Cornwall Reads Cornwall
The Library’s traditional Thanksgiving weekend event with Cornwallians reading a selection of works by Cornwall writers will again take place on Zoom so all may attend. This year’s theme is Cornwall History and the readers include:
Peter Canby – Reading a letter from Lee Wilson Dodd to his sister Marjorie (Peggy) MacCracken dated July 27, 1922 about the first summer at Yelping Hill. Peter is the grandson of Henry Canby, one of the founders of the community, and for years was a senior editor at The New Yorker.
Susan Klaw – Reading Pennies from Heaven, a letter in the Cornwall Chronicle from 1998 by Spencer Klaw, her father. With his wife Barbara Klaw, Spencer was the founding publisher of The Cornwall Chronicle from 1994-2003 and with Ed Ferman, editor of A Cornwall Companion–Stories from the Cornwall Chronicle 1991-2004. Susan now lives in the Cornwall house her grandparents, Irita and Carl Van Doren, bought in 1919.
Linda MacCracken – Reading an excerpt from Caroline Kunkel’s account of Yelping Hill’s early history written approximately 1936-1937. The Kunkels were one of the founding families, along with the MacCrackens. Linda is a descendant of this family, teaches at Harvard, and is an associate director at Accenture. She has been in and around Cornwall since she was a child.
Ivan Miller – Reading a piece about Art Brean, who, for many years, ran the Cornwall transfer station. It was written by Ivan’s father, John Miller, who recently passed away. Ivan is an emergency physician who lives full-time in Cornwall. He was born on the waiting list of the Cream Hill Lake Association.
Roxana Robinson – Reading “The Secret Histories of the North Cornwall Church,” from documents by her grandfather, Samuel Scoville, Jr., and others, relating to the iconic church. Roxana is a Guggenheim Fellow, and a former president of the Authors Guild. She writes for The New Yorker, The New York Times, and the Cornwall Chronicle.
Lisa Lansing Simont – Reading excerpts from Katie Walker’s description of early years in Cornwall with her husband Dr. Brad Walker, which appeared in a Bicentennial publication of the Historical Society. Lisa stays busy writing and editing for the Cornwall Chronicle, working on projects for the Cornwall Historical Society, and serving on the town’s Board of Finance.
Our inimitable emcee from last year, Ted Schillinger, returns to enliven our spirits once again. Ted is a filmmaker and failed rock star, and doesn’t mind admitting it.
Registration is required for this Zoom event.