We are thrilled to welcome John Oliver as the first lecturer at 48 Hudson!

John will explore the Battles of Saratoga—and how their aftermath nearly cost George Washington his position as Commander in Chief of the Continental Army.

Then, in 1783, while Washington waited—seemingly forever—for the British to sign the Treaty of Paris, he traveled north to Saratoga Springs with an unusual ambition: he wanted to buy the place.

What happened next infuriated GW to no end.

Washington did, however, eventually get Albany’s Washington Avenue named in his honor. The road follows the route he traveled as he headed north.

John will also explore the profound role horses played throughout Washington’s personal and professional life. Suffice it to say, Air Force One wasn’t America’s first public manifestation of presidential authority.

The talk is lighthearted and approachable, but firmly grounded in substantive historical research. It offers a different look at Washington—not simply as the distant figure on the dollar bill, but as a man moving through the communities and landscapes of upstate New York, navigating military politics, land, transportation, ambition, and the frustrations of a new nation finding its footing.

George Washington and Our Region: It's Complicated Lecture by John Oliver