Thomas Cole was born in 1801 at Bolton, Lancashire in Northwestern England and emigrated with his family to the United States in 1818. Cole discovered the Catskills in 1825 and his exhibition of small paintings of Catskill landscapes brought some acclaim and he was made a fellow of the National Academy. He instructed Frederick Edwin Church, who went on to become a not bad painter of the Hudson Valley. Cole also inspired the generation of American landscape painters that came to be known as the Hudson River School. He wanted to create a “high style of landscape” that could express moral or religious meanings. He traveled in France and Italy and conceived of a multi-part landscape series tracing the rise and fall of an archetypal civilization. The result was the five canvas Course of Empire, completed in 1836. He married Maria Barstow in 1836 and settled in Catskill, NY. He labored to complete a five-part series called The Cross and the World, to portray the individual’s quest for spiritual knowledge and salvation. He died on February 11, 1848, before it could be completed.

On each show, invited guests are asked to discuss a number of items that they would take with them to their Catskill Cabin get-away. As Mike and Andy discuss their chosen items, it is intended that you, the listener, will enjoy getting to know each guest that little bit better. This WGXC podcast is subscribable. An excerpt of this show airs later in the day at 6 p.m. on "All Together Now!," then later in the week on the "WGXC Morning Show" and the "WGXC Early Morning Show." Before March, 2021, the show was called "Catskill Cabin Conversations."