Curiosities of the Finger Lakes: Hidden Ancient Ruins, Flying Machines, the Boy Who Caught a Trout with His Nose and More

by Melanie Zimmer

Overview

The Finger Lakes region is known for its beauty, but look carefully and you will discover some of New York's other abundant—and unusual—treasures. The cliffs of Excelsior Glen are scattered with ancient Indian pictographs, and Bluff Point conceals the ruins of an unknown civilization. The wine industry has its own strange stories; discover why one wine producer was banned from using his own name. Among the oddities of the Finger Lakes region are the world's largest pancake, a slice of Susan B. Anthony's seventy-eighth birthday cake and the anecdote of the boy who accidentally caught an eight-pound trout with his nose. Join author Melanie Zimmer and uncover these and other curiosities and strange tales of the Finger Lakes.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781626190924
Publisher:	Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date:	05/13/2014
Pages:	160
Sales rank:	1,045,726
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.40(d)

About the Author

Melanie Zimmer is very active in the folklore and storytelling community. She is currently a member of the League for the Advancement of New England Storytelling, the Puppeteers of America, the Puppetry Guild of Upstate New York and the New York Folklore Society. She has published numerous books and articles and frequently presents and performs at libraries, schools, museums and historical societies.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements 9

Introduction 13

1 Stories of the Haudenosaunee

Creation 15

How the Seneca Indians Came to the Finger Lakes 16

How Fire Came to the Haudenosaunee 20

How the Pleiades Star Cluster Came to Be 23

How Birds Obtained Their Songs 24

The Little Man's Bow and Arrows 26

Lacrosse: For the Pleasure of the Creator 27

The Painted Rocks of Seneca Lake 28

Queen Catherine and Her Sister, Queen Ester 30

The Haudenosaunee as One of the Lost Tribes of Israel 34

2 Pre-Columbian Civilizations

Ancient Indian Pictographs 38

The Pre-Columbian Ruins at Bluff Point 42

The Story of Surveyors Samuel Hart Wright and Berlin Hart Wright 49

3 A Bit of History

The Origin of the Mennonites and Amish 53

Slocum Howland and the Underground Railroad in Sherwood 57

Susan B. Anthony's Birthday Cake 58

The Great Agnostic: Robert Green Ingersoll 60

The Mysterious Disappearance of the HMS Ontario 62

4 Fruit of the Vine

Reverend William Bostwick and the Introduction of Wine Crapes into the Finger Lakes 65

The Strange Story of Walter S. Taylor 69

5 Invention and Idea

Auburn Prison and the Electric Chair 76

Flying Machines 82

Willard Memorial Chapel: A Tiffany Treasure 98

Theodore Case and the Invention of Sound-on-Film 105

6 The Spirit World

The Legend of Buried Treasure at Indian Pines 115

The Willard Asylum for the Insane 117

Belhurst Castle 121

Erie Mansion 123

The 1890 House 131

7 Other Strange Tales

The RIT Escherian Stairwell 136

The Ghost Deer of Seneca Lake 137

The World's Largest Pancake 140

A Big Fish Story: Harry Morse and the Trout 142

Conclusion 147

Bibliography 149

About the Author 159