The first of two spring programs on the theme “Reading the Land” will be held Saturday, March 29 at 1 p.m., when Bob and Johanna Titus will present an illustrated talk, “Middletown: An Ice Age Origin” at the Historical Society of the Town of Middletown (HSM), 778 Cemetery Rd., Margaretville.
Admission is $2 for HSM members, $4 for non-members.
The Tituses’ deep knowledge of geology, and their accessible, engaging style have made them popular speakers. Robert Titus, PhD, is a paleontologist by training who has done considerable professional research on the fossils of upstate New York. He teaches in the Geology Department at Hartwick College. His previous books The Catskills: A Geological Guide, The Catskills in the Ice Age, and The Other Side of Time: Essays by The Catskill Geologist, were published by Purple Mountain Press.
Bob teamed up with his wife Johanna Titus, who has a master’s degree in molecular biology, to write The Hudson Valley in the Ice Age, published by Black Dome Press in 2012. Johanna teaches in the Allied Health and Biological Sciences Department at SUNY Dutchess.
The Tituses write regular columns for Kaatskill Life magazine, the Register Star newspaper chain and the Woodstock Times.
The second program on the “Reading the Land” theme will be held Saturday, April 26 at 1 p.m. when we’ll learn what turned up when a team of archaeologists dug deep to uncover evidence of Paleo-Indians in Middletown. “Arkville Underground” will be presented by Lynda Carroll of the Public Archaeology Program at Binghamton University. That presentation will also be at the HSM hall.