Photos: Patents on display from Village's past

— Photo by Ron Ginsburg

A modern inventor, Veronika Bychkova, a civil engineering student at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, left, talks to Altamont Mayor James Gaughan at the opening of the exhibit “Ingenious Minds: Early Altamont Inventors,” at Village Hall on Sunday. “Her parents drove all the way from Princeton, N.J. to support their daughter’s work in the exhibition,” said Archivist Marijo Dougherty. Bychkova did the computer-aided design and Larry Oligny, an RPI mechanical engineering student, produced a 3-D model of a tie method for letter packaging on a Stratasys UPrint machine in the Manufacturing Innovation Learning Lab at RPI. The RPI students worked from the patent drawings of Altamont’s John Mersellis, who lived from 1836 to1927. “We are very thankful to both students for their work and to Samuel Chiappone the manger/instructor at the Fabrication & Prototyping School of Engineering, who made it all happen,” said Dougherty. 

— Photo by Ron Ginsburg

Major movers: Altamont’s archivist, Marijo Dougherty, left, who worked with Connie Rue to put together the exhibit on early Altamont inventors, on display at Village Hall, embraces Joe Merli, right, at Sunday’s opening. “Facsimiles of the inventors’ patents were completed by Joe Merli whose detailed, exquisite workmanship makes the exhibit come alive,” said Dougherty. “I cannot express enough how grateful we are with his participation.” In his Duanesburg factory, Merli, using turn-of-the century techniques, manufactures pushcarts and wagons that have been bought by the likes of Walt Disney World and The Farmers’ Museum in Cooperstown. Barton & Loguidice is sponsoring the exhibit, and Bradley Grant was at the opening to present a $300 check to Altamont Mayor James Gaughan.

— Photo by Ron Ginsburg

A check for history: Barton & Loguidice, which does engineering work for Altamont, is sponsoring the exhibit now on display at Village Hall, “Ingenious Minds: Early Altamont Inventors.” Bradley Grant of Barton & Loguidice, left, was at Sunday’s opening to present a $300 check to Altamont Mayor James Gaughan, right, made out to the Roger Keenholt’s fund, named for the late village historian.