CHAUTAUQUA, New York – One hundred fifty years ago this summer, an inventor from Akron and his Methodist minister invited Sunday school teachers from across the country to gather on a small lake in western New York.
They’ve been gathering ever since.
In addition to religious programming, there’s now opera and an orchestra, sailing and golf, lectures and classes.
For nine weeks every summer, as many as 100,000 gather in Chautauqua, New York, a small community with big ideas.
In 1905, President Teddy Roosevelt called the Chautauqua Institution – originally, the Chautauqua Lake Sunday School Assembly – “typical of America at its best.”
More than 100 years later, the institution, an easy two-hour drive from Cleveland, still makes a strong case for civility in a fragmented society.
On July 19, for example, former Speaker of the U.S. House Kevin McCarthy will take the stage with Julian Castro, former Democratic candidate for president, for a conversation on America’s role in the world.
“They will be speaking together,” said Deborah Sunya Moore, senior vice president and chief programming officer for the institution. “It’s not a debate. We are about dialogue, not debate.”
The Chautauqua Institution’s 150th summer season kicks of June 22 and runs through Aug. 25.
During that time, visitor access to the grounds requires a gate fee – this year, it’s more than $100 per day. But for that admission, visitors get access to dozens of programs and activities, from lectures and concerts to religious programming and recreational pursuits.
“It’s summer camp for grown-ups,” said Steve Brown, who’s been gathering here with his family for more than half a century. “It’s a uniquely entertaining destination”
Scott Beresford, manager of groups sales and programs for the institution, said first-time visitors can be intimidated by the options. “There is so much going on, you have to pace yourself,” he said.
Indeed, this year’s summer season features hundreds of performances, lectures, classes, children’s activities and more.
Among the highlights:
* Martina McBride launches the season on June 22, and is followed by a star-studded list of popular entertainers, including the Beach Boys (June 28), Boyz II Men (July 26), Melissa Etheridge and the Indigo Girls (Aug. 16), Wilco (July 5), Stephen Sanchez (Aug. 9), Frankie Valli (July 19) and more.
* Best-selling author and presidential scholar Jon Meacham kicks of the Chautauqua Lecture Series on June 24, followed by author Amy Tan (Aug. 6), New York Times columnist David French (June 28), musician Wynton Marsalis (Aug. 19) and numerous others.
* “The Light and The Dark” by Kate Hamill, a play commissioned by the institution for its 150th anniversary, premieres this summer alongside a trio of chamber operas, performed outside, celebrating some uniquely Chautauqua moments, including the 1929 visit by Amelia Earhart
“There’s no better way to celebrate a birthday than by showcasing a new work,” said Moore.
Speaking of birthday celebrations: On Aug. 6, the community will gather for a communitywide party – Old First Night – with drone fireworks, entertainment by Squonk and a giant birthday cake on the porch of the historic Athenaeum Hotel.
The first Tuesday of August is referred to as Old First Night in honor of the original group of Sunday school teachers who gathered on the grounds in early August 1874.
A movement is born
Co-founders Lewis Miller, an inventor in Akron, and John Heyl Vincent, a Methodist bishop, hoped that a few hundred participants would show up for that first session. Instead, about 20,000 attended over the two-week period.
“It was a huge success,” said Jon Schmitz, historian and archivist at the Chautauqua Institution. “They realized they should do it again.”
That first summer, most visitors stayed in tents. Eventually, those tents gave way to what are now known as “cottages,” many of which are elaborate, multistory homes with ornate porches, balconies and gables.
Among the notable residences: Miller Cottage, one of the country’s first prefab houses, built in 1875 for the visit of President Ulysses S. Grant, the first of several presidents to speak here.
“Miller didn’t think President Grant should stay in a tent,” said Beresford, on a recent tour of the grounds.
Though Miller and Vincent were Methodists, the religious programming was multidenominational, a tradition which continues today.
Schmitz said the daily routine in those early days isn’t all that different from today. Attendees started the day with a prayer service, followed by a morning lecture, recreation, more classes, dinner and evening entertainment.
“It was a very structured day,” he said. “You didn’t have to take classes, but you had to do something.”
Many of those same elements are offered on the Chautauqua campus today, though Schmitz noted: “You no longer have to go to bed at 10. And if you want to, you’re free to walk around doing nothing at all.”
To reach more people, Vincent founded the Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle in 1878, which started as a correspondence course for folks who couldn’t afford college, but evolved into a nationwide book club.
The popularity of the book circles sparked a movement that spread across the United States, which once had as many as 250 Chautauqua communities, as well as traveling Chautauqua programs that moved from place to place.
The idea, said Schmitz, was to encourage a more productive and wholesome use of leisure time, in contrast to the drinking, dancing and card playing that were prevalent elsewhere.
But the heady days of the Chautauqua movement didn’t last.
Most Chautauqua communities closed in the 1920s (although the two largest, the Chautauqua Institution in New York and Lakeside Chautauqua in Ohio, are going strong).
The Chautauqua Institution nearly went bankrupt in the 1930s, and is now supported by a charitable foundation to guard against future downturns.
There have been numerous challenges since then – including, most recently, the 2008 recession and the COVID pandemic.
Then, in August 2022, noted author Salman Rushdie was stabbed on the stage of the institution’s 4,600-seat amphitheater in advance of a talk about violence against writers.
Increased security
The violent Rushdie incident was a wake-up call for the institution, which had always prided itself on its peaceful approach to problem-solving.
Rushdie writes about the incident in his new book, “Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder,” released in April. Meanwhile, the 26-year-old man accused in the attack, apprehended during the event, remains in Chautauqua County jail awaiting trail.
Moore said the incident reinforces the resilience of the Chautauqua community, which continued the next day with scheduled performances by the Washington Ballet and others.
“They wanted to perform,” Moore said. “The arts brings people together – they don’t divide people.”
Schmitz, the historian, noted the existence of more security on the campus, and clear bags are now required for entrance to the amphitheater. But not much else has changed, he said.
He said people sometimes ask him if the Chautauqua ideal is still relevant. His answer: “It’s more relevant today than it probably ever has been.”
He called it “spontaneous community through shared experience.
“This isn’t Disney World. It’s a real place,” he said. “Chautauquans need not agree. But they need to be together. What’s important is how big the tent is.”
The community, by the way, will be erecting a replica of that first tent that went up in August 1874, approximately 16 feet long by 12 feet wide. It will be on display in Miller Park, the site of the first assembly, for the first two weeks of the season, when it will be moved to the Butterfly Garden.
Come see for yourself how big the tent really is.
If you go: Chautauqua Institution, New York
Where: The Chautauqua Institution is about 130 miles east of Cleveland, in far western New York. The grounds encompass about 750 acres on the western shore of Chautauqua Lake and include two golf courses. The central campus includes about 1 ½ miles of lakefront property.
When: The 150th season kicks off June 22 and runs through Aug. 25.
Where to stay: The historic Athenaeum Hotel, built in 1881, is a frequent first-timer’s choice, with 150 rooms and a terrific front porch overlooking scenic Chautauqua Lake. Rates start at about $200 during the summer. There are numerous other on-grounds options, as well, including bed and breakfasts and small inns, plus houses and apartments for rent.
In addition, a dozen Denominational Houses offer rooms for rent, both to members of the denomination and others (although rooms book fast). For details: chq.org/visit/community/denominational-houses
Finally, there are numerous hotels and other overnight options outside the Chautauqua Institution gates, which can be a more affordable option. See tourchautauqua.com/stay
Admission: The institution offers several options for admission, including tickets for individual performances (which vary greatly by show). A Traditional Gate Pass, which provides access to all shows and activities, runs $105 per day ($65 ages 13-25, free 12 and under). Parking is $12-$15 per day.
Note: Admission on Sundays is free. For more admission options: rates.chq.org
Getting around: Most personal vehicles are banned from the grounds, relegated to nearby parking lots. Trams and buses provide transportation throughout the campus, although two wheels and two feet are favored modes of getting around.
For a complete schedule and more information: chq.org
Read more:
What to do near Chautauqua Institution: Panama Rocks, Midway State Park, Bemus Point and more
Ohio’s Lakeside Chautauqua celebrates 150 years, from church camp to ‘vacation with a purpose’
National Comedy Center in nearby Jamestown, N.Y., gets the first (and last) laugh
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