New York Almanack

History, Natural History & the Arts

Glens Falls

Women’s March Planned For Glens Falls October 2nd

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women march in Glens Falls in 2020A march to raise awareness of threats to women’s rights is planned for Glens Falls, Warren County, NY on Saturday, October 2nd. Organizers of the march, along with Planned Parenthood and other advocacy groups, have called on people to march nationwide in the face of quickly diminishing rights for women in many parts of the country and the world.

New York State has always been a leader in women’s rights and more specifically, reproductive rights – abortion was legal in NYS two years before Roe vs. Wade. [Read more…] about Women’s March Planned For Glens Falls October 2nd

Glens Falls Arts District Making Moves

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Arts Hero Pin courtesy Arts District of Glens FallsThe Arts District of Glens Falls is making progress with its multifaceted launch of an arts trail stretching from the Chapman Historical Museum to the Hyde Collection Art Museum and Historic Home. Plans include banners, bike racks, sidewalk stamps and public art to connect the 10 arts destinations and 14 arts organizations that comprise the Arts District. [Read more…] about Glens Falls Arts District Making Moves

Oyster Season In 19th Century New York

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Black oyster schuckers in Sandy Ground, Staten IslandSeptember 1st was the opening of oyster season on the 19th century dining calendar.

“What the last Thursday of November is to the American turkey gobbler, such is the first day of September to the American oyster. … The autumn brings back the magical ‘r.’” The Post and Gazette of Elizabethtown, in Essex County, reported on September 11th, 1879. [Read more…] about Oyster Season In 19th Century New York

1890 Hikers: Albany to Lake George and Back

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The following letter was original published in the trade magazine American Stationer on May 1st, 1890.

To the Editor of The Stationer

As the heated term of the year draws near I presume that any number of stationer clerks [stationary store clerks] are asking themselves as to how, when and where they shall spend their vacations. I want to give them a bit of advice regarding a summer outing. [Read more…] about 1890 Hikers: Albany to Lake George and Back

1922 World Series Was First To Be Broadcast

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Crowds watch Game 1 of the 1922 World Series at the Polo Grounds on October 4 1922 (Library of Congress)Nationally-syndicated sports writer Grantland Rice penned a parody of a classic nursery rhyme for the opening of the 1922 World Series.

“Sing a song of sixpence, and eke of dollar bills,” he wrote in a poetic ditty, published October 3rd, 1922 in The Post-Star of Glens Falls. “Four and thirty thousand fans, paying for their thrills.” [Read more…] about 1922 World Series Was First To Be Broadcast

July On The Farm In The 19th Century

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Farming in JulyA July 1876 heat wave ripened Washington County garden crops early.

“Peas, summer squash and cucumbers are plenty,” The Granville Sentinel reported on July 21st. “The mercury climbs up every day into the nineties and drops only to seventy or eighty at night.” [Read more…] about July On The Farm In The 19th Century

Ballston Spa’s Éclair House: Some History

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Éclair House One Hundred and Fifty Years ago, on July 15th, 1871, a news article appeared in the Saturday edition of the Ballston [Saratoga County] Journal, “Wm Brown and John Parent are preparing the foundations for two fine houses on Bath Street, opposite the Washington Spring.”

Brown’s house would not be the typical gable-roofed residence, But a fashionable French-Gothic Mansard. The post-civil war period was known for unabashed ostentation. Suppliers, manufacturers, and financiers had profited greatly from the government’s need to equip and maintain its armed forces. There was so many nouveau riche showing off their wealth, it was fashionable to do so. [Read more…] about Ballston Spa’s Éclair House: Some History

Folklife Center Acquires Unique Adirondack Railway Collection

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Deleware and Hudson Railroad CollectionThe Folklife Center at the Crandall Public Library in Glens Falls has received a new collection of materials from Jon Patten on the history of the Adirondack branch of the D&H Railroad, from Saratoga Springs to Tahawus in Newcomb.  [Read more…] about Folklife Center Acquires Unique Adirondack Railway Collection