Photos: Historian Alice Begley Honored at Schoolcraft House

The Enterprise — Michael Koff
A native redbud tree stands in front of the Schoolcraft House, and a plaque dedicating it to Alice Begley, who served as the Guilderland town historian from 1994 to 2016, was celebrated on Wednesday, Sept. 14, in an event hosted by the Guilderland Garden Club. The decision was made, said organizer Judith Golombiski, to have the plaque face the Gothic Revival mansion, which Begley had spearheaded the movement to save. Standing next to the tree are Begley’s son, James Begley, and his wife, Paula Cotazino Begley. Lavish homemade refreshments were provided to conclude the festivities.

The Enterprise — Michael Koff
Mary Ellen Johnson, holding a book on Guilderland history that she wrote with the late Alice Begley, describes Begley’s many accomplishments in informing residents about the town’s history. Supervisor Peter Barber, at Wednesday’s dedication ceremony, displayed four books Begley had written and presented him with when he first became supervisor; Barber spoke about the importance, in an era of banned books, of truth-telling in history. Altamont Enterprise editor Melissa Hale-Spencer spoke of Begley’s passion for involving people in celebrating history while James Haluska, the unofficial master of the town’s historical markers, spoke of the importance of a having sense of place.