Napoleon Sarony: Celebrity Photographer
Before paparazzi and the celebrity media we all live with today, there were 19th century photographers, like Napoleon Sarony (1821-1896), who became internationally renowned for their celebrity portraits. Born in Québec, Sarony began his … Continue reading
Reblog via Untapped Cities ~ Saving Place: 50 Years of NYC Landmarks, Interview with the Curators
On April 21, 2015, the Museum of the City of New York will open Saving Place: Fifty Years of New York City Landmarks, exploring how the pioneering landmarks legislation, passed in 1965, … Continue reading
A Call to Serve: Scenes from the Henry Street Visiting Nurse Service
With fresh tears in her eyes, a young girl approached Lillian Wald, a graduate of New York Hospital School of Nursing. Concerned for the girl’s well-being, Wald followed the child … Continue reading
Benjamin J. Falk, photographer and master of light
It’s 1881. You’re an actor in the latest smash-hit sensation. Wanting to gain a little publicity for yourself, the show, and a potential national tour, the producers send you off to … Continue reading
From automobile maintenance to aeronautical engineering
New York City traffic jams have long been the source of iconic scenes in movies and television, as well as real-life frustration, perceived near death experiences, and a whole lot … Continue reading
Lunatics, Inmates, and Homeowners: The History of Roosevelt Island
The nurses plunged her into an ice-cold bath, pulled her out sopping wet, and threw a sheer flannel slip over her head. Large black letters spelled “Lunatic Asylum, B.I., H. … Continue reading
Members only: Private clubs in New York City
Clubs have been a part of New York City for centuries. How else are you expected to find like-minded people in such a bustling metropolis? In the early 19th century, the … Continue reading
Using the Museum’s Collections to Teach Photography
The Photography Collection at the Museum of the City of New York is an incredible resource for anyone interested in photography, architecture, social history, New York City, and any number … Continue reading
Buffalo Bill’s New York
Running up and down Brooklyn’s Seventh Avenue in 1894, little boys snatched their mothers’ clotheslines, fashioning them into lassoes to rope their younger sisters [1]. Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show was … Continue reading
Urban Woodsman: Theodore Roosevelt and his Buckskin Suit
Traversing the Dakota back country atop his horse, a young Theodore Roosevelt arrived at a “desolate, little mud-roofed hut” belonging to Mrs. Maddox [1]. She “had acquired some fame in … Continue reading
Painting the Town Black
In the 1970s, graffiti emerged as a powerful form of self-expression on New York City streets. Our recent exhibition City as Canvas offered a window into the origins of this movement, and its evolution as graffiti artists like Lee … Continue reading
Clowns!
Clowns inspire laughter and happiness in some people, and fear or aversion in many others. They have been around for more than 4,000 years and in nearly as many places … Continue reading
Carl Van Vechten and Modern New York
A guest post this week from the City Museum’s Curator of Architecture and Design, Donald Albrecht. Earlier this year, Farrar, Straus and Giroux published Edward White’s book The Tastemaker: Carl … Continue reading
MCNY Blog: New York Stories 