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GOHS 2026
Annual Dinner & Meeting
Wednesday, October 14, 2026, 5:30-8pm (doors at 5pm)
Toscana of Oneonta (76 Chestnut St)
GOHS’s Annual Dinner & Meeting will be held in the fall. This year, our fundraiser dinner is on Wednesday, October 14, from 5:30pm – 8:00pm (doors at 5pm) at Toscana Northern Italian Grill (76 Chestnut Street, Oneonta).
Tickets for the dinner are available for $60 for GOHS members and $65 for non-GOHS members, and will include tabled appetizers, a plated salad, a choice of an entrée, dessert, and soda and/or coffee. One complimentary house beer or red or white wine will also be included in the ticket price. A cash bar will be available for additional beer, wine, and cocktails.
This event is open to the public and is a wonderful way to show your support for GOHS, our history, and one of Oneonta’s most treasured local restaurants.
The Annual Dinner also doubles as GOHS’s Annual Meeting. The meeting will be brief and will include voting on new trustees and officers for GOHS’s Board, and the awarding of the 2026 Eduard Hofbauer Outstanding Service Award, Albert E. Morris Award, and John M. Pontius Award.
Tickets for this event are limited and sell quickly! Be sure to reserve your seat soon by filling out a registration form, available at the History Center (183 Main Street) and for download by clicking the registration form button.
Completed registration form and payment can be submitted in person at the History Center & Museum or by mail (PO Box 814, Oneonta, NY 13820). The deadline for registration is Friday, October 9. Please note any dietary restrictions on your registration form and direct any questions to the History Center (607-432-0960) or to Marcela (directormm@oneontahistory.org).
GOHS 20th Live & Online
Annual Benefit Auctions
Online: Thurs. Nov. 5, 5pm - Thurs. Nov. 12, 7pm
Live: Friday,November 13, 6pm (doors at 5pm)
GOHS Third-Floor Ballroom (183 Main Street)
GOHS’ Benefit Auctions are our largest fundraiser! The Live Auction will be held Friday evening, November 13, with Kevin Herrick as our auctioneer. Again, this year GOHS will hold our auction in our historic third-floor ballroom. Doors open at 5:00pm, and the Live Auction will kick off at 6pm sharp! Admission is free, and there will be beer, wine, cider, and spiked seltzer options for drinks, as well as light hors d’oeuvres.
At the close of the Live Auction, GOHS will be drawing raffle tickets for a $50 gift card for next year’s auction, as well as the 50/50 raffle. You must be present to win! We will also be drawing our prize winners for GOHS’s Fundraiser Raffle!
In addition to the Live Auction, GOHS will be offering an Online Auction again this year. This auction will begin online one week prior to the live auction, on Thursday, November 5, 5pm, and will remain open through 7pm on Thursday, November 12. The Online Auction can be accessed at https://www.32auctions.com/GOHSAuction2026. Each auction will offer different objects and experiences, so be sure to attend both. There will be plenty of attractive items in both the Live and Online Auctions.
The auctions’ success depends on interesting items to bid on, as well as plenty of bidders! Keep GOHS in mind if you are downsizing, cleaning out the attic or garage, or know someone who is. Quality items for auction include jewelry, arts and crafts, antiques, gift cards, and wines and spirits. Experiences like event tickets, dinners, fieldtrips, and overnight stays also bring spirited bidding. Stop down to the History Center & Museum in October to see some of the featured Live and Online Auction items on display. The suggested deadline for OBJECT donations to this year’s auction is Tuesday, October 27.
Auction sponsorships will also be offered again to businesses, organizations, families, or individuals. If you have donations, are interested in a sponsorship, or need more information, please contact the History Center & Museum at 607-432-0960, or reach out to Marcela Micucci (directormm@oneontahistory.org); Bob Brzozowski (Brzozowski@oneontahistory.org); or Loraine Tyler (loraine.tyler@oneonta.edu).
And of course, if you are interested in getting involved or volunteering for the auction, let Loraine know!
SUNY Oneonta "Legacy of Leadership" Panel
September 3, 2026
In September, GOHS partnered with SUNY Oneonta, their Alumni Association, and Oneonta Athletics to celebrate Founders Week, the Mayors Cup, and Fan Fest 2026, featuring the “Legacy of Leadership” panel of renowned SUNY Oneonta athletes and soccer stars.
See a recording of this historic event below!
2026 NYS Historical Marker
Unveiling Ceremonies
In 2026, the William G. Pomeroy Foundation’s New York State Historic Marker Grant Program funded the purchase of two new yellow and blue historical markers in Oneonta for the U&D Depot and Riverside Cemetery. With the help of the Future for Oneonta Foundation, SUNY Oneonta Alumni Association, and other donors, GOHS has also individually funded two historical markers for the Oneonta Fairgrounds and Old Main. Each of these locations are a testament to Oneonta’s history of innovation, evolution, and enduring sense of community.
GOHS will hold public unveiling ceremonies for each historical marker. We began with the unveiling of the marker fo Riverside Cemetery (296 Main Street, behind the First Presbyterian Church) on Tuesday, June 30, at 6pm. The marker for the Cemetery honors Oneonta’s prominent families, early settlers, and war veterans buried there. Immediately following this unveiling, GOHS Board Members Frank Antonucci, Bob Brzozowski, and Art Torrey led a tour of Riverside Cemetery, highlighting some of the many Revolutionary War soldiers and early settlers buried there.
Next, GOHS unveiled the historical marker commemorating the U&D Depot (now the Depot Restaurant and Tavern at 4 ½ Railroad Avenue) on Friday, July 10, at 3pm. This marker commemorates the Ulster & Delaware Train Depot, the largest and final terminus station on the U&D line (service from 1900 – 1954).
On Saturday, August 22, at 11am, we were joined by GOHS Librarian Wayne Wright and local historian and author Jim Loudon for the unveiling of the marker for the Oneonta Fairgrounds (top of Fair Street near Belmont Circle). The Fairgrounds marker commemorates the site of the Central NY Fair from 1873 to 1927 and its racetrack (now Belmont Circle). Following the unveiling, Wayne led a tour of the historic Fairgrounds. This marker is funded by the Future for Oneonta Foundation (FOF) and generous donors.
For our final historical marker unveiling, we were joined by SUNY Oneonta President Dr. Alberto Cardelle and the SUNY Oneonta Alumni Association during Founder’s Week for the unveiling of the marker for Old Main [Oneonta Normal School] (7 State Street), on Friday, September 4 at 10:30am. Old Main, established in 1889 and razed in 1977, was the original site of SUNY Oneonta. This marker is located at the foot of Maple Street at the intersection of State Street, where the original steps to the Old Main building remain. The marker is funded by the SUNY Oneonta Alumni Association.
Thank you to our partners, Mayor Dan Butterman and the City of Oneonta and their Department of Public Works for supporting the historical marker project; to GOHS Collections Assistants Andrew Kendall and Laura Santos and Volunteer Librarian Wayne Wright for assisting with the grant applications; and to our friends and colleagues at SUNY Oneonta and the Depot Restaurant & Tavern for helping to make this round of historical markers a success!
Please join us in celebrating the continued preservation of Oneonta’s rich history.
2026 Cycle
Hometown Heroes Banner Program
In 2023, the Greater Oneonta Historical Society (GOHS) launched the Oneonta Hometown Heroes Banner Program. The program honors Oneonta’s hometown veterans with a custom 18×48” banner, mounted along the light poles in the town and city of Oneonta to honor veterans or those currently serving in the Armed Forces.
The Hometown Heroes banners are displayed from Memorial Day (May 26, 2026) to Veterans Day (November 11, 2026) each year, and each banner includes a photo of the veteran, their name and branch of service, time served, and any medals received.
GOHS would like to thank our sponsors, veterans, and the City and Town of Oneonta for helping make the 2023 – 2025 Hometown Heroes programs a success and look forward to continuing the Hometown Heroes program honoring current and past servicemembers in 2027. Banners can be sponsored by anyone who would like to honor a veteran. A sponsor may be a business, a friend or family member of a veteran (or a group of friends or family members), or the veteran themselves. The honoree does not need to be a native of Oneonta.
Like last year, display locations for banners in 2026 include light poles down Main Street, River Street, and Chestnut Street (up to West Street) in the City of Oneonta and Chestnut Street (from West End Avenue) and Oneida Streets in the Town of Oneonta.
The 2026 banners will down in November. They will be been cleaned and stored at the Oneonta History Center & Museum (183 Main Street).
The deadline for applications for 2026 banners is now closed. Applications for NEW & RENEWAL banners for the 2027 cycle will open in late November.
*GOHS will replace damaged banners at no cost to the sponsor. Banners with normal wear and tear and/or fading are not considered to be damaged banners. If a sponsor would like to replace an older or worn banner, the sponsor will be responsible for the incurred cost of the new banner.
Stay updated on the 2027 Hometown Heroes Banner Program and learn more about the application process and deadlines by following GOHS’s social media pages @oneontahistoricalsociety. For additional inquiries, please contact program director Marcela Micucci (directormm@oneontahistory.org) or call the History Center at (607) 432-0960.
GOHS looks forward to the 2027 cycle of the Hometown Heroes Banner Program.
2025 NYS Historical Marker
Unveiling Ceremonies
In 2025, the William G. Pomeroy Foundation’s New York State Historic Marker Grant Program funded the purchase of two new yellow and blue historical markers in Oneonta for Center St. School and the historic Red Caboose. With the help of the Future for Oneonta Foundation, the Unitarian Universalist Church, the Schumann Foundation, and other donors, GOHS has also individually funded three historical markers for Sixth Ward, the Ford Mansion, and McDonald Tavern. Each of these locations are a testament to Oneonta’s history of innovation, evolution, and enduring sense of community.
GOHS held public unveiling ceremonies for each historical marker. We began with the unveiling of the marker for Center St. School (31 Center Street), on Friday, June 13. This marker commemorates the oldest standing school in the City of Oneonta, opened in 1897. Now the home to the Oneonta City School District, superintendent Tom Brindley and OSCD and Center Street School staff joined us for the unveiling.
Next, GOHS and the City of Oneonta unveiled the historical marker commemorating the Historic Red Caboose in Neahwa Park (15 James Georgeson Avenue) on Tuesday, July 1, in advance of the Fourth of July festivities. The marker for the Red Caboose honors Oneonta’s railroad history and the founding of one of the first and largest labor organizations, the Brotherhood of Railroad Brakemen (later Trainmen) in 1883.
Then, we were joined by Sixth Ward staples Dr. John Nader, Frank Russo, and additional honored guests for the unveiling of the marker for The Sixth Ward at the Oneonta Boys & Girls Club (70 River Street) on Friday, July 25. The Sixth Ward marker commemorates the Sixth Ward neighborhood, its diverse immigrant community, and the social and civic institutions they created.
The next marker unveiling, for the Ford Mansion (now Community Bank, 245 Main Street), was held on Wednesday, August 13, at 1pm. Once home to abolitionist Eliakim Reed Ford, the marker stands at the former location of the mansion, which was torn down in 1929. David Schumann, descendent of the Ford family, joined us for this ceremony, along with Harry Bradshaw Matthews, who spoke to the mansion’s reputed connection to the Underground Railroad.
Our final historical marker unveiling for McDonald Tavern (now Stewart’s Shop, 47 Main Street), was held on Thursday, August 28, at 3pm. The tavern, razed in 1961, was one of Oneonta’s first operating taverns and the reputed birthplace of acclaimed photographer of the West, Carleton E. Watkins. This marker was funded, in part, by a grant through the Unitarian Universalist Church Society.
Thank you to our partners, Mayor Mark Drnek and the City of Oneonta for supporting the historical marker project; to GOHS Collections Assistant Andrew Kendall, Center Street School historian Mark Parmerter and Secretary to the Superintendent Reggie Ranieri McGuinness, and the Milne Library at SUNY Oneonta for assisting with the grant applications; and to our friends and colleagues with the Oneonta City School District, the Oneonta Boys & Girls Club, Community Bank, and Stewart’s Shops for helping to make this round of historical markers a success!
Please join us in celebrating the continued preservation of Oneonta’s rich history.
(from left): OCSD School Board President Susan Kurkowski , Mayor Mark Drnek, OCSD Assistant Superintendent of Instruction and Curriculum Coleen Moore, Retired Center St, School Principal John Cook, OCSD Superintendent Tom Brindley, Marcela Micucci (GOHS), & OCSD District Clerk Reggie McGuiness at Center St. School
(from left): Marcela Micucci (GOHS), Bhanu Gaur (GOHS), & LRHS Co-Founder Jim Loudon
(from left): Sixth Ward AC President Bob Thomas, OBGC Vice President Tim McGraw, FOF Board President Gary Herzig, former Mayor John Nader, Marcela Micucci (GOHS), & Mayor Mark Drnek
(from left): GOHS Trustee Harry Bradshaw Matthews, Ford family descendent David Schumann, & Marcela Micucci (GOHS).
GOHS Trustee Bob Brzozowski & Marcela Micucci (GOHS).
2025 Summer
Walking Tour Series
GOHS kicked off our 2025 Summer Walking Tour Series on Thursday, June 26, at 1:30pm with a Walking Tour of the historic Homer Folks Tuberculosis Hospital on the Job Corps campus, led by GOHS’s Bob Brzozowski, Bill Pietraface, and Janet Potter, former Homer Folks nurse Janice Downie, and former Homer Folks child patient Frank Marquette. Tour goers enjoyed a presentation by Janice and Frank on their experiences and memories of TB Hospital. Groups then divided up and toured either the exterior grounds with Bob and Bill (view the old nurses’ residence, medical staff housing, children’s hospital, power station, emergency shelter, and the outdoor campus) or the interior of the administration building (included the operating room, autoclave and display, plus the stairwell exhibit). GOHS thanks Oneonta Job Corps Academy for their partnership and planning for this event.
Then, in July, we held our annual tours of the historic Red Caboose in Neahwa Park during the July Fourth celebrations on Friday, July 4 with our own Bhanu Gaur for a chance to step inside, walk through, and get an up-close view of the Red Caboose and learn more about its history and the story of the Brotherhood of Railroad Brakemen.
Then, on the evening of Thursday, July 24, GOHS Trustees Art Torrey and Liz Morley joined us again to lead a tour of downtown in the 1960s! This tour explored historic downtown in the “age of Woodstock” to coincide with our summer music exhibition, Schools of Rock.
On Saturday, August 16, GOHS Trustees Frank Antonucci, Bob Brzozowski, and Art Torrey led a historic tour of Riverside Cemetery. The tour explored the sites of Oneonta’s Civil War soldiers and famous Oneontans, like the Ford, Fox, and Watkins families.
All GOHS Summer Walking Tours are by donation and reservations are not required, unless otherwise noted.
Soccertown: Then & Now
Panel Presentation
Thursday, May 8, 6:00 - 7:30pm
Foothills Performing Arts Center (24 Market Street) Loft Space
On Thursday, May 8, 2025, GOHS held a public program to coincide with our current special exhibition, Oneonta: Soccertown USA at the Foothills Performing Arts Center (24 Market Street) Loft Space. If you were unable to attend the program, check out the recording of the event below, courtesy of Otsego Media!
The panel presentation, Soccertown: Then & Now, brought together past and present coaches and players from Hartwick College, SUNY Oneonta, Oneonta High School, and the community to discuss their experiences and Oneonta’s rich soccer history.
Moderated by Tony Avanzato, panelists included: Alex Brannan, SUNY Oneonta player & OHS Boy’s Soccer Coach; Jim Lennox, Coach of the 1977 Hartwick Men’s Soccer Championship Team; Ian McIntyre, Hartwick player & SUNY Oneonta & Hartwick Men’s Soccer Coach (& current Men’s Soccer Coach at Syracuse University); Mara Primmer, OHS player & SUNY Oneonta Women’s Soccer Coach; Tracey Ranieri, SUNY Oneonta Women’s Soccer Coach & Athletic Director; and Dave Ranieri, OHS & SUNY Oneonta player and SUNY Oneonta Assistant Coach.
The program was held in the loft space of the Foothills Performing Arts Center and was free and open to the public.
2024 NYS
Historical Marker Initiative
This year, the William G. Pomeroy Foundation’s New York State Historic Marker Grant Program funded the purchase of five new yellow and blue historical markers in Oneonta.
The markers include the D&H Train Station, built in 1892, at the former site of Stella Luna Ristorante (58-60 Market Street); the Huntington Home, today the Huntington Memorial Library and Park (62 Chestnut Street); Damaschke Field in Neahwa Park, one of the oldest active ballparks in America (15 James Georgeson Avenue); the Wilber Mansion, now home to the Community Arts Network of Oneonta (CANO) (11 Ford Avenue); and the Oneonta Armory, built in 1905 (4 Academy Street). With the help of the Future for Oneonta Foundation, GOHS has also individually funded a historical marker for the Oneonta Ford Sales Building. Each of these locations are a testament to Oneonta’s history of innovation, evolution, and enduring sense of community.
Please join us in celebrating the continued preservation of Oneonta’s rich history.
Thank you to our partners, Mayor Mark Drnek and the City of Oneonta’s Department of Public Works, for installing the markers and for supporting the historical marker project. And a special thanks to our friends and colleagues at Huntington Memorial Library, CANO, Stella Luna’s, and Damaschke Field for helping to make this round of historical markers a success!
D&H Special Exhibition - April 22, 2023 - November 2023
This spring, GOHS will open our next special exhibition, to open in April 2023. Released in two parts, the exhibition will commemorate the bicentennial of the D&H Canal Company charter, which provided over 100 years of railroad service to the town and city of Oneonta.
Part I, Building Up Steam: The Rise of the D&H Railroad in Oneonta (April 22 – July) and Part II, Leaving the Station: The Fall of the D&H Railroad in Oneonta (August – November) will explore the rise and fall of the D&H Railroad and its operations in Oneonta from the 1850s through modern day, including the invaluable impact the railroad had on Oneonta’s economic, social, and cultural landscape.
On display in the Brzozowski Special Exhibition Gallery and the SUNY Oneonta Alumni and Buckingham windows, it will feature a variety of local D&H artifacts, documents, and photographs from GOHS’ collection.
The exhibit is curated by GOHS’ Executive Director, Dr. Marcela Micucci, and Associate Curator Bhanu Gaur, with the help of a talented team of exhibition designers, docents, advisors, and collections staff. This exhibition was made possible in part by a 2023 New York State Council of the Arts Support for Organizations grant.
D&H Special Exhibition - April 22, 2023 - November 2023
This spring, GOHS will open our next special exhibition, to open in April 2023. Released in two parts, the exhibition will commemorate the bicentennial of the D&H Canal Company charter, which provided over 100 years of railroad service to the town and city of Oneonta.
Part I, Building Up Steam: The Rise of the D&H Railroad in Oneonta (April 22 – July) and Part II, Leaving the Station: The Fall of the D&H Railroad in Oneonta (August – November) will explore the rise and fall of the D&H Railroad and its operations in Oneonta from the 1850s through modern day, including the invaluable impact the railroad had on Oneonta’s economic, social, and cultural landscape.
On display in the Brzozowski Special Exhibition Gallery and the SUNY Oneonta Alumni and Buckingham windows, it will feature a variety of local D&H artifacts, documents, and photographs from GOHS’ collection.
The exhibit is curated by GOHS’ Executive Director, Dr. Marcela Micucci, and Associate Curator Bhanu Gaur, with the help of a talented team of exhibition designers, docents, advisors, and collections staff. This exhibition was made possible in part by a 2023 New York State Council of the Arts Support for Organizations grant.