History, Natural History & the Arts
Last year, archaeologists from the Public Archaeology Facility (PAF) at Binghamton University (SUNY) completed an exploratory cultural resources survey of Horse Island at Sackets Harbor.
Stewardship of the island by New York State Parks came after the American Battlefield Trust purchased the property as their first War of 1812 battlegrounds acquisition in the nation. [Read more…] about Horse Island’s War of 1812 Secrets Unearthed
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has released a draft proposal for a national marine sanctuary in eastern Lake Ontario and the Thousand Islands region of the St. Lawrence River. The proposed sanctuary designation celebrates Upstate New York’s unique maritime heritage and provides a national stage for promoting the region’s tourism and recreational opportunities. [Read more…] about Proposed National Marine Sanctuary Highlights Lake Ontario Maritime History
This week’s guest on The Historians Podcast is Rob Swigart, author of the historical novel Mixed Harvest: Stories of the Human Past. Swigart describes how a prehistoric nomadic population in Europe transitioned to more permanent settlements. [Read more…] about When Europeans Settled Down (Podcast)
The Oneida County History Center is set to host a virtual lecture with archaeologist David Staley, who will look at two sites along the former Erie and Chenango canals, on Wednesday, October 28th.
Staley will look at the limestone masonry, concrete, and iron remains found at these sites, and share how archaeological discoveries can contradict historic narratives and reveal shady political cronyism in Utica during the 1880s. [Read more…] about Canal Archaeology Virtual Lecture Set For Oct 27th
This week on The Historians Podcast, archaeologists Kathleen O’Neal Gear and her husband W. Michael Gear. The Gears have written over 60 novels about prehistoric North America. Their latest book, set in what is now Utah, is People of the Canyons. [Read more…] about Prehistoric North America (Historians Podcast)
A great deal of confusion has developed regarding the historical identities of Fort Plain, Fort Plank and Fort Rensselaer.
To help dispel that confusion, the Fort Plain Museum has recently published an important new book, Fort Plain, Fork Plank, Fort Rensselaer: The Revolutionary War Forts of Canajohary by Wayne Lenig. [Read more…] about New Book On Revolutionary War Forts at Canajohary
New York State Museum Cultural Resource Survey Program (CRSP) archaeologists Barry Dale, Aaron Gore, and Steve Moragne will speak on excavations they led of prehistoric and colonial remains adjacent to the historic Lake George Million Dollar Beach. [Read more…] about Lake George Archeology Digs Subject of Barroom Talk
The Massachusetts Historic Preservation Conference was held in Plymouth, MA, on September 20th. This one-day conference was one I really would have liked to be able to attend but I just wasn’t able to work it into my schedule. Part of the attraction was the location itself plus the work underway to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the Pilgrims.
“This year’s theme, ‘Untold Stories in Preservation’ serves as a springboard for discussion, case studies and model preservation projects that reflect on and engage people in histories that have not been as widely acknowledged as others,” the welcome letter said. “Plymouth will be a touchstone for how different stories and legacies are represented and how historic preservation can play a role in presenting them.” [Read more…] about Heritage, Archaeology, and Tourism: MA Historic Preservation Conference
At the heart of the Ticonderoga peninsula is the Carillon Battlefield and the French Lines, which constitute one of the most important 18th-century military sites on the continent. Here, at the confluence Lake George and Lake Champlain, a French Army commanded by the Marquis de Montcalm defeated a British Army four times its size on July 8, 1758.
The Battle of Carillon is believed to have been the bloodiest battle fought in North America until the Civil War. About 21,000 combatants were involved. Some 1,100 were killed, 2,000 wounded, and 100 whose bodies were not recovered (another 150 were captured). [Read more…] about Fort Ti Assessing Carillon Battlefield Ruins
What follows is a message sent to the media by Arthur L. Simmons III, Executive Director of the Rome Historical Society regarding construction at the site of Fort Bull.
Fort Bull was one of several British forts that secured the portage between the Mohawk River and Wood Creek. In 1756, French troops, supported by allied Native Americans, marched overland from Fort La Presentation (present day Ogdensburg) and attacked the British fort on the Oneida Carry. The French destroyed Fort Bull and killed or captured nearly 60 of the British garrison. [Read more…] about Rome Historical Raises Concerns Over Fort Bull Construction Project