HRMM Announces New Lecture: Batter Up! The History of Baseball in Kingston and Ulster County

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
Contact: Emma Foster / Museum Educator / [email protected]

Program Title: Batter Up! The History of Baseball in Kingston and Ulster County
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Date & Time: Wednesday, March 18, 2026 7:00pm
Location: Hudson River Maritime Museum - 50 Rondout Landing, Kingston, NY
Pricing: $10/non member - $5/ HRMM members

Presentation Topic: This lecture explores the early history of baseball in Ulster County and the role the region played in the sport’s development during the mid-19th century. Long before professional leagues, baseball took root in river towns like Kingston and Rondout, where dockworkers, tradesmen, and clerks organized clubs and played on open fields. Drawing on newspaper accounts, box scores, and local records, the talk highlights how baseball functioned as both recreation and community life in the Hudson Valley. Special attention is given to local clubs, early rivalries, and games that drew regional and even national attention. This lecture also examines how Ulster County fits into larger stories about amateur baseball, race, and the transition toward organized leagues. By focusing on specific people and places, it shows how national baseball history was shaped by very local experiences. The result is a grounded look at how a global game grew out of small communities along the Hudson River.

Find more information and registration details at hrmm.org or here.

Speaker Bios: Dan Torres is the President of the Ulster County Vintage Base Ball Association and co-founder of the Kingston Guards Vintage Base Ball Club, a team that plays by 19th-century rules. Additionally, he has done extensive research on Ulster County’s 19th-century baseball history.

Taylor Bruck is the Ulster County Clerk and the City of Kingston Historian. In these roles, he works to preserve, interpret, and make accessible the region’s historical records, with a particular focus on local civic and community history. His work bridges public service and historical scholarship, helping connect Ulster County’s past to its present.

About HRMM: Located along the historic Rondout Creek waterfront in downtown Kingston, NY, the Hudson River Maritime Museum is a 501 (c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of the maritime history of the Hudson River, its tributaries, and related industries. Learn more at hrmm.org.​