New York Historical Society Announces Exhibitions and Programs Listings for February

The New-York Historical Society is pleased to offer free admission from Saturday, February 13, through Sunday, February 21, made possible by a generous grant from The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust.

EXHIBITIONS
FDR's Brain Trust and the Beginning of the New Deal
through March 25, 2010

During the 1932 Presidential primary, FDR gathered around him a core group of political, economic, and legal scholars, many from Columbia University. This "Brain Trust" became the central component of the New Deal. The exhibition focuses on the three key members of the Brain Trust, Raymond Moley, Rexford Tugwell, and Adolph Berle, and two of the cabinet members with whom they worked to bring about FDR's radical changes, Frances Perkins and Harry Hopkins.

John Brown: The Abolitionist And His Legacy
through March 25, 2010
Planned by the Gilder Lehrman Institute in collaboration with N-YHS

This exhibition marks the 150th anniversary of John Brown's doomed raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, VirginiA. Brown, an ardent abolitionist who believed in racial equality, embraced violence as a means to end slavery. Executed in 1859, he has been both vilified as a murderer and celebrated as a martyr. This exhibition of rare materials from the Gilder Lehrman Collection and N-YHS explores Brown's beliefs and activities at a critical juncture in American history and invites us to ponder the struggle for civil rights down to the present.

Lincoln and New York
through March 25, 2010

From the launch of Abraham Lincoln's 1860 campaign with a speech at Cooper Union through the unprecedented outpouring of grief at his funeral procession in 1865, New York City played a surprisingly central role in the career of the sixteenth President-and Lincoln, in turn, had an impact on New York that was vast, and remains vastly underappreciated. Now, for the first time, a museum exhibition traces the crucial relationship between America's greatest President and its greatest city. The culminating presentation in the Historical Society's Lincoln Year of exhibitions, events, and public programs, this extraordinary display of original artifacts, iconic images, and highly significant period documents is the Historical Society's major contribution to the nation's Lincoln Bicentennial.

PUBLIC PROGRAMS

Tuesday, February 9, 6:30 pm
YANKEE STADIUM FOREVER: PRO FOOTBALL
Frank Gifford, Dave Anderson, Tony Morante, Bert Sugar
The Yankee Stadium Forever series continues with a lively talk about the famous 1958 NFL Championship Game between the New York Giants and the Baltimore Colts at Yankee Stadium. The game-commonly known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played"-was a watershed moment for professional football, boosting the sport's profile and setting the stage for the modern NFL, the most popular sport in America.

Tuesday, February 16, 6:30 pm
THE HISTORY OF THE ABYSSINIAN BAPTIST CHURCH
Reverend Dr. Calvin O. Butts III
The Abyssinian Baptist Church is the first Baptist "mega-church" in New York, organized in 1808 by free African Americans and Ethiopians who refused to accept segregation in the House of God. Join us for a very special evening with one of the nation's most recognized and respected spiritual leaders on its history and importance to the city and our nation.

Thursday, February 18, 6:30 pm
DAVID RUGGLES AND THE NYC UNDERGROUND RAILROAD
Graham Hodges, Eric Foner
David Ruggles was the best known "conductor" of the Underground Railroad in New York City, with Frederick Douglass one of 600 fugitives whom Ruggles sheltered in his home. In a striking departure from other abolitionists, Ruggles refused to rule out violence in helping fugitives and free blacks, arguing that self-protection was only sensible.

Saturday, February 20, 1 pm
MINUET DANCE PROGRAM
Victoria Geduld, Thomas Baird
Performance of the French social dance popular at Presidential balls and inaugurations. This presentation will contrast George Washington's
minuet with the square dance of Lincoln's Inaugural to show how dance reflected changes in the growing nation.

Monday, February 22, 11:00 am
NEW YORK PAINTTING BEGINS: 18TH-CENTURY PORTRAITS GALLERY TOUR
Kimberly Orcutt
Tours of the Society's breathtaking exhibition of 18th-century portraits, a unique look not only at the paintings, but the period of New York's emergence as a cultural center. Gallery Tours are limited to 35 guests per tour.

Tuesday, February 23, 6:30 pm
HOMER & LANGLEY
E.L. Doctorow
E. L. Doctorow's new novel Homer & Langley is a fictionalized account of the Collyer brothers, two of New York's most infamous hermits. They were born into wealth, but as a young man Homer went blind and was eventually completely paralyzed. Homer's inability to leave the house and their increasing paranoia pushed both of the brothers into near complete isolation. Doctorow, reading from his novel and answering questions, tells of their descent into squalor with compassion and sympathy.
To purchase tickets by phone call Smarttix (212) 868-4444 or go to www.smarttix.com and click on New-York Historical Society link

LIVING HISTORY DAYS

What was life like during the Civil War? Visitors to the New-York Historical Society can find out as reenactors show what life was like for soldiers and civilians alike. The New-York Historical Society's Living History Days series will take place on Saturdays from 10:00 AM until 5:00 PM, in conjunction with the Society's exhibit Lincoln and New York. The program is free with museum admission.

Civil War reenactors will display original weaponry and show visitors what life was like both on the battlefield and on the sidelines of the war on:

February 6: 11th Connecticut Infantry, Co. A
February 13 Presidents' Day Weekend: 6th Regiment U.S. Colored Troops, 2nd New Jersey Cavalry, 22nd U.S. Colored Troops
February 20: 3rd U.S. Colored Infantry
February 27: 119th New York Infantry

MUSIC

The following performances are free with museum admission.

Sounds of the City Friday Concert Series
Performances by musicians from the Mannes College of Music
February 5, 6:30 pm
February 12, 6:30 pm
February 19, 6:30pm
February 26, 6:30 pm

INFORMATION HOTLINE:

To reach the Museum's offices, call: 212.873.3400.

ONLINE INFORMATION:
http://www.nyhistory.org

MUSEUM HOURS:
Tuesday to Saturday 10:00 am to 6:00 pm
Sunday 11:00 am to 5:45 pm
Friday until 8:00 pm

ADMISSION:
Adults $12.00
Senior Citizens & Educators $9.00
Students $7.00
Children under 12 FREE
Museum Members FREE
Fridays from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm Pay as you wish