
The Preservation League of New York State and their program partners at the New York State Council on the Arts are thrilled to announce that The Bridgehampton Museum is a recipient of a 2024 Technical Assistance Grant. This grant of $4,000 will fund an Engineering/Structural Analysis of the historic Corwith House. At the end of 2024, an independent panel of preservation professionals met to select this cycle’s grant recipients, with 20 projects representing 13 counties across the state being awarded a total of $75,290.
“The Corwith House is an integral part of our local history that everyone sees as they enter Bridgehampton and it is about time for another restoration of the building,” said Connor Flanagan, Bridgehampton Museum Executive Director. “This grant will go along way to helping us to plan our next steps.”
The Bridgehampton Museum’s goal is to make the Corwith House a once again vibrant part of the Bridgehampton Community. The first step in that is to do an assessment of the building and spend the next year making plans for an upcoming restoration to this 19th century farmhouse. The agricultural history of Bridgehampton is incredibly rich and still part of the culture today. The goal of the museum is to have this building highlight this aspect of the local culture with refreshed exhibit spaces and better climatized storage for the museum’s archives. The Museum will work with consultant Benjamin W. Chaleff to complete the analysis.
“The targeted studies made possible by Technical Assistance Grants provide crucial support for strategic preservation planning as organizations look to the future,” said Preservation League President Jay DiLorenzo. “The League is proud to support so many worthwhile projects across the state through this partnership with the New York State Council on the Arts. And we are equally grateful for additional funding from the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation on Long Island and the Maurice D. Hinchey Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area, which allows TAG funding to go further.”
The Technical Assistance Grant (TAG) program is a partnership between the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) and the Preservation League of New York State, made possible by NYSCA with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. The Maurice D. Hinchey Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area has provided additional support for the projects within the National Heritage Area boundary. The TAG program supports arts centers, historic sites, music halls, theaters, libraries, and other cultural nonprofit or municipal entities that steward historic buildings throughout New York State.
With the announcement of the 2024 awards, support provided by TAG since its launch in 2012 totals $743,970. These grants have directly advanced the efforts of 230 preservation projects.
“New York’s renowned arts and cultural sites not only benefit their communities today, but must plan to serve the residents, learners, and visitors of tomorrow,” said Erika Mallin, Executive Director of NYSCA. “NYSCA is proud to provide this key funding for organizations to identify their needs and proactively design their futures. Congratulations to all of this year’s grantees, we applaud your dedication and commitment to preserving the arts and culture of this great state.”
"The Robert David Lion Gardiner's partnership with the Preservation League of New York State offers our historic stewards an opportunity to secure professional services and assessments for historic preservation and conservation,” said Kathryn M. Curran, Executive Director of the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation. “We are delighted with this collaboration with the Preservation League and NYSCA, which was begun in 2016 and will hopefully go well into the future."
The 2024 TAG grantees are: Albany County: Albany County Historical Association | Cayuga County: Howland Stone Store Museum | Chautauqua County: Village of Sheman | Erie County: Town of Orchard Park & Village of Orchard Park | Essex County: Minerva Historical Society; The Fort Ticonderoga Association | New York County: New Amsterdam Musical Association | Niagara County: Niagara County Historical Society | Queens County: Historic House Trust of New York City; Sculpture Center, Inc.; Flux Factory | Schenectady County: Village of Scotia | Schoharie County: Schoharie County Historical Society | Suffolk County: The Bridgehampton Museum; Mastic Peninsula Historical Society; Sagtikos Manor Historical Society | Ulster County: Reher Center for Immigrant Culture and History; Unison Learning Center, Inc.; Village of New Paltz on behalf of the Dr. Margaret Wade-Lewis Center | Wyoming County: Arcade Historical Society
About The Bridgehampton Museum
The Bridgehampton Museum was first established in 1954 by a group of concerned local citizens focused on trying to preserve the history and culture specific to our special hamlet. In time the Corwith House would become the main headquarters of the organization for many years. Today the museum is dedicated to the collection, preservation and interpretation of artifacts and documents that tell the story of Bridgehampton.Central to these efforts is the preservation of two historic sites. First the Corwith House property which includes the c. 1825 Corwith House, the c. 1890 Strong Wheelwright Shop, the c. 1900 Bridgehampton Jail and a 19th century outhouse and corn crib located on the west end of Main Street. On the eastern end of Main Street, the museum manages the Southampton Town owned Nathaniel Rogers House, a c. 1840 Greek revival mansion. Learn more about the museum by going to our website bhmuseum.org.
About the Preservation League of New York State
Since its founding in 1974, the Preservation League of NYS has built a reputation for action and effectiveness. Our goal has been to preserve our historic buildings, districts, and landscapes and to build a better New York, one community at a time. The League empowers all New Yorkers to use historic preservation to enrich their communities, protect their heritage, and build a sustainable future. We lead advocacy, economic development, and education programs across the state. Connect with us at preservenys.org, facebook.com/preservenys, youtube.com/c/PreservationLeague and instagram.com/preservenys.
About the New York State Council on the Arts
The mission of the New York State Council on the Arts is to foster and advance the full breadth of New York State’s arts, culture and creativity for all. To support the ongoing recovery of the arts across New York State, the Council on the Arts will award $162 million in FY2025, serving organizations and artists across all 10 of the state’s regions. The Council on the Arts further advances New York's creative culture by convening leaders in the field and providing organizational and professional development opportunities and informational resources. Created by Governor Nelson Rockefeller in 1960 and continued with the support of Governor Hochul and the New York State Legislature, the Council is an agency that is part of the Executive Branch. For more information on NYSCA, please visit arts.ny.gov, and follow NYSCA's Facebook page, on X @NYSCArts and Instagram @NYSCouncilontheArts.
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