The New York Study of Public and Private Museums has been released. The study was a statewide census of all chartered museums in New York, conducted by Empire State Development, New York State Council on the Arts, New York State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, New York State Department of State, and the New York State Education Department. [Read more…] about The New York Museums Report Released
Museums
One of America’s Oldest Natural History Museums Closing
The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University will permanently close its Philadelphia museum to the public on Sunday, September 27, 2026. “For nearly 200 years, the museum has been a welcoming space, creating memories for generations of families, schoolchildren, nature lovers and scientists,” an announcement made to the public says. “The Academy is more, however, than the galleries and display areas. Our collections containing more than 19 million specimens and our critical scientific research must be prioritized.” [Read more…] about One of America’s Oldest Natural History Museums Closing
Historic Saranac Lake Opens Expanded Museum Campus
Members of Historic Saranac Lake (HSL) and contributors to the museum’s recent expansion project were at a ribbon cutting on August 15 at the newly refurbished the Trudeau Building.
Honorary Chair of the campaign, Doonesbury cartoonist Garry Trudeau was the guest of honor. Trudeau’s great-grandfather, grandfather, and father all practiced medicine in the new museum building at 118 Main Street in Saranac Lake. [Read more…] about Historic Saranac Lake Opens Expanded Museum Campus
A New Theodore Roosevelt Interactive Hologram
Thanks to the North Creek Depot Museum in the Adirondacks in Warren County, visitors can now experience Theodore Roosevelt in a dynamic and engaging new way: an interactive hologram of the 26th president.
The hologram, which was developed in partnership with TimeLooper, Inc., recently made its debut at a reception held at the Tannery Pond Center in North Creek, where it will be entertaining and educating guests until it moves to its permanent home at the Museum in late September. [Read more…] about A New Theodore Roosevelt Interactive Hologram
The NYS Cultural Education Center Turns 50
Half a century ago, New York State opened the doors to the Cultural Education Center in Albany, creating a landmark public home where generations of New Yorkers and visitors from around the world could explore the history, culture, scholarship, and heritage that define the Empire State.
Opened on July 1, 1976, the Cultural Education Center has served for 50 years as the home of the New York State Education Department’s Office of Cultural Education, which includes the New York State Museum, New York State Library, and New York State Archives. [Read more…] about The NYS Cultural Education Center Turns 50
Curatorial Challenges at New York Historical’s New Wing
Just a month after celebrating the grand opening of the $175 million Tang Wing for American Democracy, New York Historical is facing a curatorial crisis, according to Robin Pogrebin, writing in The New York Times.
Museum officials confirmed that the museum quietly replaced 17 historical artifacts with reproductions and removed another three in its signature “Democracy Matters” exhibit due to environmental threats posed by the building’s architecture. [Read more…] about Curatorial Challenges at New York Historical’s New Wing
Exploring the Revolution at the Long Island Museum
The latest Long Island History Project podcast takes listeners on a private tour of the exhibit “The Seat of Action: Long Island in the American Revolution and Beyond” at the Long Island Museum in Stony Brook, New York.
Running through October 18th, the exhibit tells the stories of the lives of people affected by the conflict at all levels of society. Joshua Ruff, Co-Executive Director, Collections and Programming, is our guide. [Read more…] about Exploring the Revolution at the Long Island Museum
Painters, Poets, A Manhattan Museum, and the Nazis
In April 2009, the heirs of Berlin-born George Grosz filed a restitution lawsuit against New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) claiming that three paintings by the artist held in the museum’s collection rightfully belong to the family.
The trustees resisted the call. [Read more…] about Painters, Poets, A Manhattan Museum, and the Nazis
1960s & 1970s Historical Artifact Thefts
It was 1964, ten years after replica Fort William Henry Museum first opened its doors to tourists. It was also one of the years of the centennial anniversary of the American Civil War (1861–1865).
So, Fort William Henry, a museum that interprets the history of the French & Indian War (1755–1763), decided to also have an exhibit about our nation’s bloodiest conflict. [Read more…] about 1960s & 1970s Historical Artifact Thefts
Newly Conserved George Washington Portrait On View
The New York State Office of General Services (OGS) has revealed a newly conserved 1813 portrait of George Washington by Albany artist Ezra Ames (1768 – 1836).
The painting, a significant piece of New York’s artistic and historical legacy, has undergone extensive conservation and has returned to its prominent location in the State Capitol‘s State Street Lobby. [Read more…] about Newly Conserved George Washington Portrait On View
Patience Wright: A Revolutionary NY Artist in England
The American Revolution was not only fought militarily in the colonies, artists also played an integral role. In The Painter’s Fire: A Forgotten History of the Artists Who Championed the American Revolution (Harvard University Press, 2025) Dr. Zara Anishanslin highlights the intertwined lives of three of them: Robert Edge Pine, Prince Demah and Patience Wright.
Of particular interest to New Yorkers, Wright was born a Quaker (and a relative of the Townsend family) in Oyster Bay, Nassau County, on Long Island. She had a talent for sculpting and her medium was the wax figure. Her museum in the city of New York was a popular attraction, featuring lifelike replicas of notable figures. [Read more…] about Patience Wright: A Revolutionary NY Artist in England
A Complicated Birthday: 10 Years of Stonewall National Monument
New York City’s Stonewall National Monument, the only site in the federal park system focused on LGBTQ history, is celebrating its 10th anniversary.
In a nod to the 250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, 250 rainbow flags were installed on the fence that surrounds Christopher Park, a tiny parcel at the heart of the monument in Greenwich Village. [Read more…] about A Complicated Birthday: 10 Years of Stonewall National Monument
Conserved Wine Bottles Recall Fingers Lakes Black History
A farmer, community leader, and entrepreneur from Prattsburgh in Steuben County, NY, Raymond Fedderman established the Fedderman Wine Company in the early 1970s, creating New York State’s first Black American owned winery.
While working in the Finger Lakes region, Fedderman was encouraged to open his own winery by Walter Taylor, a member of the prominent Taylor Wine Company family and founder of Bully Hill Vineyards. [Read more…] about Conserved Wine Bottles Recall Fingers Lakes Black History
Hamlet in Manhattan: Relics, Bones & Skulls
Having been central to Catholic devotion for centuries, relics are physical remains of saints or holy figures, believed to be conduits of divine power. Displayed in cathedrals, monasteries, and convents, they invited the worship of churchgoers and pilgrims.
To them, relics connected the material with the immaterial, linked heaven and earth, and forged contacts between past and present. [Read more…] about Hamlet in Manhattan: Relics, Bones & Skulls
New Eyes on Alice Austen: Queering the Museum
Staten Island photographer Elizabeth Alice Austen (1866–1952) is best known for her street photography and intimate depictions of women’s lives and relationships in the Victorian era.
“New Eyes on Alice Austen,” a groundbreaking permanent exhibition at the Alice Austen House Museum finally puts her into an appropriate LGBTQ+ history context with respect denied her during her lifetime. [Read more…] about New Eyes on Alice Austen: Queering the Museum
Rochester’s Memorial Art Gallery Will Begin Free Admission
Thanks to the generosity of its members and the community, the University of Rochester’s Memorial Art Gallery (MAG) will open its doors to all free of charge sometime in 2027, much sooner than anticipated.
“Making the museum free ensures that everyone can experience the inspiration, learning, and connection that it offers,” says University President Sarah Mangelsdorf. “We are deeply grateful to our donors, partners, and the broader community whose support makes this historic step possible.” [Read more…] about Rochester’s Memorial Art Gallery Will Begin Free Admission
Unique Exhibit Putting Trump, Epstein Records on View
The Donald J. Trump and Jeffrey Epstein Memorial Reading Room, a unique pop-up exhibit of “radical transparency” is opening this Friday in New York City.
The Reading Room is located in Tribeca, but for security reasons, the exact street address is not being published in advance. [Read more…] about Unique Exhibit Putting Trump, Epstein Records on View
Celebrating Painter Frederic Church’s 200th Anniversary
May 4 marks the 200th birthday of Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900), the Hudson River School painter who helped shape how Americans imagined Upstate New York.
Over at The Jiffy, a podcast about the arts and sciences of upstate, James Cave kicks off a three-part series marking the 200th Anniversary of Frederic Church’s birth. He starts at Olana, looking out at the same view Church called “the center of the world.” [Read more…] about Celebrating Painter Frederic Church’s 200th Anniversary
Museums, Diplomats & Art Thieves
In September 1887, in broad daylight, a robbery took place at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art (the Met). The thieves got away with a pair of ancient bracelets described in a New-York Tribune crime report as “solid gold, about four inches in diameter, richly carved and studded with all manner of precious gems.”
The police did not recover the items, but Tiffany & Co. created fine replicas (the firm acted as “sole agents” for the reproduction of the Museum’s works of art). Originating in Cyprus, the bracelets were part of the Museum’s “Cesnola Collection,” the formation of which itself was a story of mass thievery. [Read more…] about Museums, Diplomats & Art Thieves
Matthewis Persen House Museum Closing for 2026 Season
The Ulster County Clerk’s Office has announced that the Matthewis Persen House Museum will be closed to the public for the 2026 season while critical roof restoration work is completed.
Located at the historic intersection of Crown and John Streets in Uptown Kingston, the Persen House is one of the oldest and most significant buildings in Ulster County, NY. [Read more…] about Matthewis Persen House Museum Closing for 2026 Season