The New York State Archives is a unit of the Office of Cultural Education within the

New York State Education Department The New York State Education Department (NYSED) is the department of the New York state government responsible for the supervision for all public schools in New York and all standardized testing, as well as the production and administration ...

, with its main facility located in the

Cultural Education Center The Cultural Education Center is on the south side of the Empire State Plaza in Albany, New York. Located on Madison Avenue, it faces northward towards the New York State Capitol building. Construction of the building, which was designed in the ...

on Madison Avenue in Albany,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. The

New York State Library The New York State Library is a research library in Albany, New York, United States. It was established in 1818 to serve the state government of New York and is part of the New York State Education Department. The library is one of the largest ...

and the

New York State Museum The New York State Museum is a research-backed institution in Albany, New York, United States. It is located on Madison Avenue, attached to the south side of the Empire State Plaza, facing onto the plaza and towards the New York State Capitol ...

are also located in the Cultural Education Center.

Organization

The New York State Archives was established in 1971 to preserve and make accessible recorded evidence documenting New York State's

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

governments A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

, events, and peoples from the 17th century to the present. Full operations began in 1978 when the organization's storage and research facility opened in the Cultural Education Center.

Collections

The Archives preserves and provides access to over 270 million documents dating from the period of Dutch and British colonial rule during the 17th and 18th centuries through the modern day. The State Archives preserves records from the

legislative A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known ...

judicial The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

, and executive branches of state government. Topics covered in those records include relations with Native Americans, the

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing ...

and

westward expansion The United States of America was created on July 4, 1776, with the U.S. Declaration of Independence of thirteen British colonies in North America. In the Lee Resolution two days prior, the colonies resolved that they were free and independent ...

, industrial development, labor, the rise of the modern social welfare system,

public education State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary educational institution, schools that educate all students without charge. They are ...

, public health, the

environmental movement The environmental movement (sometimes referred to as the ecology movement), also including conservation and green politics, is a diverse philosophical, social, and political movement for addressing environmental issues. Environmentalists a ...

, and New York State citizens' participation in numerous military conflicts. The collection includes nearly 13,000 documents relating to the administration of the colony of New Netherland. In addition, the archives maintains the records of the construction of the Erie Canal and New York State Barge Canal including maps, engineering drawings and glass plate negatives. Finally, the collection includes over 50,000 motion picture film scripts from the 1920s to the 1960s. There is an online, searchable index to the film scripts available through the Archives' web site. The Archives' web site provides online access to over 100,00
digital images
of maps, photographs and other materials of interest as well as an on-line catalog an
online finding aids
with descriptions of all records in the collection.

Statewide programs

In 1987 the New York State Archives assumed the responsibility for overseeing management and disposition of state government records, including operation of the State Records Center in Albany. Legislation in 1988 created the Documentary Heritage Program that provides technical advisory services and competitive grants to historical societies, museums, libraries, and other nonprofit organizations holding historical records. Technical advisory services and training are now provided, free of charge, through the Archives' Documentary Heritage and Preservation Services for New York
DHPSNY
program. A local government records law in 1987 required the appointment of records management officers in 4300 local governments, including every county, city, town, village, and school and special district. A Local Government Records Management Improvement Fund was established in 1989 to support technical advisory services and competitive grants to local governments to help them develop and maintain records management programs. Through this program the State Archives provides archives and records management advice and technical support to every area of the State. Over $250 million in grant funds have been distributed since the program's inception. The New York State Archives serves students and teachers, scholars and community researchers, government officials, the legal and business community, and the general public. It encourages students through awards, grants, and internships; helps teachers use historical documents as primary source material in the classroom; and offers stipends for research using State Archives’ records. The annua
Student Research Award
provides a cash award to New York State students in grades 3-5, 6-8 and 9-12 for projects that use historical records. The Archives maintains an online resource for teachers to support use of primary sources in the classroom. Th
Consider the Source
online system contains thousands of images of primary sources as well as curriculum support resources developed by teachers. The Hackman Research Residency program provides travel grants to scholars to come to Albany to use the resources of the State Archives to conduct research and develop new knowledge using primary source materials. The nonprofit New York State Archives Partnership Trust, established in 1992, provides support for preservation of and access to the treasures of the State Archives, educational projects that make historical records available to teachers and students and programs that promote New York State’s archives and history and publishes a quarterly magazine
New York Archives
' with articles and photographic essays on New York state history.

New York State Archives Partnership Trust

The '
New York State Archives Partnership Trust
'' is a New York State public-benefit corporation located within the Cultural Education Center whose mission is to create an endowment to preserve archival records. The Archives Partnership Trust is governed by a board of trustees and supports a wide variety of preservation, education and outreach programs in support of the work of the State Archives. It is not listed within the 2018 New York State Authorities Budget Office report.

References

* Roe, Kathleen. “New York State Archives,” The Encyclopedia of New York State, Editor Peter Eisenstadt, Syracuse University Press, 2005;
New York State Archives

External links