On Wednesday, April 29, The History Center is proud to present the work of Ithaca College environmental history students. With the recent disruptive environmental events in our country and around the world, the projects the students have been working on can provide insight into human-environment interactions over time in this place we call Tompkins County. Focusing on the history of ... Read More
Join us for the kick-off week of Downtown History Walking Tours! Use code "FIRST" for 20% off in the first week. In the early 1900s, Ithaca, NY earned some colorful nicknames: “Sodom,” “Sin City,” and “Rum Town, USA.” Long before national Prohibition took hold, Ithacans were already battling over booze, morality, and modernity. “King Alcohol Ends Reign” is a 10-block ... Read More
Six Mile Creek is a narrow flowing body of water that flows from east to west on the south side of Ithaca Commons. Its water has powered industry and infrastructure since the early days of Ithaca, shaping the downtown area. Using HistoryForge, Eve Snyder, PhD., will share the layers of history kept in the waters of Six Mile Creek, and ... Read More
A block of West State Street, closed to traffic and open to cars from throughout the many decades of America's love affair with the automobile. Brass-era, classics, post-war showpieces, hot rods, and the occasional electric specialty, parked along West State Street for one Saturday in July. Grab coffee, walk the block, ask the owners about their cars. That's the show. ... Read More
Join Ithaca Aviation Heritage Foundation for their annual preservation of “Tommy,” a Thomas-Morse S-4 Scout biplane. Visual and hands-on demonstrations allow up close and personal observation of the plane located in the History Center’s Exhibit Hall. This program is for all ages and will include a presentation on the history of Tommy, how it came home to Ithaca, was restored ... Read More
Meet fellow puzzlers, form a team, and trade strategies ahead of the second annual Tompkins Treasure Hunt.
In the early 1900s, Ithaca, NY earned some colorful nicknames: “Sodom,” “Sin City,” and “Rum Town, USA.” Long before national Prohibition took hold, Ithacans were already battling over booze, morality, and modernity. “King Alcohol Ends Reign” is a 10-block walking tour through downtown Ithaca that traces the city’s spirited (and often surprising) history with Prohibition. Led by trained docents from ... Read More
A 75-minute downtown walking tour bringing overlooked Ithaca stories to life through historic photographs, maps, and firsthand newspaper accounts.
Brad Edmondson, author of the Tompkins County Historical Commission's most recent book Hammer & Tongs: The Ironworks of Durand Van Doren, will do a special reading of selections from the book, accompanied by Durand Van Doren himself. Durand Van Doren has spent nearly fifty years turning plain iron into something with a sense of humor. He came to blacksmithing in ... Read More
A family-friendly showdown in the heart of Downtown Ithaca, and a fundraiser for The History Center in Tompkins County on Saturday, Sept. 26 at 1 PM. Competitors go head to head at the Bernie Milton Pavilion to see who can finish their pie the fastest, with medals for first, second, and third place. We hand out a fork, but how ... Read More
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