Tag: New York Botanical Garden

Odds and ends: Grant winners and a Bowery Boys interview

These doors just won a lot of grant money. (Photo by Wurts Brothers, NYPL)

The votes have been counted, and Brooklyn (more specifically, Park Slope) and the Bronx ran away with the Partners In Preservation initiative, sponsored by American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

 The four locations which received the most votes were the Brooklyn Public Library central branch, the synagogue Congregation Beth Elohim, the New York Botanical Garden and the Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum.

But for the others, there’s good news! The grant proposals for the top four don’t even add up to $1 million, and the initiative will now determine how to distribute the remaining $2.1 million among the other finalists. They will announce the choices in June.

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I recorded an interview with Andrew Johnstone for the Podcast Squared show (essentially, it’s a podcast about podcasts), discussing the philosophies behind the Bowery Boys: New York City History podcast, as well as some information on how we got started as a look behind the scenes at our process. They also give us a great review!

You can find the show (Episode #99: Golden Age of New York) on iTunes or download it directly from their website.
Or listen to some of it here:

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Patell and Waterman’s History of New York

Meanwhile, over at Patell and Waterman’s History of New York, they’ve posted my wrap-up interview regarding the Networked New York event from March which was held at New York University. The questions are specifically focused on the relationship of history writing and new digital media, but I talk about the challenges of producing a podcast and the relationship between blogs and newspapers. Check out that interview here.

With the quote: “History enriches peoples’ lives abstractly, of course, but I argue that it does so practically as well. It’s about context. Your pizza tastes a whole lot better when you realize it’s been made in New York’s oldest pizza kitchen. (Whether it actually tastes good is besides the point.) This is the tourist perspective of New York. But to infuse that perspective into a daily experience here is profound. Suddenly, every street corner, every building, has a particular uniqueness. Everything talks back to you.”

Fall foliage freakout at two Bronx botanical gardens

I’m skipping out on history today to give you a plain testimonial: if you’re craving a flashy autumn show courtesy of Mother Nature, the time is ripe to visit two lovely Bronx institutions in the throes of fall foliage madness. If you can’t actually get out of the city but need some seasonal therapy, both of these options are available via the subway.

The New York Botanical Garden is currently in the throes of an amazing fall transformation. Although they currently have enormous Henry Moore sculptures scattered throughout the park, more striking art hangs on the trees in the Native Forest section, particularly those hugging the shoreline of the Bronx River:

Botanical gardens are odd things in the fall. While some blooms are clearly out of seasons (the rose garden is a little sad this time of year), other sections are clearly just getting started. And if you can’t find enough to see and do outdoors, there’s always the lawn of Mertz Library, a veritable Beaux-Arts indulgance in the form of its Italian style fountain:

Meanwhile, at the theatrical Haupt Conservatory, the garden is presenting a fantastic Japanese kiku (chrysanthemum) show, which displays the more acrobatic and colorful traits of this popular flower:

The garden even has a map that tracks the projected leaf-changing time of various trees in the park. You can get to the New York Botanical Garden easily by the B and D subway lines, or on Metro-North (the preferred method).

Wave Hill is a little trickier. Taking the 1 train to its final stop (Van Cortlandt Park at 242nd Street), cross the street and hang out in front of Burger King, where a Wave Hill shuttle comes back even hour at ten minutes past the hours. Personally, having to meet in front of a fast food restaurant for a bus gives the whole occasion a decidedly high-school-field-trip feel.

It’s one-tenth the size of the New York’s official botanical garden, far more remote and tinier gardens. However, Wave Hill has one crucial element that the Botanical Garden doesn’t have: crazy views of the Hudson River

The 19th century manor at Wave Hill served as an oasis for everybody from Mark Twain to Theodore Roosevelt. Today the home is a cultural center with photo galleries, art exhibits and children’s programs throughout the year.

Check out the official websites of both the New York Botanical Garden and Wave Hill for more details on hours and special programs. Back to normal history stuff tomorrow….

(Click on all pictures above for larger views)