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Heritage Area Visitor Center
297 Broadway
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
Contact: Mary-Jane Pelzer
Phone: 518 587-3241
Fax: 518 580-0980 |
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Visitor Center Hours
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May-October daily 9-4
November-April Monday-Saturday 9-4 |
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Visitor Center Mission
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The Saratoga Springs
Heritage Area Visitor Center preserves and promotes the historical,
natural and cultural resources and activities that tell the story
of the past and present an identity for the future. |
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Community Calendars
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In Saratoga Springs, there's lots going on throughout the entire year. These online calendars provide a guide to some of those events. |
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Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce Events Calendar |
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Saratoga County Art Center Calendar |
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Saratoga Performing Arts Center Calendar |
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Saratoga Film Forum |
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Caffe Lena |
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Saratoga Springs Public Library Events Calendar |
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Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation Event Calendar. |
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Community Events
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First Night Saratoga. |
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Saratoga Arts Fest. |
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Saratoga Springs Mardi Gras. |
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Winterfest. |
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Chowderfest. |
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Solomon Northrup Day. |
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Saratoga Springs...nestled in the southern foothills of New York's Adirondack Mountains offers more, from the New York City Ballet to jazz concerts under the stars. Life Magazine |
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"The
season is short, but friendship is long." Leighla Ford,
owner of Spuyten Duyvil, the legendary watering spot for Saratoga's
horse set. |
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Racing
season may be short, but the Visitor Center is open all year
round. |
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Saratoga Springs Heritage
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| Our
city and its leaders are committed to creating an inclusive community.
Each year, the Saratoga Springs Visitor Center and Heritage Area
sponsors activities and programs that honor our heritage and
diversity. Saratoga Springs has a heritage that encompasses Native
Americans, African Americans, Irish and Italian immigrants, and
many more. |
| Skidmore College is a significant part of the city's heritage. Skidmore now has a flourishing campus at the north end of the city, just off North Broadway. But originally, Skidmore College was located at the opposite end of Union Avenue from the Saratoga Race Course. For a map of the original campus, go to http://www.skidmore.edu/centennial/old_campus_map.htm |
| In 1869 Charles F. Dowd, principal of of the Temple Grove Ladies Seminary in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., was the first in the U.S. to propose the use of time zones, within which all localities would keep the same time. His idea was to improve the scheduling of trains. In 1869, he presented his idea to a committee of railway superintendents in New York. As a result, in 1870 he published a pamphlet entitled "A System of National Time for Railroads." There is a monument dedicated to Dowd behind the Adirondack Trust building at the corner of Broadway and Church St. |
Sister Cities
Chekhov, Russia
Waveland, Mississippi – In the fall of 2005, Saratoga Springs decided to help out the people of Waveland in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina |
The City's People
Saratoga Springs has a rich cultural heritage, starting with the Iroquois Indians. African-Americans
came for the summer season to work in the hotels; some settled
in the village. Carole Ione's book Pride of Family provides a memoir of several generations of one African American family that settled in Saratoga Springs. During the 1840's, the Irish population increased
dramatically, forming in a cohesive neighborhood, known as Dublin,
on the West side of the town. In the 1880's, Italians arrived,
drawn by railroad jobs, but many established small businesses
including barbershops, shoe-shops and grocery stores. There were
few Jewish residents in the 1800's, but by 1910 there were about
25 families, and a synagogue was being planned. Many Jewish residents
engaged in operating boarding houses and small hotels to accommodate
hundreds of Jews who traveled from New York City to partake of
the waters. |
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Solomon Northrup descendents with former mayor Mike O'Connell. |
Solomon Northrup
Solomon
Northup was born a free man in Minerva, New York, July 1808.
Solomon was a literate man who worked on the Champlain Canal,
was a carpenter and inventor. While working as a cabbie and violinist
in Saratoga Springs, he was abducted in 1841, held in a slave
pen in Washington, DC, and sold into slavery in Louisiana for
12 years, where he served three masters, before regaining his
freedom. Through the efforts of Samuel Bass, a Canadian, and
both black and white citizens of New York and Louisiana, his
freedom was restored in 1853, after which he returned to Saratoga
Springs. Citizens of Saratoga Springs and surrounding areas were
instrumental in arranging for Solomon's release and return to
Saratoga.
Mr.
Northup published his autobiography, Twelve Years a Slave,
in 1853 about his ordeal. It is believed he traveled throughout
the region selling his book and speaking out against slavery
and was himself an abolitionist. Although Mr. Northup sought
to bring his captors to trial, they were never prosecuted and
he mysteriously disappeared. To date, his burial site has not
been identified and it is not known whether or not he was killed,
re-captured, or died of natural causes.
In 1999, in recognition of his ordeal and that of other African-Americans,
July 24th was declared Solomon Northup Day in Saratoga Springs,
New York. An historical marker was placed at the corner of Congress
and Broadway along with an exhibit panel inside the Visitor Center
commemorating Mr. Northup's life.
At
the ceremony dedicating the historical marker, a number of speakers
from the community, including clergy and elected officials participated.
Also participating were Northup descendants from four states,
including matriarch Victoria Northup Linzy Dunham, age 90. Northup,
an accomplished violinist, carpenter and writer, published his
autobiography entitled Twelve Years a Slave. |
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annual Solomon Northup Day is held the third Saturday in July at the Saratoga Springs Visitor Center. |
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Visitor Links
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New York State Heritage Areas
Heritage Areas Brochure (pdf)
Saratoga Convention & Tourism Bureau: Offering a comprehensive guide to hotels, restaurants, museums, and other local attractions.
Get2There Saratoga: Getting around Saratoga Springs without your car.
Saratoga County Art Center
Museums of Saratoga
Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation: Offering walking tours and more.
Saratoga National Park (Saratoga Battlefield)
Saratoga Spa State Park
Saratoga Racino
Beekman St. Art District: Artist galleries, studios, shops, restaurants.
Yaddo: The lovely gardens at this renowned writers' retreat are open to the public.
Saratoga.com. Tourist information. |
Community Links
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City of Saratoga Springs
Saratoga
Springs City Center.
Saratoga Springs Public Library
Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce
Skidmore College: Local Links. Extensive links to organizations
& resources in Saratoga Springs. |
Health
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Lincoln Baths.
The
Crystal Spa.
Saratoga
Springs Water History
Saratoga
Springs Water Mineral Analysis |
History
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Saratoga Room: Local History Resources
History Roundtable
Saratoga Springs History Museum
History of Saratoga County: Saratoga County.
New York State Military Museum
History of Saratoga County: Chamber of Commerce.
Saratoga County Historian.
Saratoga Springs History.
History of Saratoga Springs (1899). National
Historic Landmark Program: Canfield Casino and Congress Park |
Horses
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Saratoga Race Course.
Saratoga Raceway.
Saratoga
Polo Association.
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame.
Fasig-Tipton Sales Company
New
York Racing Association |
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