‘Then & Now' exhibit opens in Tuxedo

Tuxedo — The Orange County Citizens Foundation and the Tuxedo Park Library are currently hosting a photographic exhibit entitled “Then & Now: A Black & White Photographic Essay of Orange County,” which focuses on the changes in Orange County over the past century. Working with local historians, photographers from around the county shot black and white photos of specific locations to compare the county at the turn of the 20th century and today. From April 1 to 27, the exhibit will be at the library at 227 Route 17 in Tuxedo Park. Operating hours are from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday. As one of the fastest growing counties in New York, Orange County has experienced substantial changes over recent years. The photographs in the exhibit will provide viewers with a startling contrast between today’s Orange County and that of yesteryear. “Land use, transportation, and demographic changes have all played a large role in converting Orange County from a rural, farming community to a more suburban area,” said foundation president Nancy Proyect. While the traditional rural areas of the county are represented in the show, the largest changes can be seen in the cities, which have been drastically transformed by a decline in manufacturing. “Urban renewal and the end of the trolley system devastated some of the most vibrant portions of our cities,” said exhibit committee co-chair Marie Liu. “Photographers and local historians, who really know their communities, have pinpointed the sharpest contrasts, and turned them into a photographic history of the entire area.” Some highlights of the event include a comparison of a 1918 Memorial Day parade in Middletown with that of 2005, Tuxedo’s train station, locations in the villages and towns of Monroe and Chester, Warwick, and the Newburgh waterfront. The exhibit made its debut at the Seligmann Homestead in Sugar Loaf in September 2005. It will travel through the county over the next year. Future locations include Café Roxanna’s in Port Jervis and the County Government Center in Goshen. The exhibit is a project of the Orange County Citizens Foundation. The project was made possible, in part, with funds from Orange County Tourism, Orange Arts and the County of Orange, and the law firm of Jacobowitz & Gubits. For more information, call the foundation at 469-9459 or the library at 351-2207.