Wheels To Waterford

We're partnering with the Albany Bike Coalition and Bike Barn  for a fun event!!!

Sunday, August 3rd               9:30am - 2:30pm

Riverfront Boat Launch - Waterford Historical Museum and Cultural Center

Distance: 23 Miles                                                        Fee: $20 per person

REGISTER BY TUESDAY, JULY 31st

This family-friendly ride will take a scenic trip from Albany to Waterford, following the water. It's a great opportunity to participate in an exclusive tour with stops at some key canal and local features along the way, finishing up at the Waterford Historical Museum and Cultural Center!

The escorted ride will be on the very flat Mohawk Hudson Bike-Hike and the Black Bridge trails to Waterford, and is mostly "off-road" with some quiet on-street sections in Watervliet, Green Island and Waterford. in Waterford, we will follow the Old Champlain Canal towpath to Lock 4 and museum grounds (psst….there's a model of Lock 4 inside the museum for you to play around with while visiting with us!)

Rider fee covers:

 Lunch, Museum Admission,
and a donation for Albany Bicycle Coalition's programs.

We will have a monitored bicycle lock-up area at the museum. The "rain-or-shine" ride totals about 23 miles.  We will depart PROMPTLY at 10am after sign up to begin our trip. We should arrive back in Albany around 2:30pm.

How to Register:
Send an email to lorenzworden@gmail.com

Use "WATERFORD" as the first word in your subject line. State the NUMBER OF RIDERS you are registering, CHOOSE A VEGETERIAN OR NON-VEGETERIAN LUNCH option for each. 

A parent or guardian MUST accompany children under age 18 who are capable of this ride. 

Since this ride involves considerable outlay by the sponsors, please register only if you are committed to attend. If you register and are unable to attend, please notify us before that date.

What to Bring: 

Helmet, lock, water, $20, and appropriate riding gear.
Please check your bicycle over before the ride.

WHMCC as seen from the old Champlain Canal Trail

If you cannot make this ride, visit the Waterford Historical Museum and Cultural Center on your own! Check out our website at    http://waterfordmuseum.com/plan-a-visit/

Fulfill your bicycle service and accessory needs at the Bike Barn Cycling and Fitness

Other bicycle-related events:

 Albany Bike Coalition

Albany Bike Coalition Upcoming Events

Albany Bike Coalition Facebook Page

Join the Bike Barn Cycling & Fitness Ride Group

5 Things To Do At The Museum

If you haven't had the chance to visit with us at 2 Museum Lane, check out our hours below to plan a trip! Museum members, children under 6, and those with military ID receive FREE admission.

Take a look below to check out some suggestions of what you can do at your visit to the museum!

5 Things To Do At The Museum

1. "Water & War: Waterford's Routes and Canals Through Conflict"

Explore this space to learn more about Waterford, NY and its involvement in conflicts since its early days. Its location at the confluence of the Mohawk and Hudson Rivers made it a vital spot for transporting supplies north and south - and with the advent of canals - east and west as the country developed and grew.  The Barge Canal system, celebrating its 100th anniversary, shares an anniversary and connection with the 100 years' end of WWI.

This exhibit will run until the close of our 2018 museum season in October.

2. Image Scavenger Hunt
Our permanent exhibit, "Born of Two Rivers: An Illustrated History of Waterford NY", is also available for visitors to tour. Chart Waterford's course from its native inhabitants to early settlers through industrial expansion and building of the Champlain, Erie and the Barge Canals. Check out our website for an image scavenger hunt - there are 2 versions depending on how much of a challenge you're looking for! These images are from panels and items in our permanent exhibit

3. Audio Tour

Add to your trip with your smartphone - UniGuide Audio Tours free app allows you to hear more of what's on exhibit at the museum! Just download the app onto your phone and it will automatically offer audio tours of places based on your location. You don't even have to be in the building - of course, we'd love for you to come inside to better view what you're listening to, but in case you missed our hours, there's still a chance for you to explore virtually!







4. Working Model Lock

 The museum's children's area has a game of Waterford Sudoku, some activity and coloring sheets and other fun things to do - like take a look at our model of the old Champlain Canal Model Lock. You can operate it - or have a docent help you out in working this model to see how river locks worked on the canal.

5. Tour the Old Champlain Canal 

The museum is located beside the historic Old Champlain Canal Trail and overlooks the abandoned Lock 4. You can operate the model lock inside the museum and then step right onto this piece of history! You can take the stairs at the edge of the museum parking lot to get to this lock and trail.


If you're docked at the Harbor, you can walk this trail to the museum (it takes about a half hour). Inside the museum there is a large diorama of Waterford as it was in 1875 so you can get a close-up look at how the canal ran through Waterford.

Bonus:

Tour the Mohawk Towpath Scenic Byway

We're a stop on that tour too! We're number 18 on their cell phone tour. Just like with UniGuide's tour, it's accessible at any time.

1876 Independence Day

Happy Independence Day!

It sure has been a hot few days this past week - although the honor of having to melt the most goes to Troy with a record of 108 degrees Fahrenheit on July 22nd , 1926. But Waterford's record for July 4th seems to be pretty close to Troy's state record - 104 degrees Fahrenheit in 1911.

Moving past the heat, although that's hard to do since it's 96 degrees today, there are bound to be some festivities going on to celebrate the 242nd birthday of the country. Please make sure you stay safe! 

So if you're curious to read some local perspectives on how things were for the 100th anniversary, check out this found in collection item.

The Waterford Historical Museum and Cultural Center's  original mission at the time of its creation in 1964 was to preserve and education the history of Waterford, NY and its surrounding communities.

Which means that there are items from Cohoes, Troy, Lansignburgh, Saratoga, Halfmoon and other local-ish areas that were included in the early days of the museum's collection. Sometimes there are direct connections to Waterford....other times it's not so easy to determine. Today, the collections committee does its best to accept any potential new acquisitions based on the items' relevance to Waterford.

So occasionally there are items like this 24-page pamphlet titled, "Centennial Day: An Oration Delivered at Schaghticoke, N.Y. July the Fourth Eighteen Hundred and Seventy Six; The One Hundredth Anniversary of American Independence by Joseph Foster Knickerbocker"

  
Schaghticoke, like Waterford, has a connection to Revolutionary War history and so it is not surprising that for the hundredth anniversary there would be such an effort to have this commemorative ceremony.

Waterford also had a centennial anniversary celebration too, with one of the items from this event on display now in the current "Water & War: Waterford's Routes And Canals Through Conflict" exhibit.

It must have been a pretty hot day for this reenactor too - this  1876 reproduction of a 1776 uniform had some sweat stains on the inside. Aside from that and a little yellowing of the trim, this uniform is in good condition for you to take a look at when you visit.

You can also check out the WWI uniform that is also pictured here as well, as part of the exhibit acknowledging the 100 years since the end of WWI and the official opening of the Barge Canal in New York.

If you're interested in reading a little more of how our founding was looked at during this time, some local perspectives and other aspects of the day, you can read it below.