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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Washington Post Launches Civil War 150 Site

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Marking the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, the Washington Post newspaper will provide special ongoing coverage with commentary from experts, sesquicentennial news and an updating event calendar at a new site, Civil War 150.

A sampling of some of the articles and features on the site includes articles like &#8220The Civil War taught us to fight for the right to be wrong&#8221 and &#8220Civil War panelists join ‘A House Divided’: If Lincoln hadn’t won the election, would there have been a war?&#8221 Interactive features include a photo request for reenactors, a photo gallery &#8220Washington, D.C.: 1860 and today&#8220, a quiz entitled &#8220How well do you know Abe?&#8220, and a Civil War events guide.

April 2011 will mark the 150th Anniversary of the firing on Fort Sumter and the start of the American Civil War. While the State of Vermont has laid out preliminary plans for the multi-year observance that include several large statewide events, as well as coordination of community-based activities, New York State has nothing planned and no organization set to undertake commemoration planning.

New York provided 400,000-460,000 men during the war, nearly 21% of all the men in the state and more than half of those under the age of 30. By the time the Civil War ended in 1865, New York had provided the Union Army with 27 regiments of cavalry, 15 regiments of artillery, 8 of engineers, and 248 of infantry.[5] Federal records indicate 4,125 free blacks from New York served in the Union Army, and three full regiments of United States Colored Troops were raised and organized in the Empire State—the 20th, 26th, and 31st USCT.

No actual Civil War battles were fought within the Empire State, although Confederate agents did set several fires in New York City. New York troops were prominent in virtually every major battle in the Eastern Theater, and some in the Western Theater. New Yorker John Schofield rose to command of the Army of the Ohio and won the Battle of Franklin, dealing a serious blow to Confederate hopes in Tennessee.

More than 27,000 New Yorkers fought in the war’s bloodiest battle, the three-day Battle of Gettysburg in July 1863. During the entire war, 834 officers were killed in action, as well as 12,142 enlisted men. Another 7,235 officers and men perished from their wounds, and 27,855 died from disease. Another 5,766 were estimated to have perished while incarcerated in Southern prisoner-of-war camps.

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.

Admiral Byrd’s City of New York Relics at Auction

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The wheel, binnacle (compass) and bell from the ship the City of New York, famously used in Admiral Byrd’s 1929 exploration of Antarctica, and infamously a ship that failed to aid the imperiled Titanic, will be offered for the first time at public auction on November 17th in Dallas, Texas. The items are expected to bring over $10,000.

The history of the City of New York began in 1885, when she was known as the Samson, a 170-foot steam barque, whose first duty was as a sealing ship operating in arctic waters. On the night of April 14, 1912, loaded with 3000 pounds of illegal frozen seal in her hold, Samson was in the waters off Newfoundland and Labrador.

“On the horizon the crew saw signal rockets fired into the night by an unidentified ship,” said auction director Tom Slater. “Fearing a boarding by the Royal Navy, the crew doused the ship’s lights and quickly steamed out of the area. A few days later the captain of Samson heard the news of the sinking of RMS Titanic with the loss of 1517 lives.”

As additional news of the disaster spread, it became clear to the captain and crew of Samson that they did not come to the Titanic’s aid. The captain of SS Californian, another ship in the vicinity which did not respond, was publicly pilloried and became an outcast. Those on the Samson all wisely kept quiet about their unknowing abandonment of Titanic until 1962, the 50th anniversary of the sinking.

The Samson continued to ply the icy waters of the world, well known to the men racing to find glory in the arctic and Antarctic. In 1915 it rescued Sir Ernest Shackleton, who, having been beaten to the South Pole by Robert Falcon Scott and Roald Amundsen, turned his attention to an attempt to cross the Antarctic continent. When his ship, the Endurance, became icebound, it was the Samson that finally got him and his men to safe harbor after more than a year in the icy wilds.

It was actually Amundsen himself that recommended Samson to America’s Admiral Richard Byrd, who was planning an expedition to the Antarctic. Byrd followed his friend’s advice and purchased Samson to be his flagship on the expedition. It was renamed the City of New York, and in 1928 went with Byrd on his first expedition, along with one more ship and three airplanes. From there, City of New York participated in the photographic expeditions and geological surveys and the famous Nov. 28, 1929 flight to the South Pole and back, which captivated the world.

“The flight was successful, if harrowing, and it entered Byrd into the history books,” said Slater. “The expedition returned to North America on June 18, 1930 and was honored with the gold medal of the American Geographical Society.”

Byrd became wildly popular, and interest in his expedition did not diminish. In 1932, City of New York was sailed through the Great Lakes to the site of the Chicago World’s Fair. There, the ship was outfitted with artifacts of the expedition, and served as a floating museum throughout the fair.

In 1944, legendary yachtsman Lou Kennedy, bought City of New York, and converted her into a three-masted schooner. During the refitting, Kennedy discovered the ship’s wheel, binnacle (compass), and bell were all original equipment on Samson, and that Byrd had the bell and wheel engraved with the ship’s new name, City of New York when he retrofitted it in 1927. Kennedy replaced them and kept the originals, along with an intricately knotted ceremonial bell-pull used to ring President Franklin D. Roosevelt aboard when he visited the Chicago World’s Fair in 1933. The old ship burned and sank in 1953, ending a long career where she played a role in some of the twentieth century’s greatest sea tragedies and triumphs.

Heritage Auctions, headed by Steve Ivy, Jim Halperin and Greg Rohan, is the world’s third largest auction house, with annual sales more than $600 million, and 500,000+ registered online bidder members. For more information about Heritage Auctions, and to join and gain access to a complete record of prices realized, along with full-color, enlargeable photos of each lot, visit HA.com.

NY Military Museum Director to Speak

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Michael Aikey, Director of the New York State Military Museum, and a founding member of the Capital District Civil War Round Table, will give a talk on November 13th at the Schenectady County Historical Society. His topic is the collections of the New York State Military Museum housed in the historic Saratoga Armory building. The museum preserves the military history of New York State, and the history of New York State’s National Guard. Aikey’s talk will be a special introduction to the museum located in Saratoga Springs.

The museum was started in New York State in 1863, during the Civil War, and moved to several locations before finding a permanent home, in 2001, in the Saratoga Armory at 61 Lake Avenue, Saratoga Springs, New York. The museum houses over 10,000 artifacts from the Revolutionary War period to the present, including historic weapons, artillery pieces, uniforms, flags and artwork. The museum has a gallery, a library, a gift shop and offices for the Veteran Research Center, an oral history program. Aikey’s talk will be of particular interest to anyone interested in the military history of New York State, and the place in history of New York State veterans, including the history of the New York Army National Guard.

Michael Aikey has been working for the New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs (DMNA) since 1996 serving as the Director of the New York State Military History Task Force, Librarian/Archivist, and Deputy Director, before moving to the directorship of the New York State Military Museum/Research Center in 2002. He is a graduate of the State University of New York at Albany’s School of Information Science and Policy, with experience working in both public and academic libraries before going to DMNA.

Mr. Aikey was a founding member of the Capital District Civil War Round Table, has published articles on military history, guest curated several museum exhibits and worked as an NEA grant consultant. He lectures on New York State military history and the Civil War. Currently he serves on the Capital District Library Council’sboard of directors. His spare time is frequently involved in historical research, and tinkering with classic British cars.

This program is free and open to the public. There will be refreshments at 1:30 pm on Saturday prior to the talk at 2:00 pm. The Schenectady County Historical Society is located at 32 Washington Avenue, Schenectady, NY 12305. The building is wheel chair accessible with off-street parking. For more information contact Katherine Chansky at (518) 374-0263 or email [email protected]. Find directions to SCHS at www.schist.org.

Historic Saranac Lake to Hold Annual Meeting

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Historic Saranac Lake will hold its Annual Meeting on November 9 at 7:00 PM, in the John Black Room of the Saranac Laboratory Museum. The meeting marks the organization’s 30th year, and will feature a talk by Caperton Tissot on her new book, Adirondack Ice: a Cultural and Natural History.

Ice has determined the course of Adirondack history in many surprising ways. This book traces the evolution of that influence, touching on everything from ice industries and transportation to recreation and accidents. In 360 pages of personal stories, observations and over 200 historic and contemporary photos, the author pays tribute to a fast disappearing era.

Ms. Tissot will be available to sign books afterward, and will donate a portion of the profits sold at the meeting to Historic Saranac Lake.

Historic Saranac Lake is a not-for-profit architectural preservation organization that captures and presents local history from its center at the Saranac Laboratory Museum.

The meeting is open to all members of Historic Saranac Lake and the public at large. Light refreshments will be served.

Lectures: Albanys Political, Landscape History

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The Albany Institute of History & Art will host two free lectures and book signings in November which look at the city’s past from different perspectives. On Sunday, November 7, 2010, at 2:00 pm Warren Roberts will present &#8220A Place in History: Albany in the Age of Revolution&#8221 Then, on Sunday November 14, 2010, at 2:00 pm Robert M. Toole will present &#8220Landscape Gardens on the Hudson, A History&#8221

These lectures are free and open to the public. Admission to the lectures does not include admission to the museum.

In 1998, Warren Roberts took a bicycle ride into the heart of the city in which he had lived for 35 years, beginning a 10-year journey into the history of Albany. Reading about the city’s past, poring over old maps, and returning again and again to the city’s historic sites with a camera, Roberts found that the more he delved into Albany’s history, the more he uncovered about the city’s important role in three larger historical narratives: the American Revolution, the French Revolution, and the construction of the Erie Canal. A Place in History examines how the events that unfolded along the Hudson River between 1775 and 1825 saved one revolution, caused another, and transformed Albany and the state of New York.

Landscape gardening is a hidden but unequaled historic resource along the Hudson River, exhibiting some of the most significant designed 19th-century landscapes in America—a legacy that continues today with the design of America’s urban parks and nearly every rural or suburban home. The first comprehensive study of the development of these landscapes, and the important role they played in the cultural underpinnings of the young United States, Landscape Gardens on the Hudson explores the Hudson Valley’s role as the birthplace of American landscape architecture.

New Netherland Research Center Opened

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A ribbon-cutting ceremony today officially opened the New Netherland Research Center (NNRC) on the 7th floor of the New York State Library in Albany. The NNRC will focus attention on New York State’s rich collection of historic Dutch Colonial documents and facilitate access to them for future scholars, teachers and students both here and abroad.

The New Netherland Research Center, which will provide access to the colonial Dutch documents held by the New York State Archives and New York State Library Manuscripts and Special Collections, is the first step in an international effort to launch a collaborative digitization project to share collections and archives from former Dutch colonies.

During the 2009 Quadricentennial celebration of Henry Hudson’s voyage opening up the New World to Dutch settlement, Dutch dignitaries, including the Prince of Orange and Princess Maxima of the Netherlands, visited the Cultural Education Center’s 1609 Exhibition.

At that visit the government of the Netherlands committed to a grant of €200,000 (approximately $275,000) to the New Netherland Institute to continue and expand the New Netherland Project by establishing a New Netherland Research Center. This gift, with matching support from the Institute, are expected to transform what started out as a translation project into a collaborative research initiative with international scope and context.

Modern technologies are hoped to make New York’s collections, along with those in other similar or complementary repositories, available digitally and to promote a more complete story of the Dutch global reach during the colonial period and its lasting impact on today’s world.

The NNRC is the culmination of a decades-long translation effort, the New Netherland Project, at the New York State Library. Dr. Charles Gehring is the project’s Director and principal translator. Dr. Janny Venema is Assistant Director. Both have worked to unlock the wealth of information in these collections by making them available in English. They have also written extensively and spoken widely on the scope and legacy of our early Dutch heritage.

Seventeenth century collections of government records in the New York State Archives and non-government documents in the Library’s Manuscripts and Special Collections constitute the world’s largest collection of early Dutch language documentation of the New World colonies. Encompassing what is now a large part of the northeastern United States, the early Dutch colony, its language, culture and laws, lie at the roots of much of our nation’s modern history. Scholars regularly explore the collections for insights into 17th century life in New Netherland. Russell Shorto relied heavily on Gehring and Vanema and the New York State collections in writing his book The Island at the Center of the World: The Epic Story of Dutch Manhattan and the Forgotten Colony that Shaped America.

The New York State Library is a program of the New York State Education Department’s Office of Cultural Education.

Preservation Leagues Pillar of New York Award

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The Preservation League of New York State will present its most prestigious commendation, the Pillar of New York Award, to two honorees at the 2010 Pillar of New York Awards gala on November 9 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City.

Since 1992 the Preservation League has presented its Pillar of New York Award to individuals and organizations whose work in the field of historic preservation makes them role models for others throughout the state and nation.

Beyer Blinder Belle Architects & Planners LLP of New York City will be celebrated for the firm’s role as one of America’s premier authorities on historic preservation, and for their work on some of New York State’s most iconic and best-loved historic buildings and important historic areas, including Grand Central Terminal and the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory at the New York Botanical Garden.

Matthew Bender IV’s name is virtually synonymous with philanthropy and leadership in historic preservation, particularly in upstate New York, where he has served on the New York State Commission on the Restoration of the Capitol since its creation in 1979, and was a founding member and long-time board member of Historic Albany
Foundation and the Preservation League of New York State.

Each year the League presents The Pillar of New York Award to those who have demonstrated a keen understanding of the value of New York’s historic resources by taking extraordinary actions to protect, preserve, and promote those assets. Tickets for the black tie gala start at $600 for individuals, and tables of 10 are available starting at $10,000. For more information or to purchase tickets, contact the
Preservation League at 518-462-5658 x11.

&#8220Beyer Blinder Belle’s deep understanding of New York’s history as reflected in patterns of settlement and land use has made them a leader in architecture and planning,&#8221 said Arete Swartz Warren, Chair of the Preservation League. &#8220Since 1968, the firm’s work has set a high standard around the country and around the world. Beyer Blinder Belle successfully applies classical principles to a new generation of
design and planning, and, as William Shakespeare said, &#8216-makes us heirs of all eternity.’ For their profound respect of the importance of a community’s social history in architecture and planning, we recognize Beyer Blinder Belle as a Pillar of New York.&#8221

The League will honor Matthew Bender for fostering a family tradition of historic preservation, and as a lifelong leader in the support of preservation and the performing arts. &#8220Of all the ideals and traditions one can pass on to the next generation, a love of history and the arts may be the finest,&#8221 said Jay DiLorenzo, president of the Preservation League. &#8220When we value our history, we engender both
appreciation for the past and anticipation for the future. Matthew Bender IV is building a legacy that truly matters, brick by brick and acre by acre. For philanthropic leadership and a peerless reputation as a community leader and executive volunteer, we honor Matthew Bender IV as a Pillar of New York.&#8221

Past honorees of the League’s Pillar of New York Award include the Pell Family for their leadership in the preservation of Fort Ticonderoga and its surroundings- the Pratt Family for the founding and preservation of the Pratt Institute Campus- Tiffany & Co. and The Tiffany & Co Foundation- preservation advocates Connie and David Clapp- Phyllis Lambert, the film Citizen Lambert: Joan of Architecture, and its director, Teri Wehn Damisch- David Beer and Brennan Beer Gorman / Architects and Brennan Beer Gorman Monk / Interiors- Cook + Fox Architects- Southampton Town Councilman Dennis Suskind- Governor George E. Pataki- developer Frank J. Sciame- Ronald Lauder- the Honorable James R. Houghton- Mrs. Vincent Astor- Peggy and
David Rockefeller- architect Hugh Hardy- and Jane Forbes Clark. The League has also previously honored William S. Beinecke, Chairman and Director of the Prospect Hill Foundation- Friends of Hudson- Dia:Beacon, Riggio Galleries- LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust and the Mertz Gilmore Foundation- Chubb Corporation- Cablevision Systems- and the Hilton Hotel Corporation.

The Preservation League of New York State – New York’s only statewide historic preservation organization – is dedicated to promoting historic preservation as a tool to revitalize our neighborhoods, honor our heritage, and enrich our lives. As the State’s preservation leader, the League seeks to recognize and applaud individuals, organizations and businesses which understand the value of our historic resources and have taken extraordinary actions to protect, preserve and promote those assets.

Schenectady Genealogy Day Event Saturday

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On Saturday November 6th the Schenectady County Historical Society will explore the many possible ways to uncover your family history during Genealogy Day, an event that will feature several speakers along with open hours in the library. Frank Taormina, a retired teacher and long-time Schenectady resident, will describe the history of the ethnic communities of Schenectady as he shows us the City’s many places of worship: churches, synagogues and mosques. Bob Sullivan, librarian at the Schenectady County Public Library and webmaster of Schenectady Digital History Archive, will explain how to mine the wealth of the Internet to locate historic newspapers on the Internet. During the lunch hour Kim Mabee, a community volunteer and tireless family researcher, will share the story of her own research on the Mabee Family of Rotterdam, NY.

The afternoon of Genealogy Day offers participants the choice of sitting in on a beginning genealogy class or exploring the resources of the Grems-Doolittle Library. Nancy Curran, a genealogical consultant, will be on hand in the library to field research questions. Curran is an experienced researcher well versed in using the New York State Department of Health vital records indexes at the New York State Archives. Katherine Chansky, librarian at the Historical Society’s Grems-Doolittle Library, will talk about ways to begin a genealogy project. She will share some tips on organizing family records, suggest Internet sites to visit, and demonstrate
Family Tree Maker software.

Reservation are recommended. Participants will be asked for a 5 dollar donation to benefit the Historical Society. Lunch is bring your own bag lunch- cold beverages and homemade desserts will be provided by Grems-Doolittle Library volunteers.

Genealogy Day Schedule Saturday Nov. 6th :

10:00 am – 10: 45 am Churches of Schenectady by Frank Taormina. This PowerPoint presentation by Schenectady resident Frank Taormina, will explore the ethnic character of the City of Schenectady’s places of worship. Taormina was a social studies teacher for ten years, a school administrator and for many years the principal of Niskayuna High School. He has been president of the Schenectady County Historical Society and is a frequent speaker at SCHS events.

11:00 am – 11:45 am Digital Newspapers Online by Robert Sullivan, reference librarian at the Schenectady County Public Library and Trustee of the Schenectady County Historical Society. Bob will give a survey of assorted Internet sites where the public can find digital historic newspaper collections. He will also discuss the wealth of information available through Newsbank and Google/Gazette.

12:00 noon to 1:30 Lunch Break Guest Speaker, Kim Mabee, Mabee/Mabie/Maybee/Maybee: Soup to Nuts. Kim Mabee has spent years adding her own genealogy research to the extensive Mabee family genealogical record. A member of the Maybee Society, she describes herself as a “professional volunteer.” Kim has taken leadership roles
in a variety of area organizations including president of the Sacandaga PTA, President of the Schenectady County Historical Society, and Volunteer registrar for the Highland Soccer Club. She has received awards for her community service and takes pride in being a life-long student and self-taught scholar. From the summer into the fall season Kim is the “butter lady” at the Historic Mabee Farm in
Rotterdam Junction, NY, teaching hundreds of school children on farm tours how to make homemade sweet butter and giving lessons in farm-based traditions of the Mohawk Valley.

1:30 pm – 2:30 pm Beginning Genealogy by Katherine Chansky, Librarian/Archivist for the Grems-Doolittle Library. Katherine Chansky has been working in local history and genealogy for over 10 years. She will share suggestions on organizing your family records, setting up files in Family Tree Maker, and identify several Internet
website for the beginning genealogist.

2:00 pm – 4:00 pm Library Open Hours with Nancy Johnsen Curran. Curran is a genealogist and experienced researcher. She will be available in the library to brainstorm answers to your genealogy questions.

On any project, a thorough search of the Internet may lead to intensive local research in nearby counties’ courthouses, historical societies, libraries and churches.

An important resource is the New York State Library and Archives, one of the leading repositories in the country. For 20th-century research, New York State’s vital records are familiar territory. Other holdings consulted may include colonial wills, tax records, military records and prison records, as well as the unique documents
in the Manuscript Collection. Nancy Johnsen Curran brings many years experience locating family history in these records in the Capital region. She is a member of the board of trustees of Schenectady County Historical Society and the New Netherland Institute, the membership organization in support of the New Netherland Research Center. Curran brings to genealogy research a discipline instilled by many years in print and electronic journalism. Experience as a feature writer and
columnist is called into play, as she presents factual history in readable, interesting form. Her website address is www.nancycurran.com.

The Schenectady County Historical Society is located at 32 Washington Avenue, Schenectady, NY 12305. The building is wheel chair accessible with off-street parking.

For more information contact Katherine Chansky at (518) 374-0263 or email [email protected]. Find directions to SCHS at www.schist.org.