Exhibit on Black Builder Jacob Wynkoop in New Paltz at Historic Huguenot Street

NEW PALTZ, NY (May 24, 2019) Historic Huguenot Street (HHS) presents the exhibit “Never Was a Slave” Jacob Wynkoop, Free and Black in 19th-Century New Paltz at the DuBois Fort Visitor Center, June 1 through July 14, 2019.  Jacob was born in New Paltz, New York, in 1829, the child of two former slaves, Thomas and Jane Deyo Wynkoop. Jacob had an exceptional and varied life for any man (black or white) of his times. Among the first African Americans to buy land in the community, he also served in the Union Army during the Civil War, organized politically on behalf of blacks in town, and built a series of homes in the late-19th century that define a neighborhood in the village of New Paltz. Jacob and his family’s story are illuminated by historical documents and photographic materials from the HHS Archives, the Haviland-Heidgerd Historical Collection at the Elting Memorial Library, Town of New Paltz Records, and the Records of the Reformed Church of New Paltz. The exhibit is curated by Josephine Bloodgood, HHS Director of Curatorial and Preservation Affairs.

The DuBois Fort Visitor Center is open Thursday through Tuesday, 10 AM to 5 PM The exhibit is free and open to the public. Walking tours to view the exterior of house built by Wynkoop will take place on Sunday, June 2, as part of the Juneteenth Celebration at HHS. For times and more information, visit https://www.huguenotstreet.org/juneteenth.

 About Historic Huguenot Street
A National Historic Landmark District, Historic Huguenot Street is a 501(c)3 non-profit that encompasses 30 buildings across 10 acres comprising the heart of the original 1678 New Paltz settlement, including seven stone houses dating to the early eighteenth century.  Historic Huguenot Street was founded in 1894 as the Huguenot Patriotic, Historical, and Monumental Society to preserve the nationally acclaimed collection of stone houses.  Since then, Historic Huguenot Street has grown into an innovative museum, chartered as an educational corporation by the University of the State of New York Department of Education that is dedicated to protecting our historic buildings, preserving an important collection of artifacts and manuscripts, and promoting the stories of the Huguenot Street families from the seventeenth century to today.

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 Frances Vigna
Marketing & Communications Coordinator
frances@huguenotstreet.org
(845) 255-1660 Ext. 102