April 25 through November 15, 2026
Before New York, there was nature. After New York, there will also be nature. Nature was, is, and forever will be a co-creator of the city we call home. The more closely we align our lives with the ways in which nature operates, the longer our city will endure and the richer and more profound our lives will become.
To see the nature of the place we now call the City of New York, ecologist Dr. Eric W. Sanderson and colleagues have spent more than 25 years reconstructing lives of the inhabitants of this remarkably rich and diverse coastal landscape as it existed on September 12, 1609, on the eve of a visit by the English navigator in Dutch employ, Henry Hudson. We call the landscape that became New York City Welikia, a borrowed word from the Munsee-Lenape language that means “my good home.”
Welikia was exceptionally productive and diverse, providing home to thousands of species and to the Indigenous Lenape people for 8,000 to 10,000 years before Hudson arrived. Enter to see the city like you’ve never seen it before, learn about the origins of place, and to appreciate the ways in which we have, do, and can shape our good home.
On View April 25–November 15, 2026
Ross Gallery
See historical panoramic images rendered using scientific data tailored to each borough, displaying landmark features, plants, and the landscape as it looked 400 years ago. Present-day photos of the spaces add context to how drastically NYC nature has changed, while an interactive topographic model shows ancient geography in comparison with the modern street grid.
Watch Dr. Eric W. Sanderson’s opening lecture of Before New York, with insights into how Sanderson and his colleagues spent 25 years reconstructing the features, plants, and landscape of the Bronx as it existed 400 years ago.
Don’t miss Before New York at pop-up locations in each borough. Events at each location will highlight the beauty of New York City’s ecological history with a public lecture by Dr. Eric Sanderson, a guided walking tour focused on neighborhood restoration, and an artistic program that interprets the borough’s ecological history and restoration efforts through creative practice.
The Green-Wood Cemetery: Exhibition opening June 2026
Opening Lecture: June 23; 6 to 8 p.m.
Discover Brooklyn as you’ve never seen it. In this public lecture, Dr. Eric W. Sanderson uncovers the borough’s historical ecology and shows how its original forests, wetlands, and waterways inform today’s challenges related to flooding, climate resilience, and environmental justice.
RSVP
"*" indicates required fields
Before New York: The Natural Geography of the City: An Atlas and Gazetteer is a grand historical atlas of the region that would become New York City―its natural features, inhabitants, geography, flora, and fauna―from before Henry Hudson’s arrival in 1609 up to the present day. Available November 3, 2026.
Exhibition Funding:
United States Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Location On and Off-Site
Location On and Off-Site