The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-11-06

In general and of the State of New York in particular. The Society was incorporated by an act of the Legisla- ture on February 9. 1909. This act was renewed seventeen years later and again in February, 1s4s, when tho Legislature changed the annual in- come from s1,5oo to s1o.oo0. Besides organizing the Society its founders early took means to impress upon the minds of the people generally the im-i portance of cherishing public records and private papers and their value to the student of history.
 A banquet will be given at Delmoni- co.'s Tuesday evening, November 22, to celebra ate the centennial anniversary of the Organization which was thus be- gun and . commemorative medal. in either bronze or silver. will be struck showing on the obverse side portraits of John Pintard. the founder and Egg bert Benson, the first president of the Society. and. on the revrse. Federal Hall, the first home of the associations and the new building now in course of construction.
 The site of the building is at 18th Street, opposite Central Park, and was bought in June. 1891. at a cost of s3o0.- 900. Some dificulty was experienced in raising the additional money neces- sary to begin the work of construction and 1t was not until Dean Hoffman, father of the present president. took up the task of securing funds that any great progress was made. Dean Hoff- man induced several prominent New York people--among them Archer M. Huntington. Miss Matilda Wolfe Bruce. J. P. Morgan, F. Robert schell. the late John Alsop King. Cornelius and George W. Vanderbilt to contribute large amounts.
 building conzmittee was appointed in June, 1901, to receive and report up- on plans for the proposed building and decided to erect the central portion. 1s5x1i5 feet, on the lines oof American colonial architecture from the plans of Messrs. York and Sawyer at an estt- mated cost of s4oo.0oo. The corner stone was laid by Ex.Mayor Low, No- vember IT. 1903. Since then the work has been interrupted by lack of funds; but it Is now expected that 1t will be resumed within . month. and that the first story will be finished late in the spring.
 The new building when completed will be the finest of its soe't in the country It will be of pink Milford granite. three stories high, and beside ample shelf space for nearly half a million volumes. and several special rooms for exhibits of various sorts. will contain an auditorium on the main floor. capable of seating 400 per- sons, a lecture-room. reception, loung- ing and committee rooms. On the sec- ond floor will be . big museum. two large picture galleries and a reading room. In addition to the main or cen- tral portion of the building, 1t is pro- posed to erect later two extensive | wings in-the same general style as the main structure. The exact date at
 which tho building will be finished is
 uncertain, depending as 1t does chiefly
 upon the rapidity with which the nec-
 essary funds can be secured. The mem
 bers of the Society feel that its new
 building will not only make it's treas ures accessible to t--e public but will
 be an evidence of the increasing inter-
 est throughout lthe country in Ameri-
 can history and antiquities.