Yesteryear: Stories from Home

by Edoardo Ballerini, Tim Donahue, and Melanie Hoopes

Welcome to the inaugural edition of Yesteryear: Stories from Home, a series that features first- hand reminiscences of the joys, challenges, and adventures of living in a small village on the Hudson, just up the river from New York City. 

Podcast episodes

  • Season 1

  • S01 E07 - Quarry Park

    S01 E07 - Quarry Park

    In this installment, we explore the history of Quarry Park, a 5.5-acre parcel of land that has undergone a surprising number of very dramatic changes over the last 150 years – from a flourishing marble quarry to a majestic park t...

    21:04
  • S01 E06 - The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

    S01 E06 - The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

    In a tumble of scenes set here on the banks of the Lower Hudson Valley, Irving animates the romantic, the longing, and the American moments that form this notoriously inconclusive tale. Perhaps at the other end, you’ll have some q...

    36:11
  • S01 E05 - The Whistleblower

    S01 E05 - The Whistleblower

    This episode features two accounts that center the vitality of the Hudson River. The first comes from Paul Hanak, a Hastings resident from 1925 to 1987, and known as one of the river’s most prolific swimmers. By the late 60s, thou...

    21:31
  • S01 E04 - Kitty's Story

    S01 E04 - Kitty's Story

    This episode features excerpts from an interview with Kitty Rapoli Brown, given by Christine Hewitt. Brown was born in 1907 of Hungarian immigrants. Her father worked at the National Conduit and Cable Mill for 35 years, in 12-hour...

    17:04
  • S01 E03 - A Dissertation on Golf

    S01 E03 - A Dissertation on Golf

    In this episode, former Hastings-on-Hudson resident Erich Kothe reflects upon the summer of 1934, when he was nine and willing to get a little scrappy in the name of a dollar. After their travails selling baitfish to local crabber...

    20:21