Meet the Historian —

When   people ask how I feel about my job, as the Beekman Town Historian, I reply: “I enjoy it very much. It’s something I love.” I say this because I truly love it and I am passionate about the history of Beekman and hope I can convinced you and them of the wealth of historical sites that Beekman has to offer.  My Web site is part of my program to spread the word of BeekmanHistory, it is dedicated to promoting and preserving Beekman history, you can explore the Town Hall, constructed just prior to America’s entrance into World War II, and the last W.P.A project that Franklin D. Roosevelt funded. I can arrange for a tour of the Old Upper Road, an Indian path used to transfer goods and military supplies from Fishkill to Hartford during the Revolutionary War, which has changed little in route over the past 225 years. Also to be explored is the Beekman Furnace built by Clove Spring Iron Works in 1873, and the nearby Dalton Farm’s Roosevelt House in Poughquag, recreated by the Friends of Beekman History to look more like FDR’s office when he was in residence. A more recent project is the renovation of the Grist Mill at the junction of Poughquag and Beekman off the Old Upper Road. Our hopes that this can one day house a town museum and tourist and visitor center. We hope to put as many records as we can on the site.

 As an Historian I oversee the Beekman history website, maintain the online newsletter, and compile data to seek out the town’s history.  I am devoted to documenting the oral history of Beekman and I am working on collecting recordings of speeches made from the Town Hall during events such as the 200th Anniversary of the town (1988). All though relatively new to the historian post (I was appointed in 2004), I have been an active member of the community since moving from Brooklyn in 1976. Sharing my lifetime interest in history with others, I have joined the Beekman and Dutchess County Historical Societies, the Dutchess County Municipal Historians, and the Dutchess and New York State Genealogy Associations.  After my retirement, I became the president of the Beekman Historical Society from 2003-2004 until accepting the position as the Town Historian. I have self-published two books chronicling Beekman’s history:

“The History of Beekman” (2003) and “The Spirit of Beekman” (2005). At the present time, I am Chairman of The T.O.U.R committee and of The Friends of History, and Co-Chair of The Flag Committee. Projects that I am working on at this time are; The Mill House, Abandon Cemeteries, TOUR, and Historical road side markers. Finally yet importantly is “Vibes” as well as the Web Site. For more information on these projects, please see the web site.