Town historian presents, ‘The American Revolution in Woodbury’

Alex Prizgantas, town historian of Woodbury and Tuxedo, as well as President of the Woodbury Historical Society, will present, “The American Revolution in Woodbury,” on Saturday, June 6, at 7 p.m. at the new Sweet Clover Farm Distillery, located at 10 Sweet Clover Road in Highland Mills, N.Y.

“The location of Sweet Clover Farms itself is significant to the Revolution locally,” says Prizgintas. “Woodbury did not witness any full-scale conflicts or battles, but it did experience the reverberations of pivotal events surrounding its borders, such as the Battle of Fort Montgomery to the east in 1777, the important New Windsor Cantonment to the north, and the Battle of Minisink to the west. As such, troops frequently passed through what is today Woodbury, and there is a documented encampment site at the present-day Sweet Clover Farm.”

Program to highlight Revolutionary War stories, sites and landmarks

Situated along the Great Ramapo Pass, countless Patriots and Loyalists passed through Woodbury, and its position between New Jersey to the south, along with the mid-Hudson Valley to the north, as well as West Point to the east, may have been a likely factor for George Washington to establish headquarters at Smith’s Tavern near Highland Mills during the Summer of 1779.

“As someone who grew up in Woodbury, I was often told that the American Revolution passed by our community and left few traces,” says Prizgintas. “For the most part, that’s a fairly accurate assessment, but it does not mean that Woodbury was any less significant to the 250th Anniversary of our nation.”

Highlighting Revolutionary War stories, sites, and landmarks will be the topic of a new program that Prizgintas has developed, coordinated in tandem with the Town of Woodbury’s 2026 Liberty Fest. “It is wonderful to see a local municipality so engaged in highlighting the birth of our nation, and I am honored to play a role in uncovering important, as well as sometimes neglected, information and sharing it with new audiences.”

Program information

This program is open to the general public. For more information, please contact the Woodbury Historical Society at (845) 928-6770 or email woodbury1889@optonline.net. Guests are also encouraged to visit the Town of Woodbury’s Liberty Fest website for additional updates at www.DiscoverWoodburyNY.com.