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New York State Museum

The Decline of the New York State Museum

March 27, 2023 by John Warren 10 Comments

Albany Cultural Education Center State Museum Archives and LibraryNew York State Museum leadership is under fire again. This time from Albany Times Union columnist Chris Churchill. He points out that it’s been eight years since a $14 million overhaul of the museums exhibits was announced. [Read more…] about The Decline of the New York State Museum

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: Museums, New York State Museum, New York State Regents, Office of Cultural Education, State Historian

State Museum Acquires Women’s Rights Pioneers Central Park Monument Model

March 14, 2023 by Editorial Staff 1 Comment

Rendering of the statue to be built in New Yorks Central ParkThe New York State Museum in Albany has acquired the Women’s Rights Pioneers Central Park Monument model. The statue features three nationally recognized leaders of the women’s rights movement, all hailing from New York State: Sojourner Truth (Ulster County), Susan B. Anthony (Rochester), and Elizabeth Cady Stanton (Johnstown, Seneca Falls, and NYC). It will be included as part of the Museum’s new exhibition, “Women Who Lead.” [Read more…] about State Museum Acquires Women’s Rights Pioneers Central Park Monument Model

Filed Under: Arts, Capital-Saratoga, History, New Exhibits Tagged With: Albany, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Monumental Women, Monuments, New York State Museum, sculpture, Sojouner Truth, Susan B. Anthony, womens history

Women’s Rights Pioneers Monument Event at State Museum

March 2, 2023 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Women's Rights Pioneers Monument Donation Ceremony at the New York State Museum On August 26, 2020, the Women’s Rights Pioneers Monument was unveiled depicting three historic women’s rights leaders – Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Sojourner Truth – all hailing from New York State. [Read more…] about Women’s Rights Pioneers Monument Event at State Museum

Filed Under: Arts, Capital-Saratoga, Events, History Tagged With: Monumental Women, New York State Museum

Science & Suckers: The Cohoes Mastodon & The Cardiff Giant

February 9, 2023 by Peter Hess Leave a Comment

Cohoes Mastodon exhibit at the New York State Museum, Albany New York (photo courtesy Kenneth C. Zirkel)In 1866, NY State Geologist James Hall received a message from T.G. Younglove, an official at Harmony Mills in Cohoes, New York, informing Hall that while conducting some excavations to expand the mill they uncovered a “great pothole” at the foot of Cohoes Falls where the Mohawk River begins to empty into the Hudson.

The “great pothole” contained a large jawbone “of some unknown beast,” much larger than that of an elephant. [Read more…] about Science & Suckers: The Cohoes Mastodon & The Cardiff Giant

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History, Mohawk Valley, Nature, Western NY Tagged With: Albany, Albany County, Archaeology, Board of Regents, Cohoes, Cooperstown, Farmers' Museum, Fossils, Geology, Indigenous History, Iroquois, Journalism, Mohawk River, Native American, nature, New York State Education Department, New York State Museum, Newspapers, Onondaga County, Otsego County, Paleontology, PT Barnum, Religious History, Science History, sculpture, Wildlife

State Ed Recognizes Black History Month

February 6, 2023 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Black History Month at NYS MuseumThe New York State Education Department (NYSED) is recognizing Black History Month, held during February each year, to celebrate the rich history, culture, and contributions of African Americans.

As part of this observance, the State Education Department has created social media campaigns and educational resources, including online and in-person programs through the New York State Museum and the New York State Library, as well as providing programming recommendations from the Office of New York State Public Broadcasting. [Read more…] about State Ed Recognizes Black History Month

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, Events, History Tagged With: Black History Month, New York State Library, New York State Museum

James Hall: New York’s First State Geologist & Paleontologist

December 12, 2022 by Peter Hess Leave a Comment

James Hall at age 85James Hall was born on September 12, 1811, to James and Susanna Hall of Hingham, Massachusetts. His father was a weaver trained in England who was making a comfortable living. One day he opened his newspaper and noticed a “help wanted” ad posted by a textile mill in Massachusetts. The salary was far better than James Hall, Sr. could earn in England.

After some inquiry, Hall heard that land in America was more cheap and plentiful than land in England, which was, in most cases, held by the same families for generations. He also heard that food was plentiful and less expensive than England. Like so many other Europeans looking to improve their lives, Hall packed up his family and they departed for the United States.

In 1826, when son James Jr. was 15, he learned of a new school, the Rensselaer School (later Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, or RPI) just started at Troy, New York by the Patroon of Manor of Rensselaerswyck, Stephen Van Rensselaer III, and under the academic direction of Amos Eaton. This new school was a departure from conventional classical schools that Eaton called “a kind of literary bondage.” Eaton’s new plan was for a scientific school centered on the “useful arts” and “adapted to the native curiosity and ardor of youth.” [Read more…] about James Hall: New York’s First State Geologist & Paleontologist

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History, Nature Tagged With: Albany, Albany County, Albany Rural Cemetery, Dudley Observatory, East Greenbush, Ebenezer Emmons, Fossils, Geology, Joseph Henry, Louis Agassiz, New York State Museum, Paleontology, Rensselaer County, Rensselaerswijck, Roswell P. Flower, RPI

Agency & Identity: Cherry Hill’s Would-Be Sisters

November 21, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

“Kittie” Putman and “Minnie” Knapp“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

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, Events, History Tagged With: Historic Cherry Hill, New York State Museum

Babe Ruth, Sports and 1920s Identity Politics

November 14, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Babe Ruth for Al SmithThe 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

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, Events, History, New York City Tagged With: Al Smith, Baseball, Nativism, New York State Museum, Political History, Sports History

Free ‘National History Day’ Educator Workshops in November

November 4, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

fort ticonderogaFort 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

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, History Tagged With: Clinton County Historical Association, Fort Ticonderoga, New York State Museum, SUNY Oneonta, Warren County Historical Society

American Origin Myth: Remembering the American Revolution

October 26, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

political buttonsSince 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

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, History Tagged With: American Revolution, Cultural History, New York State Museum, Political History

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