New Book Releases

  A tiny hamlet on the Hudson River, Garrison has deep roots in our nation's history.

Author George Carroll Whipple III has compiled beautiful images of this tiny hamlet and made efforts toward restoring to its former grandeur the iconic 1881 Castle Rock, the estate of William Henry Osborn, a visibly prominent and renowned landmark for all who reside in or visit Garrison. Many wealthy New Yorkers such as William Henry Osborn, Edwards Pierrepont, and Hamilton Fish built their impressive summer estates here and many of those manors still stand today.

The bustling multicultural borough of Flushing, Queen's early history is shared in this volume of photos and remembrances.

In 1645, English immigrants settled in Vlissengen, an area of Queens now known as Flushing. After bitter disagreements with Governor Stuyvesant over the issue of religious freedom, they produced the Flushing Remonstrance, one of the first public statements defending the separation of church and state. The village of Flushing was incorporated into the larger New York City area in 1898, and the community soon became famous for its beautiful tree-lined streets, a reminder of its rich horticultural heritage. The Bowne House, the First Quaker Meetinghouse, Kingsland Homestead, Flushing Town Hall, and St. George's Church are a few of the buildings known for their architectural merit and historic significance.

In the 1700s, Amsterdam was just a small trading village in upstate New York. Utilizing its superior location astride critical waterways, the village grew during the westward expansion of the early 1800s to become an industrial powerhouse. By the 20th century, Amsterdam had become America's foremost rug-making center, nicknamed the "Carpet City," and the seventh largest city in New York. Waves of Dutch, German, Irish, Italian, and eastern European immigrants were drawn to the city for work. Some became mill workers while others became millionaires. The vintage postcards in Amsterdam tell the story of an American dream created, lost, and still pursued on what was once America's frontier.

Outgrowing its remarkably shortlived location in midtown Manhattan, Columbia College moved uptown in the mid1890s, not only transforming itself into an urban university under university president Seth Low, but also creating an urban campus guided by Charles McKim, William Rutherford Mead, and Stanford White's master plan. The university became a major constituent of what would be described as New York's Acropolis on Morningside Heights. It was preceded in this endeavor by the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine and St. Luke's Hospital, and it was soon joined by Barnard College, Teachers College, and Union Theological Seminary, among others. The arrival of the Interborough Rapid Transit Subway in 1904 spurred residential and retail development.