Peter Zheutlin on “Annie Londonderry”, October 22, 2006
Peter Zheutlin Brings Daring Adventures of 19th Century Round-the-World Cyclist “Annie Londonderry” to LifeMultimedia Program for the Whole Family
Sunday, October 22, 2006, 2:00 p.m., Community Room
Needham Free Public Library, 1139 Highland Avenue, Needham, MA
Free and open to the public
Refreshments
Sponsored by the Friends of the Library
On June 25, 1894, Annie Cohen Kopchovsky—a young mother of three small children—defied convention by embarking from Boston on a solo bicycle ride around the world. During a time of women’s liberation and Wild West outlaws, this daring adventurer told tales of fighting off bandits in France, dodging bullets on a Chinese battlefield, and trudging across the California desert with a broken bike. More than a century later, her great-grandnephew, Needham resident Peter Zheutlin, discovered her forgotten and extraordinary story, and wrote a soon-to-be-published book about this remarkable woman, also known as “ Annie Londonderry.”
On Sunday, October 22, 2006 at 2 pm, Zheutlin will offer previews of the book, as well as a forthcoming documentary film based on it, through a special presentation in the Community Room of the Needham Public Library, 1139 Highland Avenue. The Friends of the Needham Public Library will sponsor his lively multimedia program, “The Adventures of Great Grand Aunt Annie,” which is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.
For more than two years, Zheutlin painstakingly reconstructed Annie’s audacious journey using hundreds of old newspaper accounts and long-lost letters, scrapbooks, and photos. He even pedaled part of her route himself—from Boston to New York City—with the two Washington, DC filmmakers creating the documentary. As an added treat, those filmmakers will join Zheutlin during the October 22 program, and show a clip of their forthcoming film.
“This is an exciting and enriching program for the whole family,” said Douglas Olsen, president of the Friends of the Needham Public Library. “For children, it offers lessons in women’s and American history, geography, and social change. For adults, it’s also a provocative look at deeper issues—from family secrets and why they’re kept, to family roots and the search for meaning.”
Peter Zheutlin is a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in The Boston Globe, The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, AARP The Magazine, and dozens of other publications in the U.S. and abroad. He has written and spoken about Annie for Bicycling, The New England Quarterly, National Public Radio, and the 2005 International Cycling History Conference. Through his efforts, Annie’s singular achievement has been recognized by the Jewish Women’s Archive.
For general information about programs sponsored by the Friends of the Library and the schedule of future programs, click here.