10 History Museums in New York City That You Shouldn't Miss

Museum devoted to Afro-American art and culture. Its offerings range from sculptures and wax mannequins to paintings and folk art.

The House on Henry Street is a permanent, interactive exhibition on the history of Henry Street Settlement and the people who shaped the Lower East Side from our founding in 1893 to the present. The exhibit illuminates themes of social activism, urban poverty, public health, and the Progressive Era. Open Monday-Friday, 9 am- 6 pm

Resulting from a merger between the Goethe-Institut and Inter Nationes, the Institute focuses on the teaching and dissemination of German language and culture.

The Museum of Interesting Things is a traveling interactive demonstration/exhibition of antiques and inventions that goes to schools and events and inspires kids and adults to be curious and to tinker. I like to say it shows kids and adults that their ipods did not pop out of thin air! Like a circus...just no elephants. We have themes that we can even bring to your school or event or you can come to our Secret Speakeasy: "Eureka!" The Invention Show Exploring the industrial revolution and mechanical era, with interactive demonstrations of such items as the steam engine, Thomas Edison cylinder phonograph, windup toys, mechanical door bells and mechanical/gear based household items such as butter churns and apple peelers. Coinciding with the NY/NJ/PA Core Content Curriculum Standards for Science, Social Studies, Technology and STEM/STEAM "I Can See for Miles" The Film & Photography Show Viewing the various methods of capturing a still and moving image throughout history from the camera, to the negative, to the printing methods & options including animation and 3D. Demonstrations are interactive and include box wooden cameras with up to 3 foot bellows, 3D photography from the late 1800’s up to today, albumen prints and tintypes, and glass negatives. Coinciding with the NY/NJ/PA Core Content Curriculum Standards for Visual and Performing Arts And that is just a snap shot of what we have! ;) 16mm vintage film Bouncing Ball Sing-A-Long The Museum of Interesting Things takes over your eyes & ears for a special Circus/Windup toy themed 16mm vintage film bouncing ball sing-a-long party! Remember those bouncing balls films? Well we have them on antique 16mm film! Prepare to sing your heart out! See 16mm films and the Museum will have it's History of Film and Photography exhibition there for you to see and learn about! See 16mm films and the Museum will have it's Windup Circus History of Toys exhibition there for you to see and learn about! Suffragette City The fight to give women the vote lasted over 100 years and spanned the world. This was not just a movement for voting rights, though. The Museum of Interesting Things, through its vast collection that includes actual artifacts from that era, will show you what a bicycle has to do with this. Learn why some men were afraid of women with hats and someone might even get to try on a bustle dress. See how other issues of the times influenced each other and view some of the humorous affirmations and counterpoints to allowing women to vote. By the end, let's see if society as we know it will collapse if the fairer sex enters a voting booth! Coinciding with the NY/NJ/PA Core Content Curriculum Standards for Social Studies

One of a kind operating barbershop where haircut and shaves is performed in an atmosphere of the beginning of XX century. All guests would get a pleasure to go back to the earlies 1900, the beginning of the modern history of barbershops ambitiously decorated with lots of golden elements, handcrafted woodwork and impressive chandeliers. A place of a meaningful social formation for a man in America.

The KGB Espionage Museum presents the biggest in the whole world and never-before-seen collection of items covering the activities of KGB agents and revealing the methods that underlay many of history's top secret espionage operations.

Visitors can retrace the steps of their ancestors at this famous landing point that welcomed millions of immigrants to the United States.

The New-York Historical Society features a host of permanent and rotating exhibitions that explore the history of New York City and the nation. The oldest museum in New York City, New-York Historical is home to a vast collection of objects, documents, and art, including one of the world’s largest collections of Tiffany glasswork, a recreation of the Oval Office, and the Center for Women's History, revealing the untold stories of women who have shaped the American experience.

The boyhood home (1858-1872) of the only United States President born in Manhattan. It is a national historic site managed by the National Park Service. The site includes galleries and 1865 period rooms with original objects that relate the story of young Theodore Roosevelt, his ranch days, presidency and exploration period.

The Merchant's House Museum is New York City's only 19th century home preserved intact, with original family furnishings and personal belongings.A unique survivor of Old New York, the House offers a rare and intimate glimpse of how a prosperous merchant family and their Irish servants lived from 1835 to 1865, when New York grew from seaport to thriving metropolis."The distinction of the Merchant's House -- and it is a powerful one -- is that it is the real thing. One simply walks through the beautiful doorway into another time and place in New York."The New York Times