Otsego 2000 will offer a walking tour “Unadilla: Going Places Before I-88” on Sunday, June 9 at 3 pm. The tour will be led by Dr. Cindy Falk, Assistant Dean of Graduate Studies at SUNY Oneonta and Professor of Material Culture at the University’s Cooperstown Graduate Program.
The tour will focus on Unadilla’s historic role as a transportation hub, served by water, rail, and road. Dr. Falk will focus on the infrastructure that connected Unadilla to the world as well as on the buildings that supported transportation networks.
The cost for the walking tour, which begins at Wattles Ferry Park, is $10. Register in advance at otsego2000.org or by calling 607/547-8881. Parking is available at Unatego Elementary School, 265 Main Street, Unadilla, which is .3 miles from the park. This walking tour was researched and developed by students Nancy Aguilera, Jacob Maloney, and Jonathan Stanzione in Dr. Falk’s Historic Preservation class at the Cooperstown Graduate Program.
“We are grateful for our continued partnership with Dr. Falk and the Cooperstown Graduate Program, which this year will enlighten us on the rich history of Unadilla and other Otsego County communities that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places,” said Ellen Pope, executive director of Otsego 2000. She noted that the Otsego 2000 Historic Preservation Series will continue with walking tours in Fly Creek on July 7, Gilbertsville on August 4, Hartwick on September 8, Worcester on October 6, and Cooperstown in November.
Dr. Falk was co-editor of Buildings & Landscapes: The Journal of the Vernacular Architecture Forum for five years and is the author of Barns of New York: Rural Architecture of the Empire State. She notes, “I was introduced to Unadilla’s architectural landscape by Nancy Burnett not long after moving to Otsego County and have always found Unadilla to be a hidden gem. My students opened my eyes to more often unnoticed resources that help tell the village’s story.”