Historical Gardens Lecture
View the Zadock Pratt Museum Garden restoration in progress!
What better way to kick off the summer than to enjoy a short lecture on the regions’ historical gardens, museum and grounds tour? Look and learn with our regional Master Gardeners from Cornell Cooperative Extension as we dive into the world of garden design, flowers, herbs and medicinal plants used in the 1800s. This presentation will start in the museum and will end with a look at the historical plantings on the property. All attendees will receive a map to plan their own visits to other historical gardens in and around Greene County along with a seed packet to take home. Light refreshments will be served.
Leather and Plastics Opening Reception
Join us for the opening reception! The Pratt Museum is using leather products from its archives to look at the ubiquity of leather goods and their production at the time of Pratt. Five contemporary artists – Em Rooney, Hugo Montoya, Amanda Pohan, Linnea Gad, and Catherine Telford-Keogh – will be responding to objects owned by Zadock Pratt and tradesmen of his time, housed in the museum, asking us to make the connection between past industrialization and the present moment of global commerce.
Last Look Reception: Grandma's Quilts
Let’s Celebrate Grandma’s Quilts: One last look before they are gone!
Join Greene County quilter and Zadock Pratt Museum board member Carol Stevens as we delve into the history of quilting, quilt design, with a special look at past stories of the quilts on display.
Light refreshments will be served.
The Hidden History, Hidden Labor Lecture
Examining the Power of Community Archives
Lecture given by: Melanie Meents, Senior Time-based Media Conservator, Harvard University Library’s Preservation Services
Learn how history is preserved!
Renowned archivist Melanie Meents, will be traveling from her home-base in Cambridge, Mass., to guide the Zadock Pratt Museum archivist team in preserving the town’s one-of-kind documents for future generations to enjoy and learn from. This fascinating process will be brought alive for participants to learn how historical materials are saved from “Father Time.”
Presentation of the NBT Bank Grant to Zadock Pratt Museum
The museum has been chosen to receive a grant specifically slated for the preservation of community archives. Documents dating back to the early 1800s will be carefully archived for access by current and future generations. NBT Bank has provided funds to begin this complicated process, along with other donors to be announced at a later date. The preservation process will start this summer, and a talk will be given by nationally recognized archivist Melanie Meents, Harvard University, on July 12.
The date has been tentatively set for August 2. Please check back for updates.
Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
Celebrate the opening of the Zadock Pratt Museum for the season while enjoying the fully restored second floor. Over a decade in the making, the newly restored second floor is open for viewing. Come see the town’s founding father’s private residence decorated to depict how it may have been used during the 1800s. New antiquities are on display! Come take a step back in time. The fun doesn’t stop there, running concurrently is Grandma’s Quilts Exhibition.
The date has been tentatively set for August 2. Please check back for updates.
The Murder of Sally Hamilton Lecture
Greene County Historian Jonathan Palmer will thrill and chill his audience with the second in the Pratt Museum’s Greene Ghosts Series, “The Murder of Sally Hamilton”. Yes, there’s a ghost in the story.
Victorian Tea Fundraiser
Join us for our annual Victorian Tea at the historic homestead of town founder Zadock Pratt, now the Zadock Pratt Museum. Built in 1828, this special home is now listed on the National & State Registers of Historic Places. Enjoy a special selection of tea, sandwiches, and desserts prepared by Carole Cangelosi & Theresa Whitworth! More information about reservations to come.
Looking for Railroad Jack Lecture
Looking for Railroad Jack: A Historian’s Search for a Long-Lost Canine Celebrity by historian Kelli Huggins.
In the 1880s and 1890s, there were few dogs as famous as Albany, NY’s Railroad Jack. Along with his contemporary, the Postal Service’s Owney, Jack captivated the public with his train-riding antics. When he died in 1893, his body was taxidermied and, subsequently, lost from the historical record. This talk will explain what Jack and fellow animal celebrities tell us about the history of the Gilded Age and will explore attempts to figure out what happened to him.
Zadock Pratt as Art Patron Lecture
An illustrated talk about a little-know facet of Zadock Pratt’s personality by one of the Pratt Museum’s favorite former curator Suzanne Walsh. In this lifetime, Pratt commissioned works by John Vanderlyn, Frederick Spenser, Amos Hamlin, Currier & Ives, and others.
Lafayette’s Visit to Greene County Lecture
Join us for the Second Annual Zadock Pratt Lecture: Lafayette’s Visit to Greene County, NY by Greene County Historian Jonathan Palmer. In 1825, General George Lafayette was welcomed in Catskill, NY with a festive parade. On July 12, 1822, he became a Colonel for New York’s 116th Infantry. In 1825, he commanded the escort of Lafayette into Catskill on his beloved horse, Prince.
Whose Folk Panel Discussion
In conjunction with Upstate Art Weekend, we will host a conversation between Cal Siegel, artist; Tony Bluestone, artist, curator and Zadock Pratt Museum board member; Carolyn Bennet, historian and Zadock Pratt Museum board president; and Sarah Workneh, arts educator and co-executive director of Sky High Farms.
Local Author Jennifer Kabat in Conversation with Monica Nelson
In conjunction with Upstate Art Weekend, we are thrilled to welcome local author Jennifer Kabat in conjunction with the recent release of her book The Eighth Moon: A Memoir or Belonging and Rebellion. Following a reading will be a conversation between the author and fellow historian, Monica Nelson.
Zadock Pratt, Ralph Ingersoll, and The Ghost Troops of WWII Lecture
A lecture by former Pratt Museum Curator Suzanne Walsh. Come listen to the recently declassified story about how Zadock Pratt’s great grandson, Ralph Ingersoll was front and center in the smoke and mirrors escapades that saved the lives of thousands of US troops and helped win the war in the operation of the “Ghost Army of World War II”.
The Mountaintop Merwins Lecture
The Mountaintop Merwins’ famous literary connection by local author, journalist, and newspaper reporter Jesse “James” Angelino. Merwin is a name that many folks across the river in Kinderhook and up on the mountain in Jewett and Prattsville, NY know quite well. But did you know that it was a Merwin who inspired Washington Irving’s iconic character, Ichabod Crane, of “Legend of Sleepy Hollow” fame?
Whose Folk Opening Reception
Whose Folk? features work by contemporary artist Cal Siegel in conversation with a curated selection of objects from the museum’s collection. Siegel’s sculptures and photographs – various ceramic and wooden forms, vessels, and wall hangings all refer back to historical architecture and objects with equal parts reverence, humor, and criticality. When displayed alongside historic artifacts from the Pratt homestead, visitors are asked to consider how the past informs the present.