New York State Parks and Westchester County Parks have approved the renewal of the Jay Heritage Center’s (JHC) stewardship of the 21.5-acre Jay Property for another 10-year period. Westchester County Executive George Latimer personally sponsored Westchester County’s ACT 2023-312 in July to reaffirm the public-private partnership among the County, New York State Parks, and JHC. [Read more…] about Jay Heritage Center Property Management Agreement Renewed
Jay Heritage Center
Kermit Roosevelt III: The Nation That Never Was
In his book The Nation That Never Was: Reconstructing America’s Story (University of Chicago Press, 2022), Kermit Roosevelt III argues that a traditional American narrative – “that our fundamental values as a country were stated in the Declaration of Independence, fought for in the Revolution, and made law in the Constitution”– is neither useful nor true.
Instead, he writes, we should look to the 19th century, to the period following Abraham Lincoln‘s Gettysburg Address, “when it was possible to envision the emergence of the nation committed to liberty and equality.” [Read more…] about Kermit Roosevelt III: The Nation That Never Was
Jay Heritage Center Recognized for Excellence in Historic Preservation
The Jay Heritage Center (JHC) was honored with a New York State Historic Preservation Award for Excellence in Non-Profit Achievement last week in recognition of its rehabilitation and stewardship of the Jay Estate Gardens.
The award was one of only ten conferred this year for excellence in the preservation and revitalization of New York State’s historic and cultural resources. It was the only award made to a Westchester County non-profit. [Read more…] about Jay Heritage Center Recognized for Excellence in Historic Preservation
Jay Heritage Center Receives $1.5 Million Gift
The Jay Heritage Center (JHC) has announced the receipt of a transformative gift of $1.5 million to open the Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III Exhibit and Performance Center at the Jay Estate in Rye, Westchester County, New York. [Read more…] about Jay Heritage Center Receives $1.5 Million Gift
Jay Heritage Center Opens Revitalized Gardens
The Jay Heritage Center (JHC) has announced the opening of the newly revitalized Jay Estate Gardens, an expansive, educational, green space where American history, sustainability, and diverse cultural narratives all converge. [Read more…] about Jay Heritage Center Opens Revitalized Gardens
The Making of “Dickinson” at the Jay Estate (Virtual Program)
The Jay Heritage Center will host a virtual conversation about the making of the Apple TV+ historical comedy Dickinson, which filmed for more than two months at the Jay Estate last year, on April 6th. [Read more…] about The Making of “Dickinson” at the Jay Estate (Virtual Program)
Our First Civil War: Patriots and Loyalists (Virtual Program)
The Jay Heritage Center (JHC) will welcome best-selling historian and two-time Pulitzer finalist H.W. Brands on Thursday, March 24th, for a free virtual conversation about his new book, Our First Civil War: Patriots and Loyalists in the American Revolution(Doubleday, 2021). [Read more…] about Our First Civil War: Patriots and Loyalists (Virtual Program)
Police Violence & Black Rebellion Since the 1960s (Virtual Program)
In America on Fire: The Untold History of Police Violence and Black Rebellion Since the 1960s (Liveright, 2021) Dr. Elizabeth Hinton puts the protests over the killing of George Floyd in the summer of 2020 into historical context.
Hinton argues that “the events of 2020 had clear precursors and any attempt to understand our current crisis requires a reckoning with the recent past.” The book makes the case that Black rebellion “was born in response to poverty and exclusion, but most immediately in reaction to police violence.” [Read more…] about Police Violence & Black Rebellion Since the 1960s (Virtual Program)
Jay Heritage Center Celebrating 30 Years
This year marks the 30-year anniversary of Jay Heritage Center, in Rye, Westchester County.
In 1992 the non-profit began executing their plan to transform the historic buildings and grounds of the landmark Jay Estate into a public park. [Read more…] about Jay Heritage Center Celebrating 30 Years
TV Show “Dickinson” Films at Jay Heritage Center
This past winter, an Apple TV+ film crew from the historical comedy “Dickinson” turned the Jay Meadow at the Jay Heritage Center in Rye, NY, into a Civil War battlefield.
The show, which stars Academy Award nominee Hailee Steinfeld as poet Emily Dickinson, spent more than two months filming around the Jay Estate for its third and final season, which is streaming now on Apple TV+. [Read more…] about TV Show “Dickinson” Films at Jay Heritage Center