From Cookies To Trees -- The Evolution of Christmas in Schenectady
Exhibit November 26- December 30

How do we celebrate the holiday season today? The timeless traditions and honored customs that Americans use today to celebrate the whole holiday season draw from a diverse tapestry of nationalities and cultures. This year's exhibit will look at how Schenectady's inhabitants celebrated the holiday season from the earliest inhabitants in the seventeenth century through the English traditions of the eighteenth century to the mixing of cultures in the nineteenth century that still continues today creating a truly American way of celebrating.

Beginning with the Dutch in the seventeenth century, Schenectadians celebrated the New Year with special cookies made in hand carved wooden molds. The Dutch traditions the first settlers brought with them continued in their families into the eighteenth and even the nineteenth centuries but also began to mix with the traditions of the new English settlers that swarmed into the colony after the English gained control of New Netherland in 1664. These Anglican traditions focused on the twelve-days of Christmas which began on Christmas day and continued until January 6th, the Epiphany. Finally, in the nineteenth century, Americans began to combine these traditions starting with the acceptance of Santa Clause after the publication in a Troy newspaper of "The Night Before Christmas." German Christmas ornaments and Queen Victoria's Christmas tree brought another indispensable tradition to Americans.

All of these traditions added to the fabric that makes American culture. Come celebrate the old and new holiday traditions of Schenectady with the exhibit "From Cookies to Trees: The evolution of Christmas in Schenectady." Two special programs add to the exhibit. Join local collector Robert Halley as he gives a lecture on the rise in popularity of the Christmas tree and Christmas ornaments in the nineteenth century and curator Kate Weller who will conduct a children's program on colonial Dutch holiday traditions, stories and cookies!

THE USS SCHENECTADY
Honoring Schenectady's Vietnam Veterans
Exhibit November 1- November 20

The Society is proud to honor the veterans of the Vietnam War and show its appreciation of their sacrifices with an exhibit telling the story of the USS Schenectady. Named in honor of the city that bears its name, the ship was commissioned on the 24th of May 1969. During her diverse 24 year history she came under fire in the Vietnam War. In 1983 she received the comphibron 3 Silver Sabre award for the most ESWS qualified personnel. She also gave support in the making of the motion picture "Raise the Titanic". After an illustrious career, the USS Schenectady was finally decommissioned on the 15th of December 1993.

CALENDAR
• November 13th at 12 Noon Susan Staffa

• November 13th at 1:30 p.m. Capt. James Caulfield and Chet Watson, USS Schenectady

• December 11th at 1:30 p.m. Robert Halley "The Birth of The Christmas Tree Tradition," Guest of Honor, Jo Mordecai

• December 18th at 1:30 p.m. Kate Weller: Children's Program "Colonial Dutch Holiday Stories and Cookies"

Society Closed November 25, December 24, 25 & 31,

January 1-9

BOOK SIGNING
Susan Staffa's long awaited SCHENECTADY GENESIS: HOW A DUTCH COLONIAL
VILLAGE BECAME AN AMERICAN CITY, Volume 1. The Colonial Crucible 1661-1774
Copies will be available at SCHS on November 13 at Noon and the author will be happy to sign your copy.

Kim Mabee - President
Edwin Reilly - Vice President
Beryl Grant - Treasurer
William Dimpelfeld - Assistant Treasurer
Ann Karl - Secretary

Stephanie Albers 
Sylvia Briber
Ann Coggeshall
Ona Curran
Chris Hunter
Stanley Lee
Carol Lewis
Richard Lewis
Mary Liebers
Elsie Maddaus
Peter Marquis
Irma Mastream
Barbara McEvoy
Jeff Parry
Eliess Riemer
Ann Ross
Frank Taormina
Richard Whalen
Sally Van Schaick

Staff
Virginia Bolen - Librarian
Kathryn Weller - Curator
Pat Barrot - Mabee Farm Site Manager
Johanna Woldring - Office Manager
Paul Gonsowski - Custodian

Hours:
Museum
Monday  - Friday
1:00 to 5:00 p.m.
Saturday
10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Library
Monday _ Friday
1:00 to 5:00 p.m.
Saturday
9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

Mabee Farm
Closed for the season
Open by appointment.

LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT

Hello fellow historical society members! Don't know about you but I sure am tired after the past two months!!

As I sit here at the Waterford Heritage Days, manning the brochure and book table, I'm trying to recall all that's happened.

I'm sad that lovely lady Jo Mordecai decided to retire early, but happy that we've acquired a super new curator in Kate Weller. So far she's done a great new exhibit on the Erie Canal for September/October and our theme for the walkabout. For November she will be working on the USS Schenectady Veteran's Day exhibit. In December there will be a traditional Christmas exhibit, holiday programs and an opportunity for all members of the society to wish our guest of honor Jo Mordecai farewell.

Did everyone see the wonderful exhibit at the Altamont Fair in August? Of the 4 there, we had the best! I'm only a little prejudiced.

I'm happy that the Walkabout turned out fine and sad that it rained and probably scared a few folks away. Then we were ecstatic that the Mabee Farm blew the doors off with approximately 6,000 attending Sundae on the Farm the very next day.

We received the Rotterdam Images of America books and our 2005 calendars in time for sale at our big events. They show member Dot Karl's house and sister on the cover!

Ginny, Pat and Kate have been busy attending numerous conferences and workshops, for our benefit and job improvement.

So stop in to join us for all the activities coming up. It is always a fun and interesting time when everyone contributes so much of their knowledge and experience. Thanks to all! Kim Mabee

FROM THE EDITOR'S DESK

Ona Curran

DEREK M.M. SAYERS, M.D. (1921-2004)
Physician and active volunteer for almost half a century. Derek was born in England, came to New York in 1953 for advanced medical training in Ithaca and Buffalo. He was a founding member of Schenectady Anesthesia Associates in 1956. He also served on the faculty of the Albany Medical College. He retired from practice in 1987 and became an active member of Hospice and served on the Board of the Schenectady County Historical Society. He was chosen Schenectady Volunteer of the Year in 2000.

JOHN E. DUNCAN (1914-2004)
Long time friend of SCHS was a graduate of Union College in 1936. He participated in the invasions of North Africa and Italy, receiving two purple hearts at Anzio. After the War he worked at GE in the Advertising and Sales Promotion Depts. He was the author of several books including the popular: "Sea Chain" and was the founder of Americana Review which published books under the name Long Ago Books.

MARIE NITCHMAN (1911-2004)
Marie, born in Boston was chief of the Physical Therapy Department of Robert Breck Brigham Hospital in the 1930's. She was married to the late Dr. Donald Nitchman well known Schenectady dentist and served as a trustee of the Schenectady County Historical Society for many years.

Over the summer we worked hard to make "the Attic" at the City Hall look more like the library that it is. Most of the collections of notes, transcriptions, and scrapbooks belonging to the late Mr. Efner, a former City Historian for whom the library was named, were moved back into the library, while several of the large artifacts that you may recall seeing at the Library were put into storage. The Library changes daily as we reorganize to fully utilize the 51 linear feet of library-quality adjustable metal shelving that was given to us by our Schenectady History Alliance partners at the Schenectady Museum. One third of the shelving has been installed, and we are in the process of carefully moving collections from less desirable wooden shelves to the metal shelving. With the new shelving, we should be able to return to the Efner Library a good number of books and collections that have been kept in storage, and still manage to keep working areas open on the floor for the continuous task of creating finding aids, and helping researchers.

We invite the public to come in to see our election exhibit. The Efner's big display case tells the history of voting in the United States. We used on-line information from the Smithsonian's American History Museum to help us exhibit a voting machine teaching unit dating from the 1950's. We also have some of our collection of campaign posters, flyers and other election ephemera on display.

The Efner History Research Library may experience an expansion of hours in the future, for it is our goal to encourage utilization by our local schools and colleges. We want to make the Efner History Research Library a place where those who love history, and are interested in learning more about archival work and preservation, can come and learn in a "hands-on" setting. Currently, the Library is open Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9-1, and by appointment. (HsCenter@nycap.rr.com or 382-5088) Stop by to see what's new at the "awesome attic" at City Hall!

Cynthia Seacord, Acting Archivist

WISH LIST

The Efner History Research Library is in need of a good basic copying machine.

Our 100th Anniversary Calendar is illustrated with photographs from the Society's collections and features photographs from 1905 our founding year.

PAINTINGS BY L.F. TANTILLO
CENTENNIAL

Schenectady County Historical Society is pleased to announce that plans are underway for L.F. Tantillo to paint a historic rendition of the Schenectady Stockade in the early days of the settlement prior to the fateful Massacre. It will depict as much as current documentation and early records allow, a historically correct rendition of the area, its architecture and the people as they went about their daily lives. The painting will be unveiled in early April at the opening of the Centennial Symposium Week. Leonard F. Tantillo was born in Poughkeepsie New York and grew up in New Paltz. He graduated from Rhode Island School of Design in 1969 with a degree in architecture but found painting and history, New York history in particular, were really his primary interests. In his paintings his goal is to recapture scenes from New York's past utilizing his architectural and archeological expertise. Among his many notable paintings are Fort Orange 1635, the Bradt sawmill 1660, Elias 1664, Return of the Experiment and last but not least SCHENECTADY HARBOR 1814. His paintings are in private and corporate collections. He is a member of the prestigious American Society of Marine Artists.
Plans are in progress for the Centennial. Festivities will start with Colonial Festival Week in February when there will be a dinner, a fund raiser to benefit the Society. On February 12 Allan Cross, a Revolutionary War Reenactor who casts Spanish silver dollars, will discuss the casting of Spanish coins which were legal tender in the United States until 1857. During Symposium Week there will be guest speakers speaking on topics related to the history of Schenectady, a picnic at the Farm in July celebrating the tricentennial of the Mabee House and Farm and the 100th Anniversary of the Society. In August a garden Tea Party on the back terrace of Society Headquarters is planned in conjunction with the Canal Fest. End the year with a traditional holiday program. We will keep you informed as plans progress.

The Society's Centennial exhibit will feature the people of Schenectady County and events that occurred between 1905 and 2005. Do you have photographs or other memorabilia relating to the last 100 years that the Society could borrow for the exhibit? Call our curator Kate Weller at 374-0263.

OCTOBER LECTURE SERIES
Fridays in October was highly successful with multiple members of the community participating in each lecture. The Society's collections were explored and 18th and 19th century paintings and decorative arts from other museums were also discussed. The Society was delighted with the community's response and we hope to do this again in the future. One of the highlights of the series was the discovery of an engraving in the 1741 Ouderkirk Dutch bible which was the source of a design for an 18th century blue and white Dutch tile also in the Society's collection. Early 18th century Dutch Bibles with their many engravings were often the inspiration for 18th century religious paintings and ceramics. The bible is a recent donation to the Society. Lecture fees will be used for future programs and exhibits.

SAGAMORE CONFERENCE
In September, the SCHS's curator Kate Weller and Mabee Farm's site manager Pat Barrot received grants for and attended the Museum Institute at the Sagamore 2004 conference. Set at the beautiful Great Camp Sagamore Pat and Kate worked with other museum professionals learning the latest strategies and techniques for collections care and management. This seminar not only gave them a chance to listen to some of the dynamic professionals in the field but also to try out some new surveying skills at the Adirondack Museum on Blue Mountain Lake. This new knowledge along with the contacts made at the conference will help both tackle the society's unique issues and problems.

Linen Press
New York
circa 1790-1800
Mahogany, pine secondary wood

Mourning Sampler
Embroidered on silk
dated 1806

It was customary in the early 19th century to memorialize the deceased by creating a needlework reminder of the person who died. In this piece the wife is weeping at the tombstone of John Swain who was the grandfather of Howland Swain Barney, founder of Barney's Department Store in Schenectady. The willow tree was a typical mourning motif used in the Federal period. It was used on tombstones as well as in needlework. Recently, this sampler too has had conservation treatment.
Gift of Marjorie Donnan Cox 1952

Portrait Howland S. Barney
Gift of Judge Wm. Hahn circa 1970

Rights and Reproduction
The Society has a Rights and Reproduction policy which is in accordance with other museums and historical societies. If you need photographs of items in the Society's collections please contact the curator Kate Weller at Society Headquarters (374-0263) for further details. Only photographs supplied by the Society can be used for publication. There is a charge for photographs and there also is a fee for the use of the photographs. Fees vary depending on whether the photographs are to be used by a nonprofit institution or for commercial use.