Ted Baker: Good morning, it's 8.15, it's FLX Morning Monday. Paul's off this week. I'm Ted Baker. I think I've figured out which buttons to push and everything now. We have joining us the Executive Director of Historic Geneva, Carrie Lippincott. Good morning.
Kerry Lippincott: Good morning, good morning.
Ted Baker: Always takes a while the first time back, you know, just to get used to, you know, where's the copier paper and all that kind of stuff. We're going to start out this time with a walking tour of one of the coolest neighborhoods in Geneva and that's Torrey Park and all that Italian history.
Kerry Lippincott: Yes, so our curator John Marks is going to have a tour of Torrey Park on July 8th at 10 a.m. and then again on July 23rd at 5 30. So Italians began coming to Geneva in probably the 1880s to work for the Geneva Preserving Company during the summer and the majority of them settled north of the city by the 1890s. Could be closer to factories. Think of Geneva cutlery, American can, and they quickly developed their own neighborhood known as Torrey Park and they even had their own fire department. So John's going to walk the neighborhood and we're going to explore the different barber shops and restaurants and other businesses that were part of the neighborhood. It's five dollars a person and it's rain or shine except if there are thunderstorms or a heavy downpour.
Ted Baker: And of course one of the reasons the industry settled in that area was the railroad.
Kerry Lippincott: Yes, definitely. The railroad was huge. So that will be on the 8th which is Wednesday at 10 a.m. and again on the 23rd at 5 30 p.m. to walk around Torrey Park. Also you're having an open house coming up later on this week. Is it this week?
Ted Baker: Yes, Saturday at the Johnston House. Tell us about that.
Kerry Lippincott: Yeah, so after several years the Johnston House is now open. For the most part it's by appointment only but we are having a couple of open houses this summer. So the next one is July 11th from 11 to 3. Built in 1822 by Scottish immigrant John Johnston. The house stands on the original farmland where Johnston became nationally known as an advocate for improved farming practices. In fact he was the first farmer in the United States to use drain tile to increase the productivity of his farm. And his farm became pretty famous in the 19th century. So as I said after years of it being closed we finally have reopened it. We've reinterpreted the first and second floors for exhibits, interactive spaces, and research room. So along with the reinterpretation we added to a lot of work. So we've got modern heating and lighting. We stabilized the first floor. And the site also includes the Mike Weaver Drain Tile Museum. So if you would like to just check out 1820s Farmhouse or learn a little bit more about drain tile you can come to the Johnston House on Saturday.
Ted Baker: I've been learning more about this over the years. I think I almost understand it now. So give us the brief explanation of tile drainage and what that meant to agriculture.
Kerry Lippincott: Okay I am not the expert because I'm still learning too. So basically in in our area in the Finger Lakes we have very wet soil and drain tile helps control the water levels. So it's basically taking away the water or if we need then you would remove the drain tile to add more water. So it's basically helping control water levels.
Ted Baker: All right now there's probably no nicer place in the Finger Lakes than up on the hill by Rose Hill to sit out and spread your blanket and enjoy a show. So you've got the Rose Hill Concert Series featuring Annie Oldtime on July 19th. A little bluegrass and country and originals. Tell us about the Rose Hill Series.
Kerry Lippincott: Yes we're very pleased to be able to have I think this is gosh our 11th or 12th year with the Concert Series. And we're grateful to the Nelson B. Delvin Foundation for funding the concerts. So the next one is July 19th. The concerts are 5 to 7. They're free and open to the public. Folks are more than welcome to bring a picnic dinner. Remember to bring your own lawn chair and blanket. And we'll have Annie Oldtime as our next concert. And they do a combination. It's three women and they do a combination of bluegrass, country, and original songs. So if you like sort of American folk art music this is a perfect concert for you. That's on the 19th from 5 to 7 p.m.
Ted Baker: And if tea is more your taste there's an afternoon tea at Rose Hill. And it's a themed one on July 25th.
Kerry Lippincott: Yeah this is a brand new program that we're doing. And our next one is on July 25th from 1 to 5. And the theme is the Workers of Rose Hill. So it's a traditional tea. We have a variety of teas, finger sandwiches, scones, and desserts. Our first one was last month and it was a huge success. During the service, the tea service, a Historical Society staff member will lead a program about life in the 1800s. This month it's going to be me. I'm going to be talking about the workers at Rose Hill. So the Swans who lived at Rose Hill from 1850 to 1890, they weren't living at Rose Hill alone. There were a variety of workers who cooked and cleaned for the family and others who tended the grounds, animals, and crops. So you can discover the lives of the domestic servants and farm laborers during the tea. It is $35 per person and you can purchase the tickets online or you could call Rose Hill.
Ted Baker: So about how many staff would the Swans have had on duty?
Kerry Lippincott: Oh my goodness that's a very good question. So at any given time as far as domestic servants, they had anywhere from three to six domestic servants. And then farm laborers, it all depended on the time of year. So they definitely had a dozen or so helping with various projects. They had hired hands that were hired for very specific projects, but then they had tenant farmers that would sign a contract for a year.
Ted Baker: Wow. So do you have the August one scheduled? Do you know what the theme is going to be for August?
Kerry Lippincott: Oh yes we do. We're going to be doing food in the 19th century. So what did the Swans serve at their table? What did they grow and produce on their farm? But also what could you buy in Geneva? So it's going to be food in 19th century Geneva.
Ted Baker: Food grown thanks to drain tiles.
Kerry Lippincott: Yes very good connection. Yes very good.
Ted Baker: Some of the exhibits going on right now at the Geneva History Museum, this one always fascinates me because it was a little controversial, which is Urban Renewal in New York State. Because I know like for example in the in the 50s, you know, it was really big to put up that kind of corrugated metal on the fronts of buildings. And it actually covered up some of the historic architecture. And we kind of went back in the other direction later.
Kerry Lippincott: Yeah so this exhibit, it's a traveling exhibit, Urban Renewal in New York State. It's by New York Heritage and we have it for a month. So you have until the end of July to see it. So it's looking at, and I didn't know this, that there were 90 communities throughout New York State that had Urban Renewal projects. And for, I guess the goal was to fund demolition and redevelopment of what they considered a city's blighted areas. So the federal government provided the money for the to purchase and clear the land and then it was up to each city to decide what to do. For Geneva, this was bounded by Seneca Street and South Exchange. Most of the properties that were demolished were commercial, but there were at least 17 houses that were deemed in poor condition with inadequate heating and plumbing and they were demolished. But it took a while for Geneva to kind of figure out what to do. One group wanted to buy all the parcels on Seneca Street and build stores and a supermarket. Another wanted to do a motel. But of course, the developer and the city argued for several years and the deals kind of fell through. And what we ended up with is what was knocked down was basically undeveloped until the late 1970s when the city built the recreation facility, the ice skating rink. And then two years later, the Social Security Administration built their office on Seneca Street across from the Smith and we had a parking lot. So it didn't quite go, it wasn't as developed as what was originally expected. So this exhibit looks not only at Geneva, but other communities too.
Ted Baker: The other exhibit is called To Form a More Perfect Union. Tell us about that one.
Kerry Lippincott: Yeah, so we just celebrated the Fourth of July. So throughout this year, historic Geneva, we're celebrating the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. And we're doing this through exhibits and programs. And To Form a More Perfect Union illustrates the way that the themes of the American Revolution kind of continue on here in Geneva. So we're looking at education and housing and the environment and civil rights and various organizations that are sort of carrying on the themes of our Founding Fathers. And that exhibit will be up through April of 2027.
Ted Baker: Those are ongoing right now at the Geneva History Museum. And then let's go back to Rose Hill for a moment and remind us about the guided tours, including the themed tours.
Kerry Lippincott: Great, yes. So Rose Hill is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 to 4, and then Sunday, 12 to 4, where we offer our regular guided tour. But this year, we are still offering our behind-the-scenes tours on the first and third Saturday of the month at 11. So if you want to go from our attic all the way up to the Belvedere, which is the toppest point of Rose Hill, you can do that. We also have a special outdoor tour called Preserving Rose Hill. And it's basically talking about how Rose Hill was restored and how it became a museum. And those are offered on a variety of Wednesdays and Sundays each month at 1 o'clock.
Ted Baker: All right. HistoricGeneva.org is the website. And one last thing, and that is congratulations on your awesome year of presidency of the Geneva Rotary Club.
Kerry Lippincott: Oh, thank you so much. It was a great year, and I couldn't have done it without the support of the club. So thank you, Ted.
Ted Baker: Thank you. All right. Thanks, as always, for the conversation. We'll talk again. Bye.
