HERKIMER HOME
State Historical Site - Little Falls, New York
Season/Hours/Admission
Opened: Mid-May through October
Wed. - Sat. 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Sunday, 1-5 p.m.
 (June 25th - Aug. 26th) Tues. 10 am - 5 pm
Admission to the mansion:
Adults $4 / NYS Senior Citizens $3
Students 13-17 $3/ Children 12 & under free
Visiter center & grounds are free.
Education programs for school and community
groups; contact the site for program fees.
200 State Route 169
Little Falls, NY 13365
(315) 823 0398
NYS Thruway I-90 to
Exit 29A
Site entrance first right
after toll booth

The Herkimer Family
Gen. Herkimer and the Battle of Oriskany
2008 Calendar of Events
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The Herkimer Family
and the Mohawk Valley Germans
Johan Jost Herchhcimer was one of a number of refugees from the German Palatinate who, in 1725, settled at German Flatts south of the present village of Herkimer. He was an industrious farmer who also engaged in trade and transport on the Mohawk River, and held important contracts to provision the military garrison at Oswego. As a major Mohawk Valley landowner, he acquired over 5,000 acres of land south of the Mohawk, which included the strategic "carrying place" or portage around Little Falls. It was here, about 1752, that his eldest son Nicholas established a farmstead.
Nicholas Herkimer pursued his own interests in farming and trade, which were particularly profitable during the French and Indian Wars. About 1764 he was able to replace his earlier dwelling with a fashionable English Georgian style mansion, now known as Herkimer Home. This residence on the frontier was unusually grand and as remarkable then as it is today, a unique example of colonial Mohawk Valley architecture.
By the 1770s , Nicholas Herkimer had become the wealthiest and most prominent member of the Mohawk Valley's German-American community and was active in local civil affairs. Herkimer gained military experience as a captain of militia during the French and Indian Wars. At the outbreak of the Revolution, firmly embracing the American cause, he was elected chairman of the Tryon County Committee of Safety and commissioned brigadier general, commander of the county's militia.

General Herkimer
and the Battle of Oriskany

Herkimer's place in history was assured by his legendary courage during the crucial summer of 1777, when the three-pronged British attack on New York posed particular danger to the sparsely settled Mohawk Valley frontier. On July 10 the advance of British Colonel Barry St. Leger's troops on the Americans at Fort Stanwix was reported. Despite the considerable reluctance of the settlers to muster in their own defense, Herkimer managed to rally 800 men and boys by August 4, and hastened toward the besieged fort. Two days later, in a marshy ravine west of the Indian village of Oriskany, Herkimer and his men were ambushed by Iroquois and British-allied Loyalists, one of whom was the general's own brother, Johan Jost. Almost at the outset, Herkimer was seriously wounded in the leg, but he managed to keep command of his militia, which held its ground despite fierce hand-to-hand combat.
After the six-hour battle, in which heavy losses were sustained, Herkimer was carried back to his home, where about ten days later his leg was unskillfully amputated. Reading from his Bible, he died calmly a few hours later. Immediately regarded a hero and a martyr to the cause of American freedom, his home became a shrine to chroniclers of the American Revolution.

Herkimer had no children so his home passed to his brother George, whose son John sold it out of the family in 1814. It changed hands six times after and, in considerable disrepair, it was acquired by the State of New York in 1913.
Preservation was begun in 1914, and in the 1960s a major restoration was completed, although elements of architectural alterations made in the nineteenth century remain.
Important period furnishings include a number of pieces of local Mohawk Valley or Herkimer family significance. The unspoiled landscape, including the Herkimer family burying ground, is remarkably unchanged from that of the eighteenth century. A nineteenth-century barn has been remodeled as a visitor center, which houses interpretive exhibits and audio-visual programs.
Memorial Day to Labor Day, on Sunday afternoons, costumed staff and volunteers are engaged in household and farm activities. In addition, "Sugaring Off," a lively recreation of a colonial maple sugaring bee, is held on a Sunday in late March or early April. "An old-fashioned Apple Bee" is held in late September.
Educational programs for students of all ages are offered year-round, ranging from workshops in colonial Mohawk Valley crafts for adults to "hands-on" colonial daily life activities for school children.

State of New York
Eliot Spitzer, Governor
Office of Parks,
Recreation and Historic Preservation
Bernadette Castro, Commissioner
Thomas Kernan, Site Manager
(Reprinted from the site brochure)

 

2008 Calendar Of Events


April 5(Saturday 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.):
18th century military encampment/drilling/skills.
April 6(Sunday 1-4 p.m.):
32st Annual Sugaring Off. A lively recreation of the traditional maple sugaring process, from the tree to the colonial kitchen, presented by authentically costumed Herkimer Home Volunteers. Featured is an appearance by the 2008 Herkimer County Maple Queen, while other activities include sap boiling; spile making; sap tasting; sampling waffles and maple gingerbread cooked over the open hearth in the Visitor Center loft; military encampment; a Raid on the Sugarbush; and horse drawn wagon rides. Food sales by the Friends of Herkimer.

May 14 (Wednesday)
The site opens to the public for the 2008 season.

May 18 (Sunday 1-4 p.m.):
An 18th Century Spring and Garden Fair. Costumed Volunteers plant the fields and formal garden. Other activities include sheep shearing; wool spinning; flax processing and rail splitting. 18th century garden vendors will be offering plants and herbs for sale.
4:30 PM: Friends of Herkimer Home annual meeting and elections in VC loft..

May 26 (Monday 1-5 p.m.):
Memorial Day. In observance of Memorial Day, Herkimer Home will be open for tours.

June 29 (Sunday 11 a.m.):
Independence Day Service at Fort Herkimer Church. Join the Herkimer Home Volunteers for a patriotic celebration at the historic Fort Herkimer Church (NYS Rte. 5S, 2 miles East of Mohawk) celebrating our nation's 232st birthday.
1 - 4 p.m. afternoon activities at Herkimer Home State Historic Site will include a pot luck picnic, auction and musical entertainment.

July 4, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Independence Day Observance. Herkimer Home historic house will be open for tours

July 14-17 (Monday-Thursday 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.):
Herkimer Home History Camp. History Camp offers kids 8 to 12 the opportunity to experience various aspects of colonial life.

July 18 (Friday 6:30 – 8:00 p.m.):
History Camp Open House. The families of participants and the public are invited to watch History Campers demonstrate the 18th century activities that they learned during camp.

August 10 (Sunday 1-4 p.m.):
Liberty's Hero: Commemorating theLife and Death of General Nicholas Herkimer. In honor of the General’s death 231 years ago, an 18th century military officer’s funeral and wreath laying ceremony will be held in the site’s cemetery. Other activities include wheat harvesting and threshing; interpretation of the site’s bateau; fur traders’ exhibit; and a colonial currency display. Special features of the event include sampling traditional 18th century Palatine food, displays of Palatine artifacts and period music.

September 1(Monday 1-5 p.m.):
Labor Day Observance. Herkimer Home historic house will be open for tours.

September 14 (Sunday 1-4 p.m.):
Lecture/Round Table discussion on history and archaeology.

October 5 (Sunday 12 noon – 5 p.m.):
Herkimer Homestead Day: An 18th Century Autumn Celebration.
Featured are 18th century autumn activities such as cider pressing; apple butter making; barrel meat smoking; and making corn husk dolls. In addition to a book signing by Gil Herkimer, there will be craft demonstrations including pewter casting; and woodworking. A period physician will discuss cures of the time, while a military encampment will show all aspects of 18th century camp life. Enjoy a horse drawn wagon ride and then treat yourself to a hearty portion of Herkimer Home’s famous artillery beef stew or ham and pea soup, both cooked over an open fire. Follow up with a helping of Kitty’s fritters with maple syrup. Food and beverage sales by Friends of Herkimer Home.

October 13 (Monday 1 – 5 p.m.):
Columbus Day Observance. Herkimer Home historic house will be open for tours.

October 31 (Friday):
Closed for the season. Groups will be accomodated, by appointement, throughout the year.

The grounds at Herkimer Home State Historic Site are available to rent for private functions such as weddings, receptions, and corporate parties. For more information please call Tom Kernan, Historic Site Manager at (315) 823-0398.
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Last Updated 3 -13 -2008
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