New York Almanack

History, Natural History & the Arts

Montgomery County:
African Americans and Abolition Walking Tour

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CanajoharieMontgomery County Historian Kelly Yacobucci Farquhar will lead a walking tour in the Village of Canajoharie on Saturday, August 10th at 11am.  The tour will highlight various sites associated with the African Americans who lived in Canajoharie during the 19th century as well as potential abolitionist activity.

Brochures will identify the sites on a map of the Village of Canajoharie and the walking tour will include a portion of the sites.  The tour will meet at the NBT Bank parking lot on the corner of Route 10 and Mohawk Street (site of Hotel Wagner and the former drive-thru bank) at 11am.  There will some hills involved in the walking tour and it is expected to last approximately 1 hour.
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African Americans and Abolition Walking Tour

Bullets, Belles, and Bodies: The Civil War in Popular Culture

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SesquicentennialLogoWhy don’t Americans decorate with battle streamers from the War of 1812 or re-enact battles from the Spanish-American war? Why is the Civil War still so compelling to Americans that many of us care passionately about its symbols, moments and legacies? From veterans’ organizations to battlefield re-enactments, Americans engage with the Civil War in varied ways, assigning multiple meanings to this divisive moment in America’s past.

On Saturday, July 27, a free talk at the New York State Museum explores these diverse meanings, questions why this particular moment in American history continues to fascinate and enrage Americans and uses the Civil War’s Sesquicentennial to examine the complicated relationship between history, memory and culture in America. [Read more…] about Bullets, Belles, and Bodies: The Civil War in Popular Culture

Schuylerville to Fort Edward History Bicycle Tour

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canalridersOn Sunday August 11, enjoy a 28-mile guided bicycle tour along the Champlain Canalway Trail between Hudson Crossing Park in Northumberland and Fort Edward.

This tour will take bikers past historic sites of interest related to the Revolutionary War and the Champlain Canal. Learn about Rogers Rangers, Jane McCrea, the route that General John Burgoyne’s army took on the way to the Battles of Saratoga and the development of the Champlain Canal. [Read more…] about Schuylerville to Fort Edward History Bicycle Tour

Adirondack History Center Civil War Lecture Series

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53The Adirondack History Center Museum is offering the third lecture in the Elizabeth HW Lawrence Summer Lecture Series tonight, Tuesday, July 23 at 7pm. The lecture features author and historian, Morris Glenn, presenting On the Trail of the USS Monitor about the Crown Point iron mining industry and its role in the Civil War.

On Tuesday evenings the museum remains open until 7pm and all are invited to view The Human Face of the Adirondacks in the Civil War exhibit, the Worked/Wild exhibit, and the updated Fire Tower exhibit. Admission to the exhibits is free with the purchase of a lecture ticket. [Read more…] about Adirondack History Center Civil War Lecture Series

Korean Armistice 60th Anniversary Event Planned

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Korean War CollageThe National Purple Heart Hall of Honor will commemorate the 60th Anniversary of end of the fighting in Korea at 2:00 PM on July 27, 2013. The program will present written recollections and thoughts of Korean War Purple Heart recipients and will be followed by a screening of the film Chosin a film produced by two Marine veterans. [Read more…] about Korean Armistice 60th Anniversary Event Planned

Place-Based Learning And Common Core Summer Institute

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Arnold WiltzAshokanDam1930CompressedEducators throughout the Hudson Valley are being invited to discover new and innovative ways to incorporate the region’s special places into their curriculum at Teaching the Hudson Valley’s 2013 institute, Place-Based Learning & Common Core. Registration is now open. The program will be held July 30-August 1 at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Home and Presidential Library in Hyde Park.

In a variety of workshops, field experiences, and talks, the institute will explore whether place-based learning techniques can help educators meet the demands of Common Core while continuing to focus on kids. Sessions will be led by local experts from throughout the Hudson Valley. [Read more…] about Place-Based Learning And Common Core Summer Institute

Lake Champlain Maritime Museum Whaling History Event

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Charles-W.-Morgan2-640x423Lake Champlain Maritime Museum (LCMM) staff and volunteers have begun to build a whaleboat destined to go aboard Mystic Seaport’s newly restored whaleship Charles W. Morgan. On Sunday, July 21 at 1:30pm, LCMM will host a viewing of live streaming video from Mystic sharing the relaunch of America’s last wooden whaleship.

They will then invite visitors into LCMM’s boat shop to see the first steps in construction of the whaleboat, and measure themselves against a whale jawbone, ribs and vertebrae on loan from New Bedford Whaling Museum. [Read more…] about Lake Champlain Maritime Museum Whaling History Event

Guided History Tour Across Lake Champlain Bridge Planned

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Crown Point Bridge 2If you’ve wanted to learn more about what you see as you walk or drive over the new Lake Champlain Bridge, join the managers of the Chimney Point, VT, and Crown Point, NY, State Historic Sites for a guided walk on Sunday, July 28, 2013, at 1:00 p.m. Tom Hughes and Elsa Gilbertson will leaders a walk across and back on the bridge, and will discuss the 9,000 years of human history at this important location on Lake Champlain.

At this narrow passage on Lake Champlain humans have crossed here, as well as traveled north and south on the lake since glacial waters receded over 9,000 years ago. The channel with its peninsulas, or points, on each side made this one of the most strategic spots on Lake Champlain for the Native Americans, and French, British, and early Americans in the 17th and 18th centuries. [Read more…] about Guided History Tour Across Lake Champlain Bridge Planned

American Revolution Reborn: Part II

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home_revolutionEditor’s note: This is the second post on the American Revolution Reborn Conference. Part I on the conference organization was posted here. You can read the complete series here.

The American Revolution Reborn conference raised significant issues which require further investigation, analysis, and comment. [Read more…] about American Revolution Reborn: Part II

First-Person Living History at Knox’s Headquarters

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image004General Washington knew exactly what he was about, in the summer of 1781, by trying to convince the British and his own soldiers that he would attack New York City. Unbeknownst to all, but trusted officials, he had agreed to move with the French Army south to Virginia. In Virginia, a French naval force from the Caribbean would join them to complete the encirclement of the British Army at Yorktown. [Read more…] about First-Person Living History at Knox’s Headquarters