2026 Speaker Programs
The years surrounding the 250th are not simply commemorative; they are about connecting people to history through programs that are meaningful, educational, and rooted in place. While America's founders may have declared its independence this July 250 years ago, it was the struggles across a revolutionary period, including an eight-year American war for Independence, that proved liberty protected by a new form of self-government was possible.
Much of that struggle played out among the people and across the places of our region. This spring, Saratoga 250 will feature public programming and content that brings Saratoga Revolutionary Experiences to life, highlighting the individuals whose resolve forged a nation and the landscapes that shaped it.
Mark your calendars for these upcoming opportunities to make America's 250th a Saratoga Revolutionary Experience!
The session will begin with a brief tour of Irving Tissue plant, manufacturer of Scotties facial tissues, at 1 Eddy Street in Fort Edward. Following the tour, members will walk to the nearby Historical Society building at 167 Broadway for discussion of early papermaking. The meeting is on second floor of the society building. Membership in the county historical society is not required. The topic is papermaking in Washington County and surrounding area. Focus is on Papermaking, The History and Technique of an Ancient Craft by Dard Hunter, published 1943. The fate of various paper mills in Washington and Warren Counties will be discussed.
Future sessions of the club will feature topics related to the larger Adirondack area as well as works by local authors. Upcoming discussions include: Duncan Campbell at Fort Ticonderoga (gravestone in Fort Edward); Floyd Bennett's flight over the North Pole (meeting at airport); and Harriet Bentley, cartographer and artist. Contact Connie Harris Farrington at conniehfarrington@outlook.com for further information.
Dear HPS Members & Friends,
The Hebron Preservation Society is very excited to announce its major fundraising event on Saturday, September 12th. The Barns of Hebron Tour & Dance will be a day like no other and we hope you will be a part of it!
Agriculture has been a major factor in the town's development since its founding in 1786. Two hundred and forty years later, farming remains an economic driver. Although there are fewer working farms today, what has survived are the many historic barns and outbuildings dotted around Hebron.
The day will kick off at 1:00 pm with a self-guided tour of barns in and around Hebron. The tour aims to reconnect our farming history to the present day through the buildings that sheltered animals and a way of life. The tour will also include newer barns to show how barn construction has changed in response to economic and environmental conditions.
At 5:30 pm, ticket holders will begin picking up their pre-ordered barbeque chicken dinners, cooked to perfection by the Hebron Volunteer Fire Company, from the Hebron Highway Department grounds at 660 Chamberlin Mills Road for eat-in or take home.
Then at 7:00 pm the party starts with a dance in the new Hebron Highway Barn. Local band BurnsMoore Bridge will provide the entertainment. It's been many years, decades even, since Hebron had a townwide dance and we're very excited to revive it.
When you buy tickets for one, two or all of the activities, you will be supporting our mission to preserve what the community values and enhance the quality of life in Hebron. Hebron Preservation Society members receive a 15% discount on their total ticket order. Use discount code HPSMember15.
You can order your tickets using the attached order form below, or at https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/the-barns-of-hebron-tour-and-dance
We look forward to welcoming you! Hebron Preservation Society
Download Order Form
After researching various collections and libraries, including the New York State Historical Society in Cooperstown, the New York State Library and Archives in Albany, the Folklore Archive of the Library of Congress in Washington, and the park library and archive at Saratoga NHP, the trio put together a program that they performed at the park, and surrounding schools and venues in celebration of the Bicentennial of the American Revolution in 1976.
Utilizing period music is a unique and valuable form of historic interpretation, as it is usually primary source documents presented in an entertaining format. Everyone from kids to grandparents enjoy music and even those who say they don't care for history get an enjoyable lesson. The three continued this musical program for another 14 years; and Tim included the use of music in his field interpretation as a USNPS Ranger/Historian at Saratoga, Fort Stanwix, and later, when he served as Chief of Interpretation at Vicksburg NMP.
So now, 50 years later, he is still singing these songs and ballads from 1777, and playing period tunes on the same period instruments he used during the Bicentennial.
Tim Kavanaugh is a former Social Studies teacher, National Park Service Supervisory Park Ranger and Historian, and history buff. He is a member of the Washington County Historical Society, Cambridge Historical Society, and the Washington County 250th Committee. He and his wife, Sandi, live in Cambridge.
Please join us for a rollicking evening of music on September 29th!! The event is free and open to the public. All ages are welcome to come and enjoy the music and learn about the Revolutionary War. Donations are gladly accepted. If you have any questions, please contact the Washington County Historical Society at 518-747-9108 Tuesday and Wednesday from 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Rural areas are particularly hard hit, as our economy favors ever larger enterprises that draw young people to cities. Farming as a way of life has become increasingly difficult. And yet, Bill argues, people who live in rural areas have an advantage in cultivating the skillful habits that will enable us to flourish now. This talk will summarize for a general audience the ways that rural traditions make it easier to strengthen resilience skills. As an illustration, he will describe some of the practices he learned from farmers and others in Hebron as he built a cabin on his grandparent's sheep farm, Rampastures, in the 1970's. The pictures accompanying this story provide a window into the tremendous landscape change his family has witnessed over the last 75 years.
Bill taught ethics and environmental studies at Green Mountain College from 1996 to 2019. He served as Dean and Provost at the college for 15 of those years. Throughout that time, he maintained the family farm with a flock of sheep and large vegetable gardens. Bill has a Ph.D. in Philosophy from Brown University, a long list of publications, and a record of service at regional and national scales. He served as chair of the Board of Directors for the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. He is now president of the Hebron Preservation Society. This talk is adapted from his recent book Flourishing in the Age of Climate Change (Cornell University Press, 2024).
The program is free and open to the public. Donations will be gladly accepted. Please join us for this interesting and informative program.
