Month: February 2011

Seminar: American Motorcycle Competition of 1912

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The Saratoga Automobile Museum in Saratoga Springs has announced a historical seminar on motorcycles this February 26, 2011 from 11 am to 2 pm. After the large success of Marty Christopher’s “History of the Motorcycle” in 2010 he has decided that this years theme would be “American Motorcycle Competition of 1912”. Mr. Christopher thought that a seminar about competition motorcycles would be a great tie in with the Museum’s existing exhibit.

The exhibit opened in October of 2010 and will be open until May 1, 2011. There are several bikes on display for visitors to take a look at. From Asphalt to Ice is the title of the exhibit and is the third one that the Museum has put together since they decided to make motorcycles part of their changing exhibit series. Christopher has been instrumental in assisting the Museum in locating motorcycles for each exhibit and he has said that he will use the motorcycles on display as models for his seminar.

The Museum invites everyone to join in on “American Motorcycle Competition of 1912” seminar. Spend the day finding out what motorcycle racing was like in America back in 1912.

Participants will learn about the types, tracks, bikes, and of course the riders. What rules were in 1912, performance tricks, engine configurations, nick names of riders and how the riders earned their names.

“These motorcycles have been stripped of all excess and have no comfort. There are little to no decorations and safety is always in question. The rider is exposed right down to their nerves as they pull back on the throttle on the green and speed forward,” Christopher said when asked to give a brief description about what racing was like in 1912.

The Saratoga Automobile Museum is located at: 110 Avenue of the Pines, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866. Hours of operation: 7 days a week, 10 am to 5 pm. Admission: Adults &#8211 $8.00, seniors and students &#8211 $5.00 with children under 6 free. For more information call Tracy Paige (518) 587-1935 x 17 or [email protected].

Wife of Abolitionist John Brown Subject of Performance

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Author-historian Sandra Weber and musician David Hodges will present a dramatic performance of the life of Mary Day Brown, wife of radical abolitionist John Brown.

The Adirondack Museum&#8216-s Cabin Fever Sunday series will return to Saranac Lake, New York on February 27, 2011. &#8220Times of Trouble&#8221 with Weber and Hodges will be held at Saranac Village at Will Rogers. The time will be 2:00 p.m. The presentation will offered at no charge to museum members, residents of Saranac Village, and children of elementary school age or younger. The fee for non-members is $5.00.

Dressed in period costume, Weber and Hodges will weave narrative and song to share the little known life of Mary Brown. The poignant piece illustrates the significant role this plain woman played as wife of the radical abolitionist John Brown.

The program will present Mary’s early life and marriage as well as later tragedies involving bankruptcy, accidents, and death. The presentation closes with Mrs. Brown’s most difficult &#8220times of trouble&#8221 in the aftermath of the raid on Harper’s Ferry. Sandra Weber has spent ten years researching the life of Mary Day Brown.

Weber is an author, storyteller, and independent scholar with special interest in the Adirondacks, Mary and John Brown, as well as women’s history. Her publishing credits include eight books and numerous articles in periodicals such as Civil War Times, Adirondack Life, Pennsylvania Magazine, and Highlights for Children.

In 2004 and 2005, Sandra Weber toured with folksinger Peggy Lynn performing stories from their book, Breaking Trail: Remarkable Women of the Adirondacks.

David Hodges has played guitar and bass for more than twenty years. He has performed with bands throughout New York, Texas and Pennsylvania and recorded CDs with &#8220Mad Factory&#8221 and &#8220Evil Twin.&#8221 Hodges currently plays with &#8220Mr. Freeze,&#8221 a blues-rock band, and accompanies Sandra Weber in folk music performances.

This Weeks Top New York History News

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Each Friday morning New York History compiles for our readers the previous week’s top stories about New York’s state and local history. You can find all our weekly news round-ups here.

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This Weeks New York History Web Highlights

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Each Friday afternoon New York History compiles for our readers a collection of the week’s top weblinks about New York’s state and local history. You can find all our weekly round-ups here.

Subscribe! More than 550 people get New York History each day via E-Mail, RSS, or Twitter or Facebook updates.

Being Green in the 1700s at Fort Montgomery

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“Green” in the 1700s at Fort Montgomery: Eco-lutionary: Unintentionally will be a free program presented on Saturday, February 26th, at 1:30 PM at Fort Montgomery State Historic Site, 690 Route 9W in Fort Montgomery, NY (Orange County).

In this slide presentation and hands-on show and tell, Fort Montgomery State Historic Site Interpreter Peter Cutul will present some of the numerous and innovative ways our colonial ancestors reduced, re-used, and recycled. Cutul will demonstrate how the colonials were on the cutting edge or even ahead of the curve of many of today’s green practices. The program will conclude with practical tidbits we can start at home, as well as those practices perhaps better left in the past!

For more information, please call the site at (845) 446-2134.

New Genealogy Tools at NY State Archives

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The New York State Archives recently announced the creation of two tools, called “pathfinders,” to help genealogists and researchers locate naturalization and probate records created throughout New York, from the colonial period to the present.

Naturalizations grant the full legal rights and privileges held by native-born individuals to someone born in another country. Legal jurisdiction over naturalization has changed repeatedly since the colonial period, so the records can be found in various locations. They may be in the county clerk’s office, the New York State Archives, the National Archives branch in New York City, or U.S. District Court clerk’s office. The pathfinder highlights books, links to indexes, and directories where researchers can find more information about an ancestor and the places that may hold these naturalization records.

Probate records include wills, estate inventories, letters of administration, and other documents relating to the administration and settlement of a deceased person’s estate. The State Archives holds probate records created or compiled by predecessor courts that had legal jurisdiction over probate matters prior to 1787. A limited number of probate records after 1787 are held by the Archives because they are filed and retained by the Surrogate’s Court in each county. For that reason, the probate pathfinder is divided into two chronological sections: before 1787 and after 1787. This pathfinder identifies collections within the State Archives as well as books and links to guides and locations that may help researchers.

The pathfinders can be found on the State Archives’ website.

Dorsky Museum to Feature Historic Textile Expert

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Rabbit Goody, a leading expert in the study and manufacture of 18th and 19th century textiles, will be featured at a panel discussion at the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art in New Paltz on Sunday, February 20th at 3pm.

The panel discussion is coincides with the exhibit currently on view at the Dorsky: Binary Visions: 19th Century Woven Coverlets from the Collection of Historic Huguenot Street. This exhibit features more than 20 coverlets woven from cotton and wool on water-powered looms in small factories across the mid-Hudson Valley during the first half of the 19th century. The exhibition is a particularly important opportunity for historians and scholars to conceive new ways of thinking about the visual power of these coverlets.

Rabbit Goody is owner of Thistle Hill Weavers in Cherry Valley, New York. For more than 20 years, Thistle Hill Weavers has been weaving luxurious custom fabrics, carpet, and trim for designers, home owners, museums, and the film industry. Goody specializes in creating accurate historic reproductions, working from surviving examples, documented patterns, and period weavers’ drafts. Goody was a consultant for the Binary Visions exhibit.

Joining Goody on the panel will be Leslie LeFevre-Stratton, Curator of Collections at Historic Huguenot Street and Jessica Poser, Assistant Professor of Art Education at SUNY New Paltz. Poser has used the textile collections at Historic Huguenot Street as the inspiration for some of her most recent works of art. The panel will be moderated by Brian Wallace, Curator at the Dorsky Museum.

The panel discussion will be held in the Student Union Building closest to the campus entrance off South Manheim Boulevard and is free and open to the public.

For more information about the exhibit and the panel discussion, visit www.huguenotstreet.org or www.newpaltz.edu/museum.

Saratoga National Historical Park Seeks Volunteers

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Saratoga National Historical Park is preparing for the 2011 season and is looking for enthusiastic and dedicated individuals to assist as Volunteers in Parks (VIPs) in several areas. As a volunteer at Saratoga Battlefield you will receive training and a uniform, plus you’ll get to work in a beautiful environment with knowledgeable and friendly rangers.

Time requirements vary by position (they are listed below) and are arranged to work with the volunteer’s schedule. For more information, please call the Saratoga National Historical Park volunteer coordinator at 518-664-9821 ext. 225.

Schuyler House Guides – provide 35-minute guided tours of historic Philip Schuyler House in Schuylerville, NY. Six positions available.

Visitor Information Specialists – greet visitors and provide basic site orientation to the battlefield. Three positions available.

Battlefield Interpreters – stationed at Neilson House to provide historical information to visitors touring the battlefield. Six to eight positions available.

Bookstore Sales Associate – assisting visitors with suggestions for book or gift purchases, operating computer-based sales system. Three positions available.

Musket Corps – participate in living history programs through demonstrations of 18th century soldiers’ musket drilling, firing, marching and maneuvering. Eight positions available.

Special Event Volunteers – help during large events with needs such as parking, greeting and orienting visitors, handing out information and crowd control. Six to eight positions available.

Brooklyn Museum Celebrates Native American Culture

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The Brooklyn Museum’s Target First Saturday event attracts thousands of visitors to free programs of art and entertainment each month. The March 5 event celebrates the rich heritage and cultures of North America’s Native Americans and showcases the special exhibition Tipi: Heritage of the Great Plains.

Throughout the evening, a cash bar will offer beer and wine, and the Museum Cafe will serve a wide variety of sandwiches, salads, and beverages. The Museum Shop will remain open until 11 p.m.

Some Target First Saturday programs have limited space available and are ticketed on a first-come, first-served basis. Programs are subject to change without notice. Museum admission is free after 5 p.m. Museum galleries are open until 11 p.m. Parking is a flat rate of $4 from 5 to 11 p.m.

Highlights include:

5-7 p.m. Music
Martha Redbone (pictured) performs a combination of R & B, soul, rock, and traditional Native American music.

5:30 p.m. Performance
The Thunderbird American Indian Dancers perform an array of traditional Native American songs and dances.

6 p.m. Film
Edge of America (James McDaniel, 2003, 105 min.). An African American educator takes a job teaching high-school English on a Native American reservation and is coaxed into coaching the girls’ basketball team. Free tickets available at the Visitor Center at 5 p.m.

6:30-8:30 Hands-On Art
Design your own parfleche, an elegant Native American pouch made of hide. Free timed tickets available at the Visitor Center at 5:30 p.m.

7 p.m. Curator Talk
Nancy Rosoff, Andrew W. Mellon Curator and Chair of the Arts of the Americas, on Tipi: Heritage of the Great Plains. Free tickets available at the Visitor Center at 6 p.m.

8 p.m. Young Voices Talk
Student Guides on Tipi: Heritage of the Great Plains

8-10 p.m. Dance Party
Dee Jay Frame spins tracks fusing hip-hop and traditional Native American music.

9 p.m. Book Club
Lakota scholar Joseph Marshall III speaks about his latest book, To You We Shall Return. A book signing follows.

9-10 p.m. Performance
The Redhawk Arts Council hosts an interactive dance performance inspired by traditional Northern and Southern Plains dances.

10-11 p.m. Late Night in the Galleries
All galleries open.

Photo: Martha Redbone. Photo by Anthony Two Moons.

Saratoga Auto Museum: Popcorn Wagon Mechanics

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The Saratoga Automobile Museum has announced an event entitled &#8220Popcorn Wagon Mechanics.&#8221 On Saturday, February 19, 2011 sixteen students who have been working since December of 2010 to mechanically rebuild a historic 1925 Model TT Cretor Popcorn Wagon will be in the garage again.

This session will include removing entire front end assembly, touching up the frame and underbelly of vehicle, rebuilding the front end assembly by replacing any bushings, king pins, tie rods, or any other steering rods as needed, checking the springs and bushings, paint the front axle and springs, greasing all the points that are required, and then re-installing the front end assembly. The program’s mentors will be explaining the steering dynamics and will relate them to modern automobiles.

The event is open to the public. For more information you can contact Tracy Paige at [email protected] or visit our website at www.saratogaautomuseum.org The Saratoga Automobile Museum is located at: 110 Avenue of the Pines, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866. Hours of operation: 7 days a week, 10 am to 5 pm. Admission: Adults &#8211 $8.00, Seniors and Students &#8211 $5.00 with children under 6 free.