Historical society in Pine Island revived

Pine Island - An historical society set on collecting, archiving and preserving the rich history of the Black Dirt region of the Warwick Valley has been revived in Pine Island, two years after the death of Frances Sodrick, the legendary Pine Island historian. Sodrick, a prominent figure in the Pine Island community, was curator of the Drowned Lands Historical Society Museum, which she created. The museum has been in storage since she became seriously ill in 2001. At a meeting called by the Pine Island Chamber of Commerce and Jane Hamburger, principal of the Pine Island Elementary School, a decision was made to reactivate the Drowned Lands Historical Society and start preserving for public access the documents, artifacts and sites essential to the history of the Black Dirt region. The Town of Warwick Historical Society, which has long been interested in preserving the history of the villages and hamlets, welcomed the revival of the historical society in Pine Island. “I’m absolutely thrilled that the Drowned Lands Historical Society is being brought back to life,” Town Historian Richard Hull said. “For thousands of years, this region of our community was the center of human activity and it continues to be a key area of economic and cultural vitality. “Frances Sodrick devoted much of her adult life to preserving this wonderful heritage and it is extremely gratifying to see that her work will be continued.” Present at the meeting was Robert “Bobby” Sodrick, last active member of the Drowned Lands Historical Society, who became the Pine Island historian and the guardian of the museum — a vast collection of documents and artifacts. Sodrick has been storing the museum in his barn off Pulaski Highway. He will transfer the documents to a climate controlled environment — the research studio of onion farmer John Ruszkiewicz, 73, who is collecting the oral history of the drowned lands as a retirement project. Ruszkiewicz, who hosted the meeting at his research studio overlooking the Black Dirt, has already begun taping interviews with those people still living who have memories of the early days of the region. He is also storing Frances Sodrick’s VHS tape records which he plans to convert to DVD format. Also present at the meeting were Cheetah Haysom, president of the Pine Island Chamber of Commerce, and Peter Lyons Hall, marketing consultant and a chamber director. Hall is writing a grant application on behalf of the Pine Island Elementary School and Chamber of Commerce to the New York State Archives for funds to start archiving and preserving the history of the drowned lands. Hamburger, school principal, said she was committed to the project on behalf of the elementary school “so the children can better understand the culture, geography, and agricultural economy that is unique to their home and school, as well as how it is a part of the larger town and national community.” Sue Gardner, local history librarian at Albert Wisner Library in Warwick and archivist for the Town of Warwick Historical Society, promised to help with the grant application and archiving of the Francis Sodrick collection. Students in the Historical Society of the Warwick Valley High School also have undertaken to help with the massive archiving project. Anyone interested in joining or contributing to the historical society, particularly photographs, should contact Cheetah Haysom at 321-3522 or e-mail Pineislandchamber@yahoo.com.