With cold weather approaching, those of us who heat with wood look forward to the cozy warmth that only a wood fire can provide. Especially if it’s a fireplace, or a stove having a window so you can watch the flames, it’s the kind of ambiance perfect for sharing with loved ones on frigid evenings. With the Covid-19 situation, however, visitors may be fewer and far between for a while. [Read more…] about Working the Bugs Out of Firewood
New York City
NY Farmer Named to USDA Organic Standards Board
A founding member of the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York (NOFA-NY), Brian Caldwell, was recently appointed to a five-year term on the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Organic Standards Board (NOSB). [Read more…] about NY Farmer Named to USDA Organic Standards Board
Memories of Voter Suppression
Back in July 1962 I was in the Deep South, working to register Black voters. It was a near-hopeless project, given the mass disenfranchisement of the region’s Black population that was enforced by Southern law and an occasional dose of white terrorism. [Read more…] about Memories of Voter Suppression
Elections in Early America: Democracy & Voting in British North America
The British North American colonies formed some of the most democratic governments in the world. But that doesn’t mean that all early Americans were treated equally or allowed to participate in representative government.
So who could vote in Early America? Who could participate in representative government?
[Read more…] about Elections in Early America: Democracy & Voting in British North America
Portraying Presidents: A Sketch of Cultural History
Beginning with George Washington, it has been a custom for the President of the United States to have an official portrait sculpted or painted during his time in office.
From the beginning artists were faced with conflicting demands of aesthetics, the need to evoke the significance of the nation’s highest office, and the personal inclination of the sitter (varying from modesty to pomposity). How to reconcile such different strands in a work of art? [Read more…] about Portraying Presidents: A Sketch of Cultural History
A Haunted Village in Southampton on Long Island
The Southampton History Museum has announced Haunted Village in Southampton, 20 minute haunted tours of the grounds of the historic Rogers Mansion, set for Saturdays, October 24th and October 31st, from 2 to 4 pm. [Read more…] about A Haunted Village in Southampton on Long Island
Invasive Species Survey Efforts Help Protect NY Waters
DEC’s aquatic invasive species team has been coordinating surveys to detect and map invasive species in New York State’s waters. Surveys help to better understand invasive species infestations and inform DEC’s management efforts. [Read more…] about Invasive Species Survey Efforts Help Protect NY Waters
Frick Madison Installation Plan Revealed
The Frick Collection has announced details of its two-year installation plan for Frick Madison, the institution’s temporary home while its historic buildings at 1 East 70th Street undergo renovation.
Anticipated to open in early 2021 and remain operating for the duration of construction, Frick Madison will occupy the Marcel Breuer designed building on Madison Avenue, formerly home to the Whitney Museum of American Art and most recently The Met Breuer. [Read more…] about Frick Madison Installation Plan Revealed
New Novel: The Power Line by Christopher Shaw
What really happened at Donnelly’s Corners in the spring of 1929?
The question haunts the exciting and thought-provoking novel, The Power Line (Outskirts Press, 2020) by Christopher Shaw.
According to Shaw, the project began in the seventies when the guide and regional historian Abel St. Martin began recording the memories of older people around Saranac Lake and Lake Aurora in the Adirondacks. [Read more…] about New Novel: The Power Line by Christopher Shaw
Joseph Lloyd Manor to Receive Literary Landmark Designation
Preservation Long Island has announced the United for Libraries Literary Landmark designation for one of its historic properties, Joseph Lloyd Manor, an 18th century manor house in Lloyd Harbor, and a site of Black enslavement.
The designation honors Jupiter Hammon (1711– ca. 1806), one of the earliest published African American writers who composed his most well-known works while enslaved at the manor. [Read more…] about Joseph Lloyd Manor to Receive Literary Landmark Designation