Lima Historical Society

On Election Day, let us remember Ken Keating, who was born in and grew up in Lima and graduated from Genesee Wesleyan College before going on to the University of Rochester and Harvard. He was elected to Congress in 1947, and then to the U.S. Senate in 1958, then served as a diplomat. Prior to all of this, he was a local attorney, and his name and signature can be found on all sorts of deeds, wills, and other legal documents relating to Lima, some of which are in the possession of the LHS and its members. The house he grew up in stills exists on Rochester Street and is part of the Lima Village Historic District (along with the Tennie Burton Museum). Want to learn more about Ken Keating and his political career, or his time in Lima? Ask us or come visit our museum!!!

Robert Livingston, for whom Livingston County was named, was a remarkable man. As a member of the Continental Congress, he sat on the committee that drafted the Declaration of Independence; as longtime Chancellor of the State of New York, he administered the first presidential oath of office to George Washington; as Minister to France, he helped negotiate the Louisiana Purchase; and, as if that was not enough, he was the prime investor in the first steamboat built by Robert Fulton (the "Clermont"). Not a bad resume! The painting shown is an 1858 watercolor and gouache on paper, done by Alonzo Chappel. The original is in the possession of a Lima Historical Society member.

For all you with little ones, Lima Rotary’s great event, Trunk or Treat, will now be in the Lima Fire Hall due to predicted rain. The show must go on!

With Election Day next week, it is fun to look at a rare example of 19th campaign memorabilia that is in the possession of the LHS. Our Ulysses Grant torchlight banner was used in the 1868 presidential election in support of General Grant (who narrowly won Livingston County that year). The banner was found in the back of the Peck House on East Main Street and generously donated to the LHS by the Klitgord Family. The banner was in very poor condition but, after extensive conservation, has been brought back to its original glory. The banner is now on permanent display in the Tennie Burton Museum on Rochester Street. Come see it in person!

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