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GLOVERSVILLE — Jennifer Donovan has been the Gloversville Downtown Development Specialist for just six months, but she is driving ahead with new initiatives to make the community better. April 28, 2023 is this year’s National Historic Marker Day, and Donovan will be leading a group through Gloversville to tidy up the markers, as well as the areas surrounding them.
“Not only is it the right thing to do … but beautification efforts help our city be welcoming and inviting and a great place to visit or stay or relocate to,” Donovan said.
The April 28 event will begin at Trail Station Park located on West Fulton Street between West Street and Frontage Road at 1 p.m.. Volunteers will help scrub any dirt off of the markers and pick up trash in the park. Then Donovan will travel to the Fulton County Museum to clean up there. The day will conclude with a cleaning of the local city markers toward the downtown area.
National Historic Marker Day was spearheaded by the William G. Pomeroy Foundation, a Syracuse-based philanthropic organization. It occurs annually on the final Friday in April.
The Pomeroy Foundation provided Donovan with an official cleaning kit, and she will have trash bags for litter and debris. Participants are encouraged to bring gloves if they desire.
Gloversville boasts eight markers, according to the Historic Marker database. Donovan estimates it will take about two hours to get them cleaned up next Friday.
“I like to say ‘Brush up on your local history,’ and remember that local flavor that’s in your area,” Donovan said.
Other local groups will be taking on some historic marker clean-up. The Johnstown Historical Society, headed by Jessica Henry McClements, will focus on markers within the city of Johnstown.
The NMHD cleaning comes just after Earth Day on Saturday, which will also consist of some local clean-ups. The Gloversville one will begin at 34 W. Fulton St. at 10 a.m. On May 6, there will be a clean-up of Castiglione Memorial Park. However, Donovan encourages people to show the community some love year-round.
“You don’t have to wait for an official day,” Donovan said. “You see some concerns, you can let me know, let the city of Gloversville know.”
Contact reporter Ameara Ditsche at [email protected], keep up with her on Twitter @amearaisawriter.
