The OHA Book Club

The OHA Book Club is a bunch of history enthusiasts who enjoy reading and talking about our past.  We concentrate on books about Central and Upstate New York history, but we’re not above reading memoirs or historical fiction that are good reads and expand our knowledge of our past. Our meeting are generally held once a month from September through June at 11:30AM on Saturday mornings.  When held in person, meetings have been at the OHA (321 Montgomery Street).  Meetings have also been held via Zoom – contact us for an invitation to the meetings and schedule updates.

Upcoming Book Club Meetings:

October 21: The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson

November 18: Homegrown – Timothy McVeigh and the Rise of Right-Wing Extremism by Jeffrey Toobin

December 16: Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses by Robin Wall Kimmerer

January 20: The Air We Breathe: A Novel  by Andrea Barret

Want to be a part of the email list? Contact Christina Pezzulo or Tom Zorn

Here’s a sample of past books read by our group:

Practical Dreamer – Gerrit Smith and the Crusade for Social Reform. By Norman Dann
The Mighty Queens of Freeville – A Mother, A Daughter, and the Town That Raised Them.  By Amy Dickinson
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. By Frederick Douglass
Upstate Cauldron: Eccentric Spiritual Movements in Early New York State. By Joscelyn Godwin
Haven – The Dramatic Story of 1000 World War II Refugees and How They Came to America. By Ruth Gruber
Heaven’s Ditch: God, Gold, and Murder on the Erie Canal. By Jack Kelly
Braiding Sweetgrass – Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants. By Robin Wall Kimmerer
Westcott’s Tale: Revisiting 19th Century Central New York. By Jane O’Shea
Seward: Lincoln’s Indispensable Man. By Walter Stahr.
The Myth of Seneca Falls: Memory and The Women’s Suffrage Movement, 1848-1898. By Lisa Tetrault

A full list can be found here.