Dr. Richard Hull honored by the Association of Public Historians of New York State

Dr. Richard Hull, the Town of Warwick Municipal Historian, was awarded the Franklin D. Roosevelt Local Government Historian Professional Achievement Award on Sept. 10 at the Association's annual convention in Albany.

The award, named for the former president who was once the historian for the Town of Hyde Park, was presented by New York State Historian Devin Lander. One award is given each year to an appointed historian for lifetime achievement in the practice of public history in the state.

A native of New York, Hull has lived in Warwick for more than 50 years. He has been the official town historian of Warwick since 2007, and has been a community leader since the mid-1970s. He earned his PhD. in History at Columbia University and is a Fulbright Fellow. He is professor emeritus of History at New York University and an author of more than a dozen books.

He has over a long career of advocacy given hundreds of pro bono lectures and talks.

Hull has been a key figure in local historic and agricultural preservation in his community, serving as vice president of the Warwick Historical Society, a trustee of the Warwick Conservancy and former vice president of the Lower Hudson Chapter of the Nature Conservancy. He also served as President of the Sugar Loaf Community Foundation and is a trustee of the Sugar Loaf Methodist Church.

He has received the United Nations Distinguished Citizen Award for his community work in Ghana and Revered Orange County Citizen of the Year in 2005, Warwick Citizen of the Year in 2014 the Distinguished Africanist Award from the New York African Studies Association and is a four-time winner of the NYU Teaching Excellence Award.

His current activities include a weekly radio show “History Alive,” which focuses on discussion and guest interviews about current interest topics and their origin or grounding in the past. It strives to show the continuity and change in Warwick and Orange County society and community, and how knowledge of the past can help us formulate solutions to today’s issues.

The radio show airs weekly on WTBQ radio on Mondays at 11 a.m. and is archived as a podcast by the Albert Wisner Public Library at http://albertwisner-montage.auto-graphics.com/#/land-page/entities_8417.

In remarks noted on the Village of Warwick's web site, Mayor Michael Newhard congratulated Hull on the award.

"Dr. Hull has made history a seamless part of our daily fabric," the mayor said. "It’s because of his efforts that we have a citizenry that is informed and finds delight in discovering the past. These are the foundation blocks of pride and ownership which I consider an important part of the success of our community."