Foremost among new state park developments in the 1950s was the 1959 completion of a new state park on Barnhart Island on the St. Lawrence River, in present-day Robert Moses State Park (formerly St. Lawrence State Park) in the Thousand Islands region. [Read more…] about Robert Moses State Park’s Midcentury Modern Designs
Robert Moses State Park
Environmental History of Niagara Falls (Podcast)
The latest episode of Empire State Engagements features a conversation with Dr. Daniel Macfarlane about his book Fixing Niagara Falls: Environment, Energy, and Engineers at the World’s Most Famous Waterfall (Vancouver: UBC Press, 2020).
He discussed conflicting meanings of the falls for Indigenous People, sojourners mesmerized by their beauty, and entrepreneurs with utilitarian industrial visions and dreams of hydroelectric generation; the political dilemmas of managing such a valuable yet vulnerable resource on an international border; the role of Robert Moses in ramrodding power projects to completion in the postwar period; the remarkable re-engineering and re-construction of the falls themselves; de-watering Niagara; and the enduring appeal and splendor of the falls today, despite their “artificial” nature. [Read more…] about Environmental History of Niagara Falls (Podcast)
Civil War Weekend at Robert Moses State Park July 28-29
The St. Lawrence County Historical Association’s (SLCHA) annual Civil War Reenactment Weekend at Robert Moses State Park in Massena has been set for Saturday and Sunday July 28-29.
The military camps are open to the public from 10 am to 5 pm on Saturday, and 10 am to 2 pm on Sunday. Mock battles will be at 3 pm Saturday and 1 pm Sunday. [Read more…] about Civil War Weekend at Robert Moses State Park July 28-29
Robert Moses’ Least Controversial Triumph: The Niagara Power Plant
The many controversies that surrounded Robert Moses during his long career as New York’s “Master Builder” were sharpened by his long battle with Jane Jacobs and by Robert Caro’s 1974 biography, The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York (1974).
But his least contentious achievements are also the most unknown: the construction of the New York Power Authority’s hydroelectric plants along the St. Lawrence and Niagara Rivers. [Read more…] about Robert Moses’ Least Controversial Triumph: The Niagara Power Plant
Civil War Weekend at Robert Moses State Park
The St. Lawrence County Historical Association’s 14th Annual Civil War Reenactment Weekend will be held at Robert Moses State Park in Massena on Saturday and Sunday, July 25 and 26.
Military and civilian re-enactors from New York, Vermont, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Ontario and Quebec, Canada are expected to attend, including President Lincoln, as well as sutlers, vendors of period goods and clothing. [Read more…] about Civil War Weekend at Robert Moses State Park
Civil War Weekend Planned For Robert Moses State Park
The St. Lawrence County Historical Association will hold its annual Civil War Reenactment Weekend at Robert Moses State Park in Massena Saturday and Sunday July 26–27. The Civil War Reenactment Weekend is part of the SLCHA’s Commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, which began in 1861.
Union and Confederate reenactors will stage mock battles, perform military drills, talk about camp life, and demonstrate such skills as coffin-making, cooking, cannon firing, and medical practices. There will be a fashion show of Civil War-era clothing, a basket auction, historical displays and period music. [Read more…] about Civil War Weekend Planned For Robert Moses State Park