Today Is the Day

The entrance to the Hudson Area Library is now adorned with a banner announcing the monumental exhibition contained therein, Hudson: A History of Whaling & Maritime Commerce.

Photo: Brenda Shufelt

The opening reception for the exhibition happens tonight, from 6:00 until 7:30 p.m. The reception will include a short panel discussion with library trustees Gary Sheffer and Joseph Ferris, representatives of the DAR and the Columbia County Historical Society, the two organizations that are collaborating in the exhibition, and Richard Bazelow, a local history researcher who has spent years searching special collections at museums, libraries, historical societies, and the National Archives for artifacts of Hudson's whaling past. At the reception, too, there will be a premiere of the short film by local filmmaker Karl Frederick Mattson of 542films called Whaling in Hudson? What!? A trailer of the film can be viewed here.

The exhibition is the occasion for Black Dome Press to reissue Margaret Schram's remarkable book Hudson's Merchants and Whalers: The Rise and Fall of a River Port 1783-1850. The reissue marks the twentieth anniversary of the book's original publication in 2004. I read the book when it was first published, refer to it often to check information I know it contains, and reread it entirely in preparation for writing the Foreword to the reissue, which I was honored to be asked to write. The book is an amazing compendium of information about the first sixty-seven years of Hudson's history, and I heartily recommend it to everyone. The book can be purchased at Spotty Dog Books & Ale, 440 Warren Street, and at the Hudson Area Library, the DAR, and the Columbia County Historical Society.

The exhibition is being commemorated in other ways as well. Kim Bach of Verdigris has created a tea blend in honor of Hudson's heritage called "Proprietors' Tea." The tea can be purchased at Verdigris, 135 Warren Street, as well as the library, the DAR, and the historical society.

Also, if you're into tattoos, Hudson River Tattoo, 724 Warren Street, is offering discounted prices on tattoos of Richard Kraham's 1970s SPOUT (Society for the Promotion of Our Unique Town) logo. A portion of the proceeds from these tattoos will go to the Hudson Area Library.

The exhibition at the library, which is opening tonight, continues through June 30, 2025.

COPYRIGHT 2025 CAROLE OSTERINK