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Cemeteries

Slave To Soldier: George Martin’s Fight For Freedom

February 9, 2021 by Pete Ames 2 Comments

Martin George with flag 2 As the Town of Niagara Historian I’m researching the lives of those buried in one of our local cemeteries. Witmer Cemetery was originally the burying ground of the Witmer family, who settled here after arriving from Pennsylvania in 1811. The earliest gravestone in the cemetery is from 1828, but it’s estimated that about 200 people have been buried there since.

I began my research at the front row, where a toppled headstone marked the final resting place of George Martin and Jane, his wife. [Read more…] about Slave To Soldier: George Martin’s Fight For Freedom

Filed Under: History, Western NY Tagged With: Black History, Cemeteries, Civil War, Cultural History, Military History, Niagara County, Political History, Slavery, Social History, USCT

Amsterdam, NY, Fire Department History (Podcast)

February 5, 2021 by Bob Cudmore Leave a Comment

The Historians LogoThis week on The Historians Podcast, Jerry Snyder of Historic Amsterdam League recounts the story of the League’s popular “ghost tours” of Amsterdam’s Green Hill Cemetery. He also discusses the history of the Amsterdam Fire Department.

[Read more…] about Amsterdam, NY, Fire Department History (Podcast)

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Amsterdam, Cemeteries, Podcasts

A Military Cemetery Mystery Solved

December 8, 2020 by Jeannie Brennan - Constance Brennan Barone Leave a Comment

Hawkins tombstoneTiming is everything! While contemplating a unique marker in the Sackets Harbor military cemetery a puzzling question came up. Why was Henderson, NY resident Joseph Hawkins, who never served in the military, buried in the military cemetery?

Coincidentally, Henderson Historical Society’s Eric Anderson was simultaneously researching Joseph Hawkins and shared clues. [Read more…] about A Military Cemetery Mystery Solved

Filed Under: History, Western NY Tagged With: Cemeteries, Great Lakes, Jefferson County, Maritime History, Military History, Political History, Sackets Harbor

Lion Courage: A New Paltz Soldier During The Civil War

June 11, 2020 by A. J. Schenkman 1 Comment

Lithograph of the Battle of Opequan by Kurz and AllisonJohannes LeFevre was born in New Paltz on May 26, 1837, to Josiah P. LeFevre and his wife, Elizabeth. Around New Paltz, his family was known as the Bontecoe LeFevres because of their large farm, just outside town.

The oldest child of seven, Johannes was born in his father’s stone house on what is today White Duck Road in New Paltz, off Route 32. The home had been built by Daniel LeFevre.  Later, Josiah built a home in 1849, on the opposite side of Route 32. Both houses remain standing and look much as they did during Johannes’s lifetime.

[Read more…] about Lion Courage: A New Paltz Soldier During The Civil War

Filed Under: History, Hudson Valley - Catskills Tagged With: Cemeteries, Civil War, Military History, New Paltz

Life in the Graveyard

May 28, 2020 by Amy Catania 1 Comment

Pine Ridge Cemetery in Saranac LakeGraveyards are for the living. It’s something I think about every autumn, when my local Pine Ridge Cemetery in Saranac Lake in the Adirondacks comes alive with children on our annual fifth grade field trip.

Ahead of time, the students research a person buried there. As we walk down to the graveyard from school, excitement builds. Upon arrival the kids race around, looking excitedly for their person. It’s like a bizarre version of an Easter egg hunt. [Read more…] about Life in the Graveyard

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, History Tagged With: Cemeteries, Saranac Lake, Social History

Grave Encounters: Hudson Valley Headstone Design

May 27, 2020 by Editorial Staff 1 Comment

Gravestone provided by Town of WarwickThe Albert Wisner Library in Warwick, Orange County, is set to host researcher Marisa Hayes, who will share her studies of headstone design in the Hudson Valley’s oldest cemeteries.

Her talk will focus on styles from the colonial period through the Civil War and participants will discover how decorations and motifs reflect the social identities and views of death held by people of the region. [Read more…] about Grave Encounters: Hudson Valley Headstone Design

Filed Under: Events, History, Hudson Valley - Catskills Tagged With: Albert Wisner Public Library, Cemeteries, Civil War, Hudson Valley, Orange County

A Cemetery of Strangers: NYC’s Hart Island

October 29, 2019 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

new york citys hart islandMichael T. Keene’s new book New York City’s Hart Island: A Cemetery of Strangers takes a look at Hart Island, where more than one million bodies are buried in unmarked graves, just off the coast of the Bronx in Long Island Sound.

The islands first public use was as a Civil War prison and United States Colored Troops training site and later a psychiatric hospital. The island became the repository for New York City’s unclaimed dead. It’s mass graves are a microcosm of New York history, from the 1822 burial crisis to casualties of the Triangle Shirtwaist fire and victims of the AIDS epidemic. Important artists who died in poverty have been discovered buried there, including Disney star Bobby Driscol and playwright Leo Birinski. [Read more…] about A Cemetery of Strangers: NYC’s Hart Island

Filed Under: Books, History, New York City Tagged With: Books, Cemeteries, Civil War, Long Island, Medical History, New York City, Public Health, The Bronx

Twilight Cemetery Tour in Saratoga Springs

October 14, 2019 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation Twilight Cemetery TourThe Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation is set to present “Twilight Cemetery Tour: Madness, Murder, Untimely Deaths, and Strange Coincidences,” a rare opportunity to explore Greenridge Cemetery at dusk, on Tuesday, October 29th with a knowledgeable guide. [Read more…] about Twilight Cemetery Tour in Saratoga Springs

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, Events, History Tagged With: Architecture, Cemeteries, Saratoga Springs

President Chester Arthur Being Remembered in Albany

October 4, 2019 by Editorial Staff 4 Comments

Grave of Chester Arthur at the Albany Rural CemeteryOn Saturday, October 5, the historic Albany Rural Cemetery will honor the 21st President of the United States, Chester A. Arthur, with a wreath-laying ceremony at his gravesite.

The wreath is provided by the White House. Brigadier General John Andonie and Chaplain (LTC) Scott Ehler, NYS Army National Guard Brigadier General, are expected to place the wreath at the grave this year. Historian and author David Pietrusza will deliver remarks on President Arthur. Members of the Col. George. L. Willard Camp #154, Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War will also be present and, as in previous years, bagpipers will accompany the ceremony. [Read more…] about President Chester Arthur Being Remembered in Albany

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, Events, History Tagged With: Albany, Cemeteries

New Windsor’s Woodlawn Cemetery Tour

September 11, 2019 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Grave of Capt Holden Langford provided by Newburgh Historical SocietyA mother of women’s basketball, the director of the National Audubon Society, a pioneering female war correspondent, Newburgh’s first mayor, the commander of the Orange Blossoms of Civil War fame, two famous orchestra leaders, suffragists, architects, civil rights champions and scientists – are all buried together among the scenic acres of Woodlawn Cemetery in New Windsor, Orange County, NY. [Read more…] about New Windsor’s Woodlawn Cemetery Tour

Filed Under: Events, History Tagged With: Cemeteries, New Windsor

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