Come to Fort Ontario State Historic Site’s annual history conference on Saturday, April 27! The event features renown speakers, fascinating exhibits, book and memorabilia sales, raffles and more. It runs from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Lake Ontario Event and Conference Center, 26 E. First St., Oswego.

The theme of this year’s conference is the “Black Military Experience in America,” with a special emphasis on the soldiers and officers stationed at Fort Ontario.

Black men and women, enslaved and free, have played significant roles in the military history of Fort Ontario and Oswego since the early 18th century when they transported trade goods and pelts on boats along the Mohawk-Oneida-Oswego water route between Schenectady and Oswego.

Black Americans continue to serve at Fort Ontario to this day as members of the 444th Engineer Company, U.S. Army Reserve, which garrisons a training facility on a portion of the old military reservation.

The conference begins with local historian and Friends of Fort Ontario AmeriCorps member Jonathan Kobelia’s presentation on the Rhode Island Regiment and Colonel Marinus Willet’s unsuccessful attempt to take Fort Ontario from the British under brutal winter weather conditions in February 1783.

Lavada Nahon will speak on Black soldiers of the 18th century. She is the interpreter of African American history for the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation – Bureau of Historic Sites. Navon is also a culinary historian focused on the 17th through 19th century mid-Atlantic region, with an emphasis on the work of enslaved cooks in the homes of the elite-class. She is a generalist in New York African American history and works with a variety of historic sites, historical societies and museums across the tri-state area. Her mission is to bring history to life, giving presence to Africans and people of African descent, both enslaved and free, in the historic New Netherland area in any way possible.

Award-winning historical interpreter and museum program director Hanae Weber will follow with her presentation, “Loyalist Refugee Experiences During and After the American Revolution,” which highlights the impact of British loyalism on Black and Indigenous people. In her role as lead civilian interpreter at Old Fort Niagara State Historic Site, Weber helps piece together the stories of underappreciated women in the fort’s history. She has been a featured presenter at historic sites and appeared as a guest star in season 12 of the PBS show “A Taste of History.” Weber graduated from DePauw University in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in English literature and women’s studies and is working towards her master’s in public history from SUNY Empire College.

Author and historian Anthony F. Gero will be at hand to speak on “Black New Yorkers of the War of 1812.” Gero is co-author of five military history books and over 150 articles on military history, primarily concentrating on New York State Militia, National Guard and African American soldiers. He retired from public school teaching in Auburn, N.Y., and was an adjunct history instructor at Cayuga Community College for nine years. He is also a board member of the Friends of Fort Ontario.

Historian Darron Charles Overby will present “The Sable Arm of the Union Army, 1862-1867,” which includes a discussion about the history, experience, uniforms, equipment, weapons and training of Black troops from the Civil War to the early years of the Indian Wars. An 18-year veteran of the U.S. Army Reserve, Overby is a training police officer for the U.S. Departments of the Army and Marine Corps, and many other government facilities. When not working at the historic Joint-Base Myer Henderson Hall, he is a re-enactor and tour guide who volunteers at historic sites, re-enactments, special events and ceremonies. He is also founder of the Black Phalanx Brigade, a 3,000-member organization and Facebook group dedicated to raising awareness about African American history and promoting living history interpretations.

Fort Ontario State Historic Site Manager Paul Lear will end the conference with an illustrated talk on the “Black Military Experience at Fort Ontario, from the French and Indian War through the Global War on Terror.” He will focus on the 24th U.S. Infantry (Buffalo Soldiers) at Fort Ontario from 1908 to 1911 and the 369th New York Coast Artillery Anti-Aircraft Regiment (Harlem Hellfighters) in 1941. Lear is a historical archaeologist with a master’s degree in public archaeology from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He has managed Fort Ontario since 1999 and researches, writes and speaks on the fort’s history and restoration.

The conference also features Continental Arms Collectors Inc. which will exhibit artifacts, documents, photographs, weapons and other equipment related to the history of African American soldiers in the U.S. military. Enlarged photographs of soldiers of the 24th U.S. Infantry, 369th New York Coast Artillery Anti-Aircraft Regiment and more will be on display. There will also be exhibits by other historical and cultural organizations, including the Oswego County Office of Promotion and Tourism.

Author Anthony Gero will sign copies of his books, which will be sold by the Friends of Fort Ontario. The group will have many other titles by different authors for sale, as well as memorabilia, clothing, postcards and more. Raffle prizes include historical artwork, a basket of chocolate, Fort Ontario memorabilia and other items.

On Sunday, April 28, conference attendees are also invited to tour Fort Ontario State Historic Site, 1 E. Fourth St., Oswego. From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., they can view ongoing projects such as the furnishing of two 19th century soldiers squad rooms.

Advanced registration and payment are required for Saturday’s conference and Sunday’s Fort Ontario tour. Registration is $70 and includes lunch on Saturday. Student and active-duty military registration is $40. Payment may be made through PayPal on the Friends of Fort Ontario website at https://historicfortontario.com/ or by check or credit card.

For more information, including a complete conference schedule or help with registration and payment by check or credit card, contact Caroline Lamie at 315-343-4711 or email caroline.lamie@parks.ny.gov.

LEARN ABOUT THE BLACK MILITARY EXPERIENCE AT FORT ONTARIO – Fort Ontario State Historic Site hosts its annual history conference on Saturday, April 27 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The event features presentations, exhibits, book and memorabilia sales and raffle items at the Lake Ontario Event and Conference Center, 26 E. First St., Oswego. Pictured are members of the 369th Coast Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment training with a .50 caliber machine gun on an anti-aircraft mount in January 1941. Picture taken by George Strock for Life Magazine.

FORT ONTARIO HOSTS ANNUAL HISTORY CONFERENCE APRIL 27 – Come join Fort Ontario State Historic Site’s annual history conference on Saturday, April 27! The event runs from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Lake Ontario Event and Conference Center, 26. E. First St., Oswego. General registration is $70, $40 for students and active-duty military, and includes lunch on Saturday and a tour of the fort on Sunday. Pictured is a member of the 369th Coast Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment training on a range detector to determine the range and course of an approaching aircraft before radar came into use. Photo by George Strock for Life Magazine.