New York Classics – serie

A classic guide to the history and architecture of the historic manors and homes of the Hudson River ValleyHarold Donaldson Eberlein's The Manors and Historic Homes of the Hudson Valley has been considered an essential and elegant resource ever since its first publication by J.B. Lippincott in 1924. Profusely illustrated with drawings, classic prints, and photographs (many of the latter taken by the author himself), the book not only discusses the architecture and beauty of more than thirty-five historically relevant estates and homesteads, but also contextualizes their varied histories amid key social and political disruptions, ranging from the rise of the Dutch through to the American Revolution and the heyday of the patroonships overseen by such families as the Livingstons, the Van Rensselaers, and the Van Cortlandts. Eberlein saw the old manors and historic homes of the Hudson Valley as vital signposts to that history of the region- a history "inseparably bound up with the old houses that stand upon both banks of the river, and [a history which] without them … would lose its dramatic force and become a dull, dead abstraction." This new edition features an introduction by historian Ed Renehan who sets the work in the context of its time, and many new photographs. This book is an indispensable resources for those interested in New York state history and the stories behind some of its best-loved homes.

This work spans 30 years and reaches from Niagara Falls to Montauk Point. It consists of folklore, character sketches, ghost stories and pieces of regional history. Special attention is given to the fate of Native Americans and the erosion of the State's natural beauty.

This memoir celebrates the Sicilian life in America, while providing a sociological portrait of the immigrant experience in the US. The author reminisces about his experience as a fledgeling writer trying to escape from the restrictive Italian American culture in which he grew up.

In simple, darkly faceted stories, Philander Deming demonstrates a sense of the Adirondacks' possibility for human tragedy. The mountains, seemingly a neutral backdrop against which individuals confront a collective morality, are the source of his inspiration, creating a haunting vision.

This narrative poem, a combination of science fiction and psychological fantasy, is aimed at people of all ages, and was dramatized on radio and television in the 1960s. After a power cut in the middle of the night, the village of Saugersville finds itself alone in the world.

Blake McKelvey has updated this new edition on Rochester at 150 years old, adding fresh material about its changing economy, rejuvenated downtown, and current housing and educational programs. He also includes informed and thought-provoking projections about the city's future.

A classic history of Delaware County and the border wars written by none other than prominent Gilded Age "Robber Baron" Jay Gould.When Jay Gould died in 1892 he left behind an estate worth the equivalent of seventy-eight billion in today's dollars. He also left behind a reputation as one of Wall Street's most shrewd, astute, and (some said) manipulative operators. Long before his adventures in finance, the future "robber baron" was a young man on the make in his native Catskills, working as a surveyor and mapmaker in his natal place of Delaware County, where he had grown up side by side with the future writer and naturalist John Burroughs. Originally published in 1856, when Gould was just twenty, Gould's History of Delaware County and Border Wars of New York is based on primary sources and original testimony from second and third generation settlers, many of them Gould's own friends and cousins. The book continues to be an important source on the first settlement of the region and is highly regarded by scholars. This edition features a new introduction by Edward Renehan, the biographer of both Gould and John Burroughs.

A county history book that includes town histories, biographical sketches, and lithographs of pioneers and homesteads, as well as their Civil War military service.Originally published by F.W. Beers & Company in 1880, History of Wyoming County, N.Y. is still one of the most referenced histories of the county. Exploring Wyoming County pre-formation, the book also delves into the history of sixteen towns and their prominent residents and records residents' Civil War service.Officially named a county in 1841, this southwestern farming county of New York State is the home of several New York landmarks, including Letchworth State Park, Middlebury Academy (listed on the National Register of Historic Places), and Attica Prison. Notable Wyoming County residents have included Josiah Andrews (an abolitionist newspaper owner), Mary Jemison (the "White Woman of the Genesee" who lived among the Seneca), Barber Conable (former President of the World Bank Group and US Congressman from New York), Chester A. Arthur (the twenty-first President of the United States), Ella Hawley Crossett (former President of the New York State Woman Suffrage Association), Lemuel M. Wiles (American landscape painter), and Charlotte Smallwood-Cook (the first woman elected district attorney in New York State). Newly released by SUNY Press with an introduction by Cindy Amrhein, Wyoming County Historian, History of Wyoming County, N.Y. offers a fascinating and comprehensive reference work that is useful to family and local historians, genealogists, and those interested in the development and history of New York State.

An important and prescient early example of US environmental writing with a profound sense of consciousness and appreciation for the natural world.In her 1860 book Lichen Tufts, from the Alleghanies, Elizabeth C. Wright weaves together environmental philosophy, lyrical nature writing, and social consciousness. A graduate of Alfred University, Wright was an activist for women's rights, temperance, and the abolition of slavery. She was a teacher, a botanist, and, later in life, a Kansas homesteader. In Lichen Tufts, Wright urged her readers to cultivate an intimate knowledge of the natural world, reflecting her Transcendentalist belief that an immersive relationship with nature benefits the individual as well as society as a whole. Composed of four essays and forty poems, Lichen Tufts reveals wisdom and beauty in an early example of eco-feminism that highlights the natural world as antidote to society's restrictive gender codes, one that is still relevant today.SUNY Press brings Lichen Tufts, from the Alleghanies to life for modern audiences, with a recovery edition featuring the 1860 book in its entirety. An Introduction by Emily E. VanDette places the book and its author in the context of nineteenth-century social reform campaigns throughout the "Burned Over District" of western New York. An Afterword written by Laurie Lounsberry Meehan highlights the history of Alfred University and the cohort that influenced Wright's environmental and social reform activism.

An important and prescient early example of US environmental writing with a profound sense of consciousness and appreciation for the natural world.In her 1860 book Lichen Tufts, from the Alleghanies, Elizabeth C. Wright weaves together environmental philosophy, lyrical nature writing, and social consciousness. A graduate of Alfred University, Wright was an activist for women's rights, temperance, and the abolition of slavery. She was a teacher, a botanist, and, later in life, a Kansas homesteader. In Lichen Tufts, Wright urged her readers to cultivate an intimate knowledge of the natural world, reflecting her Transcendentalist belief that an immersive relationship with nature benefits the individual as well as society as a whole. Composed of four essays and forty poems, Lichen Tufts reveals wisdom and beauty in an early example of eco-feminism that highlights the natural world as antidote to society's restrictive gender codes, one that is still relevant today.SUNY Press brings Lichen Tufts, from the Alleghanies to life for modern audiences, with a recovery edition featuring the 1860 book in its entirety. An Introduction by Emily E. VanDette places the book and its author in the context of nineteenth-century social reform campaigns throughout the "Burned Over District" of western New York. An Afterword written by Laurie Lounsberry Meehan highlights the history of Alfred University and the cohort that influenced Wright's environmental and social reform activism.

The first and best biography of this pioneering comic duo and Broadway Stars—in a new edition!Joe Weber and Lew Fields were the dominant musical comedy team at the turn of the last century. They created classic comedic characters and routines and formed their own theatrical troupe, running a theater in New York for many years where they produced successful revues that combined music, dance, and song. So famous were they in their time that they inspired a full-length biography by a major publisher.Weber and Fields follows the duo from their childhood on New York's rough-and-tumble Lower East Side to the creation of their best-known characters, the Dutch knockabout comedians Mike and Myer, and continues with the opening of their own theater in 1896 (with landmark productions through 1904) to their reunion in 1912. This new edition brings an out-of-print classic to a new generation of theater loves. A new introduction by Ken Bloom carries the story through the rest of their careers, showing how Weber and Fields set the stage for comic duos that followed, including Mutt and Jeff of comic book fame, Laurel and Hardy, Abbott and Costello, Rowan and Martin, and countless others.

The first and best biography of this pioneering comic duo and Broadway Stars—in a new edition!Joe Weber and Lew Fields were the dominant musical comedy team at the turn of the last century. They created classic comedic characters and routines and formed their own theatrical troupe, running a theater in New York for many years where they produced successful revues that combined music, dance, and song. So famous were they in their time that they inspired a full-length biography by a major publisher.Weber and Fields follows the duo from their childhood on New York's rough-and-tumble Lower East Side to the creation of their best-known characters, the Dutch knockabout comedians Mike and Myer, and continues with the opening of their own theater in 1896 (with landmark productions through 1904) to their reunion in 1912. This new edition brings an out-of-print classic to a new generation of theater loves. A new introduction by Ken Bloom carries the story through the rest of their careers, showing how Weber and Fields set the stage for comic duos that followed, including Mutt and Jeff of comic book fame, Laurel and Hardy, Abbott and Costello, Rowan and Martin, and countless others.

A classic work on the history of New York City written by one of America's greatest politicians.Theodore Roosevelt's New York, published in 1891, was one of forty titles he authored during his lifetime. Roosevelt sets out, as he declares in his preface, "to trace the causes which gradually changed a little Dutch trading-hamlet into a huge American city." New York admirably accomplishes this objective. Proceeding chronologically, Roosevelt maintains control of his concise narrative throughout, recounting events clearly while continually providing well-considered and enlightening analysis. In suitable places-without disrupting the narrative-Roosevelt offers the reader his perspectives on a variety of broader topics, including his admiration for leaders who combine boldness with wisdom and moderation and his perceptive outlook on the frequent lack of connection between wealth accumulation and good character and meaningful living. While Roosevelt's own time as an exemplary top-level "man in the arena" was still years away, in this revealing and engaging book about his native city by a historian then in his early thirties, there are glimpses of the mindset and temperament of the world-historical leader who was to preside over the government of the United States from 1901 to 1909-yet another reason why Roosevelt's classic book New York remains well worth reading.

The complete history of one of New York State's—and the nation's—founding families.The Livingstons of Livingston Manor provides a rich history of one of the most important families in the early history of New York State as well as the fledgling nation. Livingston Manor-granted to Robert Livingston the Elder (1654–1728) via royal charter from King George I of Britain in 1716-embraced 160,000 acres, including nearly all of what is today Columbia County as well as much of Sullivan and Delaware Counties. The primary family estate in Germantown, NY, where the leaders of the clan lived for more than two hundred years starting in 1728, Clermont on the Hudson River, is now a New York State Historic Site. Succeeding generations included "Chancellor" Robert R. Livingston (1746–1813) who served on the famed "Committee of Five" charged with drafting the Declaration of Independence. Other members of the clan also played major roles in New York State as well as nationally. Philip Livingston (1716–1778, known in the family as "Philip the Signer") was a delegate to the Continental Congress from New York and signed the Declaration of Independence; William Livingston (1723–1798) was a Delegate to the Constitutional Convention and a signatory to the US Constitution. Descendants of the Livingstons include the Bush clan, Eleanor Roosevelt (through her mother), and former New Jersey Governor Thomas H. Kean. First privately published in 1910, this long-unavailable history illuminates several generations of the Livingston clan and their impact on the fledgling and growing United States.

A detailed, historic guide to the rich physical history of New York City, from its founding by Dutch settlers to the turn of the twentieth century.Nooks and Corners of Old New York celebrates the people, places, and events that shaped New York City's history. The author-a newspaper reporter and novelist who wrote extensively on New York's early history-paints a vivid picture of several centuries of stories, scandals, and celebrations. While the history may be old, its appeal is not dated; any fan of contemporary city lore will be fascinated by the many echoes that can be discovered by learning more about the city's colorful past. Whether an armchair traveler or someone retracing the author's steps, the reader will enjoy imagining a city that still featured sheep meadows, fresh streams, and verdant hills. And, surprisingly, many of the landmarks highlighted in this text remain on their original sites, testimony to the fact that the ever-changing city still has a history to be appreciated. Read selectively as you roam the streets or from first to last page in the comfort of your favorite chair, Nooks and Corners of Old New York will entertain and inform you about New York's rich story.