Warren center idea offered
Ownership of enslaved people to be part of story
The Warren County Historical Society would like to open a visitors center and museum dedicated to Joseph Warren, the county’s namesake and one of the men killed at the Battle of Bunker Hill. Historians said his ownership of enslaved people would be part of the eventual installation.
Teri Podnorszki Rogers, executive director of the historical society, said the museum, proposed for a vacant home owned by the county, would honor the role Warren played in the creation of American democracy.
A physician and president of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress, Warren was also a leader of the Sons of Liberty. He was killed June 17, 1775, while fighting in the Battle of Bunker Hill in Massachusetts. He was 34 years old. Though he never lived in the region, Warren County was named in his honor in 1813.
“There are other Warren counties through the country, named for his legacy, but no museums that honor him,” Rogers said. “What we want to develop here would honor his leadership in the American Revolution, to come and learn about Joseph Warren, the man, the patriot and the physician.”
Warren’s history as an owner of enslaved people will also be addressed, Rogers said.
“We would have to research and handle
the same way historians discussed ... Thomas Jefferson and George Washington,” she said. “Obviously, as historians we are aware of it. We want to handle it in a historically authentic and correct way.”
Shane Newell, Warren’s biographer and partner in the museum, said it is unclear how many people Warren enslaved.
“We know much of Dr. Warren’s service to the diverse population of Boston; to those of high rank and to those in poverty and servitude during the Colonial Period,” Newell said in an email. “We know much about his contributions and sacrifice for American liberty and freedom. However, little is understood about his relationship with those enslaved. At the Warren House Visitors Museum, it will be a topic for modern society to discuss and, we hope, not a topic used to solely judge a person from the 18th century.”
A museum in the building on Gurney Lane would draw from Newell’s collection of Warren’s memorabilia, portraitures and artwork. The historical society, in a news release, said that the home could be “transformed to resemble Joseph Warren’s birth home.”
Rogers also hopes that the museum can become a center for education on leadership, with an auditorium that the museum will include.
“We can see how our American democracy is shaped by the type of leaders that we selected,” Rogers said. “It’s a little known fact about Joseph Warren that he was a great articulator of many of the ideas of our American democracy. Had he not died at such a young age, we might not have known George Washington. He rose in such great stature because of the premature death of Joseph Warren, who was a much larger figure initially.”
Rogers does not know what the project will cost. She said the historical society and the county will fund the project, which is expected to take five years to complete. Private donations will also be sought to transform the building into Warren’s “home.”
The county’s Board of Supervisors listened to the details of the plan last week.
“We are very excited about this proposal that would celebrate the important role that Joseph Warren had in our region’s history,” board Chairwoman Rachel Seeber said in a statement. “This will not only serve as a great educational resource for our residents, but would also be an attraction to bring visitors to Warren County to see all that we have to offer. Our workshop meeting last night afforded our members and the public the opportunity to learn about this exciting addition to our community and we are grateful for the hard work, dedication and enthusiasm of our partners with the Warren County Historical Society.”
Queensbury Supervisor John Strough also endorsed the idea.
“Joseph Warren is the man whose actions and words struck the match that lit the powder keg that would become the Revolution and our separation from Britain,” Strough said. “I think this is going to be one of the greatest things to happen to this area in a long time. It certainly is inspiring and it will help us to become a destination point.”