The Corner
Explore Ithaca Heritage Online
There you can find self-guided tours centered around neighborhoods and themes, download the PocketSights App to take the tour with your phone, learn about the Heritage Ambassadors program, and dive into the history of featured people and buildings from around the county. Right now, Elizabeth Beebe and the former DL&W train station on Seneca Street are featured; check back in a few days for Henry Hinckley and the buildings on Bank Alley that are becoming the Tompkins Center for History and Culture.
The site also includes the
Ithaca Heritage blog, which zooms in on a variety of local topics like the Wharton brothers' films, agriculture, cemeteries, festivals, and more. Look around. And if you find there's a topic that hasn't been mentioned that you'd like to write about, contact Rod Howe at director@thehistorycenter.net or Pat Longoria at pat@historicithaca.org.
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January Move Update
The staff is still working out of the Gateway Center on East State/Martin Luther King, Jr. Street.
The research library, archives, exhibits, and retail store are closed to the public, but staff are available via phone or email.
Retail sales continue via phone, email, and social media, with an online store coming soon. The History Center cannot accept any new donations to the archives
until after the move.
Packing continues under the supervision of Donna Eschenbrenner, Director of Archives and Research Services, with a dedicated team of volunteers. They are in the process of preparing
thousands
of
artifacts
, hundreds of paintings, more than 3,000 local history books, 1,200 historic maps, several hundred archival collections and over 100,000 photographs for transport.
More packing supplies or moving volunteers are not needed at present. However, the rest of the staff could utilize
volunteers willing to do odd jobs.
Interested individuals are encouraged to call (607) 273-8284 ext. 227 or email Community@TheHistoryCenter.net.
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HistoryForge Data Entry Bee Party
Saturday, January 19, 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM (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.
Laura Ingalls Wilder at the State Theatre
Saturday, January 27, Doors 2:00 PM, Show 3:00 PM (State Theatre of Ithaca, 107 West State Street, Ithaca, NY 14850)
The History Center is proud to be the Community Partner for this production! Laura and her family travel across America in search of a place they can call home. Facing obstacles such as scarlet fever and eviction from their land, their pioneering spirit and family bonds are tested but never broken. This uplifting story of one of America's most beloved authors comes to life in one of ArtsPower's most popular musicals.
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Recruiting Heritage Ambassadors!
The History Center in Tompkins County and Historic Ithaca partner for the third time to train Tompkins County
Heritage
Ambassadors, who support Ithaca
Heritage events and the county's broader
heritage network.
This six-week training program is a free, fun, and engaging opportunity for interested area residents. It introduces volunteers to Tompkins County's
history and rich
heritage
. Past sessions have focused on the county's people, land, architecture, culture, enterprise, and more.
The next
Heritage
Ambassador
training runs six consecutive Wednesdays, beginning February 27, 2019 and ending April 3, 2019. All meetings are held from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at a downtown Ithaca location TBD.
Once the training is completed,
Heritage
Ambassadors serve as volunteer docents for Ithaca
Heritage, Historic Ithaca, and The History Center public events, including HI's That Old House Tour, THC's HistoryForge Days, and Ithaca
Heritage tours.
You'll join a motivated group of more than two dozen already-trained
Heritage
Ambassadors
eager to share area history with residents and visitors.
Martha Preston, a 2017 Tompkins County
Heritage
Ambassador, said: "The Tompkins County
Heritage
Ambassador program offers a wonderful opportunity to learn and share interesting information and insights about our diverse community! I've always been a local history enthusiast so now I am thrilled to have access to the resources and opportunities to gain knowledge for my own curiosity, and to share that knowledge with other longtime county residents, as well as newcomers and visitors!"
To participate in the Spring 2019
Heritage
Ambassadorstraining, submit the electronic application at
bit.ly/registerHA2019 by Thursday, February 21, 2019.
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Shaping A City
Shaping A City: Ithaca, New York, A Developer's Perspective
This new book by Mack Travis, launched at The History Center's December First Friday Gallery Night, was a cover story in the
Ithaca Times and has now been highlighted by
The New York History Blog. Congratulations to Cornell University Press, Travis Hyde Properties, and Mack! The book release sold all of THC's copies but it is also on sale at CUP, the Cornell Bookstore, and Buffalo Street Books.
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Love the Ithaca Kitty? Want to host a Kitty-Thon?
Freshly stuffed Ithaca Kitties are selling fast at The History Center. Want to keep the tradition going? Host a Kitty-Thon with your colleagues, relatives, or whomever.
Read J.T. Stone's
Ithaca Voice article about the
Friends of the Library's November 18 Kitty-Thon. Then get in touch with The History Center to schedule your own!
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Save The Date! 2019 Events
Tour of Namgyal Monastery: January or February TBD
Tompkins County Genealogical Society Meeting: February at TCPL
Celebrating History Gala: April 11 at the Tompkins Center for History and Culture
Ithaca Heritage Tasting and Cocktail Tour: April 13, 2:30-5:00 PM around the Ithaca Commons
Spring Writes Literary Festival: May 2-5
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