Museum of the City of New York

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Way up at the north end of Central Park, the preserves the metropolis' history, art, and culture. Their collections contain 1.5 million items ranging from eighteenth-century games to photographs by documentarian Jacob Riis.

Sit down to, Timescapes, a twenty-five minute "multimedia experience" of New York's history from its Native American roots to today's towering skyscrapers. Visit the Toy Gallery to conjure the wonder of childhood with a display of Madame Alexander dolls and some of the first model electric trains ever made. Among these treasures is a true work of art—the Stettheimer Dollhouse. This twelve-room replica of a West 58th-Street home is rich in detail—from crystal candelabras to a three-inch replica of a Marcel Duchamp painting.

Get a taste of real houses from the city's past in the exhibit, New York Interiors (1690-1906). Families (mannequins) pose in living rooms, showing home life over the centuries. See changes in technology, décor, and recreation. The top floor replicas of rooms in John D. Rockefeller's home are currently being reinstalled, but are worth a return trip when they reopen.

Two temporary exhibits are currently installed. Notorious and Notable: 20th Century Women of Style contains jewelry and outfits of prominent Manhattan women including Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, and Barbara Walters. Closing November 7, Samurai in New York: the First Japanese Delegation, 1860, documents the fanfare accompanying a visit of 70 Japanese after 200 years of isolation.

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