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Lafayette memorial on 1 Exchange Blvd. in downtown Rochester identifying the site of Hoard’s Tavern. Source: Albert R. Stone Negative Collection, Rochester Museum & Science Center
Think of history as a mosaic containing thousands of tiny stones. When you get up close, they appear unremarkable. Except for a few, often minor, variations in color or a slightly different shape, they look nearly identical. Sure, for any number of reasons, a few stand out and pique your curiosity. But all in all, they’re all the same.
Until you back away. Farther away, you see the small rocks begin to transform into a series of patterns. It’s as though each stone represents a dot connected to its neighbors. From a more distant perspective, you no longer see individual stones. You see a compelling picture. As if it was always there.
That’s history. It’s a picture you see, far removed from the original source, the original data points, the human stones that actually created the picture. It’s too easy to forget those Continue Reading “Lafayette’s Farewell Tour: Remembering Silvius Hoard”
Lafayette On The Folly Of Tolerance
A short three years prior to that seminal event, Madison traveled from Baltimore to Fort Stanwix to negotiate with the Iroquois Confederacy. Accompanying him was a young French general and a protégé of George Washington. That would be the Marquis de Lafayette.
This chance meeting formed what would become a lifelong bond between the two men. Very early on, Madison recognized Lafayette’s affinity with the American Indians, as well as Continue Reading “Lafayette On The Folly Of Tolerance”