Philipse Manor Hall State Historic Site and the Friends of Philipse Manor Hall are excited to host Russell Shorto on Saturday, March 8, 2025 for an evening celebrating the release of his new book Taking Manhattan: The Extraordinary Events that Created New York and Shaped America (out March 4, 2025). Shorto will talk about his book, highlighting the experiences of women for International Women’s Day, then stay afterwards for a book signing. Optional wine & cheese event with Russell Shorto to follow.
Russell Shorto will discuss his new book Taking Manhattan: The Extraordinary Events that Created New York and Shaped America, with a focus on the impacts of the Dutch-to-English transition on women in the museum's Gothic Chamber. The talk will be simulcast live online via WebEx.
Russell Shorto will be available for book signing in the museum's main reception area. Taking Manhattan is available for pre-order and pickup. Additional copies, along with Island at the Center of the World, will be available for sale in the museum gift shop during this time. Philipse Manor Hall museum interpreters will also be available for short tours of the museum focused on the content of the book.
Join Russell Shorto and the Friends of Philipse Manor Hall board for wine, cheese, and informal conversation in the museum's Gothic Chamber.
In 1664, the English wrested control of New Netherland from the Dutch, completing a burgeoning colonial empire that stretched from New England to Virginia. Locals like the Philipse family went from Dutch to English with the stroke of a pen. But while politics can change in an instant, cultural change takes much longer. Join us for talk with Russell Shorto on his new book Taking Manhattan: The Extraordinary Events That Created New York and Shaped America (out March 4, 2025). Bristling with vibrant characters, Taking Manhattan reveals the founding of New York to be an invention, the result of creative negotiations that would blend the multiethnic, capitalistic society of New Amsterdam with the power of the rising English empire. But the birth of what might be termed the first modern city is also a story of the brutal dispossession of Native Americans and of the roots of American slavery. The book draws from newly translated materials and illuminates neglected histories — of religious refugees, Indigenous tribes, and free and enslaved Africans.
In honor of International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, Shorto will also highlight the impact of this change on the colony’s free women, like Philipse family matriarch Margaret Hardenbroek, as they went from Dutch citizens and business owners with numerous legal rights, to the virtual property of their now-English husbands and fathers.
Taking Manhattan tells the riveting story of the birth of New York City as a center of capitalism and pluralism, a foundation from which America would rise. It also shows how the paradox of New York’s origins — boundless opportunity coupled with subjugation and displacement — reflects America’s promise and failure to this day. Russell Shorto, whose work has been described as “astonishing” (New York Times) and “literary alchemy” (Chicago Tribune), has once again mined archival sources to offer a vibrant tale and a fresh and trenchant argument about American beginnings.
Russell Shorto, author of the bestsellers Smalltime, Revolution Song, Amsterdam, and The Island at the Center of the World, is the director of the New Amsterdam Project at the New-York Historical Society. He lives in Maryland. You can learn more at www.russellshorto.com.
All tickets include the talk, book signing, and museum tours.
FPMH Member, in-person talk - $30.00
Non-member, in-person talk - $40.00
FPMH Member, in-person talk, plus wine & cheese event - $35.00
Non-member, in-person talk, plus wine & cheese event - $55.00
Pre-order copy of Taking Manhattan - $33.00
Purchase at the Friends of Philipse Manor Hall website
Virtual tickets include live simulcast access to the in-person talk. The talk will be recorded and available afterwards. Books shipped to you may be pre-ordered through the Friends of Philipse Manor Hall Bookshop storefront. Purchases support FPMH and public programs at Philipse Manor Hall.
FPMH Member virtual access- FREE!
Non-member, virtual access - $30.00
Student/Educator, virtual access - $10.00
Purchase at the Friends of Philipse Manor Hall website
