In celebration of Women’s History Month, this episode tells the story of Grace Leach Hudowalski, the first woman to summit all 46 of the Adirondack High Peaks. Besides being an accomplished mountain climber, Grace was also the first president of the Adirondack 46ers Club as well as its historian for over 50 years. As historian, Grace answered thousands of letters from club members telling her of their exploits as they reached each of the 46 summits. An accomplished writer, Grace promoted the Adirondacks through her work as a tourism writer for New York State and through her many articles for t ..read more

In honor of Black History Month, this episode tells the story of the 1839 La Amistad Rebellion, in which 53 illegally enslaved Africans rose up against their Spanish captors off the coast of Cuba, took over the ship, and attempted to sail it to freedom. They eventually reached Long Island, where they were arrested by U.S. officials. Aided by New York abolitionists, the Amistad Africans fought various legal battles for over two years before the Supreme Court finally ruled in their favor in what was one of the most important court cases related to slavery before the Civil War. Marker of Focus: S ..read more

On this month's episode, Devin and Lauren uncover a system of Confederate spies, guerillas, and terrorists attempting to wreak havoc on Western New York during the final years of the American Civil War. Marker of Focus: Escape Prevented, Niagara County Guests: Anton Schwarzmueller (Project Coordinator) and Jim Ball (Board President) of the Niagara Frontier Chapter-National Railway Historical Society, Lindsey Lauren Visser, Buffalo City Historian A New York Minute in History is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio and the New York State Museum, with support from the William G ..read more

On this month’s episode, Devin and Lauren explore the story of Plymouth Freeman, a black Patriot who served in the Continental Army during the American Revolution, and discuss how disenfranchised communities have harkened back to the promises outlined in the Declaration of Independence as a strategy for inclusion in those foundational principles of freedom and equality. Marker of Focus: Plymouth Freeman, Madison County Guests: Donna Wassall and Karen Christensen of the Fayetteville-Owahgena Chapter DAR, Paul and Mary Liz Stewart from the Underground Railroad Education Center, New York State Mu ..read more

For our first episode of this new season, we're celebrating Native American Heritage Month with a conversation regarding how historians can center authentic indigenous voices and work with Native American communities across the state in planning for the upcoming 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. Marker of Focus: Native Voices, Chemung County Additional markers of focus: Newtown Defense, Thick Swamp, Rowland Montour, Chemung Village Guests: Dr. Joe Stahlman, Tribal Preservation Officer, The Seneca Nation of Indians, Dr. Nina M. Versaggi, Public Archeology Faculty, Binghamton Univers ..read more

For our season finale, Devin and Lauren tell the story of the Fox sisters, who rose to fame as early practitioners of modern spiritualism in the 19th Century. Margaretta and Catherine Fox were able to convince many people that they could commune with the dead, though they later admitted to making their stories up. Despite this, their form of “rapping” spiritualism exploded across the nation and beyond.   Marker of Focus: The Fox Sisters, Newark, Wayne County Guests: Tracy Murphy, executive director of the Historic Palmyra Museums; and David Stiles, former president of the Newark-Arcadia H ..read more

On this episode, Devin and Lauren tell the story of the Florence Farming and Lumber Association, a settlement of free African Americans in Oneida County beginning in 1846. The Association was the creation of abolitionists Gerrit Smith and Stephen Myers, and it developed on land given by Smith, who at the time was New York's largest landowner. The original idea for the settlement was to allow African American men to meet the threshold of owning at least $250 worth of property before they would have been allowed to vote, a restriction imposed upon them at the time by the New York state legislatu ..read more

On this episode, Devin and Lauren learn about an enclave of restaurants, bars and resorts that catered to predominately Latin American clientele near the Catskill Mountains. As more and more Latinos immigrated to New York City for work, they began to look to places outside the city for recreation and to connect with other Spanish-speaking tourists. By the mid-1950s there were 50 resorts in the Plattekill area that focused on Spanish-speaking visitors.  Marker of Focus: Las Villas, Ulster County, Plattekill Guests: Ismael “Ish” Martinez, author of Las Villas of Plattekill and Ulster County ..read more

On this episode, Devin and Lauren tell the recently declassified story of a covert radio station built by the FBI on Long Island to deceive the Nazis during World War II. From 1942-1945, double agents worked in secret from a remote home in Suffolk County on the major operations "Bodyguard" and "Bluebird," and dug up information that some believe contributed to the United States' development of the atomic bomb. After the war, the Wading River Radio Station was taken apart by the FBI, but the house itself (then called "Owen Place," but now known as the "Benson House") is open to visitors at Camp ..read more

On this episode, Devin and Lauren delve into the history of the Dutch patroon system in New York state, and tell the story of the anti-rent movement of the 19th Century, during which tenant farmers banded together to (sometimes, violently) oppose the outdated system. In the Albany County town of Berne, tenant delegates from 11 counties gathered for a formal Anti-Rent Convention in 1845. Marker of Focus: Anti-Rent Convention, Berne, Albany County Guests: Dr. Charles McCurdy, author of Anti-Rent Era in New York Law and Politics, 1839-1865; and Sandra Kisselback, town of Berne historian A New Yor ..read more