History, Natural History & the Arts
“Kittie” Putman and “Minnie” Knapp each came to the Cherry Hill Mansion in Albany, NY after her mother’s death to be raised by Van Rensselaer descendant and 3rd-generation mistress of the estate, Harriet Maria Van Elmendorf.
Both wards, but not quite sisters, Kittie was herself a Van Rensselaer descendant while Minnie was likely descended from Dinah Jackson, an enslaved woman. [Read more…] about Agency & Identity: Cherry Hill’s Would-Be Sisters
The Roaring Twenties saw the collision of an emerging culture of celebrity with the established popularity of sports, creating one of the twentieth century’s most enduring personalities — baseball hero Babe Ruth.
In 1928, Ruth not only led the New York Yankees to their third World Series victory, he also threw himself into politics, campaigning enthusiastically for New York State governor and Democratic presidential nominee Al Smith. Smith’s liberal and progressive platform appealed to diverse, working-class Americans, often marginalized by the policies of other politicians. [Read more…] about Babe Ruth, Sports and 1920s Identity Politics
Fort Ticonderoga will partner with the Warren County Historical Society to host a free workshop for middle and high school teachers on Thursday, November 10th, from 4 to 5 pm and the Clinton County Historical Association on Thursday, November 17th, from 4 to 5 pm.
The workshop will introduce teachers to the National History Day program and the process for preparing students to participate. These workshops are open to all educators, whether or not they have prior experience with National History Day. [Read more…] about Free ‘National History Day’ Educator Workshops in November
Since the end of the War for Independence, the memory of the American Revolution has played a unique role in American politics because it serves as the nation’s “origin myth.” Americans have continually fought over the meaning of the Revolution, and those fights have played an ever-present role in American history. [Read more…] about American Origin Myth: Remembering the American Revolution
The Tuck High Company store, sold to the New York State Museum in 1980, embodies tens of thousands of stories about what Chinatown was truly about.
Jack Tchen, cross-cultural historian and co-founder of the Museum of Chinese in America, will share three stories interweaving the lives of a tea merchant, a “laundryman” and the Irish “Mayor of Chinatown” on Wednesday, June 15th at the State Museum’s Huxley Theatre. [Read more…] about Three New York Chinatown Stories from Tuck High Company
Wedding clothes reveal historical information about the individuals who wore them and made them, the technology used to create them, and how they fit into the larger context of events on the world stage.
The New York State Museum will host “Unveiled: Wedding Wear in 19th-century New York,” a virtual event set for Thursday, April 7th. [Read more…] about Unveiled: Wedding Wear in 19th-Century New York Virtual Tour
Between 1935 and 1942 photographers of the New Deal’s Farm Security Administration (FSA) documented the lives and struggles of Americans enduring the Great Depression.
Considered one of the largest documentary photography projects ever undertaken, the photographs include some of the most familiar and powerful images of the nation to emerge from the Depression. Many have reached iconic status in American culture.
The images, held at the Library of Congress, were made in every region of the nation and number in the tens of thousands, and include are photographs made by Dorothea Lange, Gordon Parks, Ben Shahn, Walker Evans, Arthur Rothstein, Carl Mydans, Russell Lee, John Vachon, Marion Post Wolcott, Jack Delano, and many others. [Read more…] about Featured Collections: Great Depression Photos
The New York State Museum is in the process of creating a webpage dedicated to New York State’s Commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of the American Revolution. [Read more…] about State Museum Creating American Revolution 250th Webpage
The New York State Museum has announced the opening of the new exhibit “Courage: The Black Struggle for Quality Education.” The exhibition explores the visions and aspirations of leaders and parents who have sought to equitably educate Black children. [Read more…] about Black Struggle for Quality Education the Focus of Albany Exhibit
The New York State Museum has announced “Open Wounds: The Fifty-Year Legacy of the Attica Prison Uprising,” a new exhibit recognizing the 50th anniversary of the Attica Prison Uprising, opening on Saturday, September 9th. [Read more…] about 50th Anniversary of Attica Prison Uprising Exhibit in Albany