NEWSLETTER
To Implement Master Infrastructure Plan
Catskill, NY (November 30, 2021) – As it celebrates 20 years of being open to the public, the Thomas Cole National Historic Site announced today a major grant award of $360,000 from Empire State Development. With this critical support from the State of New York, the Thomas Cole Site can now implement its Master Plan for site-wide improvements to expand further its cultural, educational, and economic impact.
The Thomas Cole National Historic Site is a National Historic Landmark located in the Hudson Valley and New York’s Capital Region. The international destination includes the home and studios of artist and early environmentalist Thomas Cole (1801-1848). Cole founded the first major art movement of the United States, now known as the Hudson River School of landscape painting. His home and studios are surrounded by the stunning New York landscapes that he painted, weaving the wilderness of the Catskill Mountains and the Hudson River Valley into our national identity.
In recognition of the increasingly vital cultural, educational, and economic role that the Thomas Cole National Historic Site plays and to enhance that role in the future, Empire State Development awarded the Site a grant of $360,000, as recommended by the Capital Region Economic Development Council. The grant enables the Thomas Cole Site to implement a $1.8 million Master Plan to enhance the Site’s six-acre campus, preserve its history, and expand its impact. The Master Plan will result in a new building to welcome visitors and host special events; a new outdoor program and event space adjacent to the visitor center with a complete view of the historic campus and the Catskill Mountains; a dedicated indoor education space for expanding K-12 student and public programming; infrastructure and energy-efficiency improvements to the iconic historic buildings, the 1815 Main House and 1839 Old Studio; and restoration of the rural nature of the historic property.
In addition to the $360,000 grant from Empire State Development, the Master Plan is funded by $592,300 in project support from the National Park Service as well as significant support from The Bay & Paul Foundations, Nina Matis & Alan Gosule, Brown Foundation, Evelyn Trebilcock & Douglas Hammond, Chris Buck & Dr. Hara Schwartz, Anne Miller & Stuart Breslow, The Warner Foundation, The Educational Foundation for America, Robert Miller & Kathy Klingenstein, The J. M. Kaplan Fund, Lisa Fox Martin, Kristin Gamble, Jimmy & Micaela Bulich, Alison Lankenau, Carolyn B. MacDonald, Betsy & Al Scott, Stainman Family Foundation, and many other generous individuals and foundations.
“The Thomas Cole National Historic Site plays a vibrant and vital role in the cultural, educational, and economic life of New York State,” said Elizabeth B. Jacks, Executive Director of the Thomas Cole National Historic Site. “With this critical new funding from the State of New York, the National Park Service, and many other generous donors, we are so excited to bring out the full potential of the Thomas Cole Site in the years ahead.”
The Thomas Cole National Historic Site
The Thomas Cole National Historic Site is an international destination presenting the original home and studios of the artist and early environmentalist Thomas Cole (1801-1848). Cole founded the first major art movement of the United States, now known as the Hudson River School of landscape painting. Located on 6 acres in the Hudson Valley, the site includes the 1815 Main House; Cole’s 1839 Old Studio; the reconstructed 1846 New Studio building; and panoramic views of the Catskill Mountains. It is a National Historic Landmark and an affiliated area of the National Park System.
The Thomas Cole Site’s activities include guided and self-guided tours, special exhibitions of both 19th-century and contemporary art, print publications, lectures, extensive online programs, school programs, the Cole Fellowship, free community events, and innovative public programs such as the Hudson River School Art Trail—a map and website that enable people to visit the places in nature that Cole painted—and the Hudson River Skywalk, a new scenic walkway connecting the Thomas Cole Site with Frederic Church’s Olana over the Hudson River.
The goal of all programs at the Thomas Cole Site is to enable visitors to find meaning and inspiration in Thomas Cole’s life and work. The themes that Cole explored in his art and writings—such as landscape preservation and our conception of nature as a restorative power—are both historic and timely, providing the opportunity to connect to audiences with insights that are highly relevant to their own lives.
Visitor Information
The Thomas Cole National Historic Site is open this November and December for guided tours. Hours vary by season. For details see: www.thomascole.org/visit. The grounds are open every day for free from dawn to dusk. Keep in touch on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at @thomascolesite.
###
Contact: Associate Director, Jennifer Greim, jgreim@thomascole.org