Education Outreach Programs

The Minisink Valley Historical Society offers a number of educational programs to historical, church, civic and youth groups. The most popular are the Society's slide programs that run about 40-50 minutes in length and can include a question and answer segment following the presentation if the group desires. The Society's director brings all of the equipment required to conduct the program unless the location is unusual in its size or construction. Presentations have been made to as few as 15 people and as many as 300.

To request a program, fill out the Program Request Form and return it to the Society. Click Here to open the printable Program Request Form in a new window. The organization should contact the Society as far in advance as possible and will need to confirm the program one week beforehand. The price for a program is $175 and includes handouts and mileage. The following slide programs are available:

This slide show looks at the life of Stephen Crane, especially in the context of the Tri-State region. He was the author of the important 19th century novel The Red Badge of Courage, parts of which may have been written in the Port Jervis area. In addition, he wrote what later became known as the Sullivan County Tales and Sketches and The Monster, which some scholars believe to have been written about Port Jervis. He was widely traveled and considered to be one of the finest writers of his generation.

The slide show reviews the life of the Delaware and Hudson Canal, one of the great corporations of the 19th century, its impact on the local communities and the efforts underway to preserve it.

The slide show reviews the life of Russell Lord and the Delaware and Hudson Canal, one of the great corporations of the 19th century. Lord was the chief engineer for 30 years and the success of the company was due in great measure to his skill and management. The program also looks at the operation of the canal and its impact on the local communities that it passed through.

This program tells the story of an early 19th century log cabin and how after its rediscovery, it was dismantled and moved to another location in 1984. It was restored by the Town of Forestburgh and the Minisink Valley Historical Society.

This slide show tells how a community raised the funds necessary to restore the Erie passenger station (1892) to its former glory. The program reviews the many steps necessary to get the project funded after it was abandoned by a developer in 1983. The Minisink Valley Historical Society led a 7 year effort to restore the building and along with the local community raised $1,000,000 for the project.

This program tells the story of John Newton Howitt, an artist with a national reputation who lived in Port Jervis and was known for his pulp illustrations, landscapes and illustrations for magazines such as the Saturday Evening Post, Liberty, Outdoor Life and Country Gentleman. Examples of the various phases of his work are illustrated with slides and handouts.

This slide program shows the various styles of "graveyard art" from the 1600s to the present day. Examples of each style are drawn from the region's cemeteries and graveyards.

This program tells the story of how graveyards and cemeteries developed in America beginning with simple family plots to the elaborate cemeteries like the Hillside Cemetery in Middletown, New York and the Laurel Grove Cemetery in Port Jervis. Examples of each stage of development are contained in the slide show.

Theodore Roosevelt was one of our nation's most important presidents (1901-1909) of the twentieth century. TR, as he was known, was "The Conservation President," setting aside millions of acres of land for future generations to enjoy. Roosevelt also believed that the federal government needed to be a powerful counter balance to the large and powerful corporations that were being created at the time. He was beloved by many of his fellow citizens until his death in 1919.

This program reviews the life of one of the century's most important leaders. He led America through the Depression and then through World War II, the greatest conflagration that the world has ever seen. His influence on the 20th is profound and still impacts each of us even to this day, 55 years after his death.

This program chronicles the life of one of the 20th century's most important figures. She was an ardent supporter of the disenfranchised, civil rights, the poor and an able political partner of her husband President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. She was the author of the United Nations Statement of Universal Human Rights, something that she considered to be one of her most important contributions. She wrote more than 20 books and was the author of the daily column called "My Day."

This program reveals the rich legacy left by the Civilian Conservation Corps at High Point State Park in Sussex, New Jersey. The CCC boys built much of the existing landscape in the park including dams, roads and buildings. The CCC was one of FDR's pet projects and one of his New Deal's most notable successes. It provided much needed employment for millions of unemployed young men and was the most important conservation project ever undertaken in America's parks.

The slide show reviews the issues surrounding the greatest boundary dispute in colonial America that began in 1664 between the colonies of East and West Jersey and New York. The boundary line was finally resolved in 1884 but additional parts of boundary demarcation were not resolved until a Supreme Court decision in 2000.

The slide show reviews the history of the bluestone industry in the Delaware River Valley region and how it is making a remarkable comeback in the 21st century. The history of mining techniques is also seen.

Fort Decker, the Minisink Valley Historical Society's 1793 stone house museum is one of the most historic buildings in Port Jervis and the surrounding area. It was built by a Revolutionary War patriot, Lt. Martinus Decker, burned by Tory Mohawk Joseph Brant and then used as a canal hotel during the 1820s. It served as a private residence until 1970 when the Society purchased it and created a museum.

Click Here to open the printable Program Request Form in a new window.