Dae Vitale
By Dae Vitale
Greetings from River City. “Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than one’s fear.” ~Ambrose Redmoon (James Neil Hollingworth). “The work an unknown good man has done is like a vein of water flowing hidden under ground, secretly making the ground green.” ~Thomas Carlyle. “If you want to touch the past, touch a rock. If you want to touch the present, touch a flower. If you want to touch the future, touch a life.” ~Author unknown.
In honor of Women’s History Month, Washington’s Headquarters State Historic Site will hold its annual program, The General’s Lady, Sunday, March 17 at 2 p.m. Inspired by Martha Washington, this event pays tribute to both the impact of noteworthy historical women and to contemporary women making a difference in the field of history and preservation in the Hudson Valley.
Historian and author Claire Bellerjeau will discuss her book, Remember Liss, about a newly discovered founding figure named Elizabeth, or Liss. Liss was enslaved by the Townsend family of Oyster Bay, New York, whose most famous member was Robert Townsend aka “Culper, Jr.”, George Washington’s lead spy in Manhattan during the Revolutionary War. As Robert and Liss’s story unfolds, prominent figures cross their path, including George Washington, John Jay, Benedict Arnold, John Graves Simcoe, John André and John Adams.
In addition, it touches on topics including the Culper Spy Ring, the Boston Massacre, the Battle of Long Island, and the Benedict Arnold treason plot.
Liss’s escape with the British, re-enslavement in Manhattan and later Charleston, and her complex struggle for freedom gives new insight into the country’s founding era, through the eyes of an enslaved Black woman seeking liberty in a country fighting for its own.
The celebration also includes the presentation of the 2024 Martha Washington Woman of History Award, which recognizes a woman’s outstanding contribution to Hudson Valley history. This year’s recipient is the Garden Club of Orange and Dutchess Counties member, Fenella Heckscher. For more information, call (845) 562-1195.
Washington’s Headquarters State Historic Site is a registered National Historic Landmark. It is located at the corner of Liberty and Washington Streets within the City of Newburgh’s East End Historic District. The site is one of 35 historic sites within the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and is one of 28 facilities administered by the Palisades Interstate Park Commission in New York and New Jersey. For further information contact: (845) 562-1195.
Mount Saint Mary College will host the third annual Techstars Startup Weekend Newburgh from Friday, March 22 to Sunday, March 24. The event will be held on the Mount campus in the Hudson Hall Auditorium, 330 Powell Avenue, Newburgh. For more information, the full schedule, and to register, visit msmc.edu/startup
“Do not let evil into your heart, it will make a home there.” Agatha Christie via Hercule Poirot. A truth never to forget. As always, I close with my prayers on your heads, my dears.