College History Collection - SUNY New Paltz Postcard Collection Finding Aid

Summary Information
Administrative Information
Historical/Biographical Information
Scope and Content Note

Summary Information
Repository
Sojourner Truth Library, Special Collections - College History Collection
Collection No.(s)
CHC 2001:1IMG
Creator
Dennis O'Keefe, Sojourner Truth Library
Title
SUNY New Paltz Postcard Collection
Inclusive Dates
1880 - 2000
Size
370 Postcards
Abstract
The collection consists of 370 postcards which chronicle the history and development of New Paltz, NY, from the late 19th century to the present. Three major areas of development are chronicled by the collection:the evolution of the State University of New York at New Paltz, the evolution of the village of New Paltz, and the evolution of the Huguenot Street national historic district.

Administrative Information
Acquisition Information
The collection was processed and scanned while on loan from Mr. Dennis O'Keefe during the 2000/2001 and 2001/2002 academic years. 
Processing Information
Collection processed by Byron Preston, Sojourner Truth Library Student Intern - Fall/Spring 2000/2001
(funded by 2000 New York Library Association ASLS/Ridley's Book Bindery Student Internship Grant award)
Database Design &Production by Christopher Raab, Electronic Resources Librarian - Spring 2001
Finding Aid compiled by Byron Preston and Christopher Raab - Summer 2001
Electronic Format
For web access to the postcard collection, please visit the library's web site at:
http://lib.newpaltz.edu/banner/archives/postcards.html
Copyright
The following image database is for historical reference and non-commercial use only. For-profit publication of these images is strictly prohibited without written permission from the Sojourner Truth Library.

Historical/Biographical Information

• History of New Paltz
• Huguenot Street
• SUNY New Paltz Timeline

History of New Paltz

New Paltz was founded in 1677 by French Huguenots who had taken refuge in what is now Mannheim, Germany for a short period before coming to America. Mannheim was then capital of the area know as the Rheinpfalz or Rhenish Palatine.

New Paltz was dominated for over 150 years by the 12 partners and their heirs, referred to as the Twelve Men or Duzine, who had acquired a royal patent of over 33,000 acres stretching from the Shawangunk Mountains to the Hudson River. The French name of the town was Nouveau Palatinat, as given in the founding record of the local Reformed Church of 1683. Over time, more land was added, and eventually the patent was legally divided among the twelve partners, their relatives, and friends. Farms were primarily found east and west of the Wallkill River, which at first was referred to as the Palse River.

The twelve patentees were Louis DuBois and his sons Abraham and Isaac, Christian Deyo and his son Pierre, Simon and Andries LeFevre (brothers), Jean and Abraham Hasbrouck (brothers), Antoine Crispell, Louis Bevier, and Hugo Frere. Other families, with names like Elting, Schoonmaker, Terwilliger, Ean, and Schlecht, were part of the community from its earliest days. They built wooden homes that were later replaced by sturdy, stone structures. For 200 years after they first settled, New Paltz remained an isolated, small farming community.

The community was clustered on the east shore of the Wallkill River, which is today known as Huguenot Street. Many of the seventeenth century stone buildings still stand today and have been designated a National Historical Landmark, often referred to as "the oldest residential street in America."

The population slowly crept from the Wallkill to what is now Main Street, and beyond. Areas which are now parts of the Towns of Lloyd, Shawangunk, Esopus and Gardiner split off from the Town of New Paltz between 1843 and 1853. The Village of New Paltz was incorporated in 1887.

Huguenot Street

Huguenot Street, a National Historic Landmark since 1985, is located above the banks of the Wallkill River in the Village of New Paltz. The site includes a collection of historic house museums and non-museum buildings with construction dates ranging from 1692 to 1894. The earliest houses were built by a group of several refugee Huguenot families who founded New Paltz in 1678. For additional information on Huguenot Street, please link to the Huguenot Historical Society's website at http://www.huguenotstreet.org

SUNY New Paltz Timeline

Timeline 1828 - 2001

1828 New Paltz Classical School founded
1833 New Paltz Academy incorporated
1840 New Paltz Academy enlarged
1883 New Paltz Academy Trustees consider a second enlargement
1884 New Paltz Academy destroyed by fire
1885 Rebuilding campaign by trustees and local citizens a success
1885 Newly raised building accepted by the state as New Paltz Normal
1886 Eugene Bouton appointed first principal of the Normal School
1889 New Paltz Normal enlarged
1889 Frank S. Capen succeeds Bouton to become the school's second principal
1899 Myron T. Scudder succeeds Capen to become the school's third principal
1900 New Paltz Normal implements an experimental "school city"program
1901 Cuban students arrive for study at New Paltz Normal
1906 New Paltz Normal destroyed by fire
1907 A new Main Building is constructed on the present hilltop campus
1908 Principal John C. Bliss heads the new Normal School on the hill
1911 New Paltz Normal celebrates its 25th anniversary
1917 Auditorium added to the Main Building (present day Studley Theatre)
1923 Normal School curriculum expanded to a three year program
1923 Dr. Lawrence H. van den Berg becomes the fifth principal of New Paltz Normal
1932 Completion of the Lawrence H. van den Berg School of Practice (Campus School)
1938 A four year curriculum is instituted
1942 School authorized to grant Bachelor of Science degree in teaching
1942 New Paltz Normal becomes the State Teachers College at New Paltz
1943 Principal van den Berg assumes the first presidency of the college
1944 Dr. William J. Haggerty becomes the second president of the college
1947Graduate courses leading to Master's degree introduced
1948 State University of New York established
1951 New Paltz adds Art Education degree to its programs
1957 College acquires 220 acre Ashokan Field Campus
1959 College's name changed to State University College of Education at New Paltz
1960 College authorized to grant Bachelor of Arts degree in liberal arts
1961 New Paltz Normal celebrates its 75th anniversary (Diamond Jubilee)
1962 SUNY Construction Fund established ($1 billion)
1964 President Haggerty announces Master Building Plan ($30 million)
1965 Construction begins on Academic Concourse
1966 Faculty unionizes - joins the American Federation of Teachers
1966 President Haggerty resigns after 22 years of service to the college
1968 Dr. Neumaier becomes the third president of the college
1968 Equal Opportunity Program admits its first 20 students
1969 Black Studies Department formed
1969 Haggerty era construction completed (Dorm complexes and Academic Concourse)
1970 College Senate proposed (accepted as Academic Senate in 1974)
1970 Student Strike (occupation of Main Building)
1971 General education requirement dropped by the college
1971 Experimental Studies program formed (renamed Innovative Studies in 1975)
1972 Administration and Student Union Buildings opened
1972 President Neumaier resigns after four years
1973 Dr. Coffman becomes the fourth president of the college
1973 Women's Studies program established
1974 Summer Repertory Theatre Program established
1976 The College at New Paltz Foundation is established
1976 Asian and African Studies majors abolished
1979 President Coffman retires after seven years
1979 Dr. Chandler becomes the fifth president of the college
1980 Computer Science program established
1980 Nursing program established
1980 Campus School closed
1984 Engineering program established
1987 Journalism and Accounting programs established
1992 Campus reacts to PCB incident
1993 General education curriculum reinstated
1994 Hopfer Alumni Center opened
1994 Fine Arts II and College Terrace Buildings opened
1994 Campus renamed State University of New York at New Paltz
1995 Piano Summer Institute formed at New Paltz
1995 President Chandler retires after sixteen years
1996 Dr. Bowen becomes the sixth president of the college
1997 Women's Studies Conference draws national attention
1997 Resnick Engineering Hall opened
2000 MBA program established
2000 Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art opened
2001 Esopus Residence Hall opened
2001 President Bowen resigns after five years

Scope and Content Note

The historic postcard collection chronicles the history and development of New Paltz, NY, from the late 19th century to the present. Three major areas of development are chronicled by the collection:the evolution of the State University of New York at New Paltz, the evolution of the village of New Paltz, and the evolution of the Huguenot Street national historic district.

The collection consists of 3.5 x 5.5 inch postcards that have been scanned at 300 dpi using HP Precision Scan software. The scanned postcards were then saved and imported into an Image AXS Pro database. 

A wide variety of postcard types and time periods are represented in the collection. Specific types include photographic, hand-colored, silk-screened, and novelty. Although the majority of postcards are in excellent condition, some show signs of fading, scratching, and bending due to poor storage conditions and mailing.

Postcards depicting the evolution of the college will be of particular interest to educational and architectural historians. The vast number of building photographs provide a unique visual timeline of the history of the college.  Social historians and genealogists will find the New Paltz village postcards especially valuable. The postcards document downtown businesses, landmarks, civic institutions, and early modes of transportation. They also include names and addresses, greetings, and descriptions of local events. 

In addition, conservation architects and local historians will find the Huguenot Street images extremely beneficial to ongoing efforts of conservation, and historical interpretation. The Huguenot Street postcards also chronicle the public perception and marketing efforts of the historic district over the past one hundred years.

The SUNY New Paltz Postcard Collection was generously loaned for scanning by Mr. Dennis O'Keefe during the 2000/2001 and 2001/2002 academic years.  Access to the scanned collection is available by visiting the library's web site at: http://lib.newpaltz.edu/banner/archives/postcards.html

Sojourner Truth Library | Sojourner Truth Records

BP/CR - AUG 2001
Last Updated, MG - JUNE 2008