In honor of  Martha Washington, Washington’s Headquarters State Historic Site will hold its annual program, “The General’s Lady,” featuring guest speaker, author-historian Dr. Patricia Brady and her talk entitled, “Martha Washington: At Her Husband’s Side In War And Peace”.  The event takes place on Sunday, April 6th at 2:00 PM at the Lobby of the Ritz Theater, on Broadway in Newburgh.

Patricia Brady is the author of Martha Washington: An American Life. She is a social and cultural historian who writes about Southern women and free people of color. Dr. Brady first became interested in Martha Washington through research for her books about Nelly Custis, Martha’s granddaughter.  She has written Nelly Custis Lewis’s Housekeeping Book and George Washington’s Beautiful Nelly, and, of course, her book on Martha Washington.  Dr. Brady was director of publications at the Historic New Orleans Collection for twenty years. She was chosen Humanist of the Year by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities in 2012.

This event celebrates the presentation of the 2014 Martha Washington Woman of History Award to Mary Sudman Donovan, who becomes the twelfth honoree of the award.  Mrs. Donovan is a published author, civic leader, lecturer and university professor. She has taught American and World History at Hunter College CUNY, been the president of the Dobbs Ferry Historical Society for almost a decade, and been involved with many popular community events.

This year’s event will also feature the presentation of the Martha Washington Woman of History Founder’s Award to Kathleen P. Mitchell, former Interpretive Programs Assistant and originator of the award in 2002.   Mrs. Mitchell, a former nurse with an interest in history, moved to the Hudson Valley from her native Pennsylvania and set about learning the history of the area. As a historic interpreter at Washington’s Headquarters her interest in Martha Washington flourished, making it her goal to bring greater attention to the important role Martha played during the Revolutionary War and the further history of our country.

The public is welcome to attend the program. Admission is free.  Support for this program is provided by the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association.

Washington’s Headquarters State Historic Site is a registered national historic landmark.  It is located at the corner of Liberty and Washington Streets within the city of Newburgh’s East End Historic District.  The site is one of 35 historic sites within the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and is one of 28 facilities administered by the Palisades Interstate Park Commission in New York and New Jersey.  For further information contact: (845) 562-1195.  For more information about New York State Parks, please visit our website at www.nysparks. com.   For more information call (845) 562-1195 or visit us on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/washingtonsheadquarters.