On The Water In The Hudson Valley: Poughkeepsie Regatta Exhibit

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — A new online exhibit curated by Marist College will explore the forgotten history of a once grand Hudson Valley event that helped the Hudson to once be known as the “rowing capital of the world.”

The Hudson River was home to the annual collegiate rowing competition that drew thousands of fans and athletes from all over the region to the Poughkeepsie waterfront each year from 1895 to 1949. The event eventually became known simply as the Poughkeepsie Regatta and for nearly 50 years, the regatta was among the premiere spectator events in the country with fierce rivalries and an ever expanding list of entrants and races.

In 1950, the competition relocated to Ohio and the Poughkeepsie Regatta was slowly relegated to being a bygone footnote in history.

Now, a new online collection from the Marist College Archives and Special Collections will let new generations get a sense of the resonant history of the races and the impacts on the region that can still be felt to this day. The exhibition uses more than 1,900 photographs, documents and preserved items to paint a picture of the scale and importance of the annual competition.

“Our hope is that through this site, we can share the story of this national collegiate event and its place amongst the rich history of the Hudson River Valley,” Marist Director of Archives and Special Collections John Ansley said.

The artifacts in this collection were collected and preserved over the course of the last 20 years. Associate Librarian Elizabeth Clarke and Library Assistant Ann Sandri spent the past eight years meticulous authenticating, documenting and organizing the exhibit.

The interactive exhibition will be available to explore beginning May 5, after which the story of the Poughkeepsie Regatta will be a permanent part of Marist’s digital archives.