Items tagged with 'presidents'

Ulysses S. Grant and Mount McGregor

USGrant_at-McGregor_LibraryofCongress.jpg

Ulysses S. Grant at his McGregor Mountain cottage

130 years ago today Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th president of the United States, died at his cottage near the top of Mount McGregor in WiltonMoreau, just north of Saratoga.

Grant's role in history is being re-examined by some historians, who now eschew the image of the Civil War general turned Commander -in-chief as a drinker whose success was based largely on luck, for one of a champion of African Americans. In a piece today in the Huffington Post on why historians are changing their tune about GrantJohn F. Marszalek -- a historian and executive director of the Ulysses S. Grant Association says "You have to go almost to Lyndon Johnson to find a president who tried to do as much to ensure black people found freedom."

Grant spent his last days in the cottage on Mount McGregor. The cottage, now a state historic site, is preserved pretty much they way it was when he left it -- books, bedding and all-- and it is open to the public for tour. On Saturday the keepers of the cottage will mark the anniversary of Grant's passing with a Remembrance Day ceremony.

Waiting on the arrival of Lincoln's ghost

ghostly abe lincoln rensselaer train station

By James Greene, Jr.

The Rensselaer Amtrak Station: to me, it was always just an air conditioned waiting room with a post office, a relatively empty (though aesthetically pleasing) open space where I could leech wifi and stare at silent Charmed reruns on the wall mounted televisions whilst waiting for a ride back to New York City.

That changed when I learned this depot might be haunted by the esteemed ectoplasmic residuals of Abraham Lincoln's funeral train. You mean there's a chance my latte sipping could be interrupted by a gh-gh-ghost?

(there's more)

The Scoop

For a decade All Over Albany was a place for interested and interesting people in New York's Capital Region. It was kind of like having a smart, savvy friend who could help you find out what's up. AOA stopped publishing at the end of 2018.

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