History, Natural History & the Arts
In the 1830s, anti-Catholic attitudes inflamed by conspiracy theories were reaching a fevered pitch, especially in New York and Massachusetts where attacks on the homes of urban Irish immigrants occurred with some regularity.
In 1834 the bigotry turned particularly violent. Its greatest instigator was Samuel B. Morse who whipped his Protestant brethren into a fury. [Read more…] about ‘Monkish Traditions’: 1830s Hatred of Irish Immigrants
Although there had always been Irish immigrants to the colonies of the Americas, in the 1830s the pace of immigration of unskilled Irish quickened in the United States. (In 1820, only 21 percent had been unskilled laborers; by 1836 nearly 60 percent were.)
These newcomers were mostly Catholic. [Read more…] about Anti-Irish Sentiment In New York Before The 1830s
If there was one thing 19th century Granville Sentinel publisher Anna McArthur disliked more than Democrats, it was a competing newspaper attempting to siphon off Republican readership. [Read more…] about A Washington County Political Newspaper Brawl
On the December 2020 episode of “Crossroads of Rockland History,” Clare Sheridan welcomed feminist trailblazer Muriel Fox. While living in Tappan, Muriel Fox made history with Betty Friedan when they, and other prominent feminists, founded the National Organization for Women (NOW) in 1966. [Read more…] about An Interview With Feminist Activist Muriel Fox
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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
The new feature documentary, My Native Air: Charles Evans Hughes and the Adirondacks, co-produced by MDT Publishing and Snarky Aardvark Films, is premiering on-demand in a limited run from January 15th to February 15th, 2021. [Read more…] about Charles Evans Hughes Documentary Premiering Online
In the latest episode of Kaatscast, a podcast delivering interviews, arts, culture, and history from the Catskills , Delaware County Historian Bill Birns talks about the legacy of “Hobart’s greatest” (albeit largely forgotten) son, John Davenport Clarke.
Clarke was born in Hobart. He graduated Lafayette College in 1898 and Brooklyn Law School in 1911. He was assistant to the secretary of mines of the U. S. Steel from 1901 until 1907. In 1920, he was elected to Congress as a Republican. He was again elected to Congress in 1926 and served until his death in a car crash near Delhi, NY inn 1933. [Read more…] about John Davenport Clarke: Farmer, Forester, and Congressman
Timing 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
This week on The Historians Podcast Jim Kaplan chronicles the achievements of the first woman member of a Presidential cabinet. Frances Perkins was FDR’s Secretary of Labor who helped design Social Security. [Read more…] about Frances Perkins: The First Woman Named To A Presidential Cabinet
President William Howard Taft dozed for nearly five hours in the wee hours of the July 6th, 1909 morning as The Mayflower, his private rail car, was parked at the esplanade end of track No. 13 at Grand Central Station inn the city of New York. [Read more…] about President Taft At Old Ticonderoga