History Happenings   October 2017
The History Center's Electronic Newsletter 
  
The Corner

Beebe-Halsey House. 308 N Cayuga St Ithaca, NY. Built in 1820. Still standing. Photo from the Collection of The History Center.

HistoryForge Day

What makes history come alive for you? If it is learning about people who lived in specific homes be sure to participate in the October 7 HistoryForge Day. It will be three mini-neighborhood tours. You will be in front of homes learning about the individuals and their houses in 1910. As you walk between the houses, information will be shared about the neighborhood and the 1910-1920 decade. Were they long-term residents, what did they do to earn a living, what were their lives like? This is an opportunity to engage with the past and to be inquisitive about the lives of Ithaca citizens from an earlier period. HistoryForge is developing into a valuable resource to ask questions and to explore the connections among people, buildings and community. There is more information in this newsletter about HistoryForge Day and how to register for one, two or three of the one hour tours.

HistoryForge Day is sponsored by M&T Bank.



Director of The History Center
Bookstore & Gift Shop Highlights 
*Items to be purchased in The History Center book store


Mention our newsletter and get a discounted price for this new title!

Women Will Vote: Winning Suffrage in New York State
By Susan Goodier, Karen Pastorello

Women Will Vote celebrates the 2017 centenary of women's right to full suffrage in New York State. Susan Goodier and Karen Pastorello highlight the activism of rural, urban, African American, Jewish, immigrant, and European American women, as well as male suffragists, both upstate and downstate, that led to the positive outcome of the 1917 referendum. Goodier and Pastorello argue that the popular nature of the women's suffrage movement in New York State and the resounding success of the referendum at the polls relaunched suffrage as a national issue. If women had failed to gain the vote in New York, Goodier and Pastorello claim, there is good reason to believe that the passage and ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment would have been delayed.
Current Exhibitions

Catt, Tubman and Hay. Drawing. Photo - Courtesy of Christine Nobles Heller.
"Truth is the Only Safe Ground to Stand Upon" Portraits of Suffragists to Celebrate the Centennial of Women's Right to Vote in New York  State
Through November 4th
Ithaca native Christine Nobles Heller draws suffragists to honor those who fought so hard for women's rights. In addition, she responds to this time of renewed threats to the fundamental human rights of women. The suffragists achieved the vote for women after 70 years of determination, courage, and perseverance. In her drawings for this show, Heller pays homage to the efforts of NY State suffragists to mark the 2017 centennial of Women's right to vote in New York State.

 
Sons of Italy Crowning of Queen (popularity/beauty contest, 1928). Photo from the Collection of The History Center. 
Our Community 
Italian-American Community Display
The History Center presents images and archival materials related to the Italian-American community in Tompkins County.
Italian immigrants have been settling in Tompkins County for over 100 years and have added immensely to the economic, civic, and cultural life of our area. Often from modest origins, Italian families frequently faced economic hardship and the prejudices of their new neighbors and co-workers as they became part of the life of the community. Through their experiences, good and bad, they retained a love of family, work, friends.


   
Woodard School - District 7 - Last Day Picnic. Photo - Courtesy of the Town of Enfield Historian, Sue Thompson.
Exploring Tompkins County: A Municipality Display Case
The Town of Enfield: Schools as a Center of Our Community
Through October, 2017
Exploring Tompkins County display is a collaboration between The History Center in Tompkins County and Tompkins County's municipal historians. This new exhibit shows how Enfield schools have been continuously bringing the community together. We thank Sue Thompson, Town of Enfield Historian, for  providing her knowledge and time to convey this unique exhibit.
Upcoming Events


Picnic at Millers School House District 4. Photo from the Collection of The History Center.
Talk "Town of Enfield: Schools as a Center of Our Community" with Sue Thompson
Tuesday, October 3, 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM (at The History Center)
In conjunction with the International Teacher's Day week and the current Exploring Tompkins County: A Municipality Display Case exhibit series focused on "The Town of Enfield: Schools as a Center of Our Community," the author of the exhibit Susan Thompson, will give a 6:00 p.m. presentation. 
Schools have always been the center of our communities. How are schools used besides educating our community in the everyday eight-to-three system. School buildings turned into housing, community events held in schools for public hearings, voting, community group meetings, athletic events, and festivals.  How were and are your schools used for the community? 
About the speaker:
Sue Thompson grew up in the Town of Danby, NY and moved to Enfield in 1974. Sue has been Enfield Town Historian since 1995. She maintains the historian's collection for the town and promotes the history of Enfield through newsletter articles, web history articles and book chapters.


Matilda Joslyn Gage. Drawing. Photo - Courtesy of Christine Heller. 

First Friday Gallery Night: 
Artist Talk with Christine Nobles Heller and a Preview of the Opera "Pushed Aside"
Friday, October 6, 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM (The History Center)
In conjunction with First Friday Gallery Night and the new exhibition "Truth is the Only Safe Ground to Stand Upon" Portraits of Suffragists to Celebrate the Centennial of Women's Right to Vote in NY State, The History Center will feature a  6:00 p.m. presentation by the artist Christine Nobles Heller. After the talk, there will be a  preview of the opera "Pushed Aside" by Persis Parshall Vehar about Matilda Joslyn Gage, the forgotten suffragist. The Premiere of the opera will be held on January 21, 4 p.m. at Carrier Theater, Civic Center, Syracuse, NY.



HistoryForge Map. Photo from www.TheHistoryCenter.net
HistoryForge Day: 
Connecting the Generations
Saturday, October 7, 2017
Fall Creek/DeWitt Park, 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM (meet at 12:30 PM in front of 127 Linn Street)
Henry St. John, 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM (meet at 2:00 PM in front of 125 W. Green Street)
Southside, 3:30 PM - 4:30 PM (meet at 3:30 PM in front of  401 W. State Street)
Four houses in three neighborhoods in Ithaca, NY (Fall Creek/DeWitt Park, 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM, Henry St. John, 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM, and Southside, 3:30 PM - 4:30 PM) have been selected to share information about who lived there in 1910. While we will not be going into the homes, docents will have a series of questions to engage participants about the lives of the residents of 100 years ago. Where did the children attend school, where did the adults work, where did they go to church? If they settled here from another place where did they come from? From the 1910 census we will have information about relationships, age, race, occupation, literacy, employment and other attributes. You will also learn about the buildings and neighborhoods in which they lived.  This event is sponsored by M&T Bank.
Please register here: https://goo.gl/5b4Uup. Further information and directions will be sent to registrants. Learn more about the HistoryForge project on our website: www.thehistorycenter.net. For questions, contact Ksenia Ionova by phone 607-273-8284 Ext. 227 or by e-mail at Community@TheHistoryCenter.net.


Celebrating 200 Years of Agriculture in Lansing, 1817-2017
Saturday, October 7, 11:00 AM (at the Lansing Town Hall)
Louise Bement, Lansing Town Historian, will share photos and stories of Lansing and it's farmers from 1817-2017. Free and open to the public.


2017 HOMESTEAD HERITAGE DAY
Saturday, October 7, 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM (at the Southworth Homestead, Dryden, NY)
Join a great FREE family day of fun at our annual Agricultural Fair. The fun continues all day. Traditional music, good eats by the Dryden Community Café, animals, traditional craft demonstrations, children's games, and Crane's Hollow End Stable horse drawn wagon rides. For more information, visit  http://drydennyhistory.org/.


Extended family and descendants at Snyder Hill Farm. Photo provided.
Snyder Hill Farm Tour
Saturday, October 14, 11:00 AM to 1:30 PM (at Snyder Hill Farm Living History Center)
The History Center in Tompkins County is inviting you to register for a tour of the Snyder Hill Farm, established in 1802. 
The trove of historic buildings on Snyder Hill, named after first residents Jacob and Mary Snyder, tell the story of early European settlers establishing a vibrant community and economy. Visit the Snyder's pioneer farmstead, 217 years old, and learn how life evolved from the early settlement period to recent times as reflected in their farm's buildings and artifacts. See the original foundation of their early cabin and an 1806 English scribe rule swing barn, side-by-side with later buildings, including a carefully constructed Victorian farmhouse from 1867, a second barn built before the civil war and the ruins of a third barn. You will see family possessions, hear stories of family members' lives and learn more about other historic houses on Snyder Hill, the Snyder Hill Church and its cemetery. Hot cider and donuts provided!
Further information and directions will be sent to registrants. Register here: https://goo.gl/u8ExhJ (registration list is limited to 30 spots).


HistoryForge Data Entry Bee Party
Saturday, October 14th, 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM (at The History Center)
Come volunteer at our next transcription bee! Light refreshments will be served with lots of fun and an educational opportunity that will make Ithaca history come alive. Be sure to bring your laptop.  Sign up to volunteer here.





Climates of Change: 
Community Story Circles
Saturday, October 14, 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM (at The History Center)
Tuesday, October 17, 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM (at The History Center)
Civic Ensemble is organizing Story Circles throughout the area with community members, students, scientists, and artists. A Story Circle is an opportunity to share your stories, what you have personally experienced in your home, work, and elsewhere. These stories (with your permission) will become part of a play, featuring both students and community members, to be performed in December. This original work will be the culmination of the Theatre and Social Change course offered at Cornell University this semester, co-taught by Civic Ensemble and CU's Department of Performing and Media Arts, in collaboration with Cornell Climatologist Toby Ault, funded by Engage Cornell. Read more about the project here:
http://civicensemble.org/climates-of-change/


The "New Woman" as Silent Heroine
Presented by Historian Barbara Tepa Lupack
Saturday, October 21st at 1:30 pm (at Cinemapolis. Free and open to the public)
This and every October, Wharton Studio Museum invites you to celebrate Silent Movie Month! Silent Movie Month 2017 features a special screening of a new film The Manhattan Front and our annual Buster Keaton matinee at Cinemapolis; Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde at Sage Chapel on Cornell's campus brought to you by Cornell Cinema; a screening of Wharton, Inc. Studio shorts by Ithaca Made Movies at Tompkins County Public Library; and our signature event - The "New Woman" as Silent Heroine presented by historian Barbara Tepa Lupack. A presentation and screening of rare episodes of pioneering serials -- The Hazards of Helen, The Perils of Pauline, and the Wharton Brothers' The Exploits of Elaine. This event is produced in collaboration with The History Center in Tompkins County. Presenting Sponsor of Silent Movie Month is Travis Hyde Properties. For more details about venues and ticket prices visit whartonstudiomuseum.org; cinemapolis.org, cinema.cornell.edu and tcpl.org.


Panel Discussion "Perspective on Voting"
Tuesday, October 24, 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM (at The History Center)
This will be a panel format to hear different perspectives on voting. Panelists will address questions such as what does voting participation mean to you and what empowers you to be involved as a citizen. There will be opportunities for Q&A and for sharing you own perspectives on voting.  This event is held in collaboration with the Dorothy Cotton Institute and the League of Women Voters.


"Launch Party for NY Votes for Women: A Suffrage Centennial Anthology"
Thursday, October 26, 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM (at The History Center)
What was it like for courageous women in New York State to fight for the vote?  What parts of our heritage - history and herstory - have we never heard before? And, one hundred years later, what other issues of equality are renewing the pull that many feel to speak out?
In NY Votes for Women: A Suffrage Centennial Anthology, twenty-one women explore these questions in a variety of engaging memoirs, stories and poems. Join Cayuga Lake Books, the Anthology editors, and readers on October 26 at 6:30 PM and hear readings from the following contributors: Carol Kammen, Gaia Woolf-Nightingall, Lisa Harris, Nora Snyder, Sarah Jefferis, Yvonne Fisher. To learn more about the Anthology, visit https://suffragestories.wordpress.com/ or https://www.facebook.com/NYVotesforwomen/
Copies of the book will be available for purchase! Also enjoy light refreshments and The History Center's exhibit "Truth is the Only Safe Ground to Stand Upon" a show of New York State Suffragist Drawings by Christine Nobles Heller.


Historic Flashlight Tour of Downtown Ithaca's Corners and Alleys

Friday, October 27, 5:15 PM (meet at The History Center)
Saturday, October 28, 5:15 PM (meet at The History Center)
What history, myths and legends are contained in Ithaca's Corners and Alleys? Do they hold legends, mystery and intrigue? Come explore, discover and open yourself up to new perspectives. Each 75 minute tour starts at The History Center in Tompkins County. Tours leave at 5:15 p.m. on Friday, October 27 and 5:15 p.m. on Saturday, October 28. The cost is $10.00/person. Geared to teenagers to elders. Part of the Ithaca Heritage tour series (in collaboration with Historic Ithaca). Please register to reserve a spot by October 20 (each tour will be capped at 20). 


Iron Jawed Angels:
Movie Screening & Discussion
Wednesday, November 1, 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM (at Cinemapolis)
Join The History Center on Wednesday, November 1 at 6:30 PM for a movie screening and discussion of Iron Jawed Angels at Cinemapolis. The discussion will be facilitated by Cyndy Scheibe from the Ithaca College's Project Look Sharp. Free admission, with $5.00 donations graciously accepted.  Iron Jawed Angels is a 2004 American historical drama film directed by Katja Von Garnier. The film stars Hilary Swank as suffragist leader Alice Paul, Frances O'Connor as activist Lucy Burns, Julia Ormond as Inez Milholland, and Anjelica Huston as Carrie Chapman Catt. It received critical acclaim after the film premiered at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival.


"Women's Suffrage and Political Office:  A Seat at the Table"
Thursday, November 2, 7:00 PM (at The History Center)
A panel discussion being held in partnership with the Tompkins County League of Women Voters. Look for more information in the next newsletter.
Local History in Media

Eight Square Schoolhouse Program on PEGASYS, Channel 13
Watch an interview with Carole West, Youth Education Director at The History Center, and Wendy Baker, Eight Square Schoolhouse Teacher, about the history and current programming of this 190 year old gem. Broadcasting schedule:
Saturday, October 7th, 11:00 AM
Saturday, October 7th, 6:00 PM


AskPearl: Epic Ithacans
Download a free app AskPearl (https://askpearl.com/) to access the Epic Ithacans section sponsored by The History Center in Tompkins County. This week, Epic Ithacans features Margaret Bourke-White.
From the Collection
Temperance Fountain
This photograph, taken ca. 1900, shows the water fountain erected by the Women's Christian Temperance Union which stood at the corner of Tioga and Seneca streets in Ithaca. Photo from the Collection of The History Center.

The nectar dispensed by Hebe in her role as cup-bearer to the gods may not have been water, but that was apparently an unexplored detail in 1896 when the Women's Christian Temperance Union sought funds to erect a fountain at Ithaca's busiest intersection. They wanted something both practical and showy and selected a copy of a statue originally created by Bertel Thorvaldsen in 1806. The original version featured Hebe, the cup-bearer to the gods, with one breast bared. However, the J. L. Mott Company was presenting copies with slight modifications to her attire and the Hebe of Ithaca and of Tompkins Square Park in New York City was modestly draped. Along with the extra drapery came a pedestal and separate basins for humans, horses, and smaller animals. Read more here.

CONTACT US
 
Rod Howe | Executive Director | Director@TheHistoryCenter.net | Phone: x 222
 
Donna Eschenbrenner | Archivist | Archives@TheHistoryCenter.net | Phone: x 224

Carole West | Educator, Eight Square Schoolhouse | EightSquare@TheHistoryCenter.net | Phone: x 229

Ksenia Ionova |  Community Outreach & Visitor Services | Community@TheHistoryCenter.net | Phone: x 227

Karen Binder | Bookkeeper & Administrative Services | Admin@TheHistoryCenter.net | Phone: x 225

Cindy Kjellander-Cantu | Design & Support Specialist | Design@TheHistoryCenter.net | Phone: x 223

STAY CONNECTED @TompkinsHistory