 Tasting Room at Owera Vineyards Owera Vineyards, Madison County’s first vineyard, has officially opened its doors and created a dozen jobs. The 57-acre picturesque farm winery features a state-of-the-art 7,200 square foot production facility, complete with a tasting room and tank and barrel rooms. The 5,200 square foot event center and amphitheater will accommodate guests for weddings, corporate events and private parties. The property has four acres of Marquette and Frontenac Gris vines, as well as fruit orchards, a vegetable garden and many ponds. IN 2011, Central New York’s Regional Economic Development Council awarded Owera Vineyards a grant to promote agri-tourism in the area. Owner, Nancy J. Muserlian says “We are thrilled to receive this grant and that New York State is behind us in the development of this project.” Owera has been producing wines since 2010 and boasts 25 awards including top Wine Spectator ratings for two of their Riesling wines. Owera Vineyards is located four miles north of the village of Cazenovia. For more information, visit www.oweravineyards.com.
 "Greene Street,” oils on linen by William Benson Cazenovia's Stone Quarry Hill Art Park is pleased to announce its summer exhibition, William Benson Abstracting Realism. The exhibition, is sponsored by Jim and Pamela McDonough and The Pluff Hooley Black Group at Morgan Stanley, and will run from Thursday, June 13 through Sunday, July 28 in the John and Virginia Winner Memorial Art Gallery. The gallery is open every Thursday – Sunday from 12:00 – 5:00 PM or by appointment. An opening reception will be held on Thursday, June 13th from 5:30 – 7:30 PM. The reception is open to the public. William Benson, who lives with his wife Sadie in Ithaca NY, graduated from the School of Fine Arts at Cornell University in 1972. Now a nationally recognized artist, he paints portraits, landscape and still life in oil and charcoal. He has painted more than 300 portraits and over the last 20 years he has been striving to incorporate abstraction into representational aspects of landscape and still life. Although the art world was in the grip of neo abstract expressionism during the early stages of his career, Benson chose to immerse himself in the inherent power of abstraction as well as technical understanding of the great representational artists throughout history. "Early on I realized I had a skill and proclivity to draw both people and things. I became proficient at portraiture and have been able to sustain my family doing that during the last 30 years," Bill explains. "In the meantime, I found a way to marry the power of abstraction and realism in conveying the beauty of our upstate landscape. This is a beautiful place where we live, and I have a passion to capture it." Benson's work has been shown in the Rochester Memorial Art Museum, The Arnot Museum in Elmira, The Johnson Museum at Cornell University, as well as dozens of galleries and shows throughout the United States. His work is collected both nationally and internationally. Jennifer Schutzendorf, Benson’s representative and the exhibition’s Guest Curator said “Benson’s paintings are precise yet bold, daring and as energetic as he. I can’t wait for people to experience Benson's unparalleled skill for portraiture alongside his passion for the landscape. The realism in his work often alongside abstracted elements creates an interesting dialogue that I want people to experience.” Benson has generously donated a painting to the Art Park, which will be raffled at the end of the exhibition. Raffle tickets will be available to purchase at the opening reception, in the gallery or through the Art Park office and website. In addition to the exhibition, Mr. Benson will conduct a live portrait demonstration of Dorothy Riester, founder of the Stone Quarry Hill Art Park. The demonstration will be held in the Art Park gallery on Saturday, June 15th at 10:00 AM for a $15 suggested donation. For more information, visit www.stonequarryhillartpark.org.
 "Penny for your thoughts, Mr. President?" Preparations are underway for the 21st Annual Peterboro Civil War Weekend, which begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday June 8 and ends at 4 p.m. on Sunday, June 9. More than one hundred Civil War reenactors will spruce up their period costumes and turn the clocks back 150 years. The Civil War military and civilian encampment includes daily life and housekeeping, drilling, medical tents, generals plotting strategies, President Lincoln walking about pressing copper coins in the palms of tots, Civil War Round Tables, historical organizations, vendors and sutlers and, of course, the skirmish at 2 p.m. each day. The hamlet will welcome folks from neighboring towns and several states who will become immersed in 1863 as the event recognizes the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War with featured themes of the Emancipation Proclamation, the recruitment and service of the United States Colored Troops, and the Battle of Gettysburg and President Lincoln’s famous speech five months later. The community of the Town of Smithfield and the dedicated reenactors create a 19th Century village in which families can spend the weekend doing a variety of activities. The best introduction to the hamlet is a tour at mid-day both days of the weekend that begins at the Iron Gate with guides Donna Dorrance Burdick (the Town of Smithfield historian) and Beth Dorrance Spokowsky (the President of the Peterboro Area Museum.) Walking slowly and talking fast the two sisters provide an entertaining and educational crash course in Peterboro history. The guides begin with details on the lives of Peter Smith and his son Gerrit. The tour will continue on the west end of Park Street, where participants can expect to be introduced to a re-enactor portraying Elizabeth Smith Miller, wearing her creation—the bloomer costume. Proceeding down Park Street, visitors will learn about the activities held on the village green in years past, as well as the various residents of the houses along the way. The two can also be found much of the weekend at the Peterboro Area Museum with the exhibits of Peterboro and Its People, and, Burdick’s displays on Smithfield in the Civil War and the war experiences of Aaron Bliss who was in five prison camps before escaping, becoming Governor of Michigan, and donating the Civil War statue to his hometown of Peterboro. To learn about Peterboro’s famous citizen Gerrit Smith, visitors can visit the Gerrit Smith Estate National Historic Landmark across the street from the Civil War encampment. Exhibitions (including an introductory video) for The Barn, The Grounds, The Land Office, The Laundry, and The Lodge describe Smith and his family, Smith’s use of wealth to aid the oppressed, his abolition activities, his Underground Railroad activities at the site, African-Americans in Peterboro. The Lodge will also have binders and videos from twenty years of Civil War Weekend. These exhibits are open the hours of the annual event, as is the Peterboro Mercantile, the community heritage shop. – which has a satellite station on the green. All of the sites, events, and programs (except food and the Saturday evening concert) come with admission for an adult at $7, 6-12 at $3, and under 6 free. For more information and updates: w ww.gerritsmith.org, info@gerritsmith.org, and 315-280-8828.
 1868 Women’s Base Ball Game in Peterboro NY, courtesy National Baseball Hall of Fame Library, Cooperstown NY. At 2 p.m. Sunday, June 16, 2013 in Peterboro, Debra Shattuck, author of the article Women’s Baseball in the 1860s: Reestablishing a Historical Memory (published in Nine: A Journal of Baseball History and Culture) will unravel part of the mystery of 1868 women’s baseball in Peterboro. In her Powerpoint presentation Bloomer Girls: Women Baseball Pioneers, Shattuck will describe the early roots of America’s national pastime and demonstrate that girls and women have been playing bat and ball games since Medieval times. Females have been playing the various games known as “base ball” since their inception in England and antebellum America. Shattuck will discuss the Peterboro teams and whether or not women baseball players considered their actions to be part of the broader women’s rights movement of the time.
Shattuck is a retired Air Force Colonel who is currently working on a PhD in History from the University of Iowa. She has been researching the history of women baseball players for over 10 years and is writing the book, Bloomer Girls: Women Baseball Pioneers for the University of Illinois Press. She has published a number of articles on the subject and enjoys making presentations on the subject to civic groups and academic conferences. Debbie is married to Cliff Shattuck and the couple has three grown children, David, Kristen and Katie. Cliff and Debbie currently reside in the beautiful Black Hills of Rapid City, South Dakota.
At least twenty-six newspaper articles published around the nation in
1868 reported the existence of women’s baseball clubs. Thanks to Elizabeth Cady Stanton and an anonymous reporter, the baseball club in Peterboro was the best documented of the women’s teams in the 1860s. During a three week visit in August 1868 at the Peterboro home of her cousin, abolitionist Gerrit Smith, Stanton wrote three letters for her women’s rights publication The Revolution. A letter written on August 1, and published on August 5, included a description of
a female baseball club that began with this statement: “We were delighted to find here a base ball club of girls. Nannie Miller, a grand-daughter of Gerrit Smith, is the Captain, and handles the club with a grace and strength worth of notice.” Conflicting information in the anonymous report, and a misleading date on a newspaper photograph at the Baseball Hall of Fame, created a mystery for many years on just what happened with women’s base ball in Peterboro.
The program will be held at the Smithfield Community Center, 5255
Pleasant Valley Road, Peterboro NY 13134. Admission is $3 and free for students and stewards for benefit of the Gerrit Smith Estate National Historic Landmark. This presentation is one of the 2013 Peterboro Heritage Programs hosted by the Gerrit Smith Estate National Historic Landmark and the National Abolition Hall of Fame and Museum. Both sites are open from May 18 to September 22 on weekends from 1- 5 p.m., for special events, and by appointment. For more information and updates: www.gerritsmith.org, info@gerritsmith.org,
315-280-8828.
The International Boxing Hall of Fame announced hard-punching 1970s heavyweight contender Earnie Shavers will attend the Banquet of Champions on Saturday, June 8th. The banquet is part of the festivities planned for the 24th Annual Hall of Fame Induction Weekend set for June 6-9th. “Earnie Shavers played a big part of the legendary heavyweight division of the 1970s that produced so many memorable moments,” said Hall of Fame Executive Director Edward Brophy. “We’re really looking forward to welcoming him back to Canastota and to the Banquet of Champions.” Born in Garland, Alabama, Shavers is considered by many as the hardest puncher in heavyweight history. A top rated contender during the 1970s, he challenged both Muhammad Ali (L15) and Larry Holmes (TKO by 11) in title bouts. Shavers compiled an impressive 73-14-1 (67KOs) record during his career and holds wins over such notables as Jimmy Young, Jimmy Ellis, Joe Bugner and Ken Norton among others. The banquet, which will be held at the Syracuse OnCenter, is a one-of-a-kind event with over 40 boxing celebrities under one roof. Boxing stars already confirmed to attend include Marvelous Marvin Hagler, “Irish” Micky Ward, Aaron “The Hawk” Pryor, Julian Jackson, Wayne McCullough, Lucia Rijker, Mia St. John, Gerry Cooney, Danny “Little Red” Lopez, James “Buster” Douglas and many others. The event will consist of cocktails, dinner, celebrity comments, video highlights, a commemorative program and much more. Tickets are priced at $135 and corporate tables of 10 are available at $1350. In addition to the banquet, events planned for the weekend include a night of welterweight warriors, parade, golf tournament, boxing autograph card show, cocktail party and the Official Induction Ceremony honoring the Class of 2013. Inductees include two-division champion Arturo “Thunder” Gatti (posthumous), five-time world champion Virgil “Quicksilver” Hill and two-time light flyweight champion Myung-Woo Yuh in the Modern category; “Let’s Get It On” referee Mills Lane, ring announcer Jimmy Lennon, Jr. and journalist Colin Hart. Posthumous inductees in the Old-Timer, Pioneer, Non-Participant and Observer categories will also be honored. For more information on the Hall of Fame’s 24th Annual Induction Weekend please call (315) 697-7095, visit online at www.ibhof.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/InternationalBoxingHallofFame and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/BoxingHall.
 The 21st Annual Peterboro Civil War Weekend will observe the sesquicentennial of the United States Colored Troops with programs during the annual event on Saturday, June 8 and Sunday, June 9. With the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation January 1, 1863, President Lincoln authorized the recruiting of African American soldiers in the Union Army. The United States Colored Troop Institute at Hartwick College, Oneonta NY, will set up an exhibit from its Images of the Freedom Journey collection at the Smithfield Community Center on Saturday, June 8 from 10 am – 5 pm. The displays will include prints, books, and photos of abolitionists who contributed to the ending of slavery. The United States Colored Troops (USCT) Institute is designated by the National Park Services as a research center of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom. Matthews and the USCTI have been honored by numerous proclamations in several states and by the Congressional Black Caucus' Military Braintrust for outstanding African American genealogical and historical research. The United State Colored Troop exhibit and program are supported by a grant from the New York Council for the Humanities. At 12:30 on June 8 at the USCTI exhibit Harry Bradshaw Matthews will present The Meaning of Colored. Matthews is the founding president of the United States Colored Troops Institute for Local History and Family Research at Hartwick College, and the associate dean and director of the U.S. Pluralism Center at Hartwick. Matthews was placed in the C-SPAN Video Library for being the keynote speaker at the USCT Grave Site Salute at the Gettysburg National Cemetery during the 2008 Commemorative of President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. Matthews was also a featured speaker at the 2010 USCT Grand Review in Harrisburg, PA. He was a guest for the NBC New York show positively Black" during Christmas Day, 2010. He also served as a confidential researcher for the NBC show, "Who Do You Think You Are?" that segmented actress Vanessa Williams’s family research to a USCT. Matthews is a resident of Oneonta/Davenport, NY. He is the grandson of the formerly enslaved Richard Parler, Jr. of Denmark, SC. He has further traced his family lineage back to 1762 and the Killingsworth surname to 1215 A.D. Matthews is the author of several books, including The Family Legacy of Anthony Johnson: From Jamestown, VA to Somerset, MD, 1619-1995: A Multi-racial Saga in Black, Red and White, the Negro Johnson and Indian Puckham Lineage, 1992, rev. 2007. He is also the author of the 2007 revised edition of African-American Genealogical Research: How to Trace Your Family History; the 2008 writing, African American Freedom Journey in New York and Related Sites, 1823-1870; and the 2012 writing, The Freedom Journey: The Underground Railroad to the Buffalo Soldiers in Otsego County, New York.
On Sunday, June 9 the 3rd Regiment Infantry, United States Colored Troops, (re-enacting) will exhibit in the East Tent. The 3rd Regiment USCT is a non-profit, 501c3 charitable organization from the Philadelphia PA area. The mission of the unit is to educate the masses in the history and service of the United States Colored Troops. The 3rd Regiment provides services to youth in scouting, supports Senior Citizens and helps the needy. The Regiment supports the creation of a United States Colored Troops Memorial Monument and Its Maintenance. The group participates in Living History presentations and battle reenactments. The 3rd will present various programs at its exhibit site. Fore more information on the 21st Annual Peterboro Civil War Weekend, visit www.civilwarweekend.sca-peterboro.org or contact 315-280-8828, mail@sca-peterboro.org. Admission for event activities (except shopping and food) is $7 Adults, $3 ages 6–12, and free for under 6.
Former heavyweight champion James “Buster” Douglas will return to Canastota for the International Boxing Hall of Fame’s 24th Annual Hall of Fame Induction Weekend festivities, June 6-9th. “Buster Douglas authored one of the biggest upsets in boxing history to become heavyweight champion of the world,” said Hall of Fame director Edward Brophy. “The Hall of Fame is looking forward to welcoming him back to Canastota and I’m sure fans will be excited to see him.” A native of Columbus, Ohio, Douglas turned pro in 1981. Following wins over Randall (Tex) Cobb, Dave Jaco and former heavyweight champion Greg Page, he challenged Tony Tucker for the IBF heavyweight title in 1987. Although unsuccessful in his first bid for the championship (TKO by 10), he rebounded to record wins over Trevor Berbick and Oliver McCall before meeting undisputed heavyweight champion Mike Tyson in Tokyo, Japan on February 11, 1990 for the title. Douglas, a decided underdog (42-1), became the first man to defeat Tyson when he scored a 10th round kayo to capture the championship. Douglas retired in 1990, but returned to the ring for a comeback in 1996. In 1999 he hung up the gloves again with a professional record of 38-6-1, 1 NC (25KOs). Events planned for the weekend include a banquet, a night of welterweight warriors, parade, golf tournament, boxing autograph card show, cocktail party and the Official Induction Ceremony honoring the Class of 2013. Inductees include two-division champion Arturo “Thunder” Gatti (posthumous), five-time world champion Virgil “Quicksilver” Hill and two-time light flyweight champion Myung-Woo Yuh in the Modern category; “Let’s Get It On” referee Mills Lane, ring announcer Jimmy Lennon, Jr. and journalist Colin Hart. Posthumous inductees in the Old-Timer, Pioneer, Non-Participant and Observer categories will also be honored. An impressive list of over 40 boxing greats from the United States and abroad are scheduled to participate in weekend festivities including Marvelous Marvin Hagler, “Irish” Micky Ward, James “Buddy” McGirt, Pipino Cuevas, Carlos Palomino, Aaron “The Hawk” Pryor, Julian Jackson, Wayne McCullough, Lucia Rijker, Mia St. John, Gerry Cooney, Gasper Ortega, Tony DeMarco, Danny “Little Red” Lopez, Tracy Harris Patterson, Ruben Olivares, Carlos Ortiz, Ray Mercer and many more. For more information on the Hall of Fame’s 24th Annual Induction Weekend please call (315) 697-7095, visit online at www.ibhof.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/InternationalBoxingHallofFame and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/BoxingHall.
Opening at Lorenzo this spring, “From Bustle to Bodice” will include full-length replicas, based on historic portraits, of dresses worn by Lorenzo owners Helen Clarissa Lincklaen and her daughter, Helen Lincklaen Fairchild, as well as the dress depicted in a portrait of Helen Clarissa’s mother, Mary Forman Seymour. The exhibit will also feature examples of servants’ clothing, undergarments, children’s costumes and accessories from the historic collections at Lorenzo. Custom fabrications have been designed and created by Dr. Damayanthie Eluwawalage, Associate Professor, SUNY Oneonta and the Peebles Island Resource Center. The exhibit will be on view Wednesdays – Sundays, 10 am to 4:30 pm beginning on May 17 and the exhibition will be featured during The Friends of Lorenzo Garden Gala Party on Friday, June 14.
And since 1997, the reproduction period dress program at the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation has made about 360 separate garments for use at various state historic sites throughout New York, including Lorenzo. Staff from the Peebles Island Conservation Center and program participants will show reproduction examples and offer how appropriate period clothing has enhanced historic programming for various museums, exhibitions, special events, demonstrations and school programs. This free program will take place in the Community Room at the Cazenovia Public Library, 100 Albany Street on Monday, May 6 at 12:30 PM
Also at the library, catch a preview of the exhibition “An American Look: Fashion, Decorative Arts and Gustav Stickley” by exhibition curator Jeffrey Mayer before it goes on view at the Everson Museum of Art this June. An associate professor of fashion design and history at Syracuse University and curator of the Genet Costume Collection, Mayer will examine the influence of the Arts and Crafts aesthetic in American fashion. This free program will take place in the Community Room at the Cazenovia Public Library, 100 Albany Street on Thursday at May 16, 7 PM
For more information, please call Diane Voss at (315) 655-3200, ext. 100.
The second of three talks free to the public on Upstate New York Historical Sensations will feature Joscelyn Godwin presenting ‘Upstate Cauldron: Eccentric Spiritual Movements in Early New York,” at 7 p.m. on Thurs., May 2.
Prof. Godwin’s talk will introduce our region’s wonderfully colorful past of revivals, millennial expectations, utopian communities, paranormal phenomena, psychological anomalies, and charismatic leaders with bizarre claims. While many are aware that Shakers, Mormons, Spiritualists, Adventists, and various brands of Perfectionists started in upstate New York, this talk introduces some lesser-known figures.
The English-born scholar is a Professor of Music at Colgate University where he teaches music history and a course on “rejected knowledge.” A wide-ranging polymath, Dr. Godwin has published many books including Mystery Religions in the Ancient World; Harmonies of Heaven and Earth: The Spiritual Dimension of Music from Antiquity to the Avant-Garde; Athanasius Kircher’s Theatre of the World; Arktos: The Polar Myth in Science, Symbolism, and Nazi Survival; The Pagan Dream of the Renaissance; and the first English translation of the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili of 1499.
The Oneida Community Mansion House was the home of the 19th century utopian Oneida Community (1848-1880). Today, the building houses a living museum with permanent and changing exhibitions, residential apartments, overnight lodging, a gift shop, and banquet and meeting space. Guided tours are available Wed. through Sat., 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., and Sun. at 2 p.m. for a nominal fee.
The Oneida Community Mansion House is located at 170 Kenwood Ave., Oneida, NY.
For information call 315-363-0745 or visit www.oneidacommunity.org.
Live Space Entertainment in association with Cazenovia College presents "the first lady of Woodstock," Melanie, live on stage at Catherine Cummings Theatre at Cazenovia College, on Lincklaen Street in Cazenovia, 7:30 p.m., on Sunday, May 5, 2013. Special guest Larry Hoyt will open this very special concert. Melanie first attracted national attention when she stepped onto the stage at Woodstock. It was the summer of ’69, dawn was breaking and rain began to fall when she performed on a stage that would transform a generation and change music forever. It was there that Melanie launched a career that spans forty years, 80 million records sold and the number one hit "Brand New Key." More success defined her career, including the hits "Beautiful People" and "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)," as well as legendary appearances around the world. Melanie appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show," "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson" and "The Dick Cavett Show." She performed to sold-out audiences at the Royal Albert Hall, Carnegie Hall, Sydney Opera House, and the General Assembly of the United Nations. She had the honor of having Jimi Hendrix’s father introduce her at the twentieth anniversary of the Woodstock concert, and has had her songs recorded by superstars such as Cher, Dolly Parton and Macy Gray. She won an EMMY® for writing the lyrics to the 1989 hit TV show "Beauty and the Beast." Syracuse-based singer-songwriter Larry Hoyt will be the opening act. He can be heard on Sundays as the host of WAER’s folk and acoustic music program Common Threads. Visit www.melaniesafka.com for more about the life of Melanie. Tickets are available online at www.brownpapertickets.com, over the phone at 800-838-3006 and 315-655-STAR or at Cazenovia Jewelry, Albany St., Cazenovia and Sound Garden in Armory Square. General Admission is $30.
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