By Chris Kemble I recently inherited a painting, a gift to my mother decades ago. Hidden in a corner of my parents’ bedroom, I had never seen it before. The curious title on the back says The Terrace of the Artist’s at Hastings, NY. The artist and date were unreadable, […]
by Mark Sameth Minnijean Brown — one of the historic “Little Rock Nine” — lived in Hastings in 1958 and 1959. Minnijean came to Hastings when she was 16, after having been harassed, threatened, and ultimately expelled (for “verbal retaliation”) from the Arkansas high school she helped integrate in 1957. […]
by Natalie Barry For the last several years, I’ve been asked to come into Hillside School and talk to the 2nd graders about Hastings history. I always look forward to it, as the kids are always great fun and so appreciative of learning about our village’s past. This year, for […]
By Mark Sameth Abraham Lincoln was here. More precisely, he passed through here. Four times. This winter marks the 160th anniversary of Lincoln’s first passage through – as it was known then – “Hastings-Upon-Hudson,” as President-elect aboard The Inaugural Express a little after 2:30 PM on the afternoon of February […]
by Richard Lovejoy Recently Michelle Bohuniek, a former Hastings resident, asked us for any information we might have about her former residence at 357 Mt. Hope Boulevard. Specifically, she was interested in what we knew about a tea room that she had heard operated in her house and served customers […]
Largely invisible today as a result of construction and development over the years, Scheckler’s Brook runs through the heart of Hastings and was a central feature of the village’s landscape and daily life for centuries.
by Natalie Barry Several months ago, our new mayor Niki Armacost was asked to speak to the 3rd/4th and 5th graders at Hillside and Farragut Middle School, respectively. During the Q&A segment, one child asked whether our village has an official animal. That got Mayor Armacost thinking about the eagle […]
This past January, Hillside teacher Dianna Clarke invited me to speak to the 2nd grade about Hastings history. I had a great time talking about early industry in the ravine, our waterfront factories, plus sharing “then and now” photos of important buildings from Hastings’ past. As I was walking out […]