Behind The Scenes

Written by Claire Lanier In 1966 Scott Paper Company – of toilet paper manufacturing fame – needed a new marketing campaign and landed on a new form of fashion: the paper dress. For $1, women could receive a paper dress in the mail, along with coupons for paper towels, toilet paper, and other Scott products. The…

This blog post was written by Stephen Petrus, Ph.D., Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fellow.   In the 1950s, Washington Square Park, the focal point of Greenwich Village, was the site of contentious debates in urban planning. The conflict stemmed from the plan of Parks Commissioner Robert Moses to construct a roadway through the square. Moses…

This blog was written by Jean Ashton, Senior Director, Resources and Programs, New-York Historical Society.  New York in the summer of 1776 was hot and steamy. Although the city’s merchants and servants, slave and free, continued fulfilling the daily needs of the second largest city in the colonies, much of the remaining population was caught…

This blog post was written by T. Cole Jones, Ph.D., NEH Fellow, Assistant Professor, Purdue University. You probably learned in grade school that the Battle of Saratoga was the turning point of the American Revolution. American General Horatio Gates’ victory over British General John Burgoyne in October 1777 convinced the French to enter the conflict…

The New-York Historical Society was honored to welcome 189 new U.S. citizens at a special naturalization ceremony on June 14. The date was especially poignant because it was Flag Day—the commemoration of when the U.S. flag was adopted in 1777, at the Second Continental Congress. The new citizens came from 37 countries, including China, Mexico,…

Written by Claire Lanier.  Admit it―it’s hard not to smile when you’re looking at Jumping Jack. He’s fun, he’s wacky, he’s relaxed (is he lying in shavasana?). Jack the toy clown gets you. So why is it that when we call Jack a “toy,” we smile, but when we call him folk art, we create…

The New-York Historical Society hosted a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) naturalization ceremony, where 90 people became U.S. citizens, on Wednesday, April 13. The new U.S. citizens originate from 42 countries, including Bangladesh, People’s Republic of China, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ghana, Indonesia, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, Slovakia, Ukraine, Vietnam, and Yemen, among others. New-York Historical’s…

Deirdre Laporte has been a docent at N-YHS for eight years. She also worked at Bell Labs and AT&T for a full decade. We recently sat down with her to learn more about her roles at the tech giants and how her professional experience enriches her exhibition tours of Silicon City: Computer History Made in…

Before the 1970s, all banking was done during business hours. Account holders relied on tellers to deposit and withdraw money, but during the mid-20th century that began to change. In 1960 Luther Simijan unveiled his latest invention the “Bankograph,” which revolutionized banking, allowing cash or check deposits at any time of day or night. Bankographs…