History, Natural History & the Arts
Book purchases made through this link support New York Almanack’s mission to report new publications relevant to New York State.
The new book Buffalo at the Crossroads: The Past, Present, and Future of American Urbanism (Cornell University Press, 2020), edited by Peter H. Christensen, is an introduction to Buffalo’s architecture and developed landscape, featuring essays by twelve authors. [Read more…] about New Book: Buffalo at the Crossroads
The Buffalo History Museum has announced the launch of “Experiencing Our Story” (EOS). Inspired by the Greek goddess of dawn, EOS offers history-based programs through podcasts, videos, virtual events, exhibits, and tours.
EOS programs, including a newly launched podcast, will feature stories about Buffalo and Western New York history, heritage, architecture, and personal accounts directly from the Museum’s professional staff, as well as featured guests.
The first episode features the story of the execution of the three Thayers Brothers, Buffalo’s only public execution. [Read more…] about Buffalo History Museum Launches New Podcast With Story Of City’s Only Public Execution
The Buffalo History Museum is set to reopen to the public with new operational and safety procedures on Saturday, August 1st, with free admission for the remainder of 2020. [Read more…] about Buffalo History Museum Reopening With Free Admission
This is part three of this series A Twitchell Lake Love Story – part two can be found here.
After their marriage, newlyweds Norman and Lucretia Sherry moved into their first home. They brought four children into the world – Elizabeth (1910), Francis (1911), Norman, Jr. (1913), and Esther (1918). Lucretia (Lu, as she was called) had her piano shipped from Buffalo to Troy, filling their home with music and hymns, and teaching her children the keyboard. [Read more…] about A Twitchell Lake Love Story: Passing on a Family Legacy
History shows that several pandemics have struck in New York State – one of the less remembered is known as the Second Cholera Pandemic of 1832.
New York was among the most thoroughly scourged among the states.
[Read more…] about The Cholera Pandemic of 1832 in New York State
The Buffalo History Museum has announced the Museum, Research Library, and Museum Shop will be closed effective immediately through March 30th, as a preventative measure in light of recent developments regarding the coronavirus (COVID-19). [Read more…] about Buffalo History Museum Closed To March 31st
Registration is now open for Parks & Trails New York’s 22nd annual Cycle the Erie Canal tour, an opportunity to bike across New York State and learn the history of the Erie Canal.
The eight-day, 400-mile recreational bicycle tour from Buffalo to Albany is scheduled for July 12-19, 2020. [Read more…] about 22nd Annual Cycle the Erie Canal Tour Planned
Now in my 7th year of teaching a full-year 9th grade course on Western New York History in an all-girls independent high school in Buffalo (Buffalo Seminary), I’m convinced that local history offers untapped potential to inspire students – but I think I’ve just scratched the surface.
I also suspect that other teachers have made the same discovery, so I’m looking to identify and connect with local history teachers in order to support and learn from each other.
For me, three things have made teaching local history different from teaching other history courses. First, students usually arrive in class knowing much more about the subject than they anticipate, quickly discovering a source of empowerment. They see the connections among related historical narratives. [Read more…] about Local History Teachers Unite! Share Your Local Texts
Tom Fontana is a Buffalo-born writer and producer, who, among many other accomplishments, is known for the creation of HBO’s Oz and NBC’s Homicide: Life on the Street. He has written articles for The New York Times, TV Guide, and Esquire, produced numerous plays from theatres in New York City to San Francisco, and has taught at universities and colleges, including the State University College at Buffalo, his alma mater, from which he received the Distinguished Alumni Award and an Honorary Doctorate of Letters. [Read more…] about SUNY Buffalo Alum Named ‘Giant of Buffalo’
Author Greg Tranter’s new book Makers, Moments & Memorabilia: A Chronicle of Buffalo Professional Sports (Buffalo History Museum and Western New York Heritage, 2019) explores the origins of Buffalo professional sports history from 1857 through today.
Stories are shared alongside photographs and unique artifacts provided by the Buffalo History Museum and Western New York Heritage. The individuals, figures, and moments were selected by the community through surveys, to reflect the memories that resonate with sports fans and historians alike. [Read more…] about Buffalo Sports History Chronicled in New Book