Willitt C. Jewell’s Putnam County: A Pop-Up Historic Photo Gallery at Spain Cornerstone
Presenting 210 Images to Celebrate 210 Years

June 13, 2022 -- Following this weekend’s gallery opening and history awards on Sunday, June 12th at Laura Spain Memorial Cornerstone Park in Carmel, the Putnam County Historian’s Office welcomes the public at a pop-up historic photo gallery throughout “Celebrate Putnam” week and I LOVE NY’s Path Through History Weekend.

For Putnam County Day 2022, the County Historian’s Office remembers Willitt C. Jewell’s numerous contributions to the history of Putnam County. As a public servant, Jewell actively participated in community organizations beneficial to his town and county. As a newspaperman and photographer, he documented events, people, and places. And as a historian and researcher, he brought outdated histories of the county up to his own times. Without his significant work, much of the county’s history that he gathered and recorded would have been lost forever. His daughter Dorothy - also devoted to the history of her community - deposited her father’s personal papers, writings and photographs, as well as some of her own collection, to the archives of the County Historian to be accessible to future generations. Images for the exhibit were pulled from the Jewell Collection at the Historian’s Office which consists of over 1,200 photographs, negatives and slides, carefully processed by volunteers and staff.

“Cornerstone Park was chosen as pop-up photo gallery, part of the reimagination of the standard Putnam County Day ceremony and celebration,” says Jennifer Cassidy, Putnam County Historian. “Willitt Jewell’s Putnam County consists of informational panels loosely based on his history of Putnam as published in Southeastern New York (1946) and his news coverage in the Courier. These images span over 100 years of Putnam County history.”

Highlights to the gallery include: Jewell’s genealogy and connection to Sheriff James J. Smalley; his life career with the Courier; the history of the County Fair and Racetrack; Sybil Ludington; Putnam County’s experience during the early part of World War II; Drew Methodist Church and Drew Seminary; and over 210 photographic highlights of people and places throughout the county.

Gallery Open to the Public:

Wednesday, June 15th, 9 am —3 pm
Friday, June 17th, 9 am—3 pm
Saturday, June 18th, 9 am—3 pm

2022 Putnam County History Awards Include:
Local History Lifetime Achievement Joseph Ciccolanti of the Town of Southeast for “Keeping and Sharing Historical Memories”
Local History Lifetime Achievement Betty Marie Light Behr of the Town of Kent – Historian, Genealogist & Keeper of the Past
In Memoriam Gregory J. Amato – Historian and Public Servant
Local History Publication Sallie & Wylie Sypher who brought Putnam Valley history up-to-date with their book, “Putnam Valley: A Look Back”
Exemplary Public History in Schools Brewster High School – Students Making History by Marking It - Model UN, Semper Fi and Habitat for Humanity Clubs Historic Markers: “Tone’s Pond” &“Snowdale Farm”
Preserving Local History Kathryn & David Bisbee – in honor of the Lake Oscawana Postcard Collection, over 400 views of the lake community they love
Exemplary Public History Putnam History Museum for their extraordinary efforts to provide public programming in a pandemic

For more information contact:

Jennifer M. Cassidy
Putnam County Historian’s Office & Archives
68 Marvin Avenue, Brewster, NY 10509
845-808-1420, ext. 44116

On the web: putnamcountyny.com/historian
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Instagram: @PutnamHistorian

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