The United States Customs Service moved out of the building in 1974, and it sat abandoned for over a decade until renovations in the late 1980s.

In 1990, the Custom House was renamed to commemorate Alexander Hamilton, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States and its first Secretary of the Treasury.

It is also the home to the National Archives in New York City.

The Alexander Hamilton Customs House, now the National Museum of the American Indian, is a Beaux-Arts building designed by Cass Gilbert and erected 1899-1907. When the Federal Government established income tax in 1913, the Customs House became the country's largest collector. The facade's grand sculptures by Daniel Chester French, who also sculpted the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, represent the four continents, their whiteness providing a rich counterpoint to the structure's gray granite. The interior, which is also an NYC Landmark, includes a giant oval rotunda, embellished with Reginald Marsh's WPA (Works Progress Administration) commissioned murals project in 1938.

The building contains the George Gustav Heye Center of the National Museum of the American Indian, as well as the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.The National Museum of the American Indian is the first national museum dedicated to the preservation, study, and exhibition of the life, languages, literature, history, and arts of Native Americans. Established by an act of Congress in 1989, the museum works in collaboration with the Native peoples of the Western Hemisphere to protect and foster their cultures by reaffirming traditions and beliefs, encouraging contemporary artistic expression, and providing a platform of engagement for the Indian voice.

The building sits on the site of Fort Amsterdam, constructed by the&amp;nbsp;Dutch West India Company&amp;nbsp;to defend their operations in the&amp;nbsp;Hudson Valley.&amp;nbsp;   the Museum

Seven stories high with an interior steel frame   National Museum of the American Indian

 Bounded by&amp;nbsp;Bowling Green&amp;nbsp;to the north,&amp;nbsp;Whitehall Street&amp;nbsp;to the east, Bridge Street to the south, and State Street to the east.   the Museum

The Fort Amsterdam became the nucleus of the&amp;nbsp;New Amsterdam&amp;nbsp;settlement, and in turn, of&amp;nbsp;New York City. Bowling Green, immediately to the north, became the oldest park in New York City.   the Museum

The vertical line shows the path that would become known as Bowery Road, but was originally the same up island trail that was incorporated into Broadway. The path westward to the Hudson River became known as Sand Hill Road until it crossed Minetta Creek, and still exists past that point as Greenwich Avenue. Stokes thinks the 1644 cattle fence followed this path from Bowery to Minetta Creek. These paths connected Lenape villages, farms and hunting and fishing grounds. From Indian paths in the great metropolis by Reginald Pelham Bolton, published by the New York Museum of the American Indian and Heye Foundation.

Sapokanikan, also known as Sappokanican or Saponickan, as explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano observed, was a Lenape settlement near present-day Gansevoort Street and Washington Street in Manhattan, by the Hudson River. The area, meaning "tobacco field" in the Lenape language, was home to the Canarsee people.&nbsp;

In the early 1630s, Sapohanikan, a Lenape settlement, became increasingly encroached upon by Dutch settlers, leading to its displacement by New Netherland Governor Wouter van Twiller. In 1633, he established the "Bossen Bouwerie," a large tobacco plantation for the Dutch West India Company, seizing land through intermittent violence. Van Twiller expanded the plantation to 300 acres, benefiting personally from the profits. The region was renamed Noortwyck and later Greenwijk under Dutch rule, eventually becoming known as Greenwich Village by the late 1600s under British influence. Sapokanikan's name faded as Greenwich grew. The settlement's name persisted in records throughout the early years of New Netherland until British rule.

By the 19th century, it transformed into a public park, surrounded by elegant residences.

Eventually, converted into a military parade ground.&nbsp;

Giovanni da Verrazzano, the explorer observed "Sapohannikan" - a central gathering and farming area by the Lenape, meaning "Land of Tobacco Growth." It served as a meeting place for different Lenape groups, including Munsee and Unami speakers, who played music, traded, and held games.&nbsp;

The site later became part of Manhattan’s first free Black settlement before evolving into a potter’s field.

A museum in the United States devoted to the culture of the indigenous peoples of the Americas. It is part of the Smithsonian Institution group of museums and research centers. 

Families are invited to an interactive story time on the second Saturday of each month* featuring a children’s book by a Native author, illustrator, or created in collaboration with an Indigenous community. They will have the opportunity to engage with objects from the museum's teaching collection, such as photographs, textiles, or natural materials, which can deepen their understanding of the community represented in the story, along with a craft or other activity. &nbsp;&nbsp;Partner Organization: National Museum of the American Indian - Smithsonian Institution&nbsp;Suggested Ages: All are welcome. Recommended for visitors ages 3–9 years old accompanied by an adult caregiver.

National Museum of the American Indian

Story Time National Museum of the American Indian

For the July 4th weekend, date and time to be confirmed.

Schedule

Native New York journeys through the city and state to explore the question, “What makes New York a Native place?” The exhibition encompasses 12 places in present-day New York, introducing visitors to the Native nations that call the region home. Stretching from Long Island through New York City and on toward Niagara Falls, it covers pre–Revolutionary War exchanges through contemporary events. From Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) ironworkers who helped build Manhattan’s iconic skyscrapers to Lenape (Delaware) teens visiting their ancestral home, stories of Native New Yorkers provide an expanded understanding of the region’s history and reveal that New York is—and always has been—a Native place.&nbsp;Partner Organization: National Museum of the American Indian - Smithsonian Institution&nbsp;Price: Free&nbsp;Reservation: No tickets required, Ongoing Exhibit. Open 7 days a week. See Link&nbsp;Tagged: Family

National Museum of the American Indian - Smithsonian Institution

Native New York

Free, No tickets required, Ongoing Exhibit. Open 7 days a week.&nbsp;

National Museum of the American Indian

IMAGE ALBUMS

1
Alexander Hamilton Custom House (National Museum of the American Indian) ALBUM

2
Astor Place ALBUM

3
Sapohanikan ALBUM

4
Washington Square Park ALBUM

National Museum of the American Indian

IMAGE ALBUMS

1Alexander Hamilton Custom House (National Museum of the American Indian) ALBUM

2Astor Place ALBUM

3Sapohanikan ALBUM

4Washington Square Park ALBUM

1
Alexander Hamilton Custom House (National Museum of the American Indian) ALBUM

2
Astor Place ALBUM

3
Sapohanikan ALBUM

4
Washington Square Park ALBUM