Looking Backward - Weekend

My weekend in upstate New York was AWESOME!!! I spent a full two days discussing, learning about, and experiencing 19th Century United States history. The Rochester Institute of Technology was beyond welcoming, and I am so grateful that I was chosen to participate.

Our group!

Unfortunately the winter storm, and a painful head cold, caused my weekend to come to a less than amazing end, there were far more than three good things about this trip.

1. Visiting historical sites.
Going to see William H. Seward's home in Auburn was incredible. More than 90% of the objects in the home are original, belonging to Seward, Secretary of State under Presidents Lincoln and Johnson. One of my favorite parts of this home was going down into the basement to see where runaway slaves stayed on their journey north on the Underground Railroad. We also made a relatively quick stop at Harriet Tubman's property down the street, sold to her by William Seward. It was amazing to learn that a woman who came from literally nothing actually died owning 32 acres of property with multiple homes. Truly a humbling, but amazing experience! We also stopped at the gravesite of Frederick Douglass, where I reflected upon his great struggles and accomplishments. Going to these places really brought history to life for me and made me appreciate these three people much more.

Harriet Tubman's Home for the Aged, in Auburn, NY

Frederick Douglass's grave at Mount Hope Cemetery, in Rochester, NY

2. The food.
I know this is somewhat trivial, but the food this weekend was fantastic! The director of the weekend's festivities, Dr. Fornieri from RIT, promised we would not go hungry and he was right. We had lunch at an Italian deli, subs from Wegman's (WOW!), wings and ribs from the Dinosaur, and a wonderful Italian meal at Mr. Dominic's on the Erie Canal. I want to go back to Rochester just for the good food!

3. Reenergizing my passion for history.
I can't recommend enough that content area teachers take every chance to go to some sort of professional learning experience. This seminar, and the one I went to in Springfield, were so informative. Additionally, I got to spend a whole weekend with the great history teachers I met a few months ago. I am so grateful to be able to simply be in the presence of these dedicated and top-tier individuals.

Couldn't pass up taking a photo of the actual flowers from Lincoln's funeral procession. Gifted to Seward, who could not attend due to an assassination attempt the same night as Lincoln's assassination.