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Cultural History

Circus Artists and the Flying Trapeze Metaphor

January 3, 2021 by Jaap Harskamp 2 Comments

Ricketts Circus flierEquestrian artist Philip Astley was a pioneering entertainment entrepreneur. His demonstrations of trick horse-riding at London’s Royal Amphitheatre in 1768 constitute the origins of modern circus.

Astley performed his routine in a circular arena which would subsequently be referred to as the ring. He interspersed his displays with a variety of additional acts. Both in Europe and America other producers copied and expanded his new style of entertainment. [Read more…] about Circus Artists and the Flying Trapeze Metaphor

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Arts, Capital-Saratoga, History, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: art, Cultural History, Performing Arts, Social History, sports, Sports History

Masters of Mixology: American Showmanship & French Finesse

December 28, 2020 by Jaap Harskamp Leave a Comment

Soyer in Crimea presenting his field stovesFor centuries people have been mixing potions, initially in a quest for medicinal elixirs, and later to produce exotic drinks. Punch was introduced from India to England in the early seventeenth century. The term, of uncertain etymology, was first recorded in 1632. [Read more…] about Masters of Mixology: American Showmanship & French Finesse

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Food, History, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: beer, Cultural History, liquor, Social History, Vice

World of the Wampanoag: 1620 and Beyond

December 23, 2020 by Liz Covart Leave a Comment

ben_franklins_worldWhen the English colonists arrived at Patuxet 400 years ago, they arrived at a confusing time. The World of the Wampanoag people had changed in the wake of a destabilizing epidemic.

This episode of Ben Franklin’s World: A Podcast About Early American History is part of a two-episode series about the World of the Wampanoag. In Episode 290, we investigated the life, cultures, and trade of the Wampanoag and their neighbors, the Narragansett, up to December 16, 1620, the day the Mayflower made its way into Plymouth Harbor. [Read more…] about World of the Wampanoag: 1620 and Beyond

Filed Under: History Tagged With: Cultural History, Native American History, New England, Podcast

Twelve Tavern Rules, Thirteen Toasts and America’s 1814 Anthem

December 21, 2020 by Jaap Harskamp 11 Comments

Sampler by Martha Cooke Twelve Good Rules 1811Many eighteenth century publicans framed a list of pre-conditions for the “perfect” tavern which was displayed in full view in British public houses and drinking dens.

The advice to customers consisted of “Twelve Good Rules” that dated back to the rule of Charles I: [Read more…] about Twelve Tavern Rules, Thirteen Toasts and America’s 1814 Anthem

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Arts, Capital-Saratoga, Food, History, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: beer, Cultural History, Food, Holidays, liquor, Performing Arts, Social History, Taverns, wine

A New Edition of Francis Whiting Halse’s Upstate NY History Published

December 21, 2020 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

americas first frontierBook purchases made through this link support New York Almanack’s mission to report new publications relevant to New York State.

America’s First Frontier: New York’s Pioneers and Their Fight for Freedom (2020 Reprint by HVA Press) recalls settlers in Upstate New York who sometimes faced hunger and disease, in addition to their ongoing conflicts with resident Native Americans, the French and later British loyalists. Author Francis Whiting Halsey was born in Unadilla, New York in 1851 and graduated Cornell University in 1873. He as an editor at the Binghamton Times (1873–1875) and New York Tribune (1875–1880). [Read more…] about A New Edition of Francis Whiting Halse’s Upstate NY History Published

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Books, Capital-Saratoga, History, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Western NY Tagged With: American Revolution, Books, Cultural History, French And Indian War, Military History, Native American History, Political History

Slavery, Christmas and Southern Memory

December 18, 2020 by Bob Cudmore Leave a Comment

The Historians LogoIn this episode of The Historians Podcast Purdue University Professor Emeritus Robert May weighs in on whether enslaved people were better treated during the Christmas season in the Old South.

May is author of Yuletide in Dixie: Slavery, Christmas and Southern Memory (2019). He earned his undergraduate degree at Union College in Schenectady. [Read more…] about Slavery, Christmas and Southern Memory

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Books, Capital-Saratoga, History, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: Agricultural History, Black History, Christmas, Cultural History, Holidays, Podcasts, Slavery

Puritans, Prussians, and the History of Christmas Cards

December 15, 2020 by Jaap Harskamp 3 Comments

First Xmas card by John Callcott HorsleyNew York has important associations with the formation of what is now considered a traditional American Christmas. “A Visit from St. Nicholas” (a.k.a. “Twas The Night Before Christmas”) was first published in the Troy Sentinel in 1823; The Albany Evening Journal ran an advertisement on December 17, 1841, that is believed to be the first time Santa Clause was used to advertise a store; and America’s first Christmas card was published in Albany in 1850/51.

Recently two rare printings of the first commercially printed Christmas card, published in England, have been announced for sale at auction. The cards depicts a family toasting with glasses of red wine. Commissioned by Henry Cole and designed by John Callcott Horsley, it carries the message “A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You.” [Read more…] about Puritans, Prussians, and the History of Christmas Cards

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Arts, Capital-Saratoga, History, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: Christmas, Cultural History, Holidays, Religious History

New Book: The Great Kosher Meat War of 1902

December 15, 2020 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

The Great Kosher Meat WarBook purchases made through this link support New York Almanack’s mission to report new publications relevant to New York State.

Scott D. Seligman’s new book The Great Kosher Meat War of 1902: Immigrant Housewives and the Riots That Shook New York City (Potomac Books, 2020) is a full account of the Great Kosher Meat War of 1902, a milestone in the history of Jewish-American women. [Read more…] about New Book: The Great Kosher Meat War of 1902

Filed Under: Books, Food, History, New York City Tagged With: Books, Culinary History, Cultural History, Immigration, Jewish History, Lower East Side, Manhattan, New York City, Religion, Religious History, womens history

America’s First Christmas Card & An Early Albany Department Store

December 10, 2020 by Editorial Staff 1 Comment

America's First Christmas Card, Designed and printed by Richard H. Pease for his "Pease's Great Variety Store in the Temple of Fancy" c.1851. Image courtesy of Manchester Metropolitan University Special Collections.Before F. W. Woolworths’, Whitney’s, or even Myer’s department store, there was Pease’s Great Variety Store, located in the Temple of Fancy at 516 and 518 Broadway in Albany, NY.

As with other fancy goods stores, Pease’s catered to the middle and upper middle class selling highly decorated goods like ceramics, prints, furniture and other decorative household items that progressively thinking people might have wanted to purchase. [Read more…] about America’s First Christmas Card & An Early Albany Department Store

Filed Under: Arts, Capital-Saratoga, History, New Exhibits Tagged With: Albany, Albany County, Albany Institute For History and Art, Art History, Christmas, Cultural History, Holidays, Instagram, Pop Culture History

Mary Booth: Writer, Translator, and Founding Editor of Harper’s Bazzar

December 9, 2020 by Chris Kretz Leave a Comment

long island history project logoIt’s never been easy to make your way as an independent, career-minded woman in New York City. Mary L. Booth did it in the 19th century, forging a career and establishing a reputation as a writer, translator, and the founding editor of Harper’s Bazzar.

Learn more about this Long Island native as we talk to Tricia Foley, author of Mary L. Booth: The Story of an Extraordinary 19th-Century Woman, on the lastest episode of the Long Island History Project. [Read more…] about Mary Booth: Writer, Translator, and Founding Editor of Harper’s Bazzar

Filed Under: History, New York City Tagged With: Books, Cultural History, Fashion History, Long Island, Podcasts, Publishing, Writing

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