Cindy, Thanks for the weather tidbits you posted to the Old News site. I always note weather mentioned in old diaries that I come across in various places. In the Erie Canal talk I gave last winter I mentioned the following (for 1826) - "Asa [Fitch} continues, "The boat lay for the night in a small basin the south side of the Mohawk, at the lower aqueduct, in the town of (I believe) Niskayuna. This day has been uncomfortably warm for woolen clothes." Funny he should mention this. The city of Utica, a ways further up the river, today has a remarkably near-complete set of weather records, dating back to this year of 1826. The various water supply facilities for the canal will get a good workout as the expedition crosses the state. Today's records show that the month of May 1826 was the warmest (average temperature 65.8 degrees) and fourth driest month on record. Maybe we'll beat that in 2002." Wonder if we did? Many of the records are summarized online at http://www.wktv.com/wktv1997/almanac97/uticaextremes.htm David Minor David Minor Eagles Byte Historical Research Pittsford, New York 585 264-0423 dminor@eznet.net co-Webmaster for Canal Society of New York State page at http://www.canalsnys.org/ To be put on the mailing list for the weekly TimeMaster radio scripts (WXXI-FM 91.5), as well as news of updates to my homepage and a URL of the week, e-mail me at the address above. http://home.eznet.net/~dminor includes NYNY, a series of timelines covering New York City and State, from approximately 1,100,000,000 BC to 1991 AD. "I would undertake to supply your demands if your generosity is equal to them." -John Bartram, U. S. naturalist