• Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to secondary sidebar

New York Almanack

History, Natural History & the Arts

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • Adirondacks & NNY
  • Capital-Saratoga
  • Mohawk Valley
  • Hudson Valley & Catskills
  • NYC & Long Island
  • Western NY
  • History
  • Nature & Environment
  • Arts & Culture
  • Outdoor Recreation
  • Food & Farms
  • Subscribe
  • Support
  • Submit
  • About
  • New Books
  • Events
  • Podcasts

Albany County

America’s First Christmas Card & An Early Albany Department Store

December 10, 2020 by Editorial Staff 1 Comment

America's First Christmas Card, Designed and printed by Richard H. Pease for his "Pease's Great Variety Store in the Temple of Fancy" c.1851. Image courtesy of Manchester Metropolitan University Special Collections.Before F. W. Woolworths’, Whitney’s, or even Myer’s department store, there was Pease’s Great Variety Store, located in the Temple of Fancy at 516 and 518 Broadway in Albany, NY.

As with other fancy goods stores, Pease’s catered to the middle and upper middle class selling highly decorated goods like ceramics, prints, furniture and other decorative household items that progressively thinking people might have wanted to purchase. [Read more…] about America’s First Christmas Card & An Early Albany Department Store

Filed Under: Arts, Capital-Saratoga, History, New Exhibits Tagged With: Albany, Albany County, Albany Institute For History and Art, Art History, Christmas, Cultural History, Holidays, Instagram, Pop Culture History

A Town of New Scotland, NY, History Podcast

July 17, 2020 by Bob Cudmore Leave a Comment

The Historians LogoThis week on The Historians Podcast, a look at the history of the Albany County town of New Scotland. Alan Kowlowitz, president of the New Scotland Historical Association and longtime Town Historian Bob Parmenter discuss New Scotland’s Onesquethaw Valley Historic District and more. [Read more…] about A Town of New Scotland, NY, History Podcast

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Albany County, Podcasts

Albany Co Historical Honoring Norman Rice at Gala

September 11, 2018 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Norman S. Rice in front of a portrait of Engeltje Wendell in 1966The Albany County Historical Association (ACHA) is set to host its 4th Annual Gala at Cornerstone at the Plaza on Thursday, September 13th at 6 pm. The fundraiser, which will include a cocktail hour, dinner, and silent auction, also serves as a celebration of history education and preservation in Albany.

In addition to honoring the ACHA’s Trustees, staff members, and volunteers, the organization will extend its appreciation to Norman Rice, Executive Director Emeritus of the Albany Institute of History and Art. [Read more…] about Albany Co Historical Honoring Norman Rice at Gala

Filed Under: Events, History Tagged With: Albany, Albany County, Albany County Historical Association, Albany Institute of History & Art

Caesar of Albany County: New York’s Last Living Slave

May 31, 2016 by Editorial Staff 2 Comments

caesar of albany countyIn the spring of 1811, the Albany Common Council banned Pinkster Day celebrations because of “rioting and drunkenness.” Two centuries later, in an effort to revive a tradition from Albany’s past, members of the University Club petitioned the Common Council to repeal the prohibition. The Pinkster ban was lifted on May 16, 2011.

On Friday, June 3, the Club will welcome award-winning author Scott Christianson to its 6th Annual Pinkster Celebration at the National Register-listed University Club of Albany. Scott Christianson, Ph.D. is an award-winning author of several distinguished non-fiction books, as well as a journalist, criminologist, historian, filmmaker, teacher and human rights activist. [Read more…] about Caesar of Albany County: New York’s Last Living Slave

Filed Under: Events, History Tagged With: Albany County, Black History, Slavery, University Club

Bruce Dearstyne: Highlighting Albany’s Heritage

September 3, 2015 by Bruce Dearstyne 2 Comments

1024px-North_Pearl_Street_Albany_1800sAlbany is a historic city! Its website includes a history of the city. Kathy Sheehan, campaigning for Mayor in 2012, cited its “deep and palpable history” as one of its assets and one of the bases for its potential development in the future. As Mayor, she initiated the Albany Heritage Tourism Initiative and gave a very impressive talk on “Albany: Our History, Our Future,” emphasizing its potential for heritage tourism at the kick-off luncheon for New York History Month organized by the University Club in November 2014.

One of her key themes was connections — among Albany’s historical buildings, its history organizations such as the Albany Institute of History and Art, and state sites such as the State Museum and Schuyler Mansion State Historic Site. [Read more…] about Bruce Dearstyne: Highlighting Albany’s Heritage

Filed Under: History Tagged With: Advocacy, Albany, Albany County, Public History, Urban History

Albany County’s Military Service In The Civil War

July 9, 2015 by Peter Hess 4 Comments

Albany Civil War Soldiers and Sailors Monument in Washington ParkDuring the four years of the Civil War, New York would send 474,000 men, 1/8 of New York’s entire population, to comprise 1/5 of the Union Army. Ten regiments and one artillery battery would be raised in Albany County and Albany troops would play major roles and take casualties at almost every major battle of the Civil War. [Read more…] about Albany County’s Military Service In The Civil War

Filed Under: History Tagged With: Albany, Albany County, Civil War, Military History

Civil War Albany Rises To Action

July 1, 2015 by Peter Hess 1 Comment

Shipment of Guns and Ammunition from the Watervliet ArsenalAs had happened during the French and Indian War and later the Revolutionary War, from the first days of the Civil War Albany was converted into a military camp. Lincoln’s original request for troops designated Albany, New York City and Elmira as military marshaling points. Troops from the entire northeast, including upstate New York as far west as Buffalo, east to Vermont, New Hampshire and western Massachusetts reported to Albany. [Read more…] about Civil War Albany Rises To Action

Filed Under: History Tagged With: Albany, Albany County, Civil War, Hudson River, Military History, Watervliet Arsenal

The First Days of the Civil War in Albany

June 23, 2015 by Peter Hess 1 Comment

Fort Sumter Newspaper HeadlineEarly Sunday morning on April 14, 1861, barely two months after Lincoln left Albany, news arrived there that Fort Sumter had been fired on and surrendered. Fort Sumter was not far from Washington, and this news hit Albany like a shock wave.

New York State Governor Edwin D. Morgan called an emergency meeting of his staff and leaders of the Senate and Assembly that afternoon in the Executive Chamber in Albany. A bill was drafted calling for New York to appropriate $3 million to provision and provide 30,000 New York Militia to support the preservation of the Union. [Read more…] about The First Days of the Civil War in Albany

Filed Under: History Tagged With: Albany, Albany County, Civil War, Military History

Shaker Exhibition Opening At NYS Museum

November 12, 2014 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

ModeofWorshipThe New York State Museum will open a new major exhibition about the history and culture of the Shakers on November 15, 2014. The Shakers: America’s Quiet Revolutionaries will feature over 150 historic images and nearly 200 Shaker artifacts, including artifacts from three Shaker historical sites: the Shaker Heritage Society, Hancock Shaker Village and the Shaker Museum | Mount Lebanon.

In the late 1700s, the Shakers sought religious freedom in America, but their unique culture and spiritual practices set them apart from society. Their devotional routines as well as their product innovations and views towards gender equality seemed revolutionary. [Read more…] about Shaker Exhibition Opening At NYS Museum

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History, New Exhibits Tagged With: Albany County, Hancock Shaker Village, Massachusetts, Mount Lebanon Shaker Museum, New York State Museum, Religion, Rensselaer County, Shaker Heritage Society, Shakers

Dramatic Tours Recapture Harrowing Night at Cherry Hill

October 7, 2014 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

murder-at-ch1On Friday, October 24 and Saturday, October 25, Historic Cherry Hill will present a dramatic tour reliving the infamous 1827 murder that occurred at the Cherry Hill mansion, one-time home of the Van Rensselaer family.

The public is invited to step into the experiences of the Cherry Hill household on the evening of May 7, 1827, when a hired hand murdered a household member. The dramatic tour will investigate the scene of the crime and the differing perspectives of those who were there on that fateful evening. Actor James Keil will appear as Jesse Strang, bringing to life the murderer whose violent act was motivated by romantic attachment to his victim’s wife. The murder resulted in two sensational trials and Albany’s last public hanging. [Read more…] about Dramatic Tours Recapture Harrowing Night at Cherry Hill

Filed Under: Events, History Tagged With: Albany, Albany County, Crime and Justice, Historic Cherry Hill

  • Go to page 1
  • Go to page 2
  • Go to page 3
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Go to page 15
  • Go to Next Page »

Primary Sidebar

Help Us Reach Our Fundraising Goal

Subscribe to New York Almanack

Subscribe! Follow the New York Almanack each day via E-mail, RSS, Twitter or Facebook updates.

Recent Comments

  • Editorial Staff on Sites of Lincoln Conspiracy Talk Virtual Program
  • Anthony Bellov on Sites of Lincoln Conspiracy Talk Virtual Program
  • Bob Meyer on Anthropodermic Bibliopegy Skills of A Brooklyn Bookbinder
  • Jeff Brown on The Case Against Peter Stuyvesant
  • Gerald Ladouceur on A Street by Street History of Albany Published
  • Ellen on Catskills Resorts: The Beginning of the End
  • Ellen on Catskills Resorts: The Beginning of the End
  • Ellen on Catskills Resorts: The Beginning of the End
  • DENNIS COLLINS on Train Ferries: The Hudson River’s Most Unusual Steamers
  • John Warren on Train Ferries: The Hudson River’s Most Unusual Steamers

Recent New York Books

Smalltime A Story of My Family and the Mob
laughing_rain_and_awakens_corn_03 (2) cover
Manufacturing Advantage
The Red Badge to Gettysburg
Prohibition in the Hudson Valley book
Long Island Migrant Labor Camps Dust for Blood
Valcour The 1776 Campaign That Saved the Cause of Liberty
Past and Prologue: Politics and Memory in the American Revolution
The Indestructible Man
Unworthy Republic

Secondary Sidebar

New York State Historic Markers
Kearns_New York Almanack