History, Natural History & the Arts
Stories about Outdoor Recreation, including hiking and trails, skiing (including cross-country and backcountry), snowshoeing, snowmobiling, bicycling, mountain biking, paddling, boating, sailing, swimming, hunting, fishing and birding.
During the current COVID-19 public health crisis, getting outdoors and connecting with nature is a way to help maintain our mental and physical health.
Scientific studies show that time outside in nature, especially among trees, significantly reduces stress and anxiety, lowers blood pressure, improves mood, energy, and sleep, and boosts the immune system. [Read more…] about New York’s Outdoors Are Open
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has announced that a major restoration and rehabilitation of the historic Cleveland Dock Fishing Access Site is expected to begin this winter. [Read more…] about Oneida Lake Historic Dock Restoration Underway
Settlement came slowly to the upper Beaver River valley in the west central Adirondacks. John Brown Francis, governor of Rhode Island and grandson of John Brown, the original titleholder, built the first road from Lowville to Number Four in 1822 with the hope of starting a village there. To spur settlement he gave 100 acres each to the first ten families willing to clear the land and establish farms. A number of pioneers moved in, the first of which was a man named Orrin Fenton who arrived in 1826. By 1835 there were about 75 residents. Gradually all attempts at farming failed. By 1864 the settlement of Number Four was nearly deserted. [Read more…] about Early Settlers of the Beaver River Country
A Most Glorious Ride: The Diaries of Theodore Roosevelt 1877-1886 (SUNY Press, 2015) covers the formative years of TR’s life, and show the transformation of a sickly and solitary Harvard freshman into a confident and increasingly robust young adult. He writes about his grief over the premature death of his father, his courtship and marriage to his first wife, Alice Hathaway Lee, and later the death of Alice and his mother on the same day.
The diaries also chronicle his burgeoning political career in New York City and his election to the New York State Assembly. With his descriptions of balls, dinner parties, and nights at the opera, they offer a glimpse into life among the Gilded Age elite in Boston and New York. [Read more…] about The Diaries of Theodore Roosevelt 1877-1886
Governor Al Smith helped block the construction of a highway along the shore of Tongue Mountain, but it was Franklin D. Roosevelt who was instrumental in protecting the east shore of Lake George, documents in the Apperson-Schaefer collection at the Kelly Adirondack Center at Union College in Schenectady suggest.
With funding from the bond acts of 1916 and 1926, much of Tongue Mountain and many of the islands in the Narrows were now protected, permanently, as parts of the Adirondack Forest Preserve.
But by 1926, John Apperson, the General Electric engineer who dedicated much of his life to the protection of Lake George, had become concerned about the future of the east side. [Read more…] about Adirondack Environmental History Going Online
Statewide interest in bicycling exploded in New York State when newspapers began to warn readers about an impending “fearful outbreak” of “velocipede mania.” According to the January 10, 1869 issue of the New York Times, the first sight of a velocipede created “wonder and amazement among all classes” which made them “anxious to mount the fiery steed.” [Read more…] about Old Time Bicycling: Velocipede Mania Sweeps NY
Minnewaska State Park Preserve has become a popular destination for hikers, bikers, and nature lovers. It is crisscrossed with acres of pristine views, carriage trails, and hiking trails. Many people visiting there do not realize that it once was the site of two spectacular mountain houses that sat perched on the cliffs overlooking Lake Minnewaska. They were named Wildmere and Cliff House. [Read more…] about Minnewaska State Park Preserve: Some History
March 12, 2012 marks the 100th Anniversary of Juliette Gordon Low founding the Girl Scouts in the United States. New York has always played an important role in Girl Scouts history.
At the 1939 New York World’s Fair, Girl Scouts of the USA had their own building, a replica of Our Chalet in Switzerland, a World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGGS) International Center. [Read more…] about 100th Anniversary of Girl Scouts of the USA
Columbia University Press has announced the publication of The Greatest Grid: The Master Plan of Manhattan, 1811-2011, edited by Hilary Ballon, which includes more than 150 illustrations and a gatefold of the original plan. The book accompanies the exhibit of the same name which just opened at the Museum of the City of New York. [Read more…] about The Greatest Grid: The Master Plan of Manhattan
Marty Podskoch’s newest book Adirondack Civilian Conservation Corps Camps: Its History, Memories and Legacy of the CCC, is a 352-page large-format book contains 185 interviews, over 50 charts and maps, and over 500 pictures and illustrations.
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) began on March 31, 1933 under President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal to relieve the poverty and unemployment of the Great Depression. Camps were set up in many New York towns, state parks, and forests. Workers built trails, roads, campsites and dams, stocked fish, built and maintained fire tower observer’s cabins and telephone lines, fought fires, and planted millions of trees. The CCC disbanded in 1942 due to the need for men in World War II. [Read more…] about Excellent Book On Adirondack CCC Camps
Da Capo Press has republished Genius of Place: The Life of Frederick Law Olmsted (Da Capo Press reprint, 2012) by Justin Martin, the author of biographies of Alan Greenspan and Ralph Nader.
Frederick Law Olmsted is arguably the most important historical figure that the average American knows the least about. Best remembered for his landscape architecture, Olmsted was also an influential journalist, early voice for the environment, and abolitionist credited with helping dissuade England from joining the South in the Civil War. [Read more…] about Frederick Law Olmsted: Abolitionist, Conservationist, Activist
The Millbrook Carriage Road, a multi-use carriage road that is used for hiking, biking and horseback riding in Minnewaska State Park Preserve, has reopened following completion of the first of several carriage road restoration projects in the Shawangunk Mountains. The project was made possible in part from a $300,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Fund and a substantial individual donation.
The Palisades Interstate Park Commission, the Palisades Parks Conservancy, the Mohonk Preserve, and the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation have launched an joint initiative to rebuild the historic Smiley family carriage road network in New York State’s Shawangunk Mountains. Many of the 83 miles of hand-built broken stone are in stages of disrepair, some causing closure. [Read more…] about Millbrook Carriage Road Restoration Project Complete
As part of its mission to serve as a gateway to the Finger Lakes Region, The Finger Lakes Museum has published the premier edition of Pathways, a full-color map and guide to attractions and historical venues throughout the 14-county area.
The publication is a partnership venture with Life in the Finger Lakes magazine and is being distributed as a removable insert in the Summer 2011 issue, which will be on newsstands soon. It can also be ordered online. [Read more…] about Finger Lakes Museum Publishes New Guide
Minnewaska State Park Preserve has announced its June 2011 Public Programs. Pre-registration is required for participation in public programs, but parking is on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival to the Park Preserve is recommended as the Park Preserve may fill to capacity before noon, particularly on weekends. For outings, please wear appropriate clothing and footwear and bring snacks and water. A parent or guardian over the age of 18 years must accompany children wishing to participate in any programs. Unless otherwise noted, all programs meet at the Nature Center. [Read more…] about Minnewaska Preserve June Public Programs
A contract to restore the Millbrook Carriage Road in Minnewaska State Park Preserve (Shawangunk Ridge) is scheduled to begin this week.
The project is expected to take 90 days to complete, though that time frame is largely weather dependent. The Millbrook Carriage Road and Gertrude’s Nose footpath will be closed for the duration of this project. Millbrook Mountain will be accessible via Millbrook Footpath for hikers only. [Read more…] about Minnewaska Carriage Road Project Begins
Trustees of the Finger Lakes Boating Museum that will be built on the Geneva waterfront in 2011 elected officers at their December Board of Trustees meeting. [Read more…] about Finger Lakes Boating Museum Elects Officers
The newly rebuilt Roosevelt Island Tramway opened today, following a nine-month modernization project which replaced the previous 33-year-old tram system. The new tram reduces travel time, permits both cabins to start on the side with highest demand during rush hour, and includes new safety measures, according to an announcement by the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC), a New York State Public Benefit Corporation in charge of the management of Roosevelt Island. [Read more…] about Roosevelt Island Opens New Aerial Tramway
The nation’s oldest state park, Niagara Falls State Park, celebrated its 125th Anniversary this week with a concert by the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra on Goat Island and the dedication of a restored pocket park.
On July 15, 1885 then Governor David Hill dedicated the land and created Niagara Falls State Park. Created to protect its natural beauty from the continued industrialization of the river and to allow public access to its scenery, Niagara Falls became a blueprint for public parks across the country-both state and national parks. Eight million people now visit Niagara Falls each year, making it the most popular park in the New York State Park system. [Read more…] about Niagara Falls State Park Celebrates 125 Years
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