My name is Michael Barootjian and I am an alum of SUNY New Paltz. Welcome to my new blog! Here you will be able to follow my weekly progress of research and progress in the reconstruction of history in the Mid-Hudson River. I am currently planning on writing and telling a more diverse and inclusive story of Newburgh and the surrounding areas. I am currently in the process of researching the racialized society in Newburgh. This week I will hopefully narrow down the time period I will be investigating. As of now, I am interested in time periods before the Civil War, but due to the lack of resources, it may be too difficult of a topic to research.
I have been reading On the Morning Tide written by A.J. Williams-Myers, my former professor of History and Black Studies at SUNY New Paltz. Williams-Myers is one of the only scholars to ever publish literature about Africans and African-Americans in early Hudson River society and life. There is a lot to learn about this area which I grew up in and I am very motivated to explore its history and bring something new to the discourse of social relations between Africans and European settlers.
Based in the David Crawford Historic House while working at the Historical Society of Newburgh Bay and the Highlands, I will start writing notes for a historical breakthrough which will change the way that residents of this area think about the past here. At the David Crawford Historic House, I am also shadowing the Director of the Historical Society, and learning how to run and organize a whole committee of Board members and volunteers.
This week I have a meeting with a member of the Beacon Historical Society and an Assemblyman who used to work at the Woodbury Historical Society. I am trying to get in contact with my old professor to talk about my project. Follow my weekly progress by checking back every Monday, or subscribe with your email address. Feel free to write to me, and please leave comments!
On the Morning Tide, written by A.J. Williams Myers
Mid-Hudson History 