ll, from 1809 to 1816 in the
Government House, from 1816 to 1832 in the New York Institution, from
1832 to 1837 in Remsen's Building, Broadway, from 1837 to 1841 in the
Stuyvesant Institute, from 1841 to 1857 in the New York University, and
at length, after surmounting many pecuniary obstacles, celebrated its
fifty-third anniversary by taking possession of its present structure.
Meantime, the efforts of the library committees had resulted in a
collection of Americana of exceeding interest and value, the nucleus of
the present library. In its one specialty this library is believed to be
unrivalled. The Society has issued some twenty-four volumes of its own
publications, in addition to numerous essays and addresses. Besides
these, its library contains some seventy-three thousand volumes of
printed works, chiefly Americana, many of them relating to the Indians
and obscure early colonial history. Eight hundred and eleven genealogies
of American families--the fountain-head of the national history--are a
feature of the collection. The library also possesses one of the best
sets of Congressional documents extant, also complete sets of State and
city documents. There are four thousand volumes of newspapers, beginning
with the first journal published in America,--the "Boston News-Letter"
of 1704,--and comprising a complete record to the present day. There are
also tons of pamphlets and "broadsides," and several hundred copies of
the inflammatory hand-bills posted on the trees and fences of New York
during the Revolution. The library is also rich in old family letters
and documents containing much curious and interesting history. The
Society is very conservative in its ways,--more so than most
institutions of the kind. Theoretically, its stores of information can
be drawn on by members only, but, as a general thing, properly
accredited scholars, non-residents, have little difficulty in gaining
access to them, provided the material sought is not elsewhere
accessible.

Lafayette Place is a wide, quiet thoroughfare, a few blocks in extent,
opening into Astor Place on the north. On the left, a few doors from the
latter street, stands the Astor Library, in some respects one of the
noteworthy libraries of the world. John Jacob Astor died March 29, 1848,
leaving a will which contained a codicil in these words: "Desiring to
render a public benefit to the city of New York, and to contribute to
the advancement of useful knowledge and the g