Jean Beattie May appointed Warwick village historian

Warwick - The Village Board has recently appointed Jean Beattie May as village historian; the position was previously held by Sue Gardner, and prior to that, Florence Tate, who served for 40 years until her death in 2006. She was born in Warwick, the fifth generation of her family to be born here. She is a graduate of the Warwick High School and Bradford College in Haverhill, Mass. After marrying Cushman May in 1961, the family spent a number of years in Asia, but often vacationed in Warwick. In 1995, she and her husband returned to Warwick to the house in which she was born and where they still reside, which had been built in 1890 by her grandfather, County Judge John J. Beattie. May has long had an interest in Warwick’s history. In 2001, she was asked to curate an exhibit at Baird Tavern on the history of the Hoyt family in Warwick. James Hoyt, her paternal great-great grandfather, built his house at 3 Maple Ave. in 1808 where he had a 30-acre farm. The building is now the Key Bank. In 2002, she curated an exhibit titled “Homespun and Handmade - 1800-1900,” which displayed a collection of articles found in a Warwick attic, ranging from an 1800 homespun and hand-dyed woolen cape to fancy lace collars worn in the early 1900’s. In 2009, May wrote most of the text of “The Halcyon Days - The Historic Homes of Warwick, New York and the Families That Breathed Life into Them,” a 225-page book conceived and published by Silvio Galterio, which was written for the Centennial of the Warwick Historical Society. Three years of research went into the book which portrays the lives of some 60 families who were among the early settlers in the town. The new village historian has served on the Board of the Warwick Conservancy since 2001 and was involved in 2003 in its efforts to raise the funds to save the Hallowed Ground property on the corner of Forester Avenue and Galloway Road. The property was the site of Warwick’s first log church and graveyard and is now a park.

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The Village of Warwick, in conjunction with the Historical Society, is always looking for photographs and documents that pertain to Warwick life. If you have a collection or materials you would like to share, contact the village clerk at 986-2031.