Popular Searches
Print
E-mail
Comment
Rate
Share
Namesake Celebration honors keepsakes from 1909 gala
 |
| A commemorative pin from the Hudson-Fulton Celebration of 1909. |
By Jamie Larson
Hudson-Catskill Newspapers
In 1909 the Hudson Fulton Celebration marked the 300th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s exploration of the Hudson River. The event was heralded as one of the largest single celebrations ever. One of the most remembered aspects of that celebration was the endless amounts of souvenirs sold to mark the occasion.
This summer as part of the Quadricentennial celebration historians are honoring these knick-knacks in print and showcasing them in local exhibits like that at the Columbia County Historical Society Museum in Kinderhook.
This weekend at Hudson’s Namesake Celebration, where they will officially name the Henry Hudson Riverfront Park, the Hudson Quadricentennial Committee will be providing two souvenirs of its own, a Henry Hudson paper mask and an illustrated poster depicting the two day party by local artist Arlene Boehm.
Hudson Quadracentenial Committee Chairwoman Ellen Thurston said she hopes the souvenirs will not only successfully advertise the Namesake Celebration but give people something tangible to hold on to and remember it by. “I think (Boehm) was very successful in portraying what the festival will be like,” Thurston said. “They pique people’s interest. They make you want to be there.”
The paper-craft falls in line with part of the 1909 souvenir legacy, according to Kathleen Johnson, curator and director for Historic Hudson Valley. Johnson, who penned the recently published book “The Hudson-Fulton Celebration; New York’s River Festival of 1909 and the Making of a Metropolis,” said there were many commemorative posters and postcards for the event.
“Images and words drove the festival,” Johnson said, “fitting because it was in New York, which was, at the time, the publishing capital of the world.”
The now century-old festival lasted three weeks, from September 25, to October 11, and lined the river from Manhattan to Albany and Troy with, Johnson said, the largest party the state has ever seen. Thomas Edison installed the first electric street lights just for the occasion and the Wright brothers flew over the river in a prototype airplane. For the event, celebration organizers authorized official souvenirs, but others got into the action, bootlegging little tin toys, medals, pins, pennants and other trinkets made to add to the party atmosphere, but also, Johnson said, be humorous and satirize the official celebration.
Many souvenirs were made for the banquette industry, giving dinner guests a fancy take away to remember their party by. An official banquette was thrown for 1,500 celebration organizers at the no longer existent Astor Hotel, said to have had a ballroom the size of a city block. Special plates and dinnerware were made just for the party, and guests were treated to commemorative medals and cigars. The opening course was a half melon with silver sails sticking out of it, a play on Hudson’s ship the Half Moon and desert was ice cream with a small statue of Henry Hudson standing on top.
While this year’s celebration has been a far cry from the extravaganza of 1909, Johnson said as a historian she is gratified by the grassroots excitement events like the flotilla up the Hudson has stirred up in Hudson Valley residents.
Johnson found it amusingly serendipitous that the city of Hudson was dedicating a park in honor of Hudson as part of their summer of celebration events. She says the records show that as part of the 1909 celebration the city erected it’s very first monument. A notoriously rough and tumble place, Hudson received a large drinking fountain at the 7th Street park. The hope, brought on by the temperance movement, was that Hudsonians would pick a drink of water at the park over alcohol at pub. The fountain, Thurston believes, was never actually realized. Visitors to the Namesake Celebration shouldn’t have any trouble finding the nearest bar however.
This summer as part of the Quadricentennial celebration historians are honoring these knick-knacks in print and showcasing them in local exhibits like that at the Columbia County Historical Society Museum in Kinderhook.
This weekend at Hudson’s Namesake Celebration, where they will officially name the Henry Hudson Riverfront Park, the Hudson Quadricentennial Committee will be providing two souvenirs of its own, a Henry Hudson paper mask and an illustrated poster depicting the two day party by local artist Arlene Boehm.
Hudson Quadracentenial Committee Chairwoman Ellen Thurston said she hopes the souvenirs will not only successfully advertise the Namesake Celebration but give people something tangible to hold on to and remember it by. “I think (Boehm) was very successful in portraying what the festival will be like,” Thurston said. “They pique people’s interest. They make you want to be there.”
The paper-craft falls in line with part of the 1909 souvenir legacy, according to Kathleen Johnson, curator and director for Historic Hudson Valley. Johnson, who penned the recently published book “The Hudson-Fulton Celebration; New York’s River Festival of 1909 and the Making of a Metropolis,” said there were many commemorative posters and postcards for the event.
“Images and words drove the festival,” Johnson said, “fitting because it was in New York, which was, at the time, the publishing capital of the world.”
The now century-old festival lasted three weeks, from September 25, to October 11, and lined the river from Manhattan to Albany and Troy with, Johnson said, the largest party the state has ever seen. Thomas Edison installed the first electric street lights just for the occasion and the Wright brothers flew over the river in a prototype airplane. For the event, celebration organizers authorized official souvenirs, but others got into the action, bootlegging little tin toys, medals, pins, pennants and other trinkets made to add to the party atmosphere, but also, Johnson said, be humorous and satirize the official celebration.
Many souvenirs were made for the banquette industry, giving dinner guests a fancy take away to remember their party by. An official banquette was thrown for 1,500 celebration organizers at the no longer existent Astor Hotel, said to have had a ballroom the size of a city block. Special plates and dinnerware were made just for the party, and guests were treated to commemorative medals and cigars. The opening course was a half melon with silver sails sticking out of it, a play on Hudson’s ship the Half Moon and desert was ice cream with a small statue of Henry Hudson standing on top.
While this year’s celebration has been a far cry from the extravaganza of 1909, Johnson said as a historian she is gratified by the grassroots excitement events like the flotilla up the Hudson has stirred up in Hudson Valley residents.
Johnson found it amusingly serendipitous that the city of Hudson was dedicating a park in honor of Hudson as part of their summer of celebration events. She says the records show that as part of the 1909 celebration the city erected it’s very first monument. A notoriously rough and tumble place, Hudson received a large drinking fountain at the 7th Street park. The hope, brought on by the temperance movement, was that Hudsonians would pick a drink of water at the park over alcohol at pub. The fountain, Thurston believes, was never actually realized. Visitors to the Namesake Celebration shouldn’t have any trouble finding the nearest bar however.
Share this Article
 |
||
| Falling dairy prices put strain on farmers |
Article Rating
Reader Comments
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of registerstar.com.
You must register with a valid email to post comments. Only your Member ID will be posted with the comments.
Registered users sign in here: |
Become a Registered User |
