REMEMBERING THE CIVIL WAR

A new exhibit at the Rochester Museum  and Science Center - titled "The American Civil War: the Impact of the Industrial Revolution" - recently opened and will run through January, 2016. It commemorates the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War.  Many items are on display from the museum's collection, including: Civil War swords, rifles, tents, flags, diaries and photographs.

After you've experienced this interesting exhibit,  we invite you to take a look at this Bullis book:

Statistical Record of the Armies of the United States

By Frederick Phisterer, Late Captain U. S. Army

Published by Charles Scribner's Sons, 1883

The comprehensive data in this book was "compiled from Army orders, registers of regulars and volunteers, reports of the Provost-Marshall, and the Adjutant-General U.S. Army, Medical History of the Rebellion, and other sources."

In Part I, the "Calls for Troops" on April 15, 1861 on page 3 shows data for 26 states, both their quota and men actually furnished.  Later  calls for troops are enumerated on several more pages, with a summary for the war on page 10. Military divisions, strength of the Army at various dates, as well as national cemeteries, are covered in the following pages.

Part II lists the chronological record of engagements,  battles etc. from 1861 to 1865, and general officers of the Armies during the "War of the Rebellion" are covered in Part III.

So there you have it - an exhibit and a book to enhance your knowledge and appreciation of the events of the Civil War. (And there are more books on the Civil War in the Bullis collection. We're always glad to help you access them.)

RAILROADING

Last week's post referred to information gleaned from the Bullis Room collection, to wit: "Much of the necessary documentation for the historic marker was provided by materials in the Bullis Room...."

Because so many of you indicated interest in the June 9th topic,  this week we are including a few of the railroading books in the Bullis Room that are available for your research and enjoyment. We say "a few" because there are lots of them. We'll give you a partial list and let you stop by and discover the rest.

Before embarking on any new project, we normally ask, "But what is this going to cost me?"  Therefore, we thought you'd want to take a look at:

The Economic Theory of the Location of Railways;

An Analysis of the Conditions Controlling the Laying Out of Railways ... 

By A. M. (Arthur Mellen) Wellington

Published in New York by J. Wiley & Sons, 1887

Then if we ask, "Is there a less expensive alternative to railroads?" we can find an answer (based on the year 1911 conditions) in this American Railroad's publication:

The Cost of Transportation on the Erie Canal and By Rail

By Association of American Railroads, 

Published in Washington D.C. by Bureau of Railway Economics, 1911

And there's also a book for those of us who want to find out more about how railroads are surveyed and constructed:

The Railroad Engineer's Practice:

Being a Short but Complete Description of the Duties of the

Young Engineer in Preliminary and Location Surveys and in Construction

by Thomas M. Cleeman

Published in New York by Engineering News Publ. Co., 1883

So there you have it -- three out of more than a dozen books on the topic of railroads. If you spend some time with them, you won't be disappointed.

Research enables grant for historic marker

Did you know that the Bullis Collection holds many  publications of our state and local governments? On May 31 we attended the unveiling of this historic marker made possible in part by researching the Bullis Collection.  The photo on the left is retired railroad engineer, H.P. Zerbe, who actually operated the train on this route between Stanley and Sodus Point.  Much of the necessary documentation for the historic marker was provided by materials in the Bullis Room for Tim Wilbur, President of Ontario Pathways, who applied for the grant.  A fellow railroad lover, Dr. Robert Ward had previously done research in the Bullis Room and shared with Mr. Wilbur about the rich railroad resources there. The William G. Pomeroy Foundation provided the grant for the marker.  It is the Foundation's belief "that historic markers play an important role in local historic preservation by serving a dual purpose. They educate the public and foster historic tourism, which in turn can provide economic benefits to the town and villages where the markers are placed." - from Mr. Wilbur's Press Release for marker unveiling.  The Ontario Pathways trailhead is located on Rt.96 between State Route 488 and Rt.8.  This is a repurposing of the railroad track bed into a trail pathway -creating a multi-use rails-to-trails pathway.  Ontario Pathways, Inc. is a non profit organization that owns and maintains 23 miles of rail-trail in Ontario County NY.  Their mission is to create and maintain a network of walking trails that residents and visitors can enjoy year-round. Volunteers work hard to maintain trails, repair bridges and trim brush to keep trails open for visitors. Part of the Rails to Trails Conservancy, Ontario Pathways gives the public free access to beautiful nature trails that stretch from Canandaigua to Phelps. You will find contact and events information on Facebook.

OUR OCEANS

For those of us who have plans this summer to sail around the world (or at least a small portion of it), these Bullis books give an historical perspective of  one of our greatest natural resources--our oceans.

A Voyage in the "Sunbeam";  Our Home on the Ocean for Eleven Months

(First published in 1878  under the title Around the World in the Yacht "Sunbeam")

by Annie Allnutt Brassey, Baroness

Published in New York by John Turtler Lovell, 1881

An Historical Account of the Circumnavigation of the Globe,

and of the progress of discovery in the Pacific Ocean, from the

voyage of Magellan to the death of Cook

Published in New York by Harper Brothers, 1839

A Voyage Round the World in the Years 

1800, 1801, 1802, 1803, and 1804;

in which the author visited the principal islands in the

Pacific Ocean and the English settlements of 

Port Jackson and Norfolk Island

by John Turnbull

Published in Philadelphia by Benjamin and Thomas Kite, 1810

So before you leave for the shore this summer, you're invited to stop by the Bullis Room and look through these books (and others like them).  We think you'll appreciate your time at the ocean more, as a result.

FYI: Tomorrow is World Oceans Day. There are lots of suggestions online for observing this special day. Perhaps you'd like to choose one or two to focus on for the rest of this year. (One that we think Nettie Bullis would have liked is reusing plastic shopping bags.  How simple is that?)

LEAVES OF GRASS

The great American poet, essayist and journalist - Walt Whitman  - was born 196 years ago today.
And one of his books is on the shelves in the Bullis Room:

Leaves of Grass

By Walt Whitman

Published: Boston, James R. Osgood and Co.,  1881-82

It appears that this Bullis copy is the next-to-last edition, based on information we found at  The Walt Whitman Archive (http://www.whitmanarchive.org/published/LG/).  This site lists the six American editions of Leaves of Grass that were published in Whitman's lifetime. These editions covered a period of time from 1855 to 1891-92. You can find details about each one of these editions, at the link above.

If you're interested in finding out more about Walt Whitman, the man, you can find a good introduction to that on today's edition of The Writer's Almanac with Garrison Keilor (http://writersalmanac.org/). This site also includes an interesting paragraph, which we quote:

Whitman spent the last 20 years of his life revising and expanding Leaves of Grass, 

issuing the eighth and final edition in 1891, saying it was

 "at last complete — after 33 y'rs of hackling at it, all times & moods of my life, 

fair weather & foul, all parts of the land, and peace & war, young & old."

(From: The Writer's Almanac with Garrison Keiler, May 31, 2015)

Since the poet spent so much of his life "hackling" at this work in all kinds of weather, moods, places, ages, it seems only fair that we should make an effort to appreciate the results. So we invite you to stop by the Bullis Room and take a look at this 134 year old book with us. (If you'll put on our white gloves, we'll even let you hold it! Honest!)

ON THIS MEMORIAL DAY

WE HONOR ALL THOSE WHO HAVE DIED WHILE SERVING OUR NATION.

CHARLIE BULLIS'S POPPIES

(Photo taken May, 2010)

BULLIS BOOKS ABOUT HORSES

Somewhere in the Bullis family history, there must be several horses - here and there. One reason we make this assumption is that the Bullis collection has several books on the subject.

So for all you horse-lovers out there, we invite you to stop in and take a look at one or more in this group of fiction and non-fiction books about your favorite animal:

Morgan Horses: 

A premium essay on the origin, history, and 

characteristics of this remarkable American breed of horses;

tracing the pedigree from the original Justin Morgan, through

the most noted of his progeny, down to the present time.

By D. C. Linsley

Published in New York by C. M. Saxton and Company, 1857

(Note: This book has numerous portraits, to which are added

information about general use and management of horses.)

Black Beauty

by Anna Sewell

Published in New York by Dodd, Mead, 1941

(Note: You read this as a child - is it time for you to enjoy it again?)

Special Report on Diseases of the Horse

By L. Pearson and others

Published in Washington D.C., G.P.O., 1923

Examination of a sick horse, fundamental principles of disease of the

eye, nervous system, heart, wounds and their treatment; 

also how to shoe a horse

Wild Animal Ways

By Ernest Thompson Seton

Published in Garden City, New York, Doubleday, Page & Company, 1916

(Note: This collection of short stories contains one titled"Coaly-Bay, The Outlaw Horse." 

The first sentence explains: "Coaly-bay sounds like Kolibey, which is an Arab title of nobility, and those who saw the handsome colt, and did not know how he came by the name, 

thought he must be of Arab blood." 

So the next time you're in MPL, you can look at these books - or any other in the collection - by inquiring at the front desk and making arrangements. It's as simple as that.