Museum of the City of New York
New York, NY 10029
Phone: (212) 534-1672
Fax: (212) 423-0759
- Cross Street:
- 103rd Street
- Directions:
- 2, 3 at 110th St; 6 at 103rd St
- Hours:
- Tue-Sun 10am-5pm
Editorial Review for Museum of the City of New York – by Simon Spelling
The Scene
Housed inside this graceful Georgian building is a collection as diverse as the city it seeks to represent. Memorabilia is divided into six areas: prints, photographs, decorative arts, costumes, paintings/sculptures and toys. It's hard to imagine another place where a visitor can examine a horse-drawn fire engine, a House of Worth ball gown, Jacob Riis photographs and Yiddish sheet music in one visit.
The Collection
The impressive collection of dollhouses and model ships is a perennial favorite with children, as are the period rooms and outstanding silver collection with grown-ups. Frequent exhibitions make good use of the collections, often presenting what would otherwise be inert memorabilia in unexpected ways. Permanent exhibitions include "Broadway," which celebrates the Great White Way through costumes, set designs, posters, paintings, programs, etc., and "New York Toy Stories," which features more than 300 toys, dolls and teddy bears, dating from 1785 to the present.
Editorial content is independent of paid advertisers. Any expenses are paid for by Citysearch.
Insider Tips
Save MoneyThose who live and work in East Harlem are admitted free-of-charge when they whisper the magic words: "I'm a neighbor."
The ExtrasFind out why this stretch of Fifth Avenue is called "Museum Mile."
Fun FactThe museum was originally housed in Gracie Mansion.
User Reviews for Museum of the City of New York
12/26/2007 Posted by bellisinnyc
This Museum is a real waste of time. There are great museums in NYC and this one tries to be that "small unvisited treasure." There is a reason it is unvisited and it's not just its poor location - the place is dull and boring and therefore an extremely poor reflection of the great City of New York. Skip it when visiting. And what's with the cheap photography exibits? If I wanted to see photos, I'd buy a book or go online.
Pros: ?
Cons: Not worth it in New York City
05/21/2007 Posted by bill7676
One would think that the Museum of this great City would be a bit more impressive. The exhibits are old and worn and in some cases downright broken and pealing. The movie on New York could be good, but seems to often be broken and has an annoying buzzing sound that makes the film almost unbearable to sit through. The changing exhibitions are not academically challenging and look like parts have been pasted to the wall by school kids on field trips - watch your spelling guys. Wall labels should be proofread before they are glued to the wall. Keep trying – there are lots of interesting things in this City. Let’s try to exhibit them effectively.
Pros: Nice stroll in the Park after spending 20 minutes seeing what this Musuem has to offer
Cons: Run down, dirty, misspellings, outdated
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful
Schedule
| 10/12/2008 | Broadway! The History of American Theater | |
| 10/14/2008 | Broadway! The History of American Theater | |
| 10/15/2008 | Broadway! The History of American Theater | |
| 10/16/2008 | Broadway! The History of American Theater | |
| 10/17/2008 | Broadway! The History of American Theater | |
| 10/18/2008 | Broadway! The History of American Theater | |
| 10/19/2008 | Broadway! The History of American Theater | |
| 10/21/2008 | Broadway! The History of American Theater | |
| 10/22/2008 | Broadway! The History of American Theater | |
| 10/23/2008 | Broadway! The History of American Theater | |
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