Bicentennial Press Release
August 19, 2013
Contact: Lenora Applebee For Immediate Release
Prattsburgh Community Historical Society
Phone: 607.522.5776 (Tuesdays 9:00 a.m. – Noon)
Home: 607.522.3566 Email: pburghist@empacc.net
Prattsburgh Community Historical Society Presents the
Town of Prattsburgh Bicentennial Celebration
September 6, 7 & 8, 2013
The Prattsburgh Community Historical Society will be celebrating the Town of Prattsburgh Bicentennial on September 6, 7 & 8, 2013. The weekend kicks off on Friday evening with a concert featuring The Southern Exit Band. There will also be free birthday cake for everyone that evening. Saturday and Sunday are full of entertainment, activities and vendors, including a delicious array of food. Members of the Keuka Lake Renegades will have an encampment all weekend, depicting life in the early 1800’s with demonstrations and games for the kids. Also scheduled all weekend are an antique tractor show, a quilt show, walking tour of historic homes and an open house at the Prattsburgh Historical Society Museum.
Saturday will open with a ceremony at Pioneer Cemetery at the grave site of Prattsburgh’s Founding Father, Captain Joel Pratt. The ceremony will be performed by the Tioga County Honor Guard and will be attended by descendants of Capt. Pratt. Other highlights on Saturday include the music of the Dundee Central School Symphonic Steel Band at 11:00 and The Stid Hill Stompers at 3:00. The festivities that day also include the parade at 2:00, an outdoor family movie at 7:30 p.m. and will be capped off with a big fireworks display immediately following the movie.
Sunday begins with an ecumenical church service at 9:00 a.m. at the Gazebo in the park. The Masonic Lodge will be hosting breakfast until 11:00 a.m. Special highlights that day include a ladies tea at 1:00 and 3:00, the music of Brad Ordway at 1:00 and a music performance by David Ruch – “The War of 1812 – Songs and Stories from New York and Beyond” at 3:00.
All weekend there will be an array of vendors on hand selling soaps, candles, jewelry, handcrafted items and more. Attendees will also be able to purchase maple cotton candy, pulled pork, beef brisket, hamburgers and hotdogs and other tasty treats.
About Prattsburgh:
Captain Joel Pratt purchased the land now known as Prattsburgh from the Pulteney Estate in 1802, bringing his family to settle here in 1805. The Town of Prattsburgh was officially established on April 12, 1813 when Captain Pratt and five other original settlers met to formally name the town and begin the daunting task of turning vast wilderness into a thriving community.
Like other towns across early America, Prattsburgh was a thriving place in its heyday. In its prime, Prattsburgh was host to many factories and businesses. Industries included a sash and blind factory, a tannery, a pottery shop, glove and mitten factory, four blacksmith shops and a boot and shoe shop. In addition to providing valuable employment, these industries spurred on the creation of secondary businesses such as restaurants, hotels, millinery shops and grocery stores to serve this thriving community. Currently there is little evidence of this bustling community in present day Prattsburgh.
Prattsburgh is a special place whose residents are extremely proud of their heritage. Lifelong residents fondly share many stories of the people and places lost to time. Those who relocate here do so because they sense this special nature of the town.
About the Prattsburgh Community Historical Society:
The purpose of the Prattsburgh Community Historical Society is to gather, preserve and interpretively display and make available for study historical artifacts, books, manuscripts, papers, photographs and other records and materials relating to the state of New York and particularly to Prattsburgh and continuous areas. We also assist the county historian and state education officers in encouraging a greater knowledge of history of our Community, County, and State of New York by publishing historical material in newspapers, local newsletters, lectures, study groups and service to Franklin Academy for studies in the school’s curriculum.
The Historical Society publishes a member newsletter six times a year. In addition, the organization sponsors “Concerts in the Park” each summer, participates in the “Prattsburgh Summer Fest” and conducts the annual “Festival of Lights” each winter. The society is planning a number of activities throughout the year to commemorate the Bicentennial celebration. Membership in the Historical Society is $10 annually, with dues payable in April.