Lincoln Depot Museum 10th Anniversary
Opening Weekend
2024 Opening Weekend on April 27-28
Local, County and State Dignitaries Will Be on Hand to help Celebrate
Many New Artifacts on Display
The Lincoln Depot Museum Board of Directors is pleased to announce the start of the 2024 season on April 27 and 28, 2024. This year marks the 10th year that the museum has been open to the public. There will be several local, county and state representatives on hand to help celebrate this 10-year milestone at a brief ceremony at 11 am on Saturday, April 27th. The ceremony is open to the public. Regular museum hours begin at 1 PM.
The museum’s exhibit, “New York and Abraham Lincoln: The Indispensable Relationship,” not only shows the impact of Lincoln to Peekskill and the Hudson Valley region but to New York as a whole. The importance of New York to Lincoln’s success is also highlighted. It is the only such museum in the entire state and has gained national attention and interest.
The historic building was acquired in 2003. The Lincoln Depot Foundation was formed in 2007 with the goal of restoring the original structure and creating a museum and historic site where President-elect Abraham Lincoln’s visited on February 19, 1861. With the help of a $3 million NY Environmental Protection Fund and NY Empire State Development Corporation grants obtained in 2006, thanks to then Governor George E. Pataki, the Depot Foundation was able to reach their goal.
Utilizing those same NYS grants, a new structure, the Lincoln Depot Visitor’s Center, was completed in 2019. The Visitor’s Center houses the museum offices, additional exhibits, a small gift shop and an open meeting room to hold events.
“We are proud of the result of our many years of hard work,” said Museum President John G. Testa. “There has been a tremendous amount of research, planning and collaboration to achieve this success. We were confident that the museum would be well received and has become a landmark for Peekskill and Westchester County. History buffs from around the country and globe have visited. This historic site has become the educational center we all dreamed of. We thank everyone who has supported and assisted us in making the museum such a success,” added Testa. Testa was the Mayor of Peekskill from 2002-07 when the building was acquired, and the grants awarded.
The museum project was recognized by the The American Institute of Architects with their Design Award and named “Best Museum in Westchester” by Westchester Magazine.
New Items on Display for 2024
The Lincoln Depot exhibit: “New York and Abraham Lincoln: The Indispensable Relationship,” will include many new original artifacts from the Civil War period. These objects include photos and ephemera, original newspapers of critical historical events, jewelry as well as a Lincoln Mourning Cockade worn by the public as they mourned the loss of the President in 1865.
Many Events Planned Throughout the Year
The Lincoln Depot Museum will be featuring a full lineup of events for 2024. The popular monthly program “First Saturdays at the Museum” will return. On the first Saturday of each month throughout the year there will be a variety of historical presentations, some on topics beyond the Civil War era (March-October schedule attached).
Another popular program that will return this year is the “Collector Corner,” where collectors are invited to display their own collections for a weekend in the museum and are on hand to discuss the collection with visitors. These collections are sometimes life-long passions of individuals who are happy to share their experience with our visitors.
Other activities and events will be planned as the season progresses, including films, musical performances and living history demonstrations by civil war reenactors. On September 21, 2024, there will be a special 10th Anniversary reception held at the museum. Details will be announced soon.
The 2024 season for the Lincoln Depot Museum will run from April 27 to November 24. The museum will be open every Saturday and Sunday, excluding holidays, from 1-4 PM. General Admission is $8.00 for non-residents, $5.00 for seniors, veterans, active military, and children under 12. Peekskill residents enter free of charge. Museum memberships are also available. For further information, visit the museum website at lincolndepotmuseum.org or call at 914-402-4318.
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Additional Information:
Site History
The Hudson River Railroad finally reached Peekskill in 1849. Early City Historian Carlton B. Scofield described the original station as a “grimy, wooden shack measuring twelve by fourteen feet.” Due to a fire and the expansion of the railroad line to Poughkeepsie in 1850 and then to Albany in 1851, it was clear a new and larger station was needed. The combination Greek and Gothic Revival station that stands today is on the site of Lincoln’s 1861 visit. The depot originally served as a combination passenger station and freight depot. The depot was eventually abandoned for passenger use in 1874 when the present Romanesque Style station was opened on Railroad Avenue. Although there are no known records showing the exact date the depot was constructed, the earliest known map depicting a depot structure is from 1852. An original copy of this map is on display in the museum.
Abraham Lincoln left Springfield, Illinois on February 11, 1861 and arrived in Washington DC on February 23rd for his upcoming Inauguration as President of the United States. His stop in Peekskill on February 19th was his only stop in Westchester County. He stopped at the invitation of one of Peekskill’s most prominent citizens, William Nelson, a local lawyer, and former Congressman serving with Lincoln from 1847-49. Two village residents attending Lincoln’s visit were Chauncey M. Depew (26 years old) and James W. Husted (27 years old). Both men were recent graduates of Yale and these local lawyers led the local supporters of Lincoln. Together, they formed the Highland Wide Awakes and led pro-Lincoln parades through the streets of Peekskill. Both would go on to prominence of their own. Depew was a NY State Assembly member, NY Secretary of State, Westchester County Clerk, US Senator, and President of the NY Central Railroad; he played an important role in Lincoln’s reelection obtaining the votes of NY soldiers in the field. Husted served 22 years as a member of the NY State Assembly spending time as Speaker and Minority Leader and he became a Major General for the Fifth Division of the NY National Guard. Additionally, he spent time as Superintendent of Peekskill Public Schools and Harbor Master of NY.
By all accounts, a large crowd gathered to witness Lincoln’s visit. A local newspaper account reported “a large assemblage, about 1500 or thereabouts was gathered, all quiet, orderly and curiously expectant.” Past City Historian Colin Naylor Jr. further said, “Farmers and their families from all parts of Cortlandtown, Putnam County and Yorktown, joined the villagers at the station.” There were even onlookers from as far away as Connecticut.
First introduced by Nelson, Lincoln spoke briefly, but his impact lasted a lifetime for those who were there to witness the event. The scene was dramatic and even included student soldiers from the local military academy, later to be known as the Peekskill Military Academy. According to a published article, “The Academy boys were assigned the position of honor, forming a hollow square in the center of which was the baggage tender… and upon which the President Elect was to stand while speaking. The Jefferson Guards in citizens dress, with a cannon, were posted on the Hill in South Street, to fire a President’s salute of 21 guns.”
This historic event still resonates today as an inspiration to the study of local history and historic preservation. It caused the formation of the Lincoln Society in Peekskill in 1903, which continues to be the oldest continually active such society in the United States. Perhaps it was Chauncey Depew, as President of the railroad, who prevented the destruction of the depot building, thus enabling the citizens today to relive and celebrate Peekskill’s historic significance.
The National Park Service highlighted the importance of Lincoln’s Peekskill stop in 2011 when they included Peekskill as one of their few reenacted events commemorating the 150th Anniversary of Lincoln’s Inaugural Journey.
Lincoln’s Peekskill Speech
“I have but a moment to stand before you to listen to and return your kind greeting. I thank you for this reception, and for the pleasant manner in which it is tendered to me by our mutual friends. I will say in a single sentence, in regard to the difficulties that lie before me and our beloved country, that if I can only be as generously and unanimously sustained as the demonstration I have witnessed indicate I shall be, I shall not fail; but without your sustaining hands I am sure that neither I nor any other man can hope to surmount these difficulties. I trust in the course I shall pursue I shall be sustained not only by the party that elected me, but by the patriotic people of the whole country.”
The Statue
Entitled “Lincoln in Peekskill,” perched on a solid block of black granite, a full-sized, bronze Abraham Lincoln stands as he might have looked on that “clear, and pleasant day,” as described by a local farmer in his diary, on February 19, 1861, as he addressed the Peekskill crowd. The statue is the creation of sculptor Richard Masloski. It is Masloski’s vision of how Lincoln might have looked as he stood on the baggage cart while making his address. The statue was unveiled to the public on October 27, 2007 with much fanfare and a large crowd of onlookers, much like when Lincoln first appeared before a crowd at that same location. On hand to help with the unveiling was former Governor George Pataki, Lincoln Scholar Harold Holzer and Developer Martin Ginsburg, without whom the creation of the statue would not have been possible.
The Ginsburg Development Corporation provided the funding for the statue. The depot project was the centerpiece of a full redevelopment vision for connecting the riverfront area to the downtown business district via Central Avenue. The depot and, in turn, this statue, is positioned exactly at the intersection of Central Avenue to Water Street, thus the linchpin to that connection. The Lincoln Depot Museum and historic site represents a significant economic development component through the historic tourism it provides.
Richard Masloski, who passed away in 2018, was also the creator of the Westchester County Police Memorial, Orange County Veterans Memorial, Town of Wappinger War Memorial, Yonkers Gold Star Mothers Monument, and other historic pieces.
