Uncanny

"It is uncanny how history seems to repeat itself, but with meaningful differences; otherwise history would be just sorcery, an enchantment that brings us back in a time loop." (Sansi and Pares 2011:2)

Today marks the 164th Anniversary of the First Women's Rights Convention in Seneca Falls, NY.

I don't steal the air I breathe.

Reference:

Sansi, Roger and Luis Nicolau Parés

2011    Introduction: Sorcery in the Black Atlantic. In Sorcery in the Black Atlantic, Luis Nicolau Parés and Roger Sansi, editors, pp. 1-18. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL.

The Battle Is Far From Over...

Found on Facebook. Link takes you to the original.

What's in Your Attic?

Clara Barton's Attic, Clara Barton National Historic Site. July 11, 2012

Clara Barton founded the Red Cross here in the United States. Her home at Glen Echo, Maryland was not just her place of residence, but also served as the American Red Cross headquarters, volunteer and staff quarters, and supply depot for many years. It was constructed to her specifications by the owners of the neighboring Chatauqua encampment; they offered her land and a home/headquarters as a way to draw more people to their National Chatauqua (the site later became Glen Echo Amusement Park).

A very practical woman, she used muslin bandage material instead of wallpaper to cover her walls and ceilings. In her attic, she kept furnishings and supplies donated for victims of disasters. (I daresay the attic probably held way more stuff in it during Barton's tenure than it does in this National Park Service interpretation!)

On a sad note, this amazing house is in dire need of exterior work, including painting and replacement of some rotting boards.

More travel photos...

I'm glad to be home, sleeping in my own bed. But being on the road and doing research was a real treat. I have learned (the hard way) that rummaging archives takes longer than I'd imagined. I thought two weeks in one archive with one collection was way more than enough time... nope. I'll need to make another trip to finish up. I also learned (the hard way) that I will burn out staring at documents all day, and I need to take waaaay more breaks than I was.  This is all stuff I was told and thought I'd taken into consideration. Just not enough consideration, as it happens....

More photos from the road:

Offering to the archaeologist? Ceramics found on a tree stump.
Warren County, New York, June 28, 2012

Spring head. Water oozes out of the ground here,
forming a stream just beyond the bend. Warren County
New York, June 28, 2012.

Family walk. Eastern Townships, Quebec, July 1, 2012

Toasting marshmallows. Eastern Townships, Quebec, July 1, 2012

Moonrise. Eastern Townships, Quebec. July 1, 2012