Albany City Hall Lampposts
Acquired in 1881 from the City of Albany
Still in place today, these lampposts are a distinctive addition to the Washington Avenue entrance to the Club. Resting on a base of crouching griffins, which are associated with Minerva, the Roman goddess of the city, the lamps once graced the entrance of Albany City Hall on Eagle Street, surviving the fire that consumed the building in February 1880.
The Baron Steuben Pistols
Presented to the Club in 1891 by Mrs.
George Evans in memory of her late husband who was
one of the Club’s
Charter members
The Club made headlines when the dueling pistols were stolen from its collection in 1956 by a former bellboy who traded them for modern handguns that he and an accomplice used to rob a State Street liquor store. The sale of the antique handguns provided the clues to solving the holdup. Eventually the firearms were returned to the Club and are displayed in the Tap Room.
Peace Pipe
Presented by Captain John B. Rodman, 1890
This 31-inch Indian pipe is mounted on a rack and currently on display in the Tap Room. This great peace pipe was made by the Gros Ventres Indians. It was afterwards in the possession of the Crows, the Assinniboines, and finally, the Sioux. It was procured by Captain Rodman of the 20th Infantry, USA from the Sioux near Camp Poplar River, Montana and presented to the Fort Orange Club on December 14th, 1890.
Little Turtle’s Tobacco Pouch
Donated by resident Club member W.R. Winchell who
joined the Club in 1891
Born in 1752, Little Turtle was leader of the Miami Indians of the Ohio Valley. During the conflicts in the “Old Northwest” of the 1780’s and 1790’s, he led a confederation of tribes including the Shawnee, Delaware and Wyandots, and defeated two American Armies in 1790 & 1791. The defeat of General St. Clair’s army in 1791 was the greatest defeat the Americans ever suffered at the hands of the Indians, dwarfing Custer’s defeat at Little Big Horn. After the Native American defeat in 1794 at Fallen Timbers, Little Turtle never went to battle again. For the rest of his life, he urged peace among the Indian and settlers until his honorable death at Fort Wayne, Indiana in 1812.
Edward P. Buyck Murals
Commissioned by the Fort Orange Club in 1937
Edward P. Buyck, an Albany-area painter trained in Europe, created five murals for the newly remodeled Tap Room. They depict historic scenes of Albany and include the Half Moon, Fort Orange, the Intersection of State and Pearl Streets, View of Albany from the East Bank of the Hudson, and the Cohoes Falls. The murals were later restored in 1993 by Caroline Keck, a leading conservator from Cooperstown, NY.
Keeler
Restaurant’s Oak and Beveled-Glass Paneling
Obtained in 1970 by Club Officers
Keeler’s restaurant, the city’s oldest and most distinguished eating establishment closed in 1969 after more than a century in downtown Albany. The purchase of the paneling by the Club was heralded as a “brilliant acquisition of a piece of old Albany which will be cherished…” Most of the paneling was used to line the walls of the new Billiard Room and the surplus served as the perfect backdrop to the Club’s back entranceway, creating a handsome and nostalgic atmosphere in which to welcome Club members and guests.
Sadler
Prints
Presented in 1969 by Gaynor Keeler to the Albany Institute
of History and Art with a proviso that they be placed on indefinite loan
to the Fort Orange Club
An exceptional collection of more than 100 prints by W. Dendy Sadler, a well-known English artist who specialized in scenes of everyday life, originally decorated the walls of the famous Keeler Restaurant in downtown Albany. Presented by Keeler in memory of his father, they are proudly displayed throughout the many rooms of the Clubhouse.
A View of Fort Orange, 1652
Commissioned by the
Fort Orange Club in 2005
In honor of the Club’s 125th Anniversary, Club officers commissioned local artist, Leonard F. Tantillo, to create a picture of Beverwiijck, the precursor of Albany, with a Dutch sailing ship at anchor in 1652. The painting was unveiled at a reception in February 2004 and is currently on display in the main entryway.