New York State Museum

About this museum

The New York State Museum in Albany is, by nearly any measure, one of the great public museums in the United States - and the fact that admission is entirely free makes it one of the most extraordinary cultural values in the country. This institution at 222 Madison Avenue houses collections of staggering breadth, ranging from the geological prehistory of the New York landscape to the social upheavals of the 20th century, with stops at everything in between: the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy, the Erie Canal, the immigrant experience in New York City, the labor movement, and one of the most sobering and carefully assembled collections of September 11th artifacts anywhere in the world.That 9/11 collection deserves particular mention. The museum received a substantial body of material from the recovery effort at Ground Zero, and the way it presents these objects - with great restraint and profound respect - has earned recognition as one of the most moving exhibitions related to the attacks outside of the National September 11 Memorial Museum in lower Manhattan. For visitors who experienced that day at any remove, a few minutes in that gallery can be deeply affecting in ways that are hard to anticipate.Equally remarkable, and much more cheerful, is the fully restored 1890s carousel from the long - demolished Savin Rock amusement park in Connecticut. It operates within the museum - a functioning piece of American folk art and mechanical ingenuity that children can actually ride. This is emblematic of the museum's broader approach: finding the human and sensory dimension of history, not just the documentary.With over 4, 000 reviews averaging 4.7 stars, this museum has earned its reputation comprehensively over many years of visitor engagement. Hours run Tuesday through Sunday from 9:30 AM to 5 PM; closed Monday. Admission is free - no suggested donation, simply free. Visit nysm.nysed.gov to plan your visit. Albany is easily reached from New York City, Boston, and across the Northeast.