Cultural Geography

Advocating for Sunday Rock

Sunday Rock, a large boulder on the roadside of New York State Highway 56, just west of the hamlet of South Colton in St. Lawrence County, is an important landmark for locals and travelers alike…. Many places, however, still deserve national recognition and protection for their long-standing —and continuing— value to their communities, as part of the living heritage of life there. Such recognition may contribute to a sense of place not only for visitors but for local residents as well. To recognize that a place can be more than an example of an architectural style or site of a political or economic event really matters.

Good Read

A book review of Saratoga Springs: A Centennial History, edited by Field Horne.

Good Read

Until the publication of Tahawus Memories, this old titanium town seemed as though it was destined to end up in the dustbin of history.

Upstate

Just as those of us who live up north like to protest that “there’s more to New York than New York City,” I like to say there’s
more to Upstate than wild rivers and rugged mountain peaks. There’s plenty going on culturally as well…. pancake breakfasts during maple syrup season, fish fries during Lent, chicken barbecues all summer long, harvest
dinners in the fall, and chicken and biscuit suppers and spaghetti dinners in the winter months. There are outdoor events all year long—maple festivals in the spring; firemen’sfield days, fireworks, parades, and county fairs in the summer; college homecomings and hunting club gatherings in the fall.

Downstate

Samuel Untermyer purchased what was then the Greystone Estate in 1899, and in 1915, he hired William Welles Bosworth, a École des Beaux Arts-trained architect and landscape designer, to createthe “greatest gardens in the world.” The centerpiece is the Walled Persian Garden, inspired by the Indo-Persian gardens of the ancient world, which, in turn, were inspired by descriptions of the Garden
of Eden.

Cultured Wilderness and Wild Culture:

Noted landscape architect and urban planner Frederick Law Olmsted, Sr., laid out Highland Park, part of one of four park systems that he designed and implemented in the US (the others are in Boston, Buffalo, and Louisville)…the park was founded as an arboretum for the display of a collection of exotic—as well as native—trees and shrubs donated by the nursery firm of Ellwanger and Barry…To an extent this is an open-air museum, illustrating a certain historic biome, which can no longer exist unaided. At the water tanks, however, there is no discernible orderliness in the arrangement or succession of imagery produced, apparently, by individuals perhaps more or less motivated by an anarchic attitude or even ideology.

Evaluation of Petrifaction Legends in Turkey in Terms of Cultural Heritage and Tourism

Petrifaction legends told in Turkey are one of the most interesting subjects that draw our attention. Although the legends are said to be stories that have been told over a long period of time with no proof of existence, the legends told in Turkey about these rocks are so logical and authentic that whoever experiences them find themselves deeply affected. When having a look at the map of the petrifaction legends told in Turkey, you
realize how common they are, especially in the east, southeast, and northeast of Turkey. The bride, groom, bride and groom, camel, dragon, and wedding procession rocks are the elements integrated with the petrifaction legends. Both listening to the legends from the local people and seeing the related rocks can be a good opportunity for visitors who are interested in cultural heritage. In this study, we have tried to draw attention to the petrifaction legends told in Turkey and the related elements (rocks) in terms of tourism. It is hoped that it will contribute to Turkish culture and tourism.

Echoes of a New England Past: The Hopkinton Town Green

The village green is a public common that is found in many northern New York towns and is reflective of the influence of settlement by former New Englanders. The influence of New England migration is also evidenced in place names, foodways, dialect choices, and vernacular architecture. Hopkinton, New York is an example of such cultural migration.