Press Release
April 29, 1998
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Brian Vattimo
518/486-1868
PARKS COMMISSIONER TO DEDICATE NEW PAVILION AT PEEBLES ISLAND
OPEN HOUSE PLANNED FOR SATURDAY, MAY 9
(Albany, New York, April 29, 1998...) New York State Parks Commissioner Bernadette Castro will join state and local officials, including Senator Joseph L. Bruno, in dedicating the new picnic pavilion at Peebles Island State Park in Waterford during a ceremony scheduled for 9:45 a.m., Saturday, May 9.
The dedication ceremony will kick off the annual open house at Peebles Island, which will run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. This year's theme is "Peebles Island: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow."
The 2,000-square-foot picnic shelter overlooks the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers and provides an area for groups and families to hold events and picnics on the island. The $330,000 project includes a 1,400-square-foot covered picnic area, public restroom, parking area, trail signs, food service area, kiosk and canoe and kayak dock.
"I am truly excited to see this new shelter and all the improvements we have made at Peebles Island," said Commissioner Castro. "Peebles Island State Park is a little known resource in the Capital District and I encourage residents to come up for the day to see this great facility during the open house."
Peebles Island State Park is a 140-acre park that serves as the home of the state's historic preservation field services bureau and the bureau of historic sites.
The open house will give visitors a behind-the-scenes look at the conservation labs to view where artifacts and works of art from state historic sites and parks undergo examination and treatment. Authentic period reproduction clothing will also be on display. Staff will be on hand for demonstrations on how to "read" clues to determine the history behind historic structures.
Several new exhibits will also be unveiled, including: the Peebles Island's orientation exhibit, "Where The Rivers Merge as One: Peebles Island Yesterday and Today;" "Canal Crossings," a photographic display of New York State Canal Bridges; "Are There Hidden Treasures in Your Community," a guide to archeology in New York State; and, displays of artifacts and historic documents recording Peebles Island's early and industrial history. For a glimpse of colonial Albany, the recent discoveries from the State Street excavations will be available.
There will also be colonial period games, two reptile shows, offered by Mark Perpetua, a demonstration on the seasonal adaptations by Native Americans for hunting, farming, and homelife by Mike Tarbell from the Iroquois Indian Museum, and guided island walks.
Refreshments will be served. Peebles Island State Park can be reached via Cohoes on Ontario Street (Route 470) east from 787. Turn left onto Delaware Avenue, continue one mile to park. From Troy, take Second Avenue to 112th Street Bridge, cross the Hudson River, and make the first right onto Delaware Avenue. For information, call 237-8643.
SCHEDULE FOR OPEN HOUSE 1998
RIBBON CUTTING AND DEDICATION OF PEEBLES ISLAND PICNIC PAVILION
Commissioner Castro, guests, and visitors - 9:45 a.m.
TOURS
Early Bird Birding Tour - 9 a.m. LOCATION: MEET AT KIOSK
Cluett, Peabody & Co. Factory Tours - 10:30. 11:30, noon, 12:30, 1:00, 1:30, 2, and 2:30. LOCATION: MEET AT WATER TOWER.
Peebles Island History Walks - 11:30, 12:30, 1:30, 2:30 LOCATION: MEET AT KIOSK.
DEMONSTRATIONS/SHOWS
Reptile Shows - noon & 2 p.m. LOCATION: PICNIC PAVILION.
Slide Talks - "New York's Landmark Sightings: Recent Listings on the State and National Registers of Historic Places" 11:30 a.m. & 1:30 p.m. LOCATION: COLLECTIONS CARE CENTER, MULTIPURPOSE ROOM.
Iroquois Technologies - Mike Tarbell from the Iroquois Indian Museum describes and demonstrates Native American crafts associated with hunting, farming, and the home. 1 p.m. LOCATION: PICNIC PAVILION.
ONGOING EVENTS
* Colonial Period Games. LOCATION: TENT ON EAST POINT.
* Photo Opportunity with State Parks' Bear. LOCATION: TENT ON EAST POINT.
* Demonstrations on creating authentic reproduction clothing. LOCATION: COLLECTIONS CARE CENTER, AUDITORIUM
* Self-guided tours of conservation laboratories to view artifacts and works of art undergoing treatment. LOCATION: COLLECTIONS CARE CENTER, WEST WING AND ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, ARCHEOLOGY UNIT.
* Displays by local historical and cultural agencies. LOCATION: COLLECTIONS CARE CENTER, THE COMMONS.
* A Look Ahead: Managing & Accessing New York's Past
Geographic Information Systems and Document Imaging Demonstrations. LOCATION: ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, 3RD FLOOR.
Geographic Information Systems for Archeology Demonstrations. LOCATION: ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, 4TH FLOOR.
* What Style Is It? & The House Doctor. LOCATION: COLLECTIONS CARE CENTER, AUDITORIUM
SPECIAL EXHIBITS
* Exhibit opening of "Where the Rivers Merge as One: Peebles Island Yesterday and Today." LOCATION: EAST LOADING DOCK AND COLLECTIONS CARE CENTER, AUDITORIUM
* "Canal Crossings," photographs of New York State Barge Canals LOCATION: COLLECTIONS CARE CENTER, MULTIPURPOSE ROOM
* "A Glimpse of Colonial Albany: Recent State Street Discoveries," archeological artifacts on display. LOCATION: ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, 3RD FLOOR CONFERENCE ROOM.
* "Are There Hidden Treasures in Your Community?" a guide to Archeology in New York State LOCATION: ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, 4TH FLOOR CONFERENCE ROOM.
* Displays of artifacts and historic documents recording the early and industrial history of Peebles Island.LOCATION: AUDITORIUM & ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, FIRST FLOOR.