Binghamton

Bobcat Ranney: The Hermit of Dogtown

October 27, 2022 by Dave Waite Leave a Comment

According to “A Who’s Who of Adirondack Hermits,” in the Fiftieth Anniversary edition of Adirondack Life magazine there were only two in Warren County: artist John Henry Hill at Phantom Island on Lake George and Archie “Bobcat” Ranney of Baker’s Mills.

Hill only lasted six years, from 1870 until 1876: the year he was picked up and sent to an asylum, never to return to the county. Archie, on the other hand, made his mark in Adirondack history and lore by “hermiting” for twenty years in Baker’s Mills, a hamlet in the town of Johnsburg. [Read more…] about Bobcat Ranney: The Hermit of Dogtown

Joe Gingras: A Major League Baseball Career Thwarted By War

October 2, 2022 by Dave Waite 5 Comments

In 1870 Francois Dieudonné Gingras left his native Canada for Manhattan where he met and married Mary Roohan. By 1896, now with three children and another on the way, this couple had settled in Saratoga Springs where they opened a grocery store.

Their oldest son, Frank, was soon brought into the family business and the store was renamed, F. D. Gingras & Son. Their youngest son, whom they had named Joseph Elzead John Gingras, was looking to pursue a far different life: baseball. [Read more…] about Joe Gingras: A Major League Baseball Career Thwarted By War

Catskills Klan: The KKK in Sullivan County, New York

January 23, 2022 by John Conway 3 Comments

Many people – even those with more than a passing interest in Sullivan County history – are surprised to learn that the Ku Klux Klan was once fairly active in parts of the county. And yet, throughout the 1920s and early 1930s, there were several chapters in the Catskills, most set up by recruiters from the Binghamton area.

These Klan chapters, whether in Livingston Manor, Jeffersonville, Liberty, Woodbourne or some other hamlet, often started out as social organizations, and it was not unusual to see newspaper articles and even advertisements about their charitable activities or their clambakes, sometimes in conjunction with the Kamelias, the organization’s women’s auxiliary. [Read more…] about Catskills Klan: The KKK in Sullivan County, New York

SUNY Broome Culinary Center Wins Historic Preservation Award

November 30, 2021 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

SUNY Broome’s Culinary & Event Center has won a 2021 Excellence in Historic Preservation Award from the Preservation League of NYS.

The Beaux Arts-style Carnegie Library opened in downtown Binghamton in 1904 and was home to the city’s library for 96 years. The building remained vacant from 2000-2016, falling into a state of disrepair. [Read more…] about SUNY Broome Culinary Center Wins Historic Preservation Award

The Sinking of the Ford Freighter Green Island

November 3, 2021 by Bill Orzell Leave a Comment

When hostilities in 1939 created a combat situation between allied European nations and Germany, initiating the Second World War, the United States was officially neutral. However, the construction of ships began in America, to aid Great Britain and her allies.

When the events of 1941 pulled the U.S. into the conflict, the Navy and the Wartime Shipping Administration had a very serious need for vessels to transport war materials. This task was the duty of the country’s Merchant Marine, and all possible craft were requisitioned, including those on the Great Lakes and inland waterways. [Read more…] about The Sinking of the Ford Freighter Green Island

Fred Hazel: Binghamton’s Fighter For Racial Justice

May 19, 2020 by Richard White 1 Comment

After moving to Binghamton from the City of New York in 1911, Fred C. Hazel’s civil rights work spurred his biographic inclusion in the 1915 edition of Who’s Who of the Colored Race.

His notable pre-1911 accomplishments included graduating from the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute (the Hampton Institute, who boasted Booker T., Washington as an alum), and owning a business, the Hampton Upholstering Company. After the 27-year-old man relocated to the Parlor City, he quickly pursued two ventures that were completed by the middle of 1912. [Read more…] about Fred Hazel: Binghamton’s Fighter For Racial Justice

Langston Hughes, Paul Robeson, and Hazel Scott in 1940s Binghamton

January 13, 2020 by Richard White Leave a Comment

“Whether Binghamton appreciates good music and other cultural programs was a matter of dispute today.” This observation in The Binghamton Press on May 3, 1946 arose when the newspaper interviewed residents about an upcoming music festival.

If the newspaper had conducted the same interview when Langston Hughes, Paul Robeson, and Hazel Scott presented their “cultural programs” one year earlier, there would not have been many negative responses. As the Second World War drew to a close, the city welcomed three iconic African American artists. [Read more…] about Langston Hughes, Paul Robeson, and Hazel Scott in 1940s Binghamton

Chenango Canal Presentation Planned For Rome, NY

August 10, 2018 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

The Rome Historical Society is set to host “Chenango Canal: The Million Dollar Ditch” a presentation and book signing with Wade A. Lallier on Thursday, August 15th at 7 pm.

With the completion of the Erie Canal across New York State, the construction of other canals then began to be proposed all along the Erie’s route. One of these lateral canals would connect the Susquehanna River at Binghamton to the Erie Canal in Utica. [Read more…] about Chenango Canal Presentation Planned For Rome, NY

Time Clock History: Binghamton’s Bundy Museum

June 21, 2018 by Bob Cudmore Leave a Comment

This week on The Historians podcast, Andy Pragacz from the Bundy Museum of History and Art in Binghamton, NY tells us about the museum and the Bundy company, makers of time clocks. The firm was a predecessor of IBM. The Bundy Museum’s new community radio station, WBDY, carries episodes of The Historians Podcast Sundays at 4:30 pm. Listen to the podcast here. [Read more…] about Time Clock History: Binghamton’s Bundy Museum

Broome Co Local History Conference Set For April

January 7, 2018 by Editorial Staff 1 Comment

The Bundy Museum of History and Art in Broome County has announced that they are planning to hold a conference on local history on Saturday, April 21, 2018.

The museum is seeking a wide range of histories and historians. Submissions from amateur enthusiasts, family historians, K-12 teachers, preservationists, high school and college students, professional historians, storytellers, librarians, and museum employees. Papers on any aspect of Broome County’s history, from any time period, will be considered. [Read more…] about Broome Co Local History Conference Set For April