Churchill in Westchester: 3 Historical Societies Host Lecture

By Bob Foley, program director, Van Cortlandtville Historical Society

When Winston Churchill spoke in Westchester County will be the topic of a talk on Saturday, October 23rd, at 2 p.m., at Cortlandt Town Hall. Jointly sponsored by the Van Cortlandtville Historical Society, the Yorktown Historical Society and Croton Friends of History, and hosted by the Town of Cortlandt, the program is open free to the public.

Author and historian Anthony Czarnecki of Cortlandt Manor will present in a PowerPoint program what the iconic British Prime Minister said in an historic lecture on “The World Crisis” at the then newly-opened Westchester County Center in White Plains in 1932. It was at the end of a memorable two-month lecture tour of the United States by Churchill and it was eight years before he emerged on the world stage.

“This year marks the 75th anniversary of Winston Churchill’s famous “Iron Curtain Speech” in 1946, which followed the multi-national military victory that defeated Nazi Germany during World War II,” Mr. Czarnecki points out. He notes that “America’s most prominent partner in that crucial undertaking was Winston Churchill, the wartime Prime Minister of Great Britain.”

Based on his article published in the Westchester Historian Magazine in 2014, Mr. Czarnecki will elaborate on the meaning of Churchill’s lecture in White Plains, including an almost tragic incident that happened to Churchill upon his arrival in Manhattan that involved a Yonkers resident.

Mr. Czarnecki’s talk will reveal the fascinating story behind Churchill’s appearance in Westchester, what he said to an audience of 1,500 people, and how his visionary remarks came to re-shape post-war Europe.

A long-time member of the International Churchill Society, Mr. Czarnecki received a laudatory review of his research and article from award-winning Churchill biographer Professor Andrew Roberts of Kings College in London who said: “Excellent article...I really enjoyed it and was hugely impressed by your scholarship and footnoting. I learned a lot from it!”

Mr. Czarnecki has served as a long-standing member of the Board of Trustees of the Westchester County Historical Society and is a member of the Van Cortlandtville Historical Society, where he has presented programs in recent years. In 2016, he delivered a talk to the latter Society on “Lincoln’s Secret Visit to West Point.” And in 2017, he presented a program entitled: “Growing Up Kennedy in Westchester...The Bronxville Years” in a joint lecture to all three local historical societies. He is a past president of the Lincoln Society in Peekskill, and a long-time member of the JFK Library Foundation in Boston. And, a member of the Society of Civil War Historians.

A graduate of Iona College in 1971, Mr. Czarnecki earned his Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice from John Jay College and a Master’s in Public Administration from Pace University. He started his career as a Westchester County Probation Officer, and in 1981 was he was the first recipient of the American Probation & Parole Association’s National Probation Officer of the Year. He is a past president of the New York State Probation Officers Association and the Middle Atlantic States Correctional Association.

For 25 years, Mr. Czarnecki worked as Chief of Staff of the Westchester County Department of Corrections, serving six commissioners before his retirement in 2008. He has published works on the origins of both the jail and probation systems in Westchester County.

He is currently president of The Chartwell Group USA, a criminal justice consulting firm, and is a senior adjunct professor of Criminal Justice at Westchester Community College.

Mr. Czarnecki and his wife, Lorraine, have owned a home in Cortlandt Manor for almost 45 years, where they have raised their now-grown two children.

Due to COVID-19 precautions, those entering Town Hall for the program must wear masks regardless of vaccination status. With social distancing, seating may be limited to approximately 50 persons. Town Hall is located on top of the Heady Street hill, south of the traffic light on Oregon Road, across from the Historic Upper Manor House and Pump House Road. For directions visit: townofcortlandt.com and click About Us and then Directions.

For additional program information, visit: www.vancort.net; or www.yorktownhistory.org, or www.crotonfriendsofhistory.org