The New-York Historical Society's 11 founders—John Pintard, William Linn, John N. Abeel, Samuel Bayard, David Hosack, Anthony Bleecker, Samuel Miller, John M. Mason, DeWitt Clinton, Peter G. Stuyvesant, and Egbert Benson—had all lived through the turbulent years of the American Revolution and the British occupation of New York when so much destruction took place. These men believed that New Yorkers needed to take decisive action to preserve concrete evidence of their own historical moment, which they recognized as important, fearing “dust and obscurity” would be the inevitable fate of accounts and artifacts if left in the hands of private individuals. “Without the aid of original records and authentic documents,” they declared, “history will be nothing more than a well-combined series of ingenious conjectures and amusing fables.”

It is in this tradition that New-York Historical has moved forward, offering to on-site and online visitors a vast collection of art, objects, artifacts, and documents, as well as ongoing collecting programs that offer a broad grasp of history’s enduring importance and its central role in explaining our present day.

New-York Historical Society: Uncovering America's History