ALBANY – Two Albany cultural institutions, the Underground Railroad History Project and the Albany County Historical Society (ACHA) were recently awarded a total of $731,104 in federal funding through Challenge Grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
According to Jonah Cohen, communications assistant for the office of Congressman Paul Tonko, ACHA received $481,104 for the construction of a new educational center and to restore the Ten Broeck Mansion site’s 18th century carriage barn and their 19th century greenhouse. The Underground Railroad Education Center received $250,000 to fund its new 13,000-square-foot interpretive center and other building necessities, including an elevator and geothermal system and the installation of a historic Dutch Barn timber frame to be used as a focal point for the center’s entryway.
“Throughout my career, I’ve been a strong proponent of efforts to preserve and celebrate the rich history and cultural heritage of our Capital Region and our nation,” Congressman Tonko said in a Jan. 9 statement. “Through measures like my National Heritage Area Act, I’ve worked hard to secure a stable foundation of federal support for sites and organizations that provide important resources for our communities. Now I’m thrilled to celebrate these grant awards that will further expand our Capital Region’s cultural offerings.”
The National Heritage Area Act was introduced Dec. 22, 2022, by Congressman Tonko and Representative David McKinley (R-WV) and passed with bipartisan support before being signed into law on Jan. 6, 2023. The bill, according to Tonko’s website, will help maintain National Heritage areas by reauthorizing all areas for the next 15 years while also establishing clear, transparent standards, which will help make it easier for communities and local partnerships to develop and maintain their heritage areas.
“My National Heritage Area Act secures a stable foundation of federal support for these partnerships, streamlines bureaucracy, and puts the sites themselves on the strongest possible footing for the future,” Congressman Tonko said.
Maeve McEneny, director of community engagement with Discover Albany, said the need for the grant support is important for both the Albany County Historical Association and the Underground Railroad Education Center as space at both locations had become a “practical challenge.”
She said the programming offered by both organizations has always provided vibrancy to local tourism and the surrounding community.
“Their commitment to elevating untold Albany County stories have drawn both school groups and visitors from across the state and beyond,” McEneny said. “The events they host are both unique to Albany County while still remaining relevant to history at large.”
With these grants, the organizations can now grow their outreach and help get their construction projects under way.
“Discover Albany predicts the Livingston Avenue corridor is going to be a major destination driver for the city, in great part due to the expansion of these one-of-a-kind institutions.” McEneny said.
The Albany County Historical Association’s Executive Director Kathryn Kosto said she was so surprised to learn that her organization received the grant money that she had to reread her email a few times to process the positive news.
Kosto then called Board President Linda Weiss and Capital Campaign Chair Ken Mortensen, to share the good news, as well as architects Dan Wilson and Sophia Lane, to thank them for their excellent work on this project.
The Albany County Historical Association’s grant application included the architectural plans and Kosto had to make sure that her organization’s architect Thaler Reilly Wilson of Albany, had time to develop the first phase of their architectural project. ACHA colleagues Aaron Bradt and Tina Peabody helped Kosto compile the data and statistics to support their grant application.
Before the application was due, the Historical Association received a $962,000 award from the New York State Council on the Arts, and in November 2023, their “Raise the Roof Gala” helped raise 50% of the money needed to help fund their projects. ACHA is currently in its final phase of fundraising, with just 19% to go to reach their goal.
In addition to those funds, ACHA received grant funds from the Albany County American Rescue Plan Act that will help preserve and provide interpretive signage at the archaeological remains of a building that was used during the Ten Broeck period until 1813 as an enslaved person’s working and living quarters.
ACHA will use the grant money towards an ADA-accessible space in addition to the reconstruction of the carriage barn and greenhouse.
In order for Ten Broeck Mansion, an 18th century historical site, to meet ADA-requirements, the interior would have to be modernized and several historic walls and features would be taken out of the structure.
Kosto said that by keeping Ten Broeck preserved, reconstructing the barn and making it an ADA-accessible space would be the logical solution. The barn’s reconstruction was recommended in a 2021 Cultural Landscape Report completed by historical landscape architect Martha Lyon.
Since 2019, visitation to ACHA has grown, and the organization’s programming, according to Kosto, has expanded to seniors, children and special needs visitors.
“The reconstruction of the carriage barn and greenhouse visually balances our site and provides a physical presence to remind us of those who worked at the Ten Broeck Mansion: carriage drivers, grooms, gardeners and chauffeurs.” Kosto said. “The two buildings were connected and will be used for education space for our 100% free family education programs, and exhibit space dedicated to sharing the rich and diverse history and culture of Albany County. We are the only museum in the nation with that sole focus.”
With the soon-to-be construction of the education center, ACHA would be able to extend their programming to allow larger school and senior visits, allow artists and musicians for drop-in cultural hours at the center, additional hands-on art and garden workshops, and expanded author talks. Also to be added to the center by its 2025 grand opening will be a museum shop, a small cafe, and a dedicated exhibit space to honor the life and story of Roseanna Vosburgh, a free African American woman who was an abolitionist, a paid household manager for the Olcotts, and a resident of Ten Broeck Mansion.
Co-Founders of the Underground Railroad Education Center, MaryLiz and Paul Stewart were elated when they found out their organization had also received the grant. The Stewarts have a goal to raise the $9.7 million required for the completion of their new Interpretive Center.
In the fall of 2023, UREC received $2 million from the New York State Assembly, an additional $1.1 million from NYSERDA, and several hundred thousand dollars, with additional support from small foundations and community members.
The need for grant support was first realized in 2008, when UREC’s board of directors recognized that their current location at The Stephen and Harriet Myers Residence would become too small to hold the programming they envisioned. After 2008, the Stewarts had to place the idea of the new center on hold as they were focused on programming, adding staff, and the restoration of the Stephen and Harriet Myers Residence.
In 2022, the Stewarts returned to the idea of adding the Interpretive Center, and through the assistance of local state legislators, Assemblywoman Pat Fahy, Assemblyman John McDonald, and Sen. Neil Breslin, the Stewarts were able to move forward and hire an architect to design the new center and begin the grant application process.
Cohen said Congressman Tonko is a strong supporter of efforts to highlight the Capital Region as an important stop on the Underground Railroad and has visited the Stephen and Harriet Myers Residence several times in the past to help promote tourism initiatives dedicated to interpreting the stories of those who risked so much in the name of freedom and equality.
“We see the Interpretive Center as a means to not only generate new job opportunities, but we also see the Interpretive Center as an anchor that will attract other businesses to the community, all of which will contribute to the revitalization of a once vibrant community,” said MaryLiz and Paul Stewart.
UREC’s Interpretive Center will be an up-to-date, state of the art carbon neutral building, which will be accessible to individuals of all abilities. The Interpretive Center, a 13,000-square-foot building, will include solar, geothermal and other green features.
The new center will also allow UREC to collaborate with other community organizations such as Black Dimensions in Art and with Albany Symphony Orchestra. In late fall 2025, UREC will be hosting the Smithsonian exhibit, “Voices and Votes: Democracy in America.”
The Interpretive Center will also feature a 1764 Dutch Barn Timber Frame that is currently being dismantled from its Montgomery County location. The timber frame, previously used at a farm that was worked by enslaved individuals, will frame the assembly hall of the new Interpretive Center, thus, connecting the state’s past with the present and connecting enslavement, emancipation, and freedom.
The Steven and Harriet Myers Residence, built in 1847 by John Johnson, a Black sloop captain and brother of Harriet Myers, is in the process of restoring the 194 Livingston Ave. location. Soon, the residence will include updated electrical and heating amenities. The Myers residence is also ADA-accessible.
The Interpretive Center will be located 50 feet east of the Myers Residence and be built on four lots that were reclaimed and now owned by UREC. The groundbreaking is projected for April 2024, and the construction is estimated to be complete by September 2025.
As part of the construction process, the Stewarts will ensure that minority contractors are be included in the project. Once the Interpretive Center is complete and open, UREC will have new job positions, and the Stewarts are hoping to set up workforce development opportunities for non-traditional students.
“Albany is an incredibly rich place for history, and its global historical significance during the 17-18th centuries is well known by scholars, but we want to get the word out to tourists,” Kosto said. “With more welcoming amenities, more people will make time for Albany, staying to dine, shop, and take in shows at the Capital REP or the Palace Theatre.”
This story was featured on page 1 of the January 31st, 2024, print edition of the Spot518.