There are many historical attractions in and around Poughkeepsie. The Franklin D. Roosevelt Library and Musuem, located just minutes away in nearby Hyde Park, offers resources, displays, and exhibits regarding FDR, as well as Eleanor Roosevelt, the entire Roosevelt family, the Roosevelt homes, the Great Depression, and World War II. A shuttle bus takes visitors from the FDR home to two other sites run by the National Park Service: Val-Kill, Mrs. Roosevelt's private retreat, and Top Cottage, designed by President Roosevelt to be his wheelchair-accessible retirement home.
Also in Hyde Park is Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site. Visitors can tour the furnished home of Frederick Vanderbilt, browse through the visitor center’s exhibits and bookstore, and enjoy the spectacular views of the Hudson River and Catskill Mountains.
The Van Wyck Homestead Museum, located in nearby Fishkill and owned and operated by the Fishkill Historical Society, tells the story of Fishkill from as early as 1683. The large frame farmhouse, which dates to 1732, was once the home of Isaac Van Wyck, and was later requisitioned by the Continental Army for use as an officer’s headquarters. Today, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Clinton House State Historic Site, built in 1765, was most used when Poughkeepsie was the capital of New York —from 1777 through 1783. The house was rebuilt and enlarged after a fire struck in 1783. Visitors can see the rough fieldstone walls, the wooden gabled ends, and the two-foot thick foundation, all of which currently holds archives and a library for local historical research.
There are many entertainment venues in the city and town of Poughkeepsie. The Bardavon 1869 Opera House (www.bardavon.org) on Market Street in downtown Poughkeepsie is a 900-seat theater presenting shows ranging from marquee entertainers to Broadway productions and classic films on a large screen. The Bardavon is also the home of the Hudson Valley Philharmonic. A block away is the Mid-Hudson Civic Center, a 3,000-seat venue with an adjacent 1,000-seat ice arena. The Civic Center offers shows ranging from rock concerts to professional wrestling. Three blocks away is the famed "Chance," a former movie theater that has served as a concert stop from acts such as The Police (who performed for six perople on an icy night in 1978) to Bob Dylan, David Bowie, the Ramones, Peter Frampton, and the late Warren Zevon, A calendar of current artists performing at The Chance can be found at www.thechancetheater.com.
Small art galleries line lower Main Street, again within blocks of the Bardavon and Civic Center. For more comprehensive shows, visit the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center at Vassar College (www.fllac.vassar.edu) or the Steel Plant Studios at Marist College (www.marist.edu/publicaffairs). Both colleges are worth a visit in their own right; Vassar for its beautiful grounds, and Marist for its vistas of a scenic stretch of the Hudson River, notably from the college's new Longview Park, open to the public from morning until dusk.
A listing of local events is provided by the Dutchess County Arts Council (www.artsmidhudson.org/html/calendar.html). Visitors can also consult the Poughkeepsie Journal's Enjoy! section, printed in the paper every Friday. A visitor's guide and calendar listing are also available at the Journal's Web site at cityguide.pojonews.com/fe/index.asp.
