NEWSLETTER
New Paltz, NY – As a part of the museum’s 2020 initiative to shed light on the history of women’s rights, Historic Huguenot Street will honor the stories and celebrate the lives of Native women in the larger narrative of our communities. “The Power of Native Women” is a three-part multimedia event: Visitors can choose to attend in person Saturday, September 19 from 4 to 6 PM; join the museum online for a live-streaming of the speakers that same evening; and also attend follow-up themed virtual sessions to learn more on special topics.
On September 19, visitors will check in at the Museum Shop in the DuBois Fort Visitor Center (81 Huguenot Street) to peruse educational texts related to the history and culture of the local Indigenous population available for purchase. View the 1677 land agreement, a 340-year-old document that reveals the marks, or signatures, of several Esopus Munsee women who participated in or witnessed the land trade made with the Huguenot settlers. A guide stationed at the replica Munsee wigwam will explain the significance of the structure, which was built in 2017, as well as the daily life of a Munsee woman living in the region, pre-contact.
Across the street from the Visitor Center, on the lawn between the Bevier-Elting and Deyo Houses, Indigenous Chef Quentin Glabus will be serving sample dishes of his modern take on traditional Munsee cuisine. Glabus’s menu will include Blueberry with Sweetgrass & Rosemary; Three Sisters Salad: White Corn, Beans, Squash; Rustic Turkey Terrine with Maple Wild Rice, Sage & Cranberries; Popped Corn Seasoned with Sunflower Oil and Fried Sage Powder; Squash Pie (Wild Rice or Toasted Cornmeal Tart Shell); and Blue Corn Pudding with Berries.
Heather Bruegl, the Cultural Affairs Director for the Stockbridge-Munsee Community of Mohican Indians, will be streamed in from Wisconsin to talk about the important role that Indigenous women play within their families and communities for thousands of years. Her talk will focus on Native women throughout history who have broken down barriers to become soldiers, doctors, politicians, and activists. She will also focus on her own important work as an activist for Indigenous culture and communities. Time will be left at the end of the presentation for Q&A.
Anyone who does not live locally, or who is not comfortable participating in the in-person program, may register for the virtual experience at a slightly discounted price. Registrants will receive an email containing links to the following: a digitized version of the 1677 land agreement featuring the marks, or signatures, of several Esopus Munsee women; a time-lapse video detailing the construction of the replica wigwam, completed in 2017; a recipe for one of
Chef Glabus’s Indigenous dishes to try at home; and a link to access Heather Bruegl’s virtual presentation of “The Power of Native Women,” shared simultaneously with the attendees viewing it on-site.
Whether or not visitors choose to attend the program in-person or virtually, all registrants will be invited to additionally participate in follow-up virtual sessions, taking place at various times throughout the following week. These sessions will allow participants to have more intimate conversations with our speaker, tribal representatives, and activists working to preserve Indigenous land, rights, and culture. The times, dates, and presenters for each follow-up session are to be announced.
Those interested in attending can learn more about the event and register for the sessions on the event website at https://www.huguenotstreet.org/native-women.
“Power of Native Women” is sponsored by the New York State Council on the Arts, Lothrop Associates, Marshall & Sterling Insurance, and America’s Best Value Inn of New Paltz; and funded in part by Humanities New York with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Photo: Courtesy Brian Wolfe from “Brotherhood and Belonging: Hendrick Aupaumut’s Assertion of Indigenous Rights and Settler Responsibility” 2019.
About Historic Huguenot Street
A National Historic Landmark District, Historic Huguenot Street is a 501(c)3 non-profit that encompasses 30 buildings across 10 acres comprising the heart of the original 1678 New Paltz settlement, including seven stone houses dating to the early eighteenth century. Historic Huguenot Street was founded in 1894 as the Huguenot Patriotic, Historical, and Monumental Society to preserve the nationally acclaimed collection of stone houses. Since then, Historic Huguenot Street has grown into an innovative museum, chartered as an educational corporation by the University of the State of New York Department of Education that is dedicated to preserving a unique Hudson Valley Huguenot settlement and engaging diverse audiences in the exploration of America's multicultural past in order to understand the historical forces that have shaped America.
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Contact:
Frances Vigna
Marketing & Communications Coordinator
(845) 255-1660 Ext. 102