Otsego County

Forest Rangers Find Fugitive, Recover Body, Make Helicopter Rescue & More

August 30, 2023 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Forest Rangers respond to search and rescue incidents throughout New York State. Working with other state agencies, local emergency response organizations and volunteer search and rescue groups, Forest Rangers locate and extract lost, injured or distressed people.

What follows is a report, prepared by DEC, of recent missions carried out by Forest Rangers. [Read more…] about Forest Rangers Find Fugitive, Recover Body, Make Helicopter Rescue & More

Man Plans 200+ Mile Otsego County Thru-Hike for Charity

May 28, 2023 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Tom Walsh, a 65-year-old hiker and cancer survivor, is planning to walk to all 20 state forests in Otsego County as well as five Otsego Land Trust conservation areas on a continuous thru-hike that will cover more than 200 miles. Starting from his home in Worcester, NY on or about June 1, the hike will take him through all 24 Otsego County towns. [Read more…] about Man Plans 200+ Mile Otsego County Thru-Hike for Charity

26 Wildfires in 16 Counties Burn Nearly 1,000 Acres

April 19, 2023 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

From April 11 to 17th New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Forest Rangers were called to 26 wildfires in 16 counties that burned nearly 1,000 acres of land. The largest fires were in the town of Deerpark in Orange County at 300 acres, and in the town of Richmondville where the fire totaled 241 acres and spanned Otsego and Schoharie counties. [Read more…] about 26 Wildfires in 16 Counties Burn Nearly 1,000 Acres

There Were Giants in the Earth in Those Days

April 17, 2023 by Jack Kelly 3 Comments

My first brush with the artifacts of history came when I was a youngster on a family vacation to Cooperstown, Otsego County, NY. I found the famous Baseball Hall of Fame, with its baggy uniforms, battered bats and flattened fielders’ mitts, decidedly ho-hum. I couldn’t wait to get to the nearby Farmers’ Museum and see something that I had heard of with wonder: the Cardiff Giant. [Read more…] about There Were Giants in the Earth in Those Days

Freedom in New York: Chenango County, the Underground RR & US Colored Troops

April 4, 2023 by Harry Bradshaw Matthews 11 Comments

During Black History Month 2023, I received an email from Jill Mirabito, a longtime resident of Norwich, Chenango County, NY, and Associate Vice President for University Advancement at SUNY Oneonta. The note pertained to the Chenango County Historical Society having honored Benjamin J. Tillett, an African American resident of Norwich during and after the Civil War. He had been a slave in Northeast North Carolina before arriving in Norwich.

In November 1863, Tillett enlisted in the 11th United States Colored Heavy Artillery (also known as the 14th Rhode Island Heavy Artillery). He returned to Norwich after the war and died there in 1902. Before his death, he had a membership with the E.B. Smith Post, GAR, A Knight Templar of Palestine Commandery, and attended religious services frequently at the local AME Zion Church. The admiration that Tillett received from his adopted residence caught my attention. I was intrigued. [Read more…] about Freedom in New York: Chenango County, the Underground RR & US Colored Troops

The Mystery of Joseph Brant’s Watch

February 28, 2023 by Dave Waite 1 Comment

There was a story that had been passed down in the Minthorn family for generations. It told of how an ancestor had hidden her two infants under the roots of a tree to save them during the Revolutionary War attack on Cherry Valley, NY, in 1778. It was said that in her zeal to quiet her children, the youngsters were rendered unconscious, being revived only after the attackers had departed.

While this story is most likely fiction, there is some truth mixed in. [Read more…] about The Mystery of Joseph Brant’s Watch

Science & Suckers: The Cohoes Mastodon & The Cardiff Giant

February 9, 2023 by Peter Hess Leave a Comment

In 1866, NY State Geologist James Hall received a message from T.G. Younglove, an official at Harmony Mills in Cohoes, New York, informing Hall that while conducting some excavations to expand the mill they uncovered a “great pothole” at the foot of Cohoes Falls where the Mohawk River begins to empty into the Hudson.

The “great pothole” contained a large jawbone “of some unknown beast,” much larger than that of an elephant. [Read more…] about Science & Suckers: The Cohoes Mastodon & The Cardiff Giant

Black History Historiographic Genealogies: Sources & Resources

February 6, 2023 by Harry Bradshaw Matthews 1 Comment

With the arrival of Black History Month, the 2023 theme, “Black Resistance,” will certainly emphasize the standard bearers of freedom seekers. Most noticeable will be the attention devoted to Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman. There will also be discussions about the 1619 Project and the Critical Race Theory. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ attack on the teaching of the AP course in African American History will surely be debated.

Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, were two personalities that Dr. Carter Godwin Woodson honored in 1926 with his launching of Negro History Week. He selected the second week of February as the time of the annual celebration since it coincides with the birthdays of Douglass and Lincoln. [Read more…] about Black History Historiographic Genealogies: Sources & Resources

Mohawk River Basin Grants Available

February 4, 2023 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is offering $600k in Mohawk River Basin Grants to help municipalities, soil and water conservation districts, school districts, colleges and universities, and not-for-profit organizations to implement the goals and objectives of the Mohawk River Basin Ac tion Agenda 2021-2026, a five-year plan advancing efforts to conserve, preserve, and restore the Mohawk River and its watershed. [Read more…] about Mohawk River Basin Grants Available

Otsego Outdoor Challenge Marks 5000th Trek

December 30, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

As Lee Ann and Rick Myers of Oneonta completed the Otsego Outdoors Fall Octet Challenge, it marked the 5000th trek Octet participants have completed. A collaborative program of Otsego 2000, the Otsego Land Trust and Otsego County Conservation Association, Otsego Outdoors connects residents and visitors with year-round recreational opportunities in and near Otsego County. [Read more…] about Otsego Outdoor Challenge Marks 5000th Trek