Blog - For The Record - NYC Department of Records & Information Services

On June 24, 2026, sometime late afternoon, encircling the wooden conference table of the Department of Records and Information Services headquarters at 31 Chambers, where on the walls, assembled as asymmetrical triptychs are framed historical black-and-white photographs of bridges, street scenes, or graphic news clippings, three DORIS staff sat. At the center of the table two...

In my search for content that I could use to write curriculum aids, I came across a startling item in the Municipal Library vertical files: Welcome to Fear City: A Survival Guide for Visitors to the City of New York.

Beginning in 2018, For the Record posted articles about the Municipal Archives ongoing project to preserve and inventory the Manhattan Building Plan collection. In the most recent post last year, Project Archivist Amy Stecher provided a Building...

As the summer heats up, we are taking a look at the history of New York City’s public playgrounds through the collections of the NYC Municipal Library. Government reports, manuals, photographs, and planning documents reveal how playgrounds have reflected the city’s changing priorities for more than a century, from public health and crime prevention to patriotism, accessibilit...