2021 New York Archives Magazine Speaker Series
Organizing and Preserving Your Home Archives with the New York Genealogical & Biographical Society
January 26 - Online via Zoom
New York Archives Magazine Online Speaker Series and New York Genealogical & Biographical Society were joined by New York State Archivist Tom Ruller and NYG&B President D. Joshua Taylor for a discussion of best practices for maintaining your home archives, including identifying materials to preserve, organizing objects and papers, and steps to ensure your collections remain an integral part of your family’s story.
Hidden Stories from Newly Translated Dutch Colonial Documents with the New Netherland Institute
February 16 - Online via Zoom
New York State Archivist Tom Ruller, New Netherland Institute Senior Historian Dennis J. Maika, New Netherland Research Center Director Charles Gehring, and former New Netherland Research Center Associate Director Janny Venema discussed insights from the forthcoming Volume 13. Correspondence, 1658–1660. Previous volumes of translations of Dutch colonial manuscripts are available on the the State Archives Digital Collections.
Creating Change with Changemakers: Disrupting Museum Storytelling with the Rochester Museum and Science Center
March 4 - Online via Zoom
Presenters discussed how a community curation model, including sourcing objects from contemporary individuals, can enhance the accuracy, quality, diversity, and authentic representation within an exhibit, and how the voices of the community can push museum professionals and leadership to evolve their thinking around creating an exhibit.
Telling New York Stories: Celebrating 20 years of New York Archives Magazine with the Editor Josie Madison
April 15 - Online via Zoom
2020 marked an important milestone for New York Archives - its twentieth year of publication!
More than 80 issues, 2,828 pages, 418 feature stories, and 517 contributors later, this award-winning educational publication remains a shining example of collaboration with history enthusiasts, scholars, and historical repositories around New York State, bringing untold stories and extraordinary happenings to light. Join us for an interactive discussion with Editor Josie Madison, PhD and special guests.
The Luckiest Guy in the World: My Journey in Politics a discussion with author Robert Abrams
April 20 - Online via Zoom
State Archivist Tom Ruller and former New York Attorney General Robert Abrams discussed Abrams' journey in politics and pride in public service and how he strove to make a difference for New Yorkers by launching landmark cases on environmental issues, such as Love Canal, and creating path-breaking initiatives concerning consumer protection and civil rights.
2021 Empire State Archives & History Award: An Evening with Annette Gordon-Reed
May 18 - Albany
The Empire State Archives and History Award acknowledges Pulitzer Prize winning author Annette Gordon-Reed for her outstanding contributions to advance the understanding and uses of history in society.
400 Years Later: The charter that launched the colony of New Netherland with the New Netherland Institute
June 3 - Online via Zoom
New Netherland Research Center Director Charles Gehring, author and researcher Jaap Jacobs, professor of History and International Relations Wim Klooster, and State Archivist Tom Ruller recognized the granting of a charter by the States General of the Netherlands to the Dutch West India Company on June 3, 1621 to operate what eventually became the colony of New Netherland.
The Lemmon Slave Case: New York’s Battle Against
Slavery
September 17 - Online via Zoom
Hon. Albert M. Rosenblatt, Former Associate Judge, New York City Court of Appeals, President Emeritus, Historical Society of the New York Courts
Tom Ruller, New York State Archivist
On the eve of the Civil War in 1860, New York’s highest court, The Court of Appeals, upheld a petition granted by the Superior Court in New York City for the release of eight enslaved people, including six children brought to New York by Virginians Jonathan and Juliet Lemmon on their way to Texas. Join the discussion of this celebrated case that brought up hard questions about slavery within the United States and challenged the slavery laws between the northern and southern states.
Democracy in Action: The Role of Attorney General and the Public Good
September 23 - Albany
Take part in the most exciting event in Albany this fall! Join the Archives Partnership Trust for an engaging evening of conversation between current New York State Attorney General Letitia James and former Attorney General Robert Abrams, author of Luckiest Guy in the World: My Journey in Politics. Listen in as they discuss the importance of public service, and Abrams’ groundbreaking work on environmental, consumer protection and civil rights issues that forever transformed the role of the office of Attorney General. Hear first-hand the legacy he leaves behind for all New Yorkers and the Nation.
The People’s Records: Celebrating 50 Years of New York State Archives
October 26 - Online via Zoom
Tom Ruller, New York State Archivist
Retired State Archivists Edward Weldon, Larry Hackman, V. Chapman Smith and Christine Ward
Join us in celebrating the 50th anniversary of the New York State Archives. Learn about how good public policy created the nation’s largest State Archives; its role in preserving and making accessible over 250 million records of New York and its people; and an essential resource for policy makers, researchers, educators and all citizens.
Mystery Solved at the State Archives! Paying for the Constitutional Convention of 1787
November 9 - Online via Zoom
Adam Levinson, Esq., Statutesandstories.com
John P. Kaminski, Co-Editor and Director, Center for the Study of the American Constitution, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Sergio Villavicencio, Alexander Hamilton Awareness Society
Tom Ruller, New York State Archivist
Alexander Hamilton was one of three delegates sent by New York to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. Over two hundred and thirty years later, we are still learning new information about the process states used to send delegates to the convention which led to the creation of the Constitution. Hear more about how newly discovered journal entries in the New York State Archives shed light on our country’s formative period.
Researching and Writing About The Life of Disability Rights Activist Lucy Gwin
December 7 - Online via Zoom
James M. Odato, Author, Adjunct Faculty, State University of New York at Albany
Tom Ruller, New York State Archivist
Hear the amazing story of author, advocacy journalist, disability rights activist, feminist and founder of Rochester’s Mouth magazine, Lucy Gwin. After an automobile accident left her with a brain injury, Gwin became a tireless advocate for the equal rights of people she termed "dislabled." Learn more from author James Odato more about the monumental impact and staunch dedication Gwin and other key disability rights activists and organizations had to the belief that disability rights was a critical part of the civil rights movement.