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Madison County

When Two Dutchmen Tried To Create A Maple Sugar Industry

December 16, 2022 by Jaap Jacobs Leave a Comment

portrait of Gerrit BoonThe Holland Land Company is known for its role in settling the western part of upstate New York by acquiring land grants and selling off lots to prospective settlers in the early nineteenth century. Yet its activities in the last decade of the eighteenth century were of a different nature, as the stories of Gerrit Boon and Jan Lincklaen show.

In the last decade of the eighteenth century, two young Dutchmen, Gerrit Boon and Jan Lincklaen, traveled through the densely forested lands of Upstate New York. They eventually identified locations fit for the founding of the new villages of Oldenbarneveld (now Barneveld in Oneida County) and DeRuyter (in Madison County). [Read more…] about When Two Dutchmen Tried To Create A Maple Sugar Industry

Filed Under: Food, History, Western NY Tagged With: Barneveld, Boonville, Cazenovia, Dutch History, Forestry, Fort Schuyler, Holland Land Company, Holland Patent, Immigration, Industrial History, Lincklaen, Lorenzo SHS, Madison County, Maple Sugaring, Maple Trees, Oneida County

1,500 Artifacts Returned To Oneida Indian Nation By Museum

November 12, 2022 by Editorial Staff 2 Comments

A 17th century Oneida Indian Nation ceramic potMore than 1,520 funerary objects and cultural artifacts were returned to the Oneida Indian Nation from the collections of Colgate University’s Longyear Museum of Anthropology on November 9th.

The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act requires federally funded institutions to return remains and cultural items. [Read more…] about 1,500 Artifacts Returned To Oneida Indian Nation By Museum

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Arts, History, Mohawk Valley, Western NY Tagged With: Archaeology, Colgate University, Haudenosaunee, Iroquois, Madison County, Museums, Native American History, Oneida County, Oneida Indian Nation, Verona

Anti-Slavery, Abolition Heritage Sites Opening for Season

June 1, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Gerrit Smith Estate National Historic LandmarkThe Gerrit Smith Estate National Historic Landmark (GSENHL) and the National Abolition Hall of Fame and Museum (NAHOF) in Peterboro, Madison County, NY will open for the season on Saturday June 4th. [Read more…] about Anti-Slavery, Abolition Heritage Sites Opening for Season

Filed Under: Events, History, Western NY Tagged With: Gerrit Smith Estate, Madison County, National Abolition Hall of Fame, Peterboro

Cazenovia, The Origins of Soccer & The National “Football” Hall of Fame

May 23, 2022 by Milton Sernett Leave a Comment

Gerrit Smith Miller at 78In 1947 the citizens of Cazenovia in Madison County mounted a campaign to have the proposed hall of fame or shrine honoring American players of “football” located in their community.

Supporters at the village, town, county, and state levels joined in the effort to bring the hall of fame to Cazenovia. Assemblyman Wheeler Milmoe who represented Madison County introduced Resolution No. 154 in Albany in support of Cazenovia’s claim to fame. Gov. Thomas Dewey also voiced strong support for the idea. There were other places in the nation politicking for having the “football” hall of fame located in their communities. [Read more…] about Cazenovia, The Origins of Soccer & The National “Football” Hall of Fame

Filed Under: History, Western NY Tagged With: Boston, Cazenovia, football, Gerrit Smith Estate, Madison County, Massachusetts, Oneida County, soccer, Sports History

Central-Finger Lakes Segment of Statewide Birding Trail Opens

May 14, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

bird watchers courtesy DECNew York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has announced the grand opening of the Central-Finger Lakes segment of the New York State Birding Trail to highlight the state’s world-class and wide-ranging birding opportunities.

The Central-Finger Lakes segment includes 54 locations throughout 15 counties, providing a variety of quality birding experiences for New Yorkers and visitors to enjoy. [Read more…] about Central-Finger Lakes Segment of Statewide Birding Trail Opens

Filed Under: Mohawk Valley, Nature, Recreation, Western NY Tagged With: birding, birds, Cayuga County, Chenango County, Cortland County, DEC, Finger Lakes, High Tor WMA, Lake Ontario, Livingston County, Madison County, Monroe County, Montezuma National Wildelife Refuge, nature, New York State Birding Trail, Oneida County, Onondaga County, Ontario County, Oswego County, Otsego County, Seneca County, Tompkins County, Wayne County, Wildlife, Yates County

The Destruction of Gerrit Smith’s Mansion

April 21, 2022 by Milton Sernett 3 Comments

SmithMansionFTT copyHistorical research using old newspapers fascinates but also frustrates me. Had you read the March 5th, 1936 edition of The Cazenovia Republican you would have learned that the historic Gerrit Smith mansion in Peterboro, New York, burned to the ground two days earlier. [Read more…] about The Destruction of Gerrit Smith’s Mansion

Filed Under: History, Western NY Tagged With: Abolition, Agricultural History, Architecture, Fires, Gerrit Smith Estate, Madison County, Peterboro, Smithfield, womens history

Crimes Against Butter: The Oleomargarine Controversy

April 12, 2022 by Milton Sernett 7 Comments

Hippolyte Mège-MourièsThe butter trade was once so important to dairy farmers in Orange County, NY that the bank in Goshen, the county seat, printed its currency on yellow paper. Popularly known as “butter money,” this currency symbolized how significant the trade in butter was to dairy farmers in dairy regions across the state prior to the introduction of refrigerated railroad cars to ship raw milk, first using blocks of ice and then mechanical cooling.

The original shipment of milk from Orange County to New York City is believed to have taken place in the spring of 1842 via the New York & Erie Railroad. Prior to this raw milk could be transported only short distances by farm wagon.

Butter, however, could be transported to markets many miles from the farm or factory where it was produced. As symbolized by “butter money,” blocks of butter were once as good as gold. [Read more…] about Crimes Against Butter: The Oleomargarine Controversy

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, Food, History, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: Agricultural History, Chicago, Culinary History, Cultural History, Dairy, French History, Goshen, Industrial History, Legal History, Madison County, Orange County

‘Cradle of the Breed’: Gerrit Smith Miller & His Kriemhild Holsteins

March 13, 2022 by Milton Sernett 2 Comments

dedication by A. J. Strohmeyer, Jr., August 17, 1929 On August 17th, 1929, the German airship Graf Zeppelin was attempting to encircle the world. Baseball fans were still marveling about how Babe Ruth had reached the 500 mark in home runs the previous Sunday at League Park in Cleveland, Ohio. The Great Bull Market of the 1920s was yet to crash.

None of these matters preoccupied Henry A. Strohmeyer, Jr., animal photographer, as he positioned himself and his camera to capture a picture of the man of the hour. Son of a famed expert in stereoscopic photography who made a career in capturing images of the estates of the wealthy, Strohmeyer had built his own reputation largely by taking pictures of cows and bulls. He was about to photograph Gerrit Smith Miller who at eighty-four was the oldest and most respected Holstein cowman in the country. [Read more…] about ‘Cradle of the Breed’: Gerrit Smith Miller & His Kriemhild Holsteins

Filed Under: Food, History, Western NY Tagged With: Agricultural History, Culinary History, Dairy, Environmental History, local farms, Madison County, Netherlands, Peterboro

Mott’s Apple Empire Began in Saratoga County in 1842

February 17, 2022 by Guest Contributor 9 Comments

Horse Powered Apple PressYou may have noticed that “Since 1842” appears on the label of all Mott’s apple products. That was the year Samuel Mott began selling apple cider and vinegar to his neighbors in Halfmoon, Saratoga County, NY. The Mott’s apple processing empire we know today grew from that humble beginning. [Read more…] about Mott’s Apple Empire Began in Saratoga County in 1842

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, Food, History Tagged With: Agricultural History, Apples, Culinary History, Food, Fruit, Halfmoon, Industrial History, Kayaderoasseras Patent, local farms, Madison County, Saratoga County, Saratoga County History Center, Saratoga County History Roundtable

New Book Reveals Inaccurately Told & Long-Forgotten Cazenovia Tales

December 11, 2021 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

The Bear Tree book cover WEBBook purchases made through this link support New York Almanack’s mission to report new publications relevant to New York State.

The new book The Bear Tree and Other Stories from Cazenovia’s History (USYRC, 2021) by Erica Barnes and Jason Emerson looks at the historic lakeside village of Cazenovia, Madison County, in the scenic Finger Lakes region, one of the jewels of Central New York. [Read more…] about New Book Reveals Inaccurately Told & Long-Forgotten Cazenovia Tales

Filed Under: Books, History, Western NY Tagged With: Cazenovia, Finger Lakes, Madison County

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