The Historians

The Fort Plain Museum began operation in 1961 as the Fort Plain Restoration with an emphasis on rebuilding Revolutionary War Fort Plain.

Fort Palin Museum https://fortplainmuseum.org/viewevent.aspx?ID=1062

 A 2nd Bus has been added!

Bob Cudmore will introduce the speakers at the auditorium of Fulton-Montgomery Community College in Johnstown. This Saturday and Sunday, June 10, 8 am-5 pm and June 11, 8 am to 1 pm at the Revolutionary War conference organized by the Fort Plain Museum. 

Thanks to an extremely generous and anonymous $1000 donation, The Historians Podcast fund drive has now raised $2610 toward our $7000 goal for 2023. 

Thank you very much.  We still have a long way to go. Please help us provide more history programing on Fort Ticonderoga, Old Fort Johnson, songs of the American Revolution by Cosby Gibson and Tom Staudle, the Wild West and much more.  Please donate online at The Historians Podcast, organized by Bob Cudmore  or send a check made out to Bob Cudmore to 125 Horstman Drive, Scotia, NY 12302. Thank you again-every contribution is appreciated.

Tomorrow

Thursday, June 8, 2023

Violins and ginseng

Born in Broadalbin in 1861 to Henry and Lydia Lansing Kested, Arch Kested married Charlotte Craig in 1891. He became proficient in “hand wood turning,” according to his 1940 obituary.

Friday, June 9, 2023 – Episode 478 Scott Haefner of Old Fort Johnson historic site explains how this formerly fortified home of British Indian agent Sir William Johnson was preserved by a grass roots organization, the Montgomery County Historical Society.

Sign-up for the Bob Cudmore email

"Blast" 

 [email protected]

Mohawk Valley Weather, Wednesday, June 7, 2023

48 degrees in The City of Amsterdam at 6:22AM

Leader Herald Make Us A Part Of Your Day

https://www.leaderherald.com/

Fort Palin Museum https://fortplainmuseum.org/viewevent.aspx?ID=1062

Still Time to Register for The Revolutionary War Conference 250 in the Mohawk Valley that starts this Friday, June 9, 2023 

Plus We Added a 2nd Bus!

Bob Cudmore will introduce the speakers this Saturday and Sunday, June 10, 8 am-5 pm and June 11, 8 am to 1 pm at the Revolutionary War conference organized by the Fort Plain Museum.

The speaking program takes place at the auditorium of Fulton-Montgomery Community College in Johnstown.   

Over The Weekend

Thanks to an extremely generous and anonymous $1000 donation, The Historians Podcast fund drive has now raised $2610 toward our $7000 goal for 2023.  Thank you very much.  We still have a long way to go. Please help us provide more history programing on Fort Ticonderoga, Old Fort Johnson, songs of the American Revolution by Cosby Gibson and Tom Staudle, the Wild West and much more.  Please donate online at The Historians Podcast, organized by Bob Cudmore  or send a check made out to Bob Cudmore to 125 Horstman Drive, Scotia, NY 12302. Thank you again-every contribution is appreciated.

Monday, June 5, 2023-Story behind the story-early Latino immigrant Aldlmo Canacho

Tuesday, June 6, 2023

Johnstown history

The city of Johnstown, with a population of about 8500, is small but elegant, according to Regent Catherine Grady of the Daughters of the American Revolution.  The city is planning a series of events to mark its 250th anniversary this year (2008).

Wednesday, June 7, 2023-From the Archives-August 5, 2022-Episode 434-NBC TV has aired an episode of their family history show Who Do You Think You Are including interviews filmed in Fonda and Johnstown.  Actor Nick Offerman (who plays Ron Swanson in the sitcom Parks and Recreation) traced his ancestors to families from upstate New York. Kelly Yacobucci Farquhar, Montgomery County historian, explains why Fonda’s Old Courthouse is a mecca for genealogists and historians.

Thursday, June 8, 2023-From the Archives of Focus on History from the Daily Gazette-Violins and ginseng

Friday, June 9, 2023 – Episode 478 Scott Haefner of Old Fort Johnson historic site explains how this formerly fortified home of British Indian agent Sir William Johnson was preserved by a grass roots organization, the Montgomery County Historical Society.

Puerto Rican immigrant marks milestone birthday

By Bob Cudmore

   One of the first Latino immigrants to Amsterdam recently celebrated his 100th birthday.

   City Mayor Michael Cinquanti said in a Facebook post that Aldelmo (Al) Camacho’s family including grandson Rob Camacho held the celebration at the Century Club.

   Cinquanti wrote, “(Al) and his beloved wife Tina have contributed so much to our community since settling here in 1951 and to be on hand to see him share this incredible milestone with his loving family and friends was indeed a privilege.”

   Aldelmo Camacho grew up on a farm near Yauco, a small city in south Puerto Rico.  The youngest of ten children, he joined the Army in 1942 and served as a medical surgery technician. 

   After the war, he attended business college where he met his future wife, Ernestina (Tina) Perez.  In 1948, they married and the family grew with the birth of two daughters.

   Aldelmo said in a 2004 interview that two of his brothers had moved to America and settled in Amsterdam, attracted by newspaper ads from the carpet industry.

   In 1950, Aldelmo left his family and arrived in Amsterdam on a Sunday in June.  He had his first job the next day, making pocketbooks for Central Leather.

   “When I came here, you could have a job, quit the job and get another job in that same building with another company,” Aldelmo said.  “If you didn’t have a job here it was because you didn’t want to work.”

   Aldelmo stayed in Amsterdam four months but returned to Yauco because he missed his family.  There was no work in Puerto Rico so Aldelmo headed north again.  This time he ran a milling machine at Collette’s, preparing rubber for tennis and beach balls.

   Within a few months, Tina and the children moved to Amsterdam and Tina began work at Amsterdam Glove.  Their first home was in the former Amsterdam Hotel on Main Street.  Apartments followed and then their own houses on Academy Street and Bunn Street.

   There were only a few Latinos in Amsterdam in the early 1950s.  “When we came in it was just Puerto Ricans and Cubans,” Aldelmo said.  Today, Amsterdam’s many Latinos also have roots in Columbia, Costa Rica, Mexico and other countries.

   In 1953, the Camachos were instrumental in forming the Spanish American Club, which closed in 2004. 

   Tina held jobs at Chalmer’s Button Shop, Hanover Dress, Martin Jay Dress and Mohawk Dress.  She also earned her high school diploma and attended Fulton-Montgomery Community College.

   “We made an honest dollar every place we went,” Tina said.  “We started at 75 cents an hour and then it went up to a dollar an hour.  We lived on that.”

   Aldelmo worked several years at the Naval Depot in Scotia and then was a dress cutter at Hanover’s.  Hanover’s closed its Amsterdam plant in 1972 and wanted Aldelmo to relocate to Vermont.  Instead, the Camachos returned to Puerto Rico.

   “We went back and I got a job in San Juan cutting dresses,” Aldelmo said.  “But I was in San Juan and (Tina) was in Yauco, a hundred miles apart and we stayed just seven weeks.  When we left Puerto Rico it was one way of living.  When we went back it was too different.  It was a different country for us.”

   Back in Amsterdam, Aldelmo secured jobs at Coleco, then Gem Urethane, Bojud Knitting and General Electric before his retirement.

   “This town (Amsterdam) came to be more important than the town where I was born,” said Aldelmo, who has a reputation for his skill at dominoes.  “This town for me is like my hometown.  It’s where I’ve raised my family.”

Sign-up for the Cudmore email "Blast" (into your email box each Saturday)

 [email protected]

Mohawk Valley Weather, Monday, June 5, 2023

51 degrees in The City of Amsterdam at 5:54AM

Leader Herald Make Us A Part Of Your Day

https://www.leaderherald.com/

Fort Palin Museum https://fortplainmuseum.org/viewevent.aspx?ID=1062

Still Time to Register for The Revolutionary War Conference 250 in the Mohawk Valley that starts this Friday, June 9, 2023 

Plus We Added a 2nd Bus!

Bob Cudmore will introduce the speakers this Saturday and Sunday, June 10, 8 am-5 pm and June 11, 8 am to 1 pm at the Revolutionary War conference organized by the Fort Plain Museum.

The speaking program takes place at the auditorium of Fulton-Montgomery Community College in Johnstown.   

Thanks to an extremely generous and anonymous $1000 donation, The Historians Podcast fund drive has now raised $2610 toward our $7000 goal for 2023. 

Thank you very much.  We still have a long way to go. Please help us provide more history programing on Fort Ticonderoga, Old Fort Johnson, songs of the American Revolution by Cosby Gibson and Tom Staudle, the Wild West and much more.  Please donate online at The Historians Podcast, organized by Bob Cudmore  or send a check made out to Bob Cudmore to 125 Horstman Drive, Scotia, NY 12302. Thank you again-every contribution is appreciated.

    The city was the birthplace of suffragist Elizabeth Cady Stanton in the 19th century and Rose Knox of Knox Gelatin became one of the country’s first female corporate leaders in the 20th century.

Johnstown celebrates its rich history

By Bob Cudmore

The city of Johnstown, with a population of about 8500, is small but elegant, according to Regent Catherine Grady of the Daughters of the American Revolution.  The city is planning a series of events to mark its 250th anniversary this year (2008).

        As early as 1758, colonist Sir William Johnson was making plans to encourage Europeans to settle in the area now called Johnstown.  Johnson himself established his residence at Johnson Hall, today a state historic site.  The elder Johnson named the community after his son John. 

        “You couldn’t make up (William Johnson’s) life,” said Wanda Burch, site manager of Johnson Hall, speaking at last month’s inaugural 250th anniversary event at St. Patrick’s Masonic Lodge.

        British Superintendent of Indian Affairs, Johnson was responsible for keeping good relations between Britain and Indian allies including the Mohawk nation.  Johnson’s consort was a powerful Mohawk woman, Molly Brant.

        Johnson founded St. John’s Episcopal Church and St. Patrick’s Masonic Lodge.  Father Ted Monica of St. John’s said Anglican services were first held locally in the 1760s.  Mason Wayne Schermerhorn said Johnson was the first master of the lodge in 1766.  Today’s lodge has Masonic jewelry dating back to that time.  The Johnstown courthouse was built in 1772, the only colonial era courthouse in America still in use.

        Mayor Sarah Slingerland and artist Marjorie Marcais unveiled the 250th anniversary poster last month, featuring a portrait of Johnson.

        Sir William Johnson died in 1774 before the outbreak of the American Revolution.  His family sided with the British and left the area for Canada.  John Johnson and his Indian allies attacked the city that was named for him and other parts of the Mohawk Valley during the war.

        The last battle of the Revolution was in Johnstown in 1781.  Assemblyman Marc Butler, whose district includes the city, has a special interest in the British sympathizer who played a role in that battle, Walter Butler.  The Assemblyman noted that Walter Butler was probably regarded locally as the Osama Bin Laden of his day. 

Although Assemblyman Butler is not descended from Walter Butler, the Assemblyman lives in Newport near where the 18th century soldier died.

        Fire Chief Bruce Heberer told the anniversary kickoff that the city fire department is observing its 200th anniversary this year.  Heberer noted the first fire company had 24 members and the department today has 24 firefighters.

        Johnstown city historian Noel Levee said that as the community was the first county seat of the colonial Tryon County and the postwar Montgomery County, Johnstown was prominent early on.  National dignitaries including Daniel Webster visited Johnstown.  

        The city was the birthplace of suffragist Elizabeth Cady Stanton in the 19th century and Rose Knox of Knox Gelatin became one of the country’s first female corporate leaders in the 20th century.

        With neighboring Gloversville, Johnstown became a center for glove manufacturing in the 19th and part of the 20th centuries.

        Fulton County historian Peter Betz is convinced the 250th anniversary celebration will help participants realize that history is about people.

        Among anniversary events scheduled this year is an Elizabeth Cady Stanton women’s symposium March 15 at Fulton-Montgomery Community College.  The Fulton County Historical Society will have a Johnstown exhibit from May through October at their Gloversville museum.  Market Days will be held at Johnson Hall on June 7 and 8. 

        September 13 will be marked by a parade and there will be historic home tours that month. 

In November, the Colonial Little Theatre will present a radio show called “Lady of Johnstown—Rose Knox.”  That month there will be a Rose Knox birthday party at Knox Mansion and a cook off featuring Knox Gelatin recipes.

by Darryl Kenyon(2015)

YouTube (Subscribe to the Channel)

I was recently in Johnstown NY and did a walking tour video of the Historic Town.

Wednesday, June 7, 2023-From the Archives-August 5, 2022-Episode 434-NBC TV has aired an episode of their family history show Who Do You Think You Are including interviews filmed in Fonda and Johnstown.  Actor Nick Offerman (who plays Ron Swanson in the sitcom Parks and Recreation) traced his ancestors to families from upstate New York. Kelly Yacobucci Farquhar, Montgomery County historian, explains why Fonda’s Old Courthouse is a mecca for genealogists and historians.

Thursday, June 8, 2023-From the Archives of Focus on History from the Daily Gazette-Violins and ginseng

Friday, June 9, 2023 – Episode 478 Scott Haefner of Old Fort Johnson historic site explains how this formerly fortified home of British Indian agent Sir William Johnson was preserved by a grass roots organization, the Montgomery County Historical Society.

Sign-up for the Bob Cudmore email

"Blast" 

 [email protected]

Mohawk Valley Weather, Tuesday, June 6, 2023 

57 degrees in The City of Amsterdam at 5:59AM

Leader Herald Make Us A Part Of Your Day

https://www.leaderherald.com/

Thanks to an extremely generous and anonymous $1000 donation, The Historians Podcast fund drive has now raised $2610 toward our $7000 goal for 2023.  Thank you very much.  We still have a long way to go. Please help us provide more history programing on Fort Ticonderoga, Old Fort Johnson, songs of the American Revolution by Cosby Gibson and Tom Staudle, the Wild West and much more.  Please donate online at The Historians Podcast, organized by Bob Cudmore  or send a check made out to Bob Cudmore to 125 Horstman Drive, Scotia, NY 12302. Thank you again-every contribution is appreciated.

Puerto Rican immigrant marks milestone birthday

By Bob Cudmore

   One of the first Latino immigrants to Amsterdam recently celebrated his 100th birthday.

   City Mayor Michael Cinquanti said in a Facebook post that Aldelmo (Al) Camacho’s family including grandson Rob Camacho held the celebration at the Century Club.

   Cinquanti wrote, “(Al) and his beloved wife Tina have contributed so much to our community since settling here in 1951 and to be on hand to see him share this incredible milestone with his loving family and friends was indeed a privilege.”

   Aldelmo Camacho grew up on a farm near Yauco, a small city in south Puerto Rico.  The youngest of ten children, he joined the Army in 1942 and served as a medical surgery technician. 

   After the war, he attended business college where he met his future wife, Ernestina (Tina) Perez.  In 1948, they married and the family grew with the birth of two daughters.

   Aldelmo said in a 2004 interview that two of his brothers had moved to America and settled in Amsterdam, attracted by newspaper ads from the carpet industry.

   In 1950, Aldelmo left his family and arrived in Amsterdam on a Sunday in June.  He had his first job the next day, making pocketbooks for Central Leather.

   “When I came here, you could have a job, quit the job and get another job in that same building with another company,” Aldelmo said.  “If you didn’t have a job here it was because you didn’t want to work.”

   Aldelmo stayed in Amsterdam four months but returned to Yauco because he missed his family.  There was no work in Puerto Rico so Aldelmo headed north again.  This time he ran a milling machine at Collette’s, preparing rubber for tennis and beach balls.

   Within a few months, Tina and the children moved to Amsterdam and Tina began work at Amsterdam Glove.  Their first home was in the former Amsterdam Hotel on Main Street.  Apartments followed and then their own houses on Academy Street and Bunn Street.

Tomorrow, Monday, June 5, 2023-Story behind the story-early Latino immigrant Aldlmo Canacho(Podcast about 5 Minutes)

   There were only a few Latinos in Amsterdam in the early 1950s.  “When we came in it was just Puerto Ricans and Cubans,” Aldelmo said.  Today, Amsterdam’s many Latinos also have roots in Columbia, Costa Rica, Mexico and other countries.

   In 1953, the Camachos were instrumental in forming the Spanish American Club, which closed in 2004. 

   Tina held jobs at Chalmer’s Button Shop, Hanover Dress, Martin Jay Dress and Mohawk Dress.  She also earned her high school diploma and attended Fulton-Montgomery Community College.

   “We made an honest dollar every place we went,” Tina said.  “We started at 75 cents an hour and then it went up to a dollar an hour.  We lived on that.”

   Aldelmo worked several years at the Naval Depot in Scotia and then was a dress cutter at Hanover’s.  Hanover’s closed its Amsterdam plant in 1972 and wanted Aldelmo to relocate to Vermont.  Instead, the Camachos returned to Puerto Rico.

   “We went back and I got a job in San Juan cutting dresses,” Aldelmo said.  “But I was in San Juan and (Tina) was in Yauco, a hundred miles apart and we stayed just seven weeks.  When we left Puerto Rico it was one way of living.  When we went back it was too different.  It was a different country for us.”

   Back in Amsterdam, Aldelmo secured jobs at Coleco, then Gem Urethane, Bojud Knitting and General Electric before his retirement.

   “This town (Amsterdam) came to be more important than the town where I was born,” said Aldelmo, who has a reputation for his skill at dominoes.  “This town for me is like my hometown.  It’s where I’ve raised my family.”

June on The Historians with Writer, Radio, Internet, NewsPaper Man Bob Cudmore

Friday, June 9, 2023 –Episode 478-Scott Haefner of Old Fort Johnson historic site explains how this formerly fortified home of British Indian agent Sir William Johnson was preserved by a grass roots organization, the Montgomery County Historical Society.

Old Mount Johnson

An original mini documentary directed, produced, filmed & edited by Aaron Smith. It explores the history of William Johnson and Old Fort Johnson located in Upstate New York. Starring: Rachel Bliven - Museum Director Scott Haefner - Site Manager

Curator Matthew Keagle discusses Fort Ticonderoga historic site this season.  Visitors will experience 1760 at the fort and see how British soldiers and American provincials ensure military dominance on Lake Champlain and deep into the heart of French Canada.

Sign-up for the Cudmore email "Blast" (into your email box each Saturday)

 [email protected]

Mohawk Valley Weekend Weather, Sunday, June 4, 2023

46 degrees in The City of Amsterdam at 6:16AM

Leader Herald Make Us A Part Of Your Day

https://www.leaderherald.com/

Information about The Historians Go Fund Me Effort Down the Page(to the point, needs your help!!)

June on The Historians with Writer, Radio, Internet, NewsPaper Man Bob Cudmore

Friday, June 9, 2023 –Episode 478-Scott Haefner of Old Fort Johnson historic site explains how this formerly fortified home of British Indian agent Sir William Johnson was preserved by a grass roots organization, the Montgomery County Historical Society.

Friday, June 16, 2023 –Episode 479–Cosby Gibson and Tom Staudle with songs from their new program of music from the American Revolution.  Previously Cosby and Tom, who live in the Mohawk Valley have done musical programs with songs of the Erie Canal and other historical topics.

Friday, June 23, 2023-Episode 480 --A Highlights Edition with excerpts from recent podcasts on the Holocaust, Amsterdam history, Harlem, the Battle of Bennington, desegregation, Fort Ticonderoga and Fort Johnson.

Friday, June 30, 2023-Episode 481--Chris Wimmer is author of The Summer of 1876: Outlaws, Lawmen, and Legends in the Season That Defined the American West.

The Historians Podcast fund drive has raised $1610 toward our $7000 goal for 2023.  No donation in the last seven days.  Please help us provide more history programing on Fort Ticonderoga, Old Fort Johnson, songs of the American Revolution by Cosby Gibson and Tom Staudle and much more.  Please donate online at https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-historians-podcast  or send a check made out to Bob Cudmore to 125 Horstman Drive, Scotia, NY 12302. Thank you-every contribution is appreciated.

The 2023 theme at Fort Ticonderoga "1760"

Curator Matthew Keagle discusses Fort Ticonderoga historic site this season.  Visitors will experience 1760 at the fort and see how British soldiers and American provincials ensure military dominance on Lake Champlain and deep into the heart of French Canada.

Today in The Daily Gazette and On-line tomorrow on The Historians

Sunday, June 4, 2023-Aldelmo Camacho at 100 years old

Aldelmo Camacho grew up on a farm near Yauco, a small city in south Puerto Rico.  The youngest of ten children, he joined the Army in 1942 and served as a medical surgery technician. 

Sign-up for the Cudmore email "Blast" 

Todays Blast is on the way

 [email protected]

Mohawk Valley Weekend Weather, Saturday, June 3, 2023

64 degrees in The City of Amsterdam at 6:03AM

Leader Herald Make Us A Part Of Your Day

https://www.leaderherald.com/

Please contribute to our 2023 Historians Podcast fund drive.  You may donate online at https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-historians-podcast   or send a check made out to Bob Cudmore to 125 Horstman Drive, Scotia, NY 12302. 

 [email protected]  

Weston, born in Providence, Rhode Island in 1839, started America’s fascination with long distance walking in 1861 when he trudged from Boston to Washington to fulfill a bet that he would accomplish the feat in ten days if Abraham Lincoln won the Presidential election. 

Walking through the Mohawk Valley

By Bob Cudmore

   When marathon walker Edward Payson Weston strode into Amsterdam in 1910, the New York Times reported that Weston received “the merriest reception which has been accorded him at any place during his walk across the continent.”

   Weston, born in Providence, Rhode Island in 1839, started America’s fascination with long distance walking in 1861 when he trudged from Boston to Washington to fulfill a bet that he would accomplish the feat in ten days if Abraham Lincoln won the Presidential election. 

   Weston’s walk took ten hours longer than ten days but he became famous for the effort, giving people a diversion in a very dark time. 

   After the Civil War ended, Weston walked from Portland, Maine to Chicago, Illinois, in 1867 to win a prize of $10,000.  Gamblers took to betting on competitive walkers.

   Weston the pedestrian, as he famously called himself, was in Amsterdam in October 1894 as part of a walk around New York State.

   He passed through Amsterdam again on his walk from Portland, Maine, to Chicago in 1907 at age 68.  When he started out, Weston was doing 50 miles a day. 

   Weston went through Amsterdam on March 19, 1909 on his 4,000 mile walk from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, a journey that took 104 days. 

   On his way back he went through Amsterdam on the night of April 26, 1910, receiving the tumultuous welcome that was reported by the New York Times. 

   The Amsterdam Recorder had sent a reporter west of Tribes Hill to walk with Weston on the approach to Amsterdam,  Hundreds were cheering the pedestrian along the road through Tribes Hill and the village of Akin, later renamed Fort Johnson,

   Weston frequently doffed his hat to acknowledge women well-wishers and spectators waving American flags. 

   The Recorder wrote, “The younger ones cared not where they dodged and occasionally one of them would get directly in the pathway of the walker or else bump against him in the rear.”

   When the crowds got too close Weston would shout, “Please keep 10 feet away/”

   The Amsterdam police chief escorted Weston from the city line on Guy Park Avenue, where the first fireworks were heard.  Weston and his entourage turned down Caroline Street then headed east on Division Street.

   When Weston turned right on Market Street, a flying wedge of high school boys made it possible for him to continue moving forward through the huge crowd,   

   “It was then that enthusiasm let loose,” the Recorder wrote, “And the sirens of the automobiles

coupled with the red firesticks and Roman candles made a din that Market Street has never before seen.”

   Fireworks ignited the awning on John Larrabee’s hardware store but the blaze was quickly extinguished “with the aid of water thrown from the upper windows.”

   Weston went inside the Barnes Hotel on Market Street and was “whisked to his room” where he met with Stephen Sanford, Amsterdam’s most prominent mill owner/

   After Sanford left, Weston rested.  He came down about two a.m. saying he was “feeling bully.”  He had breakfast and then resumed his marathon trek, heading for Schenectady, Troy and ultimately New York City.  There he expected to give up walking for a while “and go on the lecture platform” with his topic being "The Vicissitudes of a Pedestrian."

   The last reference to Weston being in Amsterdam came in 1922 when the then 82-year old walker came through town September 23 on his way to New York City. 

   Weston was hit by a New York City taxicab in 1927.  Badly injured, he stopped walking.  He died in 1929 and was buried in New York City.

Matthew Keagle

Artillery in the 18th century was organized by the weight of its shot, but shot was more than just the size of the cannonball.

Tomorrow, Bob Cudmores conversation with Curator Matthew Keagle

"1760"

Friday, June 2, 2023-Episode 477- Curator Matthew Keagle discusses Fort Ticonderoga historic site this season.  Visitors will experience 1760 at the fort and see how British soldiers and American provincials ensure military dominance on Lake Champlain and deep into the heart of French Canada.

Saturday June 3, 2023-Michael Mauro DeBonis discusses his New York History Blog article on Canastota, N.Y., boxing champion Carmen Basilio

Sunday, June 4, 2023-Aldelmo Camacho at 100 years old

One of the first Latino immigrants to Amsterdam recently celebrated his 100th birthday.

   City Mayor Michael Cinquanti said in a Facebook post that Aldelmo Camacho’s family including grandson Rob Camacho held the celebration at the Century Club.

   Friends of North Chuctanunda Creek Incorporated will celebrate National Trails Day at their first public meeting this Saturday June 3, 9:30 am at the Clock Tower Building, 37 Prospect Street in Amsterdam. 

CHUCTUNUNDA CREEK TRAIL -POWERHOUSE SECTION

   Maps will show completed trails and future construction.  There will be refreshments.

   An elevator to the top floor of the Clock Building will enable attendees to enjoy the view from the historic structure that once was part of Bigelow Sanford Carpet and later toymaker Coleco.

  Outdoors on June 3, John Naple will lead an optional mile-long walk along the North Chuctanunda Creek.  The walk will go through the former Sanford Mill Complex from Locust Avenue to Church Street, stop at the creek overlook in back of Kelloggs and Miller’s former linseed oil plant, and go down Church Street to opposite City Hall.

   The North Chuctanunda Creek provided water power to many of Amsterdam’s 19th century mills.

Sign-up for the Cudmore email "Blast" this Saturday

 [email protected]

Mohawk Valley Weather, Thursday, June 1, 2023

59 degrees in The City of Amsterdam at 6:33AM

Leader Herald Make Us A Part Of Your Day

https://www.leaderherald.com/

Last day of May

Historians Episode 213-Tim Wendel is author of a family memoir 

First day of June

Weston the pedestrian

When marathon walker Edward Payson Weston strode into Amsterdam in 1910, the New York Times reported that Weston received “the merriest reception which has been accorded him at any place during his walk across the continent.”

Weston, born in Providence, Rhode Island in 1839, started America’s fascination with long distance walking in 1861 when he trudged from Boston to Washington to fulfill a bet that he would accomplish the feat in ten days if Abraham Lincoln won the Presidential election.

Join Fort Ticonderoga's Curator Dr. Matthew Keagle for a history of the French Lines on the Carillon Battlefield.

This Friday Bob Cudmores conversation with Curator Matthew Keagle

"1760"

Friday, June 2, 2023-Episode 477- Curator Matthew Keagle discusses Fort Ticonderoga historic site this season.  Visitors will experience 1760 at the fort and see how British soldiers and American provincials ensure military dominance on Lake Champlain and deep into the heart of French Canada.

This Saturday in Amsterdam  

North Chuctanunda Creek Friends to Meet 

   Friends of North Chuctanunda Creek Incorporated will celebrate National Trails Day at their first public meeting Saturday June 3, 9:30 am at the Clock Tower Building, 37 Prospect Street in Amsterdam. 

   Maps will show completed trails and future construction.  There will be refreshments.

   An elevator to the top floor of the Clock Building will enable attendees to enjoy the view from the historic structure that once was part of Bigelow Sanford Carpet and later toymaker Coleco.

  Outdoors on June 3, John Naple will lead an optional mile-long walk along the North Chuctanunda Creek.  The walk will go through the former Sanford Mill Complex from Locust Avenue to Church Street, stop at the creek overlook in back of Kelloggs and Miller’s former linseed oil plant, and go down Church Street to opposite City Hall.

   The North Chuctanunda Creek provided water power to many of Amsterdam’s 19th century mills.

Sign-up for the Cudmore email "Blast" this Saturday

 [email protected]

Mohawk Valley Weather, Wednesday, May 31, 2023

55 degrees in The City of Amsterdam at 6:20AM

Leader Herald Make Us A Part Of Your Day

https://www.leaderherald.com/

It's all in the details! Check out Curator Matt Keagle unfold the history of this Spanish 12-pounder bronze cannon using largely overlooked clues. Scroll down for Matthew Keagle on YouTube

On The Historians this Friday

June 2, 2023-Episode 477- Curator Matthew Keagle discusses Fort Ticonderoga historic site this season.  Visitors will experience 1760 at the fort and see how British soldiers and American provincials ensure military dominance on Lake Champlain and deep into the heart of French Canada. 

The Historians Podcast fund drive has raised $1610 toward our $7000 goal for 2023.  Thanks to Bob Burns for our most recent contribution.  Please donate online at https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-historians-podcast  or send a check made out to Bob Cudmore to 125 Horstman Drive, Scotia, NY 12302. Thank you-every contribution is appreciated.

Love letters from the Depression

By Bob Cudmore

   In the summer of 1931, my parents both were working and lived on what my father called “long distance love.”

   Born in Torrington, England in 1909, Clarence Cudmore came to America with his mother Elizabeth and siblings in 1912.

   My grandfather Harry Cudmore had emigrated to Amsterdam the year before to weave silk at Fownes Brothers glove mill on Grove Street.  The family settled in a duplex at 36 Eagle Street, three houses away from Harry and Bryna Demsky, whose son became the actor Kirk Douglas. 

   The home owner where my grandparents lived was Robert Brown.  Brown and his wife Beatrice lived in half of the house.  Beatrice was my grandfather’s sister who had come to Amsterdam years before.

   Julia Cook, my mother, was born in Randall in 1913.  Her father Yates was a storekeeper who died unexpectedly at age 63 in 1915.  My grandmother and her three children moved to Amsterdam after World War I.  Grandmother Margaret operated a boarding house at 107 1/2 Forbes Street. 

   Both my parents grew up in the city’s East End and met at the East Main Street Methodist Episcopal Church, which is now a community center.

   Clarence left school to work in Mohawk Carpet Mills near his Eagle Street home.  Julia skipped two grades and graduated from high school at age 16 in 1930. 

   She went off to Albany Normal School, the predecessor of SUNY Albany, but left school because of emotional and money problems.

   Julia and her older sister Jane spent the summer of 1931 working as maids at a Catskill resort, the Terrace Farm Inn in Phoenicia.  Their mother had grown up in Chichester near Phoenicia and relatives kept their eyes on the girls. 

   That summer Julia, 17, and Clarence, 22, exchanged 24 letters.

   “It seemed awfully queer and funny to me Sunday not having you come after me and loving me too,” Julia wrote in June.

   Clarence responded with a story about a rain-soaked church picnic in Tribes Hill where the minister’s car got stuck on wet grass and Clarence helped put chains on the tires, “I had my new suit on, so you could imagine how mad I was.”

   “Oh, by the way, I have an appointment with my cousin on Thursday to go to see (the movie) ‘Dracula’ at Fleischmanns,” Julia wrote.  “You don’t mind, do you?  He’s my cousin and we’ll be chaperoned thank God.”

   The carpet mill where Clarence worked closed for inventory the last week in June.  Julia responded, perhaps sarcastically, that it was good of the mill owners to give her beau a vacation.

   In July Julia had an “attack of hysterics.”  Clarence told her of a wedding at their Amsterdam church where the 100 guests were served sandwiches left over from a church picnic. 

   Julia refused two dates and said business was brisk at the inn.  Clarence hitched a ride with Julia’s sister’s fiancé Peter Segen for a visit in Phoenicia.

   Julia came down with stomach ulcers.  A doctor prescribed medicine and put her on a bland diet.  Clarence replied, “If I was the doctor, I wouldn’t give you anything but love and kisses.”

   Clarence wrote in August, “I don’t like the idea of living on long distance love.”

   Julia and Clarence were married by the Reverend Frank T. Love at the East Main Street Methodist Church parsonage in Amsterdam in April 1934, the day after my father’s 25th birthday.  Their first child, Arlene, was born in August 1935.  I came along ten years later. 

   Clarence and Julia had been married 60 years when Clarence died in 1994.  Julia died two years later.

Last day of May

Historians Episode 213-Tim Wendel is author of a family memoir about the 1960s medical team at Roswell Park in Buffalo who made great strides in treating cancer: “Cancer Crossings: A Brother, His Doctors and the Quest for a Cure to Childhood Leukemia.”

First day of June

Weston the pedestrian

When marathon walker Edward Payson Weston strode into Amsterdam in 1910, the New York Times reported that Weston received “the merriest reception which has been accorded him at any place during his walk across the continent.”

It's all in the details! Check out Curator Matt Keagle unfold the history of this Spanish 12-pounder bronze cannon using largely overlooked clues.

Friday, June 2, 2023-Episode 477- Curator Matthew Keagle discusses Fort Ticonderoga historic site this season.  Visitors will experience 1760 at the fort and see how British soldiers and American provincials ensure military dominance on Lake Champlain and deep into the heart of French Canada. 

North Chuctanunda Creek Friends to Meet this Saturday

   Friends of North Chuctanunda Creek Incorporated will celebrate National Trails Day at their first public meeting Saturday June 3, 9:30 am at the Clock Tower Building, 37 Prospect Street in Amsterdam. 

   Maps will show completed trails and future construction.  There will be refreshments.

   An elevator to the top floor of the Clock Building will enable attendees to enjoy the view from the historic structure that once was part of Bigelow Sanford Carpet and later toymaker Coleco.

  Outdoors on June 3, John Naple will lead an optional mile-long walk along the North Chuctanunda Creek.  The walk will go through the former Sanford Mill Complex from Locust Avenue to Church Street, stop at the creek overlook in back of Kelloggs and Miller’s former linseed oil plant, and go down Church Street to opposite City Hall.

   The North Chuctanunda Creek provided water power to many of Amsterdam’s 19th century mills.

Sign-up for the Cudmore email "Blast" sent early each Saturday with the latest Historians information

 [email protected]

Mohawk Valley Weather, Tuesday, May 30, 2023

56 degrees in The City of Amsterdam at 6:14AM

Leader Herald Make Us A Part Of Your Day

https://www.leaderherald.com/

The Historians Podcast fund drive has raised $1610 toward our $7000 goal for 2023.  Thanks to Bob Burns for our most recent contribution.  Please donate online at https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-historians-podcast  or send a check made out to Bob Cudmore to 125 Horstman Drive, Scotia, NY 12302. Thank you-every contribution is appreciated.

Friends of North Chuctanunda Creek Incorporated will celebrate National Trails Day at their first public meeting this Saturday June 3, 9:30 am at the Clock Tower Building, 37 Prospect Street in Amsterdam. 

Monday, May 29, 2023

Story behind the story- Women’s panties made in Fort Plain; N. Chuctanunda Creek Trail

Village of Fort Plain, New York

https://villageoffortplain.com/

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Long distance love

   In the summer of 1931, my parents both were working and lived on what my father called “long distance love.”

   Born in Torrington, England in 1909, Clarence Cudmore came to America with his mother Elizabeth and siblings in 1912.

Wednesday, May 31, 2023

Historians Episode 213-Tim Wendel is author of a family memoir about the 1960s medical team at Roswell Park in Buffalo who made great strides in treating cancer: “Cancer Crossings: A Brother, His Doctors and the Quest for a Cure to Childhood Leukemia.”

Thursday, June 1, 2023

Focus on History from the Daily Gazette-Weston the pedestrian

Friday, June 2, 2023-Episode 477- Curator Matthew Keagle discusses Fort Ticonderoga historic site this season.  Visitors will experience 1760 at the fort and see how British soldiers and American provincials ensure military dominance on Lake Champlain and deep into the heart of French Canada.

Luxuray in Fort Plain; Chuctanunda trail in Amsterdam

By Bob Cudmore, Focus on History 

   A company with the poetic name Luxuray bought a multi-storied factory building on Willett Street in Fort Plain in 1931 to manufacture women’s underwear, mainly panties.

   The building was first used in 1874 by the Shipman Spring and Axle Works.  That business moved to Illinois in 1894, a loss keenly felt in Fort Plain according to historian Rob Carter. 

   From 1900 to 1931 the Bailey brothers wove silk in the Willett Street complex.  Then Luxuray entered the picture,

   Soon after acquiring the Fort Plain property in 1931, Luxuray began expanding.

   “When this work is finished,” wrote the Otsego Farmer newspaper in 1933, “Luxuray Inc. will be one of the most complete and modern underwear plants in the United States, with a force of employees totaling from 250 to 300.”

   The Gloversville Morning Herald that year reported Luxuray was implementing two shifts in Fort Plain and making rayon underwear. 

   Luxuray sold its own line of panties and supplied stores like Macy’s and J.C. Penney’s.  Luxuray had a factory store in Fort Plain. 

   One company executive in the 1970s boasted, “We make everything from a skimpy string bikini up to a size 68-inch hip. 

   The predominantly female Luxuray employees, most of them operating sewing machines, were noticed in local newspapers for sporting events, employee parties and good deeds.  Luxuray regularly advertised for more workers. 

   Rolls of cotton, nylon, acetate and other materials were trucked to Fort Plain, and Luxuray’s cutting room staff was responsible for minimizing fabric waste. 

   In 1945 many of the women from Luxuray used their own funds to help pay for a bingo party for soldiers recovering from war wounds at a Utica hospital. 

  Some 250 employees and friends gathered for Luxuray’s annual clambake and dance in 1948.  There was also a softball game and tug-of-war.

   Luxuray had several corporate owners.  In the 1950s it became part of Beaunit Corporation.  The Fort Plain plant was sold to a group of local Mohawk Valley investors in 1974.  The number of employees had shrunk from several hundred to about 70 people.

   “They may not know it,” wrote reporter Charles Tobey in a story in the Courier Standard Enterprise in 1984, “But right now, thousands of women are wearing panties made in Fort Plain.”

   Harry Reeder, manager of the plant in the 1970s and 1980s, told the newspaper, “We like to think of ourselves as a good place to work.”

   Lightning apparently started a fire that damaged the roof of the Fort Plain factory in 1986.  The company kept going.

   Foreign competition led to Luxuray’s demise.  The company merged with Johnstown Knit in the closing years of the 20th century.  By 1999 underwear production had ceased in Fort Plain. 

North Chuctanunda Creek Friends to Meet this Weekend

   Friends of North Chuctanunda Creek Incorporated will celebrate National Trails Day at their first public meeting Saturday June 3, 9:30 am at the Clock Tower Building, 37 Prospect Street in Amsterdam. 

   Maps will show completed trails and future construction.  There will be refreshments.

   An elevator to the top floor of the Clock Building will enable attendees to enjoy the view from the historic structure that once was part of Bigelow Sanford Carpet and later toymaker Coleco.

  Outdoors on June 3, John Naple will lead an optional mile-long walk along the North Chuctanunda Creek.  The walk will go through the former Sanford Mill Complex from Locust Avenue to Church Street, stop at the creek overlook in back of Kelloggs and Miller’s former linseed oil plant, and go down Church Street to opposite City Hall.

   The North Chuctanunda Creek provided water power to many of Amsterdam’s 19th century mills.

History from The Mohawk Valley with Bob Cudmore

More on The Musicians of Ma’alwyck

Violinist Ann-Marie Barker Schwarz explores the history of high quality music in the early days of radio. Edward Rice played the violin during WGY Schenectady’s first broadcast on February 20, 1922. Barker Schwarz is the founder of Musicians of Ma’alwyck and took part in WGY’s 100th anniversary broadcast.

Sign-up for the Cudmore email "Blast" sent early each Saturday

Be the first on your block

 [email protected]

Mohawk Valley Memorial Day Weekend Weather, Monday, May 29, 2023

57 degrees in The City of Amsterdam at 6:06AM

Leader Herald Make Us A Part Of Your Day

https://www.leaderherald.com/