Update (9/21/25): Mine works again after updating my phone to iOS 26. Please let me know if it’s still not working for you!
NOTE: Opening events is currently not working properly on some phones. We are hoping to have it fixed soon! In the meantime, check it out on a computer for full access or email aimee.e.holmes@gmail.com for information about a listed event.
We have a new calendar! We’re experimenting with including free cultural and educational events at other local and regional libraries, museums, and non-profits. We hope a compilation of these great events will be a valuable resource for our community. Click on the categories above the calendar to limit the results by drive time from the Bolton Free Library. Be sure to check the hosting organization’s website for schedule changes and cancellations. Note that some of the events at and within 10 minutes of our library are not free; these are denoted with a “($)” and costs are included in those descriptions.
Check back often for updates and let us know what you think!
Events in October 2025
October 25, 2025 (3 events)
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October 25, 2025Join the New York State Museum for an afternoon of Halloween fun! Create creepy art projects, play ghoulish games, see spooky science specimens, go wild on the dance floor, and so much more. Costumes are encouraged—there will be a children’s costume parade at 2 p.m. to end the festivities. Come out for a spooktacular time!
Note: This program does not provide any candy or snacks.
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October 25, 2025It’s our annual Trunk or Treat event (rain or shine).
Dress up in your Halloween best and Trick-or-Treat among decorated vehicles. This event is open to all ages.
This event is not possible without the support of our community bringing a decorated vehicle and treats. Register your vehicle!
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October 25, 2025Join us for the spookiest night of the year at HCP!
From 4pm-6pm, carve pumpkins with us at the pavilion before lining the Sensory Trail with everyone's glowing creations. Once the sun goes down, take a stroll down the trail... If you dare!
Details:
-$10 per pumpkin if you use one of ours (bring your own at no cost!)
-At the end of the night, you can take your jack o’lantern home (or leave it as a special snack for our resident wild life)
-The Sensory Trail is wheelchair and stroller accessible. This event is open to all ages, abilities, and disabilities.Come for the carving, stay for the glow, and make some fall memories with us at Hudson Crossing Park!
October 26, 2025 (2 events)
October 26, 2025Join author Mark Ferrara, Professor of English at State University of New York at Oneonta and author of The Raging Erie: Life and Labor Along the Erie Canal (Columbia University Press, 2024) to discuss his recent book and some of the stories of the people who lived and worked along the banks of the canal, emphasizing the forgotten role of the poor and working class in this epochal transformation.
Brian Keough, New York State Archivist will talk about and show examples of records documenting New York's canals from the earliest Erie Canal surveys to the completion and operation of the Barge Canal spanning 1794–1958 (bulk 1817–1926) and totaling over 2,560 cubic feet. These archival documents are part of the holdings of the New York State Archives and Records Administration, part of the Office of Cultural Education in the State Education Department.
October 26, 2025Join Toss the Feathers for Musical Postcards from Irish Albany & Troy, a lively program of traditional Irish music, stories, and song that celebrates the remarkable history of the Irish people in the Upper Hudson Valley. Presented on the 200th anniversary of the Erie Canal’s opening, this concert shines a spotlight on the thousands of Irish immigrants whose labor and spirit helped carve the Canal into existence. Through music, stories, songs, and slides that bring history to life, audiences will travel back to a time when Irish voices and fiddles echoed along the waterways of Albany and Troy.
Presented as part of New York State History Month and the Erie Canal Bicentennial, this special concert honors the enduring legacy of Irish culture and community in New York State.
October 28, 2025 (2 events)
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October 28, 2025Join us every Tuesday in October for Folklore & Frost, a local documentary series exploring the rich history and mysterious tales of Northern New York. Each episode highlights historic sites where unexplained occurrences and ghostly legends are part of everyday life. From haunted inns and old courthouses to mysterious apparitions and strange happenings, these stories bring the past—and the paranormal—to life.
Schedule:
- October 7: Folklore & Frost - Unexplained Occurrences
- October 14: Folklore & Frost - The Big County and Beyond
- October 21: Folklore & Frost - Legends of Early Downtown Watertown
- October 28: Folklore & Frost - Haunted Happenings
Step into the history, hauntings, and folklore of Northern New York and discover the stories that continue to intrigue and mystify the community.
October 28, 2025
October 30, 2025 (3 events)
October 30, 2025
October 30, 2025Registration required: Saratoga National Historical Park
What did it take for a six-man crew to fell trees in frigid 18th century Saratoga? How did African (American) women master the arduous task of laundry day at the Schuyler Estate? How did Lewis, one of General Philip Schuyler's coachmen, earn a shoutout from Benjamin Franklin for his skilled maneuvering of rural roads? Join us as we dig deeper into the tools, knowledge, natural objects and skills that local enslaved people mastered while in bondage and piece together what 18th and early 19th century life might have been like for African Americans in Saratoga and Washington counties.
Dr. Shanleigh Corrallo is a scholar of African American history who has applied her research to positions in academia, government and public policy, and community advocacy. Through her work, Corrallo has developed programs and implemented policies that restore and uplift diverse communities across New York State that have been negatively impacted by social, economic and legal injustice. In her current role as a Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow, she works with Skidmore College and the New York State Division of Parks and Historic Preservation to unearth and document the lives of individuals enslaved in Saratoga and Washington Counties, New York. In addition to collaborating with the NYS Office of Parks on a portfolio of projects commemorating 400 years of presence and contributions of African Americans in the State, Corrallo has developed an oral history series with local descendants that will be housed at Skidmore College. Outside of the fellowship, Corrallo is working on a book project with the University of Rochester Press on the Black Power Movement in Buffalo and Rochester, New York.
Dr. Corrallo lives in the beautiful town of Schodack Landing, New York, with her beloved dog, husband, chickens and gardens.
Support for the Fall Lecture Series is provided by Friends of Saratoga Battlefield. Reservations are required due to limited space. Email us (SARA_Reservations@nps.gov) to reserve your seat!
October 30, 2025
October 31, 2025 (1 event)
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October 31, 2025Step back in time and join us for a fascinating 30-minute gallery tour of the Cohoes Mastodon, one of the New York State Museum’s most treasured fossils, led by NYSM Director of Research and Collections and Curator of Vertebrate Paleontology, Dr. Robert Feranec. Discovered in 1866 during the construction of Harmony Mill No. 3 near Cohoes Falls, this impressive creature stood about eight-and-one-half feet high and weighed between 8,000 and 10,000 pounds.
During the tour, you'll learn about the mastodon’s life 13,000 years ago, uncover the research behind its unique skeletal features, and explore the distinguishing traits that set mastodons apart from mammoths. Discover the remarkable story of survival, injury, and the ancient world through this iconic relic of our planet’s history!