Leonard Gansevoort, Jr. (1754-1834) was a lawyer, served the American cause during the Revolutionary War, was a member and later secretary of the Albany Commissioners for Detecting and Defeating Conspiracies, and served on Albany Council Committees for many years.

The collection consists primarily of family photographs and notes on Livingston genealogy.

The collection includes an extensive genealogical study of the Falk, Herschowitz and Rosenfeld families done by Louise Marwill. The study follows the family from Germany to Albany and is comprised of families stories and photographs. There is an extensive section on the family escaping Germany during the Holocaust which includes Kathe Mueller Slonim’s first hand account of what she witnessed in Germany and letters written by Gottlieb Rosenfeld about what he witnessed in Frankfurt and his desperation to get his family safely to the United States. There is a small collection of post cards sent by Henry Perle during World War II. There are several pieces of school material for Louise Marwill including school programs, certificates and photographs. There is also material from Louise’s marriage to Lawrence Marwill on June 19, 1960.

The collection is composed of material pertaining to the McWilliam, Parkhill, and Simpson families.

Henry Van Houten Onderdonk (1815-1886) was born to Peter and Eleanor Chatterton Onderdonk. He married twice and had five children with his second wife, Sarah Potter Mitchell Onderdonk.

The Palmer-Gavit Family Papers include the correspondence, writings, genealogy, scrapbooks, photographs, and articles pertaining to the entire Gavit family. The collection also contains correspondence, reference materials, scrapbooks, record books and writings related to Erastus Dow Palmer and Walter Launt Palmer.

The Pruyn Family Papers contains documents relating to three consecutive generations of the John Pruyn Family, along with genealogies and personal papers of more distant family relations. An autograph collection of presidents, statesmen, and local historic figures is included. The ownership of 43-45 North Pearl Street is documented from the first sale in 1679 to the last in 1968. The estates of Eleanor Erving, Justine Bayard Erving and Van Rensselaer Pruyn are also documented.

The Schuyler Family was a prominent Dutch family in New York and New Jersey, with Philip Pieterse Schuyler immigrating to New Netherland and settling in Beverwyck before 1650. The family was connected by marriages to many of the other original settlers of New Netherland, and several members played important roles in the development of the new country. This collection contains correspondence, wills, estate records, and other documents.

The Ten Eyck/Bronk Family Papers contain the records of the descendants of Jacob C. Ten Eyck (1705-1793), and primarily contain documents relating to family property and financial concerns.

The Meadows collection is comprised of documents, papers, and photographs collected by the families that owned The Meadows mansion in Cazenovia, NY. These families include The Ledyards, The Hubbards, and The Oakmans, providing a snapshot of the personal life of an upper class family during the mid 1800s to the 1950s. Please see the scope and content note for a more in depth description of the collection.