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"Making Waterford Our Home" Exhibit Series
Community History Days
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Do you remember stopping at Cerroni's after church for coffee, a
donut and the newspaper?
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Did your grandfather help build the barge canal?
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Is your mother renowned for her recipes for pirogi or gnocchi?
The Waterford Museum and Cultural Center is embarking on a new, three year project to
document the history of different ethnic communities here in Waterford. In
the first year we'll focus on the Italian community and in subsequent years on the French-Canadian and the Irish.
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Do You Know These
Men?
Please look at the linked document below. It
is a list of the charter members of an Italian benefit society
that was formed in Waterford, NY around 1926 called "Societa
de Benificenza". Please contact
the museum to share any information you have. Also,
please attend our next Community History Day on July 9th.
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List of Charter Members |
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We need your help. We are looking for Italian family photos to
copy, local residents to interview about their memories, and objects (your mother's favorite pasta bowl or your father's work clothes) to borrow for an
exhibition to be held at the Museum next year. How can you share these materials?
Plan to attend our first Community History Day on May 17, 9am-noon at the Waterford Civic Center on Third Street in the Village of
Waterford (see directions below). We'll be able to scan your photos, share information on caring
for your family collections, and learn more about this aspect of our community's history.
We will also be holding an open conversation about life in Waterford.
If you miss the first Community History Day, we will be holding another one on July 9th, 6-9pm at the Museum. Can't attend either of the
days? Please contact Brad Utter at 238-0809 or email
us to schedule another time for a visit or to share your family's history.
Some Quick Facts:
-The Museum has the records of an Italian benevolent society that was
started in Waterford in 1926. All of the records are in Italian. Many
current residents ancestors are listed as charter members. Come see the list
at the events outlined above.
- Large scale Italian immigration to Waterford started around 1905 and
peaked in 1910. About half of those who came during that time left after
1915 when the barge canal was completed.
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