Yearly Archives: 2012

The other New York

11 Sunday Mar 2012

Posted by in Memory, New York City

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New York Thruway

Many visitors to New York assume that the the five boroughs, especially Manhattan, “are” New York. Why shouldn’t they? Many who reside here think the same way as well. New York State has a rich heritage dating back nearly four centuries, longer of course when one factors in Native American history. That so few people are aware of this history is largely the state’s fault. In the early years of the twentieth century Virginia and Massachusetts rigorously advertised their roles in the American storyline. New York was slower to do so and has been paying the price ever since. That’s why schoolchildren learn about Bunker Hill and Appomattox but not the Battle of Long Island or Evacuation Day. Hopefully an initiative announced by Governor Andrew Cuomo this past Thursday will do something to rectify that. The “Path Through History” will bring together prominent historians to identify points of interest along the New York State Thruway where heritage tourists can get more than a cup of coffee and a fill up. The program is similar to the Journey Through Hallowed Ground that traces the Old Carolina Road through parts of Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. The wife and I have taken the road less traveled many times and have always been rewarded by the experience.

No timeline has been set for the identifying and marking of historical points to interest along the nearly 600 miles of the New York Thruway, but my guess is that they will start popping up later this year or in 2013. There is certainly much to identify; a short list might include spots along the Underground Railroad, the William Seward home, John Brown’s farm, and Grant Cottage where the general and president died. This is a worthwhile endeavor that will highlight New York’s rich history while also bringing tourist dollars to parts of the state that do not always benefit as well as they might. Look for it soon.

(image/Doug Kerr)

Army football

09 Friday Mar 2012

Posted by in Uncategorized

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1916 Army-Navy game, Polo Grounds

This afternoon the Army football team–for the first time ever–will play its annual spring game outside of New York. And not just anywhere outside of New York. The game is being played in Doughboy Stadium at Fort Benning against that command post’s team. The Black Knights had to get special permission from the NCAA to play the scrimmage against a none NCAA team. The game is part of a West Point initiative to reach out to other institutions within the Army infrastructure. Leaders at Fort Benning were also eager to play the intersquad game to emphasize the revitalization of the Benning football program. For decades in the early to mid-twentieth century Benning’s football team played organized games against college teams from Florida, Georgia, and Alabama with great success.

Doughboy Stadium is not just another building. Benning infantrymen built the stadium in 1924 to pay tribute to their comrades who had fallen in the Great War. Captain Dwight D. Eisenhower coached the team in the mid-1920s, to his great frustration. Ike loved football but he was eager to move on and serve in other ways. Unfortunately for him, the Benning brass grasped his football acumen and made certain to keep him stationed down in Georgia.

A short video is here.

(image/LOC)

Fenway, the next hundred years

08 Thursday Mar 2012

Posted by in Baseball

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Not long ago I mentioned that Fenway Park was under consideration for placement on the National Register of Historic Places. Well, that has now come to pass. Yesterday the ballpark where the Red Sox play was added to the list of 80,000 (and growing) architecturally, historically, and culturally significant structures deemed worthy of protection. Though I love Fenway, I was actually one of the people who would have preferred a new ballpark when there was much discussion of the topic in the 1990s. Others disagreed, and I understood  their arguments. As a Sox fan living in the heart of the Evil Empire I can’t say my mind was changed after seeing the new Yankee Stadium when it debuted in 2009. The old ballparks are filled with memories, but it is the people who made them, not the structures themselves. The new ownership decided not to go in that direction and I must say they did an amazing job updating and renovating over the past decade, spending almost $250 million in the process. It is not a coincidence that the team ended an 86 year World Series title drought after revamping.

Now, any further changes must adhere to strict guidelines and be subject to review from governmental and architectural authorities. Thankfully John Henry and his team seem to understand and are committed to the longterm. The Monster Seats they added a few years ago are fabulous and do not detract from the building’s integrity in any way. Fenway is a better visitor experience than it ever has been.

Fenway Park opened on April 20, 1912. The Red Sox defeated the Yankees 7-6 in 11 innings. Spring training is now in full swing and in a few short weeks the little jewel of a ballpark will begin its second century. Things could be worse.

(image/Wally G.)

To the manor born

05 Monday Mar 2012

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Ever wanted to be a bonafide plantation owner? Now is your chance. The economic crisis has forced many South Carolina plantation owners to place their properties on the market in recent years. Hard as it may be to believe, tucked away at the end of many dirt roads in the Palmetto State are estates still standing that trace their roots back to the seventeenth century. Yes, that is the 1600s. Sherman’s men did their best to destroy as many of these estates as possible. The collapse of the slave system during the Civil War did the rest. Still, enough held on to serve as hunting lodges, paper mills, wildlife refuges, and retreats for wealthy Northerners during the Gilded Age and after. Such was the case with Hobcaw, the plantation owned by industrialist Bernard Baruch pictured at right. During Reconstruction such land was selling for as little as 3 cents an acre. Today, a plantation will set you back $3 to $20 million. Aspiring Rhett Butlers should be aware that annual maintenance averages an additional $500,000.

(image/Hobcaw Plantation, Georgetown County, S.C./LOC)

“How much is my Bible worth?”

04 Sunday Mar 2012

Posted by in Libraries

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1859 family Bible

When I was getting my MLS in the mid-1990s our professor told the class one day with a laugh that the question he was asked the most was, “How much is my Bible worth?” The answer is usually, “Not much.” This is because the family Bible was a ubiquitous part of most American households in the nineteenth and early twentieth century. A book isn’t “rare” if millions of regular folk own one. Many American families had only two books in the home: the Bible and the Complete Works of Shakespeare. Family Bibles were especially plentiful in the north Texas town where I went to grad school. Though the area where I lived had transformed into a contemporary Sunbelt town, there were still a substantial number of Old Families in the community who traced their heritage back to the original settler families of the 1870s and immediately thereafter. I knew many of them through my volunteering at the local historical museum. No one will get rich on Antiques Roadshow selling their Bible, but they are nonetheless a fascinating part of our individual and collective heritage.

(image/David Ball)

Fire sale

02 Friday Mar 2012

Posted by in Museums

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In the 1990s Harrisburg, PA mayor Stephen Reed envisioned a campus of museums dedicated to the preservation and exhibition of artifacts going back to colonial times. To this end, the city spent millions collecting pieces from across the country. The idea, as I understand it, is that the city would profit in the long run through the tourist dollars the museums would attract. In 2001 the National Civil War Museum opened in Reservoir Park. Less than an hour’s ride from Gettysburg, the museum is worth adding to one’s itinerary. It is a beautiful, modern facility with a collection few others can match. The scope is equally impressive, covering the entire Civil War era from 1850 to 1876. In 2009 it became one of the Smithsonian affiliates I mentioned the other day. Sadly the plans for the additional museums never came to fruition, the economic crises and budget deficits of recent years having rendered these plans untenable. Now Harrisburg has commissioned a New York auction house to sell a signifacant portion of the city’s historical collections to pay off the municipal debt. The sale will be held across eight days this coming July after a full inventory.

I do not know enough about the city’s fiscal troubles, though I am sure they are severe. These are tough choices, but I hope city officials are thinking things through. They held a similar auction in 2007 that netted the city $1.4 million. It is not clear how large the city’s holdings will remain after this 2012 sale. During New York City’s darkest years in the 1970s some New York institutions resisted the temptation to sell despite the obvious short term gains. Today, these museums and repositories are enjoying a renaissance of record crowds despite Gotham’s own very real financial difficulties. Something to consider.

(image/Confederate Bowie (top) and Naval knives in NCWM collection, Claire H.)

Surrogate objects

29 Wednesday Feb 2012

Posted by in Media and Web 2.0, Museums

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Founded fifteen years before the onset of the American Civil War, the Smithsonian Institution has always managed to stay relevant by embracing change. This has never been truer than today, with the explosion of digital technology we have seen in recent decades. It is a daunting challenge. The Smithsonian operates nineteen museums and galleries, most of them in Washington but many spread out across the country. There are also the nine research institutes, as well as cooperative relationships with 168 affiliate institutions that also trace our country’s natural and historic legacy. One of my favorite outposts is the Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum. If ever in Memphis, just go. All told the Smithsonian holds about 137 million items, only about 2% of which are on display at any given time. When we were at the American History Museum last summer we missed seeing Fonzie’s leather jacket because it had been taken out of rotation to make way for Farrah Fawcett’s swimsuit. A small team of scientists is trying to solve this problem, or at least alleviate it somewhat. Their answer? 3D imagery of select items from the museums holdings. It has already begun with a 3D replica of a Jefferson statue that is on display at the current Slavery at Jefferson’s Monticello exhibit in Washington. I do not think 3D imagery will ever supplant actual existing objects and I would not want it to; the reason for visiting a museum in the first place is to witness the real thing. It is an intriguing project however, and one that has many possibilities if done wisely. It will be interesting to see where this leads.

(image/Archie Bunker’s chair at American History Museum, Matthew G. Bisanz)

A new Arlington House

28 Tuesday Feb 2012

Posted by in National Park Service, Washington, D.C.

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Union troops pose before Lee Mansion, June 1864

Regular readers of The Strawfoot may remember when I wrote last March about our trip Arlington House and Cemetery. It was my first visit to the site, and as you can imagine it was a moving experience. The Lee Mansion is undergoing extensive renovations and there wasn’t a whole lot to see on the day we were there. Much of the construction entails such glamorous details as new duct work and ventilation. Another aspect of the project, however, is focusing on updating the interpretive experience of the plantation. Visitors are now getting a more nuanced understanding of the house, the grounds, and the people who lived, worked, and died there. The story of Arlington House is a fascinating one and is something we are only just now beginning to understand in its entirety. The Park Service is currently collaborating with Arlington National Cemetery (which is run by the U.S. Army) to offer a number of unique programs at Arlington. Here is a brief clip from one.

I haven’t been back to Arlington since that visit almost a year ago, but I imagine things are progressing. I am looking forward to getting back when construction is complete.

(image/National Archives)