Tate historical collection doubles Historical Society's archive

Warwick — Sometimes history shifts and Warwick’s is undergoing a major shuffle as new materials come to light. Over the past several months, the enormous Tate collection of historical papers, photos and documents has been quietly making its way into view. Diligently sorted through by Barbara Tate and other family members, the materials have been donated to the archive of the Historical Society of the Town of Warwick. This collection, begun by local historian Hiram Tate and continued over many years by his daughter, the late Florence P. Tate, has doubled the size of the Society’s archive. One shudders to think what would have been lost if the family had not secured this legacy for future generations, had simply rented a dumpster and taken the fast and easy route to settling the estate, as has sometimes happened in Warwick’s past. Locals here still remember seeing the papers of Roy Vail being tossed out of upstairs windows into the trash. Not this time. Over half a year, Florence’s sister, Barbara, labored to separate the gold from the dross, and the result is a victory for the preservation of our community’s heritage. Here is a snapshot of some of the materials received, which will gradually be cataloged and made available to researchers by the archive staff: • Hundreds of photographic prints and negatives of the community are included in the collection, including parades and other special events, sports and structures, ranging primarily from the late 1800s to the 1940s. • Dozens of early deeds, including the precious DeKay deeds of the 1720s, kept safe by Florence for decades for the Society. • More than 30 handwritten and typescript books of residents, including the notebook of W. B. Sayer (1866-1940). In this book, he recorded 150 pages of records about the history of Warwick and its buildings. Many astonishing details emerge from this document, such as this description of a slave burial ground, “On a knoll a short distance from Oakland Ave. and by the Maidment line is a negro slave burying ground.” The Society is most anxious to find its precise location, which all are hoping has not been destroyed by development yet. According to a 1930 property owners map, the Maidments lived near South St. extension but their boundary line towards Oakland has not been determined yet. They ask, can anyone help locate it? Another surprise from this notebook is that there was a stone blockhouse behind the Shingle House on Forester Ave., in earlier days. • Copies of The Warwick Advertiser which were never available before; the Advertiser office burned and many early years were lost. New years recently uncovered have been sent for microfilming so the public can use them for research. The years which will soon be available include 1866, the first year of a newspaper being printed in Warwick. • Nearly 50 years worth of genealogical correspondence and research done by Florence Tate, her father, Genevieve Van Duzer, and other local historians. Florence answered hundreds of letters with detailed letters, which she kept copies of; the are an invaluable resource for family history. • Transcriptions of local documents such as the records early slave births and manumissions kept by the Town as a result of the act to eliminate slavery in New York in the early 1800s. The slave births register transcription has already been made available in the Warwick Heritage Database. These and other significant materials will be made available on the Web and in the newspapers as work continues. A new blog to showcase recent developments has also been set up at http://warwickhistory.blogspot.com. For more information, e-mail Sue Gardner at sgardner@rcls.org, or leave a message at the Albert Wisner Public Library, 986-1047 ext. 23, or at the Archive Room, 986-5987.