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Native American Heritage Month
Celebrate and honor the cultural heritage, diverse histories, and continuing contributions of Native People during Native American Heritage Month (and every month) at the New York State Museum.
We invite you to visit the State Museum, attend our programming, and explore the additional resources below.
Upcoming Events
Statewide Programs & Resources
Check out the Office of State History's comprehensive list of NAHM events, lectures, and site visits happening across New York State!
https://www.nysm.nysed.gov/research-collections/state-history/notes/nati...
A New York Minute in History Podcast: Centering Authentic Indigenous Voices
Discover ways historians can center authentic indigenous voices and work with Native American communities across the state in planning for the upcoming 250th anniversary of the American Revolution.
Artwork on Loan
Discover artwork from the NYSM Contemporary Indigenous Artwork & Ethnology Collections that is currently on loan (and on view!) with organizations throughout New York State.
Anthropology Teacher Workshop
The 2024 Anthropology Teacher Workshop will be a one-day hybrid program held in-person at the New York State Museum and online on Saturday, March 23, 2024. Teachers will earn 8 hours of CTLE credit and gain valuable insight into the forefront of scientific research happening right here in New York State.
Learn more and register today:
https://nysm.nysed.gov/programs/anthropology-teacher-workshop
Featured Video
Karen Ann Hoffman’s Inspiration for Creating Bernard the Buzzard Bag
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Karen Ann Hoffman (Photo credit Tom Pich)
Recorded on November 18, 2020
Artist Karen Ann Hoffman (Oneida Nation of Wisconsin) talks about Bernard the Buzzard Bag, a work she created in 2018 that is featured in the exhibit Each One Inspired: Indigenous Art Across the Homelands here at the State Museum.
Hoffman is the recipient of a 2020 National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. Her work is represented in private collections and museums across the country, including here at the State Museum, the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, the Field Museum, and the Iroquois Indian Museum.
Educator Resources & Online Exhibitions
Dispossession of Indigenous Lands Map
Learn more about territorial boundaries and the locations of present-day Indigenous Nations and communities whose ancestral lands lie within what is now New York.
Represent: Contemporary Native American Art
The Contemporary Native American Art Collection honors a living legacy of master craftsmanship and vibrant innovation in the artistic expressions of New York State's First Nations.
View the Online Exhibit
View the Educational Guide (PDF)
A Kanien’keha:ka (Mohawk) Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Village
Discover more about three of the NYSM's most popular dioramas from the Native Peoples Gallery: A reconstruction of a full-size kanonhsésne (longhouse), a scale model of a Kanien’keha:ka (Mohawk) Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Village, and an agricultural field highlighting the three main crops utilized by the Haudenosaunee.
View the Online Exhibit
View Instructions on How to Build a Longhouse (PDF)
Schedule a School Group Tour: List of Programs
» Cradleboards and Longhouses
» Native Peoples of New York - A Journey
» People of the Longhouse
Fort Orange
Fort Orange was the first permanent Dutch settlement in New Netherland. Built as a trading post by the West India Company in 1624, the fort was also a point of contact and trade between Native Americans and Europeans.
View Exhibit Information
View Educational Materials:
» Native American Daily Life before Dutch Arrival (Google Doc)
» Trade at Fort Orange (Google Doc)
Research & Collections
Native American Ethnography at the NYSM
Ethnography at the New York State Museum is focused on the documentation and analysis of human culture, specifically Native American culture, and explores how Native peoples lived in the past and continue to build and preserve their culture in the present.
» Explore Ethnography Research
» Explore Ethnography Collections
Research & News
Native American Archaeology
Native Americans have been present in New York for 13,000 years. Since the mid-19th century, the New York State Museum has conducted archaeological investigations that have helped to write the histories of Native Americans in the state. The Museum continues that tradition today through field- and collections-based research.
» Explore Native American Archaeology Research
» Explore Native American Archaeology Collections
Research & News
Each One Inspired: Artwork from the Exhibition
Explore select artworks featured in the exhibition, on view through March 31, 2024.
Highlights from the Collections
View recent acquisitions to the NYSM Contemporary Native American Art Collection and artifacts from the NYSM Anthropology Collection.
The McVaugh Collection
Sometimes important collections come in small packages. Learn more about this incredible donation of projectile points made to the NYSM by the McVaugh family.
Indigenous Culture & History Classroom Resources from PBS
Season 2 of Native America is available on PBS (check local listings for times). A groundbreaking portrait of contemporary Indian country, this four-part Native-directed series reveals the beauty and power of today’s Indigenous world.
Access the Indigenous Culture & History folder featuring curated classroom resources from PBS LearningMedia, including materials from Native America. These multimedia support materials range in focus from New York State to across the United States. Grades K-12.
Educational Videos for Young Audiences
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October 19, 2021Education
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October 19, 2021Education
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October 19, 2021Education
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October 19, 2021Education
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October 19, 2021Education
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October 19, 2021Education
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September 30, 2020Education
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September 30, 2020Education
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September 30, 2020Education
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September 30, 2020Education
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September 30, 2020Education
Art & Culture
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October 29, 2023Social History
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March 7, 2022Ethnography
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January 20, 2022Ethnography
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April 13, 2021Ethnography
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November 18, 2020Ethnography
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September 14, 2020Ethnography
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July 16, 2020Ethnography
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June 3, 2020Ethnography
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May 13, 2020Ethnography
Native American Archaeology
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May 6, 2020Native American Archaeology
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April 20, 2011Native American Archaeology
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January 27, 2011Native American Archaeology
The New York State Museum is a program of the University of the State of New York
New York State Education Department