Recent Dumping at the Old Mount Ida Cemetery, Troy, NY

An email was sent to me earlier in the day by another fellow cemetery enthusiast notifying me of a case of very recent illegal dumping of old tires in the Old Mount Ida Cemetery; located on lower Pawling Avenue in Troy.

Pictures of the crime are below. Someone came into the cemetery with a large truck and disposed of upwards of forty tires on cemetery grounds. This story may hit the news media in the next day or so. I was asked to spread the word on this.

It is truly a shame that individuals do this; especially in a cemetery! I am in and out of numerous cemeteries on a regular basis. I have seen evidence of prior illegal activity in many cemeteries but have never stumbled upon someone in the act of desecration. Lucky for them!

The City of Troy will be notified of this. I am told that numerous city officials are not aware that the cemetery is actually city property. Hopefully a city department of public works crew will remove the tires soon.

Upcoming Talk on Albany's German Community & WWI

On 5 February 2017, 2 PM, at the Wyman Osterhout Community Center in New Salem, the New Scotland Historical Association is sponsoring a historical talk on World War I and Albany's German community. The program will be given by myself, Christopher White.

Stop by to learn about Albany's once vibrant German community. In Albany, Germans were the largest ethnic group second to the Irish. Today, Albany's German community and history is culturally invisible compared to it's heyday during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. What happened?

The Osterhout Community Center is located in New Salem just before the hill heading up to Thatcher Park. For more information please check the New Scotland Historical Association's web page. Below is a flyer created and provided by the NSHA.

Plans for 2017

Although this post is two weeks late... Happy New Year! We are well into 2017. Many plans are being made to "upgrade and develop" this blog to be more interesting and helpful for fellow genealogists. Professional type videos and documentaries are planned.

Presently I am in the process of learning how to use different pieces of equipment such as DSLR cameras, microphones, web cams, mixing board, and video editing software. Hopefully my daughters who are more media savvy than myself will be willing to help with lessons for Dad and production tips.

Yes, this is being done while working full-time and also continuing my own family history research. Another genealogical road trip might be taken. This time perhaps to Wisconsin with some stops along the way.

Cemetery work will begin again at the Evangelical Protestant Cemetery as soon as the weather begins to warm. Looking forward to this. 99% of the east side of the cemetery is complete. Once that side is complete, the west side will most likely be set upon this Spring. No rest for the Albany Grave Digger!