NY State Historical Association

COOPERSTOWN, N.Y., May 20, 2008—The New York State Historical Association and the New York State Archives Partnership, with co-sponsorship from the New York Council for the Humanities, will bring together educators, public historians, archaeologists, librarians, genealogists and archivists to Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, New York, from Thursday through Saturday, June 5-7, 2008 for the 29th Annual Conference on New York State History.

The conference offers scholars of all levels a supportive setting in which to present their recent research and scholarship on the history of New York State and receive constructive comment from colleagues. Particular highlights of this year’s program include two daylong workshops—one presented by the Upstate History Alliance, which will focus on connecting teachers and historians with research resources, and another targeted at the particular needs of county and borough historians, as well as evening walking tours of the Saratoga Springs cityscape and an exciting guided trip to Fort Ticonderoga.

We are pleased to be hosting keynote speaker Kevin Baker, author of Dreamland, Paradise Alley, and Sometimes You See It Coming, who will be speaking about his books’ use of New York State and its history. His lecture is sponsored by the New York Council for the Humanities and will be free and open to the public without conference registration. The talk begins at 8 pm and takes place in the Gannett Auditorium at Skidmore College.

Kevin Baker is the author of four novels, including the three historical novels of his “City of Fire” trilogy about New York City, Dreamland (1999), Paradise Alley (2002), and Strivers Row. He was also the chief historical researcher on the 1998, bestselling history, The American Century, by Harold Evans, with Gail Buckland and Kevin Baker. Mr. Baker is currently at work on a history of New York City baseball, and has written the graphic novel, Luna Park, which will be published next year by DC Comics. He has contributed short stories and chapters to a number of collections, and has written for many periodicals, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the Chicago Tribune, and the Los Angeles Times. He is a contributing editor at Harper’s magazine, and at American Heritage, where for ten years he wrote the In the News column.

Each year the conference also features the Wendell Tripp Lecture; this year’s speaker, Martin Bruegel of the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique of France, will discuss his research on the historical shift to a market economy in the Hudson Valley in his talk, “An Acceptable Refreshment: Eating and Drinking in the Hudson Valley, 1780-1860.”

Skidmore College’s Palamountain Hall’s lobby will be filled with publishers, book dealers, and organizations eager to share their products and services with conference participants. Exhibitors at this year’s conference will include: Cornell University Press; Purple Mountain Press; aGatherin'/Ephemera Society of America; Rockefeller Archive Center; New York Wanderer Press; State University of New York Press; New York Folklore Society; Hudson Microimaging, Inc.; Syracuse University Press; The Donning Company Publishers; Tuxedo Historical Society; Upstate History Alliance; The History Press; and the New York State Library.

The exhibit hall will also feature three historical exhibits: Samuel Hayden Sexton and the Lost Giles F. Yates Sketch by Ona Curran, Schenectady County Historical Society and Laura Lee Linder, First Reformed Church of Schenectady; The Dutch Farm Survey: Exploring Your Own Backyard by the Dutch Barn Preservation Society; and The Restoration of the Knickerbocker Mansion by Knickerbocker Historical Society.

Except for the Keynote Lecture, which is free and open to the public, the conference is open to all by registration, in advance or at the door. Overnight accommodations are available at Skidmore College dormitories and at area hotels. For a conference schedule, please e-mail the conference coordinator at historyconference@nysha.org or visit online at www.nysha.org.

About the Archives Partnership Trust
The Archives Partnership Trust is an innovative public-private partnership that supports the education, public programming, conservation, exhibitions, and publications of the New York State Archives.

About the New York State Historical Association
The New York State Historical Association is committed to engaging and connecting a broad public audience to New York State’s unique cultural heritage through exhibitions, extensive library collections, statewide educational programs, and publications that provoke, delight, and inspire. Founded in 1899, NYSHA is a private, non-profit, membership-based, educational and cultural institution dedicated to preserving, collecting, and interpreting art and historical artifacts significant to New York State’s rich history and American culture. The Association’s remarkable collections, showcased in the Fenimore Art Museum, comprise some of the best examples of American landscape, history, and genre paintings including seminal works by Gilbert Stuart, Thomas Cole, William Sidney Mount and Benjamin West; the renown Eugene and Clare Thaw Collection of American Indian Art, a masterpiece collection of more than 800 art objects, representing a broad scope of North American cultures; and one of the nation’s most comprehensive and significant folk art collections. NYSHA’s Research Library holdings include over 80,000 volumes on American, New York State, and local history. For more information on the Association, the Fenimore Art Museum, the Research Library, or Membership, please call (607) 547-1400 or visit www.nysha.org. The Association’s mailing address is P.O. Box 800, 5798 State Hwy. 80, Lake Rd., Cooperstown, NY 13326

For more information or images, please contact:
Christine Liggio/Public Relations Office
New York State Historical Association
Fenimore Art Museum/The Farmers’ Museum
Phone: (607) 547-1472/E-mail: pr@nysha.org