About Us

The village of Yonkers was founded in 1646, but it was not recognized as an official city until June 1, 1872.

In 1877, the first formally organized group in Yonkers was appointed without term by the Common Council of the newly formed city for the purpose of collecting and preserving the early history of Yonkers. They called themselves "The Committee on the History and Historical Relics of Yonkers." The committee consisted of seven official members, which included Mayor Samuel Swift. William H. Doty served as Secretary. The other members, who would later become permanent members, were Reverend Dr. David Cole, Robert P. Getty, Ralph E. Prime, and Frederic Shonnard, and Professor H. M. Baird. Alderman Thomas Egan was added to the committee ex officio, which meant he gained membership due to his position in the newly formed government.

Welcome to Yonkers photo by Jason Medina.

This was essentially an early version of what is now the Yonkers Historical Society.

Colorized image of Downtown Yonkers, circa 1882, from the Rudolf Smith Collection at the Yonkers Historical Society.

On April 20, 1882, the committee issued a public announcement requesting for the loan or gift of historical items that pertained to the community. A register was kept of all such items and receipts were issued to the donors or lenders. Most of the objects donated or lent to the committee were labeled accordingly to indicate the owner or donor's information.

Later that year, the committee became known as “The Committee on the Historical Records of Yonkers.”

On November 2, 1891, the committee changed its name, again, to “The Yonkers Historical and Library Association.” It helped to preserve historic Philipse Manor Hall. This group was active until taken over by the Yonkers branch of the "Westchester County Historical Society."
By 1928, it seemed like a fitting time for a new historical society to emerge in Yonkers. The "Westchester County Historical Society" appointed Yonkers resident Samuel B. Hawley to start a Yonkers Chapter of the organization. It was well known that his family had always been interested in local history. His father had been vice president of the "Westchester County Historical Society" during the early 1890s and was also one of the founders of the first "Yonkers Historical Association." His father-in-law served as the first president of that organization. Therefore, it was no surprise when Hawley was selected to start up the new Yonkers Chapter.

On June 14, 1941, the Yonkers Chapter of the "Westchester Historical Society" held an informal Tea and Garden Party on the terrace west of Philipse Manor Hall. The party was partly to celebrate Flag Day and partly to celebrate the cancellation of an admissions fee to enter the Manor Hall. According to the minutes of the party, it also marked the end of the Yonkers Chapter of the Westchester Historical Society.
For the next decade, Yonkers did not have a historic society. This was a significant reason why the Greystone Mansion at Untermyer Park could not be saved from demolition during the 1940s. It was a travesty that would not be repeated with a certain Colonial farm house on Tuckahoe Road.

Sherwood House from YHS Archives.

In the early 1950s, historic Sherwood House was threatened with demolition for the construction of power lines by the Consolidated Edison Company of New York. A small group succeeded in saving and preserving the structure. This group of dedicated citizens also assumed the records and membership of the old Yonkers branch of the "Westchester Historical Society" and formed the "Yonkers Historical Society," as we know it today.

Beginning in 1952, the Hudson River Museum served as the home for the newly formed society for several years. During the mid-1980s the Yonkers Historical Society moved to a fourth floor office within the Manhattan Savings Bank Building at 20 South Broadway. This move proved to be temporary. Next, the office was relocated to Sherwood House. The doctor's office on the ground floor was used for meetings, while a storage room next door served as office space. When that became too cramped, the society relocated its offices behind the City Hall Ceremonial Courtroom for about a decade. After several other potential locations fell through, the office was eventually moved, again, to the basement floor of the Grinton I. Will Yonkers Public Library in 2003. This was intended to be a temporary move. However, it is where the office remains today.

The Yonkers Historical Society, which was chartered by the Board of Regents of the New York State Education Department in 1957, strives to preserve the historic records, structures and sites of our city. In more recent times, the Yonkers Historical Society was again the driving force behind saving Philipse Manor Hall from abandonment.

Since 1952, the Yonkers Historical Society has been working to save Yonkers’ rich heritage for future generations. The Society maintains the historic Sherwood House (built circa 1740), sponsors a wide variety of special events, advocates for the preservation of historic landmarks and neighborhoods, and fosters a greater appreciation of the city’s unique heritage through its educational programs. Its library boasts a treasure of photographs, books, maps, and documents that cover almost every aspect of our community’s history over the last four centuries.

In 2005, the Yonkers Historical Society, with the Blue Door Art Gallery, created a traveling photography exhibit "Yonkers Then and Now" to contrast the Yonkers of the late 19th and early 20th century with current images. Some of those image comparisons can be seen below.