CANTON -- Philip Paige will speak about Ogdensburg history and the Ogden family at the St. Lawrence County Historical Association’s Brown Bag Lunch series Thursday, March 21 at noon.

Brown Bag Lunches are free and open to the public. Bring your own lunch and enjoy a beverage and dessert provided by SLCHA.

While they’re obscure today, the Ogden family’s influence in early New York State can hardly be overstated, especially in St. Lawrence County.

Two Ogdens negotiated the Treaty of New York (1796), which largely ended Native American title to North Country land; members of the family shortly thereafter bought up large tracts of land, and began settling it.

Unlike many other large landholders at this time, prominent members of the Ogden family opted to move to the northern frontier.

The family mansions in Madrid (now Waddington) were home to their family and their slaves, and served as a meeting place for elite members of society on both sides of the border.

Paige, of Madrid, is a realtor and co-owner of Madrid Mercantile, a kayak rental and antique store. He is also a member of the SLCHA Board of Trustees.