and post their incredible collections of documents, photographs, and artifacts.”

The Kent Historical Society will help debut Putnam County’s HRVH digital initiative when they host County Historian, Sarah Johnson, Ph.D., on Monday, April 25th, at 7 pm at Town Hall, 25 Sybil’s Crossing, Kent Lakes, NY, where she will deliver a presentation on the importance of digitizing historical collections and encourage volunteers and the public to contribute.  “I want to encourage residents to go through their own personal archives in attics and basements that pertain to Putnam’s history and see what they can contribute to this important project,” says Johnson. “You’d be amazed by what people dig up and can add to the story and legacy of Putnam County.”

Johnson will also talk at the Patterson Historical Society’s meeting on Wednesday, May 18th from 7-9 pm at Patterson Library, 1167 Route 311, Patterson, NY 12563 on the topic “Exploring Local History: How to Research & Be a Part of Recording History.”

SENYLRC is a member of the Empire State Library Network whose mission is to bring together open access digital collections from libraries, museums and archives from all over the state. They serve as a gateway to hundreds of distinct digital collections that celebrate the Hudson Valley and reflect New York State’s long history.

Many Hudson Valley institutions have joined in this effort, though to date; Putnam County has not had the representation it richly deserves.

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For more information, contact the Historian’s Office at 845-808-1420 or email sarah.johnson@putnamcountyny.gov

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