With New York City in our thoughts, we share history
about the Nantucket–New York Connection
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Photo
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An escaped Tony Sarg balloon figure from the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City is shown rising high over the Empire State Building, 1930. NHA photo collection, PH8-75-3.
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NHA University is a weekly resource featuring videos, history topics, artifacts, transcription projects, and more. Intended to enrich at-home learning for all—coming to your inbox every Tuesday.
Attend NHA University online anytime to catch up on past lessons,
here.
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Test your ACK knowledge
Take our online quiz after exploring these items from our collection.
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Compare and Contrast
the Island of Manhattan and the Island of Nantucket
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Manhattan
- 22.8 square miles
- 1.6 million people
- Governed by Mayor and Councils System
- Many well-known landmarks
- First inhabited by Native Americans
- European settlers came in the 1600s
- Landfill used to expand lower Manhattan
- Fine architectural history
- Tourism vital to the economy
- High real estate prices
- Numerous bridges on and off the island
- Several tunnels
- Ferry service
- 115 feet above sea level
- 32 museums
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Nantucket
- 47.8 square miles
- 17,000 people
- Governed by Board of Selectmen
- Many well-known landmarks
- First inhabited by Native Americans
- European settlers came in the 1600s
- Landfill used to expand Easy St. area
- Fine architectural history
- Tourism vital to the economy
- High real estate prices
- No bridge to Nantucket
- No tunnels
- Ferry service
- 109 feet above sea level
- 4 museums
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Did you know Nantucket was once part of New York?
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What does Nantucket have in common with the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade?
Our own Tony Sarg Sea Monster Balloon
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Tony Sarg sea serpent film clip, 1937. NHA film collection, FC-001.
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Historic Nantucket
Click image to open article page!
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The Nantucket
–
New York Connection
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By Frances Karttunen
At twenty-year intervals during the twentieth century (1937, 1957, 1977), Nantucket received national attention for threatening to secede from Massachusetts and join New York.
In 1937, the issue was electrical rates. Nantucketers demanded that the Massachusetts Public Utilities Commissioners “arrange quickly a schedule of rates for the Nantucket Gas and Electric Company that seem more nearly equitable to fair- minded citizens” or the island would secede from the Commonwealth.
Photo
: Ephemera from MS290 Collection on Nantucket Secession Movement. “In our need we must sea-cede” bumper sticker and sample passports, gift of Louise Benoit (Acc. RL2005.7)
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How a Nantucket Woman Made Macy’s
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By Amelia W. Holmes
Associate Director,
NHA Research Library
Nantucket women have a long history in business, taking an active role in running island stores while many men were at sea. It’s unsurprising, then, that the person who transformed Macy’s into the first modern department store was a woman born and raised on Nantucket. As superintendent of Macy’s, Margaret Getchell was one of the first female executives in American retail, giving the store a competitive advantage in marketing to its largely female customer base.
Macy’s department store, founded by Nantucket native Rowland Hussey Macy, was the first modern department store in the United States, and, at one point, the world’s largest. It was also among the first to employ a female executive, something that’s still rare in retail today.
Photo
: Margaret Getchell: From the Macy’s Archive, this portrait of Margaret Getchell was probably taken around 1871, when Getchell was 30.
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Poster advertising Rockwell's
New York Circus,
1847
Ink on paper, 36" x 25 1/2"
1956.42.1
In November 1847, Rockwell’s New York Circus set sail on the brig
Young Lady
, bound to Boston from Sydney, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. After fourteen days of storms and contrary winds, they ran short of food and water for themselves and their show horses, and Captain Knox brought the vessel into Nantucket. To make the most of the unscheduled stop, the circus performers applied to the town selectmen for permission to perform and pitched their tent at the corner of Broad and Water streets for four days only, with tickets at 12 1/2 cents and 25 cents.
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Enhance at home learning by downloading historic house cut-outs, lighthouse coloring books, and a Nantucket word search.
Stay tuned as more kits are added weekly, including a puppet cut-out!
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During this difficult time, the NHA is pleased to share curated digital content weekly for the enrichment and enjoyment of our members and friends. Staff looks forward to welcoming you back to the Whaling Museum to enjoy an expansive array of exhibitions and programs once it is safe to open our doors. Any contribution to help sustain our mission would be greatly appreciated.
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The NHA is closed to the public; this includes the Whaling Museum, Research Library, Gift Shop, and Historic Properties.
All NHA public programs and events are cancelled for the foreseeable future.
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