On Saturday, Nov. 11, Fort Montgomery State Historic Site, Educator, Peter Cutul will present on the history of Wicker’s Creek.  Drawing on information from archaeological excavations, historical sources, and a video featuring Theresa Johnson of the Delaware Nation at Moraviantown, he will paint a picture of what Native life may have been like for the Weckquaskeck at the Wicker’s Creek site while interweaving stories from Theresa’s life and ancestral connections to the area’s Munsee-Lenape inhabitants. Join us at the Dobbs Ferry Library at 1pm for this fascinating talk. Refreshments will be served.

Road to Freedom Walk starts at Gould Park at 1:00pm. Led by fife and drum, we follow the path of the Continental Amy as it began the march from Dobbs Ferry to the Battle of Yorktown in Virginia on August 19, 1781. At 2:00pm at the Mead House, we celebrate the 150^th anniversary of the incorporation of the village in 1873. Events will include historical skits, a banjo player and singer leading songs from the early village years. Stations on the lawn include an Irish worker who helped build the aqueduct, the ferryman who will show a model periauger, an assortment of colonial games to try out, a photo booth where visitors may pose with costumed reenactors or with tricorns, bowlers, or other historic props. There will also be a historic poster display and refreshments. We are grateful for the generous support of the Tensor Foundation and the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area.

For further information: dfhistory@icloud.com or 914-674-1007

Please join the Board of Trustees in celebrating a full year of activities at Historical Society. Our annual meeting will be held at the Mead House this Sunday, October 1, 2023.

Time : 5pm.

Wine and cheese will be served!

The day is Sunday, August 19, 1781. Despite the rain, General George Washington orders his troops encamped in and near Dobbs’s Ferry to assemble along the ferry road (today’s Ashford Avenue) close to the junction of the Albany Post Road (today’s Broadway). With this “parade for the march,” the soldiers assume that, at long last, they are moving south to attack British General Clinton in New York City…

Fast forward to 2022. On Sunday, September 18, the Dobbs Ferry Historical Society will commemorate the 241st anniversary of Continental Army’s departure from our area with a 1½-mile march tracing the beginning of the route. The soldiers headed north – not south to Manhattan – to cross the Hudson at Kings Ferry. Thus began the army’s 400-mile march to victory against the British in Yorktown, Virginia, thanks to this bold decision of General Washington and French General Rochambeau.

This year’s march, led by fife and drum and the 2nd NY Regiment, will start at Gould Park, stop at the Little White Church Cemetery to honor the veterans buried there, and end at Mead House for activities and refreshments. The regiment will be encamped there and ready to drill new recruits and interpret the life of a soldier. Dr. Daniel Wood, surgeon, will describe battlefield emergency medicine and display his instruments. A colonial lady will demonstrate dress and makeup of the period. And there’s more – a mix of history, reenactments and activities for all ages!

Join us for our next ZOOM program, Fire Stations of Westchester County. Our speaker will be Mark G. Young. He is a fire police sergeant, trustee and volunteer with the Buchanan Engine Company No. 1, Inc. He will show us photos of firehouses around Westchester (including the two in Dobbs Ferry), equipment currently being used and historical fire-fighting apparatus used in the past.

Sunday, March 6, 2022 at 2pm. Please RSVP via email to dobbshistory@gmail.com

Join the Historical Society via ZOOM for the President’s Day lecture by Dr. Richard Borkow, author and former village historian. This lecture will describe Henry Villard’s many encounters with, and evolving impressions of President-elect Lincoln. Sunday, February 20 at 4pm via ZOOM. RSVP for link to dobbshistory@gmail.com

Please join us for our first program of the new year! Author and lecturer Stephen De Villo will present the story of Abagail Smith Purdy, Ann Fisher Miller and the Revolution in Westchester. This lecture will be presented via ZOOM on January 23, 2022 at 4pm. Please RSVP to dobbshistory@gmail.com to receive the link prior to the lecture.

Pull up a chair and join the conversation! Discover the remarkable Ernest M. Howell from Davenport, Iowa. Now 90+ years young, Ernie discusses his professional and personal life as told in his book, Meditations, Finding ErnieJean Howell : Our Way. Ernie’s path from Iowa wound through Harvard, NYC, Asia and California. Join us on October 24 at 2pm for this joint program offered by the Society and the Dobbs Ferry Public Library at the DFPL Community Meeting Room. Please RSVP at 914 693-6614. Masks and social distancing required at the Library

Mix a batch of your favorite cocktail and sit back and enjoy our next ZOOM presentation.

November 14 at 2pm

Cocktail parties in the home have been popular since the 1920s, after the onset of Prohibition.  Join us for a look at cocktail culture fashion as we travel through time. We will focus on silhouettes in clothing from the late 1940s through the 1960s, as we explore the connections of fashion and cocktails during this interesting period, not only in clothing styles, but also in home décor and accessories.