Along The Mohawk #10

 For the Mohawk Valley, Central New York region. 

Along the Mohawk features local music and interviews with musicians, storytellers, restaurateurs, and manufacturers and also features Soundscapes with local naturalist Matt Perry. The show will also include a short weekly old-time radio serial, Annie and the Loomis Gang, written and produced by Sharry Whitney and performed by a cast of local voice actors. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_05 0:01

Steve Ponty Chevrolet and Herkimer, your local family-owned and operated Chevy dealer, presents Along the Mohawk.

SPEAKER_06 0:10

Come with me as we travel along the Mohawk, sharing the stories of the people and places where we belong.

SPEAKER_05 0:21

Good morning, and thank you for traveling along the Mohawk with me today. I'm Sherry Whitney, and I look forward to sharing the stories of our region with you. On today's show, we learn about General Herkimer and his role in our nation's quest for independence 250 years ago. And we visit the fascinating geological site, Moss Island, in Little Falls. But first, let's hop into our time machine.

SPEAKER_12 0:45

Attention, listeners, your Mohawk Valley time travel experiment is about to commence. Stand by as we recalibrate the decades.

SPEAKER_02 0:57

Welcome to Back to the Summer of 1939, York Street in Utica. I'm standing inside Addison Miller Park, where something brand new has just opened to the public. A municipal swimming pool and a bathhouse built over the last two years from 1937 to 1939. We're still in the Great Depression, and yet right here, the city has just completed a project costing roughly $300,000. Funded and built through the Works Progress Administration, part of a nationwide effort to put Americans back to work. Men who needed jobs, now leaving behind something permanent. The pool itself is enormous for its time, designed not just for recreation, but for public health, for swimming instruction, for entire neighborhoods to gather in one place. Parents watch from the sides, and just beyond them, the bathhouse, a place to change, to gather. A sign that this wasn't built as a luxury, but as a civic promise. Well, time to get back to the future.

SPEAKER_05 2:34

After the break, we're live from the tram in Utica, and we hike Moss Island. So please stay tuned.

SPEAKER_06 2:40

Come with me as we travel along the Mohawk.

SPEAKER_02 2:48

Big Apple Music in New Hartford has served Central New York and the best musicians since 1979. Guitars, amps, drums, sound systems, digital pianos, and school instruments, and providing sales, rentals, repairs, and musical instrument private lessons. Got an instrument that needs a little love? Let Big Apple Music repair it for you. Check us out for Sound System Installs and Repairs. The best brands for the best bands. Shop local, shop smart, shop Big Apple Music in New Hartford. Loving people for over 46 years. Check us out on Facebook and our website.

SPEAKER_17 3:21

Since 1917, NGMs Flooring America has delivered quality floors and expert installations, save on carpeting, laminate flooring, ceramic tiles, and more. Plus, we offer 12 months of interest-free financing for qualified buyers. Stop by our location today.

SPEAKER_02 3:36

For 18 years, Primo Pizza Route 5 and Clinton has been making fresh dough daily for the best pizza around: New York style, upside-down, and cauliflower gluten-free pizza. If you live in their delivery area like Kirkland and Hamilton College residents, lucky you, you can have it delivered to your door. If not, stop by and pick up some hot, delicious pizza and crispy wings from Primo Pizza. Call 315-381-3231 or order online at enjoypremopizza.com.

SPEAKER_14 4:02

You work hard here in the Mohawk Valley. You make a difference. You leave your mark. You deserve a financial advisor who works hard to make a difference for your future.

SPEAKER_16 4:12

Investing for retirement, college, thinking about your legacy. We've spent most of our adult lives giving you straightforward answers for your financial decisions.

SPEAKER_14 4:22

We pride ourselves on being local, prudent, and trustworthy for you. Van Meter and Van Meter, with three offices to serve your financial future.

SPEAKER_02 4:32

Shop Clinton's oldest grocery store turned food co-op. Tom's Natural Foods in Clinton is a vibrant community food hub carrying local produce from area farms like Jake's Gouda, Jones Family Farm, and Shaw's Maple. Shop Tom's Natural Foods. Open Wednesday through Saturday at 3 Fountain Street in Clinton.

SPEAKER_05 4:57

Last week we visited Fort Stanwix, which got me thinking about the 250th anniversary of our nation's Declaration of Independence. We often packaged the American Revolution neatly around that moment, but history didn't unfold so cleanly. More than a year later, in August of 1777, General Nicholas Herkimer set out with the Tryon County militia to relieve the siege at Fort Stanwix. To learn more about that perilous march, I spoke with Little Falls City historian Patricia Mossy Stock.

SPEAKER_01 5:30

General Herkimer lived right outside Little Falls. He became the hero of Ariskany. He took 800 plus men, accumulated them at Fort Dayton, which was Herkimer. At that time it was German flats, and marched 40 miles to Ircony. Got pushed into the battle before he wanted to because he was waiting to hear three shots from the Fort Stanwix that their men would come out and meet him. He was up against about 1,600 St. Ledgers, British soldiers, Tories, and the Indians that fought with the British. And they got ambushed. They had a huge thunderstorm and stopped the fighting and he gathered his men around. And it was fortunate for them, they kept their powder dry, and it said that he told them to buddy up while one is shooting, the other one's loading. It took them about 15 seconds to reload a musket, which is pretty fast. It ended up in hand-to-hand combat and it was a slaughter, and we lost about 200 men, and there were about 200 wounded. They brought all that they could back to Fort Dayton, Fort Herkimer, and then they went to Hercomer's home. And Herkimer's surgeon wasn't available, so a new guy took his leg off because it was badly shattered. He messed it up, and the general basically bled to death.

SPEAKER_05 6:55

So they think it's because his surgeon wasn't available. Prime is they can't be sure, but Right.

SPEAKER_01 7:00

That's what they think.

SPEAKER_05 7:01

So again, he was leaving here to meet were they coming to the aid of Fort Stanwix?

SPEAKER_01 7:06

Yes, Fort Stanwix had been under siege. And then uh Benedict Arnold actually was on his way too. He made it as far as Fort Dayton and then stopped because he heard that St. Ledger had left and the siege had ended.

SPEAKER_05 7:20

So when General Herkmer died, that was still Fort Stanwyck was still under siege at that point?

SPEAKER_01 7:26

Yes. Recently we discovered that one of the Astorgan chapter of the DAR had a box, and the box is made out of the wood from the pulpit of the Octagon Church, which once stood on Church Street. Inside there was a spur, and it looks like it was made by a jeweler, it's very fine. And there was a tag attached to it, and it says General Hercomers.

SPEAKER_05 7:52

So you have General Hercomer's spur?

SPEAKER_01 7:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 7:55

Wow. So where is it now?

SPEAKER_01 7:57

Right behind you.

SPEAKER_05 7:58

Ooh, I'll take a picture.

unknown 8:00

Okay.

SPEAKER_05 8:01

Thank you. To learn more about the Battle of Ariskany, General Hercomer, and to see General Hercomer's spur, visit our website alongthemohawkradio.com. We're live from the tram in Utica with a reading from the president of the MVCC Poetry Club, Alexander Cortez.

SPEAKER_10 8:25

L-O-V-E. It's a power that can destroy realities. It's the pain that is caring for your abuser. The energy that compels us to go on. It's love, or at least what we know love to be. Cause see, love is a weapon to my psyche. It cuts deep scars like long-rooted trees. But I allow it to take full control of me. Because who am I without love? Without it, I'm as worthless as gum on the bottom of a shoe. But what they didn't tell me about love is that it could leave black and blues. For that is love, that is true. The type that makes you want to stay when you know she isn't good for you. The type that makes you bring flowers after apologizing for just being human. Even so, no matter if I'm black or blue or torn and put together with glue, I still seek love because it's chaos that puts me back together. It's the rubber band around my heart and my soul, my nourishment that's also my weed killer. It's the open wound that festers with emotion. So love, love is deep. It bottles up all sense and gives one command. Don't lose love.

SPEAKER_05 9:57

It's not a hike for everyone, because there are many ups and downs to navigate, and you might get lost, but it's a very small island, so you'll find your way eventually. If you're not one for hiking up and down, kayaking gets you right to the good stuff without the physical effort. Besides paddling, of course. Moss Island is located between the Mohawk River and the Barge Canal, and it's beautiful. All these rocks. It's like a giant boulder covered in moss. It's just gorgeous down here by the river. The rocks going right down into the water, train passing by. It's really an exciting place to be. Climbing up the stairs to the top of the lock. Walking over the lock. Nice breeze up here. I can see the water spilling over. Lock 17 is the highest lock on the canal, lifting boats over 40 feet. When it was built like in 1916, it was the highest lift lock in the world, and it was considered a modern marvel. It's the coolest entrance to a hike going over the lock. From the lock, I head up the trail. It's actually kind of nice this time of year because all of the vegetation hasn't grown in, so it's easy to see the terrain. At one point there were plans to put the throughway over the island, but it was uh the public didn't like that idea, so they canceled that, which is great because this is a beautiful place to explore without traffic flying above you. Though they have a map at the entrance, the potholes aren't the easiest thing to find. The easiest way to access them is actually from the water. You can take your kayak and land right on the beach. I did find them, but I'm not sure if this is the actual trail. There are many options of trails. This one wasn't the easiest path. You can try to describe the potholes to people, but you really can't understand it unless you're down in here. They are really amazing, the dark gray color with the burnt sienna painted through the dark gray rock with splashes of white and gray lichens on the surface. Moss Island is exposed metacyanite bedrock. It's an ancient granite-like rock carved smooth by glaciers and rushing water. And having this large exposed area is exceptionally rare in the world. It's one of the few places so much of this bedrock is exposed. This area is very popular with rock climbers, and on a nice day like today, chances are there will be some rock climbers. You can park where I did, which is under the bridge here under Route 169, east of Little Falls, or you can actually park down in Canal Place and walk along the canal and reach Moss Island that way. I like going over the lock, but you can still see the lock from the trailhead if you come down from Canal Place in Little Falls. I highly recommend a visit to Moss Island. After the break, we talk with musician Millie Smerlow. Then it's chapter 8 of Annie and the Loomis Gang, and Matt Perry shares the story of the woodcock in this week's MV Soundscape.

SPEAKER_06 13:24

As we travel along the Mohawk.

SPEAKER_02 13:30

Big Apple Music in New Hartford has served Central New York and the best musicians since 1979. Guitars, amps, drums, sound systems, digital pianos, and school instruments. And providing sales, rentals, repairs, and musical instrument private lessons. Got an instrument that needs a little love? Let Big Apple Music repair it for you. Check us out for Sound System installs and repairs. The best brands for the best bands. Shop local, shop smart, shop Big Apple Music in New Hartford. Loving people for over 46 years. Check us out on Facebook and our website.

SPEAKER_17 14:02

Since 1917, NGMs Flooring America has delivered quality floors and expert installations, save on carpeting, laminate flooring, ceramic tiles, and more. Plus, we offer 12 months of interest-free financing for qualified buyers. Stop by our location today.

SPEAKER_02 14:17

For 18 years, Primo Pizza Route 5 and Clinton has been making fresh dough daily for the best pizza around: New York style, upside-down, and cauliflower gluten-free pizza. If you live in their delivery area like Kirkland and Hamilton College residents, lucky you, you can have it delivered to your door. If not, stop by and pick up some hot, delicious pizza and crispy wings from Primo Pizza. Call 315-381-3231 or order online at enjoypremopizza.com.

SPEAKER_14 14:44

You work hard here in the Mohawk Valley. You make a difference. You leave your mark. You deserve a financial advisor who works hard to make a difference for your future.

SPEAKER_16 14:53

Investing for retirement, college, thinking about your legacy. We've spent most of our adult lives giving you straightforward answers for your financial decisions.

SPEAKER_14 15:04

We pride ourselves on being local, prudent, and trustworthy for you. Van Meter and Van Meter, with three offices to serve your financial future.

SPEAKER_05 15:20

Big Apple Music in New Hartford presents Music Along the Mohawk. Earlier this spring, I caught up with singer-songwriter Millie Smurlow over tea at Superofficial in Rome.

SPEAKER_04 15:33

Would you like some coffee? I would love a tea. Okay, oh good. I will go with tea as well. Oh, you're a tea drinker? Well, I do I dabble in bowl, yes. Where where did your interest in music begin and how did you start writing your own?

SPEAKER_09 15:46

Oh my mom has always been a singer, like not in any formal sense, but just she always was singing and like humming. And we went to church a lot growing up, so I'd say honestly, my first interaction with that was just like the only thing I liked about church was singing. Yeah. And then I went to school, like college, to get a music education degree, and like by the end of doing that for four years, I hated it. And so then I graduated. They ruined for me. Yeah, because it's all competitive and it's all classical, and there's a right way to do things and a wrong way to do things. There was no joy in it for me. Some people really cling to that structure. I am not that kind of person. So then when I came home from school, I kind of didn't play music at all for a very long time. Like I didn't touch my ukulele or my piano or like any of my percussion instruments. And then I got invited to my friend's house to do like a jam session, and then all of a sudden I was like, oh wait, and then right after that, I started writing my own music. When he tries to make it seem like we're on a team, I can't control myself while my ears will force me. So don't you dare think that man's on your side. The only reason that he pays, yeah, you can't work if you die. I am a classical percussionist, and I say that with such like I don't know. Yeah, such such quote fingers, because I just that wasn't where I like flourished, but I think kind of of myself as a musician and in general, like a jack of all trades. Like I like playing a little bit of everything, you know, like harmonica and piano, percussion instruments, and like ukulele and what's going on.

SPEAKER_04 17:31

What are some of your themes?

SPEAKER_09 17:33

My my biggest theme I would say is nature. Like, I actually, because as we all know, we get vicious winters up here. I haven't written in a few months, and it's just because I I can't be outside. And it's really just I'll go out, like I'll go for a hike somewhere nearby, or I'll just go like in the woods behind my house, or just walk around in the grass, and I walk for like three hours, and then I'll see something and it will inspire me, and then I'll just start like singing, and then eventually I get there. Um, I'm Bob Dylan. I love Simon and Garfunkel too. Huge on Simon and Garfunkel. When I realized what was true, I was feeling all the blue. There was one thing left to do, a walk I had to take, so I could think about the disappearing lake. Along the rocks, I did walk into the water, I did talk. So there ain't much left to listen. Where's the sun gonna glisten? I can tell you it'd be swell if you're there to pick up shells. But disaster it dispel. If the shells lie in the wake of the water from a disappearing lake. And a while the sea eagles look confused and I know a- I feel like the hardest part of doing anything is starting it. Like first step. The first step, and one of my songs that I wrote was called The Bird Doesn't Learn How to Fly by Staying on the Branch, which is just like do you like you learn how to do something by doing it? And so I'd written like three or four songs, and I really wanted to start performing, and I was so nervous, and I didn't, I didn't, and then I went to one open mic at the tram. From that open mic at the tram, got invited to another open mic, went to that open mic, and then right after that got three shows booked right in a row, like just so quickly within the span of like a month and a half. Well, like I said, I haven't written in first months spring is coming. That's what I'm saying. Spring is coming. So what's next for me right now is going on hikes and walks, and then I'm trying not to like I feel like every artist understands when you're blocked and then you're trying to force it, and then it's just you can't because you're so in your head. So I'm just going on walks and hikes more incrementally as the weather gets nicer, and then I know that that'll morph into seeing things and thinking things, and then eventually I'll just start like singing and humming as I walk, and then hopefully start writing again some more.

SPEAKER_04 20:05

But your your muse has just been hibernating.

SPEAKER_09 20:07

My muse has been hibernating, and it's nice too, because like in that meantime I've been focusing on other creative endeavors that I enjoy, so it's been nice to kind of flip-flop in the back, but I do like miss singing. I just feel like scared, like my like not in a literal sense, but in like a metaphorical sense, like my throat is dry, you know, like I can't, but I guess the birdie doesn't learn how to fly by staying by like I just have to start singing.

SPEAKER_04 20:32

And how would you describe your music?

SPEAKER_09 20:34

Oh, I would say it's very like folky, very nature inspired. A lot of my music is straight up kids' music, is very like sweet, good, cute little morals with like nature metaphors.

unknown 20:46

Time to go.

SPEAKER_05 20:50

To learn more about Millie and upcoming gigs, visit our website alongthemohawkradio.com.

SPEAKER_09 20:56

He ain't trying to scare you, he's trying to give you my to do all that you can before you're met with the sight. To do all that you can before you're met with the sight. If you're making a choice in a black feather drops, the crow gave you a warning, take a moment and stop. Cause there will come a day when he will harvest your crop. Don't waste all of your time getting caught in the slop. Don't waste all of your time getting caught in the slop. And every so often you'll scoop in with the claw, or old Pecco with his beaker, give you a little nod. He wants you to remember you're made of flesh-up straw. You're gonna come out with some scratches of claws. You're gonna come out with some.

SPEAKER_13 21:45

Last week on Annie and the Loomis gang, despite her father's warning to stay clear of trouble, Annie O'Connor continues crossing paths with the Loomis family. A chilling encounter with Rhoda Loomis gives her a first glimpse of the influence and danger surrounding the Loomis. Chapter 8. Whispers of the Swamp.

SPEAKER_05 22:05

The next morning, Annie pours water into the new copper kettle she bought in town the day before. After Rhoda Loomis's quiet pressure steered her toward the more expensive choice. Later, Annie saw Rhoda slip a silver knife from the shop display into her own bag. An act she still cannot quite settle in her mind.

SPEAKER_07 22:23

Well, it is a fine kettle. Not the best time for such a purchase, but it does replace Aunt Kelly's lost kettle. Strange the things that come back to you. The schoolhouse. I remember when she married Uncle Shay. It was like everything had found its place. If I am to teach this year, I must first settle what stands unfinished. The courthouse first, then the classroom. Let the record speak clearly. Once I know the truth, I can focus on the children and keep clear of the loomises until then. Oh! Good morning, Shadow.

SPEAKER_05 22:59

I'll come out with my teeth and join you. Annie watches the daily procession of hot pickers moving up and over the hill to the field. There they go, one after another.

SPEAKER_07 23:09

A horse and rider approach from the road. Oh, William Loomis. So much for keeping clear of that family. Good morning, William.

SPEAKER_03 23:18

Good morning, Miss Annie.

SPEAKER_05 23:20

You may call me Annie. Annie opens the gate and William steps through. It swings shut behind him on its own, counterweighted by her uncle's clever design, his presence in every hidden balance.

SPEAKER_03 23:31

I hope to see whether you require assistance.

SPEAKER_07 23:33

The gates and fencing need attention. Things are a bit tight right now.

SPEAKER_03 23:38

I'm sorry about the troubles with my uncle. I I didn't know.

SPEAKER_07 23:41

You are not your uncle. May I give your horse an apple?

SPEAKER_03 23:44

Of course. He's not my horse. He he he belongs he belongs to my uncle Grove.

SPEAKER_07 23:50

And his name?

SPEAKER_03 23:51

Uh he he answers when called.

SPEAKER_11 23:54

Morning, Mazan.

SPEAKER_07 23:56

Oh, Jedediah, I didn't see you.

SPEAKER_11 23:58

Shadow called. I came.

SPEAKER_07 24:00

I think it was my new kettle that startled him.

SPEAKER_11 24:03

He listens. He hears what we can add.

SPEAKER_07 24:06

William is here to do some upkeep.

SPEAKER_11 24:08

Good. The fence that is kept stands longer. I will leave you. There is work to return to.

SPEAKER_05 24:14

Jedediah heads over the hilltop orchard to the hops field.

SPEAKER_07 24:18

That is so strange. The hop pickers. They seem to vanish into the swamp. I mean to follow them someday.

SPEAKER_03 24:25

Don't go into the swamp, Annie.

SPEAKER_07 24:27

Why not?

SPEAKER_03 24:28

It's easy to get lost there.

SPEAKER_07 24:30

Then why does your uncle want it? Swamp, no one can work. No one can even cross.

SPEAKER_03 24:35

I am not my uncle.

SPEAKER_05 24:37

William leaves with a promise to return the next day to work. Annie's curiosity draws her up to the orchard again. Looking down over the hops field, she sees a girl sitting on a crate with quick fingers cleaning cones. Sarah?

SPEAKER_08 24:50

Good morning, Miss Annie.

SPEAKER_07 24:52

I almost didn't recognize you. You've grown so much. I have. Your grandfather still calls you little turtle? Yes. They call you turtle, but your fingers are quick as a whip.

SPEAKER_08 25:02

Turtle don't mean slow, it means steady. It holds things up. My grandfather tells the story that the turtle carries the world on her back. I didn't know that. You can't rush hops. You gotta clean them before they go to the kiln. Leaves or stems left in, they spoil the drying. Makes the whole bale bitter. Ma says, I got the feel for it now. Know what's worth keeping just by touch. I saw the hop pickers go that way, into the swamp. Do they always? Some do. Where do they go? I don't go. I stay here. They don't come back the same way? They always come back, just not where I can see.

SPEAKER_07 25:39

Alright, Sarah, I won't keep you from it. Take care of yourself out there.

SPEAKER_05 25:43

I will. Annie turns back up the hill, but she keeps looking toward the swamp, where something still doesn't make sense, and she means to find out why.

SPEAKER_13 25:56

Next week, Chapter 9. Wash's claim.

SPEAKER_00 26:13

This is Mohawk Valley Soundscape for early May 2026. The air is damp with a scent of thawing earth and budding willow. Dusk settles across the Mohawk Valley, and from the edges of a field where forest meets open ground, the chorus of spring peepers rises to a fever pitch. And then, cutting through it, a short nasal insect-like call, a pause, and again the same dry buzzy note. This is the voice of the American woodcock, a bird seldom seen but unmistakably heard on evenings like this. The call comes from the ground. Somewhere in the dim light, the male stands nearly motionless on a small clearing, repeating his call at steady intervals, and then, without warning, he lifts into the air. He climbs in a wide spiraling ascent. As he rises, the sound changes. The simple call becomes a delicate musical twittering that fills the sky. The sound is not a song, it is made by his wings. Air rushes through three narrow outer feathers, producing that liquid whistling music as he climbs into the fading light. Up he goes, two hundred feet or more, until he is little more than a shadow, and then silence. For a moment everything stops. The peepers continue, but the woodcock vanishes, until suddenly he reappears. In a steep, zigzagging dive he descends, giving soft musical chirps as he returns to Earth.

SPEAKER_05 28:14

Thank you for tuning in today. We have many more adventures ahead, so hope to see you again along the Mohawk.

SPEAKER_06 28:21

Come with me as we travel along the Mohawk, sharing the stories of the people and place.