Month: October 2012

2013 Conference on NYS History Seeks Proposals

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Proposals are now being sought for the 2013 Conference on New York State History to be held at the New York State Historical Association in Cooperstown on June 6-8, 2013. Presentations may consider any aspect of New York State’s History.

The Conference on New York State History is an annual meeting of academic and public historians, librarians and archivists, educators, publishers, and other interested individuals who come together to discuss topics and issues related to the people of New York State in historical perspective and to share information and ideas regarding historical research, programming, and the networking of resources and services.

To mark the Civil War sesquicentennial, organizers are also soliciting proposals for one set of sessions that will examine aspects of the New York City draft riots of July 1863.

Presentation formats may include:

• Presentation sessions (Chair and 3 presenters- 75 minutes)

• Panel/Roundtable discussion sessions (Chair/Moderator and 3-4 panelists- 75 minutes)

• Workshops and practical sessions (Workshops 3-5 hours- practical sessions 75 minutes)

• Individual presentations (25 minutes)

Preference will be given to full session proposals. We encourage presenters to take a dynamic approach, including the use of visual and audio aids, audience participation, and discussions, rather than solely reading a paper.

All proposals must be received by January 7, 2013. Email proposals to [email protected]. The Program Committee will meet to consider proposals in mid-January. Applicants will be notified immediately thereafter.

What to submit:

• Completed proposal form, including description of no longer than 300 words, available at www.nysha.org/cnysh.

• Include a brief discussion of sources, methodology, and argument.

Questions should be directed to [email protected].

Conference sponsors include the New York State Historical Association, the New York State Archives Partnership Trust, and the New York Council for the Humanities.

State Parks Seek Outdoor Recreation Partners

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The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation has announced that it is seeking business or community service proposals to provide outdoor recreation and instruction programs that encourage state park visitors to participate in healthy activities.

The information gathered will be examined to identify opportunities to expand outdoor recreational programming and instructional classes, introduce park patrons to new recreation opportunities and new outdoor skills, and increase visitation in the parks and historic sites of the state park system.

“The outdoor recreation economy has proved its significance over the past several years, and our parks offer the settings and facilities for a multitude of recreational opportunities, from paddle-sports and fishing to mountain biking and cross-country skiing,” Rose Harvey, Commissioner of the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation said in a prepared statement to the press. “There is a great opportunity for partnerships to offer new and innovative ways to invest in our parks and our visitors, and I look forward to reviewing the proposals.”

The Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEI) targets businesses, non-profit organizations and individuals, potential operators, user groups, and other prospective partners for ideas for outdoor recreation programs and activities at the parks or sites of their choice. After receiving responses, State Parks will assess the submissions and may elect to interview those received which meet the agency’s goals and objectives with potential benefits and impacts on the park system overall, as well as the park under consideration. State Parks intends that the RFEI will help in the development of one or more programs for the enhancement, improvement and future use of the parks.

To request a copy of the RFEI, please call 518-486-2932 or email [email protected]. Proposed projects will need to be submitted by November 9, 2012. All expressions of interest responding to this RFEI must be in writing, signed by an authorized representative of the respondent, and submitted in a sealed envelope clearly marked “Outdoor Education RFEI” and directed to the following designated contact:

Attention: Harold H. Hagemann, Jr.
Director, Concessions Management Bureau
NYS Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation
Albany, New York 12238
Telephone: 518-486-2932

Clearly marked responses may also be electronically submitted on or before the deadline to the following e-mail address: [email protected], or via a CD mailed to Mr. Hagemann as noted above.

New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation oversees 178 state parks and 35 historic sites. For more information on any of these recreation areas, call 518-474-0456 or visit www.nysparks.com, connect on Facebook, or follow on Twitter.

Exploring A Dutch Colony Under English Rule

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Dr. David William Voorhees will give a presentation on how the Jacob Leisler Papers Project at New York University is transforming our understanding of the transition from Dutch New Netherland to English New York in the period from 1660 to 1700.

Jacob Leisler (1640-1691) was intimately bound to the economic, social, and political development of New Netherland and New York from his arrival in New Amsterdam in July 1660 in the employ of the Dutch West India Company until his beheading in New York City by the English governor in May 1691. Read more →

A Treacherous Beauty Behind Benedict Arnold

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Treacherous Beauty: The Woman Behind Benedict Arnold’s Plot to Betray America by Stephen Case and Mark Jacob (Globe Pequot, 2012) is the biography of Peggy Shippen, a Philadelphia society girl who became Mrs. Benedict Arnold and was involved in the most notorious treason in American history. When the plot was discovered, Peggy cleverly deflected blame. More than a century after her death, documents were discovered showing that she was a conspirator. But Peggy’s story remains little known today.

The granddaughter of a Philadelphia mayor, Peggy was 17 when the British army occupied her city. She became friends with John Andre, a handsome British officer. Then, when the patriots retook Philadelphia, Peggy was courted by the city’s top military man, General Benedict Arnold, who was considered the best battlefield commander in George Washington’s army but had been grievously wounded at Saratoga. Peggy was 18 and Arnold was 37 when they married. A month later, they began secretly communicating with the British, offering to commit treason. The British officer who handled the negotiations was Peggy’s old friend, Andre.

Ultimately, the Arnolds settled on a plan to surrender the vital outpost of West Point to the British and arrange the capture of thousands of troops – and perhaps even Washington himself. But Andre was captured behind enemy lines, and the plot unraveled. Arnold fled to the British, leaving Peggy behind to care for their infant son and convince the Founding Fathers that she was innocent. She put on one of the greatest performances in American history – a hysterical episode known as the “Mad Scene” that convinced Washington and the others that this highly intelligent woman was oblivious to the plot.

Andre was hanged as a spy. Peggy rejoined Arnold and eventually moved to London. Later they tried to settle in Canada, but Arnold’s business disputes ruined their chances. Peggy spent her last years in England trying desperately to keep her family afloat despite her husband’s financial recklessness. She succeeded in raising five children of the British Empire, four of them soldiers. Peggy died of cancer at age 44, and demanded the most modest burial possible. A keepsake was found among her effects: a lock of hair from John Andre.

Stephen H. Case is managing director and general counsel of Emerald Development Managers LP. He is a member of the board of the American Revolution Center. Mark Jacob, deputy metro editor at the Chicago Tribune, was part of the team that won the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for explanatory journalism. To satisfy his personal curiosity, Case has made himself an expert in the Peggy Shippen story, reading all available histories that examine her story and tracking down Peggy’s letters at various repositories of historical manuscript.

Mark Jacob, deputy metro editor at the Chicago Tribune, was part of the team that won the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for explanatory journalism. He is co-author of the newspaper’s “10 Things You Might Not Know” feature. He has co-written four other books, including What the Great Ate.

Note: Books noticed on this site have been provided by the publishers. Purchases made through this Amazon link help support this site.

New Washington Irving Treasury Box Set Published

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Three time-honored stories by Washington Irving, classic tales told again and again, have been released together in the cloth-bound box set A Washington Irving Treasury (Universe Publishing, 2012). The high-spirited stories of Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow present memorable folk characters that have become part of America’s literary lexicon, while Old Christmas preserves the nostalgia, warmth, and joy of English Christmas traditions. Read more →

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.

Subscribe! More than 3,200 people get New York History each day via E-mail, RSS, or Twitter or Facebook updates.

This Weeks New York History Web Highlights

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

Subscribe! More than 3,200 people get New York History each day via E-mail, RSS, or Twitter or Facebook updates.

$82,000 Awarded for Dialogue-Based Projects

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The New York Council for the Humanities has awarded $82,000 in its first round of Directors’ Project Grants for exemplary dialogue-based humanities programs to nine organizations ranging from a theater company in New York City to an African-American cultural center in Rochester.

These grants support programs that use dialogue as an integral way to engage the public, furthering the Council’s mission to help all New Yorkers become thoughtful participants in their communities. The nine awarded projects are:

Abolition&#8211Two Worlds on Staten Island, a community dialogue and exhibition exploring the contested history of the Underground Railroad on Staten Island.

The Baobab Film and Dialogue Series 2012-13 a year-long series of community dialogues in Rochester, many of them using films as a catalyst for discussion.

The Battle of Queenstown Heights Commemoration in Lewiston, which includes 18 dialogue stations to help mark the first major battle of the War of 1812.

Epic Theatre Ensemble’s Spotlight on Human Rights Festival at the John Jay College for Criminal Justice in New York City.

Frederick Douglass in Ireland: The Irish Influence on America’s Greatest Abolitionist, a day-long program of public discussions at St. John Fisher College in Rochester.

RACE: Are We So Different? A series of radio programs and a public forum in Rochester in conjunction with an exhibition about the historical, cultural, and scientific understandings of race.

The Counterculturalists: Towards a New Canon, a series of online interviews, discussions and a culminating symposium exploring new understandings cultural identity offered by the Asian-American Writers Workshop.

The D.R.E.A.M. Freedom Revival, four events in Syracuse that use performance and dialogue to engage participants about a range of issues from participatory democracy to aging.

The Guantanamo Public Memory Project, which will use discussions and mobile phone engagement to help New Yorkers understand the role and legacy of Guantanamo.

“These innovative projects show how the humanities can be central to promoting community engagement and civil discourse across our state,” says Council Executive Director Sara Ogger. Directors’ Project Grants are available to any tax-exempt organization in New York State.

Applicants should be prepared to demonstrate the exemplary nature of their project, and explain how it uses dialogue to spark public engagement. The next deadline for application is December 15, 2012 with notification 12 weeks later. More information about the grant guidelines and application forms can be found online at www.nyhumanities.org/grants.

In 2011, the Council awarded almost half a million dollars to public humanities projects, mostly in the form of small grants of up to $3000. To learn about the Council’s other grant opportunities, including its Special Initiative War of 1812 Project Grants, visit www.nyhumanities.org/grants.

The Council’s grant program is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Legislature of New York State. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in the funded programs do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Founded in 1975 and supported by Federal, State, and private sources, the New York Council for the Humanities helps all New Yorkers become thoughtful participants in our communities by promoting critical inquiry, cultural understanding, and civic engagement.

STATE MUSEUM TO SPONSOR “ADIRONDACK DAY” ON NOV. 3

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The New York State Museum will celebrate the Adirondacks and Lake Champlain on Saturday, November 3 with “Adirondack Day,” an inaugural daylong event that will complement the Museum’s exhibition on iconic Adirondack photographer Seneca Ray Stoddard.

The free event, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., will include a concert, lectures, displays, tours and films presented by theNew YorkStateMuseumand many of theNorth Country’s leading educational and cultural institutions.  Participating are theNew YorkStateMuseum,AdirondackMuseum, Adirondack Life magazine,FortTiconderoga, Great Camp Sagamore, John Brown Lives, Lakes to Locks Passage,MountainLakePBS, Paul Smith’s College, The Wild Center, and the Trudeau Institute. 

The highlight of the day will be a 2 p.m. concert by award-winningAdirondack folk musician, educator and story teller Dan Berggren. Berggren’s roots are firmly in the Adirondacks where he was raised, but he has entertained audiences across the country and overseas in Belgium, Bulgaria, Romania andCentral Africa. Hearing stories and songs from local friends and neighbors, he has developed a style that captures the spirit of the mountains. He has produced 14 albums and has won awards from the NYS Outdoor Education Association, the Association for the Protection of theAdirondacks, the Adirondack Mountain Club and SUNY Fredonia.

Guided tours will be offered of the Seneca Ray Stoddard: Capturing the Adirondacksexhibition. Stoddard’s photographs provide a visual record of the history and development of theAdirondacks. His work was instrumental in shaping public opinion about tourism, leading to the 1892 “Forever Wild” clause in the New York State Constitution.

The exhibition includes over 100 of Stoddard’s photographs, anAdirondack guideboat, freight boat, camera, copies of Stoddard’s books and several of his paintings. These and other items come from theStateMuseum’s collection of more than 500 Stoddard prints and also from the collections of the New York State Library and theChapmanHistoricalMuseum in Glens Falls. An online version of the exhibition is also available on theStateMuseum website at http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/virtual/exhibits/SRS/.

The events are presented by theNew YorkStateMuseum with the support of sponsors Paul Smith’s College and Stewart’s Shops.

TheStateMuseumis a program of the State Education Department’s Office of Cultural Education. Located on Madison Avenue in Albany, the Museum is open Tuesday through Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. except on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day. Admission is free. Further information can be obtained by calling (518) 474-5877 or visiting the Museum website at www.nysm.nysed.gov.

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