Science at a History Museum

by Erin Doane, Curator

I have always been a little jealous of science museums when it comes to their interactives.  They have so many opportunities to create wonderful hands-on activities for their exhibits.  Being able to touch things and try experiments within a gallery is a great way for visitors to learn.  Unfortunately, one of the main rules in most history museums is that you cannot touch things on display.  We have, therefor, decided that our new exhibit on medicine in Chemung County, To Do No Harm, will include a science-based interactive.

Science in To Do No Harm

I know that may seem like cheating in some ways but it really isn’t.  Science is a huge part of our everyday lives (whether we realize it or not) and has been throughout all of history.  It makes sense to integrate science into our history exhibits just as it does to integrate art.  Some history topics almost beg for the addition of a science component.  Take, for example, our previous exhibit on farming in Chemung County, Locally Grown.  We presented the history of agriculture but also the science behind developments over time.  We had a section with live plants where we explained how plants used sunlight, water, and nutrients to grow.  That information is essentially the basis of all agriculture.  All the history that followed was made possible by the natural science.

The science corner from Locally Grown

The science in our farming exhibit was not hands-on, however.  In To Do No Harm we’re taking science up a notch and giving people something to do.  Next to our history of microscopes, we have included a magnifying glass and a binocular microscope that visitors can use to examine a variety of samples up close.

Microscope and box of samples including wool, newspaper, duct tape, and a toothpick

I have to admit that I had forgotten how very exciting science could be until I unwrapped our microscope and started looking at things on my desk.  Suddenly, I was transported back to school and felt the thrill of making a new discovery for the first time.  I went around the office making the rest of the staff and interns look at bits of foam and their own fingers through the microscope because it was so cool.  I’m hoping that our visitors, both young and old, will feel that same sort of excitement and inspiration.  While the 20x magnification of our scope is not extreme by any means, it is a lot of fun.

Images from our microscope

clockwise from top left: foam block, plastic plant,dried flower, kitchen sponge

While I did steal inspiration from science museums, that doesn’t mean that there is no other way to bring hands-on activities into a history exhibit.  In To Do No Harm we are also trying out a new interactive that will connect people more personally with history.  At the entrance of the gallery, visitors can choose a medical chart.  In that chart, they will learn about a fictional historical character who needs to make their way through the medical system.  Visitors will learn about the history of medicine by helping their character find the right doctor, choose the correct medicine, or select the best hospital for their illnesses or injuries.  I don’t want to give away too many details but I will say that not everyone survives.

Choose your own exhibit adventure in To Do No Harm

Try out all the hands-on activities at the grand opening of To Do No Harm: Medicine in Chemung County on Thursday, November 20, from 5:00 to 7:00 pm.

Jeepers: Mascot for a Day

Jeepers was the winner of our Mascot for a Day contest during Dogapalooza. The contest was inspired by some of our historical local canine mascots, like Colonel, the Elmira Telegram mascot, or military dog mascots.  Jeepers was selected by popular vote and her prize is to be the mascot for the Chemung County Humane Society and SPCA and the Chemung County Historical Society for one day, November 14, 2014.  As the mascot, she gets her very own blog post.  Enjoy her story and pictures below:
 

My Name is Jeepers.  I was born into a litter of 6 Shih Tzus on August 15, 2007.  When I was eight weeks old I went to live with my new friends Roger, Bob, and Rod.  I was very small.  I remember the guys being real careful not to step on me.  I liked my new home.

One day I was outside playing on the terrace.  I found a small hole that I could go through, so I went exploring.  I ended up chasing cars on Water Street.  It was fun and scary.  A car stopped and a lady grabbed me and took me away.  She took me to a vet far away on Lake Road.  I missed my guys and wasn’t happy.  The guys hunted for me all day and night.  They were out looking for me all the next day.  Finally they found me.  They were kissing me and crying at the same time.  We were back together!

January of 2008 I got really sick and had to go to Cornell.  I had a small piece of bone caught in my throat and more bones in my stomach. I had the sliver removed from my throat, and then had an operation to clean out my stomach.  I stayed at Cornell for a week.  When I got home the guys started making me my own special food.  I still eat it today; roast chicken, rice, peas, and carrots.

Today my life is really nice.  I take an hour long walk every morning down by the river.  If it is warm, I like to sit in the river and cool off.  I have seen eagles while on my walk.  During the day I like to sleep on my chair with my favorite stuffed animal.  Most days I bark to tell the guys I am ready for my daily ride in the car.  Sometimes I walk in Eldridge Park, and other times I walk at the park in Big Flats.  In the evening I watch tv with Roger and Bob for a while and then fall asleep in a chair.  I am carried upstairs and sleep on my feather pillow at the top of the bed.

 

I really like the guys' kisses, and they love playing with me.  We have a great life together!

Love,

Jeepers

Dogs of War: The Canine Veterans of World War II

by Kelli Huggins, Education Coordinator

Animals have long been used by militaries around the world.  Horses and other pack animals help move artillery, soldiers, or other supplies.  Cats are particularly useful on ships to control rat populations.  Pigeons were used to send messages.  Dogs have been used in warfare since ancient times, however, the United States did not have an official war dog program until World War II.  Since we are just coming off of our "Dogapalooza" celebration of contemporary and historical dogs, and since it is almost Veterans Day, I thought that exploring the history of the military dogs and their local connections in this blog post was fitting. 

After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, a group of Americans, including poodle breeder Alene Erlanger and Arthur Kilbon of the New York Sun, created the Dogs for Defense program.  The goal of the program was to procure and train dogs for military use.  Dogs for Defense asked Americans to volunteer their own pets to the military.  They placed advertisements in newspapers and the program was promoted as another way that Americans could support the war effort.  Only certain breeds or mixes were accepted and dogs needed to be under that age of 5.  Americans sent the government at least 40,000 pets, and 10,000 dogs were ultimately selected for training. 

Dog food advertisement from the Elmira Star-Gazette which promotes the Dogs for Defense program (and the merits of their dog food).

Training was an arduous process.  Dogs learned to attack, detect bombs and other weapons, deliver messages, and most importantly, to not be spooked by gun fire and other loud noises.  At least two Chemung County men worked as dog trainers.  Archie Kieffer worked as an Army dog trainer on Long Island before joining the Army Air Corps.  Elmiran Homer J. Finley, Jr. worked as a dog trainer for the Marines (see another picture of Finley and a canine trainee here from the American Kennel Club).

Elmiran Homer Finley with his trainee, Jack.

Archie Kieffer at dog training facility.  Note the kennels in the background

 

Archie and one of his trainees.

Dogs served in many capacities during the war.  Some were trained to find enemy combatants, bombs, or trip wires, and alert soldiers to their whereabouts.  Others were messengers, and others still were cadaver dogs trained to find dead or injured soldiers.  All of this work was dangerous and many dogs were injured or killed.  This short 1943 War Department Film Bulletin shows the dogs' training and variety of roles (and is well worth watching). 

Not all dogs in the war were these professionally-trained canines.   Likely most war dogs were strays or dogs otherwise adopted by troops.  CCHS' collection of materials from Helen Booth Sprecher, a member of the Women's Army Auxiliary Corp, features pictures of several dogs.  There are several shots of a puppy named Tappy, who was listed as the company dog.

Company mascot Tappy and WAAC member

Tappy and WAAC members

Tappy and WAAC members

A company dog

When the war was over, not all surviving dogs returned to a hero's welcome.  Even though the government promised that the Dogs For Defense dogs would be returned to their owners, military officials thought that the dogs would be too dangerous to reenter civilian life and should be destroyed.  Some people, like William Putney (author of a memoir about his work training military dogs) disagreed, and successfully campaigned for the creation of a "deindoctrination" program for returning dogs.  Dogs were rehabilitated and returned home.

Some of these dogs came home to Elmira.  In 1946, Elmiran Roy Churcher placed notices in the Star-Gazette about his missing dog Rex, a former military dog.  Rex served in the Coast Guard Canine Corp for three years and was wounded in the chest during battle.  Churcher feared his dog had been stolen since the highly-trained canine was not known to wander from home.  Fortunately, the story had a happy ending and Rex was found unharmed and returned home.



Notice placed in the newspaper about lost war dog Rex.

Dogs continue to serve in the military today and many are able to return to the United States to retire and live with their handlers.  Americans are no longer asked to volunteer their pets for military service.  Still, the work and sacrifices of dog soldiers, both historical and contemporary, are often forgotten or overlooked.  There are war dog memorials throughout the country, some of them created only within the last ten years.     

The Women’s Suffrage Campaign of 1915

by Rachel Dworkin, Archivist

In 1915, there was a proposed amendment to the New York State Constitution granting women the right to vote.  At the time, some New York women could vote in local school board elections, but not in municipal or federal elections.  The decision to grant full suffrage was put directly to the voters in an Election Day ballot initiative.  The state-wide run-up to the vote was intense. 

By 1915, women’s suffrage was a major national issue.  12 States including Wyoming (1869), Colorado (1893), Utah (1896), Idaho (1896), Washington (1910), California (1911), Kansas (1912), Arizona (1912), Oregon (1912), Alaska (1913), Illinois (1913), Montana (1914) and Nevada (1914) had already granted their women the right to vote.   There were ballot initiatives not only in New York, but also in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Iowa, and a bill in Congress. 

1915 Campaign flyer with map

The suffrage movement in New York had been slowly building momentum throughout the 1910s, but its supporters kicked their efforts into overdrive for the campaign.  The Empire State Campaign Committee, a coalition including the Women’s Suffrage Party, the Women’s Suffrage Association, the Women’s Political Union and other likeminded organizations, was headed up by Carrie Chapman Catt.  The organization published and distributed a mountain of leaflets and gave out free suffrage novelties at rallies and fairs.  The Chemung County Committee handed out ribbons, drinking cups, writing pads, flags, fans, balloons, pins, place cards, and tango twirls at the Chemung County Fair. 

Women's suffrage flyers, 1915

 

From January through November, the Empire State Campaign sponsored a series of lectures, campaigns and rallies throughout the state.  They canvassed the women of New York and urged them to show their support.  The whole thing was to be capped off by a massive rally and parade in New York City on October 23^rd with delegates coming in from across the state. 

Chemung County suffragettes on parade, 1913

 

According to a poll conducted by the Elmira Advertiser, 96% of Chemung County women were in support of the amendment.  Unfortunately, women couldn’t actually vote and the 1915 amendment failed to pass.  A second campaign in 1917, however, was successful in granting New York Women the right to vote.