Day 1, 2, and 3 #Staycation Albany

We now have 3 fun suggestions for days your #Staycation in Albany this summer - if you visit these locations we’d love to see your photos. Click on the links below for activities in each location:

• Day 1 - Albany Rural Cemetery

• Day 2 - The Plaza and Capitol

• Day 3 - The Village of Altamont

Staycation Albany 2020

Explore the awesomeness on your doorstep with ideas from
Historic Albany Foundation this summer

With all the trials that 2020 has brought, we know that many of Albany residents may be staying a little closer to home this summer. With that in mind we wanted to help you and your family fill your time by exploring some of the amazing activities in the Albany area and beyond.

Each location will have a corresponding blog post with suggested activities, opening times, directions, etc. We will be focusing mostly on places of architectural, cultural, or historical significance in Albany or close by.

There’s so much awesomeness on our doorstep; now we have the opportunity to pause, appreciate, and explore it. We hope you’ll join us for #StaycationAlbany this summer.

Tag Us

If you’re staycationing in Albany this summer and are enjoying our suggested activities, use the hashtag #StaycationAlbany so we can see your outings! You can also tag us on Instagram or Facebook @historicalbanyfoundation

We Save Albany's Stories

We see buildings as more than bricks and mortar - they are communities, memories, and a shared history as well as architecture. Buildings and neighborhoods hold within them the stories of the people and the history that came before, and we want to keep saving those building and stories for years to come.

That’s what the #WeSaveAlbanysStories project is all about.

This ongoing project will feature stories from the public about buildings and neighborhoods that mean something to them and we are looking for contributions!

Perhaps your parents grew up on a block you drive past everyday, or you have fond memories of your childhood in an Albany Home, Maybe you remember visiting a local business that still makes you smile when you pass it….We'd love to hear your stories, you can send in via email or we can organize a quick interview (email here for more details)

. Any and all stories welcome - let's use this as an opportunity to recognize what makes us happy about where we live

If you have a story you want to share about a building/area/community/neighborhood from your past or present, please email us so we can tell you more about the project and feature your entry below.

Broadway & Central Avenue by Charlie Silverstein

For some, a drive down Broadway or Central Ave in Albany is just a part of their daily commute, or a detour on the way to dinner, but for me it is a reminder of the business ventures of my grandfather and his brothers. 

If you were driving down Broadway in 1932, you would see at the intersection of Hudson Ave a large advertisement for a Good Year service station.  This was Silverstein Bros Inc. Tires and Tubes at 396 Broadway.  My great-grandfather Isaac Silverstein, a tailor, helped three of his sons, my grandfather Henry, and his brothers George and Abe, get their business off the ground.  You can see George in the below photo standing in front of the building with a tire in the 1920’s. Sadly, today this location is a parking lot.  

“it would become popular as Silverstein's Toy Store throughout the 1950’s and 1960’s, a time in which Central Ave was a shopping destination…”

If you continued on your drive in 1932 to Central Ave, you would also see my grandfather Henry Silverstein's solo business venture at 83 Central Ave.  He opened a store at this location in 1928, and named it "Silverstein's'' with a tagline of "Everything for your car and radio".  He eventually transitioned to a focus on toys in the early 1940’s, and it would become popular as Silverstein's Toy Store throughout the 1950’s and 1960’s, a time in which Central Ave was a shopping destination.  You can see my father, Patrick "Pippy '' Silverstein, as a child in the below image taken in 1951, riding a tricycle inside the store.  After my grandfather's passing in 1961, the business was sold to Jacob Lochner and continued for several years as Silverstein's Toys. In 1970, after 42 years, Silverstein's became home to Albany's first Radio Shack.  Today it is a restaurant.  

“Preserving buildings is also preserving our family stories, and the reason why I call Albany home…”

I know there are many in Albany who have similar stories and memories connected to buildings.  This is one of the reasons why I'm a proud board member of the Historic Albany Foundation.  Preserving buildings is also preserving our family stories, and the reason why I call Albany home.

By Charlie Silverstein