A small-town girl with little education, but possessing blazing ambition and talent, Nellie Bly rose from obscurity to worldwide fame by the age of 23. Following her groundbreaking muckraking journalism, exposing the horrors of a mental asylum by going undercover as an inmate, Bly continued to harness the power of sensational journalism by embarking on a journey around the world, setting out to beat the fictional record of Jules Verne’s novel, Around the World in 80 Days (1872).
From the front lawn of Staatsburgh State Historic Site’s mansion, you can enjoy a world-wind tour around the globe, tracing the record-setting and extraordinary trip of Nellie Bly in 1899. Presented on a 19th-century magic lantern, with original glass slides, visitors can see images of the many exotic locations Nellie visited, alone, in a period when unmarried women rarely ventured anywhere without an escort.
Presented with original 19th-century glass magic lantern slides capturing views of New York, London, Port Said, Aden, Colombo, Hong Kong, Yokohama, San Francisco, Chicago, railroads, steamships, and more,
Nellie Bly’s dramatic account of her race to beat the 80-day record contains many picturesque descriptions of a bygone world, documenting one of the most extraordinary feats of the time by a woman who broke one barrier and expectation after another.
“Nellie Bly Around the World in 72 Days” is presented with an 1890s stereopticon magic lantern projector manufactured by McIntosh Co. of Chicago. Live sound effects and incidental music accompany this
illustrated talk.
The program starts at 7 pm on Saturday, September 9. Tickets are $5 per person, or $12 for a family of 3+ Ages 13 and under free but this is a great event for ages 14 and up. Refreshments and Nellie Bly trivia with prizes are included in the ticket price.
Tickets are available online here. The Staatsburgh State Historic Site preserves a Beaux-Arts mansion designed by McKim, Mead, and White and the home’s surrounding landscape in the hamlet of Staatsburg, Dutchess County, New York. The historic site is located within Ogden Mills & Ruth Livingston Mills State Park at 75 Mills Mansion Drive, US-1, Staatsburg, NY.
This program is presented by The Friends of Mills at Staatsburgh with support from The Pomeroy Fund for History.
Leave a Reply