He arrived in New York as a refugee — a Sephardic Jew fleeing religious persecution in Europe — and became one of the most consequential merchants of eighteenth-century colonial America. In 1716, Luis Moses Gomez purchased land near Marlboro in what was then Ulster County, positioning himself as a vital intermediary between Hudson Valley farmers and artisans and the expanding forces of the market revolution. The stone structure he built still stands today as the oldest surviving Jewish dwelling in North America — three centuries of history embedded in a single building, bearing witness to the American Revolution, the region’s industrialization, and the extraordinary arc of one man’s journey from persecution to prosperity. Alex Prizgintas traces Gomez’s story and the remarkable property he left behind — a lens through which the full complexity of arrival, resilience, and belonging in the Hudson Valley comes into focus.

About the Presenter
Alex Prizgintas is a Hudson Valley historian, author, musician, and preservationist whose work is rooted in a lifelong passion for the region he calls home. He serves as Town Historian of both Woodbury and Tuxedo in Orange County — a rare distinction — and as President of the Woodbury Historical Society, a role he first aspired to at age eleven when he became the organization’s youngest member. He earned his B.A. from Marist College summa cum laude, with a concentration in Public History and a minor in Hudson River Valley Studies, and his M.P.A. from Marist, and has published scholarly work in the peer-reviewed Hudson River Valley Review. A board member of the Association of Public Historians of New York State, he has built collaborative relationships with historical societies and museums across the Hudson Valley. He returns to the Ulster County Historical Society’s Sunday Salon Series, where he has previously presented to our membership, with characteristic depth, warmth, and an eye for the stories hiding in plain sight.

Click Here to Reserve

This event is free, but seating is limited—please reserve your spot in advance.
We suggest a donation of $15 to support the Sunday Salon Series and the work of the Ulster County Historical Society. You can contribute online when you RSVP or donate at the event itself via cash, check, or credit card.

Thank you for supporting local history and community programming!