NEWburgh, nY
DIG IT!
Weigands Tavern Archaeological Dig
If only these walls could talk. Weigand’s Tavern, located on Liberty Street on the northwest corner of the Old Town Cemetery, traces its origins back to the American Revolution, when the tavern was the center of political life. Eventually, the tavern became just another home with an interesting history until the structure fell on hard times in the 1960s. RipRap LLC is currently overseeing the rehabilitation of the building, which has revealed numerous artifacts - pottery, oyster shells, medicine vials - buried in the soil beneath and around the structure. BFP Creative, partnering with local historians, organized DIG IT, a supervised archeological soil sifting session, in order to share history, exploration and career opportunities with Newburgh residents.
“I think this story, especially in a city so rich with Revolutionary War connections, is important to remember. We weren’t only the place where Washington headquartered, we are also the place that pioneered the historic preservation of sites associated with the founding era. The tavern reminds us that if not for the local militias and committees of safety (the men who rose up from the community to take a stand against the monarchy), Washington’s army would not have come into existence.”
—Orange County Historian Johanna Yaun
Community members hard at working uncovering all sorts of treasures.
