2023 Programming – additional special tours and offerings are being added. Please contact us for special group, school, senior, or children’s group visits.
Town & Country: The Pastoral in Albany County – free online lecture series, Fridays noon-12:30 pm. Register here.
- March 17: Workers & the Pastoral: African American & Irish workers who created Albany’s gardens and estates.
- March 24: The Pastoral in Albany County: Art & Memory
- March 31: Arcadian Visions: Women’s Art & Embroidery
March 24-26: Visit us at the Capital Region Flower & Garden Expo (HVCC) to learn to make Victorian terrariums.
April 7: Easter Egg Hunt and Spring Art Contest. Free for all families.
April 11: Free Family Art program outreach at the Palace Theatre.
April 22 & on-going: Community Garden Days and Community Clean-up Days – register here
April 26: Office Hours: Community Digitization Project – free
April–May 2023: Ancient & Noble Trees of Albany County—free online lecture series.
May 12: Opening Day for Ten Broeck Mansion Tours. Free to ACHA members.
May 20: Plants of North America Family Art & Gardens Program – free
May 27: STEAM @ Ten Broeck: middle school/teen free technology program – free
May 31: Office Hours: Community Digitization Project – free
Special Exhibits May-October: Technology: Expression & Expansion in Albany County. Artifacts & special programming.
June 1: Follies in America: A History of Garden and Park Architecture by Kerry Dean Carso—free to ACHA members
June 8: Annual Meeting, special walk-through tours of Ten Broeck Mansion. Free to members.
June 10: Kids’ Planting & Garden Program – free
June 16-18: Juneteenth Weekend at the Ten Broeck Mansion celebrating the life of Roseanna Vosburgh, born June 17, 1800. Special tours & art programs. Free.
- June 17: Plants of Africa Family Art & Garden Program – free
- June 17: Archaeology Day at Ten Broeck in partnership with the NYS Museum and Hartgen Archaeological Associates – free
June 24: STEAM @ Ten Broeck: middle school/teen free technology program – free
June 28: Office Hours: Community Digitization Project – free
July 1: Plants of Europe Family Art & Garden Program – free
July 8: STEAM @ Ten Broeck: middle school/teen free technology program – free
July 15: Plants of Asia Family Art & Garden Program – free
July 22: STEAM @ Ten Broeck: middle school/teen free technology program – free
July 26: Office Hours: Community Digitization Project – free
July 29: Plants of Oceania Family Art & Garden Program – free
August 5: Plants of South America Family Art & Garden Program – free
August 12: STEAM @ Ten Broeck: middle school/teen free technology program – free
August 19: Global Explorer Pastport Program
August 26-27: Shakespeare Festival
- free family acting workshops – August 26 – free
- Shakespeare performance in the Ten Broeck Gardens with Capital REP – August 26 – donations appreciated
- Shakespeare in the Mansion: readings & poetic sightings in the Ten Broeck Mansion – August 27 – donations appreciated
August 30: Office Hours: Community Digitization Project – free
September 9: Jamming in Arbor Hill – family jam/jelly and art making workshop – free
September 27: Office Hours: Community Digitization Project – free
September 30: Tulip Bulb Planting & Take-home Bulb Kits – free
October 7: Path Through History Day. Theme: Crossroads: Race, Ethnicity, and Identity in Albany County. Free.
- walk-through tours of the Ten Broeck Mansion – free
- free historians’ speaker series – free
- County-wide history explorations – free
October 21: Family Scavenger Hunt – free
December 2-17: Holiday House
Online Exhibit: Learn more about our recently digitized historic documents (manuscripts and archives) here: Through These Doors & in our Neighborhood: A Virtual Exhibit | Albany County Historical Association (tenbroeckmansion.org). Additional information is here.
Look for upcoming Immersion Tours and other special programs this summer.
2022 Programs Archives:
(Extra)Ordinary: Images of Everyday Life in Albany – free, registration open
- Virtual programming, Fridays noon-12:30 pm – free
- February 25: Hannah’s Family: African American Family Identity in Albany County – in honor of Black History Month
- March 4: In Memoriam: Emotion & Embroidery in the Early Republic
- March 11: Caritas: Victorian Values in Art
- March 18: Painting & Politics in Albany
History & Horticulture in Albany
Virtual Programming – Wednesdays 7-7:30 pm – free, registration open
- April 6: Historic Apple Orchards in Upstate New York, David Zakalik, MA, Cornell University. Plus introduction from NE New York Orchid Society.
- April 13: Greenhouses: A Transatlantic Exchange, Alan Stein, author of The Conservatory: Gardens Under Glass (Princeton Architectural Press). Purchase book here (20% discount code for the book sent with registration).
- April 20: Rebuilding Dickinson’s Conservatory, Jane Wald, Director, Emily Dickinson Museum, Amherst MA.
Family History Scanning Days: free workshops on caring for family heirlooms with an opportunity to have your family documents (up to 20 per family group) professionally scanned for inclusion in research materials for students and historians. Free preservation supplies and consultation with archivists and curators about caring for your family’s records.
- March 29 & 30 – introduction (virtual program) – register here
- May 21
- June 18
- July 16
- October 8
- Historical Society & Church Archivist Training Workshop: date TBA – free for Albany County historical societies, library groups, and houses of worship – registration TBA
Ten Broeck Mansion Tours: re-open May 14, end October 15 – advance registration requested via ticket link above
- May/September/October: Fridays 10 am, 11 am, noon, 1 pm; Saturdays 1 pm, 2 pm, 3 pm
- June/July/August: Fridays 10 am, 11 am, noon, 1 pm; Saturdays & Sundays 1 pm, 2 pm, 3 pm
- Children are free. Adults: $5. Seniors, Veterans, & College Students: $4.
- Special tours on select Wednesdays and Thursdays – please see below for dates.
- Note: all Friday 1 pm tours will have the special theme: Healthy, Wealthy & Wise: Households & Health at the Ten Broeck Mansion Learn how families stayed healthy from the 1700s-1800s as you progress room-by-room through the Ten Broeck Mansion. Discover hidden drains and linen cupboards – and learn about underground waterways and other evidence informing us about changing attitudes towards health and wellness in Albany NY.
Additional 2022 Focus tours, garden tours, and Immersion Tours
- Immersion Tours: Freedom & Opportunity in Albany: explore three of Albany’s finest historic sites and museums to explore stories of abolition, freedom, immigration and labor at the Ten Broeck Mansion, Underground Railroad Education Center, and Irish American Heritage Museum. Thursday Aug 18, Sep 15, Oct 20 2-6 pm.
- Hidden Histories: Ten Broeck Mansion Garden & Architecture Tours: Wednesdays 1-2 pm, July 27, Aug 24, Sep 21, Oct 26, 1-2 pm. Have you ever wondered how a historic house and landscape is restored? Join us for an outdoor tour to learn about the Ten Broeck Mansion and its gardens and learn about the hidden histories within our site.
- Arbor Hill Neighbors: the Ten Broeck Mansion’s Historic Neighborhood: Thursdays Aug 11, Sep 8, Oct 13, 1-2 pm. Join us for a walking tour around the grounds of the 5-acre 1764 Ten Broeck Land Plot, as we explore the Mansion’s connections to Albany’s second oldest residential neighborhood, Arbor Hill. Learn about the development of the Ten Broeck Land Plot, and the interconnections to early neighbors in our community.
Our gardens are open free to our community: to make a welcoming experience for all, please follow our garden regulations here
Living History Community Days: free family garden, health, & art-making programs 10:30-11:30 – art projects Explore our gardens, museum collections, and many cultures with the theme “Our Big, Big World.”
- Living History Family Art & Garden Series: Saturdays 10:30-11:30 am. Free.
- May 21 – opening event
- June 18 – plants of Africa – art project: papyrus leaf printing
- July 2 – plants of Asia – art project: tea box treasure chest & tea tasting
- July 16 – plants of South America – art project: 3 sisters rock painting & heirloom seeds
- July 30 – plants of “Down Under”/Oceania – art project: Wardian case (fairy garden) & pineapple ornament
- August 13 – plants of North America – art project: sunflower surprise
Juneteenth Celebration Weekend June 18-19:
- free admission to the Ten Broeck Mansion June 18-19
- free Living History Family Programs June 18 – children’s discovery tours of African plants featured in our gardens; art making project: botanicals inspired by African printmaking
- free Family History Scanning Day: June 18, with free research techniques consultation with ACHA staff who specialize in African American family research in the Hudson Valley
- county-wide historic site tours: special theme: Freedom in Albany
Archaeology Day: June 18 – free – registration open
- participate in a hands-on archaeology dig at the Ten Broeck Mansion 10 am – 2 pm
Shakespeare Festival: August 27
- Free Family Shakespeare Workshop 1-2:30 pm with Confetti Stage
- Selections from Shakespeare by Capital Repertory Theatre 2:30-3:30 pm
Landscape Volunteers & Gardening Days Saturdays 9 – 11 am – please pre-register for more information
- April 30 -kick-off event
- May 21
- June 18
- July 16
- August 13
- September 10
- October 1 (bulb planting)
- October 8 (bulb planting – rain date)
Immerse in History: County-wide Historic Site Program
Free Ten Broeck Mansion tour admission these weekends (advance registration required) – travel county-wide making your own historical connections, exploring themes of freedom, the Revolutionary War, architecture & gardens, and education. Free admission all weekend. Schedule and stops TBA.
- October 8/9
Summer Camps
- August 1-5, 10 am – 3 pm Bright Ideas: Art-Based Community Leadership Camp: for Arbor Hill teens (grades 8-12) – nomination for program via school, church, or community group – free tuition. Contact us for the application. Instructor: Yaw Boateng, YB Graphic Design.
Fall Events:
- Ten Broeck Mansion Art & Artisan Show: applications TBA
- October 1 Family Bulb Planting & Take-home Bulb Kits – free
- October 22 Free Family Scavenger Hunt – free
To ensure a safe experience for all, participants will follow safe social distancing, mask-wearing, and other required health practices. Sanitation stations available.
Free educational programs made possible in part with funding by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and members of the ACHA like you: thank you.