Unknown Museums of Upstate New York: A Guide to 50 Treasures

by Chuck D'Imperio

Unknown Museums of Upstate New York is an informative and entertaining guide to the rich resources available at fifty small, often overlooked, regional museums. DImperio tells each museums story, in light of its cultural and historical relevance, and he provides a wealth of information about the museums as places of interest to visit, not just to read about.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

334 pages, Paperback

First published August 15, 2013

Reviews

[Claudia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once again, Chuck D'Imperio wanders the reaches of Upstate New York (Hudson Valley region being the furthest south the book explores) tempting to find interesting and lesser known museums be it the Lucy and Desi Museum in Jamestown to the Kazoo museum in Eden (you can make one to take home with you) to the Catskill Fly Fishing Museum in Livingston Manor and the USS Slater Destroyer Escort Historical Museum in Albany.

Each entry starts with it's name and location with a description of it's collection and why. A black-and-white photo of the building or at least the entrance of the museum. D'Imperio gets a personal tour from a guide, or even the director/owner. Which comes in handy when he goes into the wow Factor item. Then there are -
The Takeaway - what he personally took away from the experience
Nuts and Bolts - address, phone, webpage, and other relevant information
Travel Suggestions - how to get there
Museum Hours
Admission costs - due to the near decade since it was published, prices have likely gone up
Number of Visitors Annually - these are small museums for the most part, and visitors are usually under 10,000 per year
Up the Bend - What other sights are in the nearby area
From Here to There - the next closest museum that is in the book.
And other Museums to Explore in the Region ends each section.

It's a great book to read when you want to just take a day trip or even a weekend and explore the Upstate New York regions. There are some places that are rather narrow in their collections while others take advantage of quite the assortment of donations and pieces that connect with their focus. But every visitor will likely find something of interest . . . even if it's what drain tiles are and why are they being buried in some fields. (Helps drain the excess water from low spots).

There are actually 51 museums that D'Imperio discusses with a memoriam for the Walter Elwood Museum of the Mohawk Valley region that was utterly destroyed by the flooding of the Mohawk River due to Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee that followed days later. The intention was for it to be re-built and according to it's website, it appears to be open with limited hours. In fact, D'Imperio did contact all the museums damaged by those storms and almost all were back in operation before the book's publishing in 2013.

2021-115

[Fairport Public Library]

January 2018, Betsy, Non Fiction

[Mandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a delightful book! Fascinating, informative and entertaining. Whether you’re an armchair traveller or an active one, interested in history, culture or maybe just general trivia, this is a book for everyone. Chuck D’Imperio explores 50 little known and often overlooked museums in Upper New York State, an area he seems to be passionate about. I’ve never been there, and who knows if I ever will – but after reading this book I certainly want to. Who could resist wanting to visit The American Museum of Cutlery or the National Bottle Museum? Not to mention the Catskill Fly Fishing Museum and my especial favourite The Jell-O Museum. Chuck D’Imperio describes each museum in some detail, its origins and collection, its cultural and historical relevance, and gives detailed travel and background information about the locale. These are museums that probably won’t feature in standard guide books, so we have much to be grateful for that the author has made the effort to discover them on our behalf. A book to treasure and re-visit.
D’Imperio has written other books about the area, including a companion volume called Monumental New York! Iconic Memorials in Upstate New York, which I’ve also read and found equally absorbing.

[Lyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buy Two Copies – one for the car and one for home!
Absolutely a must-have book! At first glance you may wonder why a reader in Arizona would buy this book. The history of the 50 museums and what they offer is an incredible read and the book stands alone on your shelf as a great read! But I would buy a second copy to tuck into the car and keep it for those unexpected road trips that you may find yourself planning. Each entry is concise with details and expected information (location, price, hours, what to see) a bonus is the chapters describing the “behind the scene” information along with what is in the area. Unknown Museums would make a great gift for friends and family who live in New York or just want a nice read about some interesting places.

[Kevin Parsons · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a former resident of Upstate New York (and of Oneonta, the home of the auther Chuck D'imperio) I highly recommend this book for anyone who is traveling to New York State or simply interested in history. He does a great job in picking sites of interest and then broadening the view to other things to do in the area while visiting. It is also very helpful that he provides a list of other resources and books to read about the specific sites he discusses. His enthusiasm is infectious and his style is clean and easy to read.

He makes me want to get in the car and visit all of these locations! Highly recommended and as one other reviewer noted, this book would make a wonderful gift to friends and family who either live in New York or plan to vacation there in the future.

[kathyrn · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you live anywhere near upstate New York this is a great little book to keep in your glove compartment to have handy whenever you are ready do to some exploring. Some of these museums you may have never even heard of even if you live nearby but this book gives you all the information you need such as directions, hours of operations and ticket prices to have a great day trip. Two that I would be interested in seeing are the Alling Coverlet Museum in Palmyra and the Jell-O museum in LeRoy. I would also recommend the author's other book Monumental New York!: A Guide to 30 Iconic… Read more

[Gerri Watkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

I obtained this ebook, from netgalley.com and found it to be so interesting and informative.
Being from Upstate NY, I learned of so many museums that I had no idea existed and wish I had known about. Great for those who love to explore, and who are interested in learning. The book is well written, easy to follow directions to all the great finds make this a must have for those living in the New England area or those wanting to visit.

[victor harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable reading. A nice tour of many of the obscure treasures in NY.

[SilverReader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Made a list to visit this summer. will be happy to make 4 or 5 out of the dozen or so i picked. Some of them I had not heard of.

[ReadingWench · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would love to go to most of these places. Fantastic.