Chris MacKowski

MACHIAS — The Cattaraugus County Museum’s “Summer at the Stone House” event series continues its 2026 schedule with a bonus presentation at 7 p.m. Monday, Aug. 10, with a presentation on the history of Independence Day in America by Chris Mackowski, historian and professor at St. Bonaventure University.

Chris Mackowski is the editor-in-chief and co-founder of Emerging Civil War and the series editor of the award-winning Emerging Civil War Series, published by Savas Beatie. Chris is a writing professor in the Jandoli School of Communication at St. Bonaventure University in Allegany, where he also serves as associate dean for undergraduate programs. Chris is also historian-in-residence at Stevenson Ridge, a historic property on the Spotsylvania battlefield in central Virginia. He has worked as a historian for the National Park Service at Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park, where he gives tours at four major Civil War battlefields (Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Wilderness and Spotsylvania), as well as at the building where Stonewall Jackson died.

Mackowski has authored or co-authored nearly two dozen books and edited a half-dozen essay collections on the Civil War, and his articles have appeared in all the major Civil War magazines. Chris is an inaugural member of the Gettysburg History Council, and he serves as a Copie Hill Civil War Fellow at the American Battlefield Trust. He serves on the advisory board of the Civil War Roundtable Congress and the Brunswick (N.C.) Civil War Roundtable — the largest in the country — and he has formerly served on the board of directors for the Central Virginia Battlefields Trust. He is also a member of the Friends of Grant Cottage, the U. S. Grant Homestead Association and the Antietam Institute.

Titled “250 Years of Independence Day,” this program is the final of three that the museum is hosting to fit with the theme of America’s 250th birthday.

“’All men are created equal’ — so says the Declaration of Independence, adopted 250 years ago. How has that promise played out in the years since? From Thomas Jefferson and John Adams to Abraham Lincoln to us today — the most famous phrase of the Declaration has continued to evolve, and it requires us to play a part,” Mackowski said of the topic for his presentation.

The program will begin at 7 p.m. and will take place under a tent on the museum lawn, rain or shine. Some seating will be available, but attendees are encouraged to bring their own chairs if they wish. This event is free and open to the public.

For those unable to attend in person, this event will be livestreamed on the museum’s YouTube channel. A link to the livestream will be posted on the museum Facebook page nearer the date of the event.

The Cattaraugus County Museum is located in the Stone House, 9824 Route 16, in Machias. For more information, visit www.cattco.org/museum or call (716) 353-8200.