To top it all off
Goshen-A noted local blacksmith will give a presentation on weather vanes and finials at 10 a.m. on Saturday, June 19, at the 1841 Court House, located at 101 Main St. in the Village of Goshen. Alfred Denninger began his blacksmithing career in 1974. He worked for 15 years a farrier locally and in several other states. He was a top competitor in state horseshoeing championships up and down the East Coast and forged reproductions of historic ironwork. In 1988, Denninger and his wife, Beth, combined their interest in American history and his skill in wood and metal crafts to create traditional and custom cupolas, weather vanes, and finials. His copperwork now adorns buildings throughout the United States and on six continents, and has been featured in scores of national magazines and local newspapers. They have provided rooftop decorations for hundreds of notable commissions, including Tom Selleck, the Howard Hughes Institute in Washington, D.C., the Clintons in Chappaqua, the chief financial officer of Duracell, the Kirby House in Wilkes-Barre, Penna., and Disney Imagineering in both Hong Kong and Florida. In 1995, Denniger handcrafted a replica of the original quill weather vane for the Noah Webster Building, now the Goshen Town Hall. In his presentation, he will talk about the history of weather vanes, the traditional process of handcrafting weather vanes and finials, and the replication of historic copperwork. He will show examples of both antique and new weather vanes and finials. The program is sponsored by the Office of the Orange County Historian. Coffee will be served at 9:30 a.m.For more information call 291-2388.