The Hudson Area Library History Room in collaboration with the Jacob Leisler Institute for the
Study of Early New York History presents Fanatic or Martyr: Jacob Leisler, a Window into an
Age, a virtual talk by Dr. David Voorhees on Thursday, January 27th.
On May 16, 1691, Jacob Leisler, de facto governor of New York, was hung til half-dead then
beheaded before the largest gathering in New York City up to that date. Leisler’s administration
had created a bitter division in New York. This presentation looks at how the deep emotions
Jacob Leisler aroused reveal much about the milieu in which he lived and continued to echo in
historical evaluations. Moreover, Leisler’s immediate family and their households of servants
and enslaved persons, their trade and marital connections, and their actions provide insights into
the broader social, ideological, economic, artistic, and political events of colonial New York and
its place in the larger world at a time of tremendous change.
Dr. Voorhees is director of the Jacob Leisler Papers Project, formerly located at New York
University, as well as the Jacob Leisler Institute headquartered in Hudson. He’s also managing
editor of de Halve Maen (The Half Moon), a quarterly scholarly journal published by The
Holland Society of New York. An NYU research scientist, he is a former managing reference
history editor at Charles Scribner’s Sons and has published numerous historical works and
articles, and been a consultant on historical exhibits at the Museum of the City of New York and
the Bard Graduate Center in Manhattan among others.
The Jacob Leisler Library Lectures are made partially possible through the generous support of
the Van Dyke Family Foundation.
DATE/TIME: Thursday, January 27, 2022 / 6 – 7:30pm
LOCATION: The Hudson Area Library
51 North Fifth St.,
Hudson, NY 12534
REGISTRATION: Visit HudsonAreaLibrary.org for the Zoom registration link
MORE:
HudsonAreaLibrary.org
facebook.com/HudsonAreaLibraryNY
instagram.com/hudsonarealibraryny
For more information contact Brenda Shufelt, History Room Coordinator, at 518-828-1792 x106 or
brenda.shufelt@hudsonarealibrary.org
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