Roycroft History and Lecture Series – Spring 2022

Inspired by Elbert Hubbard’s own belief in stimulating his workers with lectures, the Roycroft is excited to bring back speakers to the Campus.

The Roycroft Campus is offering its annual Spring History Course. All four presentations will be offered virtual, with three presentations having an in-person option as well. This semester’s program will be a mixture of the personal, artistic, unusual, and rare corners of Roycroft History. We are excited to bring back Robert Rust for a talk on copper artist, Victor Toothacker. Followed by Program Director, Alan Nowicki offering an eclectic mix of Roycroft stories. Virtual classes take place on Zoom, Saturday mornings at 11:00am EST. The in-person presentations take place on the Campus Wednesday/Thursday evenings at 7pm. Please check dates per lecture. Guests registering for the History Course can attend the virtual, in-person or both presentation options.

The Roycroft History Course is $50 for the general public and includes all 4 presentations.

Click here to REGISTER for the whole course

The Roycroft Members price would normally be $40, but as a special thank you for supporting us over this past few years we are offering this program FREE. Registration is still required. Members please call the Roycroft Campus to register for this program for FREE, or call to become a Member at 716-655-0261.

Individual presentations (virtually or in person) are available for $20 per person.

All proceeds go to support the educational programming and restoration of the Roycroft Campus.

The Roycroft History Course is made possible with funding from Erie County, and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature.

Victor Toothacker would take over the Roycroft Copper Shop after widely known Karl Kipp left to open his own Tookay Shop. Toothacker would quietly transform the Copper Shop creating some of the most iconic Roycroft pieces (American Beauty vase) and overseeing the Roycroft’s largest commission, furnishing the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC. Antique dealer and historian Robert Rust brings us the story of this elusive coppersmith.

The History of the Roycroft is filled with some very unusual tales, some of which are rather hard to believe. This presentation is filled with strange stories of Elbert Hubbard and the Roycrofters. Some of these stories are completely true, while other are made-up. Come along on this fun-filled adventure and see if you can tell which are fact and which are fiction.

Elbert Hubbard was a Gilded Age businessman who left his industrial life to create the Roycroft, one of the first Arts and Crafts communities in America. A brief history of the site will be told through historical photographs and the examination of six artworks housed on the Campus. The story behind each of these unique artifacts is the tale of the Roycroft itself; from the philosophy of Hubbard, the ideals of the movement, the artists who created these objects, and its widespread appeal at the beginning of the 20^th century.

As the Roycroft Campus collection continues to grow we often dream of those elusive or lost Roycroft treasures that may be out there, waiting to be found. Take this interesting adventure to learn of the Roycroft connection to the Major Leagues and the Wyeth family, and view some of the unique, one-of-a-kind Roycroft items, such as paintings, artifacts, lamps and recordings, that we hope to one day rediscover.