UPDATE: Both tours are currently filled. For information on the history of the cemetery click here for Dan Udell’s video of Kelley’s tour from two years ago AND click here for Gary Sheffer’s interview with Kelley about the cemetery as part of our History Room on Zoom series.
Program Description: Kelley Drahushuk’s talk at the library, Raising the Dead: Tales from Hudson’s Crypts, was so popular we began this tour of Cedar Park Cemetery and it has become an annual event. Kelley once again acts as our tour guide and has added new graves and new stories to the tours.
Date/Time: 1. Saturday, October 17, 12-1:30pm (RAINDATE: Sunday, October 18, 12-1:30pm
2. Saturday, October 24, 12-1:30pm (RAINDATE: Sunday, October 25, 12-1:30pm).
Registration: Required and participation is limited to 10 participants. Mask wearing and social distancing at all times is required. Register by emailing programs@hudsonarealibrary.org or calling 518-828-1792 x101.
Donations are appreciated but not required and they will support the archiving of the library’s History Room collection based in the history of Hudson, Greenport and Stockport.
Attendees will meet in the cemetery office parking lot promptly at 12pm. As this is a walking tour, wear appropriate footwear & dress for the weather & conditions. We may encounter uneven ground, semi-steep hills, and mud and will not always be sticking to the paved pathways.
Long-touted as “a virtual treasure trove for historians and enthusiasts of American funerary art”, the Hudson Cemetery includes over 10,000 grave sites for a wide range of interesting and notable individuals, including the Proprietors and their ancestors, war heroes, famous artists, paragons of industry, disaster survivors and much more. Learn about the history of the original cemetery, more recent history and discoveries as well as its current layout. All attendees will receive a free map of Cedar Park with highlighted sites discussed in this presentation—do your own walking tour and make new discoveries!
Kelley Drahushuk is a long-time resident of Hudson, NY with family history in the city dating back to the 1800’s. She, along with her husband Alan, own The Spotty Dog Books and Ale, now in its 14th year of operation on Hudson’s Warren Street in the former CH Evans Hook & Ladder building. She has served on the board of the Hudson Area Library and continues as a member of the History Room Committee. She earned a BS from Rochester Institute of Technology in Industrial Engineering. Two adorable children, a very chill cat and two noisy guinea pigs keep her quite busy.
The Hudson Area Library’s History Room Committee Local History Speaker Series offers free monthly talks on diverse topics related to the history of Hudson, Greenport, Stockport, and Columbia County. The library’s History Room houses a special collection that pertains to the history of the City of Hudson, Greenport and Stockport; as well as Columbia County and New York State.
The History Room is closed to the public at this time but online research requests are available at https://hudsonarealibrary.org/history-room/ and the public can submit requests for information on local history that volunteers will research.
The Hudson Area Library is located at 51 North Fifth Street in Hudson, NY. The mission of the library is to enrich the quality of life by providing free and equal access to programs, services and resources, and by creating opportunities for all members of our community to connect, create, learn and grow. For more information visit hudsonarealibrary.org.