September 07, 2006

Open House sneak preview: Federal Hall, Chrysler

Later this month, Open House New York will release its official list of more than 175 sites that will open to the public October 7 and 8 for free behind-the-scenes tours of some of the most interesting, normally off-limits spots in New York City.

OHNY has trickled out a few selected locations so far, (such as the City Reliquary Museum and the Chrysler Building lobby,) but NewYorkology has stumbled upon a few more as individual locations added the dates to their fall calendars.

Federal Hall, closed more than a year for massive renovations, will take part in the fourth annual Open House, according to the National Park Service web site.

Robert W. Lobenstein, the general superintendent of New York City Transit, will lead two limited-capacity tours of "a historic substation, the colossal powerhouses that generate and transmit the power that moves the subway," according to the The New York Transit Museum.

Governors Island, which is already closed for the season and was only recently reopened to the public on a limited basis after more than a century as a military base, will open for OHNY. Guided tours will be offered both days at 10 a.m., noon and 2 p.m., with "special access to some of the more historically important building interiors."

One of the city's oldest resting places, the New York City Marble Cemetery on Second Street, will again be open for tours this year. (It will also open September 23 as part of the Second Street Fair.)

The South Street Seaport Museum will offer limited-capacity tours focusing on Schermerhorn Row.

The Brooklyn Historical Society will offer free admission all weekend, as well as tours of its restored Queen Anne building in Brooklyn Heights.

The Wycoff Farm Museum in Brooklyn and Historic Richmond Town on Saten Island will both take part in some way as well.

The Save Ellis Island organization in a newsletter earlier this year mentioned it would participate again. Last year's tour was the first time members of the general public were ever allowed on the still-shuttered hospital side of the island. (On September 23, for $45, The General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen is leading a walking tour of the Ellis Island Hospital Complex.)

Earlier this summer, OHNY said the following locations and events will be included in the 2006 OHNY program: the David Ling Architect headquarters, a behind-the-scenes tour of the Meatpacking District, a Red Hook boaters tour and a Red Hook walking tour .

OHNY is currenly looking for volunteers to help staff the sites. They ask for a committment of about four hours. In return you get a fast pass that allows you to jump the line at all other OHNY locations. Pretty good, considering 75,000 people are expected to attend OHNY this year.

Update: The New Yorker adds two more locales to the list: the United Nations and the Brooklyn Army Terminal.

Earlier: Open House NY 2006 set for October 7 and 8
More pictures from Open House New York
Open House NY roundup: peeping behind closed doors
Exploring secret Ellis Island during Open House NY

September 7, 2006 08:34 AM in Architecture, Cheap Stuff, History, Kids, Museums, Sightsology, Tours

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