Write a commentJoin us at the Oswego Public Library on Saturday, November 22, at 2 PM for a presentation by Norman Dann about the library's founder, Gerrit Smith.
Smith is a hidden gem in the history of Oswego County as a 19th-century leader. A multi-billionaire by today's standards, he chose to live in the small, rural hamlet of Peterboro, NY. He was a strong advocate for women's rights, temperance, and, most importantly, the fight against slavery and racial discrimination.
Norman Dann is an expert on Gerrit Smith and his family, having written several books including Practical Dreamer: Gerrit Smith & the Crusade for Social Reform, God, Gerrit and Guidance: The Life of Ann Carroll Fitzhugh Smith, When We Get to Heaven: Runaway Slaves on the Road to Peterboro, Cousins of Reform: Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Gerrit Smith, and Ballots, Bloomers & Marmalade: The Life of Elizabeth Smith Miller.
Dann is a professor emeritus from Morrisville State College, a founder and member of the Cabinet of Freedom at the National Abolition Hall of Fame and Museum in Peterboro, a Steward of the Gerrit Smith Estate National Historic Landmark, and a member of the Madison County Historical Society.
The event will take place in the library's community room on the lower level, located at 120 E 2nd Street, Oswego, NY 13126. This program is free and open to the public. For questions, please call 315-341-5867 or email oswlib@ncls.org.
