In 1986, Albany staged a year-long celebration commemorating the 300th anniversary of its chartering as a city. That program was known widely as "The Tricentennial."

A large "Tricentennial Commission" was named by city officials and a range of events and activities were presented throughout the year. These included galas, parades, contests, and "good-time" events that seemed to take their cue from the frequently played if not official Tricentennial song - "Let's Have a Party Albany!" Sale items ranging from diamonds to doughnuts were marketed as "Tricentennial souvenirs!"

The Tricentennial Commission did sponsor a number of educational programs - some of which had a long-term effect on the consciousness of the community. Although still very much in its formative stages, the Colonial Albany Social History Project was asked to participate in the planning and presentation of community-based, history-related programs.

The project played a central role in an exhibition of the 300-year-old charter document as the centerpiece of a widely circulated exhibit called "Government by the People." Also featured in that exhibition were four original drawings by historical artist Len Tantillo. A social history of the chartering, published also as Government by the People, was written by Stefan Bielinski. During the spring term of 1986, Bielinski taught a graduate seminar on Albany and its chartering at Russell Sage College. A public lecture series on the chartering accompanied the course and became a video program that aired widely on government access television in the years that followed. The Commission also published a printed version of the original charter document. It too was widely distributed.

In retrospect, the Albany Tricentennial was responsible for the emergence of the Colonial Albany Project as a public history program - perhaps prematurely, but certainly connecting a would-be, one-dimensional research project to a range of interested audiences and communities for all time!