Honoring Our Civil War Veterans

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle has just published a very nice article by Phoebe Neidl on Green-Wood’s Civil War Project. Read it here. I am quoted in the article as identifying Captain William Wheeler of Wheeler’s Battery as one of my favorite individuals whom I have discovered since the project began in 2002. Wheeler was a fascinating individual: … Read more

Chew On This

Thomas Adams (1818-1905) fancied himself quite an inventor. But things were not going well for him. Try as he might, he could not turn chicle into rubber products. As his experiments failed and his frustration grew, he popped a piece of chicle into his mouth. And a new industry, chewing gum, was thereby born. Adams … Read more

Remembering His Service

I saw this painting advertised; it is a one of a kind (I’ve never seen anything like it) tribute to a Civil War soldier. His name was Edward Marrenner and I thought that that name looked familiar. I checked our Civil War biographical dictionary and there he was: MARRENNER (or MARRINNER, MARINER), EDWARD (1843-1909). Major … Read more

Master List of AP Coverage: United Flight 826 and TWA Flight 266 Victims Commemoration Ceremony

12-15-10: CBS New York: http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2010/12/15/victims-families-remember-nyc-plane-crash-from-60/ ABC News: http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory?id=12401446&page=1 Fox News: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/12/15/plane-collision-nyc-spurred-improvements-1215496803/ NBC New York: http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local-beat/1960-Plane-Collision-Over-Brooklyn-Spurred-Improvements-111912579.html PIX 11: http://www.wpix.com/news/nationworld/sns-ap-us-midair-collision-anniversary,0,7894833.story?page=1 MSNBC: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40674233 Yahoo News: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101215/ap_on_bi_ge/us_midair_collision_anniversary The Olympian: http://www.theolympian.com/2010/12/15/1474705/1960-plane-collision-over-nyc.html Miami Herald: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/12/15/1974085/1960-plane-collision-over-nyc.html Valley News Live: http://www.valleynewslive.com/Global/story.asp?S=13675202 Mercury News: http://www.mercurynews.com/nation-world/ci_16863263?nclick_check=1 WRBL News: http://www2.wrbl.com/news/2010/dec/15/1960-plane-collision-over-nyc-spurred-improvements-ar-1225154/ WTOP: http://www.wtop.com/?nid=104&sid=2201503 Kansas Star: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/12/15/2521180/1960-plane-collision-over-nyc.html Pilot Online: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_MIDAIR_COLLISION_ANNIVERSARY?SITE=VANOV&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT Florida Times Union: http://hosted2.ap.org/FLJAJ/f7ded15e4d4846268a17b79c1c4b7cb8/Article_2010-12-15-Midair%20Collision%20Anniversary/id-c5e4ddd5f36f41b5b96f6b2dd3404409 Washington Examiner: http://washingtonexaminer.com/news/nation/2010/12/1960-plane-collision-over-nyc-spurred-improvements-0 WOW: … Read more

Gabriel Harrison: Artist

Gabriel Harrison (1818–1902) was one of those rare men who had not just one, but several remarkable careers. Born in Philadelphia to a long line of artisans, Harrison moved to New York with his family in the 1820s. His father, Charles P. Harrison, an artist and engraver, entertained other artists and philosophers in his home on … Read more

He “Died For the Cause of Emancipation”

December 16 is the 151st anniversary of the execution of John E. Cook by hanging. Born in Haddam, Connecticut, Cook moved to Brooklyn to study law. A follower of the famous abolitionist John Brown, he went to Kansas in 1855 where he was the only man to reach the rank of captain in Brown’s Kansas … Read more