Greg Clary wrote an outstanding piece in today's Journal News about the Historic Hudson Valley Youth Conservation Corps. The piece, which ran on the front page of the "Your World" section, comes complete with great photos, too.

With the seven-week program ending this Friday, the article is perfectly timed to be a great memento for the participants. Kudos to all the students who took part this summer!

Read Greg's piece here.

Philip Alvare, a writer who visited the Rockefeller estate on a sunny day in June, has authored for Northeast Antiques one of the best pieces on Kykuit HVBlogger has ever read. And, HVBlogger is delighted to see that it is in fact the cover story in the August issue of this widely read publication.

Philip's article is tailored to the antiques audience, but it is nonetheless a great primer for those looking for a solid introduction to what makes this grand estate so...well...grand.

Intrepid Kykuit guide Charley Bradley gave Philip a masterful tour, which is reflected in this piece. The magazine has graciously offered us the chance to host it on our site, so you can download it and read it for yourselves.

Enjoy!

 Click here to download the article in PDF format.

Coverage of Historic Hudson Valley's recent Hudson Valley Hero Gala honoring Joseph Cotter and his National RE/sources is starting to turn up in various outlets online. Check it out at:

New York Social Diary

Panache Magazine

Norwalk Advocate

More coming I'm sure...

Today marks the 100^th anniversary of the birth of Nelson A. Rockefeller, the third child of John D. Rockefeller, Jr. and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller and the man responsible for throwing open the doors of Kykuit, the family's grand Pocantico Hills estate, to the public.

The governor of New York from 1959 to 1973 and vice president of the United States under President Gerald Ford, Nelson's bipartisan record of public service included serving in the administrations of FDR and Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Marking the centennial of his birth, the historian Richard Norton Smith penned a fascinating op-ed piece in yesterday's New York Times that is well worth a read. Mr. Smith cites his significant achievements as governor and argues that Nelson was ahead of his time politically:

Three decades later, "Rockefeller Republican" is widely seen as a contradiction in terms. Largely forgotten is the original meaning of the phrase, a counterintuitive coupling of late '50s fiscal responsibility and early '60s social justice - the same formula espoused by a majority of today's electorate, for whom solving problems and forging consensus takes precedence over ideological purity.

Incidentally, Mr. Smith is working on a biography of Nelson, due to publish next year, and will be speaking at a special Historic Hudson Valley symposium on Nelson taking place in September. But, more on that later. For now, enjoy the op-ed.

The weather held and folks came out for a little sunshine and history at Friday's Independence Day celebrations at Van Cortlandt Manor and Sunnyside.

In the top photo are gentlemen from Doughty Artillery Company, military re-enactors who wowed the crowds at Van Cortlandt Manor, and in the bottom photo, some spirited country dancers at Sunnyside.

Hundreds of visitors came out for both events, and the press came, too. Here's a piece from the Journal News.

Were you there? Leave a comment and tell us what you thought!