Political History

Adirondack Research Librarys Adk Chronology

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Fans of Adirondack history will want to check out the Adirondack Chronology. The Chronology is a project of the Protect the Adirondacks!’s Adirondack Research Library at the Center for the Forest Preserve in Niskayuna. The Chronology consists of a chronological listing of significant events (natural or human-made) over the years and centuries, back to prehistoric times, that have taken place directly in the Adirondacks or which directly impacted the Adirondacks. The document, available as an online pdf, stretches to more than 300 pages and covers everything from the Big Bang (15 billion years before present) to a sunspot cycle in 2012 and 2013 that is predicted to causing major impacts on global electronics. The Chronology also includes an extensive and useful bibliography of relevant sources.

The Chronology is easily searched using the pdf search function, making it one of the most important documents for Adirondack history. Here is a short description of some of the kinds fo things you’ll find there from the Chronology’s introduction:

The Adirondack Chronology deals with all aspects of the Adirondack region to best suggest the various causal processes at work- several examples: forest exploitation leading to forest fire, in turn leading to protective legislation- trails of the Haudenosaunee leading to roads fostering development and then protective legislation, and so on. Crucial events also often occur well outside of the Adirondack region, e.g. invention of the snowmobile, the building of coal burning plants in the Mid-West, the growth of nickel-copper smelting in the Sudbury region of Ontario, the explosion of Mt. Pinatubo in the Philippines, federal and state legislation, the introduction of the European Starling in New York City, the painting of a great picture or the writing of an inspirational poem.

The Chronology, last revised and enlarged in November 2009, is edited by Carl George, Professor of Biology, Emeritus at Union College, Richard E. Tucker of the Adirondack Research Library, and newest editor Charles C. Morrison, Conservation Advocacy Committee, Protect the Adirondacks!

The Adirondack Research Library holds the largest Adirondack collection outside the park boundaries. The library’s collections include maps, periodicals, technical reports, photos, slides, video and audio tapes, and archival materials from prominent Adirondack conservationists of the 19th and 20th centuries.

Photo: The Center for the Forest Preserve, located in Niskayuna, NY, is owned and operated by Protect the Adirondacks!

NY Native American and Rev War Records Go Online

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A collection of records from New York State pertaining to American Revolution and Native American policy have been recently scanned from paper copy volumes in the New York State Library collection. The documents are full-text searchable and freely available online as PDF documents on the State Library’s website. The newly available records include documents relating to military bounty lands, and volumes of New York in the Revolution as Colony and State, which was compiled in the late 19th century from available records of the American Revolution.

The records also include several items related to Native American affairs from the 1940s. Particulalrly those of the New York State Joint Legislative Committee on Indian Affairs, which was established in 1943 &#8220to make a comprehensive study of the rights and obligations of the several tribes of Indians residing upon Indian reservations within the state- to inquire into all treaties, and the nature and extent of the title to lands granted to Indians- and to inquire into all matters relevant to its investigation&#8221.


Revolutionary War materials:
The Balloting Book and Other Documents Relating to Military Bounty Lands in the State of New York

This book contains copies of several acts relative to Revolutionary War bounty lands and the payment given of officers and soldiers for service in the War. An alphabetical listing of the names of soldiers and officers in each regiment is provided and includes the rank and company of the soldier, the township number, the lot number, the acreage, and date of patent. Dead and miscellaneous persons laying claim to land are also listed. The book also contains Lieutenant Michael Collonly’s return of names from Continental Army muster rolls and an accompanying list of names from the return of Colonel John Lamb. Another section of the book provides the number and names of townships in the military tract. The final section lists the names and lots of Canadian and Nova-Scotia refugees.

New York in the Revolution as Colony and State

This publication is a compilation of papers located in the NYS Comptroller’s Department that were arranged and classified by James A. Roberts, Comptroller. The papers included in the volume relate to the services performed by New York in the Revolutionary War, including muster and pay rolls of men serving in the Line, Levies, Militia, and Navy (Privateers). A personal name index and indexes to “sundry persons”, pensioners and applicants for pensions and commanding officers are included in the volume. This 2nd edition was published in 1898.

New York in the Revolution as Colony and State: Supplement

This supplement is a compilation of papers located in the NYS Comptroller’s Department related to the participation of New York State in the Revolutionary War. Included in this supplement is information on aspects of the military and naval service during the War including Courts-Martial, deserters, pay, bounties, pensions, American prisoners of war, hospitals, Indians, fortifications, military Roads, military stores, clothing, provisions, privateers and ships. The volume also includes information on the civil service during the War including the judiciary, the legislature and the executive and executive bodies. This supplement was printed in 1901.

Native American materials:

Hearing before the Joint Committee on Indian Affairs
Thursday, Jan. 4, 1945 at Ten Eyck Hotel, Albany, N.Y., 10 a.m.

This hearing considers federal legislation concerning the criminal and civil jurisdiction of New York State courts over Indian Reservations in New York State. The legislation was intended to end confusion over the extent of federal and state jurisdiction over offenses committed on Indian property within New York State.

Public hearing had at Salamanca, New York Court Room, City Hall
August 4-5, 1943

This hearing was convened by the Joint Legislative Committee on Indian Affairs to gain information on the issues that arose over attempts by New York State to gain and maintain civil and criminal jurisdiction over the Seneca Nation’s Allegany Reservation, which included the city of Salamanca. The dispute arose over the authority of the Seneca Nation to cancel land leases in Salamanca for non payment. The leases had been authorized by Congress to establish villages within the Allegany Reservation.

Public hearing had at Thomas Indian School, Cattaraugus Reservation, N.Y.
Wednesday, Sept. 8, 1943

This hearing was convened by the NYS Joint Legislative Committee on Indian Affairs to gain information on the operation of the Thomas Indian School and problems with its operation caused by the conflict between the federal and state governments over what legal authority has jurisdiction on the reservation and ultimate responsibility for regulating affairs of the school.

Report of New York State Joint Legislative Committee on Indian Affairs

The New York State Joint Legislative Committee on Indian Affairs was established by Senate resolution in 1943 &#8220to make a comprehensive study of the rights and obligations of the several tribes of Indians residing upon Indian reservations within the state- to inquire into all treaties, and the nature and extent of the title to lands granted to Indians- and to inquire into all matters relevant to its investigation&#8221. (New York State Legislative Manual, 1943). Reports were made annually to the Legislature from 1944-1964. In addition, a supplemental report was made in 1959.

New Book: America in the Sixties

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Sandwiched between the placid fifties and the flamboyant seventies, the sixties, a decade of tumultuous change and stunning paradoxes, is often reduced to a series of slogans, symbols, and media images. In America in the Sixties, Greene goes beyond the cliches and synthesizes thirty years of research, writing, and teaching on one of the most turbulent decades of the twentieth century.

Greene sketches the well-known players of the period—John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and Betty Friedan—bringing each to life with subtle detail. He introduces the reader to lesser-known incidents of the decade and offers fresh and persuasive insights on many of its watershed events.

Greene argues that the civil rights movement began in 1955 following the death of Emmett Till- that many accomplishments credited to Kennedy were based upon myth, not historical fact, and that his presidency was far from successful- that each of the movements of the period—civil rights, students, antiwar, ethnic nationalism—were started by young intellectuals and eventually driven to failure by activists who had different goals in mind- and that the &#8220counterculture,&#8221 which has been glorified in today’s media as a band of rock-singing hippies, had its roots in some of the most provocative social thinking of the postwar period.

Greene also chronicles the decade in a thematic manner, devoting individual chapters to such subjects as the legacy of the fifties, the Kennedy and Johnson administrations, the civil rights movements, and the war in Vietnam. Combining an engrossing narrative with intelligent analysis, America in the Sixties enriches our understanding of that pivotal era.

John Robert Greene is the Paul J. Schupf Professor of History and Humanities at Cazenovia College. He has written or edited thirteen books including The Limits of Power: The Nixon and Ford Administrations and The Presidency of Gerald R. Ford. He is a regular commentator in the national media, having appeared on such forums as MSNBC, National Public Radio, C-SPAN, and the History Channel.

Note: Books noticed on this site have been provided by the publishers. Purchases made through this Amazon link help support this site.

Archived Websites of Defunct NY State Government

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Maybe someone is sending us a message. Just when New York State Governor David Paterson is criticizing his fellow lawmakers over their ethics, the New York State Archives has announced that the archived websites of the defunct organizations designed to investigate political corruption are online. Part of an online collection called Archived State Government Websites, archival copies of the websites of former Governors George Pataki and Eliot Spitzer, along with other former elected officials and those of the defunct bodies such as the Commission of Investigation and the Commission on Lobbying are all available on the New York State Archives’ website.

The collection also includes the State Northeastern Queens Nature and Historical Preserve Commission (SNEQ) which was created in 1973 to regulate publicly owned lands and wetlands in northeastern Queens County (eliminated in the 2009-10 Executive Budget).

The Temporary State Commission of Investigation was created in 1958 and had a broad mandate to investigate &#8220corruption, fraud, organized crime, racketeering, money laundering, the conduct of public officers, public employees, officers and employees of public corporations and authorities, and mismanagement in New York State and local government.&#8221

Temporary State Commission on Lobbying was created in 1977 and &#8220monitored individuals and organizations seeking to influence State legislation, rules, regulations, and rate-making actions or local laws, ordinances, and regulations.&#8221 It’s mandate (and staff) was transferred to the new State Commission on Public Integrity in 2007.

There is a FAQ about what material on the sites are actually archived, and each record group has a separate FAQ on background and site-specific access problems.

The Most Influential People in Adirondack History?

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Over at my other web project Adirondack Almanack we’re putting together an interesting list of the most influential people in Adirondack history. The list is somewhat of an exercise in &#8216-big man history’ but it grew from discussions at the Almanack over the two great traditions of modern Adirondack thought: those who support the forest preserve, the park, and the Adirondack Park Agency, and those who generally oppose those institutions.

Head over there &#8211 I’ve included a brainstormed list of people from the environmental, cultural, and political history of the park, but I’d like to hear your opinions and suggestions.

Theodore Roosevelt: The Wilderness Warrior

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A new book on Teddy Roosevelt by New York Times bestselling historian Douglas Brinkley is described by the publisher as &#8220a sweeping historical narrative and eye-opening look at the pioneering environmental policies of President Theodore Roosevelt, avid bird-watcher, naturalist, and the founding father of America’s conservation movement.&#8221 For those interested in the Adirondack region, this new biography helps put TR’s Adirondack experiences into the lager context of wilderness protection and wildlife conservation history.

Brinkley draws on never-before-published materials for his look at the life of what he calls our &#8220naturalist president.&#8221 Launching from conservation work as New York State Governor, TR set aside more than 230 million acres of American wild lands between 1901 and 1909, and helped popularize the conservation of wild places.

Brinkley’s new book singles out the influential contributions of James Audubon, Charles Darwin, and John Muir in shaping Roosevelt’s view of the natural world. Some of the most interesting parts of the book relate to TR’s relationship with Dr. C. Hart Merriam, who reviewed the future president’s The Summer Birds of the Adirondacks in 1877- Merriam’s own The Mammals of the Adirondacks Region of Northeastern New York, published in 1884, was duly praised by TR.

Merriam and Roosevelt later worked successfully to reverse the declining Adirondack deer population (they brought whitetail from Maine), and to outlaw jack-lighting and hunting deer with dogs and so helped establish the principles of wildlife management by New York State.

During his political stepping-stone term as 33rd Governor of New York (1899-1900) TR made the forests of the state a focus of his policies. He pushed against &#8220the depredations of man,&#8221 the recurrent forest fires, and worked to strengthen fish and game laws. Roosevelt provided stewardship of the state’s forests and the Adirondack Park in particular, that led to the most progressive conservation and wilderness protection laws in the country.

TR also worked to replace political hacks on the New York Fisheries, Game, and Forest Commission (forerunner of the DEC), according to Brinkley, and replaced them with highly trained &#8220independent-minded biologists, zoologists, entomologists, foresters, sportsman hunters, algae specialists, trail guides, botanists, and activists for clean rivers.&#8221 To help pay the bill he pushed for higher taxes on corporations while also pursuing a progressive politics &#8211 what Brinkley calls &#8220an activist reformist agenda.&#8221

The book ranges with Roosevelt to Yellowstone, the Blue Ridge Mountains, the Dakota Territory, and the Big Horn Mountains. It does capture Roosevelt’s time in the Adirondacks, but its’ strength is in putting that time into the larger context of Roosevelt’s life as a wilderness conservationist. For example, TR’s opposition to the Utica Electric Light Company’s Adirondack incursions is only mentioned in passing, though Brinkley’s treatment of the relationship between Gifford Pinchot and TR is more developed. An index entry &#8211 &#8220Adirondack National Park&#8221 &#8211 is lightly misused bringing into concern how much Brinkley really appreciates the impact of Roosevelt’s Adirondack experiences (both in-country and in Albany) on his wilderness ethic.

All in all, however, Wilderness Warrior is a well written collection of the strands of Roosevelt’s conservationist ideas, woven into a readable narrative. Considering TR’s role in so many disciplines related to our forests, that’s no mean feat.

Looking for things to do in NY? Check out Citypath


Study: Americans Ignorant About American Revolution

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The American Revolution Center (ARC), an organization hoping to build the first national museum of the revolution in Philadelphia, released today what it’s calling &#8220the first comprehensive national survey of adult knowledge of the American Revolution.&#8221 The findings, which are based on a random sample of 1,000 telephone interviews, indicate that 83 percent of Americans failed a basic test on knowledge of the American Revolution and the principles on which the country was founded.

Perhaps more interesting is the finding that 90 percent of respondents think that knowledge of the American Revolution and its principles are very important, and that 89 percent expected to pass a test on basic knowledge of the American Revolution, but scored an average of 44 percent.

The survey questions considered issues related to Revolutionary documents, people, and events, and also asked attitudinal questions about the respondents’ perception of the importance of understanding the Revolutionary history and the institutions that were established to preserve our freedoms and liberties. The entire study can be downloaded via pdf here.

Here is are some of the more remarkable findings:

American adults mistakenly believe the Constitution established a government of direct democracy, rather than a democratic republic. While this basic fact is included on the naturalization exam for immigrants to qualify for U.S. citizenship, more than half of the Americans polled do not know it.

More than 50 percent of Americans wrongly attributed the quote, “From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs” to George Washington, Thomas Paine, or President Barack Obama, when it is in fact a quote from Karl Marx.

Many more Americans remember that Michael Jackson sang “Beat It” than know that the Bill of Rights is part of the Constitution.

60 percent of Americans can correctly identify the number of children in reality-TV show couple Jon and Kate Gosselin’s household (eight), but more than one-third do not know the century in which the American Revolution took place. Half of those surveyed believe the Civil War, Emancipation Proclamation, or War of 1812 occurred before the American Revolution.

At a time when thousands of political protesters hold “tea parties” around the nation, more than half of Americans do not know that the outcome of the Boston Tea Party was not a repeal of taxes, but rather that it prompted British to pass the Coercive Acts which ignited American patriotism and sparked the Revolution.

One-third of Americans do not know that the right to a jury trial is covered in the U.S. Constitution’s Bill of Rights, while 4-in-10 mistakenly think that the right to vote is.

Role of White House Advisors Subject of FDR Exhibit

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With unemployment soaring and many of the nation’s banks in uncertain straits, a newly elected President adopts the activist agenda of “wooly-headed professors” and soon is being bitterly accused of seeking dictatorial power.

This scenario, which has its uncanny echoes in today’s political scene, was played out beginning in 1932 by Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the circle of Columbia University scholars who became his close advisors. The story of this epoch-making alliance between the White House and academia is told in the New-York Historical Society exhibition FDR’s Brain Trust, on view now through March 1, 2010.

&#8220No President in the past century took office in such difficult circumstances as did Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and no President moved ahead more quickly and forcefully,&#8221 said Dr. Louise Mirrer, President and CEO of the New-York Historical Society. &#8220This new exhibition explores how Roosevelt, while still a candidate for President, did something that was unprecedented at the time and sought counsel from academics. We see how this decision led directly to the daring innovations that became known as the New Deal, and that remain with us to this day.”

Curated by Jean W. Ashton, Executive Vice President and Director of Library division, the exhibition is designed to evoke both the desperation of the Great Depression and the hope and energy of a nation rebuilding itself. FDR’s Brain Trust presents rarely seen photographs, cartoons, documents, artifacts, and newsreels drawn from the New-York Historical Society collection and the archives of Columbia University. These materials bring to life the personalities, convictions and circumstances of FDR and the people who were at first known jokingly as his “Privy Council”—Columbia University professors Raymond Moley, Adolf Berle and Rexford G. Tugwell. Dubbed “The Brains Trust” in July 1932 by a New York Times reporter—the “s” was eventually dropped—these men were eventually joined in the new Roosevelt administration by Harry Hopkins, founder of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), and Frances Perkins, who as Secretary of Labor became the first female cabinet member.

Highlights of the exhibition include:

· an etching by Martin Borne titled Hooverville on Hudson (1934), showing a camp of the unemployed and homeless that would have been visible from the Columbia University campus

· a map from the Real Estate Record and Guide (March 25, 1933) showing the spread of foreclosed properties across Manhattan

· broadsides depicting street demonstrations

· an executive order requiring that all gold be deposited in a Federal Reserve Bank

· editorial cartoons from the Chicago Tribune and Des Moines Register depicting FDR and his advisors as Soviet-style socialists

Despite the vehemence that the Brain Trust aroused, the speed and scope of the New Deal they advocated were unprecedented. Less than four months after Roosevelt took office, his administration stabilized the banks and the economy, saved homes and farms from foreclosure, and began to institute a vast range of programs (including Workmen’s Compensation, a federal minimum wage, child labor laws and Social Security) to address the dire needs of Americans.

Jews In New Amsterdam Lecture November 30th

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In celebration of the new exhibit on the roots of religious freedom in America, The Flushing Remonstrance: Who Shall Plead For Us?, written & curated by Susan Kathryn Hefti, the John L. Loeb, Jr. Foundation has generously sponsored a very exciting companion lecture entitled &#8220Jews in New Amsterdam&#8221 by Dr. Gary Zola, Executive Director of the American Jewish Archives and Professor of The American Jewish Experience at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, in conjunction with the Museum of the City of New York, Monday, November 30, 2009 at 6:30pm. (1220 Fifth Avenue at 103rd Street NYC).

Seating for the lecture is limited. So if you wish to attend Jews in New Amsterdam, please RSVP at your earliest convenience.

For a Special $6 Members Rate simply call MCNY at 917.492.3395 and mention &#8220The Flushing Remonstrance&#8221 when making your reservation.

Photo: The Flushing Remonstrance, written in 1657, recognized as the earliest political assertion of freedom of conscience and religion in New York State.

Rensselaer County HSs Uncle Sam Exhibition

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The Rensselaer County Historical Society and Museum (RCHS) will become the new home for Uncle Sam and his story with the opening of its new permanent exhibition Uncle Sam: The Man in Life and Legend on Wednesday, November 11, 5-7 p.m., at 57 Second Street in Troy.

Samuel &#8216-Uncle Sam’ Wilson (1766-1854) is undoubtedly Troy?s most famous son. Arriving in Troy in the late 18th century and participating in the community?s early growth and success, he was also a witness to the expansion of our nation and the development of our national identity.

The Historical Society’s exhibit examines both the real man and the national symbol using objects from the museum?s collections, including archeological artifacts from the site of one of Sam Wilson?s houses and historical prints and images of our national symbol. Visitors will be able to see how the story of Uncle Sam evolved and learn how this real person and national icon continue to impact us today.

Fittingly, Uncle Sam opens on Veterans Day, November 11, 2009. The opening is free and open to all. A modern Uncle Sam will make an appearance at the event and RCHS encourages attendees to wear their Uncle Sam inspired attire. The event will also be the official launch of the Rensselaer County Historical Society?s online Uncle Sam Resource Center.

Photo: WWI Recruiting Poster: ?Uncle Sam Wants You? by Montgomery Flagg. Provided by the RCHS.