Lecture to Commemorate 75th Anniversary of Attack on Pearl Harbor
October 26, 2016
Herman Eberhardt, supervisory museum curator at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum in Hyde Park, NY, will present "FDR and Pearl Harbor: Inside the White House on December 7, 1941" at 4 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 10 in the Bulmer Telecommunications Center Auditorium on the Troy campus.
The attack on the Hawaiian harbor by 353 Japanese planes came in two waves just before 8 a.m. (1 p.m. EST), killing or wounding more than 3,000 Americans and damaging eight U.S. Navy battleships. The surprise attack shocked the nation and instantly plunged the United States into World War II, marking one of the most significant turning points in American and global history.
Eberhardt's lecture will provide a behind-the-scenes view of President Roosevelt and his inner circle of advisors during the pivotal 24 hours that followed the attack. He will describe how events unfolded inside the White House, beginning at 1:47 p.m. (EST) on Sunday, Dec. 7, when the President was informed of the attack, and ending early Monday afternoon, Dec. 8, when he delivered his famous "Day of Infamy" address to a joint session of Congress.
The Nov. 10 lecture is open free to the public and will be followed by a reception in the college's Marvin Library Learning Commons where the sixth annual "Pride of Our Nation… Pride of Our College" exhibit is on view through Pearl Harbor Day (Dec. 7). The exhibition, a collaborative effort on the part of employees from several departments, is an ever-expanding collection of photographs and memorabilia of veterans and active military service members with a connection to the college, according to Alice Malavasic, associate professor, History, Philosophy and Social Sciences.
As supervisory museum curator, Herman Eberhardt oversees changing exhibitions in 3,000 square feet of special exhibition space at the FDR Presidential Library and Museum that underwent a major renovation completed in 2010. Prior to joining the Roosevelt museum staff in 2003, he worked as director of research and a principal at Chermayeff & Geismar, a New York City design firm noted for its work in museum and exhibition planning and design.
Throughout a more than 25-year career as a curator and interpretive planner, Eberhardt has worked on history exhibit projects for the National Archives and Records Administration; New York Public Library; NYS Department of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation; Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History, and the U.S. National Park Service.
Eberhardt is curator of the current special exhibition, entitled "DAY OF INFAMY: 24 Hours That Changed History," on view through Dec. 31, 2016 at the Roosevelt Library and Museum. A native of Philadelphia, he holds a B.A. in History from Fordham University and an M.A. and M. Philosophy in History from Yale University.
***
Founded in 1953, Hudson Valley Community College offers more than 80 degree and certificate programs in four schools: Business; Engineering and Industrial Technologies; Health Science; and Liberal Arts and Sciences; and an Educational Opportunity Center for academic and career training. One of 30 community colleges in the State University of New York system, it has an enrollment of nearly 12,000 students, and is known as a leader in distance learning initiatives and workforce training. Hudson Valley has more than 75,000 alumni.