Starting from the Belfast Town Park on Main Street, follow the Main Street sidewalk from the E. Hughes Street intersection to the Community N.A. Bank building (1 block). After you cross Main Street at the crosswalk, you are facing the Belfast Post Office. The Historical Society is to your immediate left of the Post Office.
The history of Belfast and its township (Belfast) was preserved for over 100 years by a succession of Belfast Town Historians and stored in a variety of locations inaccessible to the public. In 2000 the Belfast Historical Society (BHS) was formed around this core collection. The building housing the collection was a gift to the town from the Fleming and Watts families for the specific use of the new Historical Society. Over the years the building had been home to a variety of storefront businesses, the last being the New Irish Kitchen restaurant. It continues as the home of the BHS.
The BHS operates under a New York State (NYS) Provisional Charter expiring in 2028. Currently, a NYS Permanent Charter is being sought. The building is open to the public on Wednesday and Saturday (10-12) or by appointment. It encourages (and tries to answer) local history questions from all.
The Collections Committee of the BHS uses standard historic preservation rules to curate its collection. The collection is constantly being added to and needs organization, preservation, and collation of the items and informed facts about the township's past and present history for future historical reference. Because of the small size of the physical space, digitization of the collection is being explored as a future option. The Society hopes to have an Internet presence soon.
The Belfast Historical Society is very involved in the various Bicentennial celebrations (January-December 2024) as historical consultant and as participant. The BHS produced the 2024 Bicentennial Calendar from its various collections. Data mining of the collection is a common technique for producing its booklets on various historical topics, its displays at different events, and its monthly window displays. Before you move on, please investigate the current window display. Thank you for visiting the Belfast Historical Society.
-by Kathy Garrison