Beth L Hill, President and CEO of the Fort Ticonderoga Association, has been named the 2015 Distinguished Patriot by the Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York. The award was presented to Hill for her years of service in the historical profession and her strong leadership at Fort Ticonderoga where she has led the organization’s turn-around and transformed the historic site and museum into a vibrant and thriving cultural destination and learning campus. The 2015 Distinguished Patriot Award was presented at the Annual George Washington Birthday Ball held at the Union League Club in New York City on February 20, 2015. The George Washington Birthday Ball was held to benefit Fraunces Tavern® Museum located in New York.
“The Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York honored as its Distinguished Patriot, Beth L. Hill, the President and CEO of the Fort Ticonderoga Association, because of her extraordinary success in preserving and presenting the incredibly rich historical heritage of New York and America,” said Ambrose Madison Richardson, President of the Society.
“I’m extremely honored and deeply touched to receive this prestigious award from the Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York,” said Hill. “It’s an incredible gift to be able to serve the history and museum profession. It’s particularly humbling to lead Fort Ticonderoga, one of America’s most significant historic sites, and find new and relevant ways to connect the past to present and future generations. Understanding our nation’s history gives us enhanced capacity for informed citizenship. The torch has been given to us today to utilize our story – our own laboratory of human experience – as a barometer for what is important, to persevere in the face of challenge, and find hope and inspiration from those that have gone before us.”
Past recipients of the Distinguished Patriot Award include Senator Barry Goldwater, General William C. Westmoreland, Colonel Edwin E. Aldrin, Normand Vincent Peale, D.D, Senator James Buckley, Hon. Jean Kirkpatrick, and Senator Robert Dole. The award is given for outstanding academic or service performance.
About the Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York: Founded in 1884, the Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York, a society of descendents of those who fought in the American Revolutionary War or otherwise placed themselves at risk for the Patriot cause, is devoted to educating the public and preserving the memory of the American Revolutionary War.
About Fraunces Tavern® Museum: Fraunces Tavern Museum, opened in 1907 by the Sons of the Revolution of New York, is the only New York City museum that exclusively focuses on the American Revolution. The Museum is a 5 building complex containing nine galleries, including the famous Long Room where George Washington bade farewell to the officers of the Continental Army on December 4, 1783. The Museum houses over 3,000 Colonial America, Revolutionary War, and Early Republic artifacts, including a lock of George Washington’s hair. The Museum was landmarked in 1965, marked as a historic district in 1978, and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.