Standing proudly on Main Street in Penn Yan is the anchor building of the Yates County History Center, the Oliver House Museum, one of four buildings comprising the YCHC. The Center, formerly Yates County Genealogical & Historical Society, is one of the oldest in NYS, has been actively collecting, preserving and interpreting history since 1860. Continue reading about us...

Open Tuesday - Friday 9:00 am - 4:00 pm
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Article Collection


Articles Recently Added

We are excited to announce that several previosly published articles on local history have been added to our collection. These articles offer a fascinating glimpse into the past of our community and highlight key events, figures, and landmarks that have shaped our area.

Free Electricity in Penn Yan  
Guyanoga: The Indian Born Rrom a Cider Barrel  
Plank Roads  
Sesquicentennial (January/February 1861)  
   

 

Articles from Various Sources

The following articles were contributed by volunteers of the Yates County History Center or are based on previously published works.

A Walk Down Memory Lane (a.k.a. Main Street, Penn Yan, 1945)

 

 

 

 

August, 1927
Douglass, Frederick - The Slaveholders' Rebellion
Esperanza
Lake Keuka, Text and pictures taken from Illustrated Keuka
The Last Passenger Train From Penn Yan
Lewis Pott's Ice Cutting on Keuka Lake
Okinawa: The Ernie Pyle Connection
The Old School: PYA in the 1930s
Seneca Lake Ice-Sheets, the freezing of its waters in 1855
Stephen A. Douglas
Walkerbilt, building material dealer and woodwork manufacturer
Yates County Fair Once Attracted Carrie Nation and Billy Sunday
Yates County Remembers the Lake Street Fairgrounds
   

 

Articles by Rich MacAlpine

Rich MacAlpineĀ is a dedicated historian, best known for his insightful contributions to the Yates County History Center. As an author of numerous articles, Rich brings local history to life, offering readers a deeper understanding of the region's rich heritage. His work reflects a passion for preserving the stories that shape Yates County, ensuring that the past remains accessible and engaging for future generations. The following articles he wrote during the time he served as a volunteer to the History Center.

Apple Evaporator

 

The Day Tom Thumb Came to Penn Yan
Finch's Store in Rock Stream
Flu Season 1918
From the Schofield Letters: Admiral Frank H. Schofield
From the Schofield Letters: Emancipation Day, 1896
From the Schofield Letters: Medical Matters
From the Schofield Letters: Remember the Maine - Part 1
From the Schofield Letters: Remember the Maine - Part 2
From the Schofield Letters: The USS Constellation
From the Schofield Letters: The "Wheeling" Craze of the 1890s
From the Schofield Letters: Yates County's Admiral and Pearl Harbor
Genealogy: Write About Yourself
The Irish in Yates County
John L. Lewis
Keuka Lake Steamboat "Wars"
The Last Man at the Benham
Mom and Pop Grocery Stores in Penn Yan
A Penn Yan Band in Chicago (1933)
Penn Yan Colored Giants (1925)
Penn Yan Cuban Giants (1924)
Penn Yan's Cold War "Thaw"
Penn Yan's Whale Tale
Penn Yan's Woman's Rights Convention 1855
Research: Community Columns in Local Papers
Research: Tales From the Atlas
Research: Tales From the Atlas #2
Research: Tales From the Atlas #3
Susan Miller Dorsey
TR Speaks in Penn Yan (November 1900)
This Unidentified Photo
The Question That Won't Die: Is One of George Washington's Personal Secretaries buried in Dundee?
VJ-Day in Yates County
We've Been Asked: Who WAS Robert Ingersoll?
Wild Bill Albertson and His Miller Special
World War I: The Yates County Homefront (1917 - 1918)
Yates County and Women's Suffrage
Yates County Home Guard (1917 - 1919)

 


Open Tuesday - Friday 9:00 am - 4:00 pm
107 Chapel Street, Penn Yan, NY 14527
315.536.7318 | Email YCHC | Email Webmaster
Sunday, February 16, 2025 | Copyright © 2025

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