Monthly Archives: June 2014

Gearing up for the WW1 Centennial

05 Thursday Jun 2014

Posted by in WW1

≈ 4 Comments

0114commissionlogoThis morning via email I received the program for the “Trade Show” that the The United States World War One Centennial Commission is putting on next week in DC. I cannot tell you how exited and energized I am by the Great War Centennial. I have my hands full with my Hawley and Theodore Roosevelt Sr. projects but I intend to do a lot of Interp and writing on the events of 1914-1918. Volunteering at the Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace and Governors Island offers many possibilities. The story of Roosevelt’s role in the Preparedness Movement, his friendship with Leonard Wood, and the experiences of his four sons and younger daughter in the war are a few things I am going to work into my programming.

There was a great deal of WW1 activity on Governors Island, not least the fact that it was from there that Pershing left for France in 1917. There is so much more. When I am at the Trade Show I intend to take lots of photos and to take copious notes.

Quote of the day

03 Tuesday Jun 2014

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Comments Off on Quote of the day

Bill Russell at the March on Washington, 1963

Bill Russell at the March on Washington, 1963

When Auerback was named coach sixteen years earlier, The Boston Globe had carried the story on the inside pages, surrounded by racing results and local high school sports scores. But the editors of the New York Times considered Russell’s hiring [in 1966] so momentous that they ran their article on the front pages, next to stories on bombing strikes in Hanoi, proposed peace talks between the United States and Vietnam, and the Ford Motor Company’s recall of thirty thousand vehicles for safety defects.

–John Taylor

The Rivalry: Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, and the Golden Age of Basketball

(image/U.S. Information Agency. Press and Publications Service.)

June comes to Governors Island

01 Sunday Jun 2014

Posted by in Governors Island

≈ Comments Off on June comes to Governors Island

The 2014 season at Governors Island began last weekend. Unfortunately I missed opening weekend because I was out of town. So I was out of the house at 7:00 am this morning eager to catch the two subways and a boat ride that is my commute the island. Here are a few pics from the day.

New York Harbor, 9:00 am

New York Harbor, 9:00 am

There was neither a cloud in the sky nor a ripple on the water all day. That is Castle Williams on the far left and the Statue of Liberty to the right of the boat.

Pulling in

Pulling in

IMG_0858

The Park Service rotates the flag atop Fort Jay on a more or less weekly basis. The flag and the fort are the first thing you see when getting off the boat, but it is still easy to miss. I like to point the flag out to visitors.

If I am not mistaken this is the fifteen star.

Old street sign

Old street sign

This old street sign goes back decades to the period when there was still vehicular traffic on the island. This summer I intend to note and document remnants of the island as it once was. Most of the roads are named after soldiers who fought in France during the Great War. Andes was a 2nd lieutenant of the 16th Infantry killed in 1918.

IMG_0841

When I come back to the island after the seven month hiatus I always check out what is different from the previous season. I was happy to see that the Commanding Officer’s House, located on the city-managed part of the island, is again open after its renovation. This was chain-linked off in 2013. Winfield Scott Hancock among other called this home. It was from the island that he coordinated Ulysses S. Grant’s funeral in 1885. Hancock died on the island in February 1886.

Fort Jay's dry moat

Fort Jay’s dry moat

IMG_0855

Here I am doing my first Castle Williams tour of the year. Man, I forgot how much fun this is. The best thing is, the island will be open seven days a week this summer. You never know what you will see when you come to Governors Island.