The First 40: A Celebration of Local History Preserved 1983–2023 The Roeliff Jansen Historical Society
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the dedication of the restored and repurposed church building, from July through October 2023, the RJHS will exhibit a selection of rarely seen objects from its museum collection. The exhibit, titled The First 40: A Celebration of Local History Preserved, will highlight how each of these objects can bridge connections between the people, technology, and traditions of rural New York's past, to our modern lives today.
The exhibition will also explore the evolution of the community and buildings and businesses of Copake Falls as related to the Copake Iron Works and Harlem Valley Railroad while celebrating the restoration, and adaptive reuse of the Old Copake Falls Church as the Roeliff Jansen Historical Society in 1983. The objects from our collection will reflect the history of our five member towns: Ancram, Copake, Gallatin, Hillsdale, and Taghkanic.