SUNY Potsdam Students Help Local Historians Complete Research in Preparation for 250th Anniversary of American Independence
From left to right, Addison Blair ’27, Alex Maciariello '27, Sam Barney '26, Hailey Fairchild '29, and Connor McCormick ’28 pose for a photo outside SUNY Potsdam’s Satterlee Hall. All five students completed history internships around New York State during the summer of 2026.
In honor of America’s 250th anniversary, five SUNY Potsdam students completed hands-on internships this summer around New York State—delving into local history projects to examine the founding of the country, while also helping local historians prepare for the semiquincentennial celebrations.
SUNY Potsdam students Addison Blair ’27, Alex Maciariello '27, Sam Barney '26, Hailey Fairchild '29, and Connor McCormick ’28 joined a cohort of 60 students from Potsdam, SUNY Geneseo and Stony Brook University who completed historical research projects through the program this year. As part of the Robert David Lion Gardiner Semiquincentennial Summer Fellowship Program, each student received $4,800 for completing 150 hours of work with town or county historical societies or with local historians as part of a $224,000 grant, with additional matching funds from the SUNY schools involved.
The students were spread out around the North Country and Central New York this summer. They each examined the local history of the Revolutionary War, looking at written records from veterans, and supporting historians in preparation for events commemorating the 250th anniversary of American Independence in 2026.
These internships feature funding for both the students and their paired historians from the Robert David Lion Gardiner Semiquincentennial Summer Fellowship Program, as well as advisory support from SUNY Potsdam historians Dr. Sheila McIntyre and Dr. Thomas Baker.
The students’ site locations were:
- Sam Barney '26, Clinton County Historian’s Office, Plattsburgh, N.Y.
- Addison Blair ’27, St. Lawrence County Center for Culture and History, Canton, N.Y
- Alex Maciariello '27, Clay Historical Association in Clay, N.Y.
- Hailey Fairchild '29, Potsdam Public Museum in Potsdam, N.Y.
- Connor McCormick ’28, Lewis County Historical Society in Lowville, N.Y.
"I spent most of the summer researching Black labor in Clinton County from about 1765 to 1840. I wanted to show how enslaved people resisted their subjugation, and to present a more critical view of the area's founding figures than is traditionally offered. I decided to apply to the fellowship because I thought it would provide a good opportunity to sharpen my skills as a historian, even if initially I wasn't quite sure what the nature of the work was going to be. I also thought having a summer job related to history might be fun," Sam Barney ’26 said.
Barney competes for the Potsdam Bears as a member of both the cross-country and track and field teams, and also served as president of the Potsdam Socialist Club. He hopes to pursue graduate studies in the field of history after graduation.
“Throughout the summer at the St. Lawrence County Center for History and Culture I worked a variety of outreach events, created materials to enhance visitors' experiences, wrote history features for their social media, and contributed to the labelling of an exhibit. During the outreach events, I got to talk with people about SLCCHC, its history, and its services along with creating activities for children to engage with such as a scavenger hunt. As for the history features for social media, these involved 'Object of the Week' and 'This Day in History' posts. The exhibit labels provided additional historical information on objects in an Akwesasne exhibit,” Addison Blair ’27 said. "I was inspired to get involved with this program as history has always been a passion of mine. The opportunity to work at a local museum and focus on local history was one that I did not want to miss out on. I got to learn so much beyond just history.”
Following the experience, Blair hopes to go into teaching after graduation.
Hailey Fairchild ’29, center, talks with Dr. Tom Baker, left, and her classmate Sam Barney '26 in front of Satterlee Hall.
“During my time at the Potsdam Public Museum, I assisted in their curation of their 250th exhibit, as well as creating advertisements and helping push PR for the museum and their events. I made flyers for the museum and the events they held, like a book talk with Steven O'Brien, a Vietnam war veteran from Massena. We also participated in Potsdam's Living History Days in commemoration of the bicentennial, where there were camp-out reenactors and events to immerse yourself in the history of the revolution to bring history to life. The personal projects I have worked on involve bringing children into the world of local history with the goal of sparking their curiosity and understanding the importance of learning about what came before them. The museum held a table at the Annual Summer Bash held by the North Country Children's Museum to encourage interest of all ages to further their knowledge locally through town museums and other resources in their community. The majority of my work related closely with the Potsdam Summer Recreational Program where I led a program once a week on different historical topics relating to Potsdam history,” said Hailey Fairchild ’29.
“I went through the museum’s teacher boxes worked on by Dr. Marcolina and her students, as well as the museum's inventory of artifacts to give a hands-on learning experience. They handled objects to foster an interest and encourage learning about the past on their own, which led to many conversations about their own heritage. Some lessons focused on the bicentennial, like one revolving around tactics of the revolution where they turned into spies and raced to find information on the opposing side. Others centered on local history, like sandstone in Potsdam,” Fairchild said. “I also reached out to the St. Lawrence County Dairy Princess, Danica Dishaw at the end of the summer to assist in talking about the dairy industry in our area. We gave a history on the innovations and effect of the industry seen in this town while the children handmade their own butter during our discussion. Ultimately, my goal was to make history something they could actively participate in and create a meaningful connection to, hopefully carrying interest beyond the classroom.”
Fairchild holds down two jobs on top of her studies, and hopes to go on to teach at the middle school level after graduation.
"For my project at the Clay Historical Association, I built them a digital inventory of all the historical artifacts and documents across the four museums they have on site, as well as helping the volunteers rebuild the foundation of an 1800s barn they have," Alex Maciariello ’27 said. "Professor McIntyre inspired me to get involved in the program. She told me about it and all the great work the foundation does, and it seemed like a great way to spend my summer."
Maciariello, who is also on the Potsdam Bears men's soccer team, hopes to complete his master's degree and become a history teacher after graduation.
"I primarily worked on parts of our exhibit for the 250th anniversary. Our exhibit was about the history of all of the townships of Lewis County, and my task was to find interesting people, places or events from each town and write short summaries of them to be hung up for visitors to read,” Conor McCormick ’28 said. “I also participated in a few other events. I read the Declaration of Independence for a local retirement home luncheon. I was a representative for the Lewis County Historical Society on a panel discussion of the contents of the Declaration of Independence and its effect on the U.S. today, held at a local cafe. Lastly, and what I consider by no means least, I represented the Lewis County Historical Society in a WPBS documentary about the Revolutionary War veterans buried in the Tri-County area, speaking about some of the most well-known veterans and what they did in Lewis County after the war, while showing the WPBS crew where the graves were."
McCormick is also involved with the student Esports Club at SUNY Potsdam, competing on two teams on top of his studies. This was his second internship experience at the Historical Society, having interned there the summer before as well, working in the archives and scanning a collection of 500 film negatives.
"I think local history is very important, and there is no better place to work with it then at a local historical society," McCormick said.
He hopes to pursue graduate studies and become a history teacher or professor. McCormick is also writing a book with the help of a professor, as well as fictional works that he pens in his free time.
SUNY Potsdam’s Lougheed Center for Applied Learning endowment kicked in $18,000 in funding toward the program. The Gardner Foundation Semiquincentennial Student Fellowship Project runs through Summer 2027, fostering interest and education about the American Revolution in New York. In addition to student fellowships, the grant supports summer salaries for faculty mentors, stipends for partnering local historians, and a symposium in Fall 2027.
Michael Oberg, a distinguished professor in SUNY Geneseo’s Department of History and the director of the fellowship, secured the grant for the project and visits all students completing projects through the program each year.
SUNY Potsdam’s Department of History offers a variety of courses ranging from the ancient world to the present, and from Africa and Asia to Europe and the Americas. The department’s faculty is comprised of inquisitive scholars, whose passion for history enlivens their classrooms. For more information, visit www.potsdam.edu/academics/AAS/History.
About SUNY Potsdam:
Founded in 1816, The State University of New York at Potsdam is one of America’s first 50 colleges—and the oldest institution within SUNY. Now in its third century, SUNY Potsdam is distinguished by a legacy of pioneering programs and educational excellence. The College currently enrolls approximately 2,500 undergraduate and graduate students. Home to the world-renowned Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam is known for its challenging liberal arts and sciences core, distinction in teacher training and culture of creativity. To learn more, visit www.potsdam.edu.