About Fenimore Farm
MISSION
VISION
By focusing on interpretive quality, authenticity and visible annual improvements, Fenimore Farm will strengthen its reputation as a highly desirable destination and regional resource (real and virtual) for adults, families, and school groups, and as a leader among outdoor history museums.
We are committed to improving visitor amenities and imparting consistency in programming and organizational performance. The staff will strive to make every interaction at the museum a positive and memorable experience.
VALUES
STRATEGIC PLAN
ANNUAL REPORTS
COLLECTIONS MANAGEMENT POLICY
Enriching
Enjoyable
Honest
Audience-focused
Inclusive
Innovative
History
The site of Fenimore Farm has deep roots in New York State’s rural past. The land has been part of a working farm since 1813, when it was owned by James Fenimore Cooper. Judge Samuel Nelson, whose office is part of Fenimore Farm Village, bought the farm in 1829 and raised sheep. Fenimore Farm, as it came to be known, changed hands again in the 1870s, when it was acquired by the Clark family.
In 1918, Edward Severin Clark built a showcase complex at Fenimore Farm for his prize herd of cattle. The barn, creamery, and herdsman’s cottage designed by architect Frank Whiting in the Colonial Revival style and constructed of local stone still stand today and are an integral part of the museum. Today, they house museum offices, exhibition spaces, and public areas. The structures are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Fenimore Farm opened its doors to the public in 1944. At that time, the museum had 5,000 tools and objects, including important collections amassed by the Otsego County Historical Society; William B. Sprague, founder of the Early American Industries Association; and the Wyckoff family, one of Brooklyn’s oldest farming families. Today the museum’s collections number more than 23,000 artifacts.
Fenimore Farm is a private, non-governmental educational organization. It is closely affiliated with its sister organization, Fenimore Art Museum.
From the President
Dear Friends,
This is going to be a season of positive change for our beloved museums. As many of you know, I have announced my retirement effective September 25, after which my former student, esteemed colleague, and good friend Joshua Torrance will become the next President & CEO. You couldn’t be in better hands.
Joshua came on board in early January as my Senior Vice President and has been very busy learning the operations of Fenimore Art Museum and Fenimore Farm, meeting with staff members, and mapping out a plan to continue our long-standing record of excellence and community engagement. Like me, he sees your support and involvement as vital to our success. During this time of transition to new leadership, we want you to know how much we appreciate you and everything you bring to the museums. Thank you all for being members!
Other positive developments are coming your way in 2026. Our new Education and Regional History Center is now completed, as some of you saw at our Open House during Community Day in early May. The new spaces are stunning, and include an arts and crafts space for school groups, a research room for historians, genealogists, and the public, and a large multi-purpose program space for lectures, meetings, performances, and more. This space will be available for use by community groups as well.
Our biggest new feature will open in late September as I pass the museums over to Joshua. We will finish and open Fenimore Art Museum’s new American Masterworks Gallery, which will feature the 27 new acquisitions we made with the help of the Thaw Charitable Trust in 2023 and 2024 along with many of the old favorites given to us in years past by Stephen C. Clark. The gallery will include works by Thomas Cole, William Sidney Mount, Frederic Church, John Singer Sargent, Mary Cassatt, Georgia O’Keefe and many others! While you are waiting for the new gallery to be completed, come out and enjoy The Linda McCartney Retrospective: From the Light, In Nature’s Studio: Two Centuries of American Landscape Painting, Faded Elegance: Portraits of Havana by Michael Eastman, and Autumn in New York: Paintings by Janet Munro, along with our other sensational exhibitions!
At Fenimore Farm, we will be back with our signature events – Harvest Festival and Tractor Fest – along with the debut of Scarecrow Village, a six-week extravaganza in September and October featuring artist-made scarecrows throughout the grounds. This new event, the brainchild of Joshua’s, will delight young and old alike in the lovely autumn season at the Farm. We will, of course, be back with our fourth annual Glimmer Nights Holiday Light Show in November and December. A visit to the Farm is always in order if you want to unwind, chat with our knowledgeable and engaging interpreters, and see our ever-popular farm animals. Our pigs Lucy and Ethyl are back, bigger than ever, and our sheep, goats, and new calves never disappoint!
Please remember that you are the reason we are able to do everything we do for the community! These museums are yours, and I hope to see you often during the remarkable season ahead!
Paul S. D’Ambrosio
President & CEO
Board & Staff
OFFICERS
- Jane Forbes Clark, Chairman
- J. Michael Moffat, Vice Chairman
- Paul S. D’Ambrosio, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer
- Joseph Siracusa, Vice President for Operations
- Andrew R. Marietta, Secretary
MEMBERS AND DIRECTORS
- David T. Bliss
- Jane Forbes Clark
- Gates Helms Hawn
- Edward Heaney
- Josh Kilmer-Purcell
- Hon. John F. Lambert
- J. Michael Moffat
- Kevin S. Moore
- James K. Patrick
- Jeffrey H. Pressman, MD
- Brent Ridge, MD
- Douglas Thompson
- Henry F. C. Weil, MD
SENIOR MANAGEMENT TEAM
- Dr. Paul S. D’Ambrosio, President and CEO
- Joshua Campbell Torrance, Senior Vice President
- Joseph Siracusa, Vice President for Operations
- Kerri Green, Director of Marketing and Communications
- Briana Ingraham, Director of Education
- Julia Madore, Director of Exhibitions and Curatorial Affairs
- Lynette Moore-Witte, Director of Executive Affairs
- Mary Myers, Director of Human Resources
- Christine Olsen, Director of Registration, Collections and Library
