City Historian Christine Ridarsky Explains Formation History of Rochester And Upcoming Erie Canal Bicentennial

Have you ever wondered how the City of Rochester came to be? Where did it come from? Maybe it wasn’t what we thought it was. And what drove settlers to it? Click the link below for this week’s episode of The State of Greater Western New York Report and learn the events that formed the unique history of Rochester as well as upcoming bicentennial events.

Christine Ridarsky, City of Rochester Historian and Historical Services Consultant for the Rochester Public Library, describes the circuitous route that led her to where she is today. Then she describes the circuitous route that led Rochester to where it is today. Past President of the Association of Public Historians of New York State, she explains the difference between a publicly appointed historian, a public historian, and historical societies, as well as how and when it’s best to use each one.

In the show’s second segment, Ridarsky tells how Covid interrupted plans to celebrate Monroe County’s 2020 bicentennial and how that event ended up coming to be a year later. She also relays what’s planned for the 2025 Erie Canal bicentennial.

Our guest happily answered questions from the live audience. In fact, these are probably some of the same questions you had. Would you like to be a live audience member so you can ask our guests questions? Click here to join the growing number of members who share your feelings on StateOf.GreaterWesternNewYork.com because then we can automatically send you the link to watch our shows live.

Theme music by “mansardian” courtesy of FreeSound.org under Creative Commons License Attribution 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/