About the Aurora Ledyard Historical Society
The Village of Aurora Historical Society is now the Aurora Ledyard Historical Society, bridging the rich histories of Aurora and the Town of Ledyard.
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Check out our Winter 2025-26 Newsletter
Current and Upcoming Events
Reading of the Declaration of Independence
July 4 at Ledyard Town Hall
Again this year local citizens will meet at the Ledyard Town Hall on July 4 at 11 to await a rider bearing a document from Pennsylvania! The document will then then be read for all to hear. There will be live music and refreshments, with much to celebrate!
Become a Printer’s Apprentice!
Print your own copy of the Declaration of Independence July 4 and 5
at The Press of Robert LoMascolo
Visitors will print their own copy of the Declaration of Independence on a hand-operated press at the Press of Robert LoMascolo July 4 and 5 12:00 noon to 3pm. Children will learn to write with a quill pen. Good 1776-inspired fun for all!
New Display at Patrick Tavern:
"Our Home: How We Saw It”
What are the local sights that tell you that you’re home? Those who came before us answered in engravings and paintings, photographs and fabric. This display of works drawn from the Village of Aurora Archives and private collections enables you to explore that question through the eyes of earlier generations. The rarely-displayed Bicentennial Quilt is a key element that links the past to the present, along with the recollections of those who worked on it and participated in the celebration of fifty years ago. A special corner dedicated to “The College Home” emphasizes the link between Wells College and Aurora.
The exhibit opens with a reception on Friday, June 5th, from 5:00-7:00 p.m. Open hours in the month of June are Tuesdays, 4:30-5:30 p.m. and Saturdays June 6, 13, and 27 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.. Patrick Tavern is at the corner of Main St. and Dublin Hill Rd., with parking off Dublin Hill; it is fully accessible and all are welcome.
Patrick Tavern Market
Weekly Markets with Salads, Flowers, and More!
Oh, the joys of summer harvests! Come to the Patrick Tavern Market Tuesdays between 4:30 and 6:00 p.m. and you’ll find beans, lettuce, chard, garlic, shallots, basil, herbs, and flowers from Debi; Julia will have peppers, dried herbs, cat toys, and beautiful wooden cutting boards. Thane should soon be sending blueberries and new potatoes. Alicia’s breads - sourdough, specialty breads, and pizza crusts - are top of the line, as is Ron’s honey; the bees will soon be working on light, floral black locust honey. Look for more fruit from Ron, too! And you don’t want to miss your weekly chocolate bar (or bars) from the San Pedro Sister Community, or their fine fair-trade coffee. You can get the weekly list by emailing lschwab.glebefarm@gmail.com.
Debi Lampman
Past Events
News
Patrick Tavern’s front porch RETURNS after a Three Decade Absence
# We have successfully moved and stored Walter Wood’s 1795 law office, which functioned as the first post office west of Canajoharie, New York. Read about the move in:
The Little Building Takes a Long Trip: A Serialized Adventure!
# Ely S. Parker, a Tonawanda Seneca who went to school in Aurora, was just admitted to the New York bar—176 years after he was denied admission because he was a Native American. Parker studied at the Cayuga Academy in Aurora, where he was sponsored by Lewis Henry Morgan, for many years known as “the Father of American anthropology” and a leading figure in the relatively new field. During the Civil War, General Ulysses S. Grant’s chose Parker to be his secretary. Drafts of Robert E. Lee’s surrender documents at Appomattox Court House are thus in Parker’s handwriting. After the war Grant appointed Parker Commissioner of Indian Affairs, the first Native American to serve in that position.
CNN’s story of Ely Parker’s November 14, 2025 posthumous admission to the New York bar.
The story of Parker, Morgan, and the “Grand Order of the Iroquois” in Aurora on our website.
Ely Parker’s sister Caroline, an accomplished artist, also studied at the Cayuga Academy in Aurora. Morgan raised money to provide her and her Seneca friend Sarah Spring a year at the Academy. The Aurora Ledyard Historical Society recently devoted an exhibit in Historic Patrick Tavern (1793) to Caroline Parker’s life and work.
Restored to its former glory, the Victorian-era porch on the 1793 Patrick Tavern once again graces Main Street in the Village of Aurora.
Our heartfelt thanks go to architect Jennifer Ahrens (Bero Architecture), builder Jeff Koehn (Yesteryears Restoration), the NYS Department of Transportation, and our major donor the Pleasant T. Rowland Foundation. Please watch for a public invitation to the “porch party”, planned for later in the summer after installation of our new west-side windows, when we will thank them in style and celebrate the return of an icon.
Click here for start-to-finish photos of building the Patrick Tavern West Porch.
Three shy young ladies wave from the new porch to thank the
Pleasant T. Rowland Foundation for making the restoration possible.
Announcements
Upcoming Meeting
Our next meeting is on Wednesday, August 12 at 4:30pm.
We hope you can join us, either in person at the Ledyard Town Hall or via Zoom.
If you are not already on our email list, please write to auroraledyardhistory@gmail.com so that we can send you the link to the meeting.