Sparta Speaks 2024
American Music from the Mountain
Tim Rowell and Ambrose Verdibello return to Ossining with special guest Steve Kessler
Saturday, April 27, 2:00p.m. at Ossining Public Library
All Are Welcome • No Reservations Needed • Free Admission • Donations gratefully accepted
Well-known to Jug Tavern audiences since 2016, banjo player Tim Rowell and fiddler Ambrose Verdibello are back with special guest Steve Kessler on guitar for another concert of American old-time music. Tim and Ambrose are delighted to be back in Ossining with Steve to share the music that settled in the mountains of the American South.
Sparta Speaks 2023
The Agates: Artists of Sparta
Caroline Curvan, Ossining Town Historian
Tuesday, October 24 at 7:30p.m.
You can find a recording of this talk HERE.
The Jug Tavern welcomed Ossining Town Historian Caroline Curvan, Ossining’s Town Historian, to share her current obsession — Sparta siblings Frederick, Alfred and Harriet Agate. Born and raised at 2 Liberty Street, this remarkable trio was at the forefront as America developed its own style of art. Frederick was a founding member of the National Academy of Design, one of America’s first art schools, and a respected portrait artist. Alfred began his career as a miniaturist, then circumnavigated the globe as one of two illustrators with the United States South Seas Exploring Expedition of 1838. Harriet was one of the first women to study and exhibit her work at the National Academy. It is a fascinating story that gives us a look at the evolution of American art and our young country’s first steps onto the world’s stage.
Researching Your Ossining House
Barbara Davis, Co-Director, Westchester County Historical Society
Monday, May 1 at 7:30p.m.
You can find a recording of this talk HERE.
Download program handouts:
House History Chart HERE
Resources for Ossining House Histories HERE
May 7th marked the annual meeting of The Jug Tavern of Sparta. Our special guest was Barbara Davis who shared the steps to researching the history of our homes. Westchester has an abundance of older homes, particularly those built between the 1880s and 1930s, and then again post-WWII. Whether it has origins in the 18th century or a mid-century dazzler, our houses have their own unique histories. This presentation walked viewers through the steps using online and in-person resources at the Westchester County Historical Society and the County Archives to discover when local houses were constructed and who lived in them.
Edward Hopper’s New York
Suzanne Altman, Art Historian
Tuesday, March 7 at 7:30p.m.
You can find a recording of this talk HERE.
Suzanne Altman, Art Historian, gave a presentation on the paintings of Edward Hopper (1882-1967). Raised in Nyack, New York, along the Hudson River, Hopper lived and worked for many years in New York City where he became one of the most important figurative painters of the early 20th century. His paintings reveal the city as a backdrop for his evocative depictions of the urban experience at a time of great social change. His unique vision of the isolation and loneliness of the urban experience still speaks to us today. Suzanne discussed his early work, his six decades in the city, some of the work he produced in Cape Cod, and beyond.
Sparta Speaks 2022
Sing Sing Prison and the History of Criminal Justice
Brent D. Glass, Executive Director of Sing Sing Prison Museum
Tuesday, September 13 at 7:30p.m.
You can find a recording of this talk HERE.
Brent D. Glass, Executive Director of Sing Sing Prison Museum, brought us up to date on the progress of the museum in Ossining. This talk reviewed an extraordinary and largely unknown history, presented plans for the new museum at Sing Sing Prison, and connected the history to contemporary issues in criminal justice.
Keeping Bees: A Love Story
Mark Sarazen, Fine Arts Printer and Photographer
Tuesday, July 12 at 6:00p.m.
Raindate: Thursday, July 14 at 6:00p.m.
At his home, Mark Sarazen, Ossining resident and fine arts printer and photographer, discussed what he has learned -- about bees and himself -- since he chose to save some bees that invaded his basement.
Bricks Tell the Story of Our Past
Scott Craven, Ossining Town Historian
Monday, May 2, 2022 at 7:30p.m.
You can find a recording of this talk HERE.
Scott Craven, Ossining Town Historian, spoke about the history of brick making in the lower Hudson River Valley. He discussed how bricks are made, why the valley was so productive, and what drove the demand for bricks in the area. He also shared images of local brick structures and showed how Sparta buildings are different.
Emily Rauch with a batch of native plants!
Native Plants, Healthy Ecosystem: Why, What, How
Emily Rauch, Native Plants Program Manager at Hilltop Hanover Farm
Wednesday, March 16, 2022 at 7:00p.m.
You can find a recording of this talk HERE.
The Jug Tavern of Sparta welcomed spring by inviting you to a conversation with Emily Rauch, the Native Plants Program Manager at Hilltop Hanover Farm in Yorktown Heights. She shared why native plants are so important for the health of ecosystems, what plants are valuable contributors to that health, and how to get started in your own yard.
This program was designed to give you the practical knowledge and confidence to dive into becoming a native plant gardener right away – just in time for spring! Emily shared highlights from Hilltop’s native plant workshops and answered questions.
On June 18 at 10:00 a.m., all were invited to Hilltop Hanover Farm for a tour to learn more about this historic local farm and native plant nursery, and see (and buy!) their native plants.
For over two years, Hilltop has been developing their native plant nursery as a biodiversity initiative designed to protect existing natural habitats and conserve native flora specifically adapted to our local ecoregion – Ecoregion 59, the Northeastern Coastal Zone. The seeds Hilltop uses are wild-collected by trained botanists from local protected habitats in a manner that ensures the retention of genetic diversity and the preservation of wild plant populations. These are propagated and cultivated for sale so you can create your own pollinator gardens at home.
Hilltop is owned by Westchester County and operated in partnership with the Friends of Hilltop Hanover Farm and Environmental Center. Now in her third year at Hilltop, Emily Rauch completed certificates in the Connecticut Master Gardener and NYBG Plant Production and Greenhouse Management programs, and is now working on NYBG’s Botany certificate. She has worked on restoring local nature preserves by removing invasive species and growing native plant material as replacements at Scalzi Riverwalk and the Pound Ridge Land Conservancy.
