New York Almanack

History, Natural History & the Arts

New York Historical Society

Acts of Faith: Religion and the American West at the New York Historical Society

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Ernest Smith (Tonawanda Seneca, Heron Clan, 1907-1975), Progress, 1935 (courtesy RMSC, Rochester)Acts of Faith: Religion and the American West is a new exhibit at the New York Historical Society that explores the interplay between religion and United States expansion in the 19th-century West. It opens September 22, 2023, and will be on display through February 25, 2024.

The exhibit illuminates the way religion became a vital and contested part of American life.  Acts of Faith takes visitors beyond the mythologized “Wild West” of popular culture to present a fuller and surprising picture: a West populated by preachers, pilgrims, and visionaries and home to sacred grounds and cathedrals that kindled spiritual feeling from the woodlands of New York all the way to the valleys of California. [Read more…] about Acts of Faith: Religion and the American West at the New York Historical Society

Hudson River Steamboats & Gibbons v. Ogden: 200 Years of the Commerce Clause

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Historical Society of the New York CourtsOne of the world’s first steamboats successfully completed a maiden voyage on the river Clyde in Scotland in 1798. That same year, Chancellor Robert R. Livingston proposed to the New York Legislature that he would develop a new form of public transportation, the steamboat ferry, in return for a monopoly on steam navigation in New York waters. Despite the Legislature’s skepticism that steamboat technology was viable, legislation granting Livingston the monopoly was enacted. [Read more…] about Hudson River Steamboats & Gibbons v. Ogden: 200 Years of the Commerce Clause

New-York Historical Society Accepting Fellowship Applications

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New york historical societyThe New-York Historical Society is now accepting applications for its fellowship program for the 2022–2023 academic year. Leveraging its collections that detail American history through the lens of New York City, New-York Historical’s fellowships are open to scholars at various times during their academic careers and provides them with the resources and community to develop new research and publications that illuminate complex issues of the past. [Read more…] about New-York Historical Society Accepting Fellowship Applications

N-Y Historical Welcomes Fellows, Accepting Applications for 2021-2022

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NY Historical SocietyThe New-York Historical Society is welcoming is current crop of fellows and now accepting applications for its fellowship program for the 2021–2022 academic year.

Leveraging its rich collections that detail American history through the lens of New York City, New-York Historical’s fellowships are open to academic scholars at various times during their careers. [Read more…] about N-Y Historical Welcomes Fellows, Accepting Applications for 2021-2022

Pierre Toussaint: Enslaved Haitian, NY Hairdresser – and Saint?

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The three water color portraits shown here are hanging in Gracie Mansion, the official residence of the Mayor of the City of New York in Manhattan.  They are on loan from the New York Historical Society.

The watercolors (from the 1820s) are of the Toussaint family. [Read more…] about Pierre Toussaint: Enslaved Haitian, NY Hairdresser – and Saint?

History@Home: Online Learning from the NY Historical Society

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NY Historical SocietyNew-York Historical educators conduct classes in real-time on Zoom, a web-based video conferencing tool that allows students and educators to interact online. [Read more…] about History@Home: Online Learning from the NY Historical Society

New York Urban League: 100 Stories

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New york historical societyThe New-York Historical Society has announced “New York Urban League: 100 Stories of Black New York,” a program set for Thursday, February 20th, 2020.

For over 100 years the New York Urban League (NYUL) has helped lead the way in the empowerment of under-served African Americans across the five boroughs of New York City. They have inspired, influenced, and ignited –  and each year invest in the lives of over 8,000 families by providing quality higher education options, economic opportunity, and community engagement. [Read more…] about New York Urban League: 100 Stories

N-Y Historical Society Accepting Fellowship Applications

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New York Historical Society fellowship programNew York Historical Society fellowship programThe New-York Historical Society is now accepting applications for its fellowship program for the 2020–2021 academic year.

Leveraging its rich collections that detail American history through the lens of New York City, New-York Historical’s fellowships are open to scholars at various times during their academic careers and help provide the resources and community to develop new research and publications that illuminate complex issues of the past. [Read more…] about N-Y Historical Society Accepting Fellowship Applications

New-York Historical Society Fellowships Available

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new york historical society fellowshipsThe New-York Historical Society is now accepting applications for its fellowship program for the 2019–2020 academic year.

Leveraging its rich collections of documents, artifacts, and works of art detailing American history from the perspective of New York City, New-York Historical’s fellowships — open to scholars at various times during their academic careers — provide material resources and an intellectual community to develop new research and publications that illuminate complex issues of the past. [Read more…] about New-York Historical Society Fellowships Available