New Gift to the N-YHS Library

We are thrilled to announce a major, new gift to the New-York Historical Society from chairman Roger Hertog: the exceptionally rare Constitutional Convention notebooks of John Lansing, Jr., a New York delegate to the 1787 Philadelphia Convention. The notebooks were auctioned at Sotheby’s on May 27.

With this magnificent gift, Mr. Hertog has secured our place of privilege as one of the most important repositories in the world for scholarship and teaching around constitutional history. The gift joins the notes on the Convention written by South Carolinian Pierce Butler, the papers of Massachusetts representative Rufus King, and other extraordinary original resources of both the Gilder Lehrman and Historical Society collections.

Lansing’s notebooks are tremendously powerful and exciting and it is wonderful that Mr. Hertog, in the great tradition of our eleven founders, determined that they should be preserved and shared with the public.

The Library staff will digitize the Lansing papers in their original format to share with scholars everywhere. The documents will also be on display when our galleries re-open in November 2011.

John Lansing, Jr. (1754-1829) was born in Albany, took up the legal profession and served as a New York delegate to the Constitutional Convention. Lansing also was a major figure in the New York State ratification convention in 1788 in Poughkeepsie, where his insistence that the new Constitution be enlarged by a Bill of Rights helped to secure the protections that citizens enjoy today.

Lansing later served as Chief Justice of the New York State Supreme Court and then Chancellor of the state. On December 12, 1829, while in Manhattan for meetings at Columbia University, the 75-year-old Lansing left his hotel to post some letters back to Albany. He was never seen again.

The delegates’ vow of secrecy, which banned the taking of notes for publication, limited the amount of material created documenting the Convention proceedings. Although notes by a number of other delegates, including James Madison, survive, Lansing’s are among the purest and most detailed, providing a unique and unedited first-hand account of the period of Lansing’s attendance at the Convention.

What’s Underfoot??

One of the many changes you’ll see in our Great Hall will be under your feet: manhole-like cases installed in the floor.

In 1918, the New-York Historical Society founded the Field Exploration Committee, headed by amateur archaeologists William Calver and Reginald P. Bolton, to explore and document historic sites in New York City and State. They were asked to recover and catalog their artifacts. This work made us a pioneer in the field of urban archaeology years before it became a professional discipline.

When we re-open on November 11, the floor cases will be filled with artifacts such as arrowheads, military buttons and a clock found in the Fresh Kills landfill after 9/11.

Can you guess the sponsor of these manholes/cases? Why, Con Edison, of course!

Opening Exhibition: Revolution!

Founded in 1804, the New-York Historical Society is New York’s first museum. It was born in the aftermath of revolutions in America, France and Haiti that reverberated like rolling thunder back and forth across the Atlantic, with consequences that are still felt today. Now, some two centuries after its founding, the Historical Society has itself undergone a revolution, with major changes to the façade of its landmark building and brand-new gallery spaces that are more open, welcoming, and hospitable, both to major exhibitions and a vastly expanded public.

After three years of construction, the building will re-open on November 11, 2011 with – appropriately enough – the path-breaking exhibition Revolution! The Atlantic World Reborn, the first exhibition to relate the American, French and Haitian struggles as a single global narrative.

Spanning decades of enormous political and cultural changes, from the triumph of British imperial power in 1763 to the end of the Napoleonic wars in 1815, Revolution! traces how an ideal of popular sovereignty, introduced through the American fight for independence, soon sparked more radical calls for a recognition of universal human rights, and set off attacks on both sides of the Atlantic against hereditary privilege and slavery.

Among the astonishing, unforeseen outcomes was an insurrection on the French possession of Saint Domingue, leading to the world’s only successful slave revolt and the establishment in 1804 of the first nation founded on the principles of full freedom and equality for all, regardless of color, Haiti.

On View in Revolution!
With text and audio guides in English, French and Haitian Krèyol, the exhibition unfolds in galleries inventively designed to evoke varied gathering places, such as a baroque palace, a portside tavern and a rural Haitian lakou: sites where people of the era felt and shared the “common wind” of political information and opinion. Within these galleries, visitors will encounter magnificent paintings, drawings and prints from collections in a dozen countries; historical documents, maps and manuscripts from the hands of participants in these revolutions; audiovisual presentations and interactive learning stations.

Highlights among the 300 objects in Revolutions! include:

- The original Stamp Act, as it was passed by Parliament in 1765 setting off the riots that led to the American Revolution – displayed for the first time outside the United Kingdom

- A first edition of Thomas Paine’s epoch-making pamphlet Common Sense from 1776

- An elegant mahogany desk from the first capitol of the United States (Federal Hall in lower Manhattan) from about 1788, the first example of a legislator’s desk in Anglo-American history

- Napoleon’s authorization to French negotiators to sell the Louisiana Territory to the United States (1803), a direct consequence of the Haitian rebellion

- The only known surviving copy of the first printing of the Haitian Declaration of Independence (1804), recently discovered and exhibited in public for the first time

- Thomas Jefferson’s copy of Notes on the State of Virginia, his only book, from 1785

- Three superb vodou sculptures, produced by the secret societies in Haiti that were established during the Haitian Revolution

- A seven-foot-long “carcan” or leg-yoke, used to shackle five captives together, taken from a French slave ship about 1800

Next time: How Revolution! will tell the story.

Liberty/Liberte

Created by New York-based artist Fred Wilson (who represented the United States at the 2003 Venice Biennale), this sculptural installation takes objects from the Historical Society’s collection and arranges them into a complex and engaging environment, where the possible meanings of the artifacts seem to shift as the visitor walks through the space. Many of you will have seen this sculpture in our 2006 exhibition Legacies: Contemporary Artists Reflect on Slavery.

The work incorporates items ranging from a section of wrought iron balustrade from the original Federal Hall, where George Washington took the oath of office as president, to slave shackles and an anonymous tobacco shop figurine of an African American man.

The Tale of the Tail

Pulling Down the Statue of King George III, New York City
Johannes Adam Simon Oertel
Gift of Samuel Verplanck Hoffman

This painting documents the destruction of the gilded lead statue of King George III of Great Britain in Bowling Green by New Yorkers and Continental soldiers after the Declaration of Independence had been read to Washington’s troops on the Commons on July 19, 1776. The statue was melted down and the lead turned into bullets. However, fragments of the statue (including the horse’s tail) and the stone base on which it stood are preserved in the Historical Society’s collection.

The artist’s inclusion of an African American just below the statue would have recalled the editorials of the noted abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison, who argued that the freedoms guaranteed in the Declaration of Independence applied to all Americans, regardless of color.

The Native American family depicted leaving the scene at the left might suggest the passing of one phase of American history and the dawning of a new era.

The convention of using triangular groupings comes from Renaissance traditions. The positioning of the young African American man at the base of a triangular format may by symbolic of his position in Colonial society.

Children’s History Museum and Library

 

On the lower level of our building (where the café was), our new DiMenna Children’s History Museum will encompass the Barbara K. Lipman Children’s History Library, and together inspire children of all ages to learn about American history through the eyes of young people from our city’s and nation’s past, many of whom came to this country with few resources but high expectations and ambition to achieve their American dream.

This 4,000-square-foot educational center will incorporate fascinating objects and artifacts from the Historical Society’s collections and encourage children to think of history as relevant, interesting and ongoing. There will be objects and items to touch and try, and unique activities to embark upon.

The library will enable kids to virtually explore and learn from important period documents, maps and objects.

The Children’s History Museum and Library will also house a history-themed café (including unusual treats children enjoyed in the past), cubbies, lockers, and child-friendly restrooms to round out the space’s educational offerings as a perfect cultural destination for families and school groups.

Renovation Update, Part 2

Construction efforts continue with our final phase of renovation on schedule for completion in November 2011, when we look forward to welcoming all New-York Historical Society members and other supporters for a gala re-opening celebration and preview of our truly transformed and enhanced building spaces that will ultimately facilitate the Historical Society’s goal of serving 400,000 visitors annually.

This latter stage of construction involves enhancement (including lights, enlarged windows and wheelchair access) of our Central Park West main entrance and facade, as well as a thorough renovation of the first floor, including our auditorium and lower level spaces.

The Great Hall will be enlarged, restoring it, in part, to its original state by revealing previously hidden and beautiful architectural columns. This newly renovated first floor area will showcase a permanent collection of iconic objects and works of art. It will feature six stunning interactive column kiosks which will house portals where visitors will discover a wealth of fascinating information about various aspects of New York and the nation’s history. Each kiosk will also feature a historical object or document, on a rotating basis, within a glass enclosure. The floor will also be programmed with unique and educational interactive tiles.

Adjacent to this central Gallery, the auditorium will enjoy a major transformation into an enlarged state-of-the-art multi-usage theater featuring a multi-sensory visitor orientation destination film.

Renovation Update, Part 1

With generous support from New York City, New York State and private donors, including many of our Trustees, the New-York Historical Society’s $65 million capital improvement project to renovate the facade, first floor and lower level public spaces of our landmark building is well underway!

The first phase of construction, which began in August 2008 and opened to the public in September 2009, focused on the 77th Street entrance with facade and entry renovation (see image above), a renovated 1,400-square-foot Museum Store, full wheelchair access, enlarged windows that allow daylight to stream through to the Great Hall, as well as enhanced climate control, and wireless/IT infrastructure improvements.

In addition, we created a new space that will ultimately house a full service eatery operated by Starr Restaurants. Also notable are new security and closed-circuit TV systems, new lighting within the 77th Street Rotunda, upgraded building management capabilities and centralized lighting controls that will significantly reduce energy consumption.

I’ll write about our current efforts in my next post.

Revolution!

The beginning of each year is traditionally a time of resolutions. This year will be one of REVolutions for the New-York Historical Society. We’re very excited about our renovations which include not just our building, but also our website, logo, advertising, and offerings. We’ll be providing a whole new experience for you when you visit after our re-opening on November 11, 2011.

Another revolution will be our landmark opening exhibition called, appropriately enough, Revolution! It will be about the people who made the American, French and Haitian revolutions and how their actions gave new meaning to the ideas of liberty and equality. Visitors will see the spread of democratic institutions and meet vivid individuals like George Washington, Napoleon and Toussaint L’Overture — all leading to a deeper understanding of America’s diverse cultural heritage, and the “bridge” that connects it with the cultures and histories of other societies. It will be fully accessible in English, French and Haitian Kreyol.

We’ll also feature the American Revolution in our totally redesigned Great Hall space. New York is little remembered for its role in the American Revolution, but it was an intellectual, political and physical battleground which recovered from almost complete destruction to become the nation’s first political capital and later its financial, cultural, manufacturing and business center.

The Great Hall
The centerpiece of the Great Hall will focus on New York’s seminal role in the founding era of the United States. A monumental 42-foot, multi-media installation will convey this story. A related presentation on touch screens will emphasize major events in New York history. Visitors will learn how a small Dutch trading post came to be the greatest city in the world embodying fundamental American values such as diversity, aspiration, toleration, and democracy. They’ll learn that many issues that we think of as contemporary actually have deep historical roots.

The space will be rounded out by a state-of-the-art, 30-foot case featuring objects of urban archaeology and highlighting the Historical Society’s pioneering work in the field. In addition, twelve high-definition screens will display a continuous, coordinated slide show of treasures from the Historical Society’s permanent collections.

Stained Glass Windows in the Library

Under the scaffolding on Central Park West, the front of the building is being cleaned and the bronze windows are being restored. The scaffolding will remain in place for a while longer.

Inside the building, activity includes the preservation and restoration of two great treasures of the Historical Society: the monumental stained glass windows in our Library’s Reading Room.

Originally installed on the exterior of the Historical Society when the building was completed in 1908, the windows commemorate events that led to two different waves of European settlement in New York. One of the windows, representing the arrival of Henry Hudson’s Halve Maen in New York Harbor, was designed by Frank J. Ready of the Gorham Manufacturing Company as a gift from the Society of the Daughters of Holland Dames. The other, depicting Louis XIV revoking the Edict of Nantes (a decision that forced many Huguenots into exile in North America), was designed by Mary Tillinghast and donated by Mrs. Russell Sage.

These magnificent works of stained glass were exposed to the elements for three decades, until the Historical Society’s building was enlarged in 1937-38, and they were made into interior features of the Library. Now they are a century old and in need of stabilization. We have removed them so they can be returned to their former glory. They are being treated by conservator Tom Venturella of Venturella Studios and will be re-installed in time for our re-opening in November.