One Man, Two Colors, 60 Stories and Counting: George McGhee’s Mission to Preserve the Past

Pine Plains resident George McGhee, 63, doesn’t just appreciate local history — he preserves it, one weathered sign at a time. Since 2017, McGhee has restored more than 60 New York state historical markers in and around Pine Plains, Stanfordville, Milan and Gallatin, transforming rusted relics into vivid reminders of local heritage.

His passion for history runs in the family. “My grandma, Eda Grant Aroh, owned the old Register-Herald with her brother Henry [from 1936 to 1970], he said. “I always liked the weekly feature, ‘Echoes of the Past.’ That hooked me — I’ve been interested in history ever since. It’s a big reason why I got into repainting historical markers.”

McGhee’s first project was the Harris Scythe Works sign on Route 199, just east of Pine Plains, a sign he remembers as deteriorated even in his childhood. “Seven years ago I decided to do something about it,” he said. After researching restoration techniques on the internet, he came across the New York State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation website. “It had all kinds of details, and actually listed the exact colors of paint I would need: royal blue and sunburst yellow,” he said. “I went right out and bought some.”

Armed with wire brushes, sandpaper and a six-foot ladder, McGhee scraped and cleaned the marker, then spray-painted both sides with the official, state-approved shade of blue paint. “I didn’t really check with anybody — I just got to it,” he said. “The paint took four hours to cure, then I came back and did the yellow lettering by hand. The whole thing took about two days.” Passing motorcyclists and bicyclists gave him the thumb’s up, he said.

“After I restored six signs or so, I contacted the Little Nine Partners Historical Society so they were aware,” McGhee said. Dyan Wapnick, the society’s president, told the Herald that by the end of 2018, McGhee had repainted all or most of the Pine Plains’s historical markers. “The town board even posted a thank-you to George on their website,” she said. McGhee now charges a modest $60 per marker for his services.

The New York state historical markers McGhee restores date back nearly a century. The first, manufactured at a cost of $2, was erected in 1926 and maintained by the state Department of Education until funding ran out in 1936. Nearly 70 years later, the William G. Pomeroy Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Syracuse, N.Y., established a grant program funding new markers. “That’s why you’ll notice some signs have the Department of Education on the bottom, and others have the Pomeroy Foundation,” said McGhee.

Steve Bodnar, Pomeroy’s associate director of strategic marketing, said the total cost of the marker, pole and shipping now averages $1,950. Since 2006, the foundation has financed more than 1,100 new signs in all 62 of New York’s counties — so many that the name Pomeroy has become synonymous with historic markers. “When local communities ask us to attend a [sign] unveiling, they call them Pomeroy markers on the invitation,” Bodnar said.

McGhee records each marker’s location and wording on individual Post-it notes. “I’ve got to keep track of all of them, especially because the signs need to be redone every seven to 10 years,” he said. “I just repainted the Red Church marker on Route.199 — that was the second sign I ever did.”

Despite his growing workload, McGhee rarely declines a request for help. When town officials or historians contact him to restore an additional marker, he doesn’t turn them down. “I’m even tempted to take on some signs in Sharon [Conn.],” he said.

McGhee, a longtime Herrington’s employee in Millerton, hopes to keep restoring historical markers as long as he lives. “I hate painting walls and windows, but painting markers is different — it lowers my stress level.”