On October 26, 1825, the Erie Canal officially opened from Albany to Buffalo. The canal was an immediate success: shipping costs plummeted, and new services and goods became widely available. Cheap, reliable transportation opened new markets to farmers and businessmen, creating a commercial...
Panel Image
The History Department at the New York State Museum cares for and interprets over 4 million artifacts, researches the state’s history, and disseminates this history through books, articles, exhibitions, public programs, and social media. The History Department works with scholars, municipal historians, curators, archivists, librarians, and members of the public around the state to interpret the past and collect for the future.
The New York State Museum History Collections are vast – from an 18th century colonial Dutch armchair to a Norden bombsite from WWII to a painting by Romare Bearden. The artifacts in our collection tell the stories of the people of New York State. To better manage these collections, they are divided into the categories of social history, political history, cultural history, and economic history.
Office of State History Outreach Website
Provides resources and news for historians throughout New York State
Research Staff & Curators
Dr. Jennifer Lemak
Chief Curator of History
Prior to my current position as the chief curator of history, I served as the senior historian/curator of social history for a decade. My major exhibition and publication projects include Votes for Women: Celebrating New York’s Suffrage Centennial (2017) and An Irrepressible...Read more
John Abeel
Medical and Sports Collections
Emily Finelli
Popular Entertainment Collections
Karen Quinn
Senior Historian/Curator, Art and Culture
As an art historian my primary research has focused on American paintings, concentrating on nineteenth-century landscape artists and early twentieth-century modernists. I am especially interested in painters’ working methods as well as the attraction of specific places to the artist, including...Read more
Dr. Robert Chiles
Research Associate, history
Dr. Robert Chiles became a Research Associate in History with the New York State Museum in 2021. He is co-editor of New York History, a member of the editorial board of The Hudson River Valley Review, and the host of "Empire State Engagements." Dr. Chiles has written numerous pieces...Read more
Ashley Hopkins-Benton
Senior Historian and Curator, Social History
As curator of social history, my research and collections work primarily focuses on women’s history (especially the history of the fight for women’s rights), LGBTQ+ history, immigration, and religion, as well as the collections areas of sculpture, toys, glassware, and ceramics.
Currently...Read more
Aaron Noble
Senior Historian and Curator, Political and Military History
My areas of research and collection primarily focus on the political, governmental, and military history of New York State and its citizenry, and how that history impacts the broader historical narrative. Currently, much of my research is concentrated on the World War I era as the museum...Read more
My Research Projects
Brad L. Utter
Senior Historian/Curator, Science and Technological History
My areas of research revolve around the development of industry and transportation in the State of New York and how that development impacted the lives of New Yorkers. Currently, I am focusing on the New York State canal system as part of preparation for an exhibit on the Erie Canal that will...Read more
My Research Projects
State Historian
Devin R. Lander
New York State Historian
As New York State Historian, my duties are twofold; to help provide support and coordination to the historical field, including local historians, academic historians, and historical societies and museums; as well as to conduct research on various topics relevant to New York State history and the...Read more
My Research Projects
News Articles
The New York State Museum is a program of the University of the State of New York
New York State Education Department