<P> The New - York Historical Society is an American history museum and library located in New York City at the corner of 77th Street and Central Park West in Manhattan, founded in 1804 as New York's first museum . The New - York Historical Society presents exhibitions, public programs, and research that explore the rich history of New York and the nation . The New - York Historical Society Museum & Library has been at its present location since 1908 . The granite building was designed by York & Sawyer in a classic Roman Eclectic style . A renovation of the landmark building was completed in November 2011 that made it more open to the public, provided space for an interactive children's museum, and accomplished other changes to enhance access to its collections . </P> <P> Louise Mirrer has been the president of the Historical Society since 2004 . She was previously Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs of the City University of New York . Beginning in 2005, the museum presented a groundbreaking two - year exhibit on Slavery in New York, its largest theme exhibition in 200 years on a topic which it had never addressed before . It included an art exhibit by artists invited to use museum collections in their works . </P>

Where is the new york historical society located