Join Staatsburgh State Historic Site staff in-person and online for Black Staatsburg: The Gilded Age Black Community of Staatsburg this October.
Black Staatsburg will be hosted via Zoom on Thursday, Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. and in-person at Staatsburgh State Historic Site on Monday, Oct. 14 (Indigenous People’s Day) at 2:30 p.m.
This 75-minute presentation will explore the question of: “What did the Gilded Age mean for the free Black community?” through census records, historic maps, and the larger context of race relations during the era.
Both programs are free, but advance reservations are required and can be made at www.Bookeo.com/StaatsburghSHS.
Zoom link provided upon registration.
Black Staatsburg is the result of several years of ongoing research from Staatsburgh State Historic Site to bring a more balanced historic narrative to public awareness.
Often pushed to the outskirts of society by White Americans, Black men and women were nonetheless able to foster a strong community in the face of constant adversity during the 19th century. Local homeowners DeWitt Hasbrouck, a Black Civil War veteran, and Robert St. John, a Black freedom-seeker from Brazil, show the diverse backgrounds of Black families in Staatsburg. Ivy Watson, a domestic servant for a local White family, offers insights into the roles expected of Black Americans during the Gilded Age.
Long marginalized in the historical narrative, the free Black community of the Staatsburg village reveals the triumphs and struggles of generations of African-Americans in the Hudson Valley.
Staatsburgh State Historic Site is open for guided mansion tours Thursdays through Sundays, through Oct. 27, and re-opens for self-guided holiday touring on Nov. 29. To attend a mansion tour, please make advance reservations on www.Bookeo.com/StaatsburghSHS; admission is charged upon arrival. Visitors may also enjoy a picnic or stroll by the Hudson River, or a hike along the woodland trails in adjacent Mills Memorial State Park.
Staatsburgh State Historic Site and the Ogden Mills & Ruth Livingston Mills Memorial State Park are located on Old Post Road in Staatsburg, off Route 9 between Rhinebeck and Hyde Park. The historic site is one of 6 sites and 15 parks administered by the Taconic Region of New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. For more information, call 845-889-8851, or visit Staatsburgh’s websites at, , www.facebook.com/StaatsburghSHS, and www.staatsburghstatehistoricsite.blogspot.com. Staatsburgh’s events are also listed at parks.ny.gov.
The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation oversees more than 250 parks, historic sites, recreational trails, golf courses, boat launches and more, which saw a record 84 million visits in 2023. For more information on any of these recreation areas, visit parks.ny.gov, download the free NY State Parks Explorer app or call 518-474-0456.