About Us

THE 150TH...PRESENT DAY

 

Today’s 150th New York is a tax-exempt educational organization chartered by the New York State Board of Regents. We are an organization   formed to promote, educate and preserve the Civil War heritage of our county, state and nation. We authentically represent a Union Infantry Regiment that was recruited in Dutchess County in 1862.  We give the re-enactor the opportunity to experience what life in the 19th Century would have been like.

 

WHAT WE DO


 As indicated above, we re-enact activities which Civil War soldiers would have been involved in. However, re-enactments occupy only a part of our schedule.  The list below describes most of the activities in which we are involved:


 School Programs


We present to single/multiple classes or in full day school programs throughout Dutchess, Ulster and Putnam counties.  A camp setup outdoors is an option.  These programs involve one to four members and are interactive using authentic artifacts. They are aimed at providing students with a “real-life” presentation along with a question and answer session on the Civil War and its local connection.  The format we follow articulates well with New York State Learning standards for Social Studies.

 

Historical Society Talks


Given our local focus, we also make presentations to local historical societies. These events are usually held in the evening.

 

Living Histories


For these events we set up camp, either for a day or a weekend. Most are local. Some are away from home. We display and demonstrate the camp life of a typical Union soldier and his Company.  The highlight of these events is an annual weekend program for the National Park Service in October on the battlefield at the Gettysburg National Military Park.

 

Dedications


We have rededicated the Soldiers and Sailors Monument in Poughkeepsie; dedicated the Civil War Monument in Stanfordville as well as soldiers’ graves. This is a way to help honor and preserve the memory of those who have served our country.

 

"Grave Matters"

 

Not as ghoulish as you might think. It involves the location and recording of the grave-sites of the original members of the regiment.

 

Documenting The Regiment's History

 

This is an ongoing project. It involves the transcription of letters and diaries of the

original 150th members, archival research of photographs and other related documents.

 

Parades

We have participated in a wide range of parades including Memorial Day in Rhinebeck, Hyde Park, Stanfordville, Millbrook, the New York City St. Patrick's Day parade and halftime at West Point.

 

Battle Re-Enactments

 

These are re-creations of scenes from actual battles fought during the Civil War. The re-enactments are generally weekend events away from home.  We camp in 19th Century style and then re-create a battle scenario. At times thousands of soldiers participate in these events. This gives the re-enactor the thrill and the sense of what it would have been like to have actually fought in the Civil War.  


This is an exciting time to be in the hobby.  This being the Sesquicentennial “150th Anniversary” of the Civil War.  We participated in the 150th Anniversary of First Bull Run and in 2012 we are looking forward to 150th Anniversaries of Shiloh, McDowell, 7 Days Campaign, Antietam and last but not least the 150th Anniversary of the formation of our own 150th New York State Volunteer Infantry.  2013 will mark the 150th Anniversary of Gettysburg and the list goes on culminating with the end of the war events in 2015.  But fear not if you join the hobby the cycle repeats every five years and things remain fresh because there are many lesser known battles and battlefields where events are held that broaden our knowledge of the war and the people who fought it.