Program Highlights British Evacuation of Fort Ontario and other significant events -

OSWEGO - After a year-long hiatus, the informal, cordial, and free “History on Tap” public program featuring speakers on diverse topics of historical interest will resume Wednesday, June 2 at Steamer’s Restaurant in Oswego.  Programs will be presented on the first Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m.

Current Covid-19 protocols will be in place.  Guests are invited to order dinner or refreshments shortly before or during the speakers’ program. 

Oswego County Historian Justin White, City of Oswego Historian Mark Slosek, and Fort Ontario State Historic Site Manager Paul Lear will launch the new program season with a discussion of four significant anniversaries being commemorated in Oswego in 2021.  

These include the 75^th anniversary of the opening of the Richardson-Bates House Museum, the 125^th anniversary of the founding of the Oswego County Historical Society, the 150^th anniversary of the opening of Oswego City Hall, and the 225^th anniversary of the evacuation of Fort Ontario by the British.

“Oswego County has a long and colorful history and has been a destination point since the ancestors of the Haudenosaunee indigenous people visited the region for hunting and fishing,” said Dave Turner, Director of the Oswego County Department of Community Development, Tourism and Planning. “We are delighted that the ‘History on Tap’ local history program will resume in June at Steamer’s, and we look forward to more interesting events this summer in Oswego County.”

Founded in 1896, the Oswego County Historical Society (OCHS) has preserved and promoted the history of the greater Oswego area for more than 100 years. In 1946, the OCHS received a generous gift of an historic 19^th century Italian villa, the Richardson-Bates House on East Third Street, to serve as the permanent headquarters for a public museum. Oswego City Hall was designed by well-known architect Horatio Nelson White and built in 1870. The building been used as the heart of Oswego city government since 1871. Fort Ontario was the last of six northwest posts held by the British at the end of the Revolutionary War and was turned over to the United States in 1796.

Steamer’s Restaurant is located at the Clarion Inn at 70 E. First Street (SR 481) in the City of Oswego. 

For more information on “History on Tap” contact Paul Lear at 315-343-4711 or Paul.Lear@parks.ny.gov. Updates and program information will be posted on the Friends of Fort Ontario Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/FortOntario/. For more Oswego County history visit http://visitoswegocounty.com/historical-info/ or call the Oswego County Tourism Office at 315-349-8322.

Graphics courtesy of Paul Lear, Fort Ontario State Historic Site

The historic 19^th century Italian villa known as the Richardson-Bates House on East Third Street in Oswego is the home of  the Oswego County Historical Society.

Fort Ontario was the last of six northwest posts held by the British at the end of the Revolutionary War. It was turned over to the United States in 1796.

Oswego’s City Hall was designed by well-known architect Horatio Nelson White, and has been used as the heart of Oswego city government since 1871.