Frequently Asked Questions for Rights & Reproductions
We receive many inquiries at the Museum of the City of New York regarding rights and reproductions for objects in our collections. Below are some frequently asked questions and responses. … Continue reading
Rufus King: Early New York, lawyer, diplomat and statesman
If you have found yourself wandering around the neighborhood of Jamaica, Queens, anytime in the last two centuries, you’ve possibly happened upon a farmhouse, situated between 89th Avenue, 150th street, … Continue reading
Forgotten villages and neighborhoods of Manhattan
Hints about long vanished and forgotten aspects of New York surround us if we know where to look. The etymology of neighborhood names reveal long lost geographical quirks and the … Continue reading
A Century of Grand Central Terminal
There’s no place like Grand Central. The sheer scale and elegance of the main concourse transforms the daily commute into a complex choreography as commuters and tourists negotiate through the … Continue reading
Winter in the City
In case you missed it, winter descended on New York City last week. Freezing temperatures (the coldest in two years), snow, and wind made many New Yorkers remember why they … Continue reading
The Evolution of Madison Square: From Potter’s Field to Eataly
In the early-1800’s, Madison Square was a swampy area far outside of the city. The park did not have an auspicious beginning, as its first uses were a potter’s field … Continue reading
Temple Emanu-El
Temple Emanu-El was established in 1845 as New York City’s first Reform congregation. 33 members met in a loft at the intersection of Clinton and Grand Streets on Manhattan’s Lower … Continue reading
Gender Bending in 19th Century New York
In the summer of 1836 in New York City, a white man named Robert Haslem met a black woman named Mary Jones on Bleecker Street. The two proceeded down Greene … Continue reading
Who was Reginald Fairfax Harrison?
I recently came across the “Diary of Reginald Fairfax Harrison, for the Year 1883-1884,” while in the process of working with a researcher from the Central Park Conservancy who was … Continue reading
