“Brockport’s history became wrapped up in my love of writing.” Sarah Cedeño
Sarah Cedeño is the historian for the Village of Brockport. On March 9, she will speak on “The Seymour House, Another Amazing Landmark.” The power point presentation starts at 7 p.m. in the Morgan-Manning House at 151 Main Street in Brockport. The free program is followed by refreshments, and is sponsored by the Western Monroe Historical Society.
“I do most of my work as village historian out of the Emily L. Knapp Museum” (in the Seymour House), Cedeño said about the subject of her presentation. “We have many files that include letters, wills and photos of the Seymour family, resident anecdotes, a history of the home compiled by Carol Hannan, and Helen Hasting’s archives that chronicle the beginnings of the library and museum.”
Childhood, college education, and writing career in Brockport
Cedeño’s relationship to the Seymour House, first as the Seymour Library, and then as the Emily Knapp Museum, goes back to her childhood. She was born at Lakeside Hospital, raised on Spring Street, and graduated from Brockport High School.
The historic home has captured her fascination, beginning in grade school years, and later as a student at College at Brockport where she earned her B.A. and M.A. degrees in creative writing in 2006. “I have been in love with Brockport’s history in general, but, it’s deeply personal as the place where I have always lived,” she said.
She was drawn to the Seymour Library in her youth. “It’s the only place my mother would let me walk to,” she said. As an avid reader, “I would go there and hang out.” A visit to the museum with her fourth-grade class prompted her early interest in Brockport’s history. Led by curator Emily Knapp, the class went to what is now the Mary Jane Holmes room. “All I remember is this spare rustic wooden desk that was Mary Jane Holmes’ writing desk,” she said. After talking with Emily for a few minutes, “It was enough for me to feel like I wanted to know more.”
Not trained as a historian, Cedeño’s interest in history “became wrapped up in my love of writing.” She has been teaching English courses at The College at Brockport for ten years, including creative writing since 2010.
In 2012, beginning her Masters of Fine Arts degree at Goddard College, she became immersed in the anecdotal stories she found on the Brockport Republic (newspaper) data base. Based on factual news accounts, she would write fictional short stories for her MFA creative project.
Appreciating the “factual or traditional” history of Brockport, her creative focus was on these “smaller, more notable moments that would not normally fit into an overview of early Brockport history.”
Discovering the Emily L. Knapp Museum
Writing about one story from the Brockport Republic, Cedeño felt “limited by the newspaper,” and went to the Knapp Museum for something more tangible like a photo. She met Jackie Morris, the village historian and they went through the files. Writing a different short story every two weeks, “I kept going up for more and more research,” Cedeño said.
On her many visits, she enjoyed the company of Morris and volunteers who were helping to maintain the museum: Rayleen Bucklin (Jackie’s daughter), Dan Burns, and Doug Wolcott.
The museum collection was overflowing and in disarray, from decades of accumulating contributions from the community, Cedeño said, calling it “Brockport’s attic.” Rather than being turned off by the disorder, “I loved it. Going up there was like a treasure hunt,” she said. “I never stopped visiting, even if I didn’t have something to research.”
She started volunteering on her own, doing “little projects” like cleaning shelves, putting files in order, or putting sleeves on books. She could be there only two hours at a time during the open periods. She realized that such piecemeal efforts at organizing were fruitless. And, even as she loved the mysteries and surprises of “Brockport’s attic,” she said, “It wasn’t practical or professional. It needed organization and a data base.”
She appreciates Sue Savard who started reorganizing the collection with a team of volunteers. With Sue’s strategic plans and follow-through, Cedeño saw the progress that was not possible with one person’s short-term efforts.
In 2014 Cedeño, Sue Savard, and a college student, Amy Pepe, began a grant project to file the museum’s documents. Cedeño became a member of the museum’s board, then became secretary, and is now vice chairperson. She was appointed village historian in August, 2015.
Coming full circle
Cedeño has immersed herself in the Emily L. Knapp Museum in both of its modes. She had a loving adventure exploring “Brockport’s attic” for local stories. Now, she contributes to the museum’s new era of systematic curation, including establishing its website (www.brockportknappmuseum.org), Facebook and blog.
It has been a fascinating journey from finishing the fourth-grade museum tour, “wanting to know more,” to the present day as the village’s historian. “Had I known when I was a little girl that I was going to be the village historian, I would have been the happiest kid in the world,” she said. “It seemed totally unattainable. I would have thought ‘No way would I be able to do that.’”
Sarah Cedeño lives in Brockport with her husband and two sons, eight and five years old. She teaches creative writing at Rochester’s Writers & Books, as well as The College at Brockport. She is the editorial director of the literary magazine “Clockhouse.” Her work has appeared in “The Baltimore Review,” “New World Writing,” “The Rumpus,” “Hippocampus Magazine,” and many other publications. She is at work on a collection of short fiction inspired by twentieth-century articles from the Brockport Republic.
[Regarding Jackie Morris, the village historian referred to in the story: On July 20, 2015, the Brockport Village Board signed a proclamation honoring Jackie Morris upon her retirement as the village historian after 14 years of service. The proclamation stated in part that the Village Board “does hereby commend and thank Jackie for such an outstanding record of long, faithful, and creative service to this community (and) bestows on her the honorable title of Village Historian emeritus.” Jackie Morris passed away in November, 2016.]
