President Kennedy Press Conference on the Immigration and Nationality Act
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President Kennedy Press Conference on the Immigration and Nationality Act

Authored by: Ariana Kaleta

President Kennedy Press Conference on the Immigration and Nationality Act June 11, 1963,                     Abby Rowe/White House
“Immigration policy should be generous; it should be fair; it should be flexible. With such a policy we  can turn to the world, and to our own past, with clean hands and a clear conscience.”
John F Kennedy, A Nation of Immigrants

Here we see a relaxed President Kennedy, laughing during a break at a press conference but what he was discussing were serious matters for the future face of America.  The President was compelled to write “A Nation of Immigrants” after repeatedly hearing the stories of immigrant’s rights groups, such as at this meeting with the American Committee on Italian Migration.

When Kennedy first came into office, Henry Cabot Lodge’s Immigration Act of 1924 had been diligently enforced under the firm hand of the Immigration Restriction League (a prominent lobbying group founded in 1884). [1]  For four decades, the Immigration Act of 1924 used quotas to prohibit all ‘non-nativist’ nationalities, in particular Jewish, Irish and Italians fleeing Europe. However, it also had punitive effects on the almost historically unrecognized Arabic and Asian immigrants.[2]  As the threat of communism and post war depression flooded across Europe and Asia, waves of immigrants risked their lives to journey to America, only to be turned away at Ellis Island, due to these racist and religious discriminatory laws. Continue reading →

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Mapping the History of College Point: The Impact of Immigrants on a Neighborhood in Queens

Authored by Megan Smead

Image of Fire Insurance Map of College Point, Queens watermarked with New York Public Library logo

Map of College Point, Queens, NY from the Sanborn Map Company, Atlas 141, Queens V. 5, Plate No. 15, 1903, made available by the Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal Map Division of the New York Public Library.2

The Sanborn Map Company created fire insurance maps beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, showing the location and construction of buildings and roads in major cities across the United States, which allowed insurance companies to assess fire risk.1 The Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal Map Division of the New York Public Library has digitized many atlases and maps, including the Sanborn map in Figure 1, which represents College Point, Queens, NY in 1903. As part of an Academic Service-Learning experience through St. John’s University, I georectified this map, and others from the same atlas of Queens. The georectification process entails using the NYPL Map Warper tool to match coordinates from the historical map to a current map in order to align the two maps. Georectification of historical maps allows genealogists, historians, architects, urban planners and members of the public to observe geographic and demographic changes over time, and to make connections to the past. Volunteering my time and skills in service to the public by georectifiying maps allows me to strive towards fulfilling the Vincentian mission of service that is essential to St. John’s University. Continue reading →

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Mary Statue in St. Albert Hall- St. John’s Queens Campus

Authored by Alicia J. Collumbell

A statue of a “Miraculous Mary” located in the main lobby of St. Albert hall. Created by St. John’s University, Office of University Mission.

A statue of a “Miraculous Mary” located in the main lobby of St. Albert hall. Created by St. John’s University, Office of University Mission.

This sculpture located inside St. Albert Hall is modeled after the image of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal. The statue is believed to have belonged to St. John’s University since at least 1958. It is probable that the statue came around the time of construction of the Hill Crest (Queens) Campus, but knowledge about whether the sculpture was commissioned, donated or how it otherwise came to be in the possession of the university has thus far eluded researchers. However, the object’s prominent location in the main lobby of St. Albert Hall should indicate that some one somewhere knows why and possibly when it was placed here. Continue reading →

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Stony Kill Farm: An enduring example of “Agriculture in Perpetuity”

Authored by Kat Baumgartner

Stonykill Photo

A December 5, 1957 photo of Stony Kill Farm with the Manor House visible in the background. Photograph of the land, Dec. 5, 1957, Box 10, Stony Kill 1942-1952, Farmingdale State College Archives, Farmingdale State College, Farmingdale, New York.

On November 9, 1942, John Bayard Rodgers Verplanck, James DeLancey Verplanck, and their wives Evelina and Susan gave a 750-acre property to the Long Island Agricultural and Technical Institute, now Farmingdale State College, in exchange for one dollar. The Verplanck brothers had a particular vision for this land: “In presenting the gift of the farm to the State it was specifically stated in the Transfer of Title that the primary function of the farm would be to serve as an outdoor laboratory enabling Institute students to receive a wider range of instruction than would otherwise be possible at Farmingdale. In addition, the farm was to be kept in ‘Agriculture in Perpetuity.’”2  Continue reading →

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The Tricentennial of the Bellmores, Long Island, New York, 1976

Authored by Sara Alcorn

Car Bumper Sticker from the Bellmore Historical Society celebrating the Tricentennial of the Bellmores, New York, 1976.

Car Bumper Sticker from the Bellmore Historical Society celebrating the Tricentennial of the Bellmores, New York, 1976.

As the United Sates of America was welcoming their bicentennial independence, a small town on Long Island was gearing up to celebrate the three hundredth birthday of their community with pride and public service.

 

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The Great South Bay Scooter Club: A Prestigious Social Venue

Authored by Samantha Duffy

cover page of racing rules (1963) for the Great South Bay Scooter Club

Title page of a 6-page set of Racing Rules, approved in 1963. This is from the Great South Bay Scooter Club collection, currently located at the Brookhaven Free Library

When the temperature drops, and sleeves get longer, most people retreat to the comfort and warmth of their homes, to hibernate for the cold winter. But if you are one of the many ice boat racers out here on eastern Long Island, the freezing temperatures bring more than the holiday spirit. In fact, it can only mean one thing; another season at the Bellport Bay Yacht Club[1]. Meeting every first and third Tuesday of the months November-March[2], giddy ice boat enthusiasts gather to race, on the Great South Bay, located at the end of Bellport Lane in Bellport. Although the evolution of how ice boats came about is not well documented, the rich history of the Great South Bay Scooter Club is making its way into being digitally accessible for all to see. As early as 1900, ice boats and scooters were used, though at that point in time almost strictly for hunting and sport[3]. The very first organized scooter race took place in Patchogue in February of 1903. In 1904, the Bellport Scooter Club was organized and later oversaw the organization of other scooter clubs across Long Island[4]. From there, the Bellport Bay Yacht Club offered their building to the Scooter Club for the winter months. Since then, the club, and what seems like the entire village of Bellport, have enjoyed that space from 1922, on[5].

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“Warping” through Queens history with the NYPL Map Warper tool

insurance maps of the borough of queens, vol 2, 1915

Insurance Maps of the Borough of Queens, City of New York, Volume Two, published in 1915 and digitally reproduced on the NYPL Map Warper according to a CC0 1.0 license.

Authored by Maddy Vericker

The NYPL Map Warper is a collection of New York-area maps and atlases that have been digitized and published online under a Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication license.[1] The coolest thing about the Map Warper tool is that it is also a crowdsourcing project that relies on volunteers to pin old maps to modern satellite maps, a process called georectification.[2]  Exploring the maps that populate the website reveals much about the history of a city that is constantly evolving, and in researching the Sanborn Map Co.’s Insurance Maps of the Borough of Queens, City of New York, Volume Two,[3] these changes are even more apparent. Continue reading →

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“Modern Community” in 1950

Authored by Kevin Quinn

Page 1 of the Modern Community syllabus at Farmingdale State College, circa 1948.

Farmingdale State College “Modern Community syllabus,” page 1, circa 1948.

“Modern Community in 1950”

As part of an Academic Service-Learning project, I was tasked with cataloging textbooks and notebooks donated by an alumnus of the 1950 class at Farmingdale State College. The donor of the material was Mr. Benjamin P. Vecchio, a graduate of the Building Construction (BC) program at LIATI. At LIATI, students were either part of the Agricultural College, or the Technical College. As a student in BC, Mr. Vecchio was a part of the Technical College that, according to a campus map[1], made its home on Conklin Street in Farmingdale, NY, away from the Main Campus.  The history of the Technical Campus is interesting because the ‘Central Hall’ building used to be known as the Nazareth Trade School, a home for Orphans between 1900 and 1940.[2] “It was held at the old tech area which was on Conklin Street. All the classes were there, none of them were here, except sports, sports were here, but the rest were over there.”[3] Continue reading →

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St. John the Baptist High School: Vincentian in Spirit

Authored by Michael Bartolomeo

The Prophet, Vol. 2 No. 1. October, 1967.

The Prophet, Vol. 2 No. 1. October, 1967.

St. John the Baptist Diocesan High School was founded by the Diocese of Rockville Centre in 1966 as part of a project to construct three diocesan high schools on Long Island, New York.  With the objective of providing students the opportunity for a holistic Catholic education, its mission has long been one grounded in the core Vincentian values of Truth, Love, and Respect through a spirit of “accountability, trust, and justice […] tempered with compassion and understanding” (Mission Statement 2013).  Continue reading →

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Matilda Joslyn Gage: A Woman of Dedication, Motivation, and Opportunity

Authored by: Andrea Gatins

Featured is women's rights activist Matilda Joslyn Gage

Matilda Joslyn Gage. This image has not been watermarked due to copyright restrictions. This image should not be altered in any way, and utilized for educational purposes only.

Matilda Joslyn Gage can simply be described as a women’s rights activist, and a significant figure in the women’s rights movement. Born in 1826, this woman dedicated her life to fighting for women’s freedom whether it was the right to vote, or general women’s equality. To jump-start her fight for women’s freedom, while Gage wasn’t able to attend the notable Women’s Right’s Convention in Seneca Falls, NY, she attended and addressed the third national convention in Syracuse in 1852 (Matilda Joslyn Gage Foundation 2009, par. 3). To further her fierce dedication, Gage is credited as one of the founding members and leaders of the National Woman Suffrage Association, and the Women’s National Liberal League (Hall 2002, 161). Continue reading →