History, Natural History & the Arts
New York’s Finger Lakes Region was well known to many Revolutionary War veterans as a place of both strife and potential. Strife because of conflict with Indigenous people, and great potential for lush productive farmland.
Soldiers witnessed both ends of the spectrum first-hand. [Read more…] about Colonial Canandaigua In War And Peace
The Museum of American Finance will host a webinar talk about Jay Gould and the Union Pacific from the Panic of 1873 to 1880 with Joseph Calandro, Jr. on Tuesday, February 2nd, from noon to 1 pm.
Gould was widely unpopular during his lifetime and is often criticized for his unscrupulous business practices, which made him among the nation’s wealthiest men. His legacy remains controversial. [Read more…] about Jay Gould, The Union Pacific Railroad, and the Panic of 1873
This little piggy from Eagle Lake apparently did not want to go to market.
“Hebert Moore’s pig is still at large. Motorists are requested to drive with care in the vicinity,” the Ticonderoga Sentinel reported on July 15th, 1920. “A reward of $1 is offered by L. Lodge to anyone who will catch said pig single handed. Mr. Lodge must witness the catch. $3 if done after dark.” [Read more…] about An Anthology of Pig Tales from Northern New York
New York Archives Magazine is set to continue its Online Speaker Series with Organizing and Preserving Your Home Archives, a discussion with D. Joshua Taylor, President of the New York Genealogical & Biographical Society, on Tuesday, January 26th. [Read more…] about Organizing Your Home Archives
Americana Insights, a new nonprofit e-journal and multi-faceted resource center, has been launched by Jane Katcher, Americana and American folk art collector, in collaboration with David A. Schorsch, an authority on American antiques and folk art.
The digital publication is supported by an advisory board of museum and art-world professionals and edited by independent scholar, author, and curator Robert Shaw. [Read more…] about New Publication Focuses on American Folk Art and Americana
The presentation Science Knows No Gender: Eunice Newton Foote and the Cause of Global Warming, by University of California Santa Barbara Visiting Scholar John Perlin, has been made available online.
Eunice Newton Foote, born July 17th, 1819, was an American scientist (including biology, especially botany), an inventor, and a women’s rights campaigner from Seneca Falls, New York. She died on September 30th, 1888. [Read more…] about Science Knows No Gender: Eunice Newton Foote And Climate Change
My son, wise beyond his years it would seem, taught me an invaluable lesson when he was a teenager living at home. Any time I got worked into a froth about a broken car, leaky roof or other serious, but non-cataclysmic setback, he’d put things in perspective for me: “Pops, it could always be worse – you could be on fire.” [Read more…] about Giant ‘Murder’ Hornets: Great News About Bad News
The culture of ancient Rome banned the moving or dividing of corpses. Christians of the third and fourth centuries maintained the desire for proper burial. A call for corporeal integrity runs throughout medieval culture. Bodies intact were ready for the Last Judgment when soul and body were reunited. [Read more…] about Napoleon’s Private Parts On Fifth Avenue: A Cautionary Tale
Last June my wife Marie and I encountered a mature wood turtle while walking through a forest near our home. We admired the intricate topography of its shell, inspiration for this species’ scientific name: Glyptemys (“carved turtle”) insculpta (“sculpted”).
The nine-inch adult had brownish-black skin and scarlet-orange patches on its neck and legs. Its lower shell was a rich yellow encircled by black splotches.
[Read more…] about Wood Turtles Under Threat
Humanities New York has announced their second and final online town hall, featuring David Bromwich, Jedediah Purdy, and Leah Wright Rigueur, has been set for Wednesday, January 13th, at 8 pm. [Read more…] about What Does Democracy Demand? Another Reconstruction