October Speaker Examines the Evolving Histories of Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty.

Noted historian John J. Grabowski will be the featured speaker on Thursday, October 10, when Hudson Heritage Association devotes its monthly general meeting to a look at two of America’s most important icons:  the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. The program, which begins at 7 p.m., will be held at Barlow Community Center.

Dr. Grabowski will examine the way in which people have chosen to see these two potent symbols of America’s multicultural history over time.  As he notes, “Today, the Statue of Liberty is a totem to immigration and freedom, and Ellis Island is the foremost museum of the American immigrant experience. Yet, both began as something different. The statue was about liberty and not a monument to immigration. Ellis Island was a processing station for an immigrant labor force coming to America. Today, it is a museum about the immigrant experience. Over the years they have had various meanings and interpretations.”

John J. Grabowski is a native Clevelander whose interest in the past was sparked by his father and a series of good teachers. Destined to become a chemist when he enrolled in Case Western Reserve University, he switched his major to history and received his BA, MA and Ph.D. from CWRU. That change of major led to long careers at both the Western Reserve Historical Society and Case Western Reserve University where he currently holds the joint position as Chief Historian WRHS and editor of the on-line Encyclopedia of Cleveland History, a project initiated by his mentor, Dr. David Van Tassel, and with which he has been associated with since 1981.

He has written a number of books and articles, both academic and popular, related to Cleveland on topics ranging from Polish immigration to sports. Among these are three volumes which he and his wife, Diane, collaborated on. One of his most recent works stretches well beyond Cleveland — it is a history of Bilkent University in Ankara, Turkey, where he served as a senior Fulbright lecturer in 1996-1997 and 2004-2005. His most recent work is a history of Cleveland’s Cultural Gardens and he has just been selected as an on-board speaker for the Cunard Lines “Insight” program. The October 10 program is free and open to the public.  Attendees should note 7 p.m. is a new, earlier start time for HHAprograms. Refreshments will be served following the presentation.