Thu, May 16
|Town of Wappinger Town Hall
Speaker Series: The Chain that Saved the Colonies with Donald "Doc" Bayne
Discover the forge in Sterling Forest, NY that made links for the Great Chain. Learn about the history of the iron industry there, starting in 1736, and how the Sterling Forge was used to create the Great Chain which was laid across the Hudson River.
Time & Location
May 16, 2024, 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Town of Wappinger Town Hall, 20 Middlebush Rd, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590, USA
Guests
About the event
The forests of the Hudson Valley still have ancient stories to reveal, and one of those stories relates to the Great Chain which was placed across the Hudson River at West Point. This iron chain stopped the British invasion of the New England colonies during the American Revolution.
Former forest ranger and President of the Friends of Sterling Forest State Park, Donald "Doc" Bayne will present his discovery of the Sterling Forge, one source of the links for the Great Chain. Doc will share the history of the iron industry that started in 1736 at Sterling Forest, how he discovered one source of The Great Chain at the original location of Peter Townsend’s iron works, kept hidden from the British deep in Sterling Forest, and how the Sterling Forge was used to create the Great Chain that was placed across the Hudson River at West Point.
This event is part of our Speaker Series programming. The public is invited to attend. WHS member admission is free, non-member suggested donation of $5.00. Light refreshments will be served. Seating is limited and is on a first come/first serve basis. Please RSVP to help us plan attendance and to be added to our mailing list. (please note, an RSVP does not save you a seat).
About Donald "Doc" Bayne:
Doc Bayne, a former forest ranger, is President of the Friends of Sterling Forest State Park.former forest ranger, is President of the Friends of Sterling Forest State Park. He is an environmental educator and historian, who has done extensive field and archival research .Mr. Bayne has served on the boards of the Orange County Historical Society, the Orange County Chapter of the New York State Archeological Association and the Fort Montgomery Battle Site.