The Full Snow Moon of March is a moment when the light begins to shift towards spring, even as we are deep in bitter winter's deep snows and scarce game. Celebrate the Snow Moon with a short illuminated walk in the woods of the Woestyne. Afterwards, we’ll make a fire in the Inn’s historic fireplace, and docents will share colorful stories and tall tales from our local area. Warm drinks will be served to fight off the night’s chill. Admission is $10 for people 12+, and free for members of SCHS and ADK-Schenectady.

It’s the second meeting of the “Schenectady Wine Society” a collection of curated wine tastings by and for local wine lovers at our historic sites. This time, we’ll be sampling wines that are perfect for the warming days and cool nights of spring. Join your hosts, Buffy Leonard and city historian Chris Leonard on a tasting and history tour of their favorite wines for the season. $30; pre-registration required. Must be 21+ with valid ID. All ticket sales are final.

This is a virtual program, presented on Zoom. A Zoom link will be sent to SCHS members before the presentation.  Join us for a virtual presentation by Trinity College Professor Erin Kramer discussing her new publication, "That She Shall Be Forever Banished From This Country": Alcohol, Sovereignty, and Social Segregation in New Netherland. Alcohol was a subject of deep concern for Indigenous nations and settler governments in early America, but, though all agreed that the alcohol trade was dangerous, they did not assess the problem or its remedies in the same ways. Kramer will discuss seventeenth-century alcohol ordinances and their enforcement, uncovering the differences between Indigenous and Dutch interpretations of alcohol's destructive effects to community and sovereignty. Erin Kramer is an Assistant Professor of History who teaches courses in early American and Native American history. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2018. Her current book project looks at Dutch and Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) influences on the seventeenth-century development of Albany, New York, as an important center of trade and diplomacy in the northeast borderlands.

This is an in-person program at Mabee Farm.  As winter cold begins to recede, the ground unfreezes and the sap starts to run. On a New York farm, the first harvest of the year was always maple syrup. In this family-friendly program, you’ll learn the process for yourself from colonial techniques to later innovations. And of course, we’ll be able to taste the results! This is an outdoor event in so be prepared for winter temperatures! Tickets are $10 for everyone 5+  

This class is for never-ever painters, those with experience looking to try a new style, or anyone in between. After learning different watercolor painting techniques, we will create a free-flowing, abstract 9x12 painting. After tearing your painting into strips/shapes and attaching them to fresh base, you'll have created a unique art piece ready for framing, or multiple smaller pieces used for greeting cards -- your choice! Our instructor will be Rebecca Cigal of Cigal Studio. $45 fee includes materials.

Christ Church Episcopal in Duanesburg, founded in 1793, is the oldest active and unaltered Episcopal Church in NYS, if not also in the United States. The church has a rich history, including housing the final resting places of James Duane, Mary Livingston, William North, and Mary Duane North. The congregation is committed to preserving the historic nature of the building and the records that tell the story of this vital landmark. Rev. Alistair Morrison, current rector, and Steve Schrade, church historian, will share details of the church’s history and the historic preservation work currently underway.   This is an in-person program hosted at 32 Washington Ave.  Admission is free for members, otherwise $8 the day of the program. No advanced tickets.  

Drink the Seasons is ready for spring; are you? In celebration of the equinox, join for an evening of seasonal cocktails and more at Schenectady Historical. Led by historian John Gearing, we’ll make — and sample — a variety of historic libations, made with vernal flare. $30; pre-registration required. Must be 21+ with valid ID. All ticket sales are final.

What do we do with the wool we shear from our resident sheep, Annie and Finn? Learn to felt!  In this beginner workshop, we’ll make an adorable felted sheep with wool from our own Mabee Farm critters. This hand-made craft is the perfect gift or home ornament. We’ll provide all materials and equipment.

This is a virtual program, presented on Zoom. A Zoom link will be sent to SCHS members before the presentation.  Join us for a virtual presentation by Georgetown Professor Michael Douma discussing a chapter from his forthcoming book, "The Slow Death of Slavery in Dutch New York." In Dutch New York, slavery died an agonizingly slow death. Douma's book will be the first cultural, demographic, and economic history of slavery in Dutch New York. Douma points to the important influence of the Dutch in developing and maintaining slavery in NYS, arguing that to understand the history of slavery in New York, we need to recognize it as more distinctly Dutch, more profitable, more rural, and more enduring than has been previously recognized. Douma argues that Dutch attitudes about the utility and morality of slavery presented a major roadblock in attempts to end slavery in the state via gradual abolition. There continued a distinct Dutch type of slavery in eighteenth and early nineteenth century New York that is demonstrable culturally, economically, and demographically. This was the largest non-English speaking form of slavery in American history, and it was much larger in extent, much more deeply rooted culturally, and much longer- lasting than historians have previously recognized. Slavery was engrained in the culture of Dutch New York. This culture resisted the political and legal changes that ultimately brought about the end of slavery in the state in 1827. In Dutch New York, slaveholders kept their enslaved persons longer and condemned the practice of slavery less than did English New Yorkers and most others in the North. Michael Douma is Associate Research Professor at Georgetown University. He has published 7 books and 19 scholarly articles. As an interdisciplinary historian, Douma's work is influenced by scholars in fields as diverse as economics, folklore, and ethics. His historical research generally focuses on nineteenth century U.S. history including slavery and emancipation, the Dutch World, and Philosophy and Methods of History.

Learn the historic craft of basket weaving with Doreen Smith, proprietor of WOVEN. In this full day workshop, we'll weave a beautiful, highly functional tote with a leather strap. Please be sure to bring a lunch! **All ticket sales are final.**

Instructor Karen Anthony of Karen’s Paint pARTies will teach us to paint Spring flowers.  No artistic experience necessary -- you will be lead step by step to produce your very own masterpiece! Price includes 11x14 stretched canvas, all painting materials, and a selection of munchies -- plus wine, of course! Feel free to BYOB, as well. Ages 10+ only, please. All ticket sales final.

It’s 1886 and the competition to electrify the US is on! Genius inventors George Westinghouse and Thomas Edison each believe their electric current is superior and are battling to convince the world that their work is the future. But, what does Schenectady have to do with it? Join George Wise, historian and author, to take a closer look at this important moment in technology and American history.   This is an in-person program hosted at 32 Washington Ave.  Admission is free for members, otherwise $8 the day of the program. No advanced tickets.