The NYS Museum in Albany Holds Amazing, Odd Historic Items. Take a Look!

The number of oddly fascinating items one can find at the New York State are amazing.  Historic baseballs, weird advertising items, nostalgic trains, the huge Cohoes Mastodon (wow), history of our immigrant past, and, yes, even an exploding guitar.  And that, my friends, would have been worth the price of admission to see back in 1920.

The New York State Museum in Albany is the largest and oldest state museum in the United States (1836).  It is located at one end of the beautiful Empire State Plaza (its modern edifice facing the venerable old New York State Capitol on the other end).  Admission is free, and thousands of visitors pass through the turnstiles every year to take advantage of maybe the "best deal" in the Empire State.

Of special note is a large section of the museum dedicated to the memory of that fateful day, September 11, 2001.  The collection of artifacts on display in the museum comprise the largest and most comprehensive 9/11 collection anywhere.  To visit this section of the museum can be a heart-stopping, sobering experience you won't soon forget.

And then.....what about the exploding guitar?  On the fun side, this item just can't be beat.  It dates back to a vaudevillian in the 1920s named Joe Cook.  You will see the story about his act in this gallery.  Funny guy, funny story.

There are so many (thousands) if items from the museum that we would like to share, that this will be just the first of several more galleries in the future that will highlight the amazing (and odd) treasures found at the New York state Museum.