Hugh Tranum was the guest speaker at the Valley Historical Society on the history of Sinclairville native Rexford Tugwell and the dust bowl of the 1930’s.

SINCLAIRVILLE – Historian Hugh Tranum was the guest speaker for the Valley Historical Society members and guests at the Sinclairville Free Library.

Tranum spoke about Sinclairville native Rexford Tugwell, who was appointed as the Secretary of Agriculture by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1934. Tugwell was born in Sinclairville in 1891 and did doctoral studies in 1916. At the time of his appointment, there was a large dust bowl in the midwest. It was very dry for a long period of time, with no rain, the winds lifted the top soil and blew large clouds of dust into the air. The continued wind turned dirt into powder. People in the thousands moved due to the economic disaster, and many people developed respiratory problems and many died. To halt the dust bowl, some 10 million trees were planted. All this was during Tugwell’s time of service.

Betty Jean Ridout, society vice president, opened the meeting with a welcome and led all in the Lord’s Prayer. Treasurer John Sipos led all in the Pledge of Allegiance. The minutes of the previous meeting were read by secretary Evelyn Thorndike. Sipos gave the financial report of the historical group.

Dean Houser, former Sinclairville mayor, will take charge of the 2025 annual History Fair which will be held on the second Saturday in September 2025 from 7 a.m until 9 p.m. Houser said that he will begin arranging for those who will be a part of the history fair.

The Valley Historical Society is in its 47th year, and was organized by the late John and Ruth Smith, the late Rev. John Rough, and now long time members Walter Waite and William Hulett. The museum is located at the corner of Main and Lester streets in the village. New members are welcome. For more information on the Valley Historical Society, write to P.O. Box 1045, Sinclairville, NY 14782.