Little Falls Canal Days Celebration
Off-site programs and activities for Canal Days of the Little Falls Historical Society Museum
November 26 Little Falls Historical Society Meeting
The Little Falls Historical Society’s Tuesday, November 26, 7:00 pm meeting at the WCA will include a short business meeting, organization elections, and a digitized slide presentation on historic images of Little Falls.
The Historical Society’s nominating committee has submitted a slate of candidates for all four officer positions and for the two board seats with expiring terms. Society members can also nominate additional candidates from the floor prior to elections.
Following the completion of elections, Historical Society member Mike Potter will display and narrate a number of historic pictures from a bygone era in Little Falls.
Light refreshments will follow Potter’s presentation. All Historical Society meetings and presentations are free and open to the public.
December 18: Annual Holiday Luncheon
The Little Falls Historical Society Museum
will hold its annual
Holiday Luncheon
at the Travelodge
Wednesday, December 18 at 12 noon.
This is always a great time to enjoy time together during the holiday season.
Please call Jeff Gressler at (315) 823-2799 for tickets.
October 22: HISTORICAL SOCIETY MEETING AT WCA
Longtime Little Falls resident Maynard Blask will be the guest presenter at the Tuesday, October 22, meeting of the Little Falls Historical Society. The 7:00 PM meeting is free and open to the public.
Blask’s presentation will focus on the 1970’s era renovation of Veterans Memorial Park and the Little Falls Mets. Maynard wants his presentation to be interactive in nature and questions and audience involvement will be welcomed. Additionally, St. Johnsville resident Bob Failing’s extensive collection of New York Mets memorabilia will be on display and available for viewing.
Blask’s presentation will be preceded by a short business meeting of the Historical Society. Light refreshments will be served afterwards.
OCTOBER 17 CLOSING RECEPTION AT MUSEUM
The Little Falls Historical Society will hold a 2019 season-ending reception at their Old Bank Museum from 5:00 – 7:00 PM as part of Third Thursday activities on October 17. The event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.
Bus tour to Boston fundraiser • Downton Abbey: The Exhibition
A fundraiser for the Little Falls Historical Society Wednesday, September 25, 2019
$120.00 per person
Reservation on or before September 11, 2019
Make Checks Payable: Little Falls Historical Society Mail payment to: 319 S. Ann St., Little Falls, NY 13365
EXPERIENCE THE HISTORY • THE FASHION • THE HOUSE
Arrangements by Tours By Design
Based on the beloved television show, Downton Abbey: The Exhibition is an interactive experience which transports you to post-Edwardian England, where the characters and the iconic house come to life. You’ll be immersed in the fascinating social history, culture, and some of the most memorable moments from the show’s six-season run.
Tour includes deluxe motorcoach transportation, admission to the Downton Abbey Exhibition, and lunch on own at Quincy Market/Faneuil Hall. Contact Barb Mielcarski for reservations 315-866-0481
MAY 28 RECEPTION TO HONOR OUTSTANDING LITTLE FALLS ATHLETES
MUSEUM OPENING RECEPTION RECOGNIZES OUTSTANDING ATHLETES
The general public is cordially invited to attend the Little Falls Historical Society’s 2019 opening reception at their 319 South Ann Street Old Bank Museum on Tuesday May 28 beginning at 7:00 PM.
The museum opens for the season on Wednesday May 29 and will be open on Tuesdays thru Fridays from 1:00 – 4:00 PM and on Saturdays from 9:00 AM – noon.
Those Little Falls athletes and teams that both won and competed in New York State level competition are part of a new 2019 museum exhibit on “Little Falls Athletics.” The exhibit also includes archival photographs of St. Mary’s Academy teams and various town and independent athletic teams from the 1890’s through the 1950’s.
Five championship banners have been won by Little Falls athletes and teams. This honored list includes the Wilbur Crisp coached 1929-30 boys basketball team all class championship, the Ted Schoff coached 1982 class C boys baseball team championship, Tess Malone’s 1997 class C-D 200 meter championship, Bret Wehrum’s and Florian Andreas’ 2000 all class tennis doubles championship and Brian Mosher’s class C-D 2001 200 and 400 meter championships.
A number of other Little Falls athletes and teams have competed in New York State level competition, the most recent being the 2018 girls soccer team which lost in the final four championship game.
These athletes and their families will be the special guests at the museum opening reception.
Other new exhibits for 2019 include “Little Falls During Prohibition,” “Camp Jolly” and “Rockton.”
The 2018 museum exhibits honoring the 133 Little Falls men who served in the Vietnam War and on pre-urban renewal Little Falls remain on display. The museum also contains a number of other permanent exhibits.
Light refreshments will be served at the opening reception.
PATRIOTS DAY PROGRAM MAY 18 AT EMMANUEL EPISCOPAL CHURCH
In cooperation with the board of directors of Emmanuel Episcopal Church, the Little Falls Historical Society will host a 2019 Patriots Day program at the church on Saturday May 18 beginning at 11:00 AM.
The church is located on Albany Street in Little Falls. The event is free and open to the public. 2019 marks the tenth Patriots Day observance that the Historical Society has hosted.
The one hour program will be highlighted by a series of short oral presentations by different speakers from both Emmanuel Episcopal Church and Historical Society members related to local history during the Revolutionary War and after. Topics will include “The Little Falls Grist Mill Attack,”
“From Herkimer to Franklin,” and “The Patriots Buried in Yellow Church Cemetery.”
The Astenrogen Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution will place a commemorative wreath following the speaking portion of the program. Dr. Oscar Stivala and Robert Schmelcher will provide musical accompaniment as part of the event.
The local Historical Society has been hosting Patriots Day observances since 2009 at significant local historic sites; past events have been held at Yellow Church Cemetery, Herkimer Home, Fort Herkimer Church, Indian Castle Church, Snell’s Bush Church, the former Masonic Temple, Herkimer Reformed Church, Historic Trinity in Fairfield and in 2018 at Paines Hollow Church. Their goal is to raise awareness of both the unique role that our ancestors played in our nation’s quest for independence and the many well preserved historic buildings in our area.
April 23, 2019 Little Falls Historical Society Presentation
At 7:00 PM on Tuesday April 23, Little Falls Historical Society member Byron Roff will make a presentation on the role of DNA evidence in conducting family genealogical research.
Roff’s presentation will take place at the WCA, located at 534 Garden St. and is free and open to the public.
Roff has extensive experience in this field, having conducted genealogical work and made similar presentations and lectures across central New York and in the Hudson Valley. His presentation at the WCA will focus on his own experience of using Ancestry DNA and on the relative advantages and disadvantages of both DNA and paper-based genealogical research.
The evening’s presentation will be preceded by a short Historical Society business meeting andrefreshments will be served afterwards.
March 26 Historical Society Presentation
The first meeting and presentation of the Little Falls Historical Society for the 2019 season will take place on Tuesday March 26 at 7:00 PM at the WCA located at 534 Garden Street. The presenter is Historical Society member Mike Potter who will display and provide narration for old photos of Little Falls streets and various modes of transportation from a bygone era.
Mike and Gail Potter have been hard at work for the past few years digitizing the Historical Society’s large collection of old picture slides. Many of these photos have not been displayed publicly for many years. Mike’s presentation will use many of these newly digitized photos.
This presentation will be preceded by a short Historical Society business meeting. Light refreshments will follow the presentation. All Historical Society meetings and presentations are free and open to the public.