More than a century ago, Hyde Hall – a neoclassical country mansion built on the shores of Otsego Lake in Cooperstown, NY – was home to wealthy landowner and Englishman George Clarke and his family.
Today, Cooperstown Graduate Program alumnus Colin Havener is running the show.
As Hyde Hall’s Education and Events Director, Havener works hand in hand with community groups and organizations to keep the history of Hyde Hall alive and accessible by developing and producing public programming for people of all ages and backgrounds.
Ghosts, Brides and Drag Queens
For Havener, every day is different. Whether Hyde Hall is hosting a school field trip, private event or wedding, concert, or candlelight ghost tour of the 50-room mansion, Havener is in charge of coordinating. He works closely with the state of New York, which acquired the National Historic Site and its acreage in 1963 for the development of Glimmerglass State Park.
For a recent project called The Full Clarke Experience, Havener helped plan and host a memorable night of music, food and history for guests that included a five-course dinner, lecture and concert in Hyde Hall’s dining room. The elegant, reservation-only evening was Titanic-themed because several members of the Clarke family were Titanic survivors. The menu was adapted from one served on the Titanic.
Another recent event, Hyde Hall in Drag, invited guests to learn the history of the site through drag performances. The innovative event was dreamed up by Hyde Hall’s Marketing Manager, John Aborn, who is also a Cooperstown Graduate Program alumnus.
Havener recently partnered with the nearby Springfield Library to start a public reading hour with community members, and he works closely with the Susquehanna SPCA, Girl Scouts, and the state’s Department of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation to host free events and activities.
“We’re always trying to come up with new ways to make history exciting, accessible and inclusive,” Havener said. “When the show Bridgerton came out on Netflix and became wildly popular, I got so many emails from people wanting us to do a themed event. So it’s fun to tackle these challenges and see them come to fruition.”
The CGP Connection
When COVID hit, Havener moved home to the Cooperstown area after living in New York City for 10 years and began to really think about his passions. A lifelong lover of museums, he thought of the Cooperstown Graduate Program “I knew I was going to get first-hand experience, and the job placement after graduation for the program is extremely high.”
True to form, Havener was hired by Hyde Hall a month before he graduated from CGP with a master’s in Museum Studies. That was due, in large part, to networking facilitated through the CGP, which focuses on hands-on learning and allows students to partner with museums and communities to create meaningful real-world projects.
“Every day you’re interacting with professionals from different institutions that have their own perspective on the museum industry and how and why it works,” Havener said. “The CGP faculty, who are phenomenal, come from different parts of the field, as well, from development to education to interpretation to site management. All of this allows you to really get hands-on, face-to-face training and education, and you graduate with concrete skills and experiences. And a lot of my classmates, myself included, found museums to work at through the CGP programs that allow you to exchange with them.”
Because CGP allows its students to partner with local museums, historical societies, schools, and nonprofits to work on interpretive plans, educational programs, exhibits, and more, their schoolwork has real-world impact. This helped show Havener the ways in which museums can impact and serve their communities, which he has embraced in his current role.
“The most rewarding part of my job is hosting a successful program that brings new people to Hyde Hall and helps continue its stewardship,” Havener said. “My ultimate goal would be that, when people think of Hyde Hall, it’s more synonymous with the community of Cooperstown. We’re on the northern part of Otsego Lake, and I think people sometimes tend to forget about us. So that’s the end goal – to provide a wide array of public programs for all kind of people and to keep Hyde Hall relevant and impactful in an ever-changing world.”