The Elizabeth Robins Diary Podcast

Home
United States
Brooksville, FL
The Elizabeth Robins Diary Podcast

Elizabeth Robins kept 70 years of diaries we use to uncover life in the Gilded Age through the Golden Age.

09/06/2026

Happy 158th birthday, Margaret Dreier Robins. We haven't talked about her yet on the podcast, but our next episode will fix that! From her childhood in Brooklyn and Bremen to her decades as an agent for change in the US, we'll shine some light on this powerful woman.

08/22/2026

COLLEGE FOUNDER VISITS CHINSEGUT
"Most individuals already have far more knowledge than they use. They need inheritance and development of a character which will cause them properly to apply this knowledge." - Roger Babson

The Babsons arrived in Massachusetts in 1637 and by the time Roger Babson was born, his family had been there for ten generations. He became a multi-millionaire as an investment banker and is remembered for developing a system for predicting economic booms and busts. He was the first to warn of the 1929 Stock Market Crash.

Roger's accomplishments are incredibly diverse:
* he wrote 47 books as well as columns for magazines and newspapers
* he founded Babson College in Massachusetts
* he founded Webber College in Florida
* he was National Church Moderator for the General Council on the Congregational-Christian Churches
* he founded the Gravity Research Foundation in an effort to harness gravity
* he was the nominee for US President of the Prohibition Party, coming in third behind Franklin D. Roosevelt and Wendell Willkie
* he founded and promoted the concept of "Open Church" which encouraged church buildings to remain open for people to have private worship at their convenience
* he placed large boulders in Massachusetts with inspirational phrases that still exist today

08/21/2026

PROFESSIONAL DANCER VISITS CHINSEGUT
“Barton Mumaw is one of the best young dancers of the day by anybody’s standards. He dances with that instinctive flair which cannot be simulated or acquired but belongs only to the born dancer.” – John Martin, The New York Times, 1938
Barton Mumau trained under another Chinsegut visitor, Ted Shawn. Barton grew up in Eustis, Florida and began taking ballet locally as a teen. He furthered his ballet education through a mail order course. He moved to New York City after seeing Ted Shawn's troupe perform. He was just eighteen!
Barton became an integral part of Ted's performances, dancing and choreographing many pieces. When WW2 broke out, he served as a mechanic and then a performer for the troops.
When Barton and Ted visited Chinsegut, they were in a romantic relationship, though that wouldn't be revealed until 50 years later in Barton's autobiography.

Check out a video of him dancing: https://danceinteractive.jacobspillow.org/barton-mumaw/bourree/..
Follow the page to find out about other visitors to Chinsegut every day in the month of August as we lead up to the release of Visiting Chinsegut, Volume 2.

08/20/2026

NATIONALLY-KNOWN LABOR LEADER VISITS CHINSEGUT
Lillian Herstein was born in Chicago to Russian Jewish immigrant parents. She taught high school and college courses and joined the teacher's union. That decision would change her life. She became a union representative and ended up as the only woman serving on Chicago's Federation of Labor (CFL) executive board. While Margaret was President of the National Women's Trade Union League (NWTUL), they recruited Lillian to get the CFL onboard with the NWTUL's workers' education projects. She became one of the teacher's for that initiative.
Lillian was a renowned speaker, and both the CFL and NWTUL used her on their speaking circuits. She turned those skills towards politics, running for office, though never winning an election. In 1936, Life Magazine named her, "the most important woman in the American labor movement."
Throughout her life, she also advocated for fair treatment of the Jewish people and was a member of the National Council of Jewish Women.
Lillian's papers are housed at the Chicago History Museum Research Center: https://explore.chicagocollections.org/marcxml/chicagohistory/30/z893j4c/
P.S. Check out the other names on the guestbook page with Lillian - it was quite a gathering!..
Follow the page to find out about other visitors to Chinsegut every day in the month of August as we lead up to the release of Visiting Chinsegut, Volume 2.

08/19/2026

WHITE HOUSE CABINET MEMBER COMES TO CHINSEGUT
"Honest Harold" Ickes first met Raymond Robins when both men were involved in Chicago politics. Both men left the Republican Party to help Theodore Roosevelt (TR) with his Bull Moose Party. After TR's death, Harold and Raymond helped establish the Roosevelt Memorial Association and served on its board.

When Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) took office in 1933, Harold became his Secretary of the Interior and held that spot throughout FDR's terms. He holds a record as the second longest-serving Cabinet member in US history.
He was in charge of most of the New Deal initiatives and developed several National Parks.

Harold was deeply committed to Civil Rights, ending segregation policies in his department that had been started by President Wilson. Some of the New Deal programs remained segregated though, as Harold thought an incremental plan of integration would be more successful than a drastic one.

You can find out more about Harold and Raymond's relationship in the posthumously published, "The Secret Diary of Harold L. Ickes." His service is commemorated in several ways, including having a mountain in California named after him and the Harold Ickes Park in Brooklyn, New York.
..
Follow the page to find out about other visitors to Chinsegut every day in the month of August as we lead up to the release of Visiting Chinsegut, Volume 2.

08/18/2026

SEVEN-TIME WOMEN'S CHAMPION PROFESSIONAL SHARPSHOOTER VISITS CHINSEGUT
Lots of people have held their wedding ceremony at Chinsegut over the last 175 years, but in 1939, Miralotte and Raymond Ickes spent their first Christmas (and part of their honeymoon) on the Hill.
Raymond and Miralotte had met and fallen in love through sporting marksman events. Raymond was a renowned shot, but by the end of their career, Miralotte was more successful. She even ended Raymond's five years of winning the Oregon Governor's Trophy by winning it herself! She is still considered one of the best high power rifle shooters in our nation's history.
For more information about the Ickes family, read yesterday's post on Miralotte's husband, Raymond and tomorrow's post about her father-in-law Harold...
Follow the page to find out about other visitors to Chinsegut every day in the month of August as we lead up to the release of Visiting Chinsegut, Volume 2.

08/17/2026

DOJ ATTORNEY VISITS CHINSEGUT
Raymond Ickes is nowhere near as famous as his father Harold (who served in President Franklin Roosevelt's Cabinet) or his brother Harold (who served as President Clinton's Chief of Staff). But he has a claim that neither Harold has - Raymond was named after Raymond Robins. The elder Harold and Raymond worked together in Chicago politics and in Theodore Roosevelt's Bull Moose Party. He evidently admired Raymond Robins so much that he named his son after him.
Raymond Ickes isn't the only man named after Raymond Robins - Fielder Harris and William Fulton (both of Brooksville) both named sons after him.

The top photo in the graphic is Raymond with his father Harold as they left the funeral of fellow Chicagoan Jane Addams. The lower photo is Raymond with his wife, Miralotte...
Follow the page to find out about other visitors to Chinsegut every day in the month of August as we lead up to the release of Visiting Chinsegut, Volume 2.

08/15/2026

NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY PRESIDENT VISITS CHINSEGUT
"Every plant and animal has its role to play in the community of living things. There is no such thing as a harmful species; all are beneficial." - John H. Baker
The birds are loudly singing this morning so it seemed appropriate to talk about John Baker. Thanks to John, millions of people have been able to identify birds through the Audubon Field Guide he originated.
John also helped Florida First Lady (and Brooksville Native) May Mann Jennings establish the Everglades National Park. He also spearheaded efforts to establish Wildlife Sanctuary Education Centers in order to educate children on conservation and wildlife. Decades after John's visit, Chinsegut would get its own sanctuary and education center, thanks to the hard work and philanthropy of Chinsegut's Lisa von Borowsky. ..
Follow the page to find out about other visitors to Chinsegut every day in the month of August as we lead up to the release of Visiting Chinsegut, Volume 2.

08/14/2026

COMPOSER-SINGER VISITS CHINSEGUT
Grace Mae Porterfield Polk graduated from the College of Music of Cincinnati and sang professionally before her marriage to inventor and industrialist Ralph Polk. The couple lost several children, with only their son, Ralph, living to adulthood. Although Grace gave up her full-time singing career when she married, she continued to compose music and poetry. As a composer, she recognized the difficulty new writers had getting their work published and set up the American Song Composers' Festival. The event brought composers and producers face to face for three days of networking and performance.

Grace continued to found organizations throughout her life - like the Miami Music Club, the Grace Porterfield Polk Fund, and the Cardinal Club of Miami (for grandmothers over the age of 70).

Grace continued to write, publishing a book of poetry, editing for American Poetry Magazine, and composing over 200 songs.

Download pdfs of some of her songs: https://webapp1.dlib.indiana.edu/inharmony/search.do?nameFacet=Polk,%20Grace%20Porterfield..
Follow the page to find out about other visitors to Chinsegut every day in the month of August as we lead up to the release of Visiting Chinsegut, Volume 2.

08/13/2026

INVENTOR AND INDUSTRIALIST VISITS CHINSEGUT
Ralph Burdick Polk grew up on his family's dairy and canning farm in Indiana. He regularly invented processes and equipment to improve the farm's efficiency, like an cooking agitator for sweet corn.
He brought his inventive nature to Haines City, Florida, where he worked as a grapefruit bottler. He created a machine to section grapefruit and introduced "grapefruit hearts" (canned grapefruit) to the world. His list of honors in farming and food processing is extensive and impressive!
Ralph also founded the Polk Hotel, which is now on the National Register of Historic Places...
Follow the page to find out about other visitors to Chinsegut every day in the month of August as we lead up to the release of Visiting Chinsegut, Volume 2.

Address

22495 Chinsegut Hill Road
Brooksville, FL
34601

Website

https://www.erdiary.com/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when The Elizabeth Robins Diary Podcast posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to The Elizabeth Robins Diary Podcast:

Want your business to be the top-listed Media Company in Brooksville?