Immigration in New York State, 1650-1950
Immigrants built a vibrant, diverse and modern New York State. However, the arrival of European immigrants was also incredibly disruptive. Our history bears those imprints, as well as many more positive outcomes. Immigrants have come to New York for many reasons: to escape persecution, to improve their economic outlook, and to build new lives. This exhibit focuses on historic immigration to New York State from 1650 to 1950. Our story begins with the arrival of Dutch settlers and continues through the end of the World Wars.
This exhibit was curated by David Hochfelder (SUNY University at Albany) and Karen Pastorello (SUNY Tompkins Cortland Community College), with project management and additional contributions from Julia Corrice (Cornell University), Claire Lovell (SCRLC), Ryan Perry (CLRC), Nicole Menchise (LILRC), and Heidi Ziemer (WNYLRC).
A joint exhibit of the Digital Public Library of America and Europeana, Leaving Europe: A new life in America houses dozens of images, manuscripts, and letters, with explanatory text and contextualizing historical information. I've linked to the major themes of the the exhibit below, but each theme has many pages, each with its own images and documents.