Online Exhibits

 

Story of Kensico

Playland

Bronx River Parkway

African-American Genealogical Resources

County Executives of Westchester County

An American Tragedy -- The Westchester Connection

   Our online exhibits can help you learn more about Westchester County's rich history and ways to better study it!
        
The Story of Kensico
Kensico Village no longer exists; it was flooded in the early 20th century as part of the construction of the Kensico Dam and Reservoir. This exhibit looks at the people who lived in Kensico, including those who flocked there to help build the dam.  It also explores how the construction of the dam affected the lives of Kensico's schoolchildren.  Activity sheets are provided for each section of the exhibit providing document based questions geared towards senior and junior high school students.
click here to view exhibit
            
Playland
The creation of America's first totally planned amusement park and some of its earliest rides and activities.
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Bronx River Parkway
The Bronx River Parkway celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2000.  This exhibit relies heavily on the Archives' photographic collections to detail the construction and debut of this historic highway.      
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For another telling of this story, read the Historic American Engineering Record report on the Bronx River Parkway Reservation available at our Virtual Archives website.

           
"Our Roots Run Deep..."
African-American Genealogical Resources
This exhibit explores a wide variety of resources available to individuals  researching African-American heritage, many of which are often overlooked.
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County Executives of Westchester County
Since 1937 Westchester County's government has included a County Executive.  This exhibit provides biographic information on each of our county's seven chief executives and the highlights of his administration.
click here to view exhibit
 
An American Tragedy -- The Westchester Connection
In 1931, a lawsuit was brought by novelist Theodore Dreiser in Westchester County Court.  Dreiser v. Paramount Publix Corporation challenged the artistic freedom of a film producer to change the original intent of Dreiser's book An American Tragedy in creating a screen adaptation.  His novel was based on the infamous murder of pregnant Grace Brown by her fiancé Chester Gillette on an Adirondack lake in the summer of 1906.  In a landmark decision by the New York State Court of Appeals, Dreiser was provided no relief for his claims. 

On the 100th anniversary of the Gillette murder trial, the New York State Court of Appeals Lecture Series, co-sponsored by the Historical Society of the Courts of the State of New York, presented "Dreiser's 'An American Tragedy': The Law and the Arts".  Click here to go to the Historical Society of the Courts of the State of New York State website to view a webcast of the lecture and to learn more about the Gillette murder case and subsequent legal connections, including the 1931 court records held by the Westchester County Archives.
      

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