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Posted by Heather Graham
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on May 06, 2013 |
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Heather's essay received a top middle school score in THV's Writing About Place contest. See a complete list of winners here or see previous posts for more essays and poems. Heather is a seventh grader at West Point MS. She received a tour of the Horace Greeley House in Chappaqua courtesy of the New Castle Historical Society.
 My favorite place is historic. It was a big part of the Revolutionary War. This place is West Point--the best place ever! West Point is made up of many elements such as the history that dates back to the 1800’s, the military families, and the cadets. This is what makes West Point an awesome site in the Hudson Valley.
West Point was founded in 1802. There were two islands West Point used--one was Bannerman's where they built an obstacle across the Hudson
called Chevaux de frise, a fence with pointed logs.
The other is Constitution Island where they put a chain across the river to West Point. (See photo below.) The chain was used to block British ships from coming up the river however, it was never tested. Then there was also Benedict Arnold who tried to sell the plans of West Point to the British. He was caught and not trusted anymore.
Our military families here are kind, generous, and understanding. When someone’s parents are deployed other families are there for support because at some point they too were deployed. In the Army it’s pretty much a small world; for example, I am going to school with the same boy as I was when I lived in Pennsylvania. For just the children who live on Post we attend West Point Middle School and West Point Elementary School. In 2011 West Point Middle School was named a National Blue Ribbon School.
 My older brother is a cadet at the United States Military Academy (U.S.M.A). The cadets here get a great education. Cadets have been a huge part of my life since I was six.
The cadets that come over our house on the weekends think of me as their little sister. Someday I might be a cadet and come to U.S.M.A.
There are many famous heroes and
soldiers buried here but the most important one in my opinion is my grandfather, John Graham. My grandfather graduated from West Point in 1964 and was killed in action while serving in Vietnam.
Someday I will be one of those cadets throwing their hats up in the air on graduation. All of those screaming kids will run on the field picking up hats; but the luckiest one will get mine! One day I will take the diploma out of an officer’s hand and think to myself: I finally made it!
Photo of Heather provided by her family. Bottom photo, Trophy Point* at West Point, courtesy of Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area.
* Trophy Point gets its name from a display of captured artillery spanning the Revolution to the Spanish American War. The chain shown above was constructed in 1778 and is described in Heather's essay. Used through 1782, it was overseen by the Highlands Department of the Continental Army. The links were forged at an iron works nearby.
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Posted by Debi Duke
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on April 29, 2013 |
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Friday, May 10,10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Historic Huguenot Street, New Paltz. Workshop for those interested in interpreting or teaching about northern slavery and its legacies. Register now. Read more. Saturday, May 11, 5-6:30 p.m., Putnam History Museum, Cold Spring, film screening and discussion. Sponsors: Historic Huguenot Street, MidHudson Anti-Slavery History Society, Putnam History Museum, and THV.
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Next week, THV is co-sponsoring two programs on this topic (see right). Here's why.Many people over 35--including lots of teachers and staff and volunteers at museums and historic sites--know little about slavery in the Hudson Valley or the rest of the north. If you fall into this category, like me a child of the sixties, you probably grew up with textbooks that at best glossed over the existence of northern slavery. That’s changing (see below). But it’s not enough to expand what's taught. We need to understand how that history shaped the country we live in today. Yet another thing we didn't talk about despite the unfolding of the civil rights movement. That’s why the Tracing Center on Histories and Legacies of Slavery seemed like such a good fit. The name says it all--there’s not one history or legacy but many. Here's historian James Loewen in Lies My Teacher Told Me (Simon & Schuster, 2007 edition), Slavery's twin legacies to the present are the social and economic inferiority it conferred upon blacks and the cultural racism it instilled in whites. Both continue to haunt our society. Therefore, treating slavery’s enduring legacy is necessarily controversial. Unlike slavery it is not over yet.
Recent work on northern slaveryComplicity: How the North Promoted, Prolonged, and Profited from Slavery, a book by Joel Lang and Jenifer Frank (2006) New York and Slavery: Time to Teach the Truth, a teaching guide by Alan J. Singer, 2008 Slavery in New York, The New York Historical Society’s 2005-2006 exhibit, now online Traces of the Trade: A Story of the Deep North, a PBS documentary, 2008
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Given the inescapably controversial nature of discussions of slavery and race, THV thought bringing The Tracing Center to our region could help all of us learn more about:
- The breadth of slavery in the North.
- Ideas for researching slavery and its legacies here.
- What to expect from visitors and students.
- How one’s own race and identity are relevant.
- Ways to prepare staff and volunteers for this topic.
- Decision making on teaching/interpreting tough topics.
- Seeking support and institutional commitment.
THE PRESENTATIONSBoth events will feature James DeWolf Perry, executive director of The Tracing Center and a 51-minute version of the PBS documentary Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North. View a clip. James was
the principal historical consultant on film and speaks widely about his family and the histories and legacies of slavery. James attended Columbia Law School and Harvard University where he researched the transatlantic
slave trade and its abolition.
For the Friday workshop we are also fortunate to have three local educators who will bring local research and resources to the discussion: Susan Stessin-Cohn, education director, Historic Huguenot Street and curriculum author; Donna Dabney-Jeffress, a Red Hook teacher and Hudson Valley native whose family story intersects with Susan's research; and A. J. Williams Myers, author and professor of Black Studies, SUNY New Paltz. |
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Posted by Debi Duke
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on April 22, 2013 |
 When I think about place-based learning I often go straight to social studies, science, or art where local angles are pretty self-evident. Math? That feels like more of a stretch.But based on the activities and lessons teachers and site staff have added to THV's free online collection, I need to think again. THV has 50 items including high school environmental projects, activities using sea quadrants to teach middle schoolers about measuring, ways to introduce second graders to categories, and local timelines for fourth graders. All are related to places in the Valley--from industrial sites like West Point Foundry Preserve to the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture. From Fredric Church's Moorish mansion, Olana, to Esopus Meadows Preserve. Use the search options on the left side of the lessons page at THV's website to find these and other activities. Remember to log-in first to get supporting materials, not just an overview.
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Posted by Debi Duke
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on April 12, 2013 |
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This is another in our series of writing by K-12 students who entered our annual Writing About Place contest. Tristan and Diego received the second and third highest elementary school scores. See the complete list.
Minnewaska the MajesticBy Tristan Brideweser
For its beauty is breathtaking, Waterfalls flowing soothingly down. Nature tis blessed, For every soul will leave in awe. The lakes are crystal clear, Trails are abundant. Coves are spread randomly, Throughout the massive acres. Cliffs are colossal, Crevasses are filled `round the cliffs. Trees are gigantic, Like skyscrapers in New York City. The scenes are indescribable, Paradises surround the parts. So if thou shall visit, Thou will be put under a spell of awesomeness. So God bless this common, Humans so deeply love. Minnewaska shall stay for eternity. |
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