X2 History Detectives: Investigating Our Place in Our Town with Historic Red Hook (HRH)
History & World Affairs | Registration opens 5/26/2026 9:00 AM
Class meets June 2, 9, 16, and 23 (Tuesdays).
Through understanding our towns, we better know ourselves. Place histories influence our present as we look forward. With guidance from trustees and volunteers of Historic Red Hook (HRH), participants will become familiar with the Elmendorph Inn’s history and HRH’s archives and with how they represent resources in their community. Next, participants will explore thinking like a historian using primary sources. A “Then and Now” walking tour of the Village of Red Hook and St. Paul’s Lutheran Cemetery develops connections to the town’s history. Finally, the basics of genealogy research start students on their personal historic journey.
Participants must be able to walk and stand for 90 minutes on uneven surfaces.
- Image Courtesy of Shutterstock
Thea Burgess
Presenter
Thea Burgess retired in 2020 from the Red Hook Central School District as a secondary English teacher. She served as a trustee of Historic Red Hook for over a decade, culminating in her term as president, which ended in 2025. She is a member of the education, communications, and development committees and is president ex officio of the organization. Ms. Burgess is at work on a novel titled Dame, a retelling of the Rip Van Winkle tale from the wife’s point of view.
Beth Goldberg
Producer & Presenter
Beth Goldberg (LLI) is a New York State Master Teacher Emeritus with a BA in mathematics from Wellesley College and an MBA from MIT. After approximately 20 years in banking, she relocated to the Hudson Valley and pursued a new career in education through Bard's Master of Arts in Teaching program. Selected for NYS's four-year Master Teacher program, she taught secondary school mathematics for nearly 20 years and served as math department chair until retiring in June 2024.