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Uncovering Local History: Winter Research and a Mystery at Oriskany
As the season comes to a close for many local museums and historic sites, Oneida County Historian Alexis Albright joins us at the Oriskany Museum to talk about Path Through History Weekend and the special events taking place across the region. One of the highlights is the end-of-season Harvest Festival at Herkimer Home in Little Falls, where visitors can experience life in the Mohawk Valley during the 18th century.
Alexis also talks about what happens behind the scenes during the quieter winter months, when historians catch up on research, scan old photographs, and dig into questions that came up over the summer. She shares some tips for researching your own family history, including why holiday gatherings are a great time to ask relatives about the past. And she tells us about an unusual artifact connected to the Battle of Oriskany that remains a mystery. You never know what might turn up in an old family photo album!
Path Through History Weekend October 10-12, 2026 Click here for information
Allen Guy Wilcox: Finding Inspiration at Home with New Collection of Poems, The Red Goose
We visit poet and author Allen Guy Wilcox at the Rose Theatre at Woodshill, a former hay barn built by his grandparents in the 1940s and now home to a Shakespeare theater company. Allen talks about his new poetry collection, The Red Goose, and how returning home, the loss of his father in 2024, and the history of his family’s land have shaped his writing.
He also shares how his wife and children have inspired many of the poems, which explore family, memory, loss, and the everyday moments that make life meaningful. Our visit concludes with Allen reading At the Dinner Table at Night, the opening poem from his new collection.
Event October 21, 2026, Inlet Public Library, 6pm –Meet Allen and hear him read from The Red Goose
The Robert Earl Diaries: 1880, a New Radio Serial starring Dexter Smith of Frankfort
In this week’s diary entries from October 1880, we get a glimpse of autumn life in the Mohawk Valley through the eyes of 12-year-old Robert Earle. Between school, church, apple picking, horseback riding, and hunting with friends, Robert also witnessed the excitement surrounding the upcoming presidential election, including a Democratic torchlight procession in Herkimer.
We learn that Robert’s family lived on West German Street in a house that still stands today, and that the church he attended has also survived. We meet Addison Thayer, the family’s hired farmhand, and discover that a “blank speller,” which Robert bought for five cents, was a notebook used for practicing spelling. We also learn about Fox Hollow, an area south of Mohawk near present-day Dennison Corners.
It’s a fascinating look at ordinary life nearly 150 years ago, preserved in the words of a young boy who had no idea we’d still be reading his diary today.
Pollinator Magnets: Late Boneset with Maggie Reilly
We return to Maggie Reilly’s gardens in New York Mills for the final installment of our series on plants that attract pollinators. This week, Maggie introduces us to one of her favorites, Late Boneset, a striking plant that can grow nearly six feet tall, with beautiful gray-green foliage and large clusters of fragrant white flowers.
Maggie explains why bees and butterflies love this late-season bloomer, how easily it grows in different soil conditions, and how it compares to Common and Tall Boneset. It’s a wonderful way to keep your garden blooming and feeding pollinators well into autumn!
Free Wild Ones Webinar October 21st! https://wildones.org/bats-in-the-backyard/
Mohawk Valley Soundscapes: The White-Throated Sparrows of Autumn
In this mid-October Mohawk Valley Soundscape, Matt Perry takes us into a hedgerow filled with the calls of white-throated sparrows, along with a few eastern towhees, song sparrows, and American goldfinches.
While many of our summer birds are heading south, white-throated sparrows are arriving from Canada and Northern New York. Some will stay with us through the winter. Matt explains how to recognize their distinctive autumn calls, the two different color patterns on their heads, and how they search through fallen leaves for seeds and insects. It’s one of the quieter but familiar sounds of autumn in the Mohawk Valley.