Name/Title
75th Bull Picnic August 27, 1942 "Middletown Times Herald"Entry/Object ID
000495Scope and Content
MIDDLETOWN TIMES HERALD, MIDDLETOWN, N. Y., THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 1942
At Seventy-fifth Bull Family Picnic
[Image: A larger photograph featuring a standing soldier in uniform, a seated elderly woman holding a baby, and an older man standing in the background.]
[Image: A smaller photograph showing six individuals standing in a row outdoors.]
First Lieutenant Robert Ackerly of Crystal Run, stationed at Maxwell Field, Alabama, was the only
member of the William Bull and Sarah Wells Family Association to appear at the annual picnic yesterday
at the Stone House in Hamptonburgh in uniform. His sister, Miss Mary Ackerly, Orange County Apple
Blossom Queen two years ago, won honors for having traveled the greatest distance, 1,200 miles, from
Ames, Iowa. Her brother, incidentally, only missed that by 100 miles. Seated is the oldest attending,
Amanda Bull Riter, eighty-two, of Monroe, and she holds Ruth Caroline Conklin, ten months, youngest
member present. She is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William Conklin of Chester. Below are officers of the
Bull Family Association. They are, left to right, Hamlet S. Roe, manager and charter officer; Robert M.
Jackson, secretary, of Hamptonburgh; Amy Bull Crist of Montgomery, retiring president; Henry Bull of
Middletown, newly elected president; Charles W. Slaughter, Warwick; Charles F. Johnson, Chester, and
Mrs. Betty Bull Schuerholz of Middletown; members of the board.-Photos by Conklin.
* * * *
200 Attend Seventy-fifth
Annual Bull Family Picnic
HAMPTONBURGH.-Two hundred descendants of William and
Sarah Wells Bull, representing virtually every Orange County community
assembled at the old Stone House here yesterday for the seventy-fifth
annual Bull Family picnic. It was perfect picnic weather. Older mem-
bers spent the day visiting on the spacious lawn while children engaged
in games in the open country surrounding the famous old house.
Miss Dolly W. Booth of Camp-
bell Hall gave an account of the
earlier Bull picnics, the first of
which was held in 1867. As she re-
lated facts pertaining to former
picnics overhead the Wings of West
Point, the air arm that took
over at Stewart airport Tuesday,
droned out a realistic chapter of
the present day, the first time that
any Bull picnic had witnessed the
sight of warplanes dodging in and
out of white clouds.
Henry Bull of Middletown was
elected president of the association
for the coming year, terminating
for the retiring president, Mrs.
Amy Bull Crist, a continuous lead-
ership of six years. In declining to
be a candidate, Mrs. Crist indicat-
ed that her time was to be devoted
exclusively to her duties as school
superintendent, district chairman
of the Division of Civilian Mobili-
zation, and other defense activities.
Gifts to the association were ac-
knowledged from Rumsey Coleman,
of Washingtonville and Miss Mar-
ion Teed of Montgomery. Mrs. Ke-
turah Booth of Campbell Hall pre-
sented $75 with which she instruct-
ed purchase of a War Bond to be
placed in the family fund.
The gathering listened to a radio
broadcast over WGNY during the
day, at which time Arthur Pound
described the Bull family picnic.
Greetings were sent by the Board
family, whose annual picnic, it was
noted, had been called off this year.
During a brief business session
in the afternoon, Hamlet S. Roe,
Craigville, Mrs. Betty Bull Schuer-
holz of Middletown and Charles F.
Johnson of Chester were elected
managers. It was announced that
in addition to the many Orange
County communities represented,
guests were in attendance from
Wellesley, Mass., Trenton, N. J.,
New York City, Bergenfield, N. J.,
Pearl River and Ames, Iowa. Mrs.
Margaret McClung Wilcox of Camp-
bell Hall was named assistant sec-
retary, a new office created this
year.
The newly elected president an-
nounced the appointments to com-
mittees as follows: Picnic, Barlow
W. Bull and William Bull of Stony
Ford, Dixie Ann Booth of Camp-
bell Hall, Culver Bull of Campbell
Hall and Mark W. Roe of Craig-
ville; reception, Miss Jean Hoeffler,
Newark, N. J., Mr. and Mrs. Charles
W. Slaughter of Warwick and Mrs.
Alfred Booth of Campbell Hall; en-
tertainment, Miss Merrie Ellen Van-
tassell of Middletown, Miss Mary
Emma Ackerly of Crystal Run and
Miss Barbara Harlow of Sydney,
N. Y., and property, Hamlet S.
Roe, Charles Slaughter and Charles
F. Johnson.