Research

Scope and Content Note

This series consists of about 2,500 3" x 5" index cards containing basic biographical information on influential New York residents from the late seventeenth to early twentieth centuries. Residents documented vary in prominence and socioeconomic background, and fall into a wide variety of vocations: authors; physicians; politicians; lawyers; sports figures; early settlers; inventors; engineers; businessmen; artists; musicians; scientists; journalists; educators; military officials and soldiers; human rights advocates; entertainers; and philanthropists. Examples range from the prominent Vanderbilt family and baseball legend Lou Gehrig, to lesser known individuals such as painter Walter Launt Palmer and educator Alice Elvira Freeman. Information on cards includes name; birth and death dates; place of birth; town and county of residence; place of burial; education; and occupation. Some cards provide references to sources of illustrations or further biographical information. Information was recorded between 1940 and 1942.