Bound Volumes

212 YEARS AGO
Mrs. Martha P. Graham’s recipe for a crimson dye — To two gallons of poke berries, when they are quite ripe, add half a gallon of strong vinegar, made of the wild crab apple, to dye one pound of wool, which must be first washed very clean with hard soap. The wool, when wrung dry, is to be put into the vinegar and poke berry juice, and simmered in a copper vessel for one hour; then take out the wool and let it drip awhile, and spread it in the sun. The vessel must be free from grease of any kind.

March 23, 1811

111 YEARS AGO
Manager Higby of the Bell Telephone wishes to let the people know that the two telephone systems in Cooperstown will be consolidated next Saturday night, and after that date there will be but one central office and one system. It will probably be a few days before the service will be working smoothly, but a little patience upon the part of patrons will help matters along wonderfully. A new directory will be issued March 25. Mr. Higby particularly requests subscribers to call by number in order that the service may be as prompt as possible.

March 22, 1911

86 YEARS AGO
This year’s Pageant of the American Indian will be the most colorful demonstration ever presented by the Department of Physical Education at Cooperstown high school under the personal direction of Mr. Lester G. Bursey. Thirty pounds of Indian powder and 2,500 feathers in all colors are required for the make-up which will give the scene a professional aspect. The entire cast will attend the opening Council Ring and you will have an opportunity to witness over 400 Indian braves and maidens on the gymnasium floor at one time. This tribal affair will present the lighting of the Sacred Fire, the Peace Pipe Ceremony, and the solo Devil Dance around the camp fire, as an introduction to the demonstrations that will follow.

March 25, 1936

61 YEARS AGO
Research in the field of organ transplantation is being supported by the American Cancer Society through a grant of $7,269 made to Dr. David A. Blumenstock of the Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital in Cooperstown. Methods of transplanting a vital organ, as heart, lung, or kidney, from one individual to another have stimulated the imagination and interest of doctors for many years. Several members of the hospital’s staff are now engaged in an intensive study of the problems involved in such transplantations. “For several years my special interest has been directed toward developing technical methods of transplanting the lung in animals,” Dr. Blumenstock said. “It is now possible to remove a lung, completely detach it from the animal, then replace it by sewing the blood vessels and bronchial tubes together again and have the lung live and resume its normal function.” However, because of reasons not completely understood, the tissues of one animal even of the same species will not survive in the body of another for any extended period of time.

March 22, 1961

36 YEARS AGO
Leo Lincourt, a CCS senior, has found a way to reduce interference on such transmissions as public address systems and intercom units to almost zero. At the same time, Lincourt’s “Fiber Optic Audio System” has made him one of 100 national finalists in the Fourth Annual Duracell Scholarship Competition. The winner of the $10,000 first prize scholarship will be announced on April 22 at New York City’s Waldorf-Astoria.

March 26, 1986

21 YEARS AGO
The Cooperstown Graduate Program will present a lecture featuring acclaimed filmmaker Ric Burns on March 23 at the Fenimore Art Museum auditorium. Burns will discuss the recently completed fall episodes of his PBS series, “New York: A Documentary Film,” and the process of creating history documentaries.

March 23, 2001