Back in the 1950’s, residents of the towns of Eureka, Lackawack, Montela, and Neversink were displaced when the construction of the Rondout and Neversink reservoirs were completed as the towns were flooded in order to expand New York City’s water supply. 

Most of the towns’ histories were lost with them. 

Today, Neversink relocated to its current location along State Route 55, and Lackawac moved to Ulster County. The people of the towns of Montela, and Eureka relocated. Although many of the of the histories were lost with the floods, many families keep them alive with spoken word and the help of the Time and the Valleys Museum.

 The Time and the Valleys Museum is an interactive resource that preserves the past, educates the present and preserves the uniqueness of the Rondout and Neversink watersheds for future generations. Helping to further this mission is Museum Director Donna Steffens. 

Steffens has recruited the help of SUNY Sullivan professor Joseph Poon and his digital graphics class to help enhance the experience of this springs’ upcoming exhibit, Bittersweet Memories:  Lost Towns of the Catskill Watersheds, with augmented reality. 

Using the mobile application Artivive, Professor Poon and his class were able to create a layer of animation over the paintings, so when visitors look through their smartphone at the paintings in the exhibit they can see the animation – parts of the paintings will move, change color, or become 3D. 

“This is a melding of traditional art with digital technology, with the hopes of getting a younger audience interested in local history and traditional art,” Steffens states.

“I like to build a classroom that adapts around new technology without fear of lack of prior training,” states Poon. In participating in this project, the students are introduced to the future of museum experience.

Students Brooke Scheuermann, Anthony Brasington, Nathaniel Martinez, Layla Mack, Zach Haberzettl and Thomas Millspaugh all had the opportunity to dive into this new art medium, helping them build skills for their future, and have knowledge that will potentially help them in their professional careers. 

“Artivive helps you feel the work; like you’re one with the painting, diving into different forms of art helps us be more well rounded for our future as well,” said student Anthony Brasington. 

Time and the Valleys Museum is due to reopen this spring, keeping the lost towns of the Sullivan County reservoirs alive.