On May 15 Ulster County will recognize the contributions of thousands of Ulster County residents who were “Forsaken in Life, Forgotten in Death” when Acting County Executive Adele B. Reiter is joined by County Clerk Nina Postupack, Legislative Chairwoman Tracey Bartels and State Assemblyman Kevin Cahill to unveil a memorial commemorating the Ulster County Poorhouse that once stood at the Ulster County Fairgrounds.  The memorial will feature a life size bronze statue “Aging Woman” by local artist Trina Greene and will honor more than 2,300 unmarked burials at the site.

The event begins at 5:00 PM at the 4H Building at the Ulster County Fairgrounds, New Paltz. Acting County Executive Adele Reiter will introduce New Paltz Town Historian, Susan Stessin-Cohen to tell the stories of Poorhouse residents in a presentation entitled “Forsaken in Life, Forgotten in Death”.  This free presentation will be followed at 6:00 by the unveiling of the statue, “Aging Woman” in front of the Ulster County Pool complex.

Between the years 1828 and 1976, the Ulster County Fairgrounds was the site of the Ulster County Poorhouse. The Poorhouse was a tax-supported residential institution to which people were required to go if they could not support themselves without community assistance.  

In the Fall of 2000, Susan Stessin-Cohen uncovered a lone tombstone that led to her look for other burials on the site.  With the support of Nina Postupack, County Clerk, Stessin-Cohen was granted access to Poorhouse records in the Ulster County Clerks archives.  For almost twenty years she has been telling the stories the individuals who lived and died there.

Stessin-Cohen pieced together the stories of thousands of individuals who passed through the Ulster County Poorhouse that included the names of many who died and were buried there in unmarked graves. Poorhouse records list unwed mothers, freed slaves, unemployed canal workers and farmers who simply grew too old to work their farms. The indigent, the destitute, the insane, “debauched” women, intemperate men, immigrants, transient farm workers and disabled factory workers were all crowded into  men’s and women’s dormitories separated by long hallways that lead to the Superintendents residence. 

Thanks to the Stessin-Cohen’s years of research and inspiration, several private donors were moved to support the creation of a statue for a Poorhouse Memorial.  These humble efforts were joined by the support of former Ulster County Executive Mike Hein, the Ulster County Legislature, County Clerk Nina Postupack, Assemblyman Kevin Cahill and the New Paltz Town Board, which was essential to developing the memorial that will be unveiled on May 15th.

For additional information about the memorial or the unveiling event, please contact Fawn Tantillo at 845-340-3699.

###