The Long Island History Project

Joysetta Pearse, director of the African American Museum of Nassau County, joins us to discuss the mission and operations of the museum. She shares a number of inspiring stories, many on display at the musuem, from the outstanding Jennings family of 19th century New York to pre-teen millionaire Sarah Rector to the children of Birmingham who marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Further Research African American Museum of Nassau County Jennings vs. Third Ave. Railroad incident Mighty Times: The Children’s March Sarah Rector

A wall of ice dominated the landscape of Long Island thousands of years ago. During the Pleistocene Epoch, a large mass called the Laurentide ice sheet stretched across most of modern-day Canada and the northern United States. The melting of that glacier marked the birth of the island, with the geography from Brooklyn to Montauk taking shape under intense natural pressure. Miranda Maliszka and Anthony Johnson, students at Hofstra University, join us today to discuss their research into this time period. Their Digital Elevation Model helped them study the factors effecting the melting of the glaicer and the surrounding area. We also look at the outstanding features that the glacier left behind. Plus: a bonus Valentine's Day message! Further Research An Approach to Understanding the Landscape Exposure Rate for the Post-Wisconsin Late Stage Glaical Melting on Long Island, New York using a Glacial Withdrawal Simulation by Miranda Maliszka, Anthony Johnson, Denis Darnaud and Antonios Marsellos 27th Conference on Geology of Long Island and Metropolitan New York Ancient Climate Events: Pleistocene Glaciation

We've got two segments for you today. The first is a conversation recorded online through the Brentwood Public Library during a podcast demonstration last year. Our participants recall some childhood memories of summer attractions on Long Island (so many drive-ins!). Next, Ithaca College journalism major Antonio Ferme sits down with us to discuss local media, local history, and local journalism. Can these three work together? If so, how? Further Research Brentwood Stories podcast Nunley's Carousel Antonio Ferme WICB Ithaca Ithaca Now podcast

It's the early 70s in West Islip and St John the Baptist High School is gearing up for a crucial game against St. Agnes of Rockville Centre. But for freshman Mickey Quinn and the rest of the class of '75, the events of that night will reverberate beyond the court for years to come. Today Mickey joins us to discuss Growing Up a Cougar, his account of that game, that night, and his years at SJB. Special thanks to Fabio Montella. Further Research Facebook Group for Growing Up a Cougar Spotify playlist for this episode St John the Baptist High School Good Samaritan Hospital - History

Over the span of a few short months in 1931, 19-year old Francis Crowley was on the minds of everyone from the Bronx to Long Island. Known for always packing an extra pistol and steeped in life on the streets, Crowley conducted a crime spree that culminated in North Merrick with the murder of Nassau County Patrolman Fred Hirsch. On today's episode, Jerry Aylward relates the whole story as detailed in his book, Francis "Two Gun" Crowley's Killings in New York City & Long Island (History Press, 2020). Aylward, a former Nassau County detective and criminal investigator for the Department of Homeland Security, provides a look at Crowley's life of petty crime: boosting cars, sticking up drugstores, and haunting the dance halls of Depression-era New York. He also details the work of the Nassau County police, founded in 1925, as they confronted the rising violence around them. Further Research Francis "Two Gun" Crowley's Killings in New York City & Long Island Jerry Aylward home page Patrolman Fred S. Hirsch Boy Gunman Caught in New York City (YouTube)

Mary Louise Booth wrote her own story. A single woman from Long Island, she rose to prominence in the world of New York publishing as an acclaimed author, translator, and founding editor of Harper's Bazaar. She was also a friend and champion of many prominent women, from Susan B. Anthony and Louisa May Alcott to Sarah Tuthill and Dr. Marie Zakrzewska. Tricia Foley, a designer and former magazine editor herself, moved next door to Booth's childhood home in Yaphank and became fascinated with the story. What followed was a decades-long hunt to piece together her legacy through archives and special collections around the country. The result is the comprehensive and beautifully illustrated book, Mary L. Booth: The Story of an Extraordinary 19th-Century Woman. Further Research Tricia Foley Mary L. Booth History of the City of New York , 1867 ed. (Google Books) Harper's Bazaar (Cornell University) Louisa May Alcott Susan B. Anthony The Blackwell Sisters Dr. Marie E. Zakrzewska Sarah Strong Tuthill Sister Poets - Alice and Phoebe Cary

Allison McGovern has been digging history for a long time. Fascinated as a child with ancient Egypt and visits to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, she went on to become a professional archaeologist, uncovering the past in her own backyard. On today's episode, you'll hear McGovern describe her work at a number of sites on the island, including the Pyrrhus Concer site in Southampton and Freetown in East Hampton. We also talk about what archaeology can and cannot tell us, the importance of Native American and African American settlements, and the need to listen to communities about their ties to the past. Further Research Allison McGovern VHB Race and Ethnicity in Early America Reflected through Evidence form the Betsey Prince Archaeological Site, Long Island, New York by Allison McGovern (PDF) Freetown (Mapping the African American Past) Pyrrhus Concer's Legacy Sails Again New York State Museum Time Team

Robert Ottone is no stranger to the strangeness on Long Island. An Islip native, he has been attuned to the Island’s darker hues from an early age and has worked them into his fiction writing and his podcasting. Today we discuss his newest book: Her Infernal Name & Other Nightmares. Rob graces us with readings of two of his stories and we dive deeper into the more haunted precincts of the South Shore, including Oakdale and Sayville. We also try to tackle the question: what is scaring kids today? Further Research Robert Ottone @RobertOttone (Instagram) @RobertOttone (Twitter) Spooky House Press Interview with Robert Ottone on the Radio Tower podcast Voices from Gilgo (podcast) A Night of Spooky Fiction with Local Author Robert P. Ottone (Sayville Library) Galactic Terrors (YouTube) Her Infernal Name & Other Nightmares (Amazon) Selected Filmography My Amityville Horror (trailer) The Conjuring 2 (trailer) Jaws (trailer) Selected Horror Authors Paul Tremblay John Langan James Chambers Linda Addison Gwendolyn Kiste Music: Moonrise (Chad Crouch). CC-BY-NC 3.0 Bufflehead (Chad Crouch) CC-BY-NC 3.0 Capering (Blue Dot Sessions) CC-BY-NC 4.0

Anyone attempting to invade Long Island Sound at the turn of the last century would have faced a gantlet of artillery guns mounted in forts across the islands that stretch from Orient Point to the Rhode Island coast. With little actual chance of invasion, the men manning these forts had few diversions to choose from: baseball, drinking, or ruining a man's career. On today's episode, we speak with Marian E. Lindberg. Her new book, Scandal on Plum Island: A Commander Becomes the Accused, focuses on the court martial of Major Benjamin Koehler. Accused by a number of his men of immoral conduct, Koehler faced trial on the island in 1914. Compared by some contemporaries to the Dreyfus Affair, Koehler's case reveals much about the military's emerging views of homosexuality and the developing norms of masculinity in America. You'll hear about Marian's research process, her interactions with Koehler's descendants, and her thoughts on preserving Plum Island and Koehler's legacy. Further Research Marian E. Lindberg website The World of 1898: The Spanish-American War (Library of Congress) Fort Wright, Fishers Island (Henry L. Ferguson Museum) When Brooklyn Was Queer by Hugh Ryan Save Plum Island A World Unto Itself: The Remarkable History of Plum Island (Ruth Ann Bramson, Geoffrey K. Fleming, and Amy Kasuga Folk)  

Plum Island is poised between its past and its future. Looking back, it contains evidence of its time as a coastal defense in the Spanish-American War, as well as a 19th-century, National Register-certified lighthouse. Looking ahead, it could become a publicly accessible nature preserve and cultural center, providing a haven for native flora and migrating animals. The pivot point is the Plum Island Animal Disease Center, which has given the Island much if its current identity and whose iminent demise has prompted concern for the Island's fate.  John Tuner, noted naturalist and spokesman for the Preserve Plum Island Coalition, explains the issues involved and the push to keep the Island from being sold off to the highest bidder.  We also discuss his work in the Pine Barrens and his thoughts on Long Island's natural landscape. Further Research Preserve Plum Island Coalition Plum Island Animal Disease Center Atlantic White Cedar Coastal Barrens Buckmoth Long Island Pine Barrens Society Gardiner's Island: A Visit with Robert David Lion Gardiner (1976) Bibliography Scandal on Plum Island by Marian E. Lindberg A World Unto Itself: The Remarkable History of Plum Island, New York by Ruth Ann Bramson, Geoffrey K. Fleming and Amy Kasuga Folk Exploring the Other Island by John Turner