A brief look at the masthead for this fifth issue of the online LIHJ will reveal a change in the editorial staff. Noel Gish has left his position as an associate editor. He was part of the original editorial team since the inception of the online version of the LIHJ in 2009 and we thank him for his important work.
Joining our editorial staff with this issue is Dr. Jennifer Anderson, Assistant Professor of History at Stony Brook University. Jenny’s research interests include the social, political and economic relationships among the Americas, Europe, Africa and the Caribbean in the early modern period. She has served as a curator and consultant at numerous museums and historic sites in the New York region. She also served as historical advisor for the Emmy-nominated documentary about the New England slave trade, “Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North.” Her new book, Mahogany: The Costs of Luxury in Early America, was published in August by Harvard University Press.
In this issue of the LIHJ, music historian John Broven documents the role played by a record company on Long Island as it moved from the days of the 45 RPM record and the advent of rock and roll, to the changes in both technology and music impacting the global recording industry. His article is accompanied by a rich collection of images and music samples, taking full advantage of our on-line capabilities.
Frank Cavaioli returns to the LIHJ as he details the history of SUNY Farmingdale. The school celebrates its centennial this year and Dr. Cavaioli takes us through a turbulent period in Farmingdale’s history culminating in a student strike in the 1920s. Hilary May examines the role played by Long Islanders in the East Asian trade in the mid-nineteenth century, an involvement which would prove of great significance to the emergence of the United States as a world power. Stephen Patnode uses Sperry Corporation’s “Miss Sperry” pageant as a way to study the role of these corporate competitions in setting forth feminine roles in post-war America.
In our reviews section, Bev Tyler examines Richard Radove’s Sound Rising, treating the importance of Long Island Sound in the period from 1750 to 1820. Ross Wheeler reviews Peter Eisenstadt’s study of Robert Moses’ role in the creation of Rochdale Village in Queens and Steven Gittelman’s biography of prominent Long Islander William E. Vanderbilt is reviewed by Durahn Taylor.
Looking down the road, our next issue will be a special issue, co-edited by Christopher Matthews of Montclair State University and Jennifer Anderson, Associate Editor of the LIHJ, highlighting new research on African-American archaeological and community history sites on Long Island.
We welcome reader comments for our Letters section and also encourage LIHJ readers to visit the “subscribe” link on the home page to enter a free subscription to the LIHJ.
Charles Backfish
Editor in Chief