Frederick Walster was born in 1842 in Bavaria and at the age of sixteen immigrated to New York in 1859 with his mother, Catherine, and siblings, Christian, Conrad, and Catherine. His father had passed away in 1857. The family lived in Fort Plain, Montgomery County, New York.

In August, 1862 Fred Walster and his brother Christian (who died of typhoid pneumonia, in October, 1862) enlisted in the Town of Minden, Montgomery County, New York, as members of Company E, 153rd Regiment New York Volunteer Infantry. Fred was twenty-one years old and enlisted for three years. After the war he returned to his home in Fort Plain. On July 13, 1870, he passed away.

The Onondaga Reservation is located in Onondaga County, New York, south of the city of Syracuse. It is recognized by the United States Government as a politically independent entity. The Onondaga people are one of the original five constituent nations of the Iroquois Confederacy that occupied much of present-day New York State, and were called the “Keepers of the Fire” by the other nations. They have a traditional form of government, where chiefs are nominated by clan mothers. Onondaga culture continues to evolve and incorporate aspects of both traditional and modern ways of life.
Fred Wolcott (1862-1946), who took most of the photographs of this collection, photographed and documented daily life on the Onondaga Nation territory around 1910. It is not known whether Wolcott took the photographs because of a personal interest in the Haudenosaunee people or for a commissioned project. In 1986, forty years after his death, the Onondaga Department of Parks organized this collection and published it in a book, ONONDAGA: Portraits of a Native People, and listed Wolcott as author and photographer.

Franklin D. Roosevelt was proud of his heritage and family name. He idealized and strived to assume the gallant qualities he saw in his ancestry - generations of which he learned about from family stories passed down, and from the papers they left behind. Like his legendary stamp collection, FDR collected, sorted, and cared for the records of the Delano and Roosevelt families.

Scoutmaster Emeritus Roger Elmer Burgess established the first Boy Scout Troop in Herkimer County, New York, in 1910 when he started Frankfort Boy Scout Troop 1. He served as Scoutmaster of Troop 1 for fifty years. The Frankfort Boy Scouts have focused on community outreach and Scout character development. Troop 1’s goal has been to mold young men into capable leaders and citizens through experience. In 2010, they celebrated 100 years of activity during which they produced confident, knowledgeable Scouts who are able to contribute to the larger community. Camp Russell served as a common campsite retreat for Troop 1 before the camp’s closure in 2015. Troop 1 has also taken many trips to historically significant locations, such as Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Plymouth, Massachusetts, Saratoga and Niagara, New York. Such visits instilled a sense of American patriotism within the Scouts that has promoted civic values of the nation. Troop 1 has received various awards and acknowledgements throughout its long history including a citation from the New York State Assembly and several Council Commissioner’s Awards. Today, Troop 1 still functions as a part of the Leatherstocking Council of Central New York, which is a consolidation of two previous councils (Revolutionary Trails Council #400 and Otschodela Council #393) in the area. The Troop still serves the community by establishing values within youth through hard work and moral guidance.

Frank E. Estabrook (1860 - 1918) was a regionally renowned architect from Newburgh, NY whose specialty was designing public buildings and schools.

The American Civil War was fought between the years 1861 - 1865 between the Union (the North half of the country) and the Confederates (the South half of the country). The war began over the disagreements between the North and South regarding slavery. The Civil War is known for having more American deaths in a war than any other war America has been a part of. People from both halves of the nation joined this battle, both voluntarily and through a draft. Francis M. and Henry H. Stone were two brothers who were in the 27th Regiment of the New York Volunteer Infantry and the 1st Regiment New York Veteran Cavalry. The brothers were from Lima, in Livingston County, New York. These two soldiers participated in some of the most important battles, Bull Run, Manassas, Martinsburg and Richmond.

Frances Folsom Cleveland Preston was born on July 21, 1864 in Buffalo, New York. Frances Folsom graduated from Central High School in Buffalo and attended Wells College in Aurora, New York. During her senior year at Wells College, Frances Folsom received a letter from President Grover Cleveland asking her to marry. Frances accepted and married him at the age of 21 on June 2, 1886 at the White House. Frances became the youngest First Lady and took over the duties of hostess in the White House. Grover Cleveland lost the 1888 presidential election, but won again in 1892. Upon the post-presidential period, Frances became a widow after her husband’s death in 1908. Frances moved to Princeton, New Jersey and met Thoms Preston. Frances moved back to Aurora, New York along with Thomas, whom she married in February of 1913. Frances Cleveland Preston served as a trustee member at Wells College during the second decade of the 20th century. During the Great Depression, Frances helped lead the Needlework Guild of America and raised clothing drives for the poor. Frances Folsom Cleveland Preston passed away in Baltimore on October 29, 1947 and was buried next to her first husband, Grover Cleveland in Princeton, New Jersey.

In the fall of 1898, a number of Main Street merchants got up a display of farm fruits and produce on the sidewalks in front of their stores, and this was the nucleus of the Fort Plain Street Fair, famed throughout Central New York. Great crowds come by horse and automobile conveyances and by trains from up and down the valley to this September carnival. As many as 50,000 visitors are estimated to have attended the fair, during the week in which it is held, and 15,000 are said to have been present on a single day. Excellent displays of fruit, farm produce, field crops and poultry were held under canvas covered booths on the brick pavement of Canal and Main streets. Races, free attractions , band concerts, merry-go-rounds, etc. were added. These images from the early 1900s. The fair was abandoned during the war years.

After the United States entered World War I, The New York National Guard began the task of guarding the New York City water supply. This included the Catskill Aqueduct through Ulster County. The fear of terrorism predicated that this vital resource be protected from potential acts of sabotage, as German sympathizers had already blown up ammunitions plant in Jersey City, New Jersey.

In August of 1917, the New York National Guard was sent overseas. To take over watch on the aqueduct, a state militia (the First Provisional Regiment) was created. This included men who were otherwise not eligible for active service and boys who, at 17, were too young. They were married, they were single; not a few hailed from wealthy families, others came from humble means. The site of their barracks, mess hall, and officer's quarters was called "Camp Fort Orange."

When the influenza pandemic of 1918 spread to the United States, thirty seven New York Guard soldiers died. Yet amidst it all, the men faithfully performed their duty and maintained the line. The First Provisional Regiment of the New York Guard began their withdrawal following the Armistice of November 11, 1918.

Folk arts are traditional cultural expressions through which a group maintains and passes on its shared way of life. They express a group's sense of beauty, identity and values. A living cultural heritage, folk arts link the past and the present. Never static, folk arts change as they are adapted to new circumstances while they maintain their traditional qualities.